After Finn arrived in the North Blue, he'd focused primarily on this matter.
He didn't know what changes might occur, or whether the Ope Ope no Mi would still be traded on Minion Island, but he'd still chosen to patrol the waters near Minion Island.
After all, there was no other option.
What if nothing had changed?
In fact, he'd truly made the right bet—it was still Minion Island!
It was inevitable when you thought about it. After all, Minion Island was the largest lawless zone in the North Blue, a pirate paradise, and the core hub of the North Blue underworld.
Generally, any shady transactions in the North Blue would be conducted here.
After ending the call, Finn looked at Hina. "Pass the order—proceed to Minion Island immediately."
"Yes, Admiral," Hina said with a serious expression.
"Also, avoid Vergo. Tell him that I haven't returned to the North Blue in a long time. I first fought Shiki on Minion Island. Now that I'm here, I want to revisit the place," Finn gave another order.
Hina knew Vergo's identity, so she smiled knowingly. "I understand, Admiral."
Admiral Sengoku and Fleet Admiral Sora knew that Finn had come to the North Blue this time to cause trouble for Doflamingo and obtain the Gold-Gold Fruit.
But on the surface, Finn had actually come to the North Blue for vacation and leisure, claiming he wanted to visit his hometown or something similar.
This made perfect sense, and no one doubted it.
The fact that Finn had been wandering around the North Blue for so many days without doing anything seemed to further prove this point.
Vergo had already received orders from Doflamingo not to contact him except for extremely important matters, to avoid any accidents.
Finn's vacation in the North Blue wasn't a significant issue, so Vergo naturally hadn't contacted Doflamingo. Of course, he didn't know that Doflamingo was also rushing toward Minion Island.
Therefore, as long as Vergo was kept in the dark during this journey, Doflamingo wouldn't receive word.
Thinking this, Finn sighed inwardly.
If nothing unexpected happened, this time there'd be a confrontation with Doflamingo. Vergo might transition from being a covert agent to an overt one, becoming like Bartholomew Kuma—used exclusively to maintain contact with Doflamingo from now on.
In truth, if Vergo hadn't been an undercover agent, Finn would have genuinely admired him and promoted him to Rear Admiral or Vice Admiral.
This man was efficient, possessed an excellent reputation, and was highly capable. The only drawback was that he served Doflamingo.
Finn began his rush toward Minion Island.
Meanwhile, approaching from another direction across the sea from Minion Island, Heavenly Yaksha Donquixote Doflamingo's ship, the Flamingo, was also heading toward Minion Island.
At this moment, Doflamingo sat on the deck with a volatile expression, sometimes pleased, sometimes furious.
"Have you found out? Who touched that thing?" Doflamingo looked at several of his subordinates, his tone irritated.
He'd originally been extremely happy. Those foolish Marines had actually used him as a middleman to trade for the Ope Ope no Mi with Diez Barrels.
Wasn't this a gift delivered right to his doorstep?
Therefore, Doflamingo had agreed without hesitation. He'd been very respectful toward the Marines, even revealing hints about his interest in becoming one of the Seven Warlords to reassure them.
Sure enough, the Marines hadn't harbored any suspicions.
So Doflamingo had been in excellent spirits at the time. How good? So good that he'd been prepared to pay 5 billion berries out of his own pocket to reward that fool Barrels.
At that time, Doflamingo had felt this matter was certain. As long as the Marines didn't do anything bizarre, the Ope Ope no Mi would definitely fall into his hands.
After receiving this news, he'd considered whether to arrange for Rosinante to become the Ope Ope no Mi user. After his ability fully developed, he'd have him perform the immortality surgery.
Even... Trafalgar Law would work.
Although that kid had Amber Lead Disease and probably wouldn't live long, if he consumed the Ope Ope no Mi, this problem should be resolved. By then, he'd have saved Law's life and cared for him over the years. When he needed eternal life, it shouldn't be unreasonable to ask Law to repay the favor, right?
Anyway, just when Doflamingo had been fantasizing about a brilliant future, becoming an immortal "god" or something similar—
He'd suddenly received news that his goods had been stolen!
Not long ago, he'd obtained a Paramecia-type Gold-Gold Fruit. As a businessman, Doflamingo naturally understood how important this fruit was.
Therefore, he'd had no intention of selling it. He'd planned to keep it on hand and wait for a suitable candidate to consume the fruit and generate substantial wealth for him.
But he hadn't found the right candidate yet.
He hadn't been in any hurry though, so he'd stored the Gold-Gold Fruit away first.
Good heavens, today was the monthly inventory check, and his subordinates had actually reported to him that the Gold-Gold Fruit had disappeared!
It had always been him, Doflamingo, who'd cheated others. No one had ever dared cheat him!
Who? Who was so audacious?
Doflamingo's good mood had rapidly transformed into fury. He'd secretly sworn that if he discovered the culprit, he'd torture them thoroughly before sending them to sink into the sea!
Trebol shook his head. "No progress yet, Young Master..."
The anger in Doflamingo's eyes intensified, but he still maintained strong self-control. After a period of frustration, he suppressed his rage and said gravely, "Before I obtain the Ope Ope no Mi and return, have those damn bastards give me an explanation. Otherwise, I'll give them one!"
"Yes, Young Master," Trebol responded quickly.
After calming somewhat, Doflamingo asked again, "Where's Rosinante? Did he run off with that kid Law again?"
After Rosinante had met Trafalgar Law, he'd often taken Law around, claiming he wanted to treat him. Doflamingo had never stopped him.
