Because Princess Vivi had been taken away, Royal Guards flooded every street and alley in Alubarna.
Search parties went door to door in a massive sweep, while the entire capital was placed under lockdown as if war were about to break out, leaving everyone in the city feeling uneasy.
After leaving the palace, Momousagi returned straight to the hotel.
She went to the front desk, asked for Kairo's room number, and headed directly there.
The moment she arrived outside the room, the voices coming from inside caused her beautiful eyes to widen.
Meanwhile...
Inside Kairo's room.
After Robin had patiently taught Vivi the rules of rock-paper-scissors several times, the little princess finally understood the game.
The instant she did...
She enthusiastically challenged Kairo to play.
And once they started...
She couldn't stop.
Even after losing more than ten rounds in a row, she still tugged excitedly at Kairo's arm.
"So fun... so fun..."
"Again!"
Seeing this, Robin, who had taught Vivi the game in the first place, leaned helplessly against the bed with one hand supporting her forehead.
She genuinely couldn't understand what was so entertaining about rock-paper-scissors.
Yet somehow...
The game had completely made Vivi forget she'd been kidnapped, and she was now happily playing with Kairo as if nothing had happened.
"So fun... so fun..."
After finally managing to draw with Kairo for the first time, Vivi happily raised her little hand.
"Again! Again!"
"We can't keep going."
Even Kairo was beginning to tire.
He sighed helplessly.
"From now on..."
"We'll have to add stakes."
"Stakes?"
Vivi blinked in confusion.
"What are those?"
Kairo instantly perked up.
He sat up straight and put on a serious expression.
"If you lose again..."
"How about becoming my student?"
"I know lots and lots of fun games besides rock-paper-scissors."
"There are even more games?"
"Games I've never played before?"
Vivi's curiosity was immediately reignited.
"Then..."
"What if I win?"
"...If you win..."
"I'll send you straight back to the palace."
The moment she heard she'd be sent back if she won, Vivi immediately became anxious.
"Then I don't want to play anymore!"
"I lose!"
Seeing how serious she was, Kairo's facial muscles twitched violently.
He lowered his head in defeat.
Had he known this little girl loved new things so much...
He wouldn't have gone through all the trouble of kidnapping her in the first place.
After letting out a long sigh, Kairo looked back at Vivi with a smile.
"Come then."
"Perform the formal bow to your teacher."
"Once you've done that, you'll officially be my student."
"And after becoming my student..."
"I won't just teach you every fun game I know."
"I'll also teach you many other useful things."
"For example..."
"...how to become truly strong."
Vivi didn't hesitate for even a moment.
She immediately bowed respectfully.
"Greetings, Teacher!"
Looking at the well-behaved little girl before him, Kairo smiled in satisfaction.
At last...
He had taken the first step toward becoming Princess Vivi's life mentor.
Next...
He planned to teach her all eighty-one chapters of the Tao Te Ching.
Just imagining Vivi's bewildered expression as she listened to those profound classical passages made him want to laugh.
Still...
This was genuinely enjoyable.
Even if he never received another mission like this, he had decided to continue introducing this world to the culture and entertainment of his previous one.
Not to spread doctrine...
Just for the fun of it.
"Mr. Kairo."
Just then, Robin, who had somehow wandered over to the window, turned around with a serious expression.
"There are a lot of Royal Guards outside."
"They're probably here because of Princess Vivi."
"It's fine."
Kairo waved his hand casually before turning toward the door.
"Vice Admiral Momousagi."
"You've been standing outside long enough."
"Are you planning to come in?"
The instant Kairo finished speaking, Gion, who was standing outside the room, instinctively raised her head in surprise.
She hadn't expected Kairo to have discovered her presence long ago...
Or even known it was her standing outside.
At the same moment, Perona darted over and pulled the door open.
"Mr. Kairo!"
Having recovered from her surprise, Gion immediately bowed apologetically.
"I'm sorry."
"I wasn't trying to eavesdrop."
"It's just that the situation has become rather urgent..."
"The Royal Guards are in quite a panic by now, aren't they?"
Kairo smiled knowingly before standing up.
"Well..."
"It's about time to send the little one home."
As he spoke, he gently took Vivi's hand.
"Come on, little Vivi."
"I'll take you back to the palace."
Accompanied by Momousagi, Kairo escorted Princess Vivi back to the royal palace.
With Gion personally accompanying them—and after Vivi herself explained what had happened—the cloud hanging over Alubarna disappeared as quietly as it had come.
Although Cobra and the others had initially harbored some doubts about Kairo's identity, Gion's introduction made it clear that he had an unusually close relationship with the Marines.
As a result, they all became quite curious about him.
Seeing even a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral treating Kairo with such respect, none of them dared show the slightest discourtesy.
As they chatted with Kairo and Gion, preparations for a grand banquet were immediately set in motion to welcome both of them.
By the time Kairo returned to the hotel from the palace, night had already fallen.
After parting ways with everyone, Gion returned to her room, exhausted.
Truthfully, she had never enjoyed banquets.
If she hadn't been accompanying Kairo, she would have come back to rest much earlier.
Purururu... Purururu...
The Den Den Mushi on her person suddenly rang.
"Hello?"
"Is that Gion?"
Hearing the voice on the other end, Gion blinked in surprise.
"Vice Admiral Garp?"
"Hahaha! It's me!"
Garp's hearty laughter echoed through the Den Den Mushi.
"I heard you've reached Alabasta's capital."
"That's right."
Although she had no idea why Garp was calling now, Gion answered honestly.
"By the way..."
"Mr. Kairo is here too."
"What?!"
"That brat's in Alubarna too?"
"That's fantastic!"
"This time, you've got to find a way to trick that kid into coming back to Marine Headquarters."
"And this is Sengoku's idea too!"
Hearing that, Gion rolled her eyes.
"I think that's your idea, Garp."
Whenever they were in public, she respectfully addressed him as Vice Admiral Garp.
But in private...
She always called him simply "Garp."
The reason was simple.
She was extremely close to Vice Admiral Tsuru—Garp's longtime companion and closest colleague.
Despite the considerable age difference between them, it had never stopped the two women from becoming close like sisters.
When the Den Den Mushi fell silent for a long moment, Gion blinked.
Then she cautiously asked,
"...Is it really Fleet Admiral Sengoku's idea?"
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