LW: Ok, things are really starting to pick up, so let's keep moving!
Rubber King & Mirror Master - New World Chaos: The Long Lost Reunion, Freshly Bloomed Plot
Just outside the Corrida Colosseum
"TRAFFY!"
"Was that a gunshot? What's going on over there?"
"Luffy, talk to us, what happened to Law?"
"Doflamingo just showed up with Law, and decided to double tap where everyone could see him, meaning he's probably trying to send a message given he could have done this all the way back in Greenbit" Saria answers both Den Den Mushi conversations.
"Sorry about all the commotion folks, forgive me" Doflamingo addresses the crowd in a surprisingly calm and gentle voice "This is the pirate and Warlord, Trafalgar Law. He's the source of the false report of my abdication from the throne this morning" he explains, being technically truthful given Law was the one who coerced him into abdicating, before he double crossed his fellow Warlord. "He was trying to take me off the big chair, but fear not citizens, I've taken care of the problem"
"§This cunt-ry is made of stupid§" Saria hisses as she watches the civilians cheer and celebrate what Doffy just did, the mindset of 'King Doffy said it happened, it must be true' similar in naivety to the Tontattas the others were just talking about.
"HEY MINGO!" Laki screams, seemingly at the end of her tether as even Bartolomeo jumps back at her yell "I'm gonna make you pay for doing that to Traffy!"
"Listen kid, you'll mind your own damn business if you know what's good for you" Doflamingo retorts condescendingly, his grin ever present "Don't you know, Law used to work for me, I'm just cleaning up my own mess" he chuckles, then pauses "Nefertari, it's lovely to see another like myself in this wrecked world"
"Ah shit, somebody hold the princess down!" Sanji shouts into the snail
"What, why?" Kin'emon asks in concern.
"Vivi nearly killed Violet because she compared her to Doflamingo, which he basically just did a second ago, just with less hostile intent," the cook admits.
"Donquiote yes? Of the Homing Line I presume?" Vivi asks coldly "You see the difference between you and I, is I'm legit, you're an exile" she cracks a smirk as she sees the veins in his forehead pulsate "Kinemon, Zoro distract Doffy, I'll grab Law!"
"You got it princess" Zoro nods, both swordsmen charging at the string man, who didn't react, as he didn't need to.
CLANG!
Zoro's attack was stopped cold by the arrival of Fujitora, the blade lock instantaneous.
"Shit it's you again. Guess you were right about not telling us crap given you're a marine" Zoro grumbles, then grimaces as the Admiral's Gravity powers began to affect him, the pressure increasing by the minute 'How is he doing this, this power it's not normal, it's not magic either or Kaos would have said something the last time. It has to be a Devil Fruit of some kind' he thinks, before surprisingly the ground itself gave way before Zoro's legs did, a sinkhole opening up beneath the swordsman and swallowing him up.
"ZORO! I'M GONNA KICk your asssssss… This is Seastone isn't it?" Laki mutters as she slumps down in front of the bars, getting a nod from Bartolomeo and Saria.
"We've all kinds of fucked now aren't we?" Vivi grimaces though has no problem taking advantage of Zoro and Kinemon getting their asses kicked to drag Law over to her using her sand and wires, overjoyed to see that the man was still breathing.
Zoro was thankfully still alive and conscious given he was able to send an attack even from his hole in the ground strong enough to push Fujitora back even as the Admiral blocked the strike.
"How treacherous, a long range sword attack" Fujitora groans "Please, go inform the civilians to evacuate as far as possible. Get on it now!" the Admiral orders, his men nod and salute before running off, during which Zoro leaps out of the hole ready for the next round.
"Just our luck that old blind gambler turned out to be a Navy Admiral," Zoro scowls, panting heavily.
"THAT GUY!?" Laki yells in shock.
"I'm quite thankful for what you did earlier, don't misunderstand, and while it may seem ungrateful to turn my blade upon you, but I do not intend to be callous. Fate can be a cruel and ironic mistress at times"
"This man, who stands alongside Doflamingo and his unspeakable evils, is a Navy Admiral, it would seem" Kinemon reiterates, clueing in most of the ones on the Den Den Mushi, besides Valentina and Victor given they were present for Doflamingo Fujitora and Law's initial fight.
"A Navy Admiral, and CP0 all in one day, our number of enemies is growing exponentially" Robin grimaces as she processes things.
