Research Institute, Meeting Room.
"Shurorororo~ What an unexpectedly powerful display!" Caesar Clown looked at Jason as if seeing him for the first time. A doctor who wiped out the G-5 Marines, Smoker, and the entire Straw Hat crew single-handedly? Is this man even a doctor?
"Stop acting like nothing's wrong, Caesar!" Jason said coldly. "Wano samurai, the Straw Hats, the G-5 Marines... so many intruders. Have you figured out how you're going to explain this to Captain Aeridar?"
"Well..." Caesar's eyes darted around. He laughed nervously, "Shurorororo~ It was a lapse in judgment, but you can't blame me! This is just a regular research facility; its only defense was its secrecy!"
"Hmph. Save your excuses for the Captain," Jason snorted, leaning back on the sofa. He pulled out a small Den Den Mushi and dialed.
Katcha~
A moment later, the call connected.
"Jason, I just got back. Is everything settled over there?" Aeridar's voice came through the snail.
"No, Captain. We have a problem. Punk Hazard was discovered by the G-5 Marines, and the Straw Hats are here too," Jason said gravely.
"Nani? Are you guys okay?"
Back in the Clifford Kingdom, Aeridar sat bolt upright. The memories of the original "Punk Hazard Arc" began to flicker in his mind.
"We teamed up with Trafalgar Law and held off the Straw Hats and Smoker's G-5 unit. Then, I used two vials of M-13 to put everyone under," Jason explained.
"M-13... Jason, great work!" Aeridar breathed a sigh of relief. That was the neuro-sedative that had even put down Calamodus. If it weren't for the fact that Aeridar's Float-Float powers would deactivate if he lost consciousness, causing Alvis Island to plummet from the sky, he might have tried the drug himself just to see the effect.
"Captain, what should we do with them? If Smoker and the others die, the Navy will notice something is wrong," Jason asked.
"What to do..." Aeridar frowned. This was tricky. Smoker and his men weren't a huge problem; even if they died, he and Doflamingo could use their connections to cover it up.
But the Straw Hats were different. They were the protagonists of this world, backed by massive figures. If they died here, there was no telling if the timeline would spiral out of control.
However, he was already at odds with the Revolutionary Army, and the Straw Hats were nothing but trouble. In the original history, the Luffy-Law alliance destroyed this facility, kidnapped Caesar, and then took down Doflamingo, effectively unchaining the monsters of the New World.
If that was still going to happen, it would shatter Aeridar's plans. That was something he could never allow.
Aeridar's voice turned murderous as it crackled through the Den Den Mushi: "Eliminate the Straw Hat crew! I don't care how you do it, just make sure they stay dead!"
"Understood! Eliminate the Straw Hats!" Jason, Otto, and Cavendish straightened up, their expressions solemn.
Katcha.
The line went dead.
"Phew~ Thank goodness!" Caesar, who hadn't been mentioned once during the call, let out a breath and wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
The atmosphere in the room turned lethal. Caesar looked at the three of them, his mind racing. Monet stood nearby, her expression unreadable behind her thick glasses.
"You heard the Captain's orders," Jason said, turning to the others.
"No problem. Leave it to us!" Otto and Cavendish stood up to leave.
"Wait a moment!" Caesar suddenly spoke up.
"What is it now?" Otto and Cavendish looked back, annoyed.
"Shurorororo~ I happen to have a very important experiment for a weapon of mass slaughter, 'Smiley.' Why don't you let me handle this? It's the perfect opportunity to test my research on those people outside!" Caesar asked with a sinister grin.
"A poison gas experiment?" Jason and the others raised their eyebrows, exchanging hesitant glances.
Jason frowned. "Can you guarantee it will kill everyone out there?"
"Of course! Shurorororo~ If it fails, you can always finish the job yourselves!" Caesar beat his chest confidently.
Seeing his confidence, Jason decided to give him a chance, despite his personal distaste for the man. "Fine. Don't let us down."
"Shurorororo~ Leave it to me!" Caesar was overjoyed and immediately hurried off to prepare.
"Wait, Caesar!" Jason called out, remembering Law. "What is Law's goal here?"
"Law's goal?" Caesar blinked. "He said he was investigating World Government research data and just happened to stumble upon this place. Whether that's true... who knows?"
"But he's useful to us, and I have his heart. That's enough, isn't it, Physician Jason? Shurorororo~" Caesar cackled. Having a powerful fighter at his beck and call was a win-win, and with Law's heart in his possession, he had no fear of betrayal.
"Go then. It's in your hands." Jason's doubts didn't entirely vanish, but he felt somewhat reassured. With Law's heart held by Caesar and the looming shadow of both Aeridar and Doflamingo, he doubted Law would do anything stupid.
"Shurorororo~" Caesar drifted out of the room, eager for his experiment.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Clear footsteps echoed in the dimly lit hallway.
"Monkey D. Luffy... 'D'... that might be the breakthrough I need," Law whispered, his face hidden under his hat as he carried Kikoku deeper into the facility. "Cora-san, just wait a little longer... almost there..."
At that moment, at the Punk Hazard harbor, a massive tanker flying the Donquixote Pirates' flag slowly docked.
A man wearing a checkered coat and sunglasses, with lightning-bolt sideburns, stepped off the ship. Strangely, a piece of a beef patty was stuck to his right cheek, and he seemed completely unaware of it.
Marine G-5 Base Commander, "Demon Bamboo" Vergo! (Secret Identity: Elite Officer of the Donquixote Family, the first "Corazon"!)
A pirate with leopard legs walked up to Vergo and whispered, "Vergo-san, the Master and several honored guests from the Chris Pirates are still inside the institute."
Vergo looked toward the facility, his face expressionless. From the distance, he could see the crowd of chained people and the steel cage hanging in mid-air.
"They haven't left yet? Good. I'll head over and see."
"But when did... Punk Hazard get so crowded?"