'Cover Story: Chopper and the Quack Doctor Vol. 10 , "Are You Happy, Hiriluk? Hehehe..."'
Hiriluk slowly regained consciousness.
As he sat up, he realized he was lying in a bright, cozy room. Outside the window, snow drifted through the air. It looked like a treehouse.
His body felt much better, too. Someone had clearly treated him.
Just then, the door opened.
The stylish, silver-haired doctor Kureha, dressed in her usual punk fashion, pushed up her sunglasses and grinned at the man sitting on the bed.
"So, Hiriluk... are you happy?"
Standing beside his old friend wasn't the brown-haired boy he'd seen before. Instead... it was a blue-nosed reindeer with antlers.
...Who, just like that brown-haired boy, had instinctively hidden behind the wrong person.
---
On the western coast of the North Blue, one of Dressrosa's soldiers wandered around the shoreline as though searching for someone.
Robin remained hidden in the shadows. Using the powers of the Flower-Flower Fruit, she had sprouted eyes and ears nearby to secretly listen to the conversations of the people gathered around the ship docked at the shore. She noticed the soldier, but didn't pay much attention to him.
Then 'B.I.B.' tapped her lightly on the shoulder.
'"Something's off about him."'
Robin immediately understood. She stepped out in front of the soldier.
The moment he saw her face, his pupils lost focus. It was as though someone were forcing him to recite a memorized script.
"I'll be away for a while."
"I'm going to watch Ice Age and learn a thing or two."
"Don't worry."
Liam's hypnosis... Robin understood immediately.
Just then, the eyes and ears she had sprouted around the docked ship picked up new information. The ship was preparing to set sail.
---
When the Dressrosa soldier came back to his senses, he found himself standing alone on the beach. The sailing ship was already disappearing into the distance.
He scratched his head in confusion. "That's weird... Why did I come all the way over here? ...Wasn't there a gorgeous woman just now? Did I imagine that?"
Completely baffled, the soldier turned and walked away.
---
Meanwhile... Aboard the ship sailing away...
Among the bustling crew on deck, a Den Den Mushi whose shell perfectly matched the dark wooden planks quietly crawled across the deck. One of its eyes opened. Inside the eye, like someone sitting inside a tiny cave, was a miniature Robin, her arms crossed in front of her chest.
As she moved through the ship, Flower-Flower Fruit petals bloomed everywhere, forming countless tiny eyes and ears to observe everything around her.
---
This really was the ship of the 'Antique Thieves Group', the same organization she'd overheard about back in Providence Kingdom.
The ship had only recently departed. Most of the thieves and sailors walking around outside talked only about navigation. The New World's weather was far too dangerous; even veteran sailors had to remain constantly alert. No one dared lower their guard.
Although Robin's Flower-Flower Fruit had spread eyes and ears throughout nearly the entire ship, there still wasn't much useful information to gather. She did, however, confirm one thing: the Antique Thieves Group frequently transported stolen goods from island to island, selling them off wherever they could.
After everything she'd learned on Zou, Robin now knew that the Poneglyphs were divided into three categories: the four Road Poneglyphs, the nine Historical Poneglyphs that recorded crucial information, and the remaining seventeen, which contained miscellaneous historical records and other less important information.
Earlier, Leo had mentioned a "stone." Even if the chances were tiny... even if it turned out to be nothing more than one of those seventeen less important Poneglyphs... Robin wasn't willing to ignore even the slightest lead.
---
Night gradually fell. The ship continued sailing across the New World, and laughter echoed across the deck.
Below, the cargo hold was packed with wooden crates. Robin wore 'B.I.B.'s' armored gauntlet on one arm. Crossing her hands, she activated her Devil Fruit.
Inside every crate, petals bloomed against one wall, forming one of her beautiful eyes. On the opposite wall, more petals gathered into one of her delicate fingers.
'Poof.'
A tiny flame appeared at her fingertip. The flickering light illuminated the contents of each crate, reflecting everything into her Flower Eye. With 'B.I.B.'s' gauntlet, Robin naturally possessed Liam's ability to ignite fire with his bare hands.
'Poof. Poof. Poof.'
Throughout the cargo hold... dozens... hundreds... every crate simultaneously contained a Flower Eye and a flower-grown fingertip holding a tiny flame.