"The number isn't the problem. One Admiral is a big enough issue, remember what happened the last time we faced one, Kizaru kicked our asses without even trying!" Ussop adds in a panic.
"I'll be taking him back now" Doflamingo grins, his strings easily snatching Law from Vivi's grasp, before with a quick word to Fujitora, both took to the sky.
"Oh for fuck sake, BOTH of them can fly?" Zoro shouts.
"Come with me back to the Palace Fujitora, I'm sure I can convince you to see things my way. You still win in the end" the warlord cackles.
"You may say your piece Heavenly Demon, but the final decision will be mine alone" Fujitora retorts flatly.
"Mr. Luffy, this is real bad, you need to do something!" Bartolomeo shouts as he shakes Laki awake "Miss Saria…. Where'd she go? Oh no she's gone too!"
"Oh no you don't!" Zoro scowls, preparing to launch an Pheonix attack, when the marines charged from nowhere and started shooting at them "Crap, there goes our cover" he grimaces as he blocks the bullets with his swords.
"It would seem to be the case" Kinemon agrees.
"Then let's get out of here. Sables!" Vivi screams, unleashing a small sandstorm in the immediate area, the perfect cover for the trio to slip away unseen, while Laki tries to think of a plan. It was a basic plan, but it still counted.
"Ok, we get out of here, get to the palace and kick Mingo's ass!" she shouts, running towards the open doorway back into the main area.
"Miss Laki, wait a minute, how do you plan to do that, and where did Miss Saria go?" Barto asks as he runs off to follow her.
"Who knows, probably got distracted by something shiny, she's killing time until something interesting happens anyway" the rubber girl admits
A little deeper
"You can't fight and you can't run, might as well die" the groomed to hell Fishboy coos before launching one last kick at Bellemy "Wha.. AYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!" he screams as his leg is grabbed mid kick and effortlessly lifted, swung and thrown through 5 pillars before hitting the wall with a painful THUD.
"What? Serpens?" Bellemy wheezes, his eyes crack open to see Saria's clock billowing in front of him.
"Do I even want to know what you did to make this asshole want to murder you? Not that it matters, he's a Donquiote Family pirate, therefore a bigger problem than you on my shitlist" Saria hums, as the fishboy manages to pull his horns out of the wall.
"You bitch! I was in the middle of a mission from the Young Master, you interrupted my fight so I'll just have to kill you too!" Dellenger declares with a haughty laugh.
Pura Pura Pura
"You gonna get that?" Saria asks, her face a mask of boredom, until something passed through the range of her Haki that made her eyes widen sharply.
"Sure one sec. What do you want!?" Dellenger yells at the snail.
"Mind the attitude" Diamante scolds "Given your mood I presume you're not finished with Bellemy. Well too bad, Doffy has a new job for you. You need to head to the Toy House with Lao G and the others to keep the Straw Hats and Company away, we can't have them getting into the factory"
Dellenger scoffs "Come on, I'll just be a minute, this lanky broad doesn't stand a chance against my kicks" the fishboy argues.
"One, never engage a Kuja in a battle of kicks, she will break your spine in 7 places over her knee. Two, this order came directly from the Young Master, you will follow it to the letter, now get moving!"
Ca-Lick
"Screw you, screw the order and most of all FUCK…." Before the femboy could continue his rant Saria had had enough, grabbed him by his handlebar horns and slammed her knee into his face, breaking his nose and sending him flying across the room.
"Bored now, kindly fuck off before I make your heart my pay for not killing everyone in the stadium, starting with Diamante" she threatens, a burst of Conquerors enough to get the fishboy to turn tail and run "So, what was all that about?" Saria asks, now curious.
"That was Delinger, one of the Donquiote Family, he was sent here by Joker to kill me, apparently I'm expendable now, even before I decided I couldn't assassinate that rubber brat, given they didn't know I'd failed yet when the little bastard came to beat him to death" Bellemy groans as he pushes himself into a seated position "Why'd you save me, I've been nothing but trouble for your crew, and would have killed you if I hadn't been distracted by that rooster haired jackass during the battle royale?"
"Because you didn't" Saria hums "Your only crime to me, is being a gropy dickhead with no sense of personal place, and that's not a capital offence even in Dressrosa. On the other hand, stopping that twink meant I made Doffy's day more difficult, and he I have no problem pissing on and saying it's sake. Now let's get you moving, you're not getting any better on the ground bleeding out" she clicks her tongue and pulls Bellemy to his feet, dragging the spring man up the stairs.
