Chapter 17

An Unconventional Idea

She blocked the attack with both of her arms but was forced to move backwards as she wasn't strong enough to push against it and counter-attack. Ace used his other hand to land a second blow on the same spot, causing her defense to shatter and her to fall to the ground with a yelp and a soft glare in her eyes when she looked up at him. Chuckling at her adorable reaction, he offered her his hand to help her up, which she gladly took and soon she was standing next to him, a soft pout on her lips.

"You could go easier on me."

He smiled and ruffled her hair playfully.

"You know that's not true. You've got a keen eye for prediction, always one step ahead of me. But, let's face it, your defense could use some work. I can still feel you struggling to hold up against my attacks."

"It's only been a month since we started training and it is getting stronger. When we started, I could barely keep it up long enough for my attack to touch you."

"I know, love. But there is still something we haven't managed to do even once."

Calypso's eyes stared into his with curiosity.

"Your Night, Cal. You still haven't summoned it."

Her eyes instantly fell to the ground and she frowned, causing him to mirror her expression.

"You know I'm afraid to do so. It may bring Nemesis out…"

The pirate's hand instantly moved to her head and he pulled her into his embrace.

"I know, love, but this is the main reason we started these training sessions. For you to learn to control your powers and, by extension, Nemesis."

She let out a sigh and looked up at his face, her frown ever-present.

"I tried to do so a few times, but it felt wrong. The closer to the surface my powers came, the closer she did too, and that scared me. Ace, what if I can never use my powers without also becoming her?"

Ace stared into her eyes for a long while, noticing her worry, fear, and pain; his mind was working on a way to help her overcome this setback.

"Calypso, you and Nemesis are technically two people sharing one body, correct?"

The witch nodded in confirmation after taking some time to ponder his question.

"Could it be that your Devil Fruit abilities manifest differently for each of you?"

"What are you suggesting?"

He searched for the right words, wanting to convey his theory clearly without sounding too far-fetched.

"Consider this: she possessed your Fruit when she was her own individual. Now, when she controls your body, she accesses those powers again. When you attempt to tap into your abilities, maybe you subconsciously do so through her and that's why you also feel her taking over."

Her eyes opened wide with realization and she smiled openly.

"This actually makes sense! Since I've eaten the Nyx Fruit I never used it myself consciously, but she has. It's possible that when I try to do so now I reach for her because my body remembers her control of it."

There was a new determination in her eyes as she started pacing around, thinking.

"I need to find a way to control my Night as me, as Calypso, but how am I supposed to do that?"

Ace kept following her with his eyes, his own mind working on finalizing a possible solution. In the end, his lips turned into a smirk that instantly got her attention and she raised an eyebrow.

"You've got something."

He nodded and moved closer to her, his arms moving around her waist after placing hers on his shoulders. Pulling her closer to his chest he stared into her heterochromatic eyes and gave her a reassuring smile when he noticed her worried and confused expression.

"Do you trust me?"

The witch once again nodded, but her expression remained unchanged.

"Then close your eyes."

She raised an eyebrow at his request.

"I need you to trust me and do as I ask."

A sigh of exasperation escaped her lips and she finally closed her eyes.

"Now what?"

"Now I need you to relax. Try to forget everything. Clear your mind of any thoughts and just relax."

Her brow furrowed slightly, but eventually her facial features and body relaxed, and her breath soon came out slower. When he felt her relax enough, he started slowly moving them both around with slow movements. The movements almost caused her to open her eyes but he instantly shushed her and squeezed her waist softly.

"Don't open your eyes. Just follow my lead and relax to this dance. Try to embrace the feeling and the sensations."

She chuckled softly.

"How will this help with controlling my powers?"

He shushed her once more and kissed the top of her head.

"Don't talk, please. Just dance with me. Dancing is how you most openly express how you feel, so I am sure this will also help you with your powers."

