As Kong Tai and the others changed course for the shipyard "Carter Island" on route number 3, three waves of people arrived at an uninhabited island on their original route.
The first to arrive was a group of five, all shrouded in white robes and wearing masks of various colors. Upon landing, they did not venture far, but stayed by the shore, waiting for something.
Before long, a black dot slowly emerged from the distant sea. As it approached, it became clear that it was a person, a person cycling on the open sea.
The masked quintet showed no surprise at this peculiar sight, evidently accustomed to it.
Soon, the man on the bicycle stepped onto the island. Behind him, a long, seemingly endless ice path stretched across the sea. Without acknowledging the five on the shore, he brought his bicycle ashore, hid it behind a large rock, then found a relatively flat patch of grass, lay down, pulled down his eye mask, and fell asleep.
The five on the shore remained motionless, their gaze fixed on the sea. Just then, a roaring sound suddenly came from the sky in the distance, the sound of a massive object frictioning against the air. This was followed by a sky-shattering roar.
"Roar..."
"They're here!"
The five on the shore quickly straightened up, staring intently at the distant sky. Even the cycling man, who had been lying down, pulled up his eye mask, revealing a pair of lazy eyes beneath.
From the horizon where the sea met the sky, the clouds churned incessantly. Suddenly, a colossal being burst forth from the clouds. It paused in the air for a moment, then flapped its wings rapidly, flying towards the island.
"Roar..."
Upon reaching the vicinity, the behemoth let out a roar, its deep voice scattering the clouds and causing the sea around the island to tremble as if boiling. The giant creature flapped its wings and hovered above the island.
"Whoosh!"
A fierce wind swept through, bending the trees on the island.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!! This is incredible!"
At some point, the man lying on the grass sat up. He looked up at the colossal being that completely blocked out the sun, his eyes filled with astonishment. With his strength, he felt an unprecedented pressure from the creature, a feeling he only experienced from those of equal caliber.
"World Government?"
He had never seen anything like it.
"A secret weapon?"
The man lowered his head and glanced at one of the five figures in front of him, the one wearing a black and white mask. His lips twitched.
"Is this necessary?"
His orders were to assist the CP0 organization in apprehending the silver-haired group. As an Admiral, how could he not know of the silver-haired group? Even Borsalino couldn't do anything about them, so what could he? He had originally thought he was just here to make a cameo appearance, fight a bit, and leave. However, judging by the World Government's reaction, they clearly intended to annihilate the silver-haired group completely. The head of CP0, while perhaps not able to defeat Admirals, was more than capable of dealing with Vice-Admiral level pirates. Of course, exceptions like Garp didn't count. In general, they were likely at the level of a potential Admiral. Now, with this newcomer who gave him immense pressure, perhaps they could finally stop the silver-haired group. He just wondered how they would deal with the silver-haired one's troublesome instant movement ability. If they could neutralize that, capturing them should be easy for these individuals!
As the colossal beast descended, an overwhelming aura of dominance pressed down on the entire island.
"Huh!"
The cycling man felt the aura and quickly raised his head, his pupils filled with surprise.
"This guy isn't CP0."
He had initially assumed the newcomer was a hidden power within CP0. But upon sensing the unintentional release of Conqueror's Haki, he knew he was mistaken. For no matter how powerful CP0 was, they could not possess Conqueror's Haki.
Before the giant beast even landed, the five CP0 members in front of it fell to their knees with a "bang." They lowered their heads and collectively shouted, "We welcome 'His Highness Cartares'!"
"Bang—!"
The colossal beast landed on the beach to the right of the CP0 members. It ignored the kneeling CP0 agents and turned its massive head, its orange-yellow pupils fixing on the man wearing an eye mask and a Marine justice cape behind them.
"Marine!"
A deep, imposing voice echoed. The overwhelming pressure made the man behind them involuntarily stand up. He straightened his body, the laziness gone, replaced by the aura of a powerful warrior, holding his ground against the beast's imposing presence.
"So strong, so incredibly strong!"
He had felt this kind of power from the Four Emperors. The man looked up at the colossal beast. Only now could he clearly see that the beast was a massive black tiger with enormous wings. Its orange-yellow pupils seemed to hold the flow of all things, filled with an unsettling intensity and pressure, making it feel as if its pupils were not eyeballs, but worlds. He shook his head and addressed the giant tiger, "Lord Cartares, I am Admiral Kūzan, dispatched by Fleet Admiral Sengoku to assist you. My Marine codename is 'Aokiji'."
"Admiral?"
Cartares' massive pupils flickered with countless images of people. Kūzan stared into Cartares' eyes, his face grave. From those eyes, he saw the figure of a golden Buddha, heard the voice of a purple-haired individual, saw the silhouette of black fists, and...
"This is definitely not an ordinary Devil Fruit. I wonder if it can counter Gin's instant movement."
Kūzan pondered, stroking his chin. The World Government must have made preparations when sending this individual; they should be able to counter Gin's abilities. Otherwise, his presence would be useless. Even with two Admiral-level powerhouses, they would be of no use against Gin, who could appear and disappear at will.
The giant beast seemed to have finished its thoughts. Its massive body rapidly shrank, disappearing in a short while, leaving behind only an old man with white hair, wearing a burlap outfit and slippers, standing in its place. The old man did not look like a Celestial Dragon at the pinnacle of world power, but rather like an old farmer from the countryside. However, judging by the man's robust muscles and the arrogant aura emanating from his orange pupils, no one would mistake him for an ordinary person, no matter how eccentric his attire.
A flicker of memory flashed through Cartares' weathered pupils. He stared at Kūzan and said coldly, "Why didn't Garp come?" He had no information about the young man before him. He must be a new generation Admiral in the Marines, he surmised.
"Mr. Garp is in Mary Geoise, guarding this World Conference."
"Oh..."
Lord Cartares responded indifferently and ignored Kūzan. He had indeed seen many people in Mary Geoise when he left, but that was none of his concern, so he paid no heed. He turned his head and looked at the five CP0 agents kneeling on the ground, asking, "Where is that brat named Gin now?"
"Reporting to Lord Cartares," the leader of the CP0, wearing the black and white mask, shifted his body and turned to face Cartares. "He should have just left Alabasta. If nothing unexpected happens, they should reach this island by evening. We've scouted, and there's only this island nearby. If they need to rest, it has to be here."
"Hmm!"
Cartares nodded and turned his gaze towards the center of the distant island.