Flower Hill
"It's a shame we can't call in outside assistance" Artemis sighs.
"Oh, and why's that dearie?" a new voice coos.
"They would not arrive in time no matter their location" the soldier answers, before stopping, everyone turning to the ladder where a top hat and eyepatch wearing blond stood with a rictus grin.
"Hello!" Cipher greets with a cheery wave "Now, who were you thinking missy? Anyone in particular?"
"Kira. I'm sure Doflamingo's Devil fruit, those of his executives or even the bastard's eyes would be more than enough payment for the man" the sorceress replies, confusing most but worrying Robin, Kaya, and Valentina by her answer.
"Um, sorry to interrupt, but who is Kira?" Alvida asks, Ussop nodding in agreement.
"A spectre in the Underworld, the cannibal hitman. A new player in the game, but he's made quite a splash these past few years" Robin answers, having read the reports the Revolutionaries had on the mercenary/assassin.
"He's one of our best, especially for a rookie. And the appetite" Cipher chitters "He can eat like a Deviljo, though is picky as a Barioth when it comes to who he devours"
"WHAT!? He actually eats people? But why?" Ussop whimpers.
"Most assume it's because of his Devil fruit, a mythical class Carnivorous Zoan. Though most dragons also fall under that umbrella and only some of them eat people" Cipher shrugs "Anyway, I hear you guys are here to kick Doffy's ass? Sign me up" he grins.
"Can we trust you?" Kyros asks suspiciously.
"He's one of Pop's mentors, I'm sure we're fine" Artemis waves off.
"Cipher of the Demon Eye, former Level 6 prisoner of Impel Down, and someone with powers comparable to Law. I think he might just be the kind of guy we need," Valentina agrees, the Demon Eye pirate grinning as he tips his hat to the kunoichi.
"You flatter me, Miss Oto. Now what is the plan for this little rebellion?" he asks calmly.
"I was just about to explain that. The operation is called Dressrosa SOP!"
"SOP? What's that?" Franky asks in confusion.
"Underneath this kingdom, unknown to most of its populace, there exists a trade port for underground dealings as well as a mysterious factory. There the captured Tontattas and the humans who have been transformed into toys toil away day and night"
"Ok, but can we go back to why it's called SOP?" Alvida pipes in, a little annoyed they were being ignored for Kyros' monologue.
"We will sneak in through a tunnel we've spent the last year carving, then we'll rescue everyone!"
"This is the most barebones plan I've heard in a while, and we work for Luffy," Valentina deadpans, before sighing heavily.
"We'll wreck the facilities, defeat the Doflamingo Family, and then King Riku will return to the throne. That is the goal of this operation."
"Ok, but the problem is that unless you can prove Doflamingo is the true cause of the incident 10 years ago, you'll just be putting a 'tyrant' back on the throne after Doflamingo 'liberated' them from his clutches a decade prior" Robin argues.
"True, but the important thing is that amongst everything else, we remove Doflamingo's greatest piece from the board. The one who turned us into toys. We take them down, and it will break the spell of their Hobi Hobi no mi, transforming us all back into people and returning the memories of our existence to our loved ones" Kyros continues "That itself is a victory in and of itself, but the consequences of such a revelation is a complete unknown. How many will rise up to assist us? How will the people respond to the memory manipulation being revealed? How will Doflamingo respond to his secret weapon and the lynchpin of his plans being removed? What will the navy do when everything comes to light? We just don't know, only that the Kingdom will be thrown into chaos"
"Anarchy in the streets! I love this plan already" Cipher cackles maniacally.
"Um, Mr. Kyros, this person with the Hobi Hobi no mi, they must be pretty powerful, where are they, and how do we recognise them?" Kaya asks nervously.
"Our Tontatta spy units relay to us that she is within the underground port, possibly even the factory itself. She is an officer in the Trevol army, and her name is Sugar. The power of her fruit allows her to turn anyone she touches into a toy, and while she looks like a child we have intel that suggests consumption of the Hobi Hobi stops the aging process then and there, intel confirmed by the fact she looks identical to the day Doflamingo took over the kingdom 10 years ago. Due to how important she is to Doflamingo's operations, she's under the protection and guard of Trebol himself, one of the Donquiote pirate's highest ranked officers"
"I see, but we can avoid having to fight Trebol if we can deal with Sugar quickly and stealthily" Robin summarises, getting a nod from the toy soldier.