Looking through all of them at once, Robin rapidly inspected every box. With her archaeological expertise, identifying the artifacts was easy. Every crate contained priceless antiques, some even dating back one or two thousand years. Each of them had almost certainly been obtained through illegal means, stolen, looted, or taken through outright bloodshed.
Footsteps approached outside.
'Creeeak, '
The cargo door opened. A man carrying a lantern entered to make his inspection.
Behind him... from the darkness... a pair of dark green eyes slowly opened. A quiet voice whispered, "Vane."
The man heard something and instinctively turned around. His face immediately twisted into terror.
"Ah, ! Mmph, ?!"
The lantern fell to the floor. His scream was abruptly cut off.
Some time later, the cargo door opened again. The same man walked back out carrying the lantern.
"...Ruen Island," he muttered to himself before leaving.
Inside one of the crates, however, the real man lay tightly bound with rope, unconscious. Fear and agony were still frozen across his face. Whatever interrogation he'd been through, it clearly hadn't been pleasant.
---
Robin's true body returned to the Den Den Mushi castle.
She hadn't managed to get much useful information from the man. Most members of the thieves' group only handled the dirty work before collecting their share of the profits. As for how the stolen goods were fenced afterward, only the organization's core leaders knew. No one else cared.
Thinking that over, Robin turned her palm upward. Flower petals swirled together, forming one of Liam's ears.
She could have spoken normally, but instead, after blinking once, she deliberately leaned close to the ear. Her warm breath brushed against it as she whispered softly, "Liam... you listen. I'll do the talking."
She briefly explained everything that had happened on her side. When she finished, she smiled sweetly.
"...That's all you'll get this time. If you want to hear my voice again... then hurry back."
Her smile grew even brighter. Closing her fingers around the ear, she crushed it gently. The ear dissolved into flower petals that scattered gracefully into the air.
B.I.B. tilted its head. '"ASMR?"'
---
The black ship continued sailing toward its destination, Ruen Island. Along the way, crew members would occasionally disappear without anyone noticing. Then, a short while later, they'd casually show up again as if nothing had happened.
"Huh? That's weird. Where'd York go?"
"Haha! Maybe he fell overboard. The first mate's gonna tear him apart later."
The sailors laughed as they walked away. Just then, York stepped out from around the corner.
---
"So they're connected to the Underworld's black-market network..." Robin murmured to herself through the Flower Clone she was controlling.
---
"York! York!" The first mate, a cigar clenched between his teeth, bellowed across the deck. "Where the hell did you disappear to?!"
"York" quickly hurried over, smiling calmly. "You were looking for me, sir?"
---
The Antique Thieves Group finally docked at Ruen Island. The first mate disembarked with the captain while the rest of the crew busied themselves unloading cargo.
Someone had already been anxiously waiting at the dock. The moment he saw them, he let out a sigh of relief. "Antik! You finally made it!"
"What're you panicking for?" Antik grinned. "Those professional debt collectors aren't coming until tomorrow."
The man shuddered. Taking out a handkerchief, he wiped the cold sweat from his face. "I was such an idiot... I actually borrowed money from Du Feld... My savings are gone. I've sold off my family estate. Every family heirloom passed down through generations... everything I could find. Even things I wasn't supposed to have. I've used every legal and illegal method imaginable, and I still barely manage to pay each installment... Even that stone, "
He abruptly stopped himself. "...Forget it. Where's the merchandise?"
"Don't worry," Antik answered lazily. "This shipment's enough to settle your debt."
He had absolutely no interest in listening to the man's complaints. As he casually stroked his mustache, he suddenly heard a splash behind him. Turning around, he frowned. "Where's the first mate?"
A single flower petal drifted away beneath the water near the shore. Moments later, shouts erupted from the thieves' ship, and the entire harbor immediately descended into chaos.
---
Elsewhere on Ruen Island...
Robin, wearing the same sunglasses as Liam, sat outside a café, quietly sipping coffee. She had left the thieves' ship before it docked. B.I.B. had flown Vane into town without making a sound.
The entire time, Robin had remotely controlled the Flower Clone disguised as the first mate using Hana Jizai. Once she'd obtained enough information, she simply canceled the clone. To everyone else, it looked as though the first mate had quietly slipped into the sea and disappeared.
Stirring her coffee with a spoon, Robin murmured, "'Professional debt collectors'... 'Du Feld'... '...That stone.'"
