From above, Arlan's voice rang out.
At the sound of the familiar voice, Dimitri didn't hesitate. He drew his blade and leapt away.
But Iman's face twisted in alarm. "Damn it, it's that guy's ability!"
Without another word, he dove to the ground and rolled.
Almost simultaneously, a figure dropped from the sky at breakneck speed, landing right where Iman had been standing a heartbeat before.
A massive explosion erupted. Blinding light flashed as fire and shockwaves tore through the ground.
The deafening blast echoed through a third of Rainbase.
From the point of impact, where Arlan's foot had landed, flames surged upward. Thick smoke billowed. The explosion left a crater more than a meter wide, scattering debris and rubble everywhere.
A powerful shockwave rippled outward, hurling dust into the air and blasting Iman backward. He slammed into a nearby wall with bone-rattling force, shaking the entire structure. Dust rained down from the impact.
Thud-thud-thud-thud...!
Thud-thud-thud-thud...!
"Watch out, he's carrying explosives!"
"Snipers ready! Load your rounds!"
"He caused chaos in Rainbase, don't let him get away!"
Suddenly, a cacophony of footsteps, shouting, and shouted orders echoed closer—it was Crocodile's men in Rainbase.
"Heh... hehe... hehehe..."
Dragging himself up from the rubble, Iman grinned wildly, almost giddy. He even started laughing.
"Damn it..." Arlan and Dimitri immediately sensed trouble.
The Baroque Works agents didn't yet know Iman had betrayed them. If he played it right, he could use them to escape.
"Dimitri, contact the Captain, now! Before they surround us, grab a Marine intelligence officer's body and their Den Den Mushi. Take them straight to the Captain, and Crocodile!" Arlan barked.
"Got it!" Dimitri understood immediately. He dashed inside, using the Den Den Mushi to make the call.
"Oi—what the hell's going on? Why are you fighting with Crocodile's people?"
A lazy voice floated down from the rooftop.
The three men looked up, and saw a man with a hooked nose and thin lips standing above them. Twin blades rested at his waist. His half-lidded eyes gave off a sleepy air. His chest, marked by an old scar, was exposed beneath an open white coat.
Iman's face went pale the moment he recognized him.
He screamed, "Help! The Chris Pirates are plotting against Crocodile-dono! Kill them!"
"What?! The Chris Pirates?!"
"Doesn't matter who they are, if they threaten the Boss, take them down!"
"That's Iman-dono's voice... move in!"
Within seconds, hundreds of Baroque Works agents came surging toward them.
But Arlan's eyes lit up at the sight of Oliver. "Oliver! He's in league with the Navy! He almost leaked our entire operation!"
Oliver's face darkened instantly. The air around him shifted, what had been drowsy indifference twisted into icy fury.
"You bastard... I'll butcher you."
He drew the twin blades at his side, Nagamitsu and Yubashiri, and slashed the air.
Two-Sword Style: Gale Severing Slash!
A flash of light. Two massive arcs of bluish-white energy tore through the air, heading straight for Iman.
Unfortunately, Iman wasn't weak. He managed to dodge. The slashes missed, but left behind twin scars in the ground, each stretching dozens of meters long. One even split a three-story building in half, sending its halves crumbling to either side.
Oliver might look lazy and aloof most of the time, but everyone on the ship knew, no one respected Aeridar more than he did. He understood the Captain's plans better than anyone. If those were exposed... the consequences would be catastrophic.
So failure was not an option.
Meanwhile, inside the building, Dimitri found the Navy's Den Den Mushi and hoisted the corpse of a Marine intel officer over his shoulder. He vaulted onto the roof and disappeared toward Rain Dinners.
Moments after Dimitri's departure, the Baroque agents had fully surrounded them. Iman, of course, had slipped into their ranks, whispering lies and pushing them to attack Arlan and the others.
Oliver's eyes burned with killing intent. Seeing Baroque Works agents trying to block his path, he prepared to cut them down without mercy.
But Arlan grabbed his arm. "Oliver, don't kill them. Dimitri's already contacted the Captain. Crocodile's with him. They'll be here any minute. Iman won't get far. Don't mess up the bigger plan..."
Oliver understood. These weren't enemies. If he slaughtered them here, it would sour relations with Crocodile, and that could jeopardize everything.
He exhaled deeply and forced himself to calm down. Slowly, he turned his blades so the flat edges faced forward, ready to knock out rather than kill.
Soon, the agents swarmed in. Arlan and Oliver, forced to hold back, found themselves getting bogged down in a frustrating brawl.
"Idiots... damn that bastard, messing everything up."
Cursing under his breath, Iman glared at Arlan and Oliver from within the crowd, then slowly edged backward.
A few quick turns later, he was gone.
"That bastard... he slipped away!" Oliver's fury surged again. He nearly switched his grip back to the blade edge.
"I know. But he's not getting far..." Arlan's face twisted in rage as he kicked away several attackers.
A thunderous voice, low and heavy, boomed across the battlefield, silencing everyone.
A swirl of sand swept in on the wind, coalescing atop a nearby rooftop. The sand took humanoid form—it was Crocodile.
His face was grim. He bit down hard on his cigar, leaving deep teeth marks on it. He scanned the area. Over a hundred Baroque Works agents lay moaning on the ground—but none of them were dead.
They'd all been knocked out by Arlan and Oliver.
"Enough," Crocodile growled. "Where's Iman? Tell me, where the hell did he go?"
No one answered. The agents glanced around nervously. Something felt off.
Wasn't the Chris Pirates supposed to be the threat? Now that the Boss was here, why was Iman, their top agent, nowhere to be seen?
Two more figures dropped from the sky.
One was Aeridar. The other, Dimitri.
Aeridar turned to the gathered crowd.
"Where's Iman?" he asked.
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my ——— (.)com/JuanFiction [remove the parentheses ( )]
There are over 100 advance Chapters available for you!
For every 200 PS = 1 extra Chapter.