Reno smiled as he looked at Robin and softly asked, "You mean your origins?!!"
"The survivor of Ohara, with a bounty of seventy-nine million Belly, Nico Robin, known as the [Devil Child]."
Boom!!
Robin's mind exploded instantly. The smile on her face vanished the moment she heard those words.
"How do you know about these things?!!" Robin's voice turned cold.
Reno did not answer Robin's question and merely continued speaking on his own.
"Back then, in order to annihilate Ohara, the current Fleet Admiral Sengoku issued a Buster Call. And the current Admirals Aokiji and Akainu were the two Navy Vice Admirals who carried out that mission."
Hearing those two familiar names, Robin was once again moved.
Both Akainu and Aokiji had had no small impact on her.
She had survived only because Aokiji had shown her mercy in a moment of weakness.
But from that point on, she had officially begun her life on the run, surviving betrayal after betrayal.
She had played along with every faction she encountered.
To protect herself, Robin had no choice but to disguise herself.
She made herself calm and unapproachable.
Reno took the initiative to step forward, drawing close to Robin.
Robin's pupils shrank, and she instinctively stepped back. "Wh-what are you doing?!!"
"Robin, I know everything about you, and I understand your pain. You and Crocodile are merely using each other. Join my pirate crew. Only here can you experience true happiness."
Robin's expression instantly froze.
If Reno had invited her aboard before this, she would not have felt anything.
But since he knew her identity, he should understand just how sensitive it was.
The World Government had never stopped hunting her, not even for a moment.
Even so, Reno still wanted her to join his crew?!
"Is your goal the same as Crocodile's?!!"
After that brief emotional moment, Robin regained her rationality.
After a long life in darkness and repeated betrayals, she would not easily trust anyone.
"You mean Pluto?! Or your ability to read the Poneglyphs?! I have no interest in either." Reno shook his head disdainfully.
"First, the Pluto Crocodile wants is not in Alabasta at all, but in Wano Country. All his planning over these years has been nothing but drawing water with a bamboo basket."
"Second, I have no interest whatsoever in the Poneglyphs, and you do not need to interpret the writing on them for me."
"Of course, you can go see that Poneglyph for yourself later and see whether what it records differs from what I said." Before Robin could speak, Reno added.
Robin pursed her lips, and her expression finally shifted.
"What if I still refuse?!!"
"I don't like being rejected, so you only have one choice: join my pirate crew."
"Reno, since you know my identity, then you should understand how heavy the burden I carry is." Robin bit her lower lip and moved closer to Reno, her beautiful eyes fixed on him.
Reno waved dismissively and chuckled. "Robin, I know the World Government is hunting you because you can read the Poneglyphs and might uncover the history they have sealed away."
"But do you know what burden I'm carrying?!!" Reno gritted his teeth.
Robin shook her head in confusion. She truly did not know.
Reno shook his head in anguish. "Perhaps you don't know this, but the World Government's true master is named Imu, a mysterious woman. She is the true ruler of the Great Sea."
"Whether it's the Navy or the Gorosei, they all obey that woman."
"And I must make her join my pirate crew and become one of my crew members."
"Tell me, whose burden is heavier?!!"
"You're merely being hunted by her underlings' underlings, while I'm after her!!"
Robin: ...
Although she did not know who Imu was, it sounded like what Reno was about to face was indeed far more terrifying than what she faced.
Why did she suddenly feel like they were kindred spirits?!
Should they team up?!!
Robin's emotions finally relaxed.
"Well?! Do you want to join my pirate crew?!!"
"Mm..." Robin nodded slightly, drawing out the sound. "Captain Reno's story sounds far more exciting than mine."
"Alright, you've already called me Captain, so I'll take that as agreement."
Robin: ...
I called you Captain Reno, okay?!
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"Robin, you had already prepared yourself to be killed by Crocodile, hadn't you?!!"
"What?!" Robin froze.
Reno smiled faintly. "If you hadn't deliberately leaked Crocodile's identity to Vivi, she never would have been able to uncover it with her abilities."
"If I'm not mistaken, you felt condemned by your conscience for helping Crocodile do so many evil things. And when you saw Vivi risking herself by infiltrating Baroque Works, you couldn't bear it anymore, so you did that, right?"
"Robin, you already betrayed Crocodile."
Robin bit her lower lip and looked at Reno with a complicated expression.
He was right, down to every word.
The moment Crocodile began his operation, she had already prepared herself to die.
Even if she died, she would never let Crocodile's conspiracy succeed and drag more innocent people into it.
Reno looked at Robin and said earnestly, "Robin, the one who deserves to die isn't you. It's Crocodile."
"Join my pirate crew. I can take you to find more Poneglyphs and help you fulfill your dream."
