CP9 in the Rainstorm

Sea Circle Calendar, year 1509, East Sea.

In the training room of the Red Force, Louis strapped on the heaviest weights of the Red-Haired Pirates, his legs braced against the largest dumbbells on the ship.

He was shirtless, performing a handstand with only two fingers supporting his entire body. On a ship constantly swaying amidst the wind and rain, he maintained his balance while continuing to push his physical limits.

As he moved, beads of murky sweat flowed from his body, trailing down his face before dripping onto the deck.

Beside him was Yelena, wearing a black athletic tank top, performing squats and frog jumps while carrying a slightly smaller dumbbell.

Under Hongou's excellent medical treatment, Yelena no longer felt any pain; her body had recovered to a level where she could resume training.

In the training room's lounge area, Uta, with her long white and red hair, leaned against the sofa. Sipping tea and nibbling on pastries, she watched the two of them train in silence.

Both of them turned a blind eye to Uta's behavior.

Ever since the two chose to stay on the Red Force for the time being, Uta had grown increasingly keen on following the two, who were close to her in age.

At first, Shanks and the others felt a bit dejected, but they also believed it was good for Uta to interact with people of her own age—at the very least, it might help her forget that terrifying idea sooner.

Therefore, Shanks and the others had recently begun encouraging Uta to engage in exercise, and she did not object to this way of spending time with her peers, cooperating quite willingly.

However, because Uta's talent for physical training was not high, there was a world of difference between her training intensity and Yelena's.

Her training volume was not high, and it consisted mainly of light one-handed sword slashes and physical conditioning designed for her by Beckman and the others.

Although her talent was not high, thanks to the company of Louis and the others, as well as her own persistence, she had at least shown clear improvement.

According to her own words, she wouldn't feel tired even after singing three or four songs in a row.

To this, Louis gave an objective assessment.

"Goose power, level three!"

For over a year, this not-so-large training ground had basically been occupied by the three of them. Occasionally, when someone wanted to enter, they were mercilessly chased out by Uta.

She said this was a girl's territory, and adults weren't allowed in.

To this, Louis could only respond: "??"

He pondered that although he was 11 years old and could be described as beautiful, his beauty was of the masculine variety pushed to its limit; anyone could tell his gender at a glance.

Louis didn't consider himself the type of person whose gender was ambiguous. Even that person who called him a succubus had never said such a thing.

"..."

After a long while, Louis stood up and gently set down the dumbbells. He looked toward the southeast, lost in thought.

He had heard another interesting word.

"CP9?"

Louis's movements caught the attention of both of them.

Yelena also stopped her training. She looked at Louis, whose face had shifted from rounded features to a sharp, masculine aesthetic, and tucked a strand of white hair dampened by sweat behind her ear.

She asked softly, "What is it?"

"A ship's course has collided with the Red Force," Louis replied in a low voice as he walked into the lounge area and picked up a towel to wipe the sweat from his body.

"Pirates? Marines? Or a merchant ship?" Yelena pressed. She knew that Louis's Observation Haki was terrifying; a distance of several thousand meters was no different to him than being right next door.

"It's CP agents..." Louis put down the towel, his eyes flickering with an unreadable glint.

Upon hearing this, Yelena's gaze turned cold in an instant. She still remembered that CP agents had been involved in an incident targeting her back then.

"Here, a towel."

Uta, startled by the news, handed a towel she had already prepared to the approaching Yelena before leaving the training area to go notify Shanks.

Afterward, once Yelena had wiped her skin, which had returned to its fair complexion, a look of eagerness flashed in her eyes. "How long until we meet them?"

"Soon. Two nautical miles. They are also sailing along the storm, so it won't be long before we cross paths."

"Is that so?"

Yelena returned to her gentle demeanor.

In the cabin on the other side, Uta pushed open Shanks's door, breathless as she looked at Shanks, who had just hung up the Den Den Mushi.

"Shanks, Louis says a ship with CP agents is coming!"

Shanks was stunned for a moment, then smiled and reassured her, "Don't worry, we're very strong!"

The storm raged, kicking up layers of waves on the sea surface, causing the sailing ship to sway and creak incessantly.

Above the deep, dark sea, a searchlight with immense penetrating power lit up the dim sky, sweeping back and forth.

"Boom..." Accompanied by a roar that sounded like the horn of the apocalypse, streaks of scorching white lightning crawled across the dark clouds in the sky, briefly illuminating the sea.

This allowed the massive warship to spot the three-masted sailing ship that was almost right in front of them.

"That's... the Red Hair's ship!" A cry of alarm rang out on the warship. "That vicious great pirate who destroyed the Kingdom of Jacob a year ago!"

On the other side, on the deck of the Red Force, amidst the wind and rain...

"It seems there really is CP9 on that ship!"

"This is going to be troublesome."

Beckman held a cigarette between his lips, letting the rain slide down his face. Behind him, Lucky Roo tore a massive chunk of meat off the bone he was holding, a wild grin spreading across his face as he chewed.

At the very front of the group, Shanks wore his straw hat, a mysterious smile playing on his lips. "It doesn't matter. We're plenty strong. Get ready!"

He then looked toward Louis, who stood expressionless, radiating a bone-chilling cold, his hand already gripping his spear. Shanks smiled and said, "Louis, let us handle this one!"

For over a year, Shanks and the others had become familiar with Louis's combat style—no ship associated with the World Government ever remained in one piece.

He was one of the few individuals among the Lunarians who was relatively restrained.

However, Shanks was worried that if Louis wasn't careful, he would end up blasting both the ship and their target into oblivion.

"Fine!" After a moment of thought, Louis agreed to Shanks's request.

Louis had a rough idea of what this incident was about. But he didn't care about the Nika Fruit; as long as all the members of CP9 ended up at the bottom of the sea, that was enough.

To him, the Nika Fruit was a useless piece of junk; there was no need to get his hands on it.

His view on the future King, Luffy, was similar.

He didn't like him, nor did he hate him.

As long as there was no conflict, Louis wouldn't go out of his way to belittle him or step on him.

Louis looked at Yelena beside him, whose figure had long since matured. "You go too. I'll handle the cleanup!"

"Understood!" Yelena nodded slowly, then took a deep breath.

In an instant, her aura shifted, and the wind and rain froze...

Meanwhile, aboard the warship.

The once orderly stations had descended into chaos due to the sudden incident, and the deck was filled with noise.

A man with shoulder-length pink hair and demon horns growing from his head stood disheveled in the wind.

"What did you say!!"

"Red-Haired? What is their objective?"

"There's no treasure on this ship!"

"There's only one Devil Fruit!"

He then looked at the small chest sitting casually next to a wooden crate, his face filled with disbelief.

"This is the fruit that turns you into rubber..."

"Right?!"