Although the area around Water 7 was only windy and not raining, she must have been caught in the rain on her way across the islands. Her drenched hair was alluring, but it writhed like snakes in time with Kaie's Haki.
Lucci, in his human-beast form, was tall enough to nearly touch the ceiling of the room, but Kaie was even taller. Bending slightly in the cramped space, she stood with Caterina behind her and surveyed the intelligence agents surrounding them.
"CP-0 and CP-9... I see, this is quite a big catch."
"'Evil Eye' Kaie... A troublesome one has arrived."
Guernica's white-painted face twisted in disgust. Joseph's face was hidden beneath a mask, but he was in complete agreement.
Lucci, unaware of their thoughts, took a stance to fight Kaie—but was stopped by Guernica.
"Wait, Lucci. Do not fight her."
"...Why? She's an enemy, isn't she?"
"'Evil Eye' Kaie is not an opponent you can defeat. I want to avoid unnecessary losses as much as possible."
Kaie had a bounty placed on her head when she was approaching her late teens.
At the time, though she was still young, the government placed a bounty of 66 million on her. It was partly because she was exceptionally strong among Twilight's combatants, but what the government viewed most seriously was her ability.
Guernica knew of Kaie's troublesome nature, her ability to inflict one-sided strength against lower-ranked opponents, even if it wasn't widely known.
That had been the case even when her bounty was first issued. Twenty years had only made Kaie's strength more certain.
"Even though a Warlord's subordinate's bounty is frozen, for her to be under 100 million is a fraud..." Guernica muttered, sensing Kaie's Haki. Her skill was at a level that could likely rival an Emperor's commander without being inferior.
However, the situation was by no means advantageous for Twilight.
Kaie was certainly strong, but not at such a transcendent level that she could take on four CP-0 agents and put up a grand fight. Moreover, CP-0 had already apprehended Tom, Iceburg, and Cutty Flam.
It was unfortunate that Caterina had not been apprehended, but considering the extremely low possibility of her possessing the blueprints, leaving her be would have little impact.
"Kaie, can you win?" Caterina asked.
"It will be tough. However, if I fight with all my might, I should be able to take two of them down with me."
But the presence of even one CP-0 agent outclassed everyone else besides Kaie. And CP-9 was here as well.
There was no point if Kaie took a few of them with her but the result remained unchanged.
"It seems there is no advantage for either of us to fight here. Do you have any intention of withdrawing?" Guernica proposed.
"...What do you think, Caterina?" Kaie asked.
"If you'll leave Tom-san and the others, that's fine, but—"
"That's a request I cannot grant."
Securing Tom and the others was a secondary objective; if they got their hands on the blueprints, they would have no more use for them... but if they did get them, there would be no reason to keep them alive.
With Aqua Laguna approaching, reinforcements from Twilight were unlikely, and the possibility of them being completely wiped out was extremely high.
In addition, if this group fought seriously, the town of Water 7 would suffer damage that would not be easily dismissed.
In that case.
"...Caterina, don't worry about us. We have no intention of telling you where the blueprints are. You alone should escape."
"But!"
"I agree. We can't fight at full strength here anyway," Iceburg added.
Iceburg wanted Caterina, at the very least, to escape, no matter what happened to him.
It would be difficult for Tom and Cutty Flam... Franky, to escape. Besides, they had no means to move an army.
Currently, the highest probability of survival was to let Caterina escape and bet on what happened afterward.
Of course, Caterina also understood Iceburg's intentions, but even CP-0 was well aware of that.
"Hmm? I thought you came here with the intention of fighting, but was I mistaken?" Guernica mused.
"What do you think, Guernica?"
"'Evil Eye' Kaie appearing here was unexpected, but it's not like she can use Twilight's full forces. We've confirmed that at least most of their strength is in the New World."
Kanata, and most of the executives who had bounties in the past, were in the New World.
If they were to be taken to Enies Lobby, how many days would it take for them to gather their forces and attack?
At the very least, once it became widely known that Kanata would be stripped of her Warlord title, the Four Emperors alliance would likely see this as an opportunity and make a move. She couldn't afford to hold back against the Beasts-Big Mom pirate alliance without the Navy's cooperation, and if they clashed successfully, the government would gain both time and an advantage.
Even if only the members in Paradise attacked, the CP-0 side already had a card to deal with that.
"This island is soon to be erased as a target of a Buster Call. Even if they come to retrieve Nico Robin, these forces will be redirected to the defense of Impel Down. Can a Twilight without its 'Witch' break through that?"
"A Buster Call!!? Are you really going to erase this island!?" Caterina exclaimed.
"There are too many inconvenient things on this island," Guernica stated.
It would be troublesome if Kaido and Linlin learned of Robin's whereabouts, and now that they had Robin in their grasp, it was better to erase the Pluton blueprints than to let them fall into anyone else's hands.
No matter how many people died in the process, it wouldn't even register as an object of interest to the Five Elders who gave the order.
The islands connected to Water 7 by the Sea Train were already being inspected by the Navy, and Cipher Pol was checking all incoming and outgoing ships.
The Straw Hat pirates, to which Robin had belonged, were also nothing but a nuisance to the government, and it was more convenient to erase them along with any pirates who happened to be present.
It was a shame to lose skilled shipwrights, but from the Five Elders' perspective, such things would increase on their own later, so it was a stance of not caring.
"...For a government that's usually slow to act, this is quite a hasty move. What with stripping the Warlord title and all, it seems like you're in a bit of a rush," Kaie observed.
"You all went too far," Stussy replied concisely, having returned after being blown away by Kaie.
