5 Chapter 5

Marineford, Aokiji's office.

"Doflamingo? His identity raises some questions, and his methods of becoming a Shichibukai are rather unconventional. But Mariejois has approved it," Aokiji remarked, spreading his hands dismissively. "I try not to dwell on such matters."

Glancing around, Dylan noted, "Congratulations on your promotion to Admiral, Kuzan."

Aokiji scratched his head in a gesture of resignation. "It was inevitable. The Grand Line isn't exactly peaceful these days. By the way, have you completed your objectives?"

"It's all taken care of," Dylan confirmed, extending his hand.

A ball of lightning coalesced in the palm of Dylan's hand, prompting Aokiji's lazy demeanor to vanish instantly. "Thunder Fruit?" he inquired, recognizing the Logia fruit instantly as one of the most coveted in the Devil Fruit compendium.

"Yeah," Dylan confirmed with a nod. "Obtaining this fruit was my primary objective in coming to the Grand Line."

Aokiji straightened up slightly in his seat upon hearing this, but then relaxed again. "You got it for yourself. Logia fruits, I envy them greatly."

"You're so envious! Aren't you also a Logia fruit user?" Dylan thought to himsef. Dylan still preferred the Thunder Fruit he had long sought after.

"After all, it grants the ability to fly and boasts extremely high movement speed ts lethality is also formidable." thought Dylan .

"tempering my body with thunder and lightning can continuously strengthen it, preventing complete suppression by the sea and seastone like other ability users."

"You have nothing else to do when you come back this time, right?" Aokiji slumped on the sofa with some distress: "I don't have anyone here to help me, and I have a lot of things to do myself. If you are free, can you do some tasks for me?"

What the hell do you have to do? Your job is to follow a loli on a bicycle? Or sunbathing on Garp's boat?

"Okay, but as a major, it's hard for me to stand up for you, right

A major came to kill Admiral? That's a bit unjustifiable, right?

"Military rank? Ah..." Aokiji scratched his hair. This was really not easy to do. Although Marine was based on birth and strength, officers at the general level still had to value their actual combat merits.

Now is not the time after the Summit War a few years later, when Marine's top combat power shrank and special troops were recruited from all over the world.

"Yes!" Aokiji's eyes lit up as he rummaged through the drawer and took out a reward order. "Go and kill him, and I'll apply for a advancing military rank for you."

Dylan glanced at the reward order, reading the name "Bloody Hook" Rhodes with a bounty of 550 million Baileys.

"Where did this guy come from? Why haven't I heard of him before?"

Aokiji explained, "Well, you're still young, so it's normal to have never heard of him. He was a minor figure in a notorious pirate group a long time ago."

"A scary pirate group?" Dylan inquired.

Dylan touched his chin and scrutinized the photo on the reward order again.

"No matter how you look at it, he must be in his fifties or sixties. At such an old age..."

"It's not the guy from Rocks' crew, is it?" Dylan speculated.

"Aha, it's Rocks..." Aokiji's eyes widened in surprise. "You know about the Rocks Pirates? How old are you?"

It really is! ?

If you put it this way, he is indeed a nobody.

Compared to guys like Whitebeard, Golden Lion, Kaido, and Linlin.

Golden Lion... This guy is still hiding in the sky studying monsters. Do you want to kill him in advance?

Normally, these fruit-powered users are locked up rather than killed, which can effectively limit Devil Fruit's abilities.

If you kill the ability user immediately after catching it, it will be like the Mera-mera Fruit, where another pirates got hold of it not long after the previous owner died.

This situation is obviously something neither Marine nor the World Government wants to see.

Forget it, let's put it away for now and go look for it when I have time. It won't be too late to kill him then.

After all, he is just a major now.

Well, just a major.

"Where was he last spotted?" Dylan pointed to the man with a fierce expression in the bounty photo. The image appeared to have been captured recently, so Marine likely had information on his whereabouts.

"The latest tracking placed him in Alabasta. You can head there to investigate. If there's any new information, headquarters will use the phone bug to notify you," Aokiji explained.

Alabasta? Isn't that crocodile there? Crocodile should have already failed in his challenge to Whitebeard and is now preparing to find "Pluton".

Once Dylan left, Aokiji removed his blindfold and sighed deeply.

"How does he know about the Thunder Fruit and Rocks?" he muttered to himself.

"It's really troublesome, but I suppose it's best to forget about it for now," he concluded, resigned to the mystery surrounding Dylan's knowledge.

······

The first half of the Grand Line: "Brother Daifuku, how come you haven't heard of that guy named Rhodes before? Mom actually values ​​him so much? She even specially asked me to come to Paradise to pick him up and take him to Whole Cake Island."

Charlotte Daifuku, who had two balloon-like objects on his shoulders, glanced at his brother beside him.

"Well...it's normal that you don't know. He's an old guy. He used to be part of Mom's old crew."

"Mother had joined a crew? Why haven't I heard of it?"

Daifuku looked at the "Paradise," which was much calmer than the New World.

