Doflamingo's gaze slowly swept over the Executives in front of him, his brow furrowing imperceptibly, his heart inexplicably shrouded in a melancholic haze.
Memories from all those years ago flashed through his mind.
He suddenly had a premonition that he might truly not win, that Orochimaru's conjectures were all true.
However, a hint of determination instantly flashed in Doflamingo's deep eyes.
If he were to retreat simply because he foresaw a potential failure, then he would no longer be the Doflamingo who commanded the dark world, striking fear into the hearts of all who heard his name.
Doflamingo raised his head, the familiar arrogance and wildness rekindled in his gaze.
"You have all worked hard all this time," Doflamingo's voice was low but full of power, echoing in the silent space.
"Every single one of you is the most important family to me on this long journey.
In the next few days, there might be a fierce battle approaching.
Prepare yourselves.
Only victory is justice."
Trebol's brows were tightly furrowed, his face full of confusion, his sticky body swaying slightly as he asked, bewildered,
"Doffy, what exactly is going on?"
Doflamingo's expression was somewhat solemn.
"That traitor Law, along with the Straw Hat Pirates, will soon arrive in Dressrosa.
Their goal should be to destroy the SMILE Factory,
so don't be careless; Vergo was defeated by him."
After saying this, Doflamingo adjusted his suit again, then changed the subject.
"But none of that matters; what's important now is that Orochimaru has returned, let's go welcome him."
The group of people staggered upon hearing this; this sentence was the real point you called us here to express, wasn't it?!
Buffalo was dull-witted and looked utterly bewildered.
"Orochimaru-sama is back? Why would there be a fight? Even though he's part of the Straw Hat,
isn't the Young Master Orochimaru-sama's lover? He's family too, right?"
Dellinger showed no mercy, raising his hand and smacking Buffalo hard on the back of his head.
"Are you stupid? Haven't you read 'The Ins and Outs of the Straw Hat Pirate Crew's first mate'? Orochimaru-sama is very popular.
But so far, very few people have truly gained Orochimaru-sama's approval.
Didn't the Young Master get a head start? He's at least a recognized lover, so getting beaten by family is normal, right?
It's a good thing only the Straw Hat Pirates are coming. Do you want to welcome Vice Admiral Garp and Whitebeard, and even the Revolutionary Army?
Besides, according to the toys on the island, the Revolutionary Army has already begun to infiltrate and investigate in secret."
Listening to Dellinger's words, everyone hadn't even had time to feel awkward for Doflamingo.
Suddenly, a loud "bang" was heard. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound, only to see Sugar's eyes wide with shock, her body swaying precariously, almost fainting.
Fortunately, Jora, who was beside her, was quick-witted and quickly pinched her awake, as Sugar absolutely couldn't faint at this moment.
A moment later, Sugar came to her senses as if waking from a dream, letting out a piercing scream.
"No!!! I don't want to see that snake!!!"
Witnessing Sugar's miserable state, Doflamingo pondered for a moment and decided that it was indeed inappropriate to have Sugar go and welcome Orochimaru.
It was better to have him and the senior Executives guard the castle to prevent it from being ambushed.
Doflamingo's gaze swept over everyone's faces, finally landing on Sugar.
"You don't need to go; just stay in the castle.
Remember, do not run around casually except for essential work tasks."
A hint of ruthlessness flashed in Doflamingo's eyes as he commanded loudly,
"Inform the kitchen to prepare a banquet with all their might, to the most lavish specifications.
No matter what tricks the Straw Hat Pirates try to pull, we will never back down; we will meet them head-on.
I want to see how much trouble they can stir up on my Doflamingo's territory.
Let's go to the port. Give orders for the town residents to be ready, and let that traitor Law feel the love and passion of Dressrosa!"
Dellinger looked at Doflamingo, who couldn't hide his joy, and secretly slandered him in his heart, "Are you sure it's Law you want to welcome?"
At this moment, on the sunny, Luffy looked at Dressrosa, which was within reach, his excitement overflowing.
As the ship slowly docked, Luffy, unable to hold back, leaped onto the pier, excitedly shouting,
"Dressrosa! I'm here!!"
Watching Luffy laugh heartily, Usopp whispered in a low voice,
"Hey, Luffy! I told you not to shout! This is enemy territory, seriously."
Everyone disembarked one after another, and Orochimaru also specifically changed into the outfit flamingo had given him, because what if the child threw a tantrum? After all, he was a clingy one.
Luffy turned and grinned at Law.
"Anyway, let's go into the city first."
Law's expression was very solemn.
"Hmm... listen, we absolutely cannot be careless. We must not cause a disturbance at first. We need to find out the location of the SMILE Factory and confirm Doflamingo's intelligence. We must act in secret."
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow, intending to go ahead alone so as not to cause them trouble, to avoid them blaming him if something happened, but...
"Luffy... can you let go of my hair (;¬＿¬)"
Luffy turned and smiled brightly.
"No... I feel like you're going to cause trouble, so no sneaking off."
Orochimaru cleared his throat. "You guys are the ones who aren't letting me go, you know."
"How could that be? I already said I wouldn't participate; you guys can fight however you want. Oh, right, Usopp, here's this book for you. Don't look at it now; wait until you've confirmed your actions before you read it."
Orochimaru stealthily slipped the handwritten book, "One Hundred Ways to Make Sugar Faint," into Usopp's bag.
Subsequently, the group entered Dressrosa together.
As soon as they stepped into the town, the rich aroma of food, mingled with the fragrance of various flowers, wafted towards them, and the air was filled with various enticing scents.
Lively music was incessant, and gracefully dancing women swayed in the streets.
Surprisingly, toys and humans lived together harmoniously, the entire scene filled with novelty and vitality, and a sense of heartfelt happiness enveloped them.
Anyone would feel that this was a happy country.
Suddenly, a Toy Soldier appeared, staring intently at Luffy.
"You guys look very familiar..."
Then he tilted his head and immediately saw Orochimaru in the white feather coat.
The Toy Soldier quickly got up and ran towards the town, shouting as he ran,
"They're here! They're here! Get ready!!"
In an instant, the toys who had been waiting there stood on both sides of the road, and the Toy Soldiers uniformly raised their trumpets and played.
Residents also flocked from both sides of the street, or leaned out from upstairs, waving colorful flags in their hands, with respect on their faces.
"Orochimaru-sama, welcome back!"
The shouts, rising and falling, intertwined, forming a lively and extraordinary scene.
A group of dancers in brightly colored costumes quickly began to move, their skirts swirling.
Accompanied by cheerful and rhythmic music, it was as if they were offering the most enthusiastic ode to Orochimaru's return.
And on the main street, which had been cleared, the group could clearly see the Donquixote Family Executives, led by Doflamingo, walking towards them from the opposite side.
Law was completely dumbfounded. What was going on...? Didn't they agree to be low-key...? This is f*cking low-key???
The Straw Hat Pirates' sympathetic gazes instantly shifted to Law; they were familiar with that expression.
Although this grand display was a bit shocking,
what was with this feeling of being completely unsurprised?
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