The central control room of the G-8 Fortress could easily be considered one of the most vital locations within the entire base.
Not only did it house the switches that controlled several critical valves, but it was also the central hub for every Surveillance Den Den Mushi throughout the fortress.
Therefore, to be absolutely safe, Vice Admiral Jonathan felt compelled to personally station himself here.
Looking at the dozens of screens installed on the wall, the bearded Vice Admiral muttered to himself, "If only we could cover the entire fortress with Surveillance Den Den Mushi, these little fish wouldn't have been able to run amok for so long."
"Our budget is just too tight, and Navarone's footprint is indeed a bit too massive."
A mere few dozen Surveillance Den Den Mushi were nowhere near enough to provide proper surveillance for a base as vast as Navarone. However, Jonathan understood the constraints. Unlike standard voice-transmission Den Den Mushi, the surveillance variants were not only rare, but the technology behind them hadn't fully matured yet.
In Jonathan's memory, there were only three places in the entire Grand Line that were massive in scale yet managed to achieve complete Surveillance Den Den Mushi coverage.
Marine Headquarters—Marineford, the underwater prison—Impel Down, and the world's largest entertainment city—Gran Tesoro.
As for the Holy Land of Mary Geoise, Jonathan had never been there, so he refrained from making any assumptions.
(Once this farce is over, maybe I can request another batch of Surveillance Den Den Mushi from headquarters?)
Buru buru buru... A sudden ringing interrupted Vice Admiral Jonathan's train of thought. He picked up the receiver, only to hear a piece of news that left him rather surprised.
"A hostage? Heh, how interesting."
Vice Admiral Jonathan stroked his mustache, chuckling softly. "Are you really so certain that the orange-haired girl is a Marine?"
"Uh, well..." The voice on the other end of the Den Den Mushi went momentarily speechless.
"Tell you what, do exactly as I say." A glint of sharp wisdom flashed across the bearded Vice Admiral's eyes.
"Whether she's actually a hostage or not will be clear after a single test."
Meanwhile, on the other side, the pirates were playing along with the misunderstanding, while the Marines found their hands tied, hesitant to strike for fear of harming the hostage.
"ROAR!!!"
At that moment, Chopper completely shed his usual cute and innocent demeanor. One of his paws was wrapped around Nami's slender, elegant neck, while the other beat furiously against his own fluffy chest. He opened his mouth wide, letting out a series of incoherent bellows, looking exactly like a gorilla that hadn't eaten in three weeks.
"Chopper, I told you to act ferocious, not to act like a gorilla..." Sanji muttered under his breath.
"Uh, sorry about that." Hearing this, the blue-nosed reindeer scratched his head in sheer embarrassment.
"Now is not the time to apologize!!!"
Sanji rolled his eyes. If it weren't for the fact that he refused to violate his code of chivalry even when putting on an act, the curly-browed cook never would have let this innocent little guy play such a role.
"Someone, please save me!"
Nami put on a deeply pitiful display. Her pale complexion and tear-brimmed eyes perfectly captured the terror and desperate hope expected of a hostage, forming a stark contrast with Chopper's clumsy acting.
A great figure once said that all women are born actresses, and there was definitely some truth to that phrase.
"If you don't come rescue me right now, I... I'm going to have my neck snapped by this terrifying monster!" Nami let out a despairing shriek, while discreetly positioning her heel right over Chopper's foot—and stomping down hard!
"AAAGHH!!!"
Baring his teeth in pure agony, the little reindeer let out a massive roar. To the surrounding Marines, however, this exaggerated expression looked incredibly fierce and horrifying.
"That's right! You bastards better clear a path for me right now, or I'll crush this woman's throat!"
(The terrifying one here is clearly you, Nami!) The little reindeer's inner self was already weeping buckets.
(Sigh... why do I get the feeling the hostage-taker is suffering way more than the actual hostage?)
Sanji let out a long sigh, genuinely feeling bad for the innocent little reindeer.
