Cocoyasi Village

After making a trip to the New World, Yota began accelerating his own plans.

Using the Clone Technique, Flying Thunder God, and his subordinates, Yota began spreading large numbers of Flying Thunder God Den Den Mushi. At the same time, relying on the intelligence networks of Stussy, an agent within the World Government, and Doflamingo, a tycoon of the underground world, he began searching for other Devil Fruits compatible with him.

In addition, borrowing Doflamingo’s privileges as one of the Shichibukai, Yota sent several pirates bearing Flying Thunder God markers to the World Government, where they would await transfer to Impel Down.

Yota had already made preparations for battle, and the World Government had not been idle either.

Because Imu could not venture too far from the Red Line, and no one else was strong enough to contend with Yota, the World Government had taken a hands-off approach toward him for quite some time.

But taking a hands-off approach did not mean doing nothing. The World Government had been waiting for an opportunity. Although Yota himself was immensely powerful, he was hardly someone without attachments.

It was just that nearly everyone close to him was staying with the Whitebeard Pirates. Taking action against such a massive pirate crew was no easy matter.

Still, going after the Whitebeard Pirates was better than going after Yota himself. Seize Yota’s weak point, lure him onto the Red Line, then have all their highest-ranking combat forces, hidden trump cards, and Imu’s group swarm him—that was the World Government’s plan.

It was simple, brutal, and shameless, but the World Government had always crushed countless Pirate Crews with such straightforward tactics. The only difference now was that the scale was higher.

Of course, Yota had already sensed something. From the intelligence Stussy reported, both the World Government and the Navy had now set their sights on the Whitebeard Pirates, and Yota had already figured out the World Government’s scheme.

However, no matter what the World Government was plotting, Yota did not care much. Give him another month or two to raise his strength to its peak, and even if the World Government did not make a move, he would go settle the score with Imu himself.

East Blue, Orange Island, Cocoyasi Village.

The clone Yota had sent out had been searching for Luffy for a long time, all to study the Artificial Nika Fruit.

Luffy had already set sail from Goa Kingdom a month ago. Following his route, Yota went to the Marine base where Axe-Hand Morgan was stationed and, as expected, learned that Straw Hat Luffy and the swordsman Zoro had already left.

Yota remembered that the Straw Hat Pirates later recruited Usopp, but he did not know—or rather, had long since forgotten—the name of the island where Usopp lived.

Neither Usopp’s childhood friend, Miss Kaya, nor the pirate Kuro hiding there was anyone famous on the seas. At the very least, Yota could not inquire about the name of their island as easily as he could ask about the Marine base where Morgan was stationed.

So the only places Yota could search afterward were the Sea Restaurant, Loguetown, and Orange Island.

The Sea Restaurant drifted from place to place, so that went without saying. Loguetown was already the Straw Hat Crew’s final stop in the East Blue. So this time, Yota had come looking for Orange Village.

Although Yota had forgotten the name of Orange Island, he still remembered the Arlong Pirates and Captain Nezumi. After asking around all the way, this clone had found his way here.

It was just that, even now, he had yet to see Nami.

Before joining the Straw Hat Crew’s pirate ship, the little thief cat spent practically every day drifting across the sea, pulling off scams and swindles. She rarely returned to Orange Village.

"These oranges really do look pretty good!" Sitting on the hillside, Yota looked at the oranges in the grove and sighed. "Too bad I’m only a Wood Clone. I can’t eat anything."

"Where are you from? What are you doing in our Cocoyasi Village?"

An old man dressed somewhat like a police officer approached. His cap had a pinwheel on it, and his face was covered in scars. He watched Yota with wary eyes.

"Don’t worry, old man." Yota glanced at him. "You’re already poor enough as it is. Even if pirates really came, they probably couldn’t squeeze any more money out of you, right?"

Those words nearly made the old man’s chest explode with anger, but in the end, he lowered his voice and said, "You… this is Arlong Pirates territory. If you don’t want to die, get out of here!"

"Even when your own lives are nearly impossible to maintain, you still kindly warn others? Old man, your moral standards are pretty high."

Of course, the Pirate World’s average moral standards were basically all-or-nothing, swinging wildly between extremes. People were either good or scum, while most ordinary villagers actually had very high moral standards.

Even so, the villagers of Cocoyasi Village could still be called moral exemplars.

"Did you even hear what I said? And I’m a guard of Cocoyasi Village. I’m only in my thirties, not some old man!" the old man snapped, glaring.

Yota shook his head. "A little too late. Those fish-men are already heading this way."

"What?!" A-Ken looked around, but naturally, without Yota’s sensory abilities, he saw nothing at all.

Although a Wood Clone could not use Observation Haki, and Chakra sensing was extremely vague in the Pirate World, allowing it to sense only life energy without distinguishing who was who,

fish-men possessed far more life energy than humans. Yota could still identify people with such obvious traits.

"Forget it, old man. Since you’re such a good person, I’ll take you to see something." Yota grabbed A-Ken and used the Super Light-Weight Rock Technique. The two quickly flew into the sky.

"Eeeek! F-f-flying… we’re flying!"

"Say, aren’t you a guard? Why are you making such a fuss? Don’t tell me you’re afraid of heights too, like some unreliable Sword Master!"

"What do you think guards are?! And how are you flying?"

"Stop asking questions. Get ready to accelerate!" Yota smiled, a faint purple glow appearing in his eyes. Under the power of the Reincarnation Rinnegan manipulating gravity, the two tore through the sky at incredible speed.

"Huh? What’s that in the sky? A meteor?"

Two somewhat dim-witted fish-men walking toward Cocoyasi Village raised their heads. Then a flash of light appeared, and two wooden spikes fell from the sky. They skewered the fish-men like kebabs, while swelling roots burst from their bodies, leaving them unable even to groan.

A-Ken, standing in the sky, remained dizzy and disoriented for a long while before he finally saw the two fish-men below—and their miserable state. His entire body immediately began to tremble.