"Indeed. The plan is to scare her senseless and cause her to pass out. Hence, Operation Sugar Oversurprise Panic!" Kyros declares proudly.
"You're an idiot" Alvida facepalms, even Franky seemed disappointed by the 'lame' mission name.
Ca-lick
"Ok, so I was right when I thought something familiar pinged my haki while we were passing under Dressrosa. There are a few Sternritters here for some kind of meet up with the Revolutionary army, and they've agreed to assist when shit hits the fan" Victor returns having brought the Den Den Mushi into a corner for his private conversation.
"Did they say who they were here to meet?" Kaya asked curiously, Robin also wondering who was in Dressrosa.
"Bambi didn't want to reveal names, so said they were here to meet Koala, Tophat, and Fish Dynamite," Victor responds.
"Do I want to know how someone got the nickname Koala?" Usopp stage whispers to Franky who shrugs.
"That one isn't a nickname. If I'm right, that means Koala, Hack and… Oh dear" Robin gasps "Sabo"
Colosseum
"Exit, exit, why is this so hard?" Laki wonders aloud as she takes yet another wrong turn "Bathroom! Still not the exit" she whines, Bartolomeo managing to just barely keep up.
"There you are, everyone up to date now?"
"Saria…. and Bellamy I guess" Laki chirps then hums, surprised to see the two of them together, though the Springman does look beat to shit, so something clearly happened while she was otherwise engaged "Hey wait a minute, you work for Mingo right? You gotta know how to get out of here!"
"Little out of date on that one Sis, Doffy just sent a twink to kill him, he's not in with the String man anymore, if ever" Saria sighs.
"Aw man! Well there goes that plan. We still need to get out of here though, don't know how but we gotta!" Laki whines.
"There is one option, don't know how effective it will be, but it's possible. The Door Door fruit"
"Give me a minute…. Bull Guy!?" Laki asks.
"Bluno of CP9, yes. It's possible the Air Door could bypass the Seastone bars of the Colosseum, and even if they don't, we can slip through where the walls are, as the Air Door space is a separate layered dimension all to itself"
"You sure about this Miss Laki, Miss Saria, what about the Devil fruit?" Bartlomeo asks.
"We have more important things to worry about than my obsession" the elder sister snarks "Besides I could just steal it after" she shrugs "Or I can withdraw and let you get it for me?"
Bartolomeo squee's "It would be an honor! I won't let you down Miss Saria"
"You better not" she chuckles before freezing, "That, that's not possible" her eyes widen in confusion, and heartbreak.
"Hey Kaos, you in there buddy? Saria's broken, maybe tap in someone else?" Laki hums, poking the elder sibling in the boob to try get her to reboot, before the sound of boots echo through the stone structure "Hmm?"
"Well this is quite the turn of events, didn't have you pegged for a tomboy all those years ago. And Kaos, sorry to say that fruit's going somewhere other than that hammerspace currently masquerading as your ass" the man says with a cheeky smirk, most of his face obscured by the top hat he was wearing as well as the shadow it cast.
"Hey what gives, you can't just walk up to us, insult my sister and tell us he can't have the fruit just cause you said so!" Laki growls, waving her arms erratically. The man just chuckles and removes his hat, holding it below his ribs and giving the rubber girl her first look at this odd individual.
"Been a long time" he smiles softly.
Laki gapes "It's you. But, that's not possible!" she cries, her eyes already misting up.
"It's me, I'm real, and I'm sorry it took this long for a reunion" Sabo says softly, then yelps as both of his little brothers, currently sisters pull him into bone breaking hugs, tears streaming down their faces 'Never been so grateful Koala hugs like a Seaking in heat, Kaos shouldn't be this strong with such a wiry frame'
"You're explaining EVERYTHING when this shit is over. Does Ace know?" Saria asks, her eyes bloodshot and still brimming with tears.
"No, not yet, but if I see him while I'm here I'll tell him too, and I promise I'll explain everything later. You guys got a mission and so do I, do let's put a pin in this just for now ok? Also you got a cute kid and great taste in women, little sis, I'm impressed" Sabo winks.
"You're still a dumbass, even after all these years" Saria sighs, Laki still unable to string two words together through her sobs "You know if you want to pretend to be Laki, you gotta get into costume" she manages to force a grin onto her face, her nails transformed into needles as she does.
