In the streets of Alabasta's rapeseed flower city, a colossal Giant Beast lay sprawled, exuding a wild and dominant aura.
Most of the surrounding people kept their distance, while a smaller group gathered at the entrances on either side, observing stealthily.
Some of them were armed, a greedy glint in their eyes, but more were filled with fear.
Nico Robin was inside, Nico Robin, the Devil Child with a bounty of one hundred million.
Killing her would yield a hundred million bounty, a massive temptation for them.
More importantly, Nico Robin was injured.
This made some people restless.
But no one dared to act. The fact that he could kill Crocodile, even through trickery, meant his strength was formidable, and even injured, others might not be able to defeat him.
Then there was the Giant Beast; it was simply too enormous. On its way here, it had accidentally brushed against a wall, and the wall had collapsed.
Crash!
Countless soldiers appeared at one end of the street, holding spears and shields, blocking one direction.
"Hmm?"
Xia Qiu saw these soldiers, stood up, stared into the distance, and let out a low growl.
"Back up, back up."
An officer emerged from the soldiers, waved his hand, and all the soldiers quickly retreated.
Seeing this, Xia Qiu lay back down, and as he did, the people around him visibly relaxed.
"It seems as long as we don't pose a threat, it won't attack. Don't make any rash moves."
The officer saw this and ordered the soldiers to retreat further, guarding against any potential attack from Xia Qiu.
Xia Qiu continued to wait, his eyes fixed on the window of a nearby room. The window was already broken, and through it, he could see Nico Robin receiving treatment.
Creak.
After a while, the sound of rolling carriages could be heard in the distance. Cannon carts appeared one after another, their massive cannons aimed at Xia Qiu.
"Hmph."
Xia Qiu saw this and became furious. How dare they bring out weapons.
Xia Qiu desperately wanted to charge in and kill them all, but Robin was still inside. If he charged out, he feared other soldiers would arrive.
However, they didn't open fire. They continued to wait, motionless.
Bang.
Suddenly, a gunshot rang out, and a bullet flew towards Xia Qiu.
Clink.
The bullet couldn't penetrate Xia Qiu's scales and fell to the ground with a crisp sound.
"Someone dares to attack me?"
Xia Qiu turned his head and looked behind him. A figure lowered a gun and ran off into the distance.
"Damn it, who's shooting? Gunners, prepare, be careful of the Giant Beast going berserk."
The officer was enraged when he saw someone firing, but fearful of the Giant Beast's fury and the destruction of the block, he had to consider the possibility of the beast going mad.
Suddenly, a loud noise, along with the sound of shattering glass, erupted from the adjacent room.
"Robin?"
Xia Qiu looked towards the window, his expression worried.
"Don't worry, I'm fine," Robin shouted loudly. Beside her lay two corpses; it seemed someone had tried to attack Robin from behind.
These people!
Xia Qiu was filled with rage, wishing he could kill them all right now.
Swish swish swish.
"Everyone move aside, don't block here."
"Everyone leave the street."
Another troop arrived at the intersection, dispersing the gathered thugs and securing both entrances.
They didn't launch an attack, merely stood guard, preventing anyone from getting close.
"They're being sensible."
Xia Qiu snorted coldly and continued to lie prone.
But at this moment, several figures suddenly appeared on the rooftop, holding Molotov cocktails and pistols.
"Die."
The figures on the wall suddenly opened fire and ignited the Molotov cocktails, throwing them down.
Crack.
The firebomb struck Xia Qiu and shattered with a roar, erupting into raging flames.
Meanwhile, the figures on the wall continued to fire.
They knew they weren't a match for Xia Qiu, but they gambled that this giant beast would absolutely not attack the building where Robin was.
At the same time, they hoped to provoke Xia Qiu. If Xia Qiu made any rash moves, they could order the soldiers to attack and use the chaos to their advantage.
"Damn these bastards."
The officer in the distance saw this scene and his heart leaped into his throat.
Gasp, ah! No!
But at this moment, screams suddenly rang out.
The figures on the rooftop were all pierced by sharp thorns, turning into corpses.