Yet, despite how completely full of holes their performance was, the Marine soldiers opposite them actually bought it hook, line, and sinker!
"Damn it! They actually have a hostage! These pirates are completely despicable!"
"Let that girl go!"
"You monster! If you've got the guts, fight me one-on-one! What kind of coward hides behind a woman?!"
The Marine soldiers, bursting with a sense of justice, were undoubtedly provoked to the core by Chopper, while Nami's fragile, pitiful appearance triggered their protective instincts to the maximum.
They shouted, cursed, and vented their outrage, but they didn't dare make a reckless move. After all, judging by Chopper's savage expression (which was just him holding back pain), this creature looked like a ruthless bastard who would absolutely follow through on his threat!
"What should we do, sir?" The Marines all turned their gaze toward their commanding officer. Having just concluded his conversation with Vice Admiral Jonathan, the officer tucked away his Den Den Mushi and offered a faint smile.
"Hey, you, the 'Marine girl' over there. Let me ask you a few questions."
Without waiting for Nami to respond, the Marine officer dove straight into his interrogation.
"How long have you been enlisted in the military?"
"Huh?" x2
Sanji's expression changed instantly, while the heartbreakingly lovely look on Nami's face froze entirely.
"Who is your commanding officer?"
"Which unit do you belong to? What is your registration number?"
With every question the Marine officer asked, the atmosphere grew a degree colder. By the time he finished, let alone the Marine soldiers, even the incredibly naive blue-nosed reindeer realized what the problem was.
Everyone fell completely silent. The Marines stared quietly at the three pirates, while Chopper remained frozen in place, still clutching Nami's neck. The atmosphere plummeted to an absolute peak of awkwardness.
However, if anyone's mind was in total disarray, it was the Marine soldier whose collar had previously been straightened by Sherlock.
After all, if that beautiful orange-haired girl was a pirate, then that approachable Lieutenant Commander from before must be...
(What on earth did I just do?!)
At the thought that he had actually felt honored to have his collar adjusted by a pirate, the Marine wished he could find a hole to crawl into and die. Without a doubt, this would remain a dark, embarrassing stain on his history for the rest of his life!
"The conclusion is already perfectly obvious."
The Marine officer let out a soft sigh. A flash of embarrassment crossed his face as he realized he had almost been fooled by these cunning pirates.
Clearing his throat, he was just about to issue orders to the Marine soldiers, whose emotions were equally complicated.
—Dos Fleur!
A refreshing, soul-soothing scent of flowers drifted through the air. Accompanied by a few fluttering petals, two slender, elegant arms sprouted directly from the Marine officer's shoulders, gripping the top of his head and his chin.
—Clutch!
Crack! The crisp, skin-crawling sound of snapping bone snapped the Marines out of their daze. To their horror, they watched as their commanding officer slumped lifelessly to the ground, his eyes rolling back as he lost consciousness completely.
"It's Robin!"
Compared to the terrified Marines, Nami and the others were overcome with immense excitement at the sight—especially a certain love-struck cook.
"Robin-swan~~~~ Where are you?!" Even without seeing her in person, nothing could stop the love-struck cook from fawning. With a completely infatuated expression, he looked wildly left and right, hoping to catch a glimpse of her beautiful figure at the earliest possible second.
"Strange, how come I don't smell Robin's scent?"
Chopper felt puzzled. But before he could think on it further, the little reindeer's sensitive hearing picked up a strange noise coming from directly beneath the three of them, and it was rapidly growing louder!
(Could it be...)
Sensing that something was terribly wrong, the two humans and one reindeer simultaneously looked down at the ground, their expressions shifting.
CRASH!
With a sharp, shattering crack, the ground Nami and the others were standing on suddenly caved in. Letting out sharp cries, they plummeted into a gaping pit under the relentless pull of gravity. Billowing clouds of dust surged upward, completely obscuring the surrounding Marine soldiers' field of view.
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