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Doflamingo was just about to lose his patience when Vegapunk finally let out a long breath, stopped what he was doing, and said,
"Done! The first person Stussy sees when she opens her eyes will be her supreme commander."
"Oi!" Doflamingo couldn't help but marvel at the godlike craftsmanship of these scientists. With just a round of fiddling, they could rewrite a person's will. Without the slightest hesitation, he grabbed Vegapunk and tossed him straight out of the laboratory window.
With a loud splash, the sound of someone hitting the water mixed with the frantic shouts of people hurrying to fish him out.
Walking up to the experimental platform, Doflamingo arrived just in time to see Stussy slowly opening her eyes. The moment their gazes met, he didn't know if it was an illusion, but Doflamingo felt the faintest current run through his body.
Those big eyes of hers, clear yet brimming with soul, blinked at him with dazed, seductive confusion. She rose slightly, turning her body sideways toward Doflamingo and tilting her head. Three parts innocence, three parts puzzlement, four parts temptation, as she looked at him.
"Shit." Doflamingo cursed inwardly. His body was still that of a kid, but his experience and mind absolutely weren't. A rush of heat flared in his chest, his heartbeat speeding up, and he almost wanted to slap himself for reacting like some hormone-addled fool in front of this妖精.
Looking at Stussy's pitiably inviting posture, her fair, luminous skin, naturally rosy lips, the flawless curves of her figure—"exquisite beauty" was all that came to mind.
Doflamingo felt that Stussy's beauty even surpassed Shakky's by a good margin. Of course, Stussy wasn't intentionally trying to seduce anyone. The moment the confusion faded from her eyes, she immediately straightened up and bowed ninety degrees toward Doflamingo with absolute respect.
"Master!"
From Doflamingo's angle, that bow gave him a full view of snowy white, and he could only shift his stance helplessly and adjust his posture. He waved a hand.
"Enough, Stussy, you don't have to bend your back in front of me."
"Yes, Master!" With her mind now wholly loyal to the man before her, Stussy would obey one hundred percent whatever Doflamingo said.
But before the two of them could say anything more, countless cannon shells suddenly blasted through the laboratory walls from outside, all of them aimed straight at Doflamingo and Stussy.
"Boom! Boom!"
Smoke and dust surged wildly. In less than a minute of bombardment, the entire Daming steamer was reduced to nothing but shattered planks drifting on the surface of the sea.
When the smoke finally cleared, Stussy was cradling Doflamingo in her arms, while Doflamingo was dragging Caesar by the collar. The three of them floated inside a dark-blue spherical barrier, coldly staring at the Marine rear admiral who had opened fire on them.
He wore a long robe trimmed with green patterns, a purple sash tied at his waist. Long hair flowed down his back. A thin, sharp mouse-like mustache sat above his lips, with two scars carved into the left side of his forehead. A feather fan in hand, he looked every bit like some sly, scheming tactician grandly "directing the world."
Inside the blue-black sphere, Doflamingo cast the man a frosty glance. This Marine rear admiral's appearance clearly mimicked the legendary tactician Zhuge Kongming, but without the same spirit in his features. Doflamingo left him with a single line:
"Rear Admiral, you've already chosen the path to your own death. Within one month, I'll kill you, no matter where you are."
Immediately after, Doflamingo vanished into the sky with Stussy and Caesar in tow, leaving behind only the faint traces of crackling lightning hanging in the air.
As for Doflamingo's brazen departure—was it that the Marines didn't want to attack him?
The answer was, of course, no.
It wasn't that they didn't want to. They didn't dare. Just the intangible pressure radiating from Doflamingo made every Marine present feel as if they'd been locked onto by some ferocious Sea King. They couldn't move a muscle, much less launch any sort of attack.
Naturally, the one who felt the most nervous was the rear admiral with the mouse whiskers—Koumei.
Being targeted by a Logia-type Devil Fruit user like that, there was no way he wasn't afraid. Just the Goro Goro no Mi (Rumble-Rumble Fruit) alone ensured its user would never be weak.
Thinking about how he might end up, Koumei felt not even a shred of security. Without any hesitation, he immediately called Admiral Sengoku via Den Den Mushi (Transponder Snail).
