Very soon, thanks to Lyle and the others, Jin's group successfully reached the waters near Auction House No. 1.
After coming ashore, Nami looked toward the massive building in the distance and said, "That should be the place, right?"
"That's right," Lyle replied.
"Thanks," Jin said. "Don't forget what I asked you to do."
"Don't worry. I won't."
Lyle nodded solemnly, then turned and left with his people without looking back.
"I wonder how Merry and Camie are doing…" Chopper said worriedly.
"I don't know about Camie, but Merry's condition probably isn't good." Jin said.
"Why?"
"Because Merry hasn't used Reverse Summoning Jutsu!"
The moment he said that, Nami and Chopper's expressions changed.
As members of the Straw Hat Pirates, they knew very well what Merry's ability was, and they knew she could summon Jin.
Yet… there had been no sign from her until now.
Didn't that mean something might have happened to Merry?
At that thought, both of them felt their hearts sink.
At that moment, Franky and Sanji arrived as well.
"Hey, everyone!"
"What's the situation?"
"We haven't gone in yet," Nami said. "But… Jin says Merry's condition might not be good."
Crack.
The moment Sanji heard that, veins bulged on his forehead.
"If those bastards dared lay a hand on Merry, I'll kick them to death!" Sanji roared furiously.
"Exactly!"
Franky's face was full of killing intent too.
"Let's go take a look first," Nami said.
"We're not waiting for Luffy and the others?"
"Duval said the auction has already started." Sanji took a deep breath. "We don't have time to wait for them. Let's go see what's happening first."
If those two had already been sold, then they needed to be ready to snatch them back.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go grab them!"
"We can't just attack directly. That might provoke the Celestial Dragons." Hachi stopped Franky.
The Straw Hat Pirates might already be prepared to fight a Celestial Dragon if necessary, but… if they could avoid it, they should. Otherwise, an Admiral might come.
And monsters like that… were far beyond what they could handle.
"Then—"
Before Nami could finish, they saw Jin walking toward the building without saying a word.
"Hey, Jin, what are you doing?"
"I'm going to sneak in and see what's going on." Jin stopped and said. "If I can steal them out, there'll be no need to enter any auction."
After saying that, he wasted no more words and kept walking forward.
The others were briefly stunned as they watched his back.
Then Franky said, "Jin's right. He's a ninja. Sneaking in shouldn't be a problem for him."
Thinking back, during Enies Lobby, hadn't Jin also silently slipped all the way to where he and Robin were?
If not for Robin being so damn stubborn, they would've escaped with Jin back then.
"Alright, then I'm leaving it to you!" Nami said.
In response, Jin only waved a hand without turning around, then vanished from sight.
"Let's go to the front entrance," Nami said. "We'll make two preparations."
"Two preparations?"
"Yeah." Nami nodded. "If Camie or Merry has already been taken out for auction, then we can buy them back."
At the very least… that way, the chances of angering a Celestial Dragon would be lower.
That plan was immediately approved by everyone.
"Everyone, even if we have to use every last berry we have, we're getting them back!" Nami declared.
"Yeah!!"
With that, the group ran toward the front entrance of the auction house.
That scene was also noticed by a staff member standing at the back entrance.
"What are those people doing?" the man muttered in confusion. "Judging by the direction… are they heading to the front to join the auction?"
"They really came late…"
But he didn't care much. As long as they weren't here to sell goods, it had nothing to do with him.
Shaking his head, the man looked into the distance and said, "At this hour… there shouldn't be any more deliveries, right?"
As a worker assigned to the back entrance, his job today was to watch for anyone bringing in new merchandise.
But from the look of things, no one else was coming.
Thinking that, he turned to go back inside and slack off a bit.
"Hey~"
"Hm?"
Hearing the voice, the man instinctively turned around, only for his vision to blur. A stone hand grabbed him and dragged him straight into the ground.
The next moment, Jin—using Transformation Jutsu—rose from underground, expressionless, and pushed open the back door before walking in.
"Hm?"
Vic, who happened to be approaching the back entrance, frowned the moment he saw that.
"Leiner, why are you walking inside instead of guarding the back door?"
Then, as if realizing something, displeasure instantly appeared on his face.
"You're trying to slack off again, aren't you?!"
"I've told you before—even after the auction starts, sellers can still show up. Didn't you remember that?"
As one of the managers, Vic knew perfectly well what his cousin Leiner was like.
The guy would slack off any chance he got.
If not for the fact that he was family, Vic would've kicked him out long ago.
Thinking that, Vic glanced around, saw that no one was paying attention, and continued, "You'd better be more careful in the future. If you anger Lord Disco, even I won't be able to protect you!"
"Hm?"
"Why aren't you saying anything?"
Seeing "Leiner" simply staring at him expressionlessly, Vic's anger rose.
"You've got an attitude now, huh?"
"You…"
"You're one of the managers?"
The moment he heard that, Vic instinctively realized something was wrong.
