Kadaru was taken aback by the question. He had just been about to rebuke Gasparde for calling the Marines' righteous duty of capturing pirates a game when Gasparde brought up something else.
"Have you heard? A couple of days ago, Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Garp seemed to have an argument over something. Vice Admiral Garp got so angry that he left Headquarters and went back to the East Blue, his hometown, for a vacation..."
"I've heard a little about it. It seems to have something to do with the Sky Pirates... Those scoundrels are getting harder and harder to deal with. Who would've thought they'd run all the way to the South Blue and bring disaster to yet another country..."
Kadaru looked furious.
Seeing that, Gasparde looked at his colleague as though he were an idiot.
Kadaru was thrown off by that look and couldn't help asking,
"Hey, what kind of look is that? You still haven't answered my question."
"Nothing... as long as you're happy."
Gasparde had originally been too lazy to answer, but after thinking it over, he spoke anyway.
"My future is already gone. Since that's the case, I might as well head to the North Blue and find somewhere to retire."
Kadaru froze for a moment, then understood and tried to comfort him.
"It's fine. I can talk to Vice Admiral Borsalino and ask him to say a few good words for you in front of Fleet Admiral Kong..."
But before he could finish, Gasparde cut him off.
"Thanks, but there's no need. For me now, being able to keep my Rear Admiral rank is already an unexpected blessing. As for going any further, I'm not considering it anymore."
Kadaru's expression darkened as well.
His colleague Gasparde was clearly a man with even greater potential than he had, and he was also the user of the Ame Ame no Mi, a Paramecia Devil Fruit comparable to a Logia. Yet simply because he had failed in a mission to protect a Celestial Dragon, he had been placed under house arrest for half a year and subjected to all kinds of investigations. Even after being reinstated, he had been stripped of any real authority. Now he was only entrusted with simple tasks like transporting prisoners.
At that moment, Kadaru seemed to remember something and asked Gasparde curiously,
"Come to think of it, Gasparde, you've met Yemu, the captain of the Sky Pirates..."
As soon as the words fell, Gasparde's expression turned strange, and he looked at him with obvious wariness.
Seeing that, Kadaru hurriedly waved his hands and explained,
"Don't misunderstand. I don't mean anything else by it. It's just... don't you hate him? Don't you want to stay on the Grand Line and find him to get revenge?"
Gasparde only shot him a glance and said,
"Do I look like someone who thinks he's lived too long? Even Captain John died at his hands. Do you really think I'd still have a chance to take revenge?"
"But..."
Seeing that Kadaru still looked like he wanted to ask more, Gasparde was already getting a little impatient.
"All right, we're almost there. If you've got more to say, we can talk on the way back."
Looking at the enormous Gate of Justice ahead of them, towering into the clouds like the Red Line itself, Kadaru could only nod.
As the three warships came to a stop beside the Gate of Justice, the Den Den Mushi rang out.
"Hello, hello. This is a Headquarters warship transporting pirates to Impel Down!"
"Hello, hello. The control room has received your message. Please wait while we verify the information!"
Just then, Kadaru suddenly noticed that Gasparde had lifted his head and was staring up at the azure sky, as though searching for something.
"What's wrong?"
Gasparde came back to himself, glanced at Kadaru, and said,
"Nothing. I was just curious what exactly the Gate of Justice is made of."
"I've actually heard about that. Supposedly it was..."
Just then, the Den Den Mushi spoke again.
"Hello, hello. The information has been verified. The Gate of Justice is about to open. Proceed through immediately..."
As the voice fell, the gigantic Gate of Justice, which rose straight into the clouds, opened a small gap. Small only by the gate's standards. For the three warships, it was as vast as a heavenly chasm.
"Move through quickly!"
Led by the warship carrying Gasparde and Kadaru, the three warships swiftly passed through.
Before long, a massive tower-like structure standing atop the sea came into view.
As the warships docked, the stone gate at the center of the giant tower slowly lowered, and ranks of Impel Down's uniquely uniformed guards marched out from within.
"Take the prisoners down..."
Gasparde gave the order. Beside him, Kadaru glanced around and said with some disappointment,
"What a shame. We didn't get to see those two."
Gasparde paused, then realized what he meant and frowned.
"Those two are the Vice Warden and the Chief Guard. They're not going to come out in person for a bunch of small-time pirates."
"That's really a pity. I heard those two men, Magellan and Shiryu, are monsters on the same level as Vice Admirals Borsalino, Sakazuki, and Kuzan. I really wanted to see them and find out just how strong they are."
Gasparde paid him no mind. He only looked around, then tightened his grip on the Den Den Mushi in his arms and said,
"Hurry it up. We need to get back to Marine Headquarters before nightfall!"
"Yes, sir!"
...
Meanwhile, in another world hidden from everyone's sight, one almost parallel to the outside world, groups of dejected pirates were being escorted into Impel Down by the prison guards, while in another green world, Yemu led Ayala, Kuromu, and Lililu forward.
Besides them, there was also a huge box floating in midair, wrapped in white mist and covered with black satin cloth.
Looking at the jailers and guards right in front of them, who hadn't noticed anyone nearby at all, Lililu couldn't help exclaiming in admiration,
"What an incredibly useful power. The Doa Doa no Mi!"
"Yeah. With the help of this Devil Fruit, there aren't many places in this world that can stop us. Combined with your Domain of Death, which conceals our presence, infiltrating Impel Down isn't difficult for us at all."
"So where are we going next? Carrying something this big around doesn't make it convenient to go anywhere."
"No need to worry. Since we're here, I naturally have a place in mind for it. After all, we're going to be staying in Impel Down for a while, so we'll need a suitable place. For now, let's head down to Level 5 first. At the moment, the only ones here we really need to be careful of are the two men named Magellan and Shiryu."
As he spoke, Yemu turned to Kuromu beside him.
"Well? Can you get us down to Level 5 quickly?"
"Uh... Boss, I can try, but we'll have to leave this space first..."
"No problem. Then let's first find a place where the Den Den Mushi can't see us..."
***
...
If you'd like to support my work and unlock advanced chapters, you can follow me on p-@-treon.
[email protected]/PinkSnake (50 Chapters Ahead).
You can also follow as a free member to read a few advanced chapters.
***