C245

"The pirates are rioting again. The ability-user team and the Sky Island team aren't here. Baby-5, I'm afraid we'll have to trouble you with this."

Robin rubbed her temples, clearly feeling a headache coming on. She already had more than enough on her plate—why couldn't these pirates stop making trouble?

"Eh? I'm needed again? Hehehe..."

Baby-5 covered her face, giggling. Although Kain had corrected her overly eager habits before he left—teaching her to firmly say no to strangers—she still couldn't resist when acquaintances asked for help.

Robin, having picked up on this, started assigning Baby-5 more and more tasks. With the excuse of "training," she was able to help Baby-5 quickly master her Weapon-Weapon Fruit powers.

"Then I'm counting on you, Baby-5."

Robin extended a palm using her Flower-Flower Fruit ability for a high-five.

"Leave it to me!"

Baby-5's arms transformed into Gatling guns and laser cannons as she proudly walked off, head held high.

Over the past two years, Baby-5 had learned to control twelve types of high-tech weapons with her fruit powers. 

The more weapons she mastered, the easier her ability felt to use. Those with deeper knowledge would realize—she was nearing fruit awakening.

With her Devil Fruit awakened, Baby-5 would be able to shift between weapons more rapidly and even detach parts of her body to turn into weapons for others to wield. As her arsenal grew, so did her control—and so did her progress toward full awakening.

"Remember not to kill too many people. We still need them..."

Robin added as Baby-5 left.

The number of usable pirate slaves was dwindling, yet there were still many construction projects ongoing in Alabasta and through the Kain Chamber of Commerce. Pirate activity in the first half of the Grand Line, East Blue, and South Blue had been decreasing rapidly.

Robin wasn't sure if Baby-5 even heard her, but she had no time to dwell on it. She had to handle an important trade deal with Fish-Man Island. 

Their trade relations had begun just a year ago, and since then, trust between them had grown steadily.

Recently, leveraging that trust, Robin had asked King Neptune for permission to view one of the Poneglyphs—and she'd been granted access.

Although it wasn't the Poneglyph she most wanted to find, seeing three in just two years was a major achievement. For over a decade, she hadn't found a single one—not until the Seven Warlords' network gave her the means to close in.

The next step was clear: strengthen the intelligence network and expand the Chamber of Commerce's reach.

Robin was fully aware of the Kain Chamber of Commerce's true strength. Hidden beneath their base were fifty-three-monstrous biomechanical warriors—capable of self-destruction if needed.

And then there was the Ark Maxim, a long-range aerial artillery fortress capable of bombarding enemies from thousands of meters away. Outside of the Four Emperors' pirate crews, few on the seas could stand against its power.

"The next move is to expand our intelligence operations into the New World. The Four Emperors are sure to have several Poneglyphs in their possession..."

Robin tapped her chin in thought. Hiring the Shandians for the long term might be a viable strategy. After all, they were endlessly curious about the surface world—and they made for a solid combat force.

Even though Fish-Man Island has joined the World Government, it still maintains excellent relations with outsiders.

Following Kain's strategy, Nico Robin was the first to act—like being the first to "eat the crab."

She decisively monopolized the specialty products of Fish-Man Island, trading them for rare materials and advanced weapons from Sky Island and other regions.

That's why Alabasta has become the economic center of the first half of the Grand Line—there are just too many rare treasures flowing in and out.

"Come on, kill them all!"

"Kill them all!"

"They imprisoned us for two years and didn't even give us a full meal! Damn Alabasta! Damn Kain Chamber of Commerce!!"

"Kill! Kill them all!"

The pirates, newly released, roared with fury. Twisted with resentment, their faces were full of hatred as they charged toward Alabasta's guards in a frenzy.

But not everyone acted out of blind rage. A few clever ones had different plans. Rather than fight, they turned to flee—heading for the port or the sea. Even without a boat, they were willing to risk swimming away from this hellish place.

"Do they think this is a joke?! This is Alabasta! Open fire!"

The captain of Alabasta's national standing army shouted the order immediately upon seeing the incoming horde.

Bang bang bang!

Instantly, hundreds of AK rifles opened fire like serpents spitting flame. Brass casings rained down at the soldiers' feet as bullets poured toward the pirates in a violent, slanted barrage.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Even those pirates who held shields couldn't advance. The sheer intensity of the firepower pinned them in place.

"Bazookas, ready!"

"Fire!"

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Over a dozen rockets flew toward the pirate formation, erupting in powerful explosions that hurled bodies skyward—only for them to be shredded mid-air by relentless gunfire.

