Sherwin had no idea that Shanks was trying everything possible to scout out his location. After welcoming Touma Meow, he kept his promise and directed the Dodo Advance toward Karakuri Island, Barjimoa.
"Wuwah! This is amazing, Sherwin! The Dodo Advance is truly incredible!"
Seeing the Dodo Advance transform for the first time, Touma Meow leaned excitedly over the edge of the ship, shouting loudly as he watched the claw-wing thrusters changing shape on the exterior.
"Waaaah! Touma-brother, don't lean so far over the edge, Meow!"
The Dodo Advance, who had already integrated into the main body, suddenly issued a slightly panicked warning.
However, her warning came a step too late. A transparent protective shield quickly rose from the edge, carrying the bewildered black-and-white kitten up into the air.
"How unfortunate, Meow~~~~~"
The "flying" Touma Meow cry wavered like a wave, but his little paws remained firmly hooked onto the edge of the protective shield.
"Let go, you little idiot! Do you want to lose your claws?!"
"Eh?! Waaaaah! Sherwin! You have to catch me, Meow—!"
Under Sherwin loud reminder, Touma Meow finally realized he needed to let go and fell from the heights, not forgetting to cry out to Sherwin for help even as he wailed.
Unfortunately, Sherwin wasn't able to catch him, because Touma Meow didn't land on the deck at all. Instead, momentum carried him diagonally downward until he landed with a "splat" against another rising section of the protective shield.
What made it even more awkward for Sherwin was that a split second after Touma Meow let go and fell, a pair of arms had suddenly sprouted from the shield above to grab him, but because of Sherwin shout, they had just missed...
In other words, if he hadn't shouted that sentence, Robin would have already saved Touma Meow.
Sherwin exchanged a speechless look with Robin. In less than a day, Sherwin had discovered another trait of Touma Meow—
His actions, or rather the sudden mishaps that occurred when he was unlucky, seemed incredibly difficult to capture with Observation Haki.
Every time they tried to help, there was always a delay of half a second or so. That fleeting moment was exactly why they kept missing the chance to rescue Touma Meow.
Unless they were close enough or didn't rely on Haki, using experience instead to predict his movements in advance, it was nearly impossible.
Actually, with Shermie Meow speed, she could have made it in time to save him. The problem was that every time Shermie Meow moved to rescue Touma Meow, she would accidentally leak a bit of lightning, turning the little black-and-white cat into a charred little black cat.
And...
And it would provoke the hostility of a certain yellow cat who preferred to remain anonymous.
It was hard to say which situation was truly more miserable.
As a result, Shermie Meow stopped stepping in after rescuing him twice.
"It a miracle you've survived this long..."
Sherwin picked up Touma Meow, who was slowly sliding down the protective shield, and patted his feline head with great emotion.
Between the cow cat neurotic personality and Touma Kamijo sky-high misfortune, Sherwin estimated that Touma Meow life as a cat would likely be even more "eventful" than his original counterpart.
Well, he meant before the plot of A Certain Magical Index even started.
"How... unfortunate, Meow..." Touma Meow replied in a muffled voice with his trademark catchphrase.
"Try your best not to wander too far from us normally..." Sherwin set him down and instructed: "Specifically, try to stay near me, Link, Seijuro, Suika, Huamei, or Kaido. That way, there at least a chance we can save you in time."
"I understand, Meow..."
Touma Meow replied, sounding a bit dejected.
He had originally wanted to help everyone as much as possible, but the situation was just like before—he hadn't helped much, only added to the chaos.
Even after changing worlds, why is Mr. Kamijo luck still this bad, Meow?
The little black-and-white cat let out a very depressed sigh, then quickly adjusted his mood.
Sherwin had said that even without eating a Devil Fruit, there were powers in this world called Armament Haki and Observation Haki. As long as he learned those, things would definitely improve!
Touma Meow thought with his usual optimism.
Karakuri Island, Future Land.
Like Drum Island in the Drum Kingdom, this was a winter island perpetually covered in snow. However, compared to Drum Island, the climate of Karakuri Island was even more harsh not only were the temperatures lower, but the winds howled with particular ferocity.
Even if one were to compare all the winter islands Sherwin had passed through over the years, Karakuri Island would undoubtedly rank among the very top.
What made it even more special was that, unlike most winter islands where the season and weather were confined to the land, the cold of Karakuri Island radiated outward for a significant distance.
The waters surrounding the island were choked with thick ice floes, making it impossible for ordinary pirates to approach without an icebreaker.
This was one of the reasons why, despite Baldimore widespread fame, few pirates ever tried to target it.
As for the other reason, it was naturally because the World Government maintained a garrison here no smaller than that of a standard Marine branch.
When Vegapunk accepted the World Government recruitment, one of his conditions was the protection of his hometown.
Moreover, even if he hadn't requested it, the Marines would have been stationed there anyway. After all, his former residence and laboratory were located on the island, and even if the World Government didn't need them, they certainly didn't want them falling into anyone else hands.
However, just like the abandoned Punk Hazard, while the World Government valued the site, they didn't value it that much.
Given the natural climate barrier, the strength and quality of the Marines on the island weren't particularly high. Otherwise, in the original story, Franky wouldn't have been able to cause such a ruckus without being caught—they hadn't even managed to figure out exactly who he was.
Although the Hunter group was strong enough to simply stroll onto the island without the Marines being able to stop them, Sherwin had recently caused a major incident at Mary Geoise.
If he were to appear in a sensitive location right now, even if Aokiji were reluctant, the World Government would force him to send reinforcements.
They were only here to browse Vegapunk notes, so the less noise they made, the better. Thus, Sherwin had the Dodo Advance switch to Ceadeus mode from a distance, quietly submerged, and sneaked toward the vicinity of island...
Only to be blocked by the ice floes overhead.
Fortunately, such a small problem meant nothing to the Hunter group. There were far too many ways to break through the ice. Since Sherwin didn't want to cause too much of a stir, he ultimately chose to have Klee Meow burn a hole through it.
And when they made landfall, Sherwin did not bring too many people or Felynes with him...
Purah Meow was the primary focus, so she naturally had to come along. Haibara Meow was the only one capable of offering actual assistance, so she was a must-include as well.
Klee Meow was not only their lucky star but also a walking heater, so there was no way she'd be left behind. Robin was deeply interested in the history of this country and followed along, and finally, Link Meow—possessing the largest spatial backpack—was added to the group as the porter.
The remaining members of the Investigation Team were left on standby aboard the Dodo Advance.