"That wasn't my original plan, but it makes sense" Sabo admits with a heavy sigh "This is going to hurt isn't it?"
"Only for a minute" Saria hums, before jabbing him in the chest.
A little later
"Why is he crying, you made it out without anyone noticing?" Zoro grunts as Luffy continues to whimper as they sneak away.
"Not important right now, let's just say we had another reunion, and leave it at that" Kaos sighs.
"No, Luffy's clearly not got his head in the game and the String fucker is probably the biggest threat we've had to face since we reunited, so what the Hell happened?" Zoro growls.
"We used to have 2 older brothers, not just Ace. Until about 10 minutes ago, we were sure our Eldest brother died when we were kids, his raft exploded by a Celestial Dragon who came to our island" Kaos summarises.
"Huh, I actually think I remember hearing about that back in the day. Didn't really care who the fuck they were but it was in the papers, I think" Zoro muses.
"You have Dragons here too, and your brother survived an encounter with one? What majesty!" Kin'emon cheers.
"Not that kind of dragon, though the fat fucks like to think they're as powerful as the real deal. Anyway, the point being is we both spent about a decade thinking Sabo was dead, and he isn't, so Luffy is having a moment and he'll be fine later"
"Why aren't you crying about it?" Zoro asks, curious as it sounds like this Sabo guy's return was as much of a gut punch to him as it was to Luffy.
"I did, Saria had a good cry and nearly broke 3 ribs when she hugged him, I'm just holding everything in for later when he explains what the Hell happened to him that led to this misunderstanding. Plus Luffy has always been a bit of a crybaby, more so back when we were kids, so seeing Sabo has just brought that side of him rushing to the surface" Kaos explains as best he could, besides he's having enough of a day he doesn't need his vision clouded with bloody tears right now.
"Ace was right that day, we may have parted ways, but we were all still brothers" Luffy smiles, his eyes still misty.
"Guess I didn't get the message, I got stuck with you all this time" Kaos teases, getting a swift punch to the liver, though the half smile was worth it. Then he grimaces as something pings against his Observation haki "Looks like this is where we part ways guys, I have something else to deal with, to help keep the few competent marines off your asses" he sighs before making a sharp left turn through an alleyway.
"And he's gone, should we be worried?" Kinemon asks curiously
"If it were Zoro, maybe but Kaos has a pretty good sense of direction because of his haki" Luffy argues with a shrug, which seemed to be good enough for the samurai.
?
"Seems your brothers aren't the only ones here but Robin and Kaya too, it'll be nice to see them too, maybe squeeze Medusa's chubby little cheeks" Koala giggles as Candice takes out the last marine "So how'd the reunion go?"
"Better than expected, I was sure Luffy was going to punch me" Sabo admits with a wet chuckle "Damn bastard, couldn't have left a bra with this costume" he mutters.
Koala gasps dramatically "My word, has my short King become an okama, or a princess?" she grins wickedly.
"Luffy and Kaos were undercover as girls, if I'm supposed to switch with Luffy, I had to be too, and Kaos copied Iva's Horu horu no mi years ago" Sabo explains while trying to cram a Rebecca amount of hair into Laki's helmet and failing rather spectacularly, ignoring how her Q cups were stretching her shirt to the point that her abs were showing rather prominently.
Flower Field - King Riku Army Headquarters
"This is it everyone, Operation SOP begins now. Is everyone ready to take back our kingdom!?" Kyros bellows, getting a chorus of "YEAH!" from the assembled Tontattas "Wonderful. We shall proceed with our primary goal, by first sneaking into the underground port via the passageway from this location"
"We should use stealth and speed, avoid as much conflict as possible until we locate our primary target: Sugar!" Leo adds, relaying it to his people "We just need to knock her out, and then every toy in the kingdom will return to human form!"
"After that, we must free our fellow Tontatta, and return King Riku to his rightful place on the throne of Dressrosa" Ganchu joins in.
With those rousing speeches, the Tontattas were on the move, head of the line being their aerial support in the beetle and bee squads, though the regular tinies were also scurrying around faster than something their size would be expected to go.
"Ok… so we have a problem. One that would be solved by Shirahoshi, but then flips all the way back to being a problem due to her not being here. That hole is too small for us to fit in" Alvida interrupts Kyros and Leo's departure.