Calypso's lips turned into a smile as she thought there was some merit in his idea and she moved closer to him with a sigh.

"And if you are wrong?"

Ace returned the smile, even though he knew she couldn't see it.

"If I am wrong and something doesn't work as I plan to, I will be here to make it better."

Chuckling at his confidence, she started humming softly as she followed his lead, her body open to every feeling and sensation around it. Everything she could feel she opened her mind to, pushing every other thought away, and she only focused on what she felt now: on his arms around her waist and on his chest against hers, on the wind causing her curls to dance against her skin and on the soft hum in her ears. Steadily, the hum in her ears grew stronger and soon it was the only thing she could feel, as any other sensation was gone. She was about to panic when the hum turned into a song sung by a voice she couldn't recognize, but she felt she knew somehow. As the voice kept singing softly what felt like a lullaby, Calypso felt the wind again, but this time it was warmer when it touched her skin and it was carrying on a nostalgic smell of cinnamon and nightflower that almost brought tears to her eyes. Then she also felt the warmth of an embrace and the steady rhythm of a heart beating as the song was now louder and the words more clear. Calypso wanted to open her eyes and see who was singing but something told her that if she did so, the person would disappear. She tried to speak instead, but she found that no words left her lips. After a while, the person stopped singing and she felt a hand pulling her closer to the warm and eerily familiar embrace, the familiarity causing her to nuzzle at it softly. It was when she felt the tears falling in her face that she also heard the voice again, this time heavy with emotions.

"It's time now."

She frowned as she wasn't sure what the voice meant and she tried to speak again and ask, but still she found herself unable to. The voice spoke again and this time the sound of wings could also be heard with it.

"It's time. Don't you think so too, daughter?"

This time she gasped and opened her eyes wide, only to find herself back in Sabaody, staring at a surprised but happy Ace. Looking down, she noticed the smoke and a glance back at her lover's face confirmed her suspicion that she had managed to summon her Night without losing herself to Nemesis. Smiling openly she brought her hands in front of her and started experimenting with her smoke, stopping when she managed to give it the form of a raven. Calypso looked towards the rock she knew Ebony was sitting on and smirked as she showed him her creation.

"Look Ebony! I made you a friend!"

The raven cawed in mild annoyance as she interrupted his sunbathing and flew in front of her to study the fake raven that was flying in small circles over her hands. Cawing now in approval, he flew once around his Mistress' head before pointing upwards. Calypso nodded and released the raven she created, watching as it flew upwards in circles before disappearing from her sight.

Ace, who was all this time watching her play around and experiment, smiled more and walked closer to pull her into a tight hug, which she happily returned.

"This can turn into a useful attack, you know."

"Do you really think so?"

He nodded and leaned down to kiss her lips softly, enjoying the feeling of her power as it touched his skin. When he broke the kiss, he looked into her eyes and brought a hand over the smoke-like aura surrounding her.

"Your powers feel different this time. When I fought Nemesis, your darkness felt cold and sharp whenever it came into contact with me. Now it feels warmer and more comforting."

Ebony cawed in confirmation and landed on the witch's shoulder, his wings also playing with her aura. He let out some more caws before getting more comfortable in his spot, causing Calypso's curious eyes to fall on the pirate's face.

"Ebony says that the smoke also looks brighter for some reason. Is this true?"

Ace studied it further, his brow furrowed as he tried to remember his previous encounter with this power. In the end, his eyes stared into hers and he offered her a nod.

"It seems to be, yes. Can you try to expand your aura a bit more so I can confirm something?"

Calypso closed her eyes again, concentrated on her power, and managed to push it a couple feet further. This time, Ace also smirked when he nodded.

"I see them clearly now. This time there are stars in your Night as opposed to plain darkness like before."

The witch's eyes opened wide with shock at his words and she looked at her hands again.

"So it really is different for me than for her...I did not expect this to be true when you mentioned your theory."

He brought his hand to ruffle her hair a bit before bringing it under her chin to have her look at him.

