Seeing Kairo fall silent, Belo Betty assumed her Pump-Pump Fruit had finally started to sway him. She stopped pressing the issue and simply narrowed her beautiful eyes, waiting for his answer.
At that moment, Droopy suddenly stepped forward and came to Kairo's side. He tugged at Kairo's pant leg, pointed at Belo Betty, and said with complete seriousness, not caring in the slightest that she could hear him:
"This woman looks like bad news."
His voice was not loud, but Belo Betty heard every word clearly.
She had come all the way here out of good intentions, practically offering help on a silver platter, only to be labeled "bad news" by a dog.
Her eyes widened on the spot.
Kairo had not expected Droopy to cut in so bluntly either. While Belo Betty was still staring, he quickly stepped in.
"Miss Betty, I think we need to clear a few things up."
"First, you used your Devil Fruit ability on me without my knowledge. That's not exactly polite."
"Second, I never planned to rescue Da Hong."
"And third, I hope your side won't act on its own. I won't be grateful if the Revolutionary Army interferes, and I'm not joining you."
Belo Betty's eyes widened even further.
He knew about her Devil Fruit ability?
This was their first meeting.
More importantly, when she used her ability, most people never noticed. Unless someone was exceptionally strong and had an unusually firm will, they would inevitably be stirred by her power. Even ordinary civilians could be pushed into awakening hidden courage and strength.
But from Kairo's reaction, not only had he remained unaffected—
he had even sensed the exact moment she used it.
That alone was shocking.
But what shocked her even more was this:
Kairo truly had no intention of rescuing the red rabbit.
She was certain Da Hong was his companion. They had appeared together in Foosha Village before and even taken part in the giant fish banquet there.
After a brief pause to steady herself, Belo Betty frowned.
"Mr. Kairo, isn't the red rabbit your partner? Can you really watch your own companion be publicly executed by the World Government?"
Then her tone shifted sharply.
"I see now."
"All this time in Shimotsuki Village, enjoying life as if nothing happened—you weren't calm because you weren't afraid of the World Government."
"You were hiding."
"You were worried Da Hong's actions would drag you down with him, so you hid here and pretended none of it had anything to do with you."
Kairo raised a hand and cut her off with a smile.
"Miss Betty, there's no need to try provoking me."
"I'm just an ordinary traveler. I don't have the same grand ideals and ambitions your Revolutionary Army does."
"You're wasting your time on me. And there's no need to run off and rescue Da Hong just to win me over."
That finally touched a nerve.
Belo Betty's temper flared at once.
"Fine. We'll see."
With that, she turned and stormed off, clearly annoyed.
It wasn't that she was personally desperate to recruit Kairo. The only reason she had stayed and argued for so long was because of a direct order from their leader: do everything possible to bring this traveler over to their side.
That was what she found strange.
After all, their leader barely knew anything about Kairo beyond what she had reported.
Unless—
he had already heard of Kairo before she ever stepped into Foosha Village.
"Master Koushirou, let's go."
After leaving Oggs' courtyard, Belo Betty strode past Koushirou, who had been waiting outside, and headed straight back toward Isshin Dojo.
Koushirou said nothing and followed with his usual gentle smile.
The moment they stepped into the dojo grounds, a fierce-looking face greeted them.
"Dragon!"
Belo Betty froze where she stood, staring in disbelief at the man in the courtyard.
He wore a dark green cloak, and the left side of his face bore that unmistakable tattoo.
He was none other than Monkey D. Dragon, leader of the Revolutionary Army—the man the World Government called the most dangerous criminal in the world.
Dragon first nodded to Koushirou, then looked at Belo Betty.
"You met that traveler?"
"Don't even mention it."
The moment she heard Kairo brought up again, Belo Betty immediately grew annoyed. She marched over to a nearby pavilion and sat down with a huff.
"He has absolutely no intention of rescuing the red rabbit. And worst of all, he's immune to my ability. Completely unaffected."
Dragon and Koushirou walked into the pavilion together.
Seeing Belo Betty's reaction, the two exchanged a quiet glance.
When Dragon remained calm, Belo Betty's curiosity surged.
"Don't tell me you already knew about this traveler?"
"Not that early," Dragon said, shaking his head. "But on the night he arrived in Foosha Village, I happened to be nearby. I had only gone there to see Luffy."
"Instead, I found my old man there as well… and watched him clash with the red rabbit."
Belo Betty leaned forward immediately.
