The fact that Rafid did not come out to greet Kaki already made the lieutenant Vice Admiral, Rafid's former comrade-in-arms, feel uneasy.
After he appeared to have some difficulty stepping off the warship from the gangplank, he was greeted by a line of naval soldiers from various branches of the navy in the harbor.
The marines and residents of Eternal Night Island all looked rather pale—a result of prolonged lack of sunlight.
Gion sniffed, then said, seemingly half-jokingly, "Your colonel really knows how to enjoy life, building such a huge castle?" As he spoke, he looked towards a castle on a small hill in the distance.
It seemed he didn't need much explanation; he already knew that was where Colonel Rafid was located.
The captain who came to greet Gion was a little embarrassed and could only smile apologetically, "These are uninhabited buildings that have been on the island for a long time. They were abandoned because of some legends, so the colonel requisitioned them after clearing them out... Colonel Rafid said that since you are good friends, there's no need for so much formality. He will entertain you at the branch office."
"That's really... impressive," Kaki remarked, then looked at the division captain and said, "Lead the way."
The fleeting hint of seriousness he displayed sent a chill down the spine of the division captain.
Kaki accompanied by his adjutant, and behind him were two rows of honor guards, carrying rifles and following in perfect unison—the one on the left in the second-to-last row was none other than "Seven," who had recently been added to the team.
As they walked up the winding mountain steps toward the castle, Kaki asked the branch captain, "I've heard that in recent years, people have been disappearing in Twilight Town after Accumulating Emperor Cloud left? And there are even rumors that they're... demons?"
"There are always some audacious pirates, and the locals are just ignorant, so they spread rumors," the division captain immediately denied.
"I see..." Kaki remained noncommittal.
Meanwhile, Yasopp and Morio, taking advantage of their small boat, landed on the other side of the coast where there was no port.
Suddenly, Bananaman seemed to receive some kind of instruction, quickly crawling away and disappearing into the mushroom forest, heading towards the castle.
"Bananaman!" Morio called out.
"It's alright, it's probably Sig calling it," Yasopp said reassuredly.
"But... what about us?" Morio asked, touching his bald head.
"Just wait and see. We agreed with Sig before that if he doesn't give us a signal, we'll just pretend we're passing by, right?" Yasopp said matter-of-factly.
"It's a pity that Ooo and I are Zoan users, and that Kaki seems to be particularly sensitive to them..." Morio thought that it was because of him that it was inconvenient for him to get close.
Meanwhile, Sig had already arrived at the castle where the branch was located with Kaki, but the honor guards were all standing outside, and only Kaki and a dozen or so junior officers went inside.
The "Psychological Suggestion" of Sequence 7 is just that— Psychological Suggestion. Although Sig constantly tells others not to "probing into the identity of this marine," and it does have an effect, if it is elevated to "not probing into the identity of this officer," it will probably not be effective.
Because people wouldn't think much about the former anyway, and any slight doubts would be ignored with Psychological Suggestion. But the addition of a captain is too abrupt. When people see him, they will think of countless doubts, which cannot be covered up by the "Psychological Suggestion" of Sequence 7.
Sig's greatest hope now is that his Kaki will succeed quickly and easily, and that he can successfully retrieve the "Vampire Fruit"...
After that, as long as Sig continues to return to the ship as "Seven," he can turn it into an ordinary tomato without anyone noticing.
Even before Kaki the mutated Devil Fruit, he absorbs it first, so Kaki will assume it's a failed retrieval and that the fruit will be reborn elsewhere in the world, without suspecting anything...
Looking at the Sun already setting in the west, Sig felt anxious for Gion!
Sig could completely understand why they would come to Eternal Night Island at "dawn," since the Vampire Fruit was not only Mythical Zoan with great power, but it also allowed them to fly—if left unchecked, it would be difficult to capture an opponent who could fly.
At daybreak, even if the Vampire with superpowers managed to fly, they couldn't stay airborne for long...
But why hasn't Jiaji Kaki eating yet? Are they really going to start eating already? Can't they just be as decisive as Brother Crow? If we keep waiting, it'll be dark soon!
Sig could only glean from the faint emotions emanating from upstairs that they were testing each other, their relationship a facade of harmony masking underlying discord.
Clang--Clang--
Finally, to Sig's eager anticipation, a series of sounds of shattering glass echoed from the top floor of the castle.
A fight broke out!
Sig lagged behind all the marines who rushed in upon hearing the commotion, and used Psychological Suggestion to make them ignore the minor incident and not follow.
Then... Sig bent down and scooped up the arriving Bananaman, letting him climb onto his body. In the instant Bananaman "melted," the Navy uniform was thrown to the ground, and Sig appeared in a black Battle Suit.
Instead of heading directly to the battlefield, they used the jet propulsion system of their Battle Suit to fly to the next location.
"La, Fa, De! This is no longer a prank..." Kaki had already transformed into his Human-Beast Form.
Its entire body was covered in stiff, tawny fur, its head became exceptionally large, and its wolf-like snout protruded, looking ferocious as if it might drool from between its sharp teeth at any moment.
Zoan, Dog-Dog Fruit, Ancient Zoan, Dire Wolf Form!
Kaki is also Zoan user, but he is Ancient Zoan, which is more precious and stronger than ordinary Zoan-type users.
Among ancient creatures, the dire wolf also had a large body and head, relatively short limbs, and possessed a bite force and size that surpassed that of a wolf.
In contrast, standing on the other side, the "Justice Coat" behind him has been replaced by a blood-red cloak. He has silver hair, wears an eye mask, and his arms seem to be longer than usual, with fangs faintly showing. Rafid — Zoan, Bat-Bat Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Vampire Form!
"Kaki, you're still so naive... You have such a realistic face." Rafid mocked from various angles.
At this point, the two sides' subordinates had already clashed—one side consisted of fleet officers, and the other... was a group of weakened Vampire.
Sig had sensed something was off about the captain earlier; more accurately, the Prison Demon had sensed it—he didn't possess the Devil himself, yet he carried the shadow of the Devil...
It seems to be the legendary First Embrace ability of Vampire, which can be activated thirteen times, and coincidentally, there are thirteen people in the current situation.
Each of them is equivalent to a regular Zoan Devil Fruit user, but they all have the limitation of being afraid of light, making them like defective Zoan Devil Fruit.
"What exactly do you want to do? Have you forgotten your oath to the naval ensign?" Kaki asked, exasperated.
"Forgot? And you? It's normal for a lowly colonel like me, 'exiled' to Eternal Night Island, to forget such things, isn't it? A dignified candidate Admiral, do you still remember the oath you once swore?" Rafid retorted sarcastically.
"It seems... you need to calm down, and then go to Impel Down to reflect on your actions!"
"Hahaha, you've forgotten too, haven't you? The first rule of the Navy oath is to always obey orders... Whether Admiral Sengoku or Fleet Admiral Kong, did you come here to capture me alive?"
Kaki saying another word, Jiaji unleashed a "Dire Wolf Headbutt," charging headlong straight at Rafid...