"Guys, I'm going to watch Drake practice, what about you?" Hana had a very bad impression of Doc Q. She disliked the man entirely and had no interest in his business.
"Come on." Betty echoed lightly, walking straight away.
Seeing all the girls leaving, Perona grumbled, "This princess is leaving too, I'm not interested in his Devil Fruit."
Burgess looked at Doc Q and laughed: "See? Not a single girl likes you, Wiihahahaha..."
Law nodded. "That's true."
Hawkins was blunt: "It's normal for women not to like a man who's young but looks like a dying old man."
Doc Q muttered, "It's not like I care about their opinion. The most important thing now is eating the Devil Fruit—then I'll get stronger." He bit into it without hesitation.
"Yuck~~" Even Doc Q, with his strange personality, couldn't stand the taste. His already old face twisted uglier than before.
The others stayed silent, staring at him, waiting to see how special this Logia Devil Fruit really was.
"Hey, hey, I feel so strong… it's like none of you are my opponent now." Doc Q raised his hand, watching it turn into a dark green mist.
"Dammit, don't waste time—stay away from him," Law ordered coldly to the secondary crew members.
Several quickly withdrew, afraid of inhaling the miasma and being poisoned.
Doc Q laughed strangely, coughing between words: "Hehehehe… Cough… Let's see how powerful this miasma is… Cough."
"Corrosive Cloud!" He focused his energy, releasing a cloud of poison from his palm. It engulfed a chair, and the pirates' jaws dropped as strange noises echoed.
"Fsss! Fsss!~~" hissed from inside the cloud.
Doc Q inhaled deeply, dispersing the mist. The chair was reduced to dust and splinters that crumbled at the slightest touch.
Law analyzed calmly: "For someone without Armament Haki, fighting Doc Q would be deadly—and even dangerous for those who don't have it at a high level."
Hawkins added quietly, "It's clear now—Doc Q is a First Division Captain candidate."
"Wiiihahahaha… Doc Q, you're making me want to fight for the vice-captain position," Burgess laughed. "Now it's your turn—fight Lafitte. If none of us are your opponent, then face him."
Lafitte straightened his top hat and smiled like a gentleman. "Anyone with confidence and strength may defy me. But remember—a world of pain awaits the fool who tries."
Doc Q smirked mischievously. "I'm not in a rush. Once I master this fruit, Lafitte, your vice-captain seat will be mine."
"Hohohoho… I look forward to that day, Doc Q. But I won't go easy—you'll most likely end up hospitalized," Lafitte laughed, amused that someone wanted to suffer.
Inside the practice room.
Drake was doing his usual routine while the girls watched him train.
"This place is much more spacious, and the air is better—not like the last room that was so cramped," Hana said, satisfied with the new training hall.
Reiju glanced at the journal on the table, then turned to the busy figure with a smile. "Drake, have you finished reading the journal?"
"I've finished now," Drake replied, swinging his Katana.
Baccarat opened the diary and smiled. "Let's take a look together, girls, at what it says."
Time passed slowly as they read, puzzled expressions forming. Many questions remained unanswered.
"Who is this guy named Rocks? From the diary, he seems powerful," Carina frowned, deep in thought. She had never heard the name.
Betty exhaled smoke lightly. "Never heard of him. Must've been a big shot long ago."
Hana smiled faintly. "This journal is old. Whoever wrote it must have known him."
"Ask Drake, he'll know." Reiju turned to him with a smile. "Drake, explain the diary—we all have doubts."
Baccarat stroked her hair, speaking positively. "Even if I don't know Rocks, this treasure map must be real."
"Thirty years ago, everything converged at God Valley. Officially, it was said to be a clash between pirates and the Navy. In truth, the island had become the stage for a brutal 'competition' organized by the World Nobles, using civilians, slaves, and even entire bloodlines as prizes. When Rocks learned of this, he moved. Not out of justice, but because his own people and interests were involved. At the same time, Gol D. Roger sailed to God Valley for his own reasons, while Vice Admiral Garp was dispatched to maintain order."
"The island descended into absolute chaos. Pirates stormed the shores, Marines tried to contain an event that spiraled out of control, and Rocks' own crew fractured under the pressure. Old ambitions resurfaced, alliances broke, and betrayal spread faster than gunfire. In the end, Roger and Garp found themselves fighting side by side, not as comrades, but because Rocks had become a threat too great to ignore."
"Surrounded by enemies and abandoned by parts of his own crew, Rocks D. Xebec was defeated. God Valley itself vanished soon after, erased from maps and memory. Whether Rocks died there or escaped remains unknown."
"Also Three of today's Four Emperors were his subordinates—Edward Newgate, Charlotte Linlin, and Kaido. To sum it up, he was a world-renowned great pirate."