"You saw it yourself?"
Dragon nodded.
"I did not intervene directly. I only used Conqueror's Haki to block the shockwave from the collision between the red rabbit and my old man."
Belo Betty's eyes widened.
"Conqueror's Haki? One in several million is born with it. Does that mean Kairo has the qualities of a king?"
Dragon glanced at her and shook his head.
"In the New World, where monsters are everywhere, people with Conqueror's Haki are not as rare as people think."
"The so-called 'qualities of a king' only mean a person has the potential to stand above other conquerors. Whether they can truly become a king is another matter entirely."
"If raw power alone were enough, then Whitebeard, the world's strongest man, would have stood at the top long ago."
Belo Betty blinked.
"If that's the case, then why did you come here in person?"
Dragon narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Probably because one of his stories struck a nerve with me."
"Chevara?" Belo Betty stared. Of all the reasons she had imagined, she had never once expected this one.
Dragon spoke slowly.
"Don't you think this 'Chevara' sounds a lot like me?"
"Or perhaps… Kairo created that story with me as the model for its great revolutionary leader."
"If that's true, then it means he understands me very well."
At that, Belo Betty finally understood.
"So that's it. Hard to find someone who truly gets you. The leader finally found a kindred spirit."
Then she changed the subject at once.
"So… are we still rescuing the red rabbit?"
"For now, we wait and observe."
Dragon waved a hand lightly.
"I don't believe Kairo is truly indifferent. The reason he refused our help is probably because he doesn't want to be entangled with the Revolutionary Army."
"Trust me. He's already planning something."
"He'll make his move before the public execution."
At the same time—
Because Droopy had returned with the five hundred million bounty, and because Belo Betty's appearance had made things more complicated, Kairo decisively said goodbye to Oggs' family and returned to his ship with Droopy and Green Rabbit.
The moment he boarded, he pulled a bottle of 1982 Lafite—one the system had handed him for free—from his liquor cabinet and started a celebration.
"Come on, Green Rabbit, drink!"
"Let's toast Da Hong together!"
"He sacrificed his freedom to earn us five hundred million. That's noble!"
After pouring wine for the other two, Kairo lifted his own glass.
"To show our respect, we must spend this five hundred million happily."
"I've already made a plan."
"Tonight we sail for Shells Town. First, we book the best hotel in town."
"Then we find two pretty female rabbits for Green Rabbit, a beautiful wife for Droopy…"
"And finally, we clear out every shoe store in Shells Town and wait for Da Hong to break out of prison and come back."
"Happy!"
Droopy clinked glasses with Kairo, overjoyed.
Green Rabbit did not show much excitement on his face, but he still raised his glass and drained it in one go.
The next morning—
Da Hong was transferred to Loguetown.
The ones escorting him were still Smoker and Tina.
Under layers of Marine security, he was placed in a specially prepared prison cell.
Inside were all kinds of comforts.
There was an ample pile of red carrots.
There were shelves full of canvas sneakers in every imaginable style.
And there was a heap of magazines, all related in one way or another to sneakers.
The moment Da Hong was pushed into the cell, his eyes lit up.
In an instant, Droopy's carefully planned bounty-farming scheme was shoved to the back of his mind.
He immediately grabbed a fresh pair of canvas sneakers and put them on, then picked up the newest magazine from beside the bed, lay down, crossed one leg over the other, and settled in with complete peace of mind.
Outside the cell, Tina watched his reaction, suspicion flashing in her eyes. She turned to Smoker.
"Didn't Holy Land issue strict orders to execute him immediately?"
"It wasn't Garp's idea," Smoker said, chewing on his cigars and speaking around them. "It was Admiral Kizaru's."
"He heard from Vice Admiral Garp that the red rabbit loves canvas shoes and reading magazines, so he ordered the soldiers to prepare all of this in advance."
"The point is to keep him from going berserk. According to Garp, if the red rabbit enters a berserk state, forget this prison—he could tear apart the entire Marine base in Loguetown."
At that, Smoker glanced around, leaned closer, and lowered his voice.
"I heard that when he went berserk before, he nearly beat Vice Admiral Garp to death."
Tina's beautiful eyes widened.
"That can't be true…"
Smoker took a deep drag on his cigars and looked at Da Hong, who was leisurely reading inside the cell.
"Let's just hope he stays this quiet until the execution."
"If he escapes, all the anger from Holy Land is going to land on our heads."
