Seeker of Historical Truth

Nanohana

A port city in Alabasta.

Yake brought Robin to an inn, laid her on the bed, and stood by the window waiting for her to wake up.

"Ugh... mm..."

After a long while, Robin finally woke from her coma. Seeing the man by the window, she warily pulled the blanket over herself.

"God Yake, what exactly is your goal? Are you here to kill me? No, no... Are you after the Ancient Weapon too?" Robin fired off a string of questions like a pea shooter.

"Don't be so tense. I mean you no harm. My goal is the same as yours: to seek the truth of history," Yake said blandly.

"Who exactly are you?" Robin was clearly shocked by Yake's words and had lost her ability to think calmly.

"I am the arbiter of the Celestial Dragons, the Destroyer of the World Government. I will establish a new order on these seas and correct this flawed world. I am Yake." Yake felt incredibly cringey and embarrassed saying that, but it was indeed what he truly believed.

"I understand. You want me to help you translate the Poneglyphs, don't you? Once you learn the truth of history, you'll reveal it to the world and overthrow the Celestial Dragons' rule, right?" Robin smiled bitterly. Another ambitious man had set his sights on her ability to read Poneglyphs.

"No, no, no. What exactly is going on in that head of yours? I'm merely interested in what Laugh Tale has buried there. Whether I have the truth of history or not makes no difference when it comes to overthrowing the Celestial Dragons." Yake's face twitched. Why was everyone's imagination running so wild?

"So, I formally invite you to become my partner. Let's travel around the world together, find Laugh Tale, and overthrow this flawed world while we're at it!" Yake smiled, extending his hand with a sincere expression.

Robin struggled inwardly, but in the end, she reached out and shook Yake's hand. At least he didn't look that frightening, and he was very strong...

"My name is Yake."

"I'm Nico Robin."

Robin officially became Yake's partner. Although Yake had not even come up with a name for his pirate crew, the most important thing now was to make a rubbing of the Alabasta Kingdom's Poneglyph.

Yake naturally knew what Alabasta's Poneglyph said. He even knew that Pluton's blueprints were hidden inside Franky's body. However, Yake had no interest in Pluton itself, though he was determined to obtain its blueprints.

"Robin, I'll take you to the Funerary Temple in the Western Royal Tomb later. It's inside the Alabasta Royal Palace, and there should be something in there that interests you," Yake said.

"What is it? A Poneglyph?" Robin smiled faintly. Though she was not yet familiar with Yake, she naturally would not pass up information about a Poneglyph.

"That's right. The Nefertari Family was one of the twenty royal families that created the World Government eight hundred years ago. In other words, the current king and Princess Vivi are both descendants of the creators."

"You mean Cobra is also a Celestial Dragon?" Robin boldly guessed.

"No. They are no longer recognized by Mary Geoise. You could only say that this is a nation with deep foundations." Yake spoke carelessly. Though Cobra's reputation was poor now, that was all Crocodile's doing behind the scenes. Cobra himself had always been a wise king.

"All right. Once you're ready, we'll go."

The two then set off on Robin's Banana Gator. This creature was truly useful in the desert: amphibious and fast. If carrying someone while flying had not been inconvenient, Yake would have simply carried Robin himself.

After traveling all the way to Alubarna, they arrived in a relatively prosperous area. The two crossed bustling streets and came before the royal palace.

The soldiers guarding the gate blocked their path.

"Stop! No one may enter without permission!"

"My name is Yake. Please inform Cobra that I have an important matter to discuss with him," Yake said politely. There was no need to flaunt his status before ordinary people. If someone had a bad attitude, there were plenty of ways to deal with him.

"You're Yake! Wait, I've seen you... You're God..." The guard had barely spoken before Yake interrupted him.

"Shh, keep it down. Go find your king. My time is limited," Yake said with a smile. The soldier before him was already drenched in sweat. That was a vicious criminal with a bounty of 1.5 billion Beli—far beyond someone he could possibly contend with.

"Now, let's wait here for a while," Yake said to Robin beside him.

"What an impressive presence. Did you really kill a Celestial Dragon?" Robin asked curiously.