"This is a good thing, princess. It means we can start training you without having to worry about her."

She offered him a smile and was about to move for another kiss when she heard Ebony's warning caw and the flapping of his wings as he started flying around her head, trying to get her attention. Calypso noticed the men approaching just as Ebony started flying higher up and towards the foliage of the trees, her body tensing when she recognized the bounty hunters they had met twice in the past.

The leader of the group kept staring at her with interest and a smirk on his lips, his arms already crossed in front of his chest.

"Yar bird gav' us away, but at least we managed t' confirm the reports. The Seagulls'll be pleased…"

Ace's reaction was to instantly move in front of his lover to protect her, his fists already clenched as he prepared himself to defend them both. Noticing his reaction, the man's smirk grew and he tilted his head slightly.

"I see ya still protectin' yar lass. Weird...After what I saw, I'd think she won't need any protectin'."

The pirate's expression darkened and he took a step forward, causing Calypso to yelp and reach to hold his arm tightly.

"Please, love, don't. He's trying to rile you up so you can make mistakes."

The bounty hunter laughed loudly for a while before staring at the pair again, noticing how the man he knew was a pirate followed the woman's guidance without objection. Still, he needed to provoke him further if he had any chance to confirm his suspicions.

"She's clev'r this one. I could 'ave use o' 'er if she wasn't a criminal."

Ace broke his arm free from Calypso's grasp and took a few more steps forward, his fists already trembling as he coated them with his Haki. He was now ready to fight those bastards who threatened him and his lover. A couple of them followed their leaders' command and ran towards him, swords ready to cut him down, but he used his bare hands to stop the blades mid-attack and punch them hard enough to send them flying against the roots of the Grove's tree. His Observation Haki confirmed that they wouldn't be a problem anymore, but he soon sensed a few more bounty hunters preparing their guns and aiming them at him. He could feel their intention was not to kill him and he got the feeling they were trying to figure out something about him, which made him wary of simply attacking them. Thankfully, while he was trying to figure out the best way to act, a few shadowy ravens flew over him and towards his would-be assailants, hitting them on the head and causing them to fall down, screaming in pain and fear. Looking back, he saw Calypso preparing another attack and soon a bigger raven flew towards the bounty hunter leader, aiming for his chest. The man didn't try to move out of the way, but when the shadowy being was in front of him, he used a Haki-infused sword to push it out of his way.

"Ya're weak lass. Are ya really the one they call a murderer?"

Calypso's brow furrowed and she focused her powers on her palms to start creating two shifting orbs of shadow.

"I am not a murderer!"

The man's smirk returned and he raised a gun, which he aimed at Ace, causing the witch's eyes to open wide and her eyes to fill with hate. As a subconscious reaction, more shadows traveled down her arms and increased the size of the two orbs on her palms.

"Don't you dare hurt him, you bastard!"

An eyebrow was raised at the name-calling, but her words and actions went according to his expectations. It looks like this woman was indeed trying to protect this man, a fact that further made him think he was the man he believed he was. Yet, there was only one way to confirm it and that was to force him to use his Fruit powers, if he really did have them. Gun still aimed at the man; he turned to the woman and stared straight into her eyes, not making any attempts to hide the suspicion in them. When he noticed the fear and panic in her eyes, he chuckled and swiftly moved the gun to now aim at her heart, shooting without wasting any time. He knew the pirate would have to act quickly if he wanted to save his lover and maybe he would have had, but the sudden, pained cry of the raven ruined his plans. The woman's pet had flown in front of her, taking the bullet itself. Instantly, the woman fell on her knees, clutching her chest and screaming as if she was the one who was shot, the shadows around her disappearing instantly as she wailed, causing the pirate's attention to also fall on her, his widened eyes looking from her to the wreathing raven on the ground, unsure of what to do.

