Monkey D. Luffy was walking slowly, while also paying attention to the criminals in the cages on both sides.
Suddenly, when he reached a certain cage, an excited voice came from inside.
"Are you... Monkey D. Luffy?!"
Hearing this voice, Monkey D. Luffy stopped.
Following the sound, he saw inside a cage.
A sturdy figure was bound tightly to the wall with thick iron chains.
And the moment he saw that person, Monkey D. Luffy's eyes brightened a bit.
It was Jinbe, whom he wanted to find.
Jinbe turned his head to look at him, his expression extremely excited as he said,
"Mr. Luffy! You're Ace's brother, aren't you?!"
"My name is Jinbe!"
"Ace and I met when he first joined the Whitebeard Pirates!"
"He told me he had a brother!"
"You've come to save him, haven't you?!"
Before Monkey D. Luffy could answer, Jinbe said with a somewhat sad tone,
"However, Ace has already been transferred to Marineford."
"He's not in this Deep Sea Great Prison anymore!"
Monkey D. Luffy nodded and said directly,
"I know!"
"We're planning to go to Marineford right now!"
Upon hearing this, Jinbe immediately said excitedly,
"Mr. Luffy! Can I ask you to let me out?"
"The Marine's execution of Ace will surely provoke a war with the Whitebeard Pirates."
"I'm imprisoned here precisely because I opposed this war."
"I want to save Ace!"
"Please take me with you!"
"I will definitely be helpful!"
Seeing Jinbe so readily willing to go with him, Monkey D. Luffy didn't hesitate at all and nodded in agreement.
"Alright!"
This, in turn, made Jinbe a little confused.
He didn't understand why Monkey D. Luffy would trust him so easily and be willing to release him.
However, rescuing Ace was the most crucial thing right now, so he couldn't afford to think too much.
He immediately thanked Monkey D. Luffy,
"I'm extremely grateful!"
Then, Monkey D. Luffy waved to Mr. 3, signaling him to come over.
During this time, the other criminals in the prison were in an uproar.
They excitedly pounded on the iron doors, desperately begging Monkey D. Luffy for help.
"Hey! Let me out too!"
"I want out too! I have a grudge against Whitebeard, I'm going to kill him!"
"I beg you too, please let me out!"
While these people were pleading for help, Luffy still ignored them and instead asked Jinbe about another matter.
"Jinbe! Do you know Douglas Bullet?"
"He should be imprisoned here too. Do you know which cell he's in?"
Jinbe was stunned by the question.
That name was often mentioned alongside figures like Roger and Rayleigh, so how could he not know him?
He was just a little curious why Luffy would be looking for this person.
Jinbe replied with a puzzled expression.
"I haven't seen him since I came here."
"But I heard he's apparently locked in the innermost cell!"
"What do you want with him?"
Luffy smiled at the words, his gaze fixed on the cell at the end of the corridor, and said lightly.
"I'm very interested in the Devil Fruit he ate."
Just as he finished speaking, Mr. 3 also walked over, trembling.
The constant shouts of the surrounding criminals made him feel exceptionally terrified.
After he reached Luffy's side, Luffy told him.
"Release Jinbe, then come find me."
Mr. 3 looked at Jinbe inside the prison and his pupils immediately trembled.
"Shi... Shichibukai, Jinbe the Sea Knight?!"
"Why is a Shichibukai imprisoned here?"
While Mr. 3 was exclaiming, Luffy had already gone to find Bullet's cell on his own.
On the way to that cell, Luffy saw a strange sight.
At the entrance of one of the cells, several jailers were lying on the ground, and their wounds looked like they had been cut by a knife.
Before, no one had come here.
In other words, there might be other people here?!
Luffy thought this to himself, a hint of vigilance rising within him.
But since this place was full of criminals, he couldn't pinpoint where the other party was at the moment.
He could only remain vigilant and put this matter aside for now.
Soon, he arrived at the cell at the end of the corridor.
Standing at the cell door, Luffy indeed vaguely saw a tall figure in the dim light.
Inside the cell!
Bullet was quietly leaning against the wall, listening to the noisy shouts around him, planning how to escape amidst the chaos.
Just then, he suddenly saw a figure appear at the door of his cell.
He turned his head in confusion, and with just one glance, his brows furrowed.
He asked in a deep voice.
"Kid! Where did you get that Straw Hat?"
Bullet was once a member of the Roger Pirates, and he was all too familiar with that Straw Hat.
He remembered that Roger had given that Straw Hat to a trainee crew member, Shanks, at the time. How could it be on the head of an unfamiliar kid like this?
