"All information regarding Golden Lion will be handled by you personally."
"But remember—under no circumstances are you to engage the new Flying Pirate Crew in direct conflict."
Michael repeated his instructions to Rosinante over and over.
There was no helping it—judging by their current strength, the Flying Pirate Crew was simply too overpowered.
Michael even suspected that the Beast Pirates might not be a match for the new Flying Pirate Crew.
Having re-emerged, they had instantly become the backbone of the pirate forces across the seas.
Compared to the Whitebeard Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates, both of which had established their own nations, the new Flying Pirate Crew was far more straightforward—no nation-building, just pure piracy.
And according to the intelligence Rosinante had gathered, the new Flying Pirate Crew had already begun seizing territory across the New World.
They had even clashed with several major pirate crews.
Like Wang Zhi of Hachinosu, Kaido of Thunder God Island, and others...
They were utterly unreasonable, seemingly intent on stirring up trouble wherever they went.
But with so many top-tier fighters among their ranks, every conflict ended in their victory.
So Michael had every reason to believe that, in the near future, if the so-called "Four Emperors" were to be ranked again...
It would likely be Whitebeard, Golden Lion, Charlotte Linlin, and Kaido.
"I get it—I'm going for intel, not to get myself killed," Rosinante shrugged. "And I'll keep those hot-headed guys in check too, so they don't lose their heads."
"Good. Your safety comes first—you're my greatest asset in achieving my goals." Michael nodded before letting out a long sigh.
"Is everyone... doing alright?"
"Not bad. After all, you've already briefed everyone in the SWORD Classified Special Forces, so of course we wouldn't have any major reactions... Though sometimes we still have to put on a show in public. Usually, it's either Smoker performing 'Angry Secondhand Smoke' or Robin playing 'Condemning the Heartless Scumbag'." Rosinante said with a laugh.
"But those still kept in the dark haven't been having the best time these past few years."
"Do you think I don't know that?" Michael gave a bitter smile. "But whether it's Sengoku or Kaji, neither could fully accept this plan of mine... So keeping them in the dark is actually the most efficient approach right now."
"What about Vice Admiral Gion?" Rosinante's face was full of gossipy curiosity.
"She must have guessed at least part of it, right?"
"She's always been clever... So even if she figured out my dual identity, it wouldn't be surprising."
"No wonder then."
"No wonder what?"
"No wonder every time she sees the SWORD Classified Special Forces, she's always so warm and caring toward us... I imagine she wasn't entirely concerned about our wellbeing?"
"Rosinante, what exactly are you implying... Let me warn you, if certain words come out of your mouth, even if you're my excellent little brother, I won't hesitate to beat you into next week."
"Vice Admiral Gion, Stella, Crocodile... Tsk tsk, you've certainly racked up quite the romantic debts."
"...Enough. Say no more. Prepare to die, Rosinante."
"Big brother! I'm your brother! Blood is thicker than water!"
"Adopted." Michael charged forward without hesitation.
"And where exactly is this blood relation between us? Just look at your lanky frame! Anyone over 188cm has gigantism!"
...
Egghead.
Knock knock knock
"Come in."
"Dr. Vegapunk, we've brought the latest updates."
"Vice Admiral Stella, how could we trouble you and Vice Admiral Crocodile with such trivial matters?"
"Believe me, Vegapunk, we're happy to do this." Crocodile plopped directly onto the sofa in Vegapunk's room.
"Egghead is stunning at first glance... but after staying awhile, all you see is cold steel and transparent labs..."
"Vice Admiral Crocodile, there's no helping that." Vegapunk shook his head. "For most people, scientific research is extremely dull and tedious work, requiring mechanical repetition of experiments to gradually eliminate variables... That's why Egghead has always struggled to recruit researchers. Few can endure staying here long."
"Is that so? But you seem to be thoroughly enjoying yourself."
"Perhaps... because I'm the smartest man in the world?"
"Tsk tsk, saying that so earnestly feels rather shameless..."
Vegapunk raised his head and pointed at the apple-shaped antenna on top of his head.
"I am a Brain Human who ate the Paramecia-type Brain-Brain Fruit, possessing infinite brain capacity, which means I can store an almost limitless amount of information. But as I absorb more and more data, my brain keeps growing larger," Vegapunk shrugged.
"So I removed my own brain and turned it into Egghead's cloud processor. This antenna is the signal transmitter and receiver."
"Objectively speaking, I'm actually a man without a brain now. Hahaha!"
"Tch, here we go again—Vegapunk's brain jokes," Stella sighed. "If your other clones heard this, they'd definitely mock your taste."
"Hahaha, spare me from them," Vegapunk chuckled, then a glint of sharp intelligence flashed in his eyes. "...You two are being unusually talkative today."
"Are we?"
"It seems... that he has sent me a message," Vegapunk stared straight into Stella and Crocodile's eyes. "The one who assigned you to my side—the Marine's Grand Inspector."
"Former Grand Inspector, to be precise."
"Come now, that excuse might fool others... but judging by how the SWORD Classified Special Forces treat Vice Admiral Michael, it's only a matter of time before he returns to the Marine," Vegapunk declared firmly.
"Right now, it's just part of the plan."
"Alright, now I understand why Michael values your existence so much," Crocodile stepped forward, retrieving a letter from her golden hook.
"This is for your eyes only... meaning this memory must be deleted and never uploaded to your cloud brain processor."
"Alright, alright, so mysterious." Vegapunk opened the envelope, his eyes suddenly glazing over. After a moment, he looked up,
"Get ready. Michael is coming to Egghead."
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