"What a bother… Why do I have to be stuck on a ship with these idiots?" Kara complained, dropping into a folding chair with an expression of pure boredom.
As Sengoku had said, he had another job for her. Midway through the journey, Garp's ship met another vessel coming directly to take Kara away, while Zoro and Chopper had to continue with Garp and the others. Though, judging by their expressions, they were more than happy to be away from Kara for a while.
"Hey, hey. First of all, we're stuck here with you," Tokikake quickly corrected her, pointing a finger at her. "And second, it's your fault for barging into the meeting about the new Shichibukai. Sengoku said that, at the very least, you should handle protecting the exchange."
"Pfff, I alone am more than enough," Kara responded with all the confidence in the world.
"That may be true… but it's also better to make sure you don't lose control and ruin everything again," Momonga added calmly, joining the conversation.
"Hey! I don't ruin anything!" Kara protested, standing up indignantly.
Momonga looked at her emotionlessly and, in a monotone voice, began to list:
"You nearly started a war with two of the Four Yonkou after just two weeks in the New World… You destroyed a volcano because you got scared by a bug… And half a town ceased to exist when you were given alcohol by mistake."
The silence that followed was almost palpable. Kara blinked a few times before crossing her arms and averting her gaze nervously.
"Well… but nobody got hurt… at least," she muttered, pouting as she sat back in her chair.
"The thing about the bug is false," she quickly added, as if that improved her case.
"…It was a black lizard," Momonga calmly pointed out.
"That doesn't count!"
It definitely did count. And while she was no longer a rookie, Kara still had a slight trauma with those things, especially the ones with wings that could devour magic.
"We've arrived," Momonga announced, watching the island come into view. "Let's just take the pirate and leave."
The ship approached the shore, where several people were waiting. Among them was Marshall D. Teach and his crew, eyeing the ship with a mixture of nervousness and hostility. After all, this wasn't just any visit"three renowned vice admirals were aboard.
Blackbeard, however, looked particularly uncomfortable at the sight of Kara, who was smirking at him mockingly. The rest of his crew also shot her wary, almost fearful glances.
The three vice admirals disembarked calmly, leaving the other marines on the ship. After all, this was just a quick exchange, and they were more than enough.
"Hey, you look like an ugly donut now," Kara said with a malicious grin, pointing at the scar on Teach's stomach"a nasty hole with a squared pattern.
"ZEHAHAHA! Luckily, I have a good doctor on board… But my offer still stands, you know? You could join us."
"Enough nonsense. Hand over the prisoner and wait for the official announcement regarding the Shichibukai," Momonga interrupted sternly.
"Bring him out!" Blackbeard ordered, still smiling.
Burgess stepped forward and tossed a body in front of the vice admirals. The man on the ground was covered in blood, showing clear signs of torture. Despite his pitiful state, he was still breathing. Barely.
Kara clicked her tongue in annoyance.
"Tsk. He's dirty."
She looked up and locked eyes with Tokikake, who sighed, already knowing what that look meant.
"Fine, fine…" he grumbled, picking up the prisoner and carrying him back to the ship.
"That's all. If the Marines need the Shichibukai's help, you must answer the call. Otherwise, you'll lose the title and be hunted down," Momonga declared, turning to head back to the ship.
Satisfied that everything was over, Kara quickly followed.
As the Marine ship sailed away, Blackbeard's pirates let out a sigh of relief. Facing a vice admiral was already costly in the past… but three at once, including the lunatic who had made them flee before, was a different story.
...
On the ship, Tokikake watched as the marines dragged Vista toward the cells inside.
"Looks like we won't be avoiding the war, hahaha," he commented nonchalantly while settling into Kara's folding chair.
But his moment of relaxation was short-lived, as Kara kicked him off, sending him to the floor.
"That's mine! I brought it from home!" she protested quickly.
"That's a lie! You took it from Admiral Aokiji before boarding the ship!" Tokikake accused, getting back up.
"And where was Aokiji using this chair?" Kara asked swiftly.
"On Garp's ship…" Tokikake answered, still not understanding where this was going.
"And what is Garp to me?"
"Your grandfather."
