Not only the Dominic group of families thought this way. Vice Admiral Tsuru of the Marines was also somewhat puzzled.
She didn't go as far as Sisyphus and crudely conclude that the Donquixote Family was pathetic, but she did relax her guard a little, feeling that Doflamingo did not seem as flawless as the rumors claimed and that he had some rather significant weaknesses in certain respects.
Saul, who had actually crossed paths with Doflamingo before, did not see it like that at all.
Doflamingo wasn't the sort of man who charged in recklessly or acted without a brain. If he was doing things this way, then there had to be an even bigger scheme behind it.
So Saul earnestly urged Tsuru to stay highly alert, insisting that the situation might be far more serious than it appeared.
Tsuru had risen to the post of Marine staff officer not merely because she was clever, but because she knew how to seize the initiative at the right moment and was able to accept and act on feedback from her subordinates.
After carefully chewing over everything the Donquixote Family had done, the more she thought about it, the more wrong it all felt.
Ten days had passed since Doflamingo had sailed away. After the first day, when they could still monitor his ship's position, the rest of the time they had no idea what Doflamingo was actually doing in the North Blue.
It was only two days ago that they spotted family officer Yulian returning. Doflamingo's whereabouts, on the other hand, remained completely unknown, which was perplexing in itself.
On top of that, the Donquixote Family was not the sort of organization that would watch the North Blue's interests sitting right in front of them and only make half-hearted harassment attacks. With so many questionable points, none of it made sense.
Before long, however, Tsuru managed to string everything together.
Half a month later, a piece of startling news began circulating through the North Blue: the Coal Kingdom had put an astonishing quantity of brewstone ore up for trade.
Someone had already verified the authenticity of the report, and now large numbers of people across the North Blue were heading for the Coal Kingdom.
Tsuru knew full well that news this big did not appear out of thin air. Someone had to be pulling the strings behind the scenes. Any halfway smart person could see that.
But so what if they could see it? The profit attached to brewstone ore was too large, so large that even knowing it was bait tossed out on purpose, they still had no choice but to bite. That was the essence of an open conspiracy.
Tsuru roughly guessed that Doflamingo had made his move and so sent undercover agents to the Coal Kingdom to investigate.
Their mission was to confirm whether Doflamingo himself appeared in the Coal Kingdom. If he did, then everything would make sense.
However, the results that came back from the Marines' spies only deepened Tsuru's confusion.
Doflamingo had not shown up. The seller conducting the transactions was an obscure nobody by the name of Enel.
Refusing to believe that Doflamingo was uninvolved, Tsuru mobilized every Marine asset stationed in the North Blue to search for his trail.
At last, in the Northern Archipelago Kingdom, three days' sail away from the Coal Kingdom, they finally discovered signs of Doflamingo's presence.
With that confirmation, Tsuru had no choice but to accept that the Coal Kingdom affair truly had nothing to do with Doflamingo himself.
Even so, would the Donquixote Family really pass up profits that massive from brewstone ore? Anyone could tell with just a twitch of a toe that they would have to get involved.
Therefore, Tsuru decided she would head to the Coal Kingdom and wait like a hunter by the stump for the rabbit to run into it.
On the other side, in the Litronos Kingdom, Doflamingo was currently speaking with Yulian over a Den Den Mushi.
"Young master, you really called it. Getting Enel to lay the groundwork in advance was absolutely the right move.
"The people we left in the Coal Kingdom have already reported back. The Marines secretly tried to find out who was orchestrating everything behind the scenes and also asked about your whereabouts.
"If there's been no mistake, then the Marines must now be convinced we're heading there for the trade and are lying in wait in the Coal Kingdom."
"Fufufufufufu… The Marines want to play the fisherman and reap the spoils. I won't let them have it that easy.
"Notify Enel. He can start now.
"It's time for us to move as well. The Dominic Family has already been surrounded."
"Yes, young master!"
