Chapter 3: Landing on the Island
A three-masted sailing ship slowly docked, with the pirates on board lined up along the opposite side of the railing.
When Su Xiao had boarded the ship earlier, the pirates hadn't swarmed him. Judging by their expressions at the time, if they hadn't been too far from land, they might have jumped overboard.
This puzzled Su Xiao. He had been suppressing his blood aura at the time; these sea outlaws shouldn't have been so timid. After asking, he learned that the World Government had placed a bounty on him, and it was a staggering 1.4 billion Berries, dead or alive. Since he had killed a Celestial Dragon before, this bounty wasn't actually that high.
Charlotte Katakuri's bounty was 1.057 billion Berries, which showed just how terrifying a sum of 1.4 billion Berries was. Su Xiao had experienced Katakuri's strength firsthand. When he fought Katakuri at the fourth rank, he could barely hold his own even with Doflamingo's help. Now, things were different. Su Xiao was confident he could take on Katakuri one-on-one and beat him to death. Even against a Marine Admiral, Su Xiao wouldn't back down.
The pirate crew Su Xiao had hijacked was called the Golden Shark Pirates. The captain's bounty was 11 million Berries. In the first half of the Grand Line, that made him a tough guy, but in the New World, he was just a small fry.
Su Xiao had no interest in dealing with these pirates. After advancing to the fifth rank, the rewards for killing them were pitifully low, possibly even nonexistent.
Jumping off the ship, Su Xiao finally set foot on the Sabaody Archipelago again. Last time, he had been chased off this island. Now, if CP0 appeared before him, it was unclear who would be chasing whom.
As soon as he stepped onto the grassy shore, Su Xiao felt a slippery sensation under his feet. The ground was covered in a transparent film, a specialty of the Sabaody Archipelago: red resin.
Having been to the Sabaody Archipelago before and carried out an assassination there, Su Xiao was very familiar with the place. The island was formed by the roots of 79 mangrove trees. Over time, sand and mud accumulated between the roots, eventually creating the island. Each mangrove tree represented a distinct area, and each area was quite large.
Checking the main mission, the objective was simple: find a faction related to the Paramount War to join. The time limit was three days, and the reward was 20,000 Paradise Coins.
This was just the initial mission. The real opportunity to gain benefits would come after the Paramount War began.
As soon as he landed, Su Xiao noticed something off about the area. Zone 40, near the shore, usually had many pirate ships docked, but now they were all leaving the port one after another.
"Amu, Beini, head over to Zones 50 to 70 and observe the situation, especially Zone 60 where the Marines are."
Su Xiao split Amu and Beini into a team. At the start of the world, observing the situation was the best course of action.
With Bubu Wang in tow, Su Xiao headed toward Zone 30. He had something important to do.
Half an hour later, Su Xiao arrived at Zone 30's mangrove area. This was a shopping district, lined with bubble-style buildings. The clean streets were bustling with pedestrians. The living standards of common people in the Pirate World were decent, at least judging by their clothing, which was much better than the commoners in the Ghost World.
As soon as he entered the shopping street, Bubu Wang was drawn to a cake shop by the roadside, while Su Xiao headed straight for a clothing store.
Pushing open the door, the store was small. A woman in a red dress was attending to customers.
"Please wait a moment, sir."
The shop owner smiled at Su Xiao, her expression natural, but her hand hung down near the slit of her dress.
"If you dare to draw that dagger, I'll have your head on the ground in five seconds."
"!"
The two young girls in the store stared at Su Xiao in shock. They were just ordinary customers.
"You're quite humorous, sir. I was just—"
Su Xiao placed his hand on his sword hilt. Cold sweat seeped from the shop owner's back, soaking her undergarments. She could tell that this great pirate with a 1.4 billion bounty would do it. He was a notorious madman, a madman who dared to kill Celestial Dragons.
The young girls hurriedly left. The shop owner slowly stepped back.
"Contact JOKER."
"Impossible. He only contacts me one-way."
"Is that so? Then you're useless."
"W-wait. I'll get the Den Den Mushi."
The shop owner hurried into the back room of the clothing store. Su Xiao wasn't worried she would try anything. She was from the underworld; she knew how to survive better than most pirates.
Soon, the shop owner brought out a flashy pink Den Den Mushi. Seeing it, Su Xiao immediately thought of Doflamingo.
Bruh, bruh, bruh...
The shop owner tried to call, but there was no answer for a long time. She wasn't nervous, though, as she was an intelligence agent; contacting Doflamingo was relatively simple for her.
Click~
The Den Den Mushi connected.
"JOKER?"
"Hm? Are you Rita?"
"I'm Serro."
The shop owner's mouth twitched.
"Serro?"
Doflamingo on the other end seemed to think for a moment before saying, "Oh, it's you. What's up? Got news from the Revolutionary Army?"
"..."
Just as the shop owner was about to speak, Su Xiao stepped forward and took the Den Den Mushi, a smile gradually spreading across his face.
Above the Red Line, on the outskirts of Holy Land Mary Geoise, inside a lavish room, Doflamingo sat on a wooden chair, legs crossed, holding a glass of red wine. The white curtains beside him fluttered gently in the breeze.
Still in his usual attire, pink feather coat and sunglasses were Doflamingo's trademarks. He looked slightly puzzled, his gaze fixed on the Den Den Mushi beside his hand.
Den Den Mushi were fascinating creatures; they mimicked the expressions of their users. The one beside Doflamingo's hand was smiling.
Seeing that smile, Doflamingo felt a sudden sense of familiarity.
"Doflamingo, long time no see."
"..."
Doflamingo uncrossed his legs, his expression turning somewhat grim.
"I heard you were forcibly conscripted by the World Government?"
Su Xiao's voice came through the Den Den Mushi.
"I'm in Mary Geoise. My next stop is Marineford."
Doflamingo glanced around the room. If the World Government found out about this call, things would get difficult.
"Oh? The treatment of a Celestial Dragon is really something else."
Su Xiao's slightly amused voice came through.
"Just say it. What do you want from me?"
"It's nothing important. I just wanted to..."
Su Xiao's voice grew softer.
"Are you insane? No, you've never been sane."
"Help me or not, it's your call. And by the way, I'll find a way to contact Vegapunk later. Don't doubt that. We developed a bio-weapon together before. It was called the Pacifista. He handled the human modification of Kuma, while I handled the weapons."
The Den Den Mushi was hung up. Doflamingo was silent for a moment.
"Fufufufufu."
That unique laughter echoed through the room.
...
Inside the clothing store, Su Xiao tossed the Den Den Mushi back to the shop owner.
"If I were you, I'd disappear within a few hours. Your boss now wants to kill you more than he wants to kill me."
Leaving that remark, Su Xiao walked out of the clothing store.
...
At Zone 12's mangrove area, a loud boom echoed as a golden flash dissipated, and the explosion site burned fiercely.
Dark King Rayleigh, holding a single sword, faced the Marine Admiral Kizaru. Around the two of them, the members of the Straw Hat Pirates lay scattered on the ground. Today, they had learned the true meaning of a gap in strength, something that couldn't be overcome by willpower or luck alone.
"Don't pluck the young shoots, Kizaru. Their era has only just begun."
Rayleigh's gaze sharpened as he spoke, ready to fight Kizaru. But at that moment, his eyes narrowed. A researcher, reeking of blood aura, happened to be passing by nearby, followed by a large dog that was looking around curiously.