"See? When that old man dies, all his belongings will be my inheritance, so this chair is technically from my house," Kara said, crossing her arms proudly.
"Don't kill the hero of the Marines just to keep a stupid chair!" Tokikake exclaimed indignantly.
"Can you be quiet? You're setting a bad example," Momonga intervened, frowning.
"Shut up, weird haircut!" Kara shot back without hesitation.
Momonga blinked.
"Haircu"" He closed his eyes, took a deep breath. "I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
Meanwhile, the surrounding Marines struggled to contain their laughter as they continued their tasks.
Buruburuburu
Momonga's transponder snail began to ring, cutting off the absurd argument. Instantly, the three of them fell silent as he answered.
"It's Sengoku. How did the exchange go?"
"Quick, simple, and without issues," Momonga replied efficiently.
"Hmm… Strange. With Kara there, and considering the pirates' resentment, I thought they would attack. That way, we could capture them all at once," Sengoku said, revealing the plan without hesitation.
Kara's eyes widened in surprise.
"Hey! Was I the bait?"
"Yes," Sengoku confirmed without pause.
"Oh, well. I did the same thing with Strawberry once, so I don't mind," Kara commented, shrugging before settling back into her chair.
"Head straight to Impel Down without stopping. We don't want Whitebeard to find out and send people to try and retrieve Vista," Sengoku ordered before hanging up.
With that command, the Marine vessel headed at full speed toward Impel Down, arriving in three days.
As they disembarked, Kara jumped down enthusiastically.
"Hey… now that I think about it, I've never been to Impel Down," she commented, eyeing the massive prison. Only a small portion of its structure was visible above the water.
"Obviously, because we don't want you destroying the place and accidentally freeing all the prisoners," Tokikake pointed out.
Momonga and the Marines walked behind, escorting Vista.
"Hey! Even I know what can and can't be broken!" Kara retorted proudly.
Then, without stopping, she advanced… and walked right through the door, shattering it.
"Didn't you just say you knew what to break and what not to?!" Tokikake shouted as alarms blared.
"Ah… sorry," Kara apologized, utterly indifferent.
To everyone's surprise, the alarms turned off on their own as several guards approached.
"Welcome to Impel Down," greeted Magellan, the prison warden. "Don't worry, that door was fake. Sengoku already warned us. If you look closely, the real ones are completely open and made of seastone."
"What a waste of resources…" Tokikake muttered.
"Well… we thought that if she broke a door, she wouldn't try to destroy the real one," Magellan explained.
"I don't think even Kara would do something that stupi""
Before Tokikake could finish, he saw Kara pounding on the seastone door, looking frustrated.
"Stop it already!" he yelled desperately.
Meanwhile, Magellan watched seriously as square-shaped marks began appearing on the door. His expression darkened as he realized that, given enough time, Kara might actually break through the seastone.
"Hello! I am Warden Hannyabal!" announced a man dressed like a pharaoh.
He paused.
"Ah, wait. I got that wrong. I'm the Vice Warden…"
"Let's just go inside," Magellan said wearily.
At that moment, his stomach let out a loud growl.
"Excuse me… Hannyabal will guide you."
And with that, he ran off.
"Heh heh! It's time to prove I'm a better candidate for warden than Magellan!" Hannyabal declared loudly.
"Sir, everyone can hear you…" pointed out a blonde woman in a military uniform.
"Ah… I let my plans slip," Hannyabal murmured. "Well, follow me. We'll head to the upper floor."
As they walked, Kara started getting bored, and her gaze landed on the blonde woman walking not far away. With a charming smile, she approached.
"Hey there, gorgeous. Do you come here often? By the way, my name's Kara," she said smoothly.
The woman looked at her with complete seriousness.
"To the Marine's maximum-security prison, where the world's most dangerous criminals are held? Yes. And I'm Domino, the Chief Jailer."
Meanwhile, Momonga glanced at Kara with an exhausted expression but decided to ignore her. He turned to Tokikake, only to find him frantically writing everything down.
"What are you doing?" Momonga asked suspiciously.
"Taking notes," Tokikake replied without looking up from his notebook.
"For what?"
"To learn how to flirt."
Momonga put a hand to his face and sighed. His exhaustion had reached new levels.