Therefore, he did not show himself and left the opportunity of displaying their prowess to Kuina and the others.
And Kuina and her companions, following his example, also refrained from stepping in, leaving the action to the three crew members with the lowest bounties on the ship.
That's pretty good.
This way, it could help Jack and Robin's fame and bounty catch up with the average level on the ship.
And Nami's Flame-Flame Fruit ability, demonstrated at full force in front of so many people, should make the idiots in the Navy's intelligence division realize just how wrong they were before.
Shano looked towards Kuina's side again.
The young swordswoman was leading the rest of the crew towards the shipyard.
This was following his instructions from before, to liaise with the plating artisans.
After negotiating the price, they would then split up and take advantage of the time it takes to plate the ship to enjoy exploring this dreamy archipelago.
As for him, the hands-off boss, of course, he had his own tasks to manage...
—Such legitimate business like "fleecing" cannot be forgotten.
Shano closed his eyes slightly, and his Observation spread out like a tide in all directions.
The Shampodi Islands were too large; even his Observation couldn't cover it all.
But to cover all the shipyards and plating workshops on the several dozen islands near GR 52 was no problem.
"Tsk, skipping work again?"
Unable to detect any special aura, Shano opened his eyes somewhat disappointedly.
It wasn't particularly surprising.
Netherworld King Rayleigh, this old fellow hiding here, seemed never to take his work as a plating artisan seriously.
With nothing else to do, he either went drinking or gambling, and when he was completely broke, he'd sell himself to the slave traders for fun.
"Might as well head straight to GR 13."
Shano shook his head.
Too lazy to waste effort searching around, and with dinnertime approaching, he decided to lie in wait at Shakky's Rip-off Bar instead.
He couldn't believe he wouldn't catch an old man craving a drink.
With a light tap of his toes, he disappeared from the edge of the tall building, becoming a fleeting shadow as he silently skimmed over the town heading toward a high-ranked island.
...
About tens of kilometers away from the Shampodi Islands at sea.
A large Navy warship was riding the waves, advancing at full speed towards this direction.
Chaton, with a cigar in his mouth, was puffing smoke at the ship's bow, his expression not looking too good.
Over the past week, following Sengoku's instructions, he searched all the islands previously flown to by Doflamingo without any trace of Shano.
Ultimately, he had no choice but to return to headquarters and report.
What a disappointment.
Clicking his tongue regretfully, Chaton smacked his lips.
Having been promoted to Admiral Candidate for several months without any notable achievements, there were bound to be some unpleasant rumors.
He had hoped to capture the ten billion Belly bounty criminal this time to make a name for himself...
"Please go ahead... What? I understand!"
Suddenly, the deputy's communication voice sounded from the side.
After the Radio Snail call ended, Chaton lazily glanced over: "What's up? Communication from headquarters?"
"No, Mr. Tokikake, it's from the Shampodi Islands branch."
The deputy smiled and shook his head, "It seems a group of pirates fought at the island's shipyard, causing a big commotion, and the branch base is dispatching and gathering forces to head over."
"Even though we're heading to Marinfanto, we're close enough to receive an emergency communication signal. Should we take a look, Mr. Tokikake?"
"I see..." Chaton raised his eyebrows.
It was common for pirates to cause trouble at Shampodi, and generally, the branch base could handle it properly without requiring the level of an Admiral Candidate.
But... coincidentally, after a wasted week, his hands were itching for action.
"Might as well take a look, since we're idle anyway."
Chaton blew out a puff of smoke with a grin, "Let's just vent some feelings, and it's the pirates' bad luck to run into me."
"Yes, Mr. Tokikake!"
...
Meanwhile, at 1st Gr.
Swish!
A figure suddenly descended from the sky.
It was Shano.
He hadn't appeared at 13th Gr. Instead, he came to the outer perimeter of the island's auction house at 1st Gr, crouching on the grassy slope, propping his chin with one hand, and took a keen interest in observing the auction house below.
The reason he stopped here was simple.
The Demon Fruit detection radar had lit up.
Before even arriving here, the radar had already lit up, turning yellow as he approached the auction house.
This indicated that the Demon Fruit was within ten kilometers.
And surrounding the auction house was a vast open grassland, so it's almost certain that it's one of the auction items currently ongoing inside the auction house.
Selling slaves and selling Demon Fruits, huh?
This was more convenient.
Since it's something evil, he could simply go in and seize it, while also rescuing some slaves and cleaning up those damnable slave traders in the venue.
Unfortunately.
No Heavenly Celestial Dragon to encounter.
Shano's gaze swept over the various modes of transport parked outside the entrance, failing to notice anything special, a bit disappointed.
A Shampodi auction must include the tireless Saint Charlos, right?
"Hmm?"
A flash of crimson light passed through his eyes as if sensing something, yet he still sat unmovingly.
The next moment.
A long sword was placed against his shoulder.