"Hahaha, it's nothing! I'm just glad you liked the food," Bell said with a bright smile. "Actually, my sister taught me everything. When I was little, she worked late every day to provide for us, so I usually had dinner ready for her when she got home."
As he spoke of his sister, a look of immense tenderness crossed Bell's face, but it was quickly replaced by a shadow of sorrow. Dragon Soul and Kenshin didn't miss the shift.
"What happened to your sister?" Dragon Soul asked softly.
Bell hesitated for a moment, wrestling with his thoughts, before his expression turned resolute. He looked at the two of them and said, "The truth is... I'm actually from the New World. I came out here hoping to find reinforcements. My sister... she's been imprisoned."
He lowered his head, feeling a pang of guilt. He was worried Dragon Soul and the others would think he was just using them.
"So, did you find any reinforcements?" Dragon Soul asked, seemingly ignoring the "imprisonment" part for a second.
It wasn't that he missed the point; it was that Bell was the point. Since he had already decided to recruit Bell, he already considered the boy one of his own.
"No..." Bell's face fell, looking utterly dejected. He looked up at them again, only to see Dragon Soul wearing a wide, shark-like grin.
"We'll help you."
Kenshin shot Dragon Soul a look of mild surprise, but he didn't voice an objection.
"Eh!?" Bell gasped, staring at Dragon Soul in disbelief. He wondered if he had misheard. They had only just met! "You... you're really going to help me rescue her?"
"Of course."
"You guys... I..."
"In exchange, you have to keep making us delicious food," Dragon Soul laughed.
Seeing Dragon Soul's ravenous expression, Kenshin's mouth twitched. So that's your true motive.
"That's absolutely no problem!" Bell exclaimed, his excitement overflowing.
There was one thing Bell hadn't mentioned: he possessed a faint, intuitive ability to sense the "flow" of people. From the first moment he saw Dragon Soul and Kenshin, a voice in his heart told him that these were the people he was looking for.
Dragon Soul's strength was undeniable, but more importantly, he had killed a World Noble without a hint of hesitation. To Bell, who grew up in the harshness of the New World, the concept of "Celestial Dragons" wasn't as divine or untouchable as it was to those in Paradise. A noble was just a man, and a man could be killed.
He had no idea that at this very moment, the rage of the Celestial Dragons in the Holy Land of Mary Geoise was screaming all the way to the ears of the Five Elders.
Holy Land Mary Geoise.
"Kong-san!" A Navy Colonel burst into the office of the Commander-in-Chief of the World Government's armed forces, Cyborg Kong. He froze when he saw the other man in the room. "Sengoku-san, you're here too."
"Mmm," Sengoku nodded. He had just come to officially resign from his post as Fleet Admiral. Kong had only just agreed to let the old veteran step back.
"Perfect, I have an emergency military report," the Colonel panted. "Saint Charlos has been murdered in the Sabaody Archipelago."
"WHAT!" Both Kong and Sengoku bolted upright, shock written all over their faces.
How long had it been since a Celestial Dragon was actually killed? In that instant, Sengoku's heart sank. The Celestial Dragons would use this as leverage; the Navy wouldn't be able to hold their heads up in front of the Nobles for years.
And it was that idiot Charlos again! Sengoku almost wanted to find the body just to whip it. Weren't you punched enough? Couldn't you just stay in Mary Geoise? You just had to go out and play, and now you've left me with this absolute disaster!
Sengoku's hatred shifted toward the perpetrator. Dragon Soul... you bastard. You couldn't have killed him earlier or later? You had to do it right as I was about to retire? Since a new Fleet Admiral hadn't been chosen yet, every finger was pointing at him.
Five thousand meters below the sea, Dragon Soul suddenly sneezed. He rubbed his nose, puzzled. Who's talking about me?
"Do we know who did it?" Sengoku barked.
"No, sir. By the time our units arrived, the scene was a mess and the perpetrator was gone."
Sengoku saw an opening. He could use the investigation as an excuse to dodge the inevitable scolding from the higher-ups. "I'll go investigate personally."
"Wait, Sengoku-san..." The Colonel called out as Sengoku was practically at the door.
"What now?" Sengoku stiffened.
"The Five Elders... they've requested your presence immediately."
Sengoku's face turned black. Beside him, Kong looked on with an amused glint in his eye. He knew exactly what Sengoku was trying to do—flee the scene and dump the mess on someone else.
The clueless Colonel stood there, unaware he had just offended the "old" Fleet Admiral for life.
Sengoku glared at the Colonel and snapped, "Lead the way."
"Yes, sir!" the officer replied, oblivious to his grim future.
"Sengoku," Kong called out as they reached the door. "Are there any Admirals available at Headquarters? A murder of this scale requires an Admiral to take the lead."
Sengoku didn't hesitate. "Kizaru is currently at Headquarters. Let him go."
If I'm going to suffer, I might as well drag someone else into the mud with me.
It wasn't just spite, though; it was logistics. Aokiji was busy managing the aftermath of the war and visiting various bases, and Akainu had already departed for the New World—supposedly on a collision course with Blackbeard. The only one left was Kizaru.
As the head of the Science Unit, Kizaru was "supervising" the repair of the Pacifistas, but since he wasn't Vegapunk, he was mostly just standing around looking bored. He was the perfect candidate to go "punch the clock" at Sabaody.
_______________________________________________________
Read Advanced chapters on → patreon.com/Bagga_10
• Every 100 Power Stones = Bonus chapter...
• Push this Story forward with your [Power Stones]