A Hand Grasping Nico Robin's Throat!

Nico Robin, perched upon the tree trunk, was slightly taken aback by his words. She straightened her posture to appear more composed, reached up to elegantly cup her chin, and asked with a hint of confusion, "I have encountered quite a few bounty hunters, but you are truly the first I have met who is this professional. To identify me solely by my voice is quite strange. Have we met somewhere before?"

"Never," Bane replied, picking up another piece of roasted meat from the table and eating as he spoke.

At this moment, some of the bounty hunter underlings surrounding Bane began to disperse, encircling the Nico Robin in the tree and forming a perimeter.

Zoro also rose from his wooden stump, one hand resting on the hilt of his sword at his waist. His gaze was vigilant as he scanned his surroundings.

Clearly, the highly alert Zoro had already sensed the anomaly within the ranks; several of the bounty hunter underlings, whether by their positioning or their demeanor, did not seem to be on the same side as them.

Nami seemed to have noticed this as well and instinctively moved closer to Zoro's side. She had gained experience in this regard; whenever Bane took action, Zoro usually served as her bodyguard.

As for the presence of traitors among the crowd, Bane was not the least bit surprised.

These men were all brought from Whisky Peak, and since Whisky Peak was a major base for Baroque Works, it was no surprise that dozens out of these hundreds were agents of Baroque Works.

It was undoubtedly for this reason that Nico Robin had been able to find him so easily, land on Little Garden without a sound, and appear from the tree trunk behind him in such an eerie fashion.

After his brief "never," Bane went back to eating his roasted meat, saying nothing more.

Nico Robin waited for a long time, only to find that this man had nothing further to say, leaving her feeling rather awkward perched up in the tree.

Just as the atmosphere grew heavy with silence, Bane suddenly crunched down on the bone in his mouth. The moment the bone shattered, his gaze turned as sharp as a hawk's. He looked toward the distant mountain range across the way, where the dense forest was lush and green, occasionally revealing the silhouettes of massive dinosaurs moving and weaving through the foliage.

At the very same moment Bane's gaze locked onto that direction, high up in an ancient tree within that dense forest, the real Nico Robin sat upon a thick branch entwined with vines. It was as if her gaze had met Bane's in that instant.

The power of the Flower-Flower Fruit allowed her to sprout her body or any of its parts anywhere within her line of sight!

From the very beginning, Bane had paid no mind to the Nico Robin behind him, for he was certain that it was merely a phantom created by her ability, and thus of no consequence.

He had simply acted as if nothing were amiss, eating his barbecue while unleashing his Observation Haki to search carefully.

To be honest, his Observation Haki was quite poor—he had only just mastered the basics. Any skilled expert present would have been able to detect what he was doing.

Fortunately, among the motley crew he had brought along, only Zoro understood a little about Haki. While Nico Robin was well-traveled, her own combat prowess was not exceptional; though she had heard of Haki, she did not truly understand it, assuming Bane was merely putting on a show. She never imagined he was actually using Observation Haki!

When Bane's gaze met Robin's across the valley, spanning such a great distance, a smile curled at the corner of his mouth. "A pleasure to meet you, Nico Robin."

The Nico Robin on the tree trunk behind him naturally understood that she had been exposed. Yet, at such a distance, she was not in the least bit panicked. She responded with equal calm and confidence, "It seems our first meeting is perhaps not under the most ideal circumstances. In that case, please allow me to pay you a visit another time."

She was clever; she had chosen to make her entrance in this manner to project an image of mystery, eeriness, and power, hoping to use that as a foundation for interacting with someone like Bane. She had not expected her tricks to fail completely. Furthermore, through this brief contact, Nico Robin judged Bane to be extremely dangerous, so this was clearly not the right time for an exchange. She would wait for next time.

She decisively chose to end the meeting, preparing to head to the inland river at the bottom of the valley on the other side, board a ship, and sail away. Given the situation on Bane's side, there was no way he could catch her.

After all, not only were the two river outlets different, but now that a werewolf had been exposed within Bane's ranks, who would dare set sail in pursuit without first purging the team?

If the ship were to be sabotaged by a mole along the way, who could handle that?

The plan was sound, and her actions and judgment were swift and decisive. However, Nico Robin had failed to account for the power of Bane's Dark-Dark Fruit—or rather, she possessed no intelligence regarding the Dark-Dark Fruit at all!

As a Devil Fruit user, the moment she exposed herself to Bane, her inability to escape was already sealed!

"Hahahaha, how could it not be ideal!?" Bane let out a loud laugh. As he stood up, thick black smoke billowed from his back, which, combined with his tall, sturdy, and imposing physique, made him look exceptionally domineering.

"To let a guest leave disappointed—if others found out, they would think I lack manners! Since you have come, why not come over and sit with me for a while!" As Bane said this, he reached out his hand toward the direction of Nico Robin's true location.

The moment he reached out, a sudden sense of dread struck Robin's heart, as if she had encountered a natural predator.

This sensation made her extremely uncomfortable. She immediately decided against saying anything more, instantly dispelling her ability, leaping down from the tree trunk, and preparing to jump onto her boat to flee.

However, as her figure descended from the tree, while still in mid-air, she suddenly felt a pulling force. This strange attraction came so abruptly that Robin flipped half a turn in the air. Before she could even react to what was happening, her body was dragged out of the valley by this power.

Back at the camp, dark elements bloomed from Bane's hand, covering the ground and air within a ten-meter radius. Those dark elements flowed and swirled like smoke, emitting an inexplicable aura of power.

Visible to the naked eye, Nico Robin's figure was dragged over from across the valley by the pull of the darkness. She struggled several times in the air, only to find it completely futile, her eyes filled with a mix of shock and fear.

But as someone who had been surviving on this cutthroat sea since the age of eight, once she realized she could not break free from this power, she quickly adjusted her mindset. Suppressing the terror in her eyes, her expression returned to one of detached calm.

Three or five breaths later, in the middle of the camp, Bane gripped Nico Robin's wheat-colored, delicate throat with one hand, lifting her high into the air. "Your strength, it seems, does not match this 79 million Belly bounty. Devil Child, Nico Robin."

Nico Robin did not struggle. She merely rested her hands on Bane's strong arm to make herself slightly more comfortable. She could feel that although Bane had gripped her throat, he had no intention of crushing it.

This allowed her to respond with ease.

"Your strength and your cunning nature are somewhat beyond my expectations," Robin said softly.

She had seen photos of Bane. In the pictures, Bane's image was rather rugged—a sturdy build, sharp features, and a bright smile that gave the impression of someone simple-minded and forthright.

Such people usually had weaknesses like recklessness and impulsivity, believing that strength alone could solve everything. For many years, Nico Robin had seen too many such people and had toyed with too many of them.

It was precisely this mindset that had led to her slight arrogance, and that arrogance had resulted in her being held by the throat by Bane now.