Leaving

In the early morning, sunlight filters through the dense forest, leaving bright spots of light on the ground.

In a cave at the foot of the mountain, Moo yawned and slowly woke up.

The first thing he did upon waking was to turn around and look behind him, where a giant tiger lay there, resting with its eyes closed.

Moo glanced at the tiger, then her gaze fell on her slightly bulging belly, and her eyes softened.

He immediately transformed into a lion, turned and left the cave, running away into the distance.

Wow.

Moo rushed up to a huge pheasant, bit it to death in one bite, and then dragged it back to the cave.

Moo placed the pheasant in front of the tiger. The tiger opened its eyes, opened its mouth wide, and began to eat the pheasant.

After eating half of the pheasant, Moo walked towards the cave entrance with the pheasant in its mouth and headed towards the coast.

"Moo".

Moo let out a loud roar.

But there was no response; the sea was completely calm, and Xia Qiu did not emerge from the seabed.

Is my older brother not here? Is he doing something else?

Moo lay there waiting, and time passed by, but Xia Qiu never appeared.

"Moo, Moo."

Moo started to get a little anxious. His older brother would appear every morning, but today he had been gone for so long.

Where did my older brother go?

Moreover, my older brother acted strangely last night, constantly slapping himself with his wrists and feet. What exactly happened?

Moo waited for a while, and around noon, he heard footsteps behind him. Moo turned around and saw that the tiger had come up to him from a short distance away.

I've been away for too long.

I've been with her the whole time, but today I waited outside for quite a while.

"Roar."

The tiger roared.

"Moo, Moo."

Moo patted the pheasant.

The tiger saw half a pheasant and immediately understood what had happened.

Every morning, he would come to the beach to feed a Black Fish, but today the Black Fish was gone.

It's just a pet, you can always get another one, why are you so upset?

The tiger stuck out its tongue and licked Moo's head.

But Moo gazed at the sea, his eyes were filled with sorrow.

In the sea, Xia Qiu swam away into the distance.

He left the island.

I stayed here for almost six months in the Xia Qiu. Now it's summer, and after six months of changes, some of my neck has grown back.

Xia Qiu was about two meters long, with 1.5 meters being her neck, which was rather short for Xia Qiu massive body.

But that's enough. I'm a fish; I don't need to grow so long that my neck can rotate. Besides, if it were too long, it would put a strain on my neck.

Its neck length is similar to that of the Tiktaalik, at about 25 to 1, and it can move left and right and up and down.

In Xia Qiu and autumn, the neck connects the head and the gills between the pectoral fins and the gills.

The neck is very thick, slightly thinner than the area above the pectoral fins, the thickest part of the fish's body, and much thicker than the tail.

In six months, its body length increased by two meters, which is faster than when it was in the East China Sea.

It seems that the creatures of the Grand Line contain more Evolution Energy.

Evolution Energy is the energy that organisms use to break through physical limitations and reach a larger size. Creatures in the Grand Line are generally larger than those in the East China Sea Blue. After breaking through the limitations, they require much more Evolution Energy to grow even a little bigger, so they have far more than those in the East China Sea.

Therefore, Xia Qiu's growth rate is twice as fast as his growth rate after eating Arlong in the East China Sea.

Including Yuchimura, his growth rate is almost three times that of before.

After growing a neck, Xia Qiu decided to leave. He couldn't stay here any longer, as he couldn't eat here to Reinforcement Energy.

Having achieved my goal, there is no reason for me to stay here.

Moo has also survived on the island, and as time goes by, he spends more time in the forest than on the shore.

I no longer go to the beach often, and spend most of my time in the ocean or on the seabed near the islands.

The two only met once a day in the morning to exchange food, and occasionally once in the evening; they rarely saw each other at other times.

They each have their own lives and can no longer intersect.

What angered Xia Qiu the most was that he had also found a girlfriend—no, now she should be called his wife.

Four months ago, the two were very affectionate and often snuggled together. Not long ago, he saw that the tigress's belly swell up.

They even have children now.

As a single fish, Xia Qiu couldn't stand it anymore.

We agreed to rely on our right hands together, but you secretly went to find **.

Xia Qiu was furious, so she resolutely decided to leave.

Yesterday evening, Xia Qiu said goodbye to Moo and slapped him more than a dozen times with her wrists and feet. She didn't know if he understood.

Goodbye, my friend.

Xia Qiu didn't know if she would ever see him again, but during the year they spent together, they hunted and fought together, exchanged food, and made many memories.

Moo's status in Xia Qiu's life has been increasing, from pet to little brother, and then to friend.

He made himself feel less lonely and relieved the depression that had been building up for so long.

But I have to leave.

He has his own life, and he will also embrace his own future.

From now on, I will live on as a fish again.

But this time, Xia Qiu had her own goal.

"I heard you can decipher Poneglyph?"

In the spacious room, a man with a cigar in his mouth sat behind a table, looking at the tall woman in front of him.

"That's right." The black-haired woman nodded.

"Very well, I would like to borrow your strength." The man looked at the woman and said with a smile, "Cooperate with me."

Nico Robin's cheeks were covered in cold sweat. The person in front of her was an excellent collaborator who could also help her read the Poneglyph.

But he's too dangerous.

Crocodile, one of the Shichibukai.

Although the residents of Alabasta believed his disguised identity, he secretly commanded a powerful assassination force.

He encountered Baroque Works on Whiskey Peak, where they discovered his identity and attempted to attack him. He defeated them, secretly traveled to Drum Island, and then to Alabasta. He tried to sneak into the palace to examine the Poneglyph, but to no avail. Somehow, Crocodile discovered his existence.

Then someone relayed a message to him to come here and see him.

"Your bounty is high, but I don't care about the money, so I won't betray you," Crocodile said with a smile. "Cooperating with me is your best choice."

Seeing that Robin did not answer, Crocodile continued, "It only takes four years. You only need to help me for four years, and then I will let you leave."

"Four years?" Nico Robin narrowed her eyes and slowly nodded. "I can agree to that."

Crocodile said, "Your strength is quite good. From today onwards, you will serve as the Vice President of Baroque Works, as my partner. Your identity is somewhat sensitive, so in order to avoid attracting the attention of the Navy, and also because everyone in Baroque Works has a code name, I am Mr. 0, and you are Miss All Sunday."

"Okay." Robin had no objections.

Crocodile said, "My true identity is unknown to everyone except you, not even the senior executives of Baroque Works. So from today onwards, you will be responsible for contacting the senior executives and conveying my opinions. At the same time, you will be the Supreme Commander of Baroque Works Baroque Works, in charge of all its affairs. This should be enough to prove my trust in you, right?"

"I will do my best to help you decipher the Poneglyph."

Robin nodded, his resistance lessening considerably.

It's rare to find someone with immense strength who isn't interested in their bounty, but Crocodile is one of them.

This is an excellent partner who needs my help, but also gives me enough power.

Crocodile looked at Robin and said, "Also, don't reveal my relationship with Baroque Works to anyone. The person in front of you is just one of the Shichibukai, Crocodile."

"I understand," Robin said earnestly.

Crocodile clapped his hands, and two girls entered the house. Crocodile said, "Take this lady to rest."

"Yes, Lord Crocodile," the girl replied hastily, her eyes filled with fervor, gratitude, and trust as she gazed at Crocodile.

Seeing this, Robin suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

Crocodile is a terrifying person, not only because of his immense strength, but also because he is the head of the assassination organization Barak Works.

But in the eyes of the people of Alabasta, he is a hero.

Two completely different identities are combined in him.

Why would he pretend?

Robin already knew pretty much what he wanted.