“What am I even doing…?”
At this moment, Who’s-Who was dressed in formal evening wear, surveying the scene below from a tall building. He had initially thought that Yamato wanted to launch a purge, something quite common within the World Government.
To eliminate internal enemies, the World Government often dispatched true loyalists to weed out those harboring dissent within the ranks.
Moreover, both the World Government and Marines would also send undercover agents to infiltrate pirate crews.
Back then, World Destroyer-Byrnndi World was ambushed by Cipher Pol agents who had infiltrated his crew, ultimately being sent to Impel Down.
With Wano Country’s isolationist policies, identifying outsiders was simple. When Queen implemented the identity cards, the method was straightforward—local residents were encouraged to report.
People living in the same area were asked to report anyone unfamiliar. If a stranger showed up that no one recognized, further investigation would follow.
But after a large-scale investigation, nothing unusual was found.
However, the Beasts Pirates’ territory was not limited to just one island. On the outer islands, it wasn’t as difficult for outsiders to slip in, which is where Who’s-Who believed his mission would truly begin.
But in the end, he found himself aboard the entertainment ship Gran Tesoro, which had been sailing for years, being tested on his capabilities.
With the tacit approval of two Celestial Dragon families, Gran Tesoro had become a World Government-recognized independent nation. It was also a demilitarized zone—an “absolute sanctuary” where the World Government couldn’t act freely.
It had now become the gray center of the Underworld, with spies from various forces operating here.
Thanks to the Celestial Dragons’ support, Tesoro held significant privileges here.
Without Tesoro’s consent, it is illegal for even Marines to enter this place with weapons. However, this is just the official rule; it’s hard to say how many different factions have people operating behind the scenes here.
Bang!
A flare exploded in the sky. Afterward, in the center of Gran Tesoro, a large group of Cyclizars began running along the track in unison, with their riders using various methods to hinder their opponents.
As the Cyclizars charged forward, a thunderous roar erupted from the audience stands. This was Gran Tesoro’s exclusive event—a unique kind of horse race.
However, on closer inspection, a new rider could be seen leading on one of the Cyclizars. At some point, Yamato had already joined the race for fun.
The reason for being here was that Yamato wanted to test his skills, seeing if he could successfully unearth some special talents from all kinds of people on Gran Tesoro.
Who’s-Who hadn’t seen anything wrong with it at first, but now it seemed like this mission was more of Yamato wanting to have fun, having long strayed from the original goal.
Yamato could do whatever she wanted, but if there were no results, it would make Who’s-Who look incompetent—affecting his career prospects.
It was at this moment that Tesoro appeared behind him.
“Miss Yamato is just like that, so don’t take it too seriously. I’ve already been informed about the purpose of your visit. As it happens, I have something that requires your help.”
Since Gran Tesoro had officially opened, it had become Tesoro’s second office. Whether at Beasts Fruits’ headquarters or aboard Gran Tesoro, his presence could always be felt.
However, it was only an office. Due to the unique nature of this maritime city, he didn’t trust his family to live here.
“And what exactly would that be?”
“It wouldn’t be possible for this place to smoothly operate without the help of the Celestial Dragons, but those Celestial Dragon families aren’t completely united. According to the original agreement, this place is a demilitarized zone. Not even the Marines or World Government agents can enter here easily.
It was indeed like that until recently, but now, some people have violated that agreement.”
The profits from Gran Tesoro were enormous, and such huge profits made many people jealous, wanting to uncover the secrets within. Even some within the World Government weren’t exceptions.
While Gran Tesoro had the support of some Celestial Dragons, it was only a portion. The ones trying to pry into its secrets were agents from other factions.
“CP0, huh? That’s quite a challenge.”
From Tesoro’s description, Who’s-Who understood what needed to be done. It wouldn’t be easy, but he wasn’t afraid. Difficult tasks brought higher rewards.
This was a game of chess played by those at the top. Whether it was him or the agents sent to Gran Tesoro, they were all just pawns. If he didn’t want to be discarded, he had to prove his value.
Who’s-Who came from CP9 and didn’t know much about CP0, but he wasn’t entirely ignorant. Top CP9 agents were essentially the reserve for CP0, and this time, it seemed like the goddess of luck was on his side.
Originally, he planned to cast some bait and see if any fish would bite the hook. But by chance, he spotted a familiar face on the surveillance footage.
…
“Are you sure it’s him?”
“I’m sure. I used to be an agent too, and in this line of work, memory is important. You never forget the faces of key individuals after seeing them once.
That guy is a member of CP0. I won’t mistake him. His codename is Knight, and he’s the captain of a squad, but he shouldn’t be involved in a mission like this.”
CP0 operated in a completely different way from CP9, but Who’s-Who remembered clearly that guy was already a squad captain of CP0 years ago and had even tried to recruit him. A squad like that shouldn’t be doing something like this.
Tesoro didn’t care about the rest of the story. The fact that Who’s-Who had quickly identified his target was a pleasant surprise to him.
“That’s not important. As long as you’re sure it’s him, I’ll make preparations to act.”
In Tesoro’s hands, some gold began to melt. This was the result of his efforts over the years. The gold on the ship was all under his control due to his Devil Fruit ability, making this his absolute domain.
“Let me handle it. That guy’s a Devil Fruit User, and if we’re not careful, he could easily slip away. Besides, I want to see how much difference there is between me and CP0 now.”
“Are you sure? If I’m not mistaken, CP0 is generally much stronger than CP9, right?”
“That was true in the past, but this time is different. I want to test the power granted to me by Lord Arceus.”
As he spoke, a black dagger formed at the end of his arm, appearing to be made of some sort of metallic hair. It was the ability he had exchanged for teaching Rokushiki, essentially a form of advance payment for his role as an instructor.
It was this very power that ignited the desire within him to gain new strength through more contributions.
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