Not long after the warships of Vice Admiral Gion and Captain Tina passed through the channel, more Marine ships began appearing one after another.
Only around noon did the sea lane finally grow quiet again.
Watching the last warship disappear beyond the horizon, even Kairo felt exhausted.
Every single Marine ship that entered the channel had approached his boat to ask questions about the red rabbit. Some of the officers aboard were people he recognized from the original One Piece story, while others were completely unfamiliar.
Fortunately, whether familiar or not, every Marine ship seemed extremely pressed for time. Under Kairo's carefully crafted misinformation, they all hurried away soon after.
With that, Kairo lost all interest in fishing.
He immediately woke Green Rabbit, started the engine, and headed straight toward the waters near Syrup Village.
Syrup Village Sea Area
Because the sudden incident of a Celestial Dragon being killed in the East Blue had shaken the entire sea, Kuro, captain of the Black Cat Pirates, stood on the deck of his pirate ship with a dark expression.
Originally, he had planned to fake his death and secretly infiltrate Syrup Village to seize control of a wealthy household there.
But several Marine warships had already passed through these waters earlier.
Left with no choice, he ordered his crew to lower the pirate flag and hide the ship along a concealed stretch of the Syrup Village coastline.
"Captain, this is bad!"
Vice-captain Jango scanned the horizon nervously through a telescope.
"The warship that just left belonged to Vice Admiral Momonga of Marine Headquarters! Luckily he didn't notice us, or we'd be in serious trouble!"
Before Kuro could respond, Sham, one of the Nyaban Brothers, slammed a fist against the railing.
"That damn red rabbit! The whole East Blue is in chaos now, and we're the ones suffering for it!"
"Captain! Captain!"
Suddenly another pirate rushed over, telescope in hand, panic written all over his face.
"A warship—another Marine warship is heading toward Syrup Village!"
"Damn it!"
Sham cursed loudly.
"How many waves is that now? Do they ever stop?!"
"Shut up."
Kuro finally turned around, pushing his glasses up with the back of his wrist as usual.
"If you don't want to die, get back inside the cabin."
His voice turned cold.
"A Celestial Dragon has been killed. Anyone who sticks their head out now will face the wrath of both the Marines and the World Government."
"But Captain…"
The pirate standing before him hesitated, then forced the words out.
"But that warship… it looks like it's heading straight for us!"
"What?"
Kuro's expression changed instantly.
He snatched the telescope and looked through it.
"Black Cage Hina!"
The moment the warship came into view, a figure dreaded by countless pirates in the East Blue appeared clearly in the lens.
Standing on the deck was Captain Hina, the officer Kairo had misdirected toward Syrup Village.
Wrapped in her Marine coat, she too held a telescope, scanning the coastline where the Black Cat Pirates were hiding.
In that instant—
Kuro and Hina appeared in each other's lenses.
"The Hundred Plans!"
As soon as Kuro entered her sight, Hina also recognized the pirate ship beneath him.
A sharp glint flashed in her eyes.
"Black Cat Pirates. Found you."
Cocoyasi Village
Arlong Park
"Boss! Boss! This is bad!"
A fish-man pirate suddenly burst out of the sea from the canal leading into Arlong Park and rushed toward Arlong.
"Several Marine warships are heading straight for Cocoyasi Village! Should we dive to the seabed and hide?"
"How is that possible?"
Arlong frowned.
"Shouldn't the Marines be heading to Goa Kingdom right now? Why would they come here?"
Then a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
"…Did the red rabbit escape?"
The moment that idea appeared, a bad feeling rose in his chest.
He grabbed a Den Den Mushi and dialed immediately.
"Nezumi! What's going on? Why are warships appearing near Cocoyasi Village?"
"You're going to get me killed, Arlong!"
A furious voice came from the other side.
"Vice Admiral Gion from Marine Headquarters received information saying you're the master of that red rabbit!"
"What?!"
Arlong shot to his feet.
"I'm the master of that rabbit?! Are you kidding me? I've never even seen it before!"
At Sea — Nezumi's Warship
On the deck of a Marine warship speeding toward Cocoyasi Village stood a thin man with a pointed nose and a rat-like face.
Captain Nezumi, commander of the Marine 16th Branch in the East Blue.
Within the Marine ranks, he was infamous—a corrupt officer who had secretly collaborated with the Arlong Pirates for years while exploiting the local population.
When Vice Admiral Gion entered the East Blue to assist Admiral Kizaru in capturing the red rabbit responsible for killing a Celestial Dragon, Nezumi had immediately received orders to seal off his sector of the sea.
At first, he thought the matter wouldn't concern someone like him.
But several hours earlier, Gion suddenly issued another command:
All Marine bases in the sector were to move immediately to reinforce the 16th Branch waters.
The reason?
Intelligence had revealed that the red rabbit's master was located in Cocoyasi Village.
The identity wasn't specified.
Only that a large seaside structure in Cocoyasi Village must be secured immediately.
Cocoyasi Village.
A large building by the sea.
Wasn't that Arlong Park?
The moment Nezumi heard this, he had tried contacting Arlong immediately—but the call hadn't connected.
Now he was nearly panicking.
Over the years, the money he received from Arlong had far exceeded his Marine salary.
If Arlong were captured and exposed their partnership…
Nezumi wouldn't just lose his career.
He might spend the rest of his life in prison.
Taking a deep breath, he spoke grimly into the Den Den Mushi.
"Whether you're connected to that red rabbit or not, what you've done over the years is enough to keep you in prison for life."
"So for your sake—and mine—take your men and dive to the seabed immediately."
"Who spread this kind of false information?!"
Arlong's temper flared instantly.
Clenching the Den Den Mushi tightly, he snarled,
"Nezumi, you'd better find out who did this! Whoever it is—I'll kill them. Otherwise I won't be able to swallow this anger!"
"I'll investigate."
Nezumi said quickly.
"But right now, dive underwater immediately!"
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