Chapter 57: Heading to Rainbase

Chapter 57: Chapter 57: Heading to Rainbase Chapter 57: Heading to Rainbase "Understood. Prepare to depart when ready." Smoker turned his head aside, giving a simple reply to the soldier. "First, head to Rainbase to collect criminal evidence, then escort Crocodile to Impel Down." "What about the Straw Hat crew...?" "...Let them go for now." "Yes, sir!" After the soldier left, Smoker resumed his expression of utter boredom, staring blankly at the sky. Upon learning the truth from Vivi, his feelings were incredibly complex. A pirate acknowledged by the World Government attempting to overthrow a kingdom – that part didn’t surprise him. He had never trusted these Warlords. But the actions of the Straw Hat crew baffled him completely. He couldn’t help but recall seeing the Straw Hat kid laughing heartily on the execution platform back in Loguetown as Smoker himself rushed out on his Billower Bike. Tap tap tap... A figure in red walked over, stopping beside Smoker. Pink hair brushed behind her ear, Hina looked somewhat displeased, her eyes cold. "You damn Smoker! What kind of crappy intel did you give?" "What’s wrong?" Smoker asked coolly, glancing sideways only to notice Hina’s usually immaculate clothes were now covered in dust. "There’s a Haki user among the Straw Hat crew." Hina lit a cigarette, then continued irritably, "Hina got sent flying in the first exchange! How is that ’weak’ like you said before?" "Ah, well, you look fine now." "Hina is very angry right now!" Smoker’s usual aloofness only fueled Hina’s dissatisfaction further. Hands on her hips, she scolded: "Every time, I have to clean up this kind of mess for you, bastard! It’s really troublesome, you know!" "There’s more than one," Smoker said, ignoring Hina’s outburst and continuing his own train of thought. "According to the intel from the Princess of Alabasta, there are two Haki users on their ship." "Blue Ogre and Red Ogre. They’re brothers. Crocodile was defeated by them and the Straw Hat kid." (Vivi knew Reiner intentionally hid his strength, diverting attention onto his undead. So, back in the tomb, she went along with it, focusing her explanation to Smoker primarily on the Blue and Red Ogres.) "Two?" Hina was slightly surprised. With that kind of strength in the first half of the Grand Line, they could practically dominate. Finding even ten people capable of defeating them would likely be impossible. She frowned. "The Marine branches in Paradise definitely can’t handle them." "Mm. We’ll see what Headquarters says," Smoker pulled a cigar from the band on his arm, bit down on it, and lit up. "After pulling off something this big, they’ll probably send someone to handle it." "Not necessarily. Headquarters is focused on other matters recently," Hina countered. "You haven’t been stationed at HQ for several years. Lately, the Whitebeard Pirates have been making significant moves in the New World." Hearing this, Smoker couldn’t help but turn his head, looking curiously at Hina. "Whitebeard?" "Mm. A crewmate named Teach killed his commander, defected, and entered the first half of the Grand Line," Hina said, taking the cigarette from her lips. "He attacked Drum Island a few months ago. The Second Division Commander, Portgas D. Ace, is pursuing him and has also entered Paradise..." Meanwhile, inside the Royal Palace, Pell led Reiner and the crew towards the audience hall. Walking through the palace corridors, the crew looked around constantly, observing their surroundings. "This is my first time inside a palace!" "It’s even more extravagant than Kaya’s place!" Although there weren’t the expected luxury goods or artworks, the grand murals and architectural carvings still highlighted the royalty’s venerable status and lofty position. Truly worthy of a royal family with centuries of heritage, Reiner thought, lamenting inwardly that palaces couldn’t be sold for cash. No, no! Reiner shook the strange thought from his head. If I keep thinking like this, I’m going to turn into Nami. Soon, under Pell’s guidance, they arrived before a room. Guards pushed open a huge, arched stone door. Upon entering, the first thing that met their eyes was a dining table stretching several tens of meters long, carved remarkably