High above the Birdcage, Buffalo was flying through the sky.
Having eaten the Spin-Spin Fruit, he could transform his head into a giant propeller to fly. On one hand, he was patrolling the area, helping Young Master Doflamingo search for the Family's traitor, Rosinante. On the other hand, sitting on his back was eleven-year-old Baby 5.
She held a wiretapping Den Den Mushi in her hands, ready at any moment to intercept any communications that might pop up, especially communications from the Marines who had shown up because of that traitor, Rosinante.
"Huh?" Buffalo suddenly heard the girl gasp in surprise behind him. "What is it, Baby 5?"
Baby 5 stared at the small black Den Den Mushi attached to her wrist like a watch. "It suddenly stopped making any sound..." She tilted her head in confusion. "Do you think it's hungry? Or maybe it wants to sleep?"
---
As the two members of the JoJo Pirates drew closer, and with Vergo also approaching from behind, Rosinante's already haggard face became even uglier.
The truth was that the two great pirates from the New World standing before him were now officially allied with the Marines as Warlords of the Sea. As for Donquixote Rosinante, a Marine who had spent years risking everything as an undercover agent, all he needed to do was ask them for help, and he would have nothing to fear.
Unfortunately, Rosinante had absolutely no idea.
For the past several weeks, he had been desperately focused on bringing Law to this island in time. He hadn't had the energy to look at a newspaper.
'What do I do? What do I do?'
As Giorno and Jolyne came closer, Rosinante grew increasingly anxious. Because of that, he failed to notice something: behind him, Vergo had spotted the JoJo Pirates approaching and had gradually slowed his pace.
---
'Then... I'll pretend I didn't see them.'
Rosinante made his decision. Just like he had done throughout all his years infiltrating the Donquixote Family, he would play the mute and the fool. Pulling his hood slightly lower, he ducked his head and silently hurried forward. He passed Liam and Robin without saying a single word.
Behind her sunglasses, Robin glanced at the man as he hurried past. Blood covered his body, his clothes were riddled with bullet holes, and his face bore obvious signs of a beating. More importantly, the black feathered coat he wore looked almost identical in style to Doflamingo's famous pink one. Looking more closely, even his height and build were remarkably similar.
'Could he be Doflamingo's brother or something...?'
Seeing that Giorno and Jolyne showed no reaction, Rosinante quietly let out a sigh of relief. Just as he'd gambled, the two famous pirates had no interest in an ordinary passerby like him.
---
Not far away, Vergo also breathed a sigh of relief.
The moment he had seen Giorno and Jolyne approaching Rosinante, his heart had skipped a beat, and he had slowed down without realizing it. In that instant, countless worst-case scenarios flashed through his mind. If Rosinante cried out for help to Giorno and the others, Vergo's identity as the Donquixote Family's mole inside the Marines would be exposed immediately.
If that happened, he would have no choice but to risk everything and eliminate these two troublesome people for Doffy. Or perhaps he should contact Doffy immediately and warn him first.
Thoughts raced through Vergo's mind. He pulled a Den Den Mushi out from his coat, yet the snail showed no response whatsoever. Its signal seemed weak, almost as if it had entered hibernation.
Just as Vergo was wondering what was wrong, he looked up again. Rosinante hadn't spoken a single word to Giorno or Jolyne; keeping his head lowered, he simply hurried past them. Meanwhile, Giorno and Jolyne didn't stop either, continuing forward at an unhurried pace.
Ahead of them stood a cluster of abandoned red-brick buildings. Scattered across the snowy ground nearby were piles of treasure chests, every pirate's favorite sight.
Which meant...
Vergo's heart relaxed completely.
'I get it now. Rosinante has been so busy trying to reach this island and steal the Op-Op Fruit that he hasn't had time to read the papers. Which means he has no idea that the two members of the JoJo Pirates are now standing on the Marines' side.'
However, Vergo's thoughts raced once again. 'I can't directly call Giorno or Jolyne over to help, either...' After all, he wasn't really a Marine. If he started talking to them and accidentally attracted their attention, they might decide to help capture Rosinante. Or worse, they might casually reveal their identities as Warlords of the Sea, allowing Rosinante to realize they were allied with the Marines. That would be disastrous.
