Boom!
Scorching firelight illuminated the sky.
Vaguely visible at the edge were two charred small dots fleeing into the distance unsteadily. Clearly, even if they weren't dead, they were seriously injured.
Hiroto didn't care and just looked at Viola. "If you have no objections, come with me first."
Viola's expression shifted repeatedly, and she finally chose to remain silent.
She had actually been doubting whether this was one of Doflamingo's methods to test her loyalty. But after witnessing Hiroto's casual Flying Slash hit Buffalo and Baby 5, she immediately understood that this wasn't a test.
Although Doflamingo was a scum and a complete villain, he was exceptionally good to the members of his family, even regarding some officers as family.
When he already had leverage over her, there was no need to go to such great lengths.
Similarly, she had no ability to resist Hiroto's will. The gap in strength was simply too large. She couldn't see a shred of hope and could only see what developments would follow.
As for what the other party said about helping her get revenge and killing Doflamingo...
Violet quickly extinguished that thought, she knew Doflamingo's strength very well.
The man in front of her was indeed terrifying. A casual strike from him could cause large-scale terrain changes. But compared to Doflamingo, he was still much lacking.
Perhaps before long, once Doflamingo arrives, this recently risen Sea-Cleaving Swordsman Hiroto will become just another of Doflamingo's defeated opponents.
...
Afterward, Hiroto returned with Robin and Violet, letting Viola find people along the way.
Zoro, who had already gotten lost, and Carina, who was on her way back, were all found in a very short time.
This further demonstrated the value of the 'Eye-Man'.
In the sky above, a giant falcon circled, its beast-like eyes locked onto the meeting Hiroto and his group. Yet it didn't dare to descend, instead showing a trace of human-like anxiety.
Or rather, he was a human.
Pell, the vice-Captain of the Alabasta Royal Guard, also known as the kingdom's strongest warrior.
He had come for the Logia: Cloud-Cloud Fruit.
The Kingdom of Alabasta was, after all, a large country with a long history, and was one of the twenty founding countries of the World Government.
While they didn't have a complete Devil Fruit Encyclopedia, they did have a fragmented one.
Since the news of the Logia: Cloud-Cloud Fruit was discovered, Cobra had implored him to bring that fruit back at all costs.
To use the power of a Devil Fruit to save the precarious and nearly collapsing desert country.
Whether by buying, stealing, or even snatching, Pell was prepared for it all.
However, the reality was that as soon as he arrived at Drum Island, he encountered an extremely terrifying situation.
A red glow filled the sky, appearing at a very close range, followed by an explosion that tore through the snowy sky.
Pell had almost died in that sudden red explosion, relying on the powerful physique of his Zoan type to endure it.
By now, he had figured out that the red glow was caused by the slash of the man below.
And that man's identity...
Sea-Cleaving Swordsman Hiroto, a pirate with a bounty of 400 million berries, who had killed Moria, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea on the same level as Crocodile.
How on earth was he supposed to get the Logia: Cloud-Cloud Fruit from such a terrifying figure?
This was the dilemma Pell currently faced.
On the Going Merry, Hiroto and the others gathered.
"Is it over?"
Nami asked enthusiastically, "Does that mean I can get off the ship now?"
Hiroto gave a piece of advice. "It's best to move together."
"I'm going to do some special training next."
At the bow, the bare-chested Zoro put his hands together, preparing for a winter swim in this harsh climate.
"Leave it to me." Van Augur volunteered, trying to show his value.
After hearing what had happened after the few of them had gone out, Van Augur thought that conflicts were still possible. In case there were any die-hard loyalists, it would be his turn to prove himself.
"I'll go too, just to look around here." Carina followed suit.
"A snow country... it's my first time seeing a place where the snow never melts. The Grand Line is truly incredible."
She looked at Hiroto. "What about you?"
"I still have things to do regarding those three Devil Fruits. Anyway, the log pose still needs time to charge its magnetic force."
Hiroto shook his head, having no intention of joining in for now.
He had checked the small box Carina had given him, inside were indeed Devil Fruits.
The log poses were found on those pirate ships. These things were very important. The Grand Line was different from the four seas, and ordinary compasses were useless.
One could only rely on log poses, which could store the magnetic force that attracted islands to each other.
Hiroto and his group had fallen from the sky, so they naturally hadn't prepared log poses, which they just replenished.
Robin and Viola looked at each other. As 'captives', the two naturally wouldn't voice any opinions.
They were simply given a room.
Hiroto didn't even lock the two up before returning to the Captain's cabin. Of course, his Observation Haki was still on.
Closing the door, Hiroto opened the box, and three Devil Fruits with different colors and shapes and very unique designs were revealed.
One of them was naturally the first one on that invitation, and also the Devil Fruit that attracted Hiroto here.
Hiroto didn't have a complete Devil Fruit Encyclopedia but he had other ways. He activated [Gluttony] and made three consecutive attempts to devour them.
After enduring the side effect of a headache, Hiroto determined the true identities of these three fruits from the images he caught during the devouring process.
The first one was the Logia: Cloud-Cloud Fruit.
Or rather, the Weather Fruit.
What he saw were images of the collection of human wishes to both fear and desire to master natural weather phenomena.
The second one was very subtle, it was the Paramecia: Warp-Warp fruit.
In the original story, Van Augur obtained this after joining Blackbeard's crew through Devil Fruit hunting.
But nearly two years ahead of schedule, this Devil Fruit had naturally appeared in a place within Van Augur's reach. It seemed that the conclusion that Devil Fruits choose their hosts was not without basis.
Hiroto looked at the third Devil Fruit.
This one was very interesting, it was the Paramecia: Clear-Clear fruit.
In the original story, it was the Devil Fruit possessed by Absalom.
Considering that Moria had aggressively come to seek revenge on Issho, the answer to what happened during that time and why this Devil Fruit appeared here was obvious.
(End of Chapter)
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