from a single, complete slab of bluestone. The table was laden with all sorts of food and fine wine. Vivi and Cobra were already seated, having waited for some time. However, what surprised Reiner and the crew was— "ZORO!!!" "How did you get here?!" "Damn Moss Head! Was it really that hard just to follow me!?" Sanji yelled. Zoro was already seated and dining, holding a cup of wine and eating by himself. "Don’t know. Just kept walking and ended up here," Zoro replied calmly, looking at the arriving group. "Saw the booze and just started drinking. Only realized this was Vivi’s home when she came in just now." Nearby, Vivi looked awkward upon hearing this; she hadn’t expected to meet Zoro again under these circumstances either. "Meat! Meat! Meat!" Luffy was already starving and couldn’t care less about decorum. He leaped directly onto the table and began devouring food like a whirlwind sweeping away leftovers. He picked up entire plates, tipping the contents directly into his mouth, chewing briefly before swallowing everything down. "Wait, Luffy! Leave some for us!" "He’s going to eat everything himself!" "Quick, grab some food! Or there’ll be none left!" The group completely abandoned any semblance of etiquette, wolfing down food and scrambling amongst themselves. In the magnificent and stately audience hall, everything exuded elegance and nobility – except for them at the dining table, sticking out like sore thumbs. Even the guards standing nearby couldn’t bear to watch. Since entering the Royal Palace, they had never witnessed such a scene. This was the audience hall, normally used only to entertain esteemed guests! "Aren’t they being a bit excessive?" "More than excessive! It’s disgraceful!" "They’re like starving ghosts reincarnated!" The soldiers all gritted their teeth, muttering resentfully amongst themselves. They couldn’t believe the King, normally so mindful of propriety, would host guests like these. After eating enough to satisfy his hunger, Reiner slowed down and began contemplating other matters. Where did Robin go? In the original story, after discovering the Alabasta Poneglyph lacked the Void Century history she sought, combined with being severely injured by Crocodile, she fell into despair and contemplated suicide. He was busy getting Crocodile’s template earlier and hadn’t noticed Robin leaving. Where would she go now? After pondering for a moment, Reiner decided to check Rainbase. That was Baroque Works’ previous headquarters. Robin probably didn’t have anywhere else to go in Alabasta. And there should be quite a bit of money there, right? Crocodile was pretty skilled at running businesses. Now that he had the hawk summon created from Pell’s template, he could fly directly across the Sandora River; a round trip wouldn’t take too long. Shaking off his thoughts, Reiner prepared to continue eating, only to look down at his completely empty bowl... Huh??? Where’s my meat?? "Hey Luffy! Stealing food right out of my bowl is going too far!" Reiner yelled. He grabbed onto a hovering ox leg, engaging in a tug-of-war with a hand stretching from far across the table. "Mmphh~~" Luffy, mouth stuffed, was surprised he couldn’t pull the leg away. When did Reiner get this strong? Ah well, forget it, I’ll steal someone else’s. The audience hall remained filled with boisterous noise. After eating their fill, Luffy and Usopp stood on the table and began performing antics. Their performance elicited roars of laughter, even drawing chuckles from the initially disdainful guards. Eventually, even Chopper was pulled into their shenanigans, looking completely corrupted. Nami watched helplessly, wondering if the cute Chopper was gone forever. After the banquet ended, the sky had completely darkened. On a terrace extending from the side of the Royal Palace... Reiner summoned the hawk created from Pell’s template and jumped onto its back, flying straight west towards Rainbase. (End of this Chapter) ♧♧♧ -> SUPPORT ME WITH POWER STONE -> FOR EVERY 200 PS = BOUNS Chapter ♧♧♧ -> 15 Advanced Chapters Now Available on Patreon!! -> https://www.patreon.com/c/Segais (Just remove the hyphen to access patreon normally) If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that’s help the story a lot Thank you