On a small boat sailing from East Blue toward Reverse Mountain, Luffy, who had been tied up with rope, stared wide-eyed at the three people on board.
At only thirteen years old, Luffy could not understand why these three had suddenly kidnapped him.
After flopping around on the deck like a dying fish a few times, he gave up struggling and kept making muffled noises instead.
Unfortunately, with cloth tied over his mouth and another piece stuffed inside it, he could not say a word.
The three people on the boat silently steered the small vessel.
"Vice Admiral Garp will know about this. He won't let us off."
Kalifa suddenly spoke, and Luffy's eyes widened.
He had heard his grandpa's name. Were these people after his grandpa?
"We already agreed on this, didn't we? If we didn't come, we'd have to face Cyrus. Besides, all we have to do this time is send this kid to Sky Island, and the mission is complete."
Rob Lucci turned and glanced at Luffy, his tone extremely cold.
Kalifa's expression stiffened.
If she had a choice, she did not want to face either Cyrus or Garp.
Who could have guessed that on their first mission, they would run straight into top-tier monsters of the sea?
"By now, the news of his disappearance has definitely reached Vice Admiral Garp."
Kaku stretched his neck out, swept it around once, then pulled it back as he reminded Lucci.
"I know. That's why I didn't touch the people in that village. I only took the kid."
Rob Lucci nodded lightly.
Since they had not killed anyone, and the kid was still alive, even if Garp blocked them later, there would still be room to maneuver.
Of course, the best-case scenario was that they successfully reached Sky Island, delivered the kid there, and quietly left.
After that, they could stay out of the matter.
Whatever happened afterward would be between Cyrus, Garp, and the others.
It would have nothing to do with small fry like them.
"That would be best."
Kalifa let out a breath of relief.
"Something major has happened in the Holy Land too. They probably won't pay attention to us right now. Finish this matter properly, then return as quickly as possible."
After Lucci spoke, his hands moved faster.
"Kid, you heard us. We won't hurt you, so you'd better behave."
Kaku looked at Luffy, who was still flopping around like a fish on the deck, his tone rather unfriendly.
"Mmph! Mmph!"
Luffy shook his head desperately.
"Kalifa, see what he wants to say."
Rob Lucci waved a hand.
Hearing this, Kalifa removed the cloth tied over Luffy's mouth.
"Cough, cough! You don't need to send me there! I'll go myself!"
Luffy's first sentence made all three of them freeze.
"I made a promise with Shanks! I'm definitely going out to sea! I'm going to become Pirate King!"
Luffy's words left all three of them with dark lines practically forming across their faces.
Another guy who wanted to become Pirate King.
But Shanks?
"Red-Haired Shanks?"
Naturally, the three of them had heard of Red-Haired Shanks.
After all, he was one of the few great pirates on this sea.
"That's right! Shanks! I made a promise with him!"
Luffy's eyes were wide open, his face full of stubborn determination.
Kalifa, Kaku, and Lucci exchanged looks, all feeling that the situation had become troublesome again.
As expected of Vice Admiral Garp's grandson, and someone Cyrus had his eye on.
"Kid, do you even know where Sky Island is?"
Rob Lucci found this whole thing troublesome. Since the kid wanted to go himself, then fine, let him go himself.
"Huh? Sky Island? What's that? Can you eat it?"
Luffy froze when he heard that.
"Did you not hear anything we just said?"
Kalifa was somewhat surprised by Luffy's confusion.
Their earlier conversation had not avoided this kid at all. Even an idiot should have understood at least some of it.
"What did you say?"
Luffy's tied-up arm stretched out, and under their gazes, he used his elongated hand to scratch his hair, looking completely lost.
"Our mission is to send you to Sky Island. As for what you do afterward, that has nothing to do with us."
Rob Lucci looked at Luffy's expression and gave Kalifa a signal.
Then, despite Luffy's intense resistance, his mouth was sealed again.
"Let's move as fast as possible."
The boat picked up speed.
Before long, Reverse Mountain's upward canal was already in sight.
But when they saw the dozen or so Marine warships below, the three of them froze for a moment before their expressions turned grave.
The three exchanged looks, then stood up one after another.
It seemed they would have to break through.
At that moment, a mass of white smoke rose from one of the warships.
"Smoker?"
Seeing the white smoke, Rob Lucci spoke in a low voice.
There were very few Logia users in the Marines, so naturally, they drew attention.
Although Smoker's current rank was not high, as a Logia ability user, the moment he used his power, Rob Lucci recognized him.
"I'll handle him. You two take this kid and pass straight through."
The moment Rob Lucci finished speaking, he had already leapt into the air, stepping with Moonwalk toward the place where the smoke was rising.
"According to the intelligence, Smoker should be in Paradise. Why did he return to East Blue?"
Kalifa spoke quietly as she and Kaku continued steering the small boat forward.
"Who knows? The Marines can freely pass through the Calm Belt. Maybe something happened, so he returned."