"That's right. A piece of trash named Charlos. Now he really has become trash. Hahaha."

Inside the royal palace.

"R-reporting to His Majesty! A man named Yake says he wishes to see you. He's the vicious wanted criminal who killed a Celestial Dragon—God Yake!" The guard rushed into the hall in a panic, beads of sweat as large as beans rolling down his cheeks.

"Bang."

Cobra's cup fell to the floor. He said in shock, "Are you telling the truth? Has God Yake truly come to our country?" Cobra hurried over to the guard and tightly gripped his shoulders.

"Y-yes, it's him. There's no mistake. He's outside right now."

"The figure everyone had been talking about, who disappeared for months, has actually come here. What does he want?" Cobra paced back and forth anxiously.

"Father, what happened?" Vivi, still just a little girl, rode over on a giant yellow duck. It had been a long time since Vivi had seen her father this anxious.

"Vivi, hurry and hide. This country may soon be in danger. Igaram, take Vivi away at once." Cobra feared that Yake was after Pluton. Otherwise, he truly could not think of anything else in this country worth coveting, so he hurriedly ordered the guard to take Vivi away.

"Yes, Lord Cobra... Vivi, let's go." Igaram led the confused Vivi away.

"Then, Lord Cobra, Yake is still outside. What should we do?"

"Go invite him in at once. Whatever you do, don't anger him. Understood?"

"Yes!"

Yake was discussing the royal palace's exterior with Robin when the guard hurried over.

"Lord Yake, the king invites you into the palace for a discussion. Please follow me," the guard said respectfully.

"Let's go, Robin."

Yake and Robin followed the guard into the royal palace.

Inside the palace hall, the atmosphere was extremely tense. The guards stood ready, while Cobra sat on the throne with an apparently calm expression, frantically thinking up countermeasures inside.

"Mr. Cobra, forgive my presumptuous visit," Yake said with a slight nod.

"Not at all. It is my honor that such a talented young man as Mr. Yake has come to our country." Seeing Yake's attitude, Cobra relaxed slightly and hurriedly began exchanging pleasantries.

"The matter I wish to discuss with Mr. Cobra is rather important, so..." As Yake spoke, he unleashed Conqueror's Haki and intimidated everyone present. Other than Cobra and Robin, all the guards collapsed unconscious.

"What... did you do?" Cobra asked nervously as he watched all the soldiers fall.

"Don't worry. It's just a small trick. Rest assured, they only fainted. They'll wake up after one day," Yake said indifferently.

"Sigh... You're after Pluton, aren't you? Fine, I'll tell you..." Cobra sighed, clearly having given up on resisting.

"No, no. Though what I want is related to Pluton, my main objective is that Poneglyph. Mr. Cobra, you should know where it is, right?"

"Y-you mean the Poneglyph?!" Cobra said in shock.

"That's right. We only came to seek the truth of history. We have no interest in your country."

Seeing Cobra act as though he faced a great enemy, Yake could not help shaking his head slightly and clarifying his purpose.

After a friendly discussion, Cobra finally agreed to take them to the Funerary Temple in the Western Royal Tomb.

After walking through an ancient corridor steeped in history, Yake finally saw the Poneglyph at the end. Robin immediately ran over to examine it.

Yake and Cobra stood quietly nearby, waiting for Robin's results.

"I never expected that after Ohara was destroyed, there would still be someone capable of reading this script." Cobra finally understood what Yake had meant by seeking the truth of history.

"Your goal is not limited to the Poneglyph here, is it?" Cobra asked Yake. Yake merely smiled without answering.

"In the year 239 of the Heavenly Calendar, Kashira conquered Alabasta.

In the year 260 of the Heavenly Calendar, Tieyima ruled the Pitein Dynasty.

In the year 306 of the Heavenly Calendar, Elmar built Dafu Grand Cathedral.

In the year 325 of the Heavenly Calendar, the hero of Orutia, Mamu..."

Robin slowly read aloud the contents recorded on the Poneglyph. Yake listened quietly, while Cobra trembled all over, cold sweat continuously dripping down.

"What is recorded here is the location of the Ancient Weapon—Pluton."