"Full speed ahead! Catch that merchant ship up ahead!"
Aboard one of the Totto Land-exclusive Tart Ships, Katakuri stood at the bow giving orders to the Chess Soldiers beside him.
"Big Brother, even if we were going to rob a merchant ship, now really isn't the time," said Smoothie, one of the Sweet Commanders, frowning.
"The three Admirals are about to arrive."
Katakuri responded coolly, "Godslayer Sora is on that ship."
He had originally only intended to see who was fighting on the sea, but to his surprise, he caught a glimpse of Sora's real face.
Upon hearing this, Daifuku and Oven looked stunned.
Smoothie looked even more confused as she said, "Wasn't the info about Sora being nearby something Queen deliberately spread?"
"So why is he here again?"
Katakuri explained, "Sora has the ability to disguise himself as others. He may have been on the Sabaody Archipelago all along—we just didn't know it."
"If he hadn't dropped his disguise while teasing that Supernova, I wouldn't have recognized him either."
"I see," Smoothie nodded in realization. "No wonder the World Government hasn't been able to track him."
"Hahaha!" Daifuku suddenly laughed loudly. "Looks like we have to thank Queen for this."
Hearing that, Smoothie, Oven, and Katakuri couldn't help but chuckle as well.
If Queen hadn't stirred things up today, attracting the Admirals, they wouldn't have encountered Godslayer Sora at all.
Even if they had, they probably wouldn't have recognized him.
As for whether they could capture Sora? That wasn't even a concern.
Unless it was someone on the level of an Admiral or a Yonko, there wasn't anyone they couldn't defeat together.
However—
Their brief joy faded quickly.
Because they realized that the distance between their Tart Ship and Sora's ship—the Divine Slave—was growing larger and larger.
Moments ago, they had been able to see faces on the deck through a telescope. Now, those figures were blurry and fading fast.
"Why is that ship so fast?!" Smoothie exclaimed in disbelief.
Tart Ships, imbued with Big Mom's soul, were known for their speed, rivalling Navy battleships.
And yet, they were being left in the dust by a ship disguised as a merchant vessel.
If she hadn't seen it herself, Smoothie wouldn't have believed it.
"Can you tell what merchant guild Sora is disguised as?" Oven asked from the side.
If they knew, then even if they lost him today, they'd know how to find him again next time.
Katakuri shook his head. "We're behind them—we couldn't see the writing on the sails. All I saw on the flag was a coiled dragon."
"In that case," said Smoothie, "let me see if I can force them to stop."
She plunged her sword into the body of a captured pirate, drawing out water.
As the moisture flowed into her, Smoothie's body expanded, growing from over four meters tall to nearly ten.
Then she raised her sword and slashed at the distant Divine Slave.
Water Slice!
A massive pink arc of sword energy burst from Smoothie's blade, racing toward the Divine Slave at incredible speed.
Aboard the Divine Slave—
Sora stood at the stern, watching the pursuing Big Mom pirates, frowning slightly.
Just as Katakuri's group spotted him, he had noticed them as well.
Facing both Katakuri and Smoothie at once wasn't something he was prepared for just yet. His best option was to retreat.
He had planned to outrun them—until he saw Smoothie grow in size and unleash a massive slash.
Seeing the enormous attack that could likely cut the Divine Slave in two, Sora's fighting spirit surged.
If he could take down Smoothie right now, his strength would undoubtedly leap forward.
She was a swordswoman after all—and defeating her would accelerate his swordsmanship, which was still stuck at two stars, helping him earn the title of Greatsword Master… or in other words, a true Yasuo main.
But how could he steal Smoothie from Katakuri, who adored and protected his siblings?
As the slash narrowly missed the Divine Slave, Sora quickly brainstormed a plan.
"So this is the strength of a top officer under a Yonko…" Robin muttered beside him, visibly surprised by Smoothie's power.
Then she turned to him and urged, "Sora, we can't bring out our full firepower against attacks like that. Let's pull back."
"With your potential, it won't be long before you surpass them. There's no need to take unnecessary risks."
Robin understood that Sora wanted to capture Smoothie, but she still preferred caution.
Most of Sora's allies were currently on Thriller Bark.
Right now, only she, Anna, Shalria, Mikita, Aphelandra, and Perona were aboard the Divine Slave—not enough support for a direct confrontation.
Sora smiled and pulled Robin into his arms.
"It's fine. I just thought of a plan."
"If it doesn't work, I'll retreat immediately. No recklessness."
Robin relaxed slightly and smiled. "Then tell me your plan. Let me help you work it out."
Sora turned her around and hugged her from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder.
"Remember when I captured that woman named Lola on Thriller Bark?"
"The one who proposed to you?" Robin chuckled softly. "Didn't Anna and Shalria beat her up right after?"
Lola had proposed to Sora the day after her capture, and Anna and Shalria had quickly "educated" her.
Sora grinned. "If she wasn't potentially useful, I'd have killed her already."
"I originally kept her because she's Big Mom's daughter—figured I'd use her in a future trade with Big Mom."
"But now that Katakuri and the others are here…"
Robin cut him off. "So now you can pull a Reiju move—make a deal with Big Mom and trick Smoothie into coming aboard?"
Sora looked at her, surprised. "So Reiju told you everything, huh?"
Robin gave a sly smile. "Of course. I'm great at winning people over."