Chapter 121: Bad News and Worse News

The power of a Devil Fruit depends on the extent to which its user has developed it, but having the ability is the fundamental prerequisite for everything. After the recent chain of events, there was no doubt that Ain played a crucial role; Akushiro was merely giving blind orders. Without Ain, Rosinante—who should have died—would have truly perished by now, and Akushiro’s Plan A would have been impossible to continue. Of course, as long as one’s resolve remains intact, there are always more solutions than difficulties. Proud of his intellect and notorious for scheming, Akushiro surely had a Plan B—if he still aimed to acquire the Surgery Fruit.

Because of the nerve-wracking and clandestine shameful activities they engaged in during the night, when everyone aboard the ship began stirring the next day, Akushiro was still sound asleep—an unusually rare sight. If this was due to the pressure imposed by Doflamingo, then sleeping so deeply at such a time suggested an almost absurd level of composure. How exactly did this man regulate his mental state?

Meanwhile, contrasting with the peacefully sleeping Akushiro, Doflamingo was visibly restless.

“Still no contact with Vergo?”

What troubled him was the loss of communication with Vergo.

Due to Doflamingo’s sensitive identity, Vergo, as a Navy officer, did not have direct contact with him. But once separated, Doflamingo naturally wanted to obtain information about Law through Vergo—after all, in his mind, Law had fallen into Navy hands.

However, for some unknown reason, Vergo was unreachable no matter what.

The recent series of misfortunes gave Doflamingo a very uneasy premonition, and in truth, such premonitions had been turning into reality with an absurdly high probability for some time.

“Sorry, young master, no contact yet…”

“Young master, a message from Lord Vergo!” Before the words were finished, someone rushed over holding a Den Den Mushi.

“It’s me, Vergo. Is something wrong on your end?” Doflamingo immediately took the Den Den Mushi and spoke.

“Yeah, a bit... my identity has been exposed.”

Vergo’s voice was noisy in the background, and for a moment, Doflamingo couldn’t quite catch what he said.

“Exposed? What do you mean?”

It meant the Navy already knew he was a pirate, and more precisely, that he was a pirate affiliated with the Donquixote family. Did they really think Rosinante had just beaten him up for no reason? He had almost beaten the secrets out of him—wouldn’t that naturally lead to betrayal?

Or, setting aside personal grudges, Rosinante’s actions could be seen in a more honorable light: as a Navy officer’s duty to root out the traitors within, preventing greater damage to the organization.

“Where are you now?” Doflamingo immediately realized he had asked a rather foolish question, but it wasn’t impossible. If Law was indeed in Navy custody, and Vergo had obviously been present, it wouldn’t be surprising if he had been caught by that kid.

If possible, Doflamingo still wanted to rescue Vergo.

“At Navy Base G157. Doflamingo, I won’t betray the family’s secrets, but future contact will be impossible,” Vergo said.

“G157? There shouldn’t be any formidable figures there. With your Haki and strength, escaping should be no problem. Why so pessimistic?” Doflamingo asked.

The most capable Navy figure in the North Blue, Vice Admiral Tsuru, should still be hot on the family’s tail. Although the base was heavily guarded, it wouldn’t be impossible for Vergo to escape with his abilities.

Vergo was one of the rare non-Devil Fruit users in the Donquixote family because he simply didn’t need abilities. His mastery of Armament Haki was world-class; even most Vice Admirals wouldn’t be able to stop him now.

“Normally, no problem. But just yesterday, a troublesome figure arrived at the port, so I probably can’t escape…”

By Navy standards, officers below the Admiral rank typically spend half the year stationed at ports or bases, and the rest patrolling the seas along fixed routes. Of course, there are always those who drift about without following orders.

Perhaps it was this relative freedom that led to one Vice Admiral stubbornly remaining in this position, refusing promotion to Admiral.

So even small-time pirates in the four seas have to be cautious during their misdeeds, lest they run into legendary figures on a stroll, such as...

“‘Iron Fist’ Garp.”

“The Hero” Garp.

“The Strongest Marine” Garp.

“Vice Admiral Garp, the enemy is hiding in this area!” A clear voice came through the Den Den Mushi from afar.

“Ha ha ha, you were too careless letting a pirate sneak in. But no worries, I’ll take care of this!” The boisterous laughter was oddly familiar, yet no pirate would welcome this voice.

What he said wasn’t entirely correct. After all, Fleet Admiral Sengoku had personally met “Captain” Vergo not long ago, finding nothing suspicious. How could the subordinates be blamed?

But no one dared to refute Vice Admiral Garp.

No matter how refined Vergo’s Armament Haki was, Garp was the man who once smashed the 500 million bounty pirate, the 12th pillar of the Eight Treasure Navy, “Green Pepper,” into a meat pancake with a single punch.

To put it into perspective, Green Pepper had fought the Pirate King Gol D. Roger, the Golden Lion Shiki, and Whitebeard Edward Newgate. Regardless of the outcomes, he was still alive and kicking afterward.

Yet, he was knocked out cold by Garp. Who would he complain to?

Would Vergo be stronger than Green Pepper at his prime?

No one has really tallied who possesses the world’s strongest Armament Haki, but if you wrote “Monkey D. Garp,” the supporters would far outnumber the skeptics.

People are bound to compare and fail, goods compared must be discarded; thus, Vergo’s misfortune was undeniable.

So why, at his age—his grandchildren even run errands for him—did Garp not just quietly accept promotion to Admiral and curry favor with the Celestial Dragons? Why wander around the world aimlessly?

But this time, he wasn’t wandering aimlessly. Precisely because something was happening in the North Blue, Garp’s sense of responsibility suddenly flared, bringing him there—also an opportunity to chat with Vice Admiral Tsuru.

“Doflamingo, may your fortune in war be prosperous.”

With those words, Vergo decisively cut off the call. Meanwhile, Doflamingo felt a storm brewing.

He might have to suspect some impurity aboard the ship—why was he so unlucky?

Superstition was irrational, but impurity did exist. Yet here he was, still asleep.

Perhaps Vergo’s fate was sealed at Impel Down. Doflamingo had no intention of launching a rescue mission for him—after all, the opponent was Monkey D. Garp. Charging in would be a death sentence.

Let those who must sacrifice be sacrificed. That was one of Doflamingo’s principles.

Even if the one sacrificed was one of the family’s highest-ranking officers who had served him for years. This was the cold side of him.

In a way, it was even colder than how he handled his own younger brother, because “Rosinante” was a traitor, while Vergo truly dedicated himself to the family.

Yet, how different was Doflamingo’s attitude when he discarded them?

The answer: there was really no difference at all.