Luffy was still trying to confirm if the person was Bullet, whom he was looking for.
When the other party showed such emotional intensity towards his Straw Hat, Luffy instantly confirmed his identity.
However, he chose not to answer Bullet's question.
In his eyes, the other party was already a dead man, so there was no need to waste words.
Moreover, although this person was a crew member on the same ship as Shanks and Rayleigh.
He joined the Roger Pirates solely because he wanted to defeat Roger, and had no other feelings for his crewmates.
And after Roger's death, he began to think about killing all the strong people in the world to prove that he was the strongest, wanting to become a Pirate King who surpassed Roger.
Luffy would not hesitate to kill such an extreme person.
Soon, Mr. 3 arrived at Luffy's side with the liberated Jinbe.
Luffy then had Mr. 3 release Bullet as well.
Bullet had been furious that Luffy kept ignoring him.
But when he saw Luffy releasing him, he was very surprised.
Just as he was excitedly preparing to celebrate finally gaining freedom, he didn't expect Luffy to give him a solid punch directly.
Because he was wearing Sea Stone handcuffs, Bullet's resistance was actually very weak, and he was easily knocked out by Luffy.
The surrounding criminals, who had become even more excited because Luffy had successively released two criminals, wanted Luffy to let them out.
But upon seeing Luffy knock Bullet down with one punch, everyone instantly closed their mouths and said no more.
Luffy then took the opportunity to ask Jinbe.
"What happened here just now?"
"What's going on with those guards?"
Jinbe looked at the guards Luffy was staring at and explained.
"That cell originally held the former chief warden of this prison, Shiryu of the Rain."
"He was sentenced to death for wantonly killing criminals."
"When you all were causing a ruckus upstairs just now, he tricked the guards into thinking he would help intercept you."
"As a result, after the guards released him, he killed them and escaped."
"I heard the criminals here discussing that he destroyed all the surveillance den den mushi on this floor, and now no one knows where he is."
Luffy nodded, indicating understanding.
He had originally planned to leave after completing what he wanted to do.
But after learning this news, an idea formed in his mind.
Blackbeard would be coming here soon.
He was definitely here for the criminals.
And Luffy also knew that the damage he inflicted on Magellan was not severe, and he should wake up soon.
If there wasn't this hidden danger of Shiliew, perhaps Magellan alone could wipe out the Blackbeard Pirates.
But now, Luffy felt that Magellan might have to kneel again.
And the criminals here might also be released.
Thinking this, Luffy immediately took out a den den mushi and called Empress.
When they had split up to search for Ivankov earlier, each group had kept a den den mushi for contact.
He planned to have Empress petrify all the criminals here.
That way, the Blackbeard Pirates wouldn't gain new strength, and no criminals would escape.
Upon receiving Luffy's call, Empress rushed here at the fastest speed.
After learning of Luffy's idea, she did so without a moment's hesitation.
Jinbe was initially a bit confused, but when Luffy told him that Blackbeard would be coming here, he immediately understood why Luffy was doing this.
Moreover, because of Luffy's method of preventing all criminals from being released, Jinbe even felt more admiration and respect for Luffy.
After some time, all the criminals on Level 6 were turned into stone statues.
Afterward, they left the place satisfied.
...
Because Level 5 was a vast expanse of ice and snow.
Surveillance den den mushi were only found near the stairs connecting the upper and lower levels and in areas where there were buildings.
So Hannyabal and the others had not yet discovered Ivankov.
It wasn't until the Straw Hat crew had searched for a long time that Vivi spotted a group of people running across the snowy plain from the sky.
And after comparing them with the characteristics Kuma described, Vivi largely confirmed that the leader of that group was indeed Ivankov.
Soon, she contacted everyone, informed them of this, and told everyone to gather at the place where they had previously dispersed.
Some more time passed.
All of the Straw Hat crew arrived near the stairs of Level 5.
Upon seeing Kuma, Ivankov immediately became incredibly excited and simply caught up on old times with him.
The Straw Hat crew, meanwhile, focused their attention on Luffy and the others who had arrived last.
They noticed the two unfamiliar men Luffy had brought with him.
"Luffy, who are they?"
"Why are you bringing them?"
While someone asked in confusion, someone else suddenly recognized Jinbe and exclaimed in surprise.
"This person is... Shichibukai, Jinbe the Sea Knight!"
At these words, everyone instantly became very surprised.
Ivankov heard the name and stopped reminiscing with Kuma, shifting his gaze over, with a look of surprise in his eyes.
Kuma, on the other hand, knew about Jinbe's imprisonment, so he didn't show much surprise.