When Smoker and Tina left the prison and entered the conference room in the Loguetown Marine base, the room was already full.
Garp and Borsalino sat side by side.
Gion, Momonga, Onigumo, and Yamakaji sat on either side of them.
Across from them were four or five men in white robes.
CP0.
To Tina and Smoker, it looked less like a meeting and more like a trial.
The reason was obvious.
The CP0 men, led by Hatori Yuto, carried themselves with unmistakable authority. Garp's expression was grim, while Kizaru lounged back lazily in his seat with his eyes half closed, as though the matter had little to do with him.
Before Tina and Smoker could figure out exactly what was happening, Hatori Yuto broke the silence.
His words pointed straight at Garp.
"Vice Admiral Garp, according to the latest intelligence we've gathered, you appear to have withheld some useful information regarding the murder of Saint Charloss."
"Would you prefer us to state the information ourselves… or will you confess it on your own?"
The room instantly tensed.
Garp had hidden information?
Could it be that the murder of Saint Charloss and the destruction of the Goa Kingdom royal family involved more than they had been told?
Almost everyone in the room turned to Garp at once.
"Vice Admiral Garp, forgive the impertinence," Hatori said as he rose and walked toward him. "We belong to different branches, but I am acting on the direct authority of the Five Elders. I ask for your understanding and cooperation."
"The murder of Saint Charloss concerns not only the dignity of the Celestial Dragons, but also the sacred status they hold."
"The Five Elders take this matter very seriously."
"The guilty must die."
"And those who concealed the truth must answer for it."
Garp let out a quiet sigh.
Then he nodded.
"I did hide something."
That one simple sentence made the entire room stiffen.
Tina, who had always respected Garp deeply, even stepped forward in alarm.
"Vice Admiral Garp…"
"Captain Tina, sit down."
Hatori cut her off sharply, then returned to his seat and asked coldly:
"What exactly did you conceal?"
Garp stopped hiding it.
"Besides Da Hong and the Droopy dog named Droopy, there is another companion."
"To be precise, Da Hong, Droopy, and the Green Rabbit—who had no direct involvement in the Goa Kingdom incident—are all pets belonging to a traveler named Kairo."
"I concealed this because that traveler had no idea what happened in the Goa Kingdom."
After explaining everything he had withheld, Garp lifted his head and met Hatori's gaze directly.
"I can guarantee Kairo did not participate in the Goa Kingdom incident."
"And the reason I know that is because before all this, I had already spoken to Fleet Admiral Sengoku. I intended to recruit Kairo into the Marines, and Sengoku agreed to the idea."
"Let me ask you this. You people in intelligence surely have better information than we do. Up to this point, have you found any evidence that this traveler Kairo has committed crimes himself?"
Hatori nodded.
"None so far."
"But his pet killed Saint Charloss."
"As the master, he cannot be considered completely innocent."
Then he gave Garp a polite smile that held no warmth.
"Thank you very much for your cooperation and honesty, Vice Admiral Garp."
"Once you return to Headquarters, Holy Land will issue its disciplinary ruling regarding your punishment."
He paused, then shifted the topic.
"Right now, the immediate matter before us is Da Hong's public execution."
"The reason Holy Land insists on a public execution is twofold."
"First, to calm the anger of the Celestial Dragons."
"Second, to use the execution as bait."
"Da Hong must die."
"But the traveler Kairo behind him, as well as that Droopy dog, must be captured as well."
At that point, Kizaru finally opened his eyes and spoke in his usual lazy tone.
"Do you actually have a way to deal with that dog's teleportation?"
"If not, I suggest carrying out the execution as soon as possible."
"The red rabbit is quite terrifying, you know."
Hatori smiled, radiating confidence.
"Of course."
"As long as that Droopy dog shows himself, we have a way to nullify his ability to teleport."
"I don't think it will be that simple," Kizaru said, rubbing his brow. "From my observations, the captured red rabbit is not a Devil Fruit user. The Seastone cuffs and shackles had no effect on him."
"So we should be prepared for the possibility that the Droopy dog is not a Devil Fruit user either."
"Hah. Admiral Borsalino worries too much."
Hatori laughed confidently.
"The red rabbit is clearly like Vice Admiral Garp—he specializes in raw physical power and constitution."
"As for the Droopy dog's teleportation, that can only be the work of a Devil Fruit."
◇ I'll drop one bonus chapter for every 10 reviews (leave a review/comment!)
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon: patreon.com/KageNaruto