"It's a ship from a long time ago. In terms of strength alone... no one is stronger than them."

Alabasta

The rainy ground of Alabasta was unlike other areas, as the Rain Land lived up to its name with its moist and refreshing atmosphere.

At the "Rain Feast" Casino, the reception girls' eyes lit up when they saw the tall and handsome Dylan. His attire, sword, and aura suggested wealth and power.

Eager to catch his attention, several reception girls flaunted their figures, hoping to be chosen by him.

Feeling their intense gazes, Dylan paused momentarily before scanning the room.

"You."

Dylan raised his hand and pointed at one of the blondes.

The chosen girl was ecstatic, and as she approached, she affectionately pinched Dylan's arm, emphasizing her ample assets.

"Guest, what do you want to play?" the receptionist asked with a professional tone, her back straightened, creating a slight friction on Dylan's arm.

As Dylan pondered his response, wild laughter erupted from a distant hall, prompting him to raise his eyebrows.

"Uuhahahahaha!!"

It was as he expected.

At sea, among those renowned for their intelligence capabilities, the "Big Mom Pirates" topped the list, followed by Morgans and the "CP" organization. However, Marine intelligence was equally potent and had broader coverage.

Not long after Dylan departed Marineford, detailed information about "Bloodhook" Rhodes was relayed to him through the image bug, including the man's hobbies and behavioral characteristics.

Gambling was among them.

In the days of the Rocks, this guy lost his right hand due to gambling.

Rhodes, who seldom experienced big wins, chuckled as he tossed chips onto the table. Observing his actions, others followed suit.

"I'll play conservatively," a similarly confident voice piped up from across the table.

Dylan held the cigarette in his mouth askew and tossed out a handful of chips. Meeting Rhodes' gaze, he provocatively exhaled a puff of smoke.

"Huh? Uh-huh, hahaha, let's get started quickly," Rhodes chuckled, licking his lips. "I'll show you that Uncle Rhodes' luck is always unbeatable!"

Ten minutes later, all the individuals who had been standing behind Rhodes had vanished, while the young man opposite him was now surrounded by a crowd.

"Hey, are you running out of money? That's pretty dull. Since when did this become Yu Yan's way of entertaining these poor folks?"

Does Dylan gamble? Of course not. However, it's easy for him to manipulate the dice's trajectory with a small electric current.

Just as Rhodes stood up, preparing to depart, a burst of cheers erupted from behind.

The young man tossed the chips in front of him into the air, exclaiming, "Let's go, these are all... on the house, courtesy of Uncle One-Hand!"

With a chuckle, he added, "Why don't you all thank Uncle One-Hand?"

Initially stunned, the surrounding crowd soon erupted into laughter, echoing, "Thank you, Uncle One-Hand!"

Rhodes froze, his body tense, as he prepared to unleash his haki on the youth.

"No... no!"

Rhodes swallowed hard, his mind racing with fear and apprehension. He had narrowly evaded Marine's relentless pursuit, and he knew he couldn't afford to be discovered again, especially in a place like this. Even the captain of his former crew might have fallen to the might of Garp.

Although Newgate and the others appeared formidable now, Rhodes understood that if he were to become the target of Marine or the World Government again, the consequences would be dire.

Meanwhile, Dylan was seen in the distance, generously tossing chips into the air while discreetly slipping a handful of the highest value ones into the blonde's hand.

"This is for you as a reward. I hope you won't be here the next time I visit," Dylan stated firmly, rising from his seat and halting the blonde's attempt to follow him.

"Guest?" The blonde's voice quivered as she watched the white-haired young man stride out of the "Rain Banquet" gate, momentarily lost in thought.

What did it mean? Typically, if a customer was pleased with an escort's service, wouldn't they hope to continue utilizing it in the future?

As Dylan exited the door, the blonde's body trembled slightly, and she gazed at the door with a complex expression.

"What... a kind guest," she murmured to herself, tightening her grip on the chips in her palm and raising her hand to adjust her collar.

Outside city, Dylan halted his steps.

"Hey, that iron hook has been tailing you all along. Why haven't you taken care of him?" A voice remarked.

Rhodes emerged from behind a hill, his expression dark. "You, why did you deliberately lure me out?"

"Oh?" Dylan regarded the wary Rhodes from a distance, a smirk playing on his lips. "Oh~? You're quite cautious. Now that you know I lured you out, are you still brave enough to follow me?"

"Heh heh!" Rhodes licked his lips nervously. "If it were Sengoku or Garp... No, even if it were Aokiji or Sakazuki here, I'd have fled already. But you..." His right hand, covered in an armed color, poised menacingly. "I've never heard your name before!"

"How coincidental," Dylan retorted, his Shura scabbard enveloped in a dark armed color. "I've never heard of someone like you in the original version!"

······

"Brother Daifuku! This is bad!" Outside Alabasta, a slender youth rushed up to Charlotte Daifuku, clutching a small card between his fingers. "That guy's Vivre card is on fire! He's dying!"

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