Luffy explained to everyone.
"Jinbe was imprisoned to stop Ace's execution."
"Now he's decided to come with us to rescue Ace, so I brought him out."
Hearing Luffy's words, everyone understood.
At this moment, Franky's attention was drawn to the unconscious man placed at Luffy's feet.
"Then who is this person?"
"Is he with us too?"
"Why is he wearing handcuffs and unconscious?"
Everyone heard this and shifted their attention to Bullet.
"This person is Douglas Bullet the Demon Heir!"
Jinbe told everyone Bullet's identity.
And upon hearing that name, everyone's pupils instantly constricted.
Although some might not have recognized Bullet at first glance, the moment they heard that name, they all knew who this person was.
Bullet was a figure as famous as the legendary Roger, Whitebeard, and Rayleigh; almost no one was unaware of him.
"No way?! It's actually such a legendary big shot."
"I heard he was imprisoned in this prison for causing various troubles at sea, is that true?!"
"By the way, Luffy, why did you bring him out? You're not thinking of having him help us rescue Ace, are you?"
"That's absolutely not allowed. That man is very dangerous."
"Yeah! Although he was also a member of the Roger Pirates, he's not like Uncle Rayleigh and them."
Even though they hadn't met Bullet, everyone had some understanding of him through reports and various news.
Everyone had a rather poor impression of what kind of person Bullet was.
Luffy nodded at the words and said,
"I wasn't planning on having him act with us."
"I'm interested in his Devil Fruit!"
Hearing Luffy say this, the Straw Hat immediately understood what Luffy wanted to do.
However, Ivankov, Jinbe, and the others didn't understand what this meant and looked at Luffy in confusion.
.....
Luffy looked at Franky and said,
"Franky!"
"I've checked the information. This Devil Fruit can synthesize anything from inorganic matter."
"If you eat this Fruit, you can directly use its ability to synthesize various powerful weapons and the like from inorganic matter like steel."
"You can even synthesize powerful combat robots."
"Aren't you very knowledgeable about mechanical manufacturing?!"
"This will help you to synthesize all sorts of things better."
"I think this Fruit is absolutely perfect for you!"
Although Franky didn't have Haki as powerful as Bullet's.
He was very talented in mechanics.
The Combine-Combine Fruit could not only combine inorganic matter with oneself but also independently synthesize various things using its ability.
For example, in the original work, Bullet himself used his ability to synthesize a submarine that could be controlled independently.
So Luffy felt that Franky could develop his ability in this direction.
By then, he might be able to synthesize controllable super combat robots similar to Transformers or Gundam.
This would undoubtedly be a huge boost to his combat power.
Franky originally had no interest in Devil Fruit.
He didn't want to be a landlubber.
But when Luffy said he could freely synthesize various weapons, and even robots, Franky was immediately tempted.
Even Usopp and Chopper's eyes lit up; they had no resistance to robots.
Franky said excitedly,
"Really?"
"Can this Fruit synthesize anything I want?"
Luffy nodded and said,
"As long as you develop the Fruit well enough, you can synthesize anything."
Franky no longer hesitated and immediately nodded in agreement.
"I want this ability!"
"Let me eat this Fruit!"
Seeing Franky agree, Luffy nodded, preparing to act.
Meanwhile, Ivankov and Jinbe, among others, were utterly confused throughout, their faces full of incomprehension.
Devil Fruit would respawn in a random location after the original owner died.
This was something everyone knew.
But Luffy and his crew were discussing it heatedly.
This made Ivankov think they had gone mad, and he couldn't help but want to give them an injection.
Just as he was looking bewildered, Kuma noticed his confusion and explained,
"They have the ability to take other people's Devil Fruit."
Kuma had learned this back on Sabaody Archipelago.
But he had never seen it, so he was very curious and expectant now.
And upon hearing this news, Ivankov and Jinbe, among others, widened their eyes like brass bells and exclaimed,
"What?!"
"Is there really someone with such an incredible ability?"
After their exclamations, they immediately quieted down, staring intently at Luffy, full of anticipation like Kuma.
Luffy first applied his Heaven-Defying Comprehension to Franky.
After helping him maximize his talents related to mechanical manufacturing, synthesis, and the Combine-Combine Fruit, Luffy finally ended Bullet's life.
After that, it was the usual waiting.
Just as Luffy and the others were silently waiting, sudden screams mixed with wolf howls rang out.
Looking in the direction of the sound, they saw several people dressed as jailers frantically rushing towards them.
Behind those people, a pack of snow wolves was chasing wildly.