Grizzled Gouger wasn't unsure, though; he knew exactly what he needed to do. He quickly reloaded the gun and aimed at the screaming woman once more, preparing to shoot her again and fulfill his original plan. Unfortunately, he was once again meant to fail since, this time, her lover turned to stare at him with an anger so intense he could swear his eyes were aflame. Soon the ground around the young man started shaking and the veins on his arms grew more, as if he was trying really hard to hold something back. Then he felt it; a pressuring wave entered his brain with enough force to cause him to take a step back and his eyes to open wide.

"How dare you aim this gun at her again?"

Grizzled's mouth opened with surprise as he realized exactly what was happening and what this young man who had now moved in front of his lover and was staring him down was capable of.

"You caused her enough pain as it is. Now lower your weapon."

Without even thinking, the bounty hunter lowered his gun and let it drop on the ground, feeling a tightness in his throat as he suddenly felt it drying up.

Ace didn't say anything else, but he refused to allow the bounty hunter to be free of the effect of his Haki. Instead, he walked to kneel next to the girl who had now crawled and was cradling the barely alive raven on her chest, her tears and cries never stopping. Sensing she was in shock and probably unable to respond to whatever he told her in any way, he pulled her into his embrace and shushed her, his hand stroking her hair softly until she calmed enough to allow him to lift her up and lead her towards Shakky's bar.

Only when they both disappeared and were completely out of sight did Grizzled feel the pressing weight leaving his brain and he finally managed to breathe normally. Leaning down to grab hold of his gun and put it back on his belt, he looked around at his men who seemed to all be unconscious. Cursing between his teeth, he elected to just leave them where they lied and make his way back to his base alone. When he was a couple feet away, he reached into the pocket of his coat and brought out a Transponder Snail which he used to dial a number quickly. After a few rings, a deep male voice was heard from the Snail.

"Was it him?"

"Couldn't get a full confirmation, but I'm ev'n more sure now."

There was a small gap of silence before the other voice was heard again.

"So he didn't use any powers?"

"He would 'ave if that damn bird hadn't gott'n in the way. Still, his actions 'ere aligned with the ones in Marineford. And then some…"

The Snail's expression changed into one of interest and a small smile appeared on its little face.

"Tell me. You make it sound important."

"The lad had the King's Voice. Strong 'nough to knock my men out. Ev'n I couldn't resist 'im."

There was now surprise in the other man's voice.

"Conqueror's Haki?"

"Why are ya surprised? His father had it, and his brother did too. Ev'n that old Marine who raised 'em can use it."

This time, there was a chuckle before the voice spoke.

"You are really invested in this theory of yours, even if you have no tangible evidence. Be wary of mentioning them to anyone else unless you are entirely sure. Some people may not be as appreciative of the implications as I am."

Grizzled simply scoffed at the warning.

"Ya're appreciative 'cause ya want the lass for yarself. Ya just happ'n t' know that if I'm right, ya'll also get a promotion as a bonus."

The man on the line did nothing to hide the anger from his voice.

"Shut up! Just get the girl here as soon as possible! If you are right, he will do anything to get her back, even revealing himself."

"Any ideas on how t' do this, Capt'n?"

"Figure something out yourself, but do it quickly! This is an urgent matter!"

And with those words, the Snail went back to sleep, leaving the bounty hunter to continue walking in silence as he started planning his next steps.

••••••

Ace managed to guide Calypso back to the bar quickly enough and without meeting anyone else on the way that could cause them trouble. The moment they were inside, he guided her to sit on the sofa and went to look for Shakky and anything he could use to help the raven. When he entered the kitchen, he found the barwoman just placing something in the oven, but her eyes fell on him and she instantly noted the panic in his.

"Ace, what's wrong?"

His panic and the fact that Calypso wasn't with him made her stand up and walk towards him quickly.

"Where's Calypso?"

The pirate simply grabbed her hand and pulled her with him and she noticed the slight trembling in his fingers.

"Quickly, there's no time to waste. Ebony has been shot!"