"Especially for me and Robin, Kaya's fine cause she's a logia, and Valentina has her tunnel jutsu, but the rest are iffy at best" Franky agrees.
"Sorry about that, we didn't dig the tunnel with big people, or Extra Big people in mind" Leo apologises.
"There's nothing we can do about it now, your only option is to enter through the Toy House" Kyros explains "The Toy house is located at the base of the plateau that the Palace was built on. That is where the toys all go at night. Humans are forbidden to enter"
"I see, and so we need to bust down that door to get to the underground facility, Sugar and the SMILE Factory. And it's called a Toy House because the toys live there?" Franky asks to confirm.
"As far as the civilians know, yes, but it's a house in name only. Due to not needing to sleep, every night the toys slave away in the underground, and then step into the light to frolic every morning" Kyros corrects.
"So they've been working non-stop for 10 years, and forced to live this double life because of Doflamingo and Sugar. He really is a sick bastard" Victor scowls.
"Indeed. There are 4 ways in but they're all heavily guarded, hence why we had to make this tunnel ourselves"
"That's fine, I'll make my own way, and raise Hell in the process, SUPER guaranteed ruckus!" Franky cheers, even doing the pose.
Kyros glitches for a second "But, aren't we supposed to be sneaking in?" he asks, very confused.
"Yeah you are, but with me outside as a distraction it will make things ever easier for you all to sneak in, as all the attention will be focused on the front entrance and my shenanigans" the cyborg explains "Robin too, but she's a lot stealthier than me, so she can sneak in through the front door while I cause a commotion"
The Toy House - a little later
"Seems they knew we were coming, and left us a welcoming committee" Franky muses as he struts toward the Toy House, Robin a few paces behind mostly hidden by his large frame.
"Who's this weirdo?"
"Where are his pants?"
"What is wrong with his hair?"
"Hey! This is manly hair, a style befitting the occasion!" Franky yells defensively, mad they were making fun of his Cannon-style hairdo.
"Wait a minute, he's got a triple chin too. He must be the guy we were warned about" Cyborg Franky of the Straw Hats!" Another minion cries, the rest starting to get worried "Senor, you seeing this right?"
"Ladies, get off of me, you'd be better off with a man your own age" Senor Pink scolds the bikini-wearing ladies all clinging to him, gushing over how 'hard-boiled' he was despite being dressed in baby clothes and holding a pacifier between his teeth like a cigar.
"But we love you!"
"Don't turn us away"
"You can use my top as a napkin too Senor!"
"No. I don't like kids, not like that" he hums, his gaze turning to Franky from behind his shades, ignoring the disappointed coos of his entourage.
"What a pervert" Franky mutters, getting a look at his potential opponent, Robin rolling her eyes as the minions all cry out 'YOU'RE ONE TO TALK!' "Anyway, knock knock, Let me in!" Franky orders, charging up a Weapons Left.
"Coup-De Vent!" he cries, the air cannon carving up the pavement, sending everyone flying as well as busting open the doors in a single hit.
"Nice work Franky, I'll see you inside" Robin grins as she slinks away, Franky flashing a thumbs up for a moment before continuing to cause a commotion.
Secret Tunnel!
"This, certainly isn't the most dignified mode of travel, even if this probably IS the fastest way for most of use to move through a tunnel" Victor muses, as most of the Straw Hats are currently being carried like coffins by a procession of Tontatta who are scurrying around at high speed, avoiding the river of syrup that was Kaya as they all hurry to the underground lair.
"Better than crawling, that's for sure. And after both seeing and experiencing this, I'm never going to underestimate the strength of these little guys" Ussop chuckles.
"Robin just called via the mirror, Franky's causing a scene and she's managed to slip in when he busted open the door" Alvida relays from the back of the procession.
"That's good, hopefully he can draw their attention away from us for long enough to locate Sugar" Kyros nods "Especially given our intel says 4 executives have been sent over to guard the Toy House. I hope he stays safe"
"Franky will be fine, though who are these executives?" Artemis asks curiously
"High Rank members of the Diamante Army, they're also the headliners of the Colosseum. In all their time here, they've never lost a match, no matter who's been thrown at them" a tontatta explains.
"Sounds like Franky's going to get a challenge, almost wish I was there to see it" the sorceress hums "Even just to see if he uses the upgrades or not"
"So, how many actually strong people are we fighting, either now or when it all goes to shit?" Ussop asks, mostly to see if he can sit that part of the rebellion out.