Contrary to what everyone expected, Doflamingo had no intention of going to the Coal Kingdom first. Instead, he planned to deal with the pirate crews behind the four families before anything else.
The bait dangling in the Coal Kingdom was big, but it depended on who it was meant to lure.
For the pirate groups backing the Dominic Family, brewstone ore wasn't something worth moving personally for. Letting the Dominic clan heads handle it was more than enough.
The pirates themselves had gathered within Dominic territory. While everyone in the North Blue had their eyes fixed on the commotion over brewstone ore, they were preparing to launch a surprise attack on the Donquixote Family's base.
Led by Zavasapa, the Sword Dragon Pirates, the Colossus Pirates, and the White Cloud Pirates were ready to strike at the Donquixote stronghold.
It was a nice plan in theory. But before the Sword Dragon Pirates had even set out, Scylla, who had been lying in ambush nearby for some time already, decided to make the first move.
Eager to prove herself, she attacked ahead of the time she had agreed on with Doflamingo, leading her fighters ashore straight onto the Dominic Family's home turf and launching an all-out battle.
However, in the end, Scylla had overestimated her own strength and underestimated that of the pirate crews.
The Sword Dragon Pirates' captain, an Ancient Zoan Sword Dragon Fruit user: Zavasapa.
The Colossus Pirates' captain, a Paramecia Rope-Rope Fruit user: Kamilong.
The White Cloud Pirates' captain, a Logia Cloud-Cloud Fruit user: Daiba.
Just those three working together were more than Scylla could handle.
Still, as a Rebirth-Rebirth Fruit user, Scylla possessed tremendous regenerative power.
Even the first time Doflamingo had encountered her, he'd needed to expend a great deal of effort to subdue her.
The combined strength of the three captains was not enough to inflict a killing blow on Scylla, but Scylla also could not overpower them. The fight quickly slipped into a stalemate.
To break the deadlock, both sides began using their respective tricks.
Scylla opted to fight with pure brute force, unleashing direct, violent assaults.
Kamilong continuously manifested ropes, and whenever Daiba turned into white clouds to obscure Scylla's vision, he seized the chance to bind her hands and feet whenever she let down her guard for a moment.
Once Zavasapa transformed into his Sword Dragon form, his massive tail spike swept out with full force. The huge spike directly pierced through Scylla's body.
"Got her!"
Joy flashed in Zavasapa's huge reptilian eyes as he yanked his tail back, dragging a mess of entrails out along with it.
The three captains exchanged glances. Seeing Scylla on the verge of death, all of them were certain that she was beyond saving.
What they did not see, however, was that Scylla's body was rapidly knitting itself back together.
Her mind was perfectly clear as well. She silently measured the distance between them, preparing to land a vicious blow on the closest one, Kamilong.
Any man who didn't know how to cherish a woman deserved to die. Only the young master was exempt from that rule.
Convinced that Scylla no longer posed any threat, the three captains allowed their tension to ebb away.
Zavasapa reverted to human form, crouched in front of Scylla, lightly slapped her face, and mocked her.
"Tch. If this is how it was going to end, why did you refuse our invitation before?
"With your strength, there's no need for you to be working for that Doflamingo guy. I'll even give you another chance right now.
"If you're willing to join us, I can personally lead you to the top."
Since Zavasapa was kindly keeping the conversation going, Scylla was more than happy to play along.
Even with her regeneration, her body still needed a little time to recover.
She could just use this opportunity to stall. Scylla deliberately feigned a weak, dying tone.
"No need… you stupid men.
"How could you possibly understand the young master?
"Sure, he was pretty rough the first time we met, but he carved himself deep into this old lady's heart.
"I know, I know, this old lady's body gave out back then, or else how could I have let the young master get away?
"But even so, every word and every gesture of his is mesmerizing.
"This old lady can't bear the days when the young master doesn't summon me.
"Even if I can only watch him from afar within the family, this old lady is already satisfied…"
(End of Chapter)
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