Shakky's eyes opened wide and she pushed him aside to walk outside and find the girl who would definitely be in need of comfort and support.

"Go to the bathroom and open the cabinet underneath the sink. I have a first aid kit there. Bring it to me so I can try and save him if it's not too late."

He did as instructed and ran upstairs, leaving Shakky to sit next to the girl who was still sobbing while clutching the raven. Shakky started stroking her hair and back in an attempt to make the girl relax, but the girl seemed unresponsive. In the end, she had to force the girl's head to turn with her hands so she could look at her.

"Calypso, listen to me. You have to let him go so I can help him."

The girl tightened her hold on the bird and shook her head.

"No! If I let go of him, he'll die! Ebony can't die!"

The woman frowned and looked at Ace, who was back with the kit, before turning back to the girl.

"Calypso look. Ace brought me what I needed to help him. Please, let me check on him. He looks like he's struggling to breathe."

The witch looked down and slowly released her hold on her raven so she could place him on her legs, whimpering loudly when she noticed the bullet still on his body. Shakky smiled and reached to move the raven on the table before opening the box Ace had handed her to look inside for what she needed. Ace, who had now moved to sit on Calypso's other side and pulled her into an embrace, looked at her with a plain expression.

"We are lucky the bullet stayed in the wound; otherwise, he would have bled to death before reaching here."

The ex-pirate nodded and put on a pair of gloves, her eyes never leaving the wound.

"The bullet also doesn't seem to have done much damage. It just lodged itself on the sternum and pressed it against the organs, including the lungs, which is probably why he looks so bad."

Calypso turned to stare at the woman from over her shoulder, tears still escaping her eyes, which were now also shining with slight hope.

"Does...Does this mean he'll live?"

The older woman gave her a warm smile and nodded.

"After I remove the bullet, I will do my best to keep him alive."

Once the girl nodded, Shakky went back to work and removed the bullet, cursing slightly as some blood started coming out of it. Without looking up, she called for Ace and motioned for him to come closer, and he shifted a bit forward, curious to see what she wanted.

"I will need you to use your flames to slightly cauterize the area of the wound. It will stop any infections and further blood loss."

Ace did as instructed and covered his finger with fire, carefully bringing it to touch the wound long enough to be sure he did what Shakky wanted him to. The moment he was done, the barwoman went back to work to make sure the bird could breathe normally before she properly cleaned the wound, sewed it closed, and started dressing it with clean bandages.

She had just finished patching it up when the door opened and Shanks walked inside, anger already visible in his eyes. Benn was, as always, at his side.

"Who hurt Calypso?"

Benn moved from behind his Captain and looked around, noting the crying girl in Ace's embrace and Shakky wrapping up helping the wounded raven.

"Apologies for the outburst everyone, but my Captain felt Calypso was in pain since before we landed, and he ran here hoping to have a word with whoever was the cause. I see now that she was in pain because Ebony was hurt."

Shanks also stared at the wounded raven and then back at his First Mate.

"It matters not, Benn. Someone did this to Ebony and hurt her."

His eyes fell on Ace, who was comforting the witch all this time.

"Who was it, Ace?"

The young pirate shook his head and looked at the two older men with a slight fear in his eyes.

"We don't know his name, but this wasn't the first time we had a run-in with him. He seemed interested in us from the first time he saw us. At first, it seemed to be because he understood I was a pirate, but now that Cal has a bounty, he has his eye on her too."

Calypso nodded and left her lover's embrace to kneel next to the table, her hand reaching to stroke her raven's feathers as she felt him waking up. When the bird cawed weakly and leaned on her touch, she smiled and pulled him against her chest lovingly, her eyes now falling on Shanks.

"That bounty hunter who did this was targeting me."

She pointed to the bullet on the table and her expression darkened.

"This bullet was aimed at me, but I can tell it wasn't meant to kill me."