Why did this guy… sound like he didn't know him?
But that didn't make sense.
This was clearly his cousin's face.
'Don't tell me… this idiot got controlled by some Devil Fruit user?'
At that thought, Vic prepared to back away first and gather some people to subdue "Leiner."
But the moment he took a step back, the back of his calf knocked against a stool on the floor.
Click.
Vic: …
At that moment, Vic was completely numb.
"Hel—"
"Urgh!"
Jin gave him no chance to shout. He seized Vic by the throat, opened his Sharingan, and said coldly,
"Kneel before these eyes."
In that instant, Vic saw a terrifying pair of scarlet eyes hanging in the sky.
…
At the same time, in the slave holding area inside the auction house, several men walked in and signaled for their companions to open the cell.
They were going to bring the mermaid out now.
"Why are you bringing out the mermaid now?" one of the workers asked in confusion. "Wasn't she supposed to be the finale?"
A high-end item like this, something that appeared only once every few years, and they weren't using her as the closing act?
Wouldn't that ruin the hype?
"One of the pirate captain slaves just committed suicide," one of them explained. "To avoid disrupting the auction, Lord Disco ordered us to bring the mermaid out now."
"I see…"
The man nodded in understanding.
No wonder they were using the mermaid early.
If they didn't quickly bring out a hot item to rebuild the crowd's interest, today's auction might not be able to continue at all.
After all… there were three Celestial Dragons present today!
"Miss Mermaid, come with us~"
Several staff members sneered and quickly walked over to Camie, lifting her up in one motion.
"Damn it, let me go!"
Camie struggled violently, but she couldn't break free from the grip of several grown men. She could only be carried helplessly toward the door and was soon dragged away.
"Bastards, let go of Camie-neechan…"
"You…"
"Too much noise."
The man who opened the cell stepped in, glanced at Merry, and said, "You can barely protect yourself, and you still want to protect someone else?"
"Little girl, stop dreaming."
"You just wait…"
"Yeah, yeah, we'll wait~" the man said dismissively. "I've heard threats like that a hundred times, if not eighty."
Telling him to wait?
And what if he did?
Merry ignored him, tears in her eyes as she watched Camie being taken away, silently praying that Jin would come find her as soon as possible.
"By the way, why still can't you move?" the man stepped inside, grabbed Merry by the arm, and dragged her upright, frowning as he inspected her. "Don't tell me you're crippled."
If she really couldn't move, then this slave would lose all value. That would be a huge loss for them.
They might even have to compensate the seller.
That would be a serious loss.
At that thought, the man's mood worsened.
"Why aren't you talking?"
"I don't want to talk to you."
"Heh, still got some attitude…"
"You'd better pray you recover." the man said coldly. "Otherwise, just wait to die."
With that, he threw Merry back to the floor without any concern for whether it hurt her.
"That's enough."
A giant slave nearby glanced at the man and said, "You're really fine with treating a little girl like that?"
"What's it to you?"
"Once you're here, there's no such thing as age. There are only slaves!"
After saying that, the man spat at the giant, showing absolutely no regard for him.
Veins bulged on the giant's forehead as he stood, intending to slap the bastard flat, but the chains fixed to the wall were too strong. He couldn't break free and could only watch the man's arrogance.
"Come on, hit me~"
"Beat me to death~"
"Damn it! If not for these cursed chains…" the giant was shaking with rage, but he could do nothing.
"Tch. You can't even move, and you're still talking big?" the man mocked. "You'd better accept your fate."
As he spoke, he even drew out a whip and lashed the giant a few times.
It barely hurt the giant, but the humiliation was enormous.
"Just let me get my hands on you…"
"Heh. You won't get the chance."
The man glanced around at the remaining slaves and said, "Mm. This auction is almost over."
Once the hot items were sold, the remaining cheap goods would be disposed of quickly.
Only that little girl… he still didn't know whether she was really ruined.
Thinking that, he looked at Merry and said, "Little girl, that mermaid said your name is… Merry, right?"
"You've got maybe a few more minutes. If you still can't stand by then, we'll just dispose of you."
Merry gave no response at all.
She simply closed her eyes.
The man shook his head and didn't care.
If someone was going to die, it wasn't him.
Then he suddenly noticed that the giant had gone silent, and that made him frown.
Had the brute really calmed down that quickly?
Thinking that, he looked up at him in surprise and immediately realized something was wrong.
The giant was… staring behind him?
"Who exactly… are you planning to dispose of?!"
The moment that voice rang out from behind him, the man's pupils shrank.
A terrible sense of danger washed over him.
He instinctively turned around and saw a pair of scarlet eyes staring straight at him.
"You—"
"BANG!!"
Jin gave him no chance to finish. He drove a single Haki-coated punch straight into the man's chest!
The fist struck with enough force to shatter his heart!
"Pfft!"
Blood sprayed from the man's mouth as he flew backward and embedded himself into the wall.
That sight instantly stunned all the remaining slaves.