"Likewise, you will no longer need to keep disguising yourself."
"A beautiful woman like you should live under the sunlight."
Robin could not help laughing. He really knew how to compliment people.
No wonder there were so many beautiful women aboard his ship.
"Reno, if I join the Reno Pirates, then the World Government will surely hunt all of you down. You—"
"Robin, even if you don't join, the World Government will still target me. You don't need to worry about that at all." Reno raised a hand to cut her off.
He was determined to get every Plot Beauty in the Pirate World.
Although he still did not know what Imu looked like, he would assume she was beautiful for now.
He was even going to snatch the ruler of the Great Sea, so it would be strange if the World Government did not hunt him down.
Seeing Robin lower her head, visibly moved, Reno continued while the iron was hot. "Robin, on this sea, no one is born to be alone. Not me, and not you."
"There will always be people willing to accept you. The Reno Pirates will always welcome you."
"As long as you become one of my crew members, your problems become my problems. If the World Government really sends people after you, I'll kill them one by one."
Robin suddenly thought of Saulo.
Those nearly identical words pulled her memories back twenty years, to the day that had completely changed the course of her life.
Amid the flames soaring into the sky, Saulo's shout had remained unforgettable to her.
In a daze, Reno suddenly leaned closer. "I'll tell you a secret: Saulo is still alive."
"Ah!!"
Robin jumped in fright, instinctively revealing her genuine, bashful side. How did Reno know what she had been thinking?
Wait... something seemed wrong.
Robin's eyes suddenly widened, and her delicate body trembled with excitement. "Saulo is still alive? Is that true?!"
Back in Ohara, she clearly remembered that Saulo had defied the Navy to save her. During the battle, he had been frozen by the then-Navy Vice Admiral Aokiji.
She had naturally assumed that Saulo had died alongside the annihilation of Ohara.
She had often blamed herself for it.
How could she not be excited upon hearing Reno say that Saulo was still alive?!
"Saulo narrowly escaped death during that operation. He is currently in Elbaf, the Giant Country, and he's living quite well." Reno calmly told her what he knew.
"That's wonderful, truly wonderful." Robin was already crying.
Rather than saying she believed Reno's words, it was more accurate to say that she was unwilling to accept Saulo's death in her heart.
After all, she had only seen Saulo frozen by Aokiji; she had never seen Saulo's body with her own eyes.
"Robin, I've said everything that needed to be said. Isn't it time for you to make a decision?" A confident smile had already appeared on Reno's face.
"It seems I really can't refuse your invitation, Captain Reno. Please take care of me from now on." Robin revealed a charming smile.
"Welcome to the Reno Pirates. Believe me, I won't disappoint you." Reno naturally spread his arms.
"Mm..." Robin softly responded and embraced Reno.
"Captain, the people from Baroque Works have already infiltrated the Royal Palace. You should hurry and help them." Thinking of something, Robin suddenly reminded him.
Reno gently wiped the tears from Robin's face and shook his head. "Don't worry. My crew members are already waiting for them."
"Interested in seeing how I slaughter that crocodile?!!"
"Kill Crocodile?!" Robin blinked her large eyes, the corners of her lips lifting slightly. "That sounds quite nice."
Reno used Observation Haki to sense Crocodile's location, took Robin's hand, and teleported away!
Following Crocodile's orders, Baroque Works' remaining four officers immediately sprang into action.
The four infiltrated the Royal Palace from different positions and began searching for King Cobra.
Mr. 1, who made no attempt to conceal his movements, searched room after room.
After searching several rooms without finding anything, he was about to open the next door when his hand suddenly stopped in midair. He instinctively turned his head.
To his right stood a beautiful woman wearing glasses and holding a longsword, as though she had been waiting for him for quite some time.
"Daz Bones, Baroque Works' Number One agent, a Slicing-Slicing Fruit User, formerly an assassin in West Blue." Tashigi accurately recited the detailed information on the man before her.
Before coming here, Reno had already briefed them on the remaining officers.
The moment she saw him, she recognized his identity at once.
"Who are you?!" Daz Bones turned to look at Tashigi.
A woman he had never seen before.
"You don't need to know my name. You only need to know that I will defeat you."
"A swordswoman?!!" Looking at the sword in Tashigi's hand, Daz Bones shook his head disdainfully.
Before his Slicing-Slicing Fruit, was this not simply showing off before an expert?!
"You're quite unfortunate. As an assassin, I won't go easy on a beautiful woman."
Daz Bones gave a cruel smile. The next second, both his arms transformed into blades that glinted with cold light.
As a Slicing-Slicing Fruit User, he could turn any part of his body into a blade.
Moreover, they were as hard as steel, impervious to blades and bullets.
"Running into me means you've kicked an iron plate."
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