This time was completely different from their visit to the Sabaody Archipelago three months ago.
The moment Yemu and his group set foot on Sabaody, they became the center of everyone's attention.
After all, the confrontation three months earlier involving the Celestial Dragons and the Marines had spread throughout the entire archipelago. Many people who had never heard of the Sky Pirates before went out of their way to track down their bounty posters after that incident, finally putting faces to the name.
As they walked through the streets, countless eyes followed them. Shocked gazes, hushed whispers.
"The… Sky Pirates…"
"They're back…"
"I knew it. If they weren't afraid of the Celestial Dragons, how could they possibly be afraid of the Marines…"
"Where are they going?"
...
"The Human Auction House!?"
Everyone was taken aback when Yemu named their destination.
"What are we going there for? Just hearing the name tells you it's not a good place."
"Of course I know that," Yemu replied calmly. "But staying safely on the Sabaody Archipelago for four days straight isn't going to be easy."
Everyone paused, then listened as Yemu continued.
"So we need a plan. On one hand, we have to divert attention from Rayleigh-san. On the other hand, we need to make sure we can get through these four days without trouble. I thought it over, and the best option seems to be taking hostages. But ordinary people won't do. Nobles are the best choice. And if we can get our hands on Celestial Dragons, even better."
"And the place where those people gather in the largest numbers every day would be the Human Auction House."
At this point in time, Doflamingo had yet to rise.
The underworld of this era, especially in the first half of the Grand Line, was still chaotic and fragmented, far from unified.
On the Sabaody Archipelago alone, there were plenty of human trafficking operations. Hawkins Coco, whom Yemu had nearly kicked to death before, was one such force.
But the largest and most influential by far was the one Yemu was heading toward now.
The Grand Human Auction in Grove No. 1.
It was a massive auction held only once a month.
Many rare "goods" that couldn't be seen in ordinary slave markets appeared here instead. Giants, fish-men, and all kinds of rare races.
Because of that, it was a place coveted by nobles across the entire island, even throughout the Grand Line.
"My plan is like this…"
...
In Grove No. 1 of the Sabaody Archipelago, a towering building in an ancient Greek style stood amid the massive trees.
Time had left its mark, with moss covering much of its surface.
At the entrance to the auction house, countless guards stood watch, faithfully carrying out their duties.
Although the enormous stone doors were tightly shut, the lively cheers and excitement from inside still carried clearly through the air.
At that moment, the guards noticed a group approaching from a distance.
The leader stepped forward, frowning at their plain clothing.
"Sorry, the auction is about to end. Unauthorized personnel are not allowed to enter."
If they were nobles, it might have been another matter. But this group didn't look wealthy at all. Letting them in and disrupting the nobles' enjoyment would get them killed.
Just then, the lead guard felt someone tugging at him.
He turned around and saw his subordinates, their faces deathly pale, bodies trembling as they spoke.
"B-boss… they're the Sky Pirates…"
"What?!"
The guard turned back in horror. The vaguely familiar figures before him instantly clicked in his mind. His thoughts went blank, cold sweat pouring down his face.
The Sky Pirates.
How could he not know that name?
The extremely dangerous criminals who had killed a Celestial Dragon and openly challenged the World Government, with a total bounty reaching 2.5 billion Belly.
Almost instinctively, he started to beg for mercy.
"I-I'm sorry… We failed to recognize greatness… P-please… please come in…"
As he spoke, he caught sight of the leader of the group. Under the shadow, the face of Yemu, captain of the Sky Pirates, revealed a faint smile at the corner of his mouth.
"Go in? Of course we're going in. But to make sure no one runs away… Ayala, Kurota."
"Got it, Captain!"
"Leave it to me, boss!"
As their voices fell, Kurota, his entire body gleaming gold, opened his huge dinosaur-like jaws.
"Spore Launcher · Spore Poison Cloud."
A visible purple mist erupted from Kurota's mouth, shooting straight into the sky. It then spread out like fireworks, forming a massive, heavy purple umbrella of poisonous clouds that completely shrouded the entire auction house.
"Th-this…"
The guards on duty didn't even have time to react. The moment the poison cloud enveloped them, a wave of numbness surged through their bodies, and they lost consciousness, collapsing one after another.
"Well then," Yemu said calmly, "let's go inside."
At the same time, Marine intelligence agents who had been tailing the Sky Pirates from afar finally realized their true objective.
"N-no… this is bad…"
...
Inside the enormous auction hall, the noise was deafening.
On the stage, a man dressed like a clown spun around with a microphone in hand, enthusiastically introducing the next item.
"And now, for the final item of today's auction. Our grand finale. A female giant from the West Blue. With her powerful physique, no matter how you play with her, she won't die. And more importantly, her beauty is truly exceptional…"
As his words fell, excitement lit up every pair of eyes in the hall, especially among the men.
At that moment, spotlights gathered and music swelled.
A massive female giant, over ten meters tall, was slowly dragged onto the stage. Tears of humiliation streamed down her face, heavy shackles clamped around her neck and ankles.
The men's gazes grew even more frenzied.
Because the auctioneer wasn't exaggerating in the slightest.
She really was a beautiful giantess.
Despite her towering height, her figure showed no trace of clumsiness or bulk. Her body lines were graceful and well-defined, her face strikingly beautiful, her skin a healthy wheat color. And especially her full, eye-catching chest.
"Worthy of being the finale slave!"
"No way, I'm buying her! I'll sleep on her chest every day!"
"I won't let you men have her. Buying her as my pet is the best choice. Hahaha…"
Hearing the crowd's excited shouts, the auctioneer grew even more exhilarated.
"Then, as our grand finale item, the starting price is ten million Belly. Let the auction begin!"
In an instant, bids rang out one after another.
"Fifteen million Belly!"
"Twenty million!"
"Twenty-five million!"
"…"
As the price climbed higher and higher, the atmosphere grew increasingly feverish, and the auctioneer's eyes burned with excitement.
As the object of so many filthy, greedy stares, the giant woman stood there trembling.
Despair, anger, and humiliation twisted together in her eyes.
"Even if I die, I will never become a slave!"
In that moment, she had already resolved herself to death. Her body shaking, she prepared to bite down on her tongue and end it all.
But just then, a thunderous explosion rang out, startling everyone.
The crowd turned in terror as the massive iron doors were violently blasted open, crashing down with an ear-splitting roar. Blinding light poured into this dark world.
And along with it came a voice tinged with disappointment.
"Eh? There aren't any Celestial Dragons? What a shame!"