Then, a figure appeared on the rooftop. It was a tall woman holding a pipe. She had fluffy blue hair and wore brown clothing, but her chest was exposed, with a brown bra covering her breasts and brown straps wrapped around her abdomen.
"Miss Doublefinger."
She was Baroque Works' Mr. 1's partner, responsible for managing the B.W. headquarters, the Spider Cafe.
Senior Agents often stayed at the Spider Cafe, and Robin would contact them there to verify mission completion.
Pat, pat.
The figure descended from the rooftop, step by step, until she stood before Xia Qiu.
Xia Qiu glared at the woman. She was Mr. 1's partner. Although Mr. 1 often worked alone, and she had to stay at the Spider Cafe, they rarely undertook missions together.
But they were partners, after all.
"Don't worry, I was in Oilseed City purchasing some items and discovered Miss All Sunday had arrived. I came specifically to help you."
Miss Doublefinger spoke as she walked towards them.
"Roar."
Seeing her approach, Xia Qiu let out a furious roar.
She couldn't let her get close yet. Her abilities were too bizarre; the thorns that grew from her body could easily pierce through walls.
If she ambushed Robin, the consequences would be dire.
"Okay, okay, I won't come any closer."
Miss Doublefinger immediately stopped in her tracks, leaning against the wall while smoking.
Xia Qiu continued to wait. Time dragged on. It was likely that Alabasta had already received the news, and the Marines might have been notified as well.
Creak.
About an hour later, Robin pushed open the door and emerged from the building, her hands and forearms wrapped in bandages.
"Miss Doublefinger?"
Robin looked into the distance.
"Miss All Sunday." Doublefinger nodded slightly towards Robin.
"Thank you for coming to my rescue this time."
After thanking her, Robin climbed onto Xia Qiu's back. She then glanced at Doublefinger and couldn't help but frown.
Robin had just killed Mr. 1 and was wary of Doublefinger, not daring to let her get too close. But she had helped them, and with so many people around, if she didn't take her with them...
"Since everything is fine now, I'll be leaving on my own."
Miss Doublefinger said with a smile. "Perhaps we can chat sometime."
With those words, Miss Doublefinger walked up the wall and disappeared over the rooftop.
"Let's go."
Robin patted Xia Qiu's head. Xia Qiu immediately activated and swam towards the coast.
"Spread out, hurry, spread out!"
The officer ordered the soldiers to disperse and no longer block the road.
Xia Qiu carried Robin further and further, reaching the coast. Just as they were about to enter the water, three warships suddenly appeared in the distance. Upon spotting Nico Robin, they immediately spread out, some sailing away at an angle, hoping to intercept Robin's escape from afar.
"Marine warships?"
Robin's expression turned grim upon seeing the ships. Three Marine warships, and they were surrounded. If they could just hold Xia Qiu in place, escaping would be very difficult.
And with her on Xia Qiu's back, Xia Qiu couldn't enter the water, making combat inconvenient and turning her into a target.
What to do?
"Little Qiu, put me down. I'll blend into the mainland, and you escape through the water."
Robin shouted loudly.
"There they are."
But Xia Qiu ignored them, rushing towards the coast and finding Binchi, stopping beside it.
"What is this?"
Seeing Xia Qiu's actions, Robin immediately jumped onto Binchi.
Boom.
Xia Qiu swam towards the distance, heading for the leftmost warship.
"What is he planning to do?"
Watching Xia Qiu swim further and further away, Robin couldn't help but frown. Did he want to fight the Marines?
"Keep up with him."
But Robin chose to trust him and controlled Binchi to follow.
The three Marine warships were larger than those at the East Blue branch bases, but similar in size to the warship they had attacked in Loguetown, and much smaller than a Vice Admiral's massive warship.
It was impossible for a Vice Admiral to arrive in such a short time.
Therefore, the highest-ranking officer on board would at most be a Rear Admiral, and after she had consumed Bonis and been further strengthened, they would be no match for her.
Since they were here, they might as well become my strength.
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Translation by: randomtranslator.com
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