"Buru-buru… This is Sengoku." The Transponder Snail faithfully mimicked a middle-aged man with a goatee twisted like ram's horns and a pair of gold-rimmed round glasses.
"Uu-uu-uu, Admiral Sengoku, you've got to save me! The mission to escort Dr. Vegapunk is technically complete, but I've been threatened by a Logia-type Goro Goro no Mi (Rumble-Rumble Fruit) user. He said he's going to take my life within a month. You can't just ignore the life of your subordinate! For this period of time, I'd like to apply to serve directly under you."
Koumei was bawling with snot and tears, describing the situation in vivid detail, but that sly gleam at the corner of his eyes made the entire performance feel just a bit too theatrical.
"Enough, Rear Admiral Koumei, calm yourself." Sengoku said. "As a Marine of justice, how can you let yourself be cowed by a pirate? We are the Marines of justice. If any pirate dares to attack the Marines, believe this: we will pay them back a hundredfold."
Having spent decades clawing his way up within the Marines, Sengoku knew exactly how to handle this sort of scene.
And Koumei, who was far from new to the Marines, naturally understood what Sengoku meant. But who said that Goro Goro no Mi user was a pirate? No one had ever heard of a bounty poster for him. If someone who wasn't even a pirate wanted to kill him, it would be ridiculously easy.
No, this wouldn't do.
Koumei instantly shifted his angle. Wiping away the tears, he seemed suddenly enlightened, and spoke into the Transponder Snail in a voice full of righteous conviction.
"Yes, Admiral Sengoku! To carry out justice to the very end—that was my mistake for forgetting! I also neglected to report the damage caused by the Goro Goro no Mi user. Please allow me to make a full report now."
Before him, the Transponder Snail's expression changed, clearly showing Sengoku falling into thought.
"Go into detail," Sengoku said.
"Yes. First, according to the initial intel brought back by Cipher Pol… After that, he destroyed the Daming steamer and then left with the scientist Caesar and Dr. Vegapunk's assistant. His threat level absolutely qualifies him for the status of a 'Great Pirate.'"
Whether the details were completely true or not, Koumei mixed truth with lies as he spoke. So long as the Marine high command believed his report and sent high-level combat power to keep tabs on that man, even if he didn't manage to hide under Sengoku's direct protection, his own safety would be much better guaranteed.
After hearing the report, Sengoku remained very calm and gave no immediate verdict. Only after a few minutes of silence did the Transponder Snail mimic Sengoku's voice again:
"I understand. Turn all the intel you have on this man into a written report and send it to me. I'll deliver it personally to Fleet Admiral Kong."
"Yes, Admiral Sengoku." Koumei was overjoyed. His goal was basically achieved. Once this man was officially placed on a high-level wanted list, he wanted to see how the guy would dodge the Marines' pursuit.
After the call ended, regardless of what Koumei might be plotting, Sengoku himself took the matter very seriously.
It wasn't because the so-called "strongest destructive Devil Fruit," the Goro Goro no Mi, had reappeared. Nor was it because the man's strength, based on Koumei's report, seemed to be no less than that of a vice admiral.
No—the problem was how abruptly this man had appeared. And how abruptly he had chosen to raid and abduct a scientist the World Government valued so highly, even daring to kill people belonging to the World Government. In every respect, this was far too strange, riddled with suspicious points.
However, one thing was beyond question: if events truly matched Koumei's description, the man's danger level absolutely had to be treated as equivalent to that of a Great Pirate.
Once Koumei finished organizing the intel, along with photos and various pieces of evidence, and sent them to Sengoku, who was patrolling the New World, Sengoku personally confirmed them. Then, without wasting a single moment, he called the vacationing Garp to temporarily take over vigilance against the Flying Pirates in his stead, before hastily heading back to Marineford.
Of course, the Marines' actions had no effect whatsoever on Doflamingo.
After leaving MADS, Doflamingo returned first to North Blue Base 8. There were too many things that needed his attention. So, after a brief meeting with Bullet, Doflamingo left Stussy stationed at Base 8, then immediately set out again with Bullet and Caesar, heading straight for Sky Island.
(End of Chapter)
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