Night raid

The sea stirred, faint ripples spreading outward. Fish poked their heads up and watched the group curiously in the silvery light on the water.

Clouds obscured the half-moon, leaving the night dim.

"We're almost there. Get ready!"

Rob Lucci gazed at the warship ahead, his eyes grave as he spoke in a low voice.

Kaku, Blueno, Kalifa, and the others paused briefly, looking toward the warship and pirate ship ahead.

"According to our intelligence, the target is aboard the warship."

"He's accompanied by an unidentified man wearing a Ghostface Mask, as well as Foxy the Silver Fox, a pirate with a bounty of twenty-four million."

Kalifa spoke quietly.

Since the World Government had assigned them such an urgent mission that they had to suspend their undercover operation, it naturally provided fairly detailed intelligence.

That also meant certain eyes had already been watching River from the shadows since his appearance at Impel Down.

"Prepare to move."

Rob Lucci spoke in a low voice.

The lone boat slowly parted the water, drawing very close to the warship ahead.

After a pause, Lucci looked up again at the half-moon, which was slowly drifting out from behind the clouds.

"Be careful. If you find yourselves outmatched, retreat immediately!"

"The enemy is..."

Lucci abruptly cut himself off.

"Against this target, there's no shame in running away!"

Kaku and the others felt a chill and grew solemn. Anyone who could give even Lucci trouble was certainly no ordinary opponent.

The next second, the little boat shuddered, and the seven figures aboard vanished.

Whoosh!

Figures flickered rapidly through the air, reaching Foxy's Ship in an instant without making a sound. Using its masts and rigging, Lucci and the others shifted position again and landed aboard the warship.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Figures flashed into view, filling the previously deserted deck.

"Find the target."

The white pigeon on Rob Lucci's shoulder cooed the order.

Blueno, Kaku, and the others immediately sprang into action.

Everyone moved cautiously, keeping their footsteps as quiet as possible to avoid alerting their target.

This was an assassination mission, a surprise attack-not an honorable challenge.

Killing their target without attracting his attention, without him ever knowing what happened, was undoubtedly the surest and safest approach.

Just as the CP9 team began moving...

River's eyes snapped open in his cabin.

"Interesting!"

He grinned and climbed out of bed.

"I hadn't come looking for you, but you've come looking for me!"

Meanwhile, in another cabin...

Crocodile climbed out of bed expressionlessly, grabbed the Ghostface Mask beside him, and walked toward the door.

Outside, Kaku crept up to a cabin door, held his breath, and prepared to unlock it.

Suddenly, the door was yanked open.

A figure wearing crocodile pajamas and a Ghostface Mask appeared before him.

"Enemy spotted!"

Kaku called out quietly and shot backward.

Just as he retreated, a golden hook whistled past, gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

"You're quick!"

Crocodile sneered.

Elsewhere, River opened his door to find a tall woman with long, slender legs, high heels, and gold-rimmed glasses. She looked sophisticated and mature.

"My beautiful lady."

"Turning up uninvited without the owner's permission is rather rude!"

River smiled.

"Then how would you like me to be polite?"

Kalifa smiled seductively, but her movements did not slow in the slightest. She raised her right foot and thrust it viciously toward his neck.

A sharp weapon emerged from the heel of her shoe, gleaming coldly.

Whoosh!

In that instant, it sliced through the air.

River's gaze sharpened slightly. He caught her lower leg just as it reached him, stopping the sharp weapon on her high heel in its tracks.

Drip!

Green venom dripped onto the deck with a distinct sound.

"Carrying something like that around is far too dangerous!"

River grinned as he abruptly tightened his right hand.

Kalifa's expression changed. A sharp pain shot through her lower leg, and she twisted at the waist, lashing out with her other foot.

River released her and ducked beneath the kick.

A fierce gust howled past, and the sharp slash carved a sword-like gouge into the cabin door behind him.

When he looked up again, seven figures stood before him, all watching him with solemn, wary eyes.

"Kill them all!"

Still wearing his crocodile pajamas, Crocodile looked thoroughly displeased, his eyes cold as frost.

He had been sleeping very soundly.

He raised his left hand slightly, and streams of sand immediately began floating into the air.

"Go back to sleep. Leave this to me!"

"After all, it's not yet time for you to reveal your identity freely."

River spoke just then.

He stepped forward and rolled his neck from side to side, producing a series of cracks.

"I certainly didn't expect the World Government's intelligence agents to take such an interest in me!"

At those words, Crocodile paused and looked at the people before him again.

"They're from the World Government?"

River nodded, studying faces that seemed unfamiliar yet familiar.

The entire CP9 team had actually slipped aboard his ship in the dead of night. This was something he truly had not expected.

After all, as far as he knew, these people should have been undercover in Water 7, plotting to obtain Pluton's blueprints.

"Some people really refuse to leave me alone!"

With a soft sigh, River's gaze turned icy.

Crocodile lowered his left hand, his expression becoming serious.

The presence these people exuded was indeed formidable. This was also his first time encountering agents of the World Government.

People knew only that the Navy had many powerful fighters who kept the seas in check. They knew nothing of what experts the World Government might possess.

But anyone who gave it a little thought would realize that the World Government, which controlled more than three hundred nations, must also command exceptionally powerful individuals.

"You're CP9, aren't you?"

River swept his gaze over them, then fixed it on the figure with a white pigeon perched on his shoulder.

"That bastard Spandam really is living the good life!"

The members of CP9 looked slightly startled. They knew very well that their identities were among the world's greatest secrets.

In theory, no one outside their superiors and the Cipher Pol system could possibly know who they were.

Yet this man had identified their exact unit and immediate superior with perfect accuracy.

"Tell me, what have you youngsters, barely out in the field, come here to do?"

River said calmly.

Crocodile stood to one side, quietly covering him. After learning who their opponents were, he took even greater care to conceal his identity.

If he exposed himself to agents of the World Government, things would become even more troublesome.

Whoosh!

The sea breeze stirred everyone's clothes.

After a long silence, Rob Lucci finally spoke, watching River gravely.

"There is only ever one reason for Cipher Pol to act!"