A moment later, dozens of hand grenades rained down, followed by more thunderous explosions.

The area echoed with nonstop gunshots and blasts. Within half an hour, the hundred-plus pirates who had attacked the city were utterly wiped out by the overwhelming force of the standing army.

"Tch. They call these guys 'big pirates'? What garbage."

The captain spat. "Clean up the battlefield. Let command know we don't need backup here. And if any are still alive—send them off properly."

But his deputy leaned in and whispered:

"Captain, these were slaves of the Kain Chamber of Commerce… they might still be useful."

The captain slapped his forehead with a loud smack, suddenly remembering.

"Damn! I forgot! Quick—get the medics! Save as many as you can!"

Elsewhere, similar chaos unfolded. After leaving the palace, Vivi activated a full set of T10-series battle armor. Though its energy reserves weren't at full capacity, it was more than enough to handle these pirate trash.

She flew straight to the port, where the guards reported the highest pirate concentration.

When she arrived, she saw exactly what they'd described—dozens of pirates clashing with the standing army in a desperate melee. Starved and pushed to their limits, many of the pirates were fighting with savage determination.

This was their last chance to escape.

But the moment Vivi arrived, that chance vanished.

Not one of the 2,000 pirates here was truly powerful. Even if they managed to steal a few rifles, none could break through Vivi's high-tech armor.

"Go to hell!"

Hovering in the sky, Vivi switched her weapon to beam cannon mode, then activated a full strafing sequence.

With most enemies, Vivi showed restraint. But not these men. The madness on their faces was inhuman—they were monsters.

Showing mercy to them would be a betrayal of Alabasta.

So she opened fire without hesitation.

Her armor's beam cannon rained death, while four floating turrets joined in. These auto-turrets had intelligent targeting systems, attacking anything within 20 meters of Vivi. If no enemies approached, they synchronized with her, firing in tandem at her chosen targets.

After Vivi, the sky fortress, appeared, the pirates on the ground soon began to show signs of defeat. Vivi could kill more than a dozen people in a single attack. There is a limit to the madness that can accumulate in a moment. 

When enough people die around them, the remaining pirate slaves will remember that, although they have no freedom in their lives, at least they are still alive and can eat.

After comparing their situation to death, they are no longer driven by madness. Slowly, the turmoil here was quelled by Vivi and the King's Guard.

Elsewhere, the turmoil in Rainland City was also subdued. Ah Jin, who was born into the Creek Pirates, had been freed by Luffy. 

Originally, he wanted to liberate some of the Creek Pirates' members to rescue their leader, but he lost control and released all the pirates at once.

At this point, Ah Jin no longer hesitated. He incited some people to cause trouble in various places, and he led a group to Rainland City to rescue Captain Creek. However, despite the thousands of pirates, they did not rush into the city at all and were stopped by Baby-5 alone.

Laser weapons capable of cutting steel, Gatling guns with unlimited bullets as long as physical strength permitted, and continuous missile launches; if anyone approached, Baby-5 also had armor protection and could transform into a strategic missile, exploding on impact.

These thousand-odd pirates were no match for Baby-5.

The pirate riots in Alabasta were quickly quelled. While a few pirates were still hiding sporadically, the national standing army had already searched everywhere, and all the ports had been blocked. They couldn't hide for long.

Due to his trust in the people, all the weapons confiscated by the national standing army were given to civilians by Cobra. He considered that, with so many pirates in the country, it didn't matter if the civilians had weapons—they could be used in the fight.

News kept coming back to Nico Robin, and every time she saw a report, Nico Robin couldn't help but sigh.

"There are still a few big projects left to handle. So many slaves have died all at once. Should we go to the second half of the Grand Line to catch some pirates?"

However, the strength of the pirates there is immense. Even with the team of ability users and the Sky Island team, they might not capture many pirates. Robin also worried about the sudden shortage of manpower.

"Why go to the second half of the Grand Line?"

A voice suddenly sounded from behind, startling Nico Robin. When she turned around and saw the familiar scumbag boss, she couldn't help but sigh and said, slightly raising her voice, "Ah, the boss who hasn't appeared in two years. It's been a long time."

Kain confidently placed some magic desserts on the table and said, "I went out to buy desserts for you, but that's not important. What happened to the slaves?"

After hearing Kain's words, Nico Robin helplessly explained the recent events: "The pirate slaves rioted, and now there are probably still over 3,000 left."

…

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