"There are 10 Executives, each commanding 2000 men spread out across all of Dressrosa" Leo answers "Then there are the 3 Top Executives who stand above even them"
"The heads of the Army's I presume, Diamante, Trebol and, the mystery 3rd one?" Victor guesses.
"Correct, each of the Top Executives have their own army with distinct characteristics. The Trebol Army's main members all have special abilities, such as Sugar, Monet, Violet, and Giola"
"The target, the harpy from Punk Hazard, Princess Viola, and the Art Critic" Valentina sumarises as she peeks out of the side of the tunnel.
"Next we have the Diamante Army, consisting of Strong Fighters, such as Lao G. Machvise, Senor Pink, and Dellinger"
"I don't recognise any of those names besides Senor Pink, who Robin said was guarding the door Franky just busted through, so we won't have to worry about him for at least a while" Alvida comments.
"And finally, there's Pica with his Commando Unit. Gladius, Buffalo and Baby 5 answer to him"
"Wait, I recognise those last 2, we fought them back on Punk Hazard, they were no pushover that's for sure" Ussop exclaims, a gurgle of agreement coming from Kaya's syrup.
"There's 1 more executive, because Monet has returned from overseas and a Top Executive too: Vergo" Leo concludes.
"Who is no longer a problem, Pops killed him back on Punk Hazard" Artemis informs them, getting gasps of shock from the tontattas carrying her, that the Straw Hats had ALREADY taken out one of Doflamingo's top executives.
Toy House
"Hey, no hiding in the pavement on my watch, fight like a man. Strong Right!" Franky yells before slamming his extended fist into Senor Pink's face, sending the man crashing his men, scattering them like bowling pins.
"That was a manly punch Mr Franky, but are you as manly in defence?" Senor asks as he walks off the punch, then sinks into the pavement once more, to the annoyance and confusion of the cyborg.
Colosseum
It seemed Rebecca and Aguile were making quite the effective team, the former drawing their attention and luring them in, so that the latter could strike them unawares and send them flying either off the platform or into each other, sending even more people out of bounds. It just wasn't making either of them all that popular with the crowd given how clean and bloodless all their 'fights' were, though given they hated Rebecca just for existing it wasn't that much of a surprise.
"And it seems Suleiman the Beheader has decided to try his luck at taking out the Phantom Princess himself. Let's see if it turns out differently than the previous attempts"
It almost went well for the war criminal, managing to counter her 'Back the Water dance' technique by stabbing his sword into the edge of the arena, grinning smugly, until the pinkette stabs him in the back of the knee, causing him to buckle and allowing her to kick him the final inches over the line and into the water.
"I stand corrected, that as very close, but another falls to Rebecca"
Underground Port
"We've made it" Leo announces, as the tonttata's unload their giant passengers, Ussop accidentally plowing headfirst into a shipping container, while the others were let off much more gently.
"Took you long enough, I was worried Val and I would have to do all the work" Robin teases, appearing from the shadows as Valentina rose from the earth like she'd eaten the Swim Swim fruit not Senor Pink and Kaya reformed by Ussop's side
"We've reached the enemy base, the Factory is right ahead of us" Leo declares aggressively.
"Does explain all the noise, but it also means it's not going to be hard to locate even if the place is pretty dark" Alvida quips, pulling out Brunhilde.
"I'll be heading straight for the Palace, I leave this in your capable hands" Kyros informs the Tontattas who nod and begin the procession.
"Yet again we're being abandoned by someone with their own agenda, at least this one seems less likely to stab us in the back than Law would" Valentina mutters, Victor nodding at the Toy Soldier seems almost incapable of true deceit, probably why he was the rebellion leader, rather than just any old toy on the street.
"Oh this is going to be fun" Cipher grins, his lone eye sparkling with joy, and malice.
"And things just got more complicated" Robin grimaces, the others not far behind as they catch up and see what the problem was: They'd underestimated the size of the port and Joker's operation, it was like a town all it's own existing Under Dressrosa, not to mention the number of Donquiote pirate members patrolling the place, the toys and even other pirates here to buy from Doflamingo.
The Straw Hats had one collective thought: 'SHIT!'
TBC
LW: And that's where this chapter lets off. With the true start of the rebellion, and the return of Sabo.