Gate of Justice Opens Suddenly

Therefore, Yaen used many different methods to barely convince Xiao Jin to willingly become a Devil Fruit User.

Afterward, Yaen began patiently teaching Xiao Jin, making it deeply understand "who the most important person in the world is" and "following the other birds leads to no future or hope."

Because of this, with Xiao Jin as a flying fortress-like existence, Yaen essentially gained a portable warehouse and even an escape route.

So, Yaen hadn't brought any luggage—all of it was stored inside Xiao Jin's body.

Moreover, all the "evidence" Yaen had confiscated on Capone Island was placed inside, along with a large stock of various conventional and unconventional supplies.

For example...

Soon, on the deck of the warship, Yaen took out a beach chair and a sun umbrella from Xiao Jin's body, continuing to ponder life's big questions while reminding Xiao Jin to apply sunscreen for him.

After leaving Marineford, with Yaen's permission, Xiao Jin also pulled out a pair of pink sunglasses and put them on.

"Wait, pink?"

Yaen suddenly realized something, turned his head to look at Xiao Jin, and asked in confusion. "Xiao Jin, you actually like this color? Could you be a female bird?"

"Chirp, chirp chirp chirp..." Xiao Jin nodded, letting out two affirmative calls, then seemed to blame Yaen for not knowing her gender.

Lazily lying on the beach chair, Yaen said somewhat dismissively.

"Chirping is useless. You can understand human speech, but the problem is I don't understand bird language. Besides, isn't it normal that I can't tell male from female birds? If I could, that would indicate some strange issues."

"Chirp chirp chirp chirp chirp chirp!!!" In an instant, Xiao Jin's voice grew more urgent.

Hearing the noisy bird sounds, Yaen said, "Keep chirping, and I'll punish you by no snacks for three days."

Suddenly, Xiao Jin's voice fell completely silent.

"That's more like it. Oh, and don't forget to apply the sunscreen evenly."

Yaen reminded her.

"Chirp." Xiao Jin's voice carried a hint of sulkiness.

As Yaen enjoyed the pressure of Xiao Jin's massage on his back, he continued to lecture.

"Xiao Jin, you need to understand that you're no longer an ordinary canary. You're a canary that has shed lowly interests and possesses a noble character, understand?"

"Xiao Jin, do you know about an animal named Chopper? After eating a Devil Fruit, it set the great goal of becoming a doctor, and its medical skills are already superb, enough to surpass ninety-nine percent of human doctors."

"You need to learn from it. Don't be lazy, don't throw tantrums. Study and refine the massage techniques I taught you, and become a qualified master technician as soon as possible. Only then can you earn all the delicious snacks in the world from your master..."

"Yeah, right there, a little more pressure."

"Ah~~~"

Soon, under Second Lieutenant Hope's command, the warship arrived at the Gate of Justice not far from Marineford.

This was a massive steel gate standing in the sea, reaching into the clouds, its edges hard to see at a glance. It was also one of the key defenses protecting Marine Headquarters, Marineford, from pirate incursions.

Besides the Gate of Justice on the Marineford side, the other important locations—Impel Down and Enies Lobby—also had Gates of Justice protecting them.

These three Gates of Justice formed a triangular distribution, with a massive whirlpool-like strange current at the center.

If a warship wanted to quickly reach the North Sea, it needed to pass through the Gate of Justice into the whirlpool, ride the massive current out through another Gate of Justice, and then follow the route to the North Sea.

Soon, amid a deafening roar, this sky-piercing Gate of Justice slowly opened a crack.

This crack, insignificant to the Gate of Justice itself, was still wide enough for a warship carrying five hundred Marines to pass through.

Watching Hope handle these matters skillfully, Yaen relaxed and prepared to focus on pointing out Xiao Jin's current shortcomings.

After all, in the bird-life goal Yaen had initially set for Xiao Jin, becoming a qualified master technician was only the first step. Later, he would add maid training, cooking practice, tea ceremony cultivation, and so on as appropriate.

He had to ensure Xiao Jin's bird-life was fulfilling and full of the joy of learning, so she wouldn't waste her precious bird-life.

Just as the warship rode the whirlpool current to the other side near the Gate of Justice by Impel Down, coincidentally, that Gate of Justice was also slowly opening.

"What's going on? Have the Marines at Impel Down forgotten the principle that no other gate should open while a warship is passing through the whirlpool current in front of the Gate of Justice? This could easily cause ships to cross paths and collide!"

Horton, standing beside Yaen, said discontentedly, immediately starting to direct the Marines to prepare for evasive maneuvers and reduce speed.

Hearing Horton's displeased voice, Yaen, who had been resting with his eyes closed, instinctively used Observation Haki to probe toward the Gate of Justice on the Impel Down side out of caution.

"Something's wrong..."

Yaen suddenly leaped up, eyes wide as he stared at the crack revealed in the Gate of Justice. A thick plume of black smoke was drifting out from the other side.

Yaen made an instant judgment and turned to Horton. "Something's happened at Impel Down!"

"What?!" Hearing what seemed like an absurd statement, Horton couldn't help but exclaim.

Then, noticing the thick black smoke himself, Horton snapped to attention and instinctively wanted to order the Marines to turn the warship around to investigate Impel Down and provide support when Yaen's next words rang out.

"Second Lieutenant Hope, order full speed ahead. Run!"

Run?!

Horton looked at Yaen in confusion, wondering if he had misheard.

How could a Marine run away?

However, Yaen, who had already sensed the presence behind the Gate of Justice with Observation Haki, urged urgently.

"Hurry, don't hesitate. That's the Great Pirate 'Golden Lion' Shiki. Behind the Gate of Justice is 'Golden Lion' Shiki!"

As Yaen's voice echoed across the warship, the hair on the backs of all five hundred-plus Marines stood on end.

That was "Golden Lion" Shiki—a name on par with "Pirate King" Gol D. Roger and the World's Strongest Man, "Whitebeard" Edward Newgate!!!