One was his own younger brother, and the other was a kid who'd once been very similar to himself. Doflamingo was extremely tolerant toward these two.
And every time Rosinante ran out for a while, he'd return with Law empty-handed without doing anything else, so Doflamingo had never suspected Rosinante of anything.
He'd grown accustomed to this pattern.
"Well, he left a day earlier than us. I don't know where he went," Trebol said again.
"He really makes me worry less as his older brother..." Doflamingo sighed, a hint of affection in his eyes.
Without waiting for Trebol to respond, Doflamingo continued, "After I obtain the Ope Ope no Mi, I'll contact them both and ask them to return. I'll tell them I need help with something—they might be able to save Law's life."
Whether it was Rosinante or Law who consumed it, the power would remain within their circle and could be used to save Trafalgar Law.
Doflamingo genuinely wanted to save that brat.
"I understand, Young Master," Trebol nodded in acknowledgment.
At the same time, at Minion Island's port, two figures—one large, one small—descended from a small sampan.
They were Donquixote Rosinante and Trafalgar Law.
After standing on Minion Island, Rosinante glanced at the boundless sea horizon in the distance. He shook a small package in his hand. "I think Doflamingo has discovered the Gold-Gold Fruit is missing. The end-of-month inventory is in the next couple days."
That's right. The one who'd stolen the Gold-Gold Fruit was this man, Rosinante.
After he'd learned about the Ope Ope no Mi from Admiral Sengoku, he'd made up his mind to seize it and save Law's life.
But he'd also known that if he did so, not only would he ruin the Marines' plans and betray Admiral Sengoku's trust, but he'd also destroy Doflamingo's operation. He might conceal it temporarily, but Doflamingo would definitely discover what he'd done.
In other words, from the moment he'd decided to obtain the Ope Ope no Mi, he could no longer return to the Donquixote Family as an undercover agent.
Therefore, he'd had nothing to worry about and hadn't needed to consider how to remove the Gold-Gold Fruit discreetly.
Before departing, he'd taken the Gold-Gold Fruit without any concealment. After all, it was the same whether he stole one thing or two. Since he didn't plan to return, he didn't care about the debt!
It just so happened that he was about to betray the Marines, so this Gold-Gold Fruit could at least serve as atonement. Not to mention compensating the Marines' losses—it could at least ease his conscience slightly.
After a few moments of emotion, Rosinante looked at Trafalgar Law beside him. "I told you, I will definitely save you. You won't die, Law," he said. "Look at this island. I've obtained accurate intelligence. The Ope Ope no Mi is on this island. We'll get it now, then you'll consume it. It will definitely cure your illness, and you won't have to die, Law!"
Trafalgar Law looked at Rosinante with visible emotion. "Mr. Corazon, if you do this, you'll never be able to return to the Donquixote Family, and you'll also offend the Marines. In the future—"
"It doesn't matter. Doflamingo is my biological brother. If I'm genuinely caught by him, he'll at most beat me up and scold me. What else can he do to me? I'm his blood brother. Can he kill me over a 5-billion-berry Devil Fruit?" Rosinante said with a smile.
He was deceiving Trafalgar Law so that Law wouldn't carry too much burden.
Law also worked in the Donquixote Family, and he knew that Doflamingo controlled businesses worth tens of billions of berries. A mere 5 billion berries seemed insignificant, right?
How could Doflamingo kill his own brother simply because of losing 5 billion berries?
After thinking it through, Law agreed with Rosinante's explanation.
After all, he didn't know the Ope Ope no Mi's true significance.
What they didn't know was that Doflamingo had once killed his own father!
"As for the Marines..." Rosinante smiled, patting the small package hanging at his waist. "My big brother is Finn, my adoptive father is Admiral Sengoku, and the Gold-Gold Fruit can be considered redemption. The Marines won't genuinely do anything to me. Hahahaha! Don't look at me like this—I'm actually a big shot with connections in both the underworld and legitimate circles. Just put your mind at ease. We don't have any worries now. We simply need to think carefully about how to obtain the Ope Ope no Mi!"
This was also to comfort this kid Law. Because his adoptive father was Admiral Sengoku and his big brother was Finn, he might not die after this incident, but he'd definitely have to visit Impel Down.
But it didn't matter. He could accept this consequence. It was better than falling into Doflamingo's hands.
He might take a trip to Impel Down, just as a formality. Once the storm passed, he might be able to emerge again soon. But staying in the Marines would probably be impossible.
It was somewhat regrettable when he thought about it.
Anyway, Law wasn't clear about Rosinante's two lies, and he foolishly believed them both.
He was now filled with confidence about the future and asked, "Mr. Corazon, are you planning to impersonate a Donquixote Family member and negotiate with that Barrels? Do you have 5 billion berries prepared?"
"No! All the money I've saved over the years has been spent on your medical treatment. How could I possibly have 5 billion berries?" Rosinante said without hesitation.
"Ah? Then what should we do?" Trafalgar Law asked with surprise.
"Steal, rob, deceive—no matter what means I must use, I will obtain the Ope Ope no Mi!" Rosinante said gravely.
At this moment, his expression was absolutely determined.
He'd betrayed his own brother, betrayed the Marines and his adoptive father Sengoku's trust. At this point, there was no way he could abandon the Ope Ope no Mi.
To steal, to rob, to deceive...
Trafalgar Law, listening to this, vaguely understood what Mr. Corazon had told him in the Drum Kingdom.
This world couldn't be divided simply into black and white, good and bad.
Even if Mr. Corazon stole, robbed, and deceived, in Trafalgar Law's heart, wasn't he still the best and kindest person in the world?