Time passed, and Nico Robin continued to carry out her personal tasks. After infiltrating some organizations, she followed their operations to refine her own plans.
However, not every place held ruins, and sometimes she would waste time on fruitless endeavors.
Although Ohara had compiled some information on ruins, these records were left from many years ago, and with the passage of time, everything in the sea was changing, rendering those records not entirely reliable.
Sometimes they merely provided a rough clue, and she had to explore personally for specifics.
For historians like them, exploring history meant gathering information. However, they generally lack sufficient funds to form exploration teams, and those with the capital to do so were not particularly interested in history; they sought additional value.
From ancient weapons to ordinary treasures, those were what they needed, and some of the antiques obtained from ruins were also valuable.
Robin came to the North Blue because there was a renowned relic trafficker here, with a plethora of items obtained from ruins. According to the intelligence she acquired from the previous organization, there was likely a clue about a ruin recorded on a vase among these items.
That organization had originally planned to rob this person, but an unexpected incident occurred on the way.
As for why that organization encountered an accident, unfortunately, it was reported by another legitimate company during their operation and subsequently eradicated by the Marines. As for which legitimate company was so warmhearted, it’s not important. Afterwards, Robin infiltrated that organization and became a secretary.
It took her some time to successfully infiltrate the residence of this person. However, more than one person had their eyes on him; at this time, the Donquixote Family, who were also active in the North Blue, had also set their sights on this relic trafficker.
The power dynamics in the North Blue were much more complex than in the other three seas. Currently, the most active forces in the Underworld of North Blue were the Donquixote Family and the Vinsmoke Family.
The Donquixote family, led by Doflamingo, only began to rise in power in North Blue in recent years. They engage in activities such as assassination, smuggling, and mercenary work—anything for the right price. Of course, their main business is the trade of Devil Fruits.
Doflamingo knew some secrets that ordinary people didn’t, so he had some special channels.
The Vinsmoke Family, on the other hand, were the regional overlords of the North Blue, a well-known assassin clan in the North Blue’s Underworld and also the royal family of the Germa Kingdom.
The Vinsmoke Family, as a royal family, once controlled the entire North Blue for 66 days with their military might, hence the nickname “Germa 66.”
However, they have no territory; massive snails walk on the sea while carrying their block-like homes on their back, and they even have the qualifications to participate in the Levely.
The Vinsmoke Family has a long history, spanning nearly three hundred years. Their heyday was undoubtedly during the days when they ruled the North Blue through military might, until the World Government stopped them.
Later, after MADS disbanded, Judge returned with new technology and even killed the four kings of the North Blue, which reshaped the reputation of Germa. The comic Sora, Warrior of the Sea, began circulating in the North Blue after that.
With both families engaged in assassination activities, there were naturally some conflicts between them. Vinsmoke Family had their own foundation, but Doflamingo was different; he needed to accumulate his wealth through other businesses.
Doflamingo only wanted funds to prepare for his entry into the Grand Line in the future. The members of the Donquixote Family now were considered his future officers, and there were hardly any cannon fodder.
His mindset was similar to Kaido’s initial thoughts; in his eyes, ordinary people from the Four Seas were not even suitable as cannon fodder. Even if they wanted to be grunts, they needed some talent.
As a former Celestial Dragon, Doflamingo looked down upon the North Blue, and his goal was clear – to seize the country of his ancestors.
After all, in this world, most of the prominent and formidable figures were in the Grand Line. Initially, the goal of pirates worldwide was to advance towards the Grand Line, and those who do not venture into the Grand Line and instead stay in the Four Seas are mostly small fry.
Even if Moria and Crocodile lost their ambitions after being defeated, they only withdrew from the New World and remained in the first half of the Grand Line.
And this relic trafficker where Robin was undercover was such a person, who has attracted the attention of the Donquixote Family.
It took Robin some time to gain the trust of this person. While she was observing the room for hidden compartments, a series of gunshots rang out outside the room. The seemingly formidable bodyguards fell one by one, and then a group of people burst in.
The bodyguards inside the room had just taken out their pistols when bullets were already flying towards them.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Baby 5, leading the charge, transformed her left leg into a firearm, an unscientific firearm capable of rapid fire. As the user of Arms-Arms Fruit, she could transform her body into various weapons.
Following behind her were Buffalo and Law, as this is a trial set by the Donquixote family for children. Except for the very young half-Fish-Man Dellinger, their hands have all been stained with blood.
Law’s face also had numerous white spots. Although the medicine of the Beasts Pirates had some benefits for the body, they were ultimately just health supplements, so Amber Lead Syndrome was slowly growing inside him.
The fight didn’t last long. These bodyguards were sufficient against ordinary people, but they were no match for those trained by the Donquixote Family. Soon, they fell one by one into a pool of blood, leaving only the bald-head relic trafficker and a few servants.
The servants didn’t want to run, not because they didn’t want to but because they didn’t know what to do with guns pointed at them. Meanwhile, Robin just stroked Sobble’s head, reassuring it not to be afraid.
Due to its personality, Sobble is far from as composed as Inteleon. If it starts crying out of fear, it would be the biggest trouble for Robin.
“Who are you, and what do you want?”
The person, who could engage in smuggling business, had experienced some storms. Although facing a gun to his head, he wasn’t too flustered.
“Your hidden treasures.”
Law straightforwardly stated his demand and then shot the butler beside him.
“You better cooperate, or this will be your fate.”
At this moment, Law’s inner goal is to drag everyone down together with him to death, so he didn’t care about the life of a bystander.
Under the threat of death, the relic trafficker quickly revealed where he had hidden his belongings. However, he was not released; instead, he was shot through the head.
It was an order from Doflamingo. However, just as they were about to continue silencing everyone, inexplicably, several extra arms appeared on their body.
“Treinta Fleur: Clutch.”
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