Someone had actually dared come here to rescue people?!
"Jin!"
Merry looked at him in delight.
Had he really come to save her at last?
"Merry, don't be afraid. I'm here."
The moment Jin picked her up, Merry pressed her lips together, tears building in her eyes.
In the end… she couldn't hold it back anymore.
"Waaah!"
"Jin, they bullied me!"
Nestled in Jin's arms, Merry had found her pillar of support at last and burst into sobbing.
Crack.
Veins bulged across Jin's face instantly, and rage surged in his chest!
Those bastards…
They actually dared bully his little girl!
"I'll avenge you!"
Pop.
As his words fell, a Shadow Clone appeared beside him, its expression twisted with fury.
Drawing the Kusanagi Sword, the clone rushed out and cut Vic down in one slash.
"Pfft!"
That scene stunned the workers who had just entered.
"E-enemy attack!!"
"Someone, get in here!"
The guards who heard the commotion immediately rushed in with weapons in hand and instantly spotted Jin standing in the corridor.
They had no idea what was going on, but the bodies on the floor were clearly their own people!
Thinking that, they charged forward at once.
"Get him!"
"You pieces of trash don't deserve to live!!"
With those words, the Shadow Clone charged in and began slaughtering them mercilessly!
"AHHH!!"
"Monster! He's a monster!"
"Bastard, do you even know whose place this is, you—AAGH!"
"I don't care whose territory this is. Every last one of you dies today!"
"Pfft!"
A sword slashed down, cleaving a man and his armor straight through together!
After killing him, the Shadow Clone did not pause for a second. It continued rushing through the other enemies, showing absolutely no mercy.
That sight deeply shocked the slaves who had not yet been sold.
"What a terrifying man…"
These armored guards couldn't even withstand a single slash in front of him…
That was absurdly strong!
"Who are you?" the giant asked.
"Me?" Jin looked up at him and said, "I'm family to this little one."
As he spoke, Jin pulled out Merry's key and opened the collar around her neck, freeing her completely.
Seeing that, the other slaves all became excited, but because of how terrifying he looked, none of them dared speak rashly.
A moment later, after calming down a little, Merry looked at Jin and said, "Jin, can you free this big guy too?"
"He's a good person."
She still remembered what he'd said just now.
"A good person, huh…"
The giant gave a bitter smile.
He hadn't expected to receive such a title one day.
All he'd really done was say a few words on behalf of a little girl, and yet she…
No, the truly good person here was probably the man standing in front of him.
Jin glanced at the giant and casually tossed over the rest of the keys, keeping only Camie's.
Whether the giant escaped or not would depend on his own luck.
As for the other slaves—
the keys were there. If they had the courage to bet their lives and run, then they could do it themselves.
Jin wouldn't stop them.
Looking at the keys on the ground, the giant fell silent for a moment, then said, "Thank you!"
Jin waved a hand and said nothing.
"Merry, how did you get taken?" Jin asked.
"I was sitting on a small rock, waiting for Luffy and the others to buy me cotton candy." Merry recalled. "But before they came back, someone covered my mouth."
"I struggled a little, then they pressed a white cloth over my nose, and after that I blacked out."
"When I woke up, I was here."
"So that's why you couldn't use Reverse Summoning Jutsu…"
At that moment, Jin finally understood why Merry hadn't summoned him.
She'd been knocked out with some kind of anesthetic!
That also explained what the man earlier had meant by those comments.
As he thought, Jin quickly examined Merry's condition and found that she was only weak, which made him relax a little.
"Your body's fine. You'll recover enough to move again after a while." Jin reassured her.
"Mm…"
"Oh right, Jin!" Merry suddenly said urgently. "They took Camie-neechan away. Go save her!"
"Alright. We're going right now." Jin nodded.
Even if Merry hadn't said it, he had already realized that.
After all… Camie wasn't in the cell anymore.
With Merry in his arms, Jin stood up and turned toward the exit.
Outside the cell, the corridor was already filled with fallen guards, and blood had stained the entire floor red.
Clearly, all of them had been cut down by Jin's Shadow Clone.
For garbage like these men, who had chosen to aid evil, Jin felt absolutely no pity.
Death… was the only fitting end for them!
The Shadow Clone returned, Kusanagi Sword in hand, and said to Jin, "Done."
"Mm."
Jin nodded and carried Merry out of the holding area, stepping through the bloodstained passage toward the auction hall.
Now that Camie had been taken to the hall, that was naturally where he would go to save her.
The Shadow Clone followed silently behind, fully prepared to cut down anyone who dared get in the way of the original.
As they neared the exit, Jin heard Disco's voice from outside.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this item is a rare species—one that appears only once in several years!" Disco shouted. "This is also the hottest item of today's—"
Listening to the sounds coming from outside, Jin said quietly,
"So people are being slaughtered in here, yet the auction outside is still continuing?"
How ironic.
With a cold sneer, Jin strode out into the hall.
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