Ace stood up at her words and let his anger finally explode as his flames enveloped his arms.

"What are you talking about, Cal? He was aiming at your heart! Why would he do that if his plan wasn't to kill you?"

The witch also stood up, careful not to hurt the raven in her arms, and turned to face her lover.

"Because of you. He aimed at me to force you to intervene like you did before."

"Before, as in when we saw him last time?"

Calypso shook her head.

"No. Before, as in during the War."

The shock on the pirate's expression was mirrored by the other occupants in the room.

"It was only for a moment that I managed to sense his thoughts and intentions, but I felt that he suspected. He suspected who you are and he wanted to recreate a scenario where you would try and sacrifice yourself for someone you care for. I was the perfect target."

Shanks raised his hand and moved towards the pair.

"Wait a minute."

He stood next to Calypso and used his hand to turn her to look at him.

"Are you saying that there's a bounty hunter out there that knows Ace is alive?"

The girl shook her head.

"He is not sure yet. His ambush today was so he could make sure. He wanted to force Ace to use his flames, but Ebony messed up his plan by almost sacrificing himself."

The pirate Captain turned to Benn, who was frowning as he seemed deep in thought. It was Shakky who broke the silence by placing a few glasses of rum on the bar.

"I think we all know what the best option here is."

Benn grabbed a glass and drunk the rum in one go before motioning for a refill.

"I agree. It's the only way to keep them both safe now."

Shanks also moved to the bar and soon he was sitting on a stool, drinking.

"I came here to find out the truth about Calypso's bounty, but it seems I was meant to be here all along. Right, Cal?"

Ace kept staring at them all as they talked, trying to figure out what they meant. In the end, he turned to look at his lover, causing her to sigh softly.

"It looks like your wish will be granted. We'll sail with Shanks' ship."

The Red Hair Pirate's Captain nodded with a smile.

"It'll be nice to have young people in love on the ship again. It'll also be more difficult for any bounty hunter to find you in the New World."

His words caused Calypso's expression to darken and she lowered her head, something that caused the two older pirates to frown. Ace was instantly at her side, pulling her closer to him and kissing the top of her head.

"It's alright, love; we talked about this. You can tell them."

Calypso bit her lip and looked up at the red-haired man with an anxious expression.

"Shanks, I can't come with you to the New World. I won't survive the trip."

The man wasted no time standing up and walked to stand in front of the girl, his eyes examining her closely as if he was trying to figure out why she would say that.

"Why not?"

The girl smiled sadly at him and fought to hold back her tears.

"When I came asking for your help saving Ace, I told you that I came from an isolated island on the Grand Line, but I refused to tell you more about it. One of the reasons I refused was because I didn't want you to figure out that leaving my island made me sick."

The pirate kept staring at her, demanding more details with his eyes.

"My people are dependent on the island and leaving it makes us sick. Eventually, we die. I have been away for a long time and my body is already weaker than before. I don't have long to live now."

Ace decided this was the time to intervene and ask the Emperor for a favor.

"I want to save her. She told me her island is in the Florian Triangle and that if she gets there soon, she'll survive. I want to take her there and I need your help to do so. She once came to you asking for your help to save me; now I am returning the favor by doing the same for her shake."

The young man's eyes burned with determination as he held the other pirate's gaze, and his breath held as he waited for a response to his request. After a long while, the red-haired man turned to his First Mate who was already standing, waiting for his orders.

"Go back to the ship and send word to every one of our friends. Let them know I want any information they have on the Florian Triangle, no matter how irrelevant it seems. Also, have people spread to every known port to see if any sailor or pirate has any way to navigate the area."

Benn nodded and made for the door when his Captain's voice stopped him.

"And have Lucky Roo and some of the men come here. Calypso and Ace will be traveling with us for a while, so we will need help moving their things to the ship."

The gray-haired man smirked and nodded before exiting the bar to fulfill his Captain's orders, leaving said Captain to focus his attention on the girl who still seemed distressed. Smiling softly at her, he used his remaining arm to pull her into a tight embrace.