In the previous clash with the Four Emperors alliance, Twilight had repelled them while leaving forces stationed in various locations. Although it had been a joint operation with the Navy, their opponents were a great pirate crew occupying one of the Four Emperor's seats.
While the Navy had mobilized most of its Vice Admirals and Admirals in a large-scale operation, Kanata had gathered a small number of elite forces and allocated more personnel to rear support.
In fact, until Kaido appeared, the Beasts Pirates were on the verge of annihilation at the hands of Kanata alone, and even after Kaido appeared, many of their combatants, including the Tobi Roppo and the Disasters, were suppressed.
Even if the Beasts Pirates weren't at full strength, it was only natural to feel a sense of crisis after being so cleanly suppressed.
"The only major executive who came out in the last war was the 'Giant Shadow,' right? The girl who stopped that King, on the surface, she's an unknown pirate with no bounty," Stussy pointed out.
The government was aware of Ragnell's existence.
They had information, including the fact that she had fought and overwhelmed Ace, who had been considered for a Warlord position two years ago. Still, to actually witness skilled individuals like Ragnell coming to the forefront must have been quite a shock.
There was Lycoris, who had held her own against a Sweet Commander in Alabasta. Komurasaki, who was on the sky island reported by Maraptonoka. And most of all, the ability to control, to some extent, the independently acting Douglas Bullet.
Taking all this into account—the government recognized the "Witch of Twilight" as, in effect, the fifth Emperor.
"The Five Elders have thrown in the towel, saying she's no longer controllable. If that's the case, isn't it more convenient to have her clash with the other Four Emperors, even if the seas become rough?"
"That's something the government would think of. There's no guarantee our blades won't be turned on you, though."
"When that time comes, it comes. At the very least, 'Big Mom' and 'Kaido of the Beasts' haven't broken their hostile stance against the 'Witch.' To a greater or lesser extent, both will likely be worn down."
The problem was whether "Whitebeard" and "Red-Hair" would intervene in this war... The former was in a state of passive hostility, the latter in a friendly relationship with economic ties.
Considering Shanks's past as a member of the Roger Pirates and the close relationship between Roger and Kanata, they thought it wouldn't be surprising if some secret pact had been made without the government's knowledge.
In any case, the moment Kanata was removed from the Seven Warlords, Twilight would no longer have the luxury of opposing the government.
A two-front war against the government and the Navy, and the Beasts-Big Mom pirate alliance, was a poorly written dream.
"Don't think foolish things like you'll be rescued even if you're taken to Enies Lobby. Of course, if you have the will to fight a Buster Call head-on, that's fine by me."
"Thank you for the advice."
"...You really have no intention of fighting here, do you? A pity."
Even after receiving Stussy's taunt, laced with personal resentment, Kaie had no intention of moving from in front of Caterina.
Even if she took on the four of CP-0 here, her chances of victory were extremely low. If she could get through this by defending, she judged that she should.
"...It's time. Apprehend Tom, Iceburg, and Cutty Flam."
Bruno, Lucci, and Kaku each carried one of them and began to take them away.
Pedro, Zepo, and Tobi were still unconscious, and Sanji, the only one conscious, was restrained by Kaie's hand as he tried to stand.
Now was not the time to act.
"Well then, farewell. I pray we do not meet again."
As Guernica said this and left through the window, the bombs planted in the mansion were activated, and the entire building was quickly engulfed in flames.
***
Kaie, who had finished the simple yet arduous task of recovering all the fallen Galley-La Company craftsmen from inside the building and carrying them outside in less than ten minutes, had returned to Caterina to discuss what to do next.
The Pegasus she had ridden to this island was very conspicuous, but it lay quietly beside Caterina.
It was trying to protect Caterina in Kaie's stead.
"I've brought most of the fallen craftsmen outside. There shouldn't be anyone left behind."
"I see, that's good."
"So, what do we do now?"
Chopper and Caterina were treating the unconscious Pedro, Zepo, and Tobi. Nami and Usopp were getting an explanation from Sanji about what had happened inside.
Nami, Usopp, and Chopper, judging that they would only be a hindrance, had been tasked with signaling Caterina when they saw Kaie approaching from Midgard. The reason the signal flare had been fired with such good timing was because they had been prepared.
They would also need to search for Luffy, who had been thrown, and Zoro, who had been kicked away.
Robin and the three from Tom's Workers, who had been taken away, would be transported to Enies Lobby by Sea Train without much delay.
And Water 7 would become inaccessible due to Aqua Laguna, and as soon as the storm subsided, a Buster Call would be issued, and warships would arrive.
It was a terrible situation, one where it was almost laughable to think that bad things could pile up any further.
And yet.
"What we have to do has been decided from the very beginning."
Caterina's eyes were not yet dead.
If they weren't dead, Tobi and Kaie, who could use Observation Haki, could easily find Zoro and Luffy.
Even if they had taken Robin and the others, as long as they hadn't crossed the Gates of Justice and been taken to the underwater prison, Impel Down, there was still a chance.
And the Buster Call issued for Water 7 would likely come from the Marine Headquarters, passing through Enies Lobby, which was closest to Water 7.
In other words, after recovering Zoro and Luffy, they would have to attack Enies Lobby and crush CP-0 along with the Buster Call.
"You guys don't intend to give up on Robin either, right?" Caterina asked.
"Of course not!" Luffy's crew chorused.
"How can we continue being pirates if we abandon Robin-chan who's waiting for help...!" Sanji declared.
"But, what do we do specifically? With Zepo and Pedro down, and Luffy and Zoro gone, how can we possibly win...?" Nami worried.
"There's a plan, so it's okay. Don't worry."
Smiling at the worried Nami, Caterina nodded powerfully.
"Leave it to me! After all, I am a genius!"