The girls were stunned. Rocks had been such a terrifying figure.
Carina reacted first, eyes shining. "Then that treasure must be enormous!" She gestured wide. "Not just gold and jewels—famous swords and Devil Fruits too."
Hana rolled her eyes angrily. "Carina, you only care about treasure. Do you dream of nothing else?"
Betty puffed her cigarette. "This is the first time I've heard of such a man the World Government must have erased him, leaving only those who remember."
Reiju stroked her chin. "Three Emperors as his subordinates… his strength must have been immense to command them."
Baccarat lifted her crimson hair, serious. "If he dared challenge the Celestial Dragons and nearly succeeded, his power was no joke."
"Four Emperors?" Perona floated across the room, smiling. "I remember Drake saying that's one of our future goals."
Hana nodded, crossing her legs. "First he'll become a Shichibukai. Then he'll enter the New World, attack a country not allied with the World Government, and claim it as a base. With that, he'll compete for the Four Emperors' throne."
Betty exhaled lightly. "In the future, our territory will be vast. We'll need many subordinates to protect it."
Carina waved her hand, interrupting. "That's not important now. What matters is Rocks' treasure—the legacy of the overlord of the past era. Aren't you excited?"
Clasping her hands, her cute face glowed with anticipation. "If we find it, we'll never worry about food or clothes again. Fufu… we can buy anything we want. That life is beautiful just thinking about it."
Reiju tossed her hair back, smiling softly. "It's too early to think about treasure. It's in the New World, and we won't reach it soon. Why worry?"
The girls continued discussing what they would do once they obtained those treasures…
Time passed and night came, the night sky was adorned by the full moon and the stars painted the cosmic canvas giving a fantastic charm.
"Go back and rest, I'll go out and do something" Drake stopped his practice, looked at the girls, and said, "This time it won't take long, so please girls go back to your rooms I'll be back before midnight."
As soon as her voice came out before any of them could speak, Drake was already gone. Seeing that Drake had already disappeared, the girls shook their heads and smiled wryly.
"This guy is too determined when it comes to getting things done, he can't wait a second." Honey Queen was angry at how he disappeared without letting them say anything and at the same time somewhat amused at how he left.
Betty stood up and said lightly: "The strong talk less and don't talk nonsense only the weak will talk a lot."
Carina looked at them curiously, she thought for a moment, and she realized why he left "I got it! … It must have been because of those 2 dens mushis we found in the chest."
Hovering in the air, Perona said with a smile, "Didn't Drake say that these two dens mushis have an absolute anti-eavesdropping feature, and no one can intercept their call?"
"Even with the most powerful den mushis, it's impossible to eavesdrop on the conversation between this two Den Den mushis. What did Drake say?... I remember!! He said that they are the only two den den mushis of this type in the world."
Reiju nodded, a sweet and gentle smile on her face, "These two den mushi are truly amazing."
"It can be said that those two are the 'Kings of the Den Den mushis."
Baccarat waved his hand, smiled, and said: "Drake will tell us what we need to know as he did not tell us, let's not ask any more questions, and let's not talk about this."
"Okay, let's go back and rest" Since Drake isn't here, there's no point in staying here. All the girls chatted and laughed, and walked towards the door leaving the room one after another...
North Blue, over a certain sea area.
Drake took out the den mushi and dialed Vice Admiral Momousagi's exclusive number. The person on the other end should be busy, and she didn't answer the phone right away.
After ten seconds, the call was connected.
"It's not convenient to answer now so Chris, what do you need?" She was surprised that he called her, but then she remembered that the two of them had already discussed it, and they would never communicate unless there was something important so they could avoid getting caught by others.
Drake said calmly, "Find a safe place, let's talk."
"I'm in the kingdom of Lvneel, so I'll wait for you there."
"Okay, let's talk later." Drake hung up the den mushi, trying to keep the conversation as short as possible, just to be safe.
At the top of a tall building.
Momousagi stood by the railing, arms crossed in front of her body, looking up at the stars and the moon wearing white jeans, a pink short-sleeved shirt, and white high heels.
The breeze from her blows and her hair flutters, which makes her look particularly beautiful. Suddenly, with a hiss, a figure landed on the tall building.
"There you are, Drake." Momousagi turned around slowly, her arms crossed in front of her body, and a puzzled expression appeared on her face.
"Is there something important? For him to have to travel fast it must be." Drake wasn't surprised that Momousagi wasn't wearing a white cloak of justice.
After all, it is her free time since as a marine, she must have her own life and do what she wants. It is inconvenient if she wears marine clothes every day.
"Take this." Drake tossed a Den Den mushi to Momousagi and said calmly, "I have only two of these Den Den mushi on hand, which can completely prevent them from intercepting our conversations when we talk in the future, we don't have to worry about being caught by others"