Chapter 28: Ruthless and Merciless Bubu Wang
Su Xiao would not tell Lu Qi that the blueprint for Pluton was on Franky.
First, the CP9 members had not informed him of the Pluton mission, and second, he couldn’t explain how he knew the specific whereabouts of the Pluton blueprint—there were too many inconsistencies.
Su Xiao simply chose not to say anything, instead guiding the CP9 members to quickly find the Pluton design in a subtle way.
Slandering the Straw Hat Pirates was completely unnecessary, and with other contractors helping, whether the slander would stick was uncertain; it might even backfire.
That morning at Dock One, Su Xiao proposed directly arresting Iceberg. Kaku disagreed, as it deviated from the plan, but Lu Qi decisively agreed and appeared very supportive.
The final operation in Water 7 was not planned by Lu Qi and his team but by their superior, Spandam.
Although Spandam was the leader of CP9, that guy had risen to power through his father’s connections. Flattery was Spandam’s forte, but when it came to making plans, he was exceptionally incompetent.
The CP9 members had been undercover in Water 7 for years, knew the place like the back of their hands, and had earned the trust of the foremen.
The combat power of the Galley-La Company consisted of three people: Paulie, Peepley Lulu, and Tilestone. These three had some strength, but compared to Lu Qi and his team, they were far inferior. If Kaku and Lu Qi chose to ambush, they could take them out in an instant.
The plan Su Xiao proposed was this: when the operation began, Kalifa would monitor Iceberg and use her secretary privileges to stabilize the situation; Kaku and Lu Qi would deal with the three shipwrights; Su Xiao and Blueno would capture Robin; and ultimately, everyone’s target would be Iceberg.
The entire operation for Lu Qi and the others would take at most half an hour. An hour after the operation started, they could leave Water 7, and things would be much easier once they were out of Water 7.
Lu Qi strongly agreed with this plan; in fact, it was also his idea. Spandam’s plan was too drawn out, taking two full days.
Two days and one hour were naturally incomparable, but when Lu Qi reported his thoughts, Spandam flatly refused, claiming his own plan was perfect because he was the commanding officer.
At that moment, Su Xiao really wanted to kill that waste Spandam. Perhaps it was because of such a useless commander that CP9 ultimately failed.
A teammate who’s a pig isn’t the scariest; a leader who’s a pig is truly terrifying.
If things had continued normally, Blueno would have attacked Iceberg with Robin tonight and framed the Straw Hat Pirates, only moving to control Iceberg tomorrow. The two-day delay gave the Straw Hat Pirates time to react and accomplish many things.
Su Xiao would not allow such a delay. If the plan to escort Robin failed, he would face being teleported out of the One Piece world, and the benefits of this derivative world had yet to begin.
Su Xiao tried to contact Zero of CP0. After hearing that the plan could be reduced from two days to one hour and learning the details of Water 7, Zero was furious and went to confront Spandam.
It was unclear what method Zero used, but in the end, Spandam proactively contacted Lu Qi and agreed to the plan, though he threatened Su Xiao, blaming him for interfering with his plan—he still believed his own plan was perfect.
The final operation plan was finalized at nine in the morning: Kalifa would monitor Iceberg; Kaku and Lu Qi would deal with the shipwrights; Blueno and Su Xiao would capture Nico Robin.
Now that Nico Robin had been successfully captured, Su Xiao only needed to watch the show from then on.
The operation was set to start at seven in the evening. During the day, there were too many people and eyes, making mistakes likely. The sea train was already prepared; after the mission, the main CP9 members would immediately evacuate Water 7, with regular agents handling the cleanup.
All that was left was to wait. Once the time reached seven in the evening, everyone would spring into action.
Inside a civilian house, this was a residence Blueno had anonymously purchased, very safe.
Blueno was treating a wound on his shoulder. Robin sat nearby, guarded by Bubuteni. This wasn’t Su Xiao’s order but Bubu Wang’s own choice.
Bubu Wang had no concept of chivalry. If he ever showed any, it would be toward a pretty female dog, not Robin~. If Robin dared to make a move, Bubu Wang would tear her apart directly.