Beside her, B.I.B. leaned back with its legs crossed, arms folded. Its narrow eyes glowed white as memories from the Kingdom of Plenty on Gold and Silver Island replayed.
Back then, the Sea Chess Trading Company they'd encountered had been backed by none other than the Loan Shark King who ruled the New World's Underworld.
'"The Loan Shark King..."' B.I.B. mused. "I wonder if his title of 'King' is the same kind as Pirate King... or Marine Hero."
Robin blinked. "Marine Hero? Is that actually a title?"
"That's not the point." B.I.B. waved dismissively. "The debt collectors won't arrive until tomorrow. Planning to keep following them?"
"Of course," Robin answered without hesitation. "It might lead us to the Loan Shark King's headquarters."
B.I.B. reminded her, "King of the Underworld... that's a pretty intimidating title."
Robin remained silent, taking another sip of coffee.
"What's wrong?"
"You remember what Sentomaru accidentally, " Robin paused, then corrected herself. "...Actually, I still can't tell whether that little chubby guy was careless or intentionally incapable of keeping secrets. In any case, he mentioned that something had been stolen from a World Government research facility. A failed prototype. It most likely ended up in the Underworld. His current mission is to recover it."
"A failed prototype?" B.I.B. looked puzzled. "Why bother recovering something that already failed?"
"It was created by Dr. Vegapunk."
B.I.B. was speechless. 'Sentomaru... Could your mouth leak any more classified information? He practically told us everything after chatting for a few minutes.'
Robin continued, "Even if it's a failure, it still contains technology far beyond the current era. If it falls into the hands of an Underworld organization..." She looked thoughtful. "I've been wondering... could this also have something to do with Du Feld?"
After all, the Underworld broker at this point in time wasn't "their friend" Jaxon yet.
B.I.B. flipped through its manga memories and quickly estimated the timeline. Doflamingo should still be in the North Blue. After all, Dressrosa, the kingdom the Donquixote Family had chosen as their future New World base, was still perfectly intact.
The Underworld had obviously existed long before Doflamingo entered the picture, nor was Doflamingo the first broker to make a living through smuggling. Someone like the Loan Shark King being deeply involved in that business made perfect sense.
---
The following day...
A sailing ship bearing an arrogant black Belly symbol on its flag slowly docked at Ruen Island. The Den Den Mushi, perfectly camouflaged against its surroundings, quietly slipped aboard without attracting anyone's attention.
Half a day later, the black Belly ship departed once more.
Robin leaned comfortably against the entrance wall of the tiny castle inside the Den Den Mushi's eye, one hand holding a cup of coffee. Meanwhile, part of her attention remained focused on the countless Flower Ears she had grown outside, listening to the conversations of those so-called professional debt collectors.
"They destroyed one of our branches back in Paradise."
"Giorno and his crew really had the guts to come to the New World."
"I heard Big Mom's not too happy with the JoJo Pirates either."
"Those two had better pray they don't run into anyone from the Big Mom Pirates. Heh... if they do..."
"Big Mom?" Another man sounded surprised. "Why would she have a problem with them?"
"Obviously because of what happened during the Swordsman Tournament."
Robin leaned against Vane's right eye, quietly sipping her coffee while calmly listening.
---
Interest Island
Violent winds howled across the sea. Dark storm clouds covered the sky as thunder rumbled overhead. One look was enough to tell anyone this wasn't a pleasant place.
From afar, the island sat amid dangerous waters and unstable magnetic fields. Towering above everything else was a gigantic building shaped like an enormous Belly coin. Its design was almost laughably gaudy, yet somehow carried an oddly straightforward charm.
The ship flying the black Belly flag slowly sailed into the harbor deep within the island. Before it reached port, a Den Den Mushi, perfectly blending into the sea and sky, quietly "flew" away from the ship.
---
'Pop.'
Robin stepped out from the Den Den Mushi's tiny castle. "Thanks for the ride," she smiled, placing Vane back into her bag. "Now then..."
She planned to find a suitable location, then a suitable person, create another Hana Jizai clone, and use the Flower-Flower Fruit to investigate the island from the inside.
Just then... a faint glow appeared in B.I.B.'s narrow eyes. It looked toward another part of the island.
'"Looks like you were right..."'
Several towns away, they sensed two familiar presences.
Sentomaru... and Fujitora.
'(End of Chapter)'
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