...
Smoker's expression was anything but friendly as he stared at the figure approaching through the air with Moonwalk, thick smoke rolling off his body.
He had only just entered Paradise and had been planning to use the opportunity to clean up some pirates there, only to receive this order instead.
And as it turned out, he had actually managed to intercept the target.
However, the people who had abducted Vice Admiral Garp's family did not seem to have simple identities.
Rokushiki was passed down within the Marines. Of course, it was not impossible for it to spread outside, but Smoker did not believe things could be that coincidental.
So, was the other party from the Marines?
Or one of the World Government's dogs?
Smoker raised his hand and gripped his seven-foot jitte, a weapon he had only recently applied for and received.
It was made entirely of Seastone.
"Take the men and stop that ship. I'll go bring that guy down." Smoker spoke without turning his head.
"Yes, sir!"
Behind him, a much younger Tashigi gave a military salute.
Seeing Smoker turn into smoke and fly toward the incoming figure, she immediately turned and gave the order to intercept.
Although she had only recently become Smoker's adjutant, Tashigi had adapted quite quickly.
Besides, interception was something the Marines were more than familiar with.
After all, they had dealt with plenty of pirates before.
The only difference this time was that they could not use cannon fire.
Leaving aside Tashigi commanding the Marines to intercept the boat, Smoker flew up and blocked Rob Lucci, who was stepping through the air with Moonwalk.
"White Hunter Smoker. This is a classified World Government mission. Are you going to interfere?"
Rob Lucci stepped on the air and stared at Smoker, his tone rather unfriendly.
The moment Smoker heard him, his brows immediately furrowed.
Just as he had thought. His guess had come true. These people really were World Government dogs.
"Leave the person behind."
After a brief moment of thought, Smoker spoke directly.
Even if he could let these people go, Vice Admiral Garp's family had to stay.
"Looks like you're determined to get in the way."
Rob Lucci raised his hand, and Armament Haki wrapped around it.
'So he's an elite.'
Sensing the Armament Haki coiling around Lucci's hand, Smoker's expression turned serious.
There were quite a few people on the sea who had mastered Haki, but for Rob Lucci to possess it at his age and use it so skillfully meant his status within the World Government was probably that of an elite.
Even so, Smoker had to keep the person here.
As for the World Government's blame, Vice Admiral Garp would surely hold it back.
"White Blow!"
With that thought, Smoker attacked directly.
White smoke condensed into an enormous fist and smashed toward Rob Lucci.
"Soru!"
Rob Lucci's figure blurred, and in the next instant, he was already beside Smoker. He raised a finger and stabbed toward Smoker's neck.
"White Vine!"
The punch just now had only been a probe.
The instant Rob Lucci arrived at his side, smoke surged from Smoker's body and turned into several white vines that twisted toward Lucci.
"Naive."
Seeing this, Rob Lucci gave a cold snort. His finger suddenly accelerated and stabbed straight into Smoker's neck.
But in the next moment, Lucci's expression changed.
His figure blurred again, vanishing from the white smoke vines before they could wrap around him.
Smoker, whose neck had been struck by that finger, had already turned completely into smoke.
In the place where his neck should have been, there was now a fist-sized hole.
"Mm. Looks like Kuzan wasn't lying to me after all."
Compared with Kuzan's ability, Smoker's fruit worked even better when paired with Observation Haki.
Smoke was already a gas by nature.
His previous development of it had simply been too crude.
Kuzan had said more than once that Smoker eating this fruit was a waste.
To think he had taken such a powerful utility fruit and developed it for direct frontal attacks.
Compared with Logia powers that had more substance, smoke was naturally weak when it came to offense.
However, Cyrus's appearance, along with Cyrus's opinion on the Flame-Flame Fruit, had given Smoker some new ideas about his own ability.
It was just that most of the pirates he had encountered before had rarely been strong enough to make him use them.
White smoke began spreading outward.
The range expanded rapidly, and once the sea breeze blew across it, its speed doubled again.
Rob Lucci, who had just escaped the attack range, reappeared, only to discover that he was already inside the smoke.
"Surrender quietly. Otherwise, I can't guarantee I won't kill you." Smoker spoke with only his head remaining.
Everything below his neck had completely turned into smoke.
His jitte floated beside him, its handle wrapped in a rope of smoke.
Rob Lucci said nothing and simply kept retreating.
Soru was fast.
But Smoker had no intention of letting him escape so easily.
Besides, he was also waiting for the result below.
This man had dared to come out alone, so he was probably the leader among the group.
As long as Smoker held him here, they could rescue the kid first.
As for the rest…
Just as he thought that, his expression suddenly changed. He whipped his head toward one direction.
A huge round object was flying toward him at incredible speed!
The thing was almost half the size of a warship, yet its speed was astonishing, like a cannonball fired from a barrel.
Wait.
That really did look like a cannonball!