The grand public execution ended in complete embarrassment.
Da Hong's fearsome name spread across East Blue once again, leaving many of the pirates who had cursed him most viciously over the past few days trembling in fear.
The pirates who had been arrested and thrown into prison by the Marines were even worse off. The moment they heard that not even an Admiral had managed to kill the red rabbit, they immediately began praying that Da Hong would never be transferred into the same prison as them.
Of course, Da Hong was never going to be locked up with small-time pirates like that.
He had a special cell all to himself.
The place was fully furnished. It had an endless supply of carrots, magazines, and canvas sneakers, along with a toilet, a shower room, and even a soft Simmons bed.
After Smoker and Tina escorted him back into the cell, Da Hong acted as though nothing had happened. He lounged comfortably on the bed, leisurely flipping through a magazine.
Outside the bars, Tina and Smoker wore very complicated expressions.
This was the first time either of them had ever seen a prisoner treated this well.
And the worst part was—
this prisoner was a super-criminal who had killed a Celestial Dragon and erased an entire kingdom's royal family.
"Smoker… what now?"
After watching Da Hong for a while, Tina habitually pulled out a slender cigarette and lit it.
"The execution obviously can't continue anymore. There's only one option left."
Smoker shook his head without answering.
This was no longer something a mere Marine captain could decide.
Da Hong's identity was too special, and his behavior made even less sense.
Back in Loguetown Square, Smoker had been certain of one thing:
if Da Hong had truly wanted to escape, even if every Marine present had rushed him at once, they still might not have been able to stop him.
And yet this same monster—one who had punched Admiral Kizaru away, whose body could be split in half and instantly heal—had been subdued by nothing more than a magazine and a carrot.
Still, none of that was the key issue.
The real problem was this:
if they had no way to restrain him, then the only thing they could do was keep him well fed, well supplied, and in a good mood.
If Holy Land learned the full extent of that situation, the Five Elders would probably cough up blood on the spot. And the Celestial Dragon family behind Saint Charloss would never let it go.
Just then, Vice Admiral Gion entered.
"Tina, prepare for transfer."
As soon as she walked up to them, she looked toward Da Hong inside the cell.
"Admiral Kizaru just received a new order from Holy Land. The rabbit is to be transferred immediately to Impel Down."
At those words, both Smoker and Tina frowned.
The Chief Warden of Impel Down, Magellan, was a poison-based Devil Fruit user.
Holy Land's intention was obvious.
They planned to use Magellan's poison to kill Da Hong.
Even though Da Hong had committed the unforgivable crime of killing a Celestial Dragon, Smoker and Tina still found the decision hard to accept.
But they also understood why it had been made.
The first public execution had already turned the Marines and World Government into a laughingstock. If they tried another public execution and failed again, the humiliation would only deepen.
Sending Da Hong straight to Impel Down and using Magellan's poison there was the safest option.
If the poison worked, problem solved.
If it didn't, they could simply keep Da Hong imprisoned in the deepest, most secure prison in the world.
"Remember this."
Seeing that Smoker and Tina had gone quiet, Gion continued calmly, fully aware of what they were thinking.
"Do not dirty his canvas sneakers."
"Do not tear his magazines."
"And keep carrots on hand at all times, just in case."
After a short pause, she added,
"Smoker, stay here. Tina, head to the warship and prepare a cabin. Everything he has here must be prepared there as well."
At the same time—
in Syrup Village—
Kairo was strolling along the beach with Droopy and Green Rabbit, heading toward the village itself.
Suddenly, an uneasy feeling rose in his chest.
"Droopy… do you think there might be a flaw in your plan?"
Kairo stopped walking and looked at him.
"If I remember correctly, Da Hong's execution was supposed to happen at noon today. It's already been three or four hours. Why isn't he back yet?"
Droopy did not answer immediately.
He lowered his head and thought for a long moment.
There was one thing he was certain of:
no one in this world could kill Da Hong.
But he was no longer certain that Da Hong would definitely escape.
If the Marines had prepared enough sugar-coated bait—canvas sneakers, magazines, newspapers, carrots—then even if they couldn't kill him, they might very well make him forget about prison-breaking altogether.
Because in his normal state, Da Hong's emotions were unbelievably stable.
As long as he had magazines to read and sneakers to polish, even the sky collapsing wouldn't necessarily move him.
Unless—
After a long silence, Droopy looked up at Kairo with the guilty expression of a child who had messed up badly.
"Master… if the Marines are using a comfort-and-bribery strategy, Da Hong might really forget the escape plan."
"Unless one of us gets a bounty on our heads, or he finds out one of us is in danger… he might actually be perfectly content staying in the prison they prepared for him."
Kairo's mouth twitched.
"You overplayed your hand, Droopy."
Droopy drooped even more.
"I'll go to Loguetown right now and bring Da Hong back."
Just as Kairo was about to respond, the long-silent system prompt suddenly rang out in his head.
"Do not panic, honored Father. I am here."
"Detected: Honored Father has temporarily lost one crew member. Crew Summoning Mode has been activated!"
"Two new crew members have been selected for Honored Father. They will arrive on the battlefield in ten seconds!"
"…Father?"
Even Kairo, who had long since grown used to the system's shameless groveling, nearly laughed at that one.
But compared to the system's humiliating tone, what interested him more was the next part.
The previous summoned crew members had been Da Hong, Green Rabbit, and Droopy.
If the new ones were on the same level, then they were definitely not going to be normal either.
With a mixture of curiosity and anticipation, Kairo looked around.
At the same time, about a hundred meters behind him on the beach, a tiny, agile figure was sprinting toward them at top speed.
In the blink of an eye, the figure reached Kairo's feet.
Before Kairo could react, the little figure stood up straight, raised a paintbrush in one hand, and saluted smartly.
"Reporting for duty, Captain. Jerry has arrived!"
Kairo stared.
Well then.
This one had clearly been summoned to team up with Droopy.
Standing at his feet was a tiny mouse holding a paintbrush.
Kairo's mouth twitched again.
So now he was really collecting an entire animal circus.
A rabbit. A Droopy dog. A fancy little mouse.
What next—Tom the cat?
And just as that thought crossed his mind, another graceful figure entered his sight.
Ahead of him, a fox was walking across the sand with perfect elegance, a cup of coffee balanced in one hand. Its pace was relaxed, unhurried, and absurdly refined.
Before Kairo could say anything, Droopy's eyes lit up instantly.
He scampered over at once and greeted the newcomer with exaggerated humility and politeness.
"Mr. Fox! You came too! Welcome, welcome!"
The fox lowered his gaze and gave Droopy a brief look.
"Droopy. Long time no see."
Then, without stopping, the fox walked straight up to Kairo and gave him a graceful bow.
After that, he calmly resumed walking toward the ship nearby, as if boarding it were the most natural thing in the world.
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