Unbeknownst to Vic, the Five Elders had specifically called Sengoku, instructing him not to reveal the truth to Vic and his group, nor to allow Vic to participate in the capture operation. The pretext was to ensure Vic focused on completing his Shichibukai mission, which was also crucial.
The main reason was that they were afraid Vic would capture Fisher Tiger. After all, this incident was huge, and capturing the main culprit would be no less meritorious