In the brief moment when Rosinante lowered his head and passed Liam and Robin, Vergo had already made his decision.
'Then... I'll pretend I didn't see them either.'
Keeping his head down, Vergo silently walked past Liam and Robin.
'A Marine...' Behind her sunglasses, Robin glanced at this second man who was also hurrying by with his head lowered, just like the previous one. Although... why was there a piece of takoyaki stuck to his cheek?
Vergo vaguely sensed Jolyne Cujoh's sidelong glance but calmly continued forward without changing his expression.
Robin didn't think much of the two passersby, but Rosinante did. It was one thing for the JoJo Pirates to ignore an ordinary stranger like him, but Vergo was, on the surface, a Marine officer. Why hadn't anything happened after he passed them? Hadn't they interacted at all?
A trace of suspicion appeared in Rosinante's heart. He looked back. Vergo was following behind him with a grim expression, yet he hadn't shouted for Rosinante to stop, nor had he accelerated to capture him.
Something felt wrong. Very wrong. Vergo should have been furious; he should have been desperate to drag Rosinante back to Doffy immediately. What's more, even after Rosinante turned around to observe him, Vergo maintained exactly the same pace, neither speeding up nor slowing down. It was as though he wanted to keep Rosinante in sight, but didn't actually want to catch him.
'This is way too strange...'
Then Rosinante's gaze drifted even farther back, and he suddenly froze. His hurried footsteps came to an abrupt halt, and his eyes widened.
Giorno and Jolyne Cujoh were walking directly toward the pile of pirate treasure chests where he had hidden Law!
Anyone else could discover those chests. Anyone else could take them. But not you two!!
Rosinante's heart instantly filled with panic. The Op-Op Fruit was Law's only hope of survival, and the people approaching it just happened to be the JoJo Pirates, a crew rumored to possess the ability to steal Devil Fruit powers from others.
The anxiety and conflict on Rosinante's face were completely visible to B.I.B., who was walking beside him with folded arms. From its detached observer's perspective, it had clearly seen everything: Rosinante and Vergo's reactions before and after passing Liam and Robin, their mutual decision to pretend not to notice anything, and the reasons behind it all. If B.I.B. had possessed facial features, it would probably have been laughing out loud by now.
As Giorno and Jolyne drew closer and closer to the treasure chests, it became obvious that they weren't heading there by accident. Rosinante could no longer endure it.
"Hey...!"
"Shut up!" Vergo suddenly roared. He rushed forward and slapped a large hand firmly over Rosinante's mouth.
'What's happening?!' Unable to speak, Rosinante could only make muffled noises. The doubts in his heart grew stronger and stronger; Vergo's behavior was completely abnormal.
On the other hand, Vergo felt that he was the one facing an abnormal situation. Holding Rosinante's mouth shut with one hand, he only wanted to drag this troublesome idiot away as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, the thing he least wanted to happen still happened.
From behind them, Giorno called out loudly, "Hey there, Mr. Marine! Do you need any help?"
'Huh?!' Rosinante's eyes widened in disbelief. 'What does that mean? Why would Giorno say something like that?'
'Damn it...' Vergo's expression turned ugly. He turned around and saw that Giorno and Jolyne had finally noticed the commotion, and the two were now walking back toward them.
Liam waved cheerfully. With an innocent-looking smile, he said, "After all, our captain became a Warlord of the Sea a few days ago. We've been looking for opportunities to do something nice for our adorable Marine friends."
The moment Rosinante heard those words, realization struck him like lightning. His entire body began struggling violently.
'Wuu! Wuu!! WUUUU!!!'
The worst possible scenario had finally arrived.
Vergo's face darkened completely. "Haaah...!"
Rosinante fought with every ounce of strength he had left. At last, he broke free from Vergo's grip. Without even taking a moment to catch his breath, he used every bit of energy remaining in his battered body and unleashed a desperate roar:
"HELP!!! I'M A MARINE!!!!!!"
(End of Chapter)
You can read ahead up to 30 chapters on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/marvel6395