Su Xiao leaned back in a recliner, holding a pocket watch in his hand.
“I won’t escape, so there’s no need to guard me.”
Robin suddenly spoke, a hint of helplessness on her face.
Bubu Wang bared his teeth, as if warning Robin not to speak.
“Bubu isn’t guarding you.”
“Huh? Then what?”
Robin’s expression wasn’t great. Bubuteni looked imposing, and being stared at by him felt unpleasant.
“He’s taken a liking to your boots. You can choose to take them off and let him chew on them.”
Hearing Su Xiao’s words, Robin, who had already resigned herself to death, suddenly looked awkward. After hesitating for a long time, she took off her boots and tossed them in front of her feet.
Bubu Wang bit through the boots in two mouthfuls, then turned his gaze to Robin’s other boot.
Robin sighed and took off the other boot...
Su Xiao closed his eyes and leaned back in the recliner. After a long while, Robin’s somewhat embarrassed voice came through.
“Um... you’re called Bai Ye, right? Mr. Bai Ye, please don’t let your dog stare at me. I have nothing left for him to chew on.”
Su Xiao opened his eyes impatiently, but when he saw Robin’s state, he paused.
Robin was wearing a top and a miniskirt, now curled up on the bed.
Bubu Wang was staring at Robin’s top, surrounded by shredded shoes and clothing.
“Bubu, this is a mission target. You can’t chew on her.”
Bubuteni ran to Su Xiao’s feet, lay down against his leg, and Robin breathed a sigh of relief at the sight.
The room fell silent, filled only with the sound of breathing.
“Zzz~.”
A snoring sound came. Su Xiao looked up and glanced around, finding that the other two weren’t asleep. Looking down, it was Bubuteni.
Bubu Wang had no worries; he slept when bored, was always cheerful, asked Su Xiao for food when hungry, ate and slept, hid during battles, and chewed on things when bored.
Though his life was simple, Bubuteni lived with great joy.
Waiting made time drag. Su Xiao closed his eyes in meditation, both sensing his surroundings and deepening his understanding of the blade.
“Time is almost up.”
After an unknown period, Blueno suddenly spoke. Su Xiao opened his eyes, picked up the pocket watch, and saw it was 6:30 PM. Outside the room, the sky was darkening.
“Lu Qi and the others should be here soon.”
Lu Qi and Kaku would meet here, while Kalifa was monitoring Iceberg.
Half an hour later.
“Knock, knock~, knock~.”
A rhythmic knock came at the door.
“Bar.”
Blueno spoke.
“Rum.”
Lu Qi’s voice came from outside. Blueno opened the door, and Lu Qi and Kaku arrived on time, exactly at 7 PM.
Lu Qi had changed into a black suit and a black top hat, with the white pigeon perched on his shoulder.
Their punctual arrival indicated that the three shipwrights had been dealt with smoothly.
“Everyone’s here. Let’s begin the operation.”
“Five years of effort will bear fruit today.”
The CP9 members had all changed into black suits. Blueno walked to a wall and pressed a hand against it.
Creak~, a stone door opened in the wall. Blueno stepped inside first, followed by Lu Qi and the others.
Su Xiao poked his head through the door, seeing a somewhat distorted space inside, overall a pale blue.
After Robin entered the door, Su Xiao followed, and the stone door closed.
...
In the central district of Water 7, inside Iceberg’s study.
Iceberg was sitting behind his desk, sketching a draft—a hobby he had cultivated over years of shipbuilding.
Creak~.
A door-opening sound came. Iceberg instinctively turned his head toward the door, but the study door hadn’t opened.
When Iceberg turned back, he found several people had appeared in the study.
“You all?”
Before Iceberg could speak, Kaku rushed forward, grabbed Iceberg by the collar with one hand, pinned him to the ground, and twisted one of his arms behind his back, pressing Iceberg’s face against the floor.
“Mr. Iceberg, there’s something I’d like to confirm with you.”
Lu Qi was in a good mood. Hadn’t they been undercover in Water 7 for five years precisely to complete the mission with lightning speed and precision? They had gathered all the intelligence; dragging things out would waste the results of their five years of effort.