"Thank you for trusting us to help you, Calypso. Now stop worrying. There's no way the men and I will let our little girl die when we can help her."

Calypso looked up at the man with tears already running down her face and soon she was crying again, her free hand clutching his shirt tightly. Ace smiled softly at the sight and reached to pat her back softly.

"See, silly girl? Everything will work out in the end. Now let's leave Shanks to enjoy his drinks while we go gather our things."

The witch nodded once and let go of the pirate after giving him a tight hug to follow her lover to their room, where they took their time to gather their things.

••••••

Later that day, after night had already started falling, Shanks led the young pair, the raven and the tiger, to his ships. His men had already moved their things to Calypso's old cabin, but the girl wanted to spend some time with Shakky before leaving. Shanks also stayed, both because he wanted to learn as much as he could about the stories he read in the newspaper regarding Calypso's bounty and also because he wanted to be sure she and Ace would arrive at his ship safely. He wouldn't admit it but the knowledge that someone out there had managed to figure out that Ace survived Marineford made him anxious. He knew it was only a matter of time before people in the Government also learned the truth and he knew that, once they did, they would do everything in their power to arrest him and kill him so no one could find out they failed to do so during the War. He also knew Calypso's connection to all this was no longer something that could be kept secret and that she was now something they could exploit to get to Ace.

They weren't far from the ship when he sensed someone's eyes following them. Stopping, he reached for his sword and prepared for any possible assault, but the man watching them seemed to be content doing just that. Noticing the girl at his side studying him intently, he smiled at her and shook his head, relaxing as he started walking again.

"Apologies, young lady. It looks like what happened today made me slightly more agitated than usual."

The girl raised an eyebrow before rolling her eyes and moving to grab her lover's hand and pull him ahead with her. The young pirate chuckled at the older one.

"Relax, Shanks. No one is crazy enough to attack us with you nearby."

The red-haired man smiled and quickened his pace to catch up to the pair.

"Ah, you are right, young man. Sometimes I forget people are afraid of me."

When the Emperor and the pair were gone, Grizzled Gouger walked from the shadows, Transponder Snail already at his hand, ringing. The same voice as before was heard again.

"Do you have an update for me?"

"I 'ave intrestin' news. The lovebirds are joinin' Red Hair on his ship."

There was a gasp and a little ruffling from the other line before the deep voice spoke again.

"Are you sure that was him?"

"Aye! Red hair, one arm...That was definitely him."

A string of curses came next and then a deep sigh.

"This will be a problem. You won't be able to get to them as long as they are with him. I'm afraid I'll have to inform Cipher Pol and let them take command from now on. Damn it! This will mess up our plans completely!"

The bounty hunter chuckled and smirked.

"I know. I wasn't expectin' a mighty Emperor of the Sea to get involved, but him bein' 'ere can mean I was right all along."

"That's true. If this is indeed who we think he is, Shanks will do everything to keep him safe."

There was a small silence before the voice spoke again.

"Leave it to us for the time being. I will let my contacts in Cipher Pol know what we have discovered and keep you in the loop. I admit it is weird, though…"

"What is?"

"You made your move today. There's no way Shanks could be here so quickly unless he was already on his way."

Grizzled's eyebrow were both raised as his eyes opened wide.

"Ya think he was 'ere for the lass!"

"Yes. And if this is true, there's a connection we still don't know about. This is a connection we need to find more information on."

The bounty hunter nodded his head and smirked.

"I'll see what I can find, Cap'n. Maybe yar connections in CP know somethin' too."

"Even if they don't, they'll make it their goal to find out."

"Aye aye. G'night now Cap'n. I'll let ya know if my men find anythin' worthy of yar attention'."

Putting the Snail back in his pocket, the bounty hunter returned to his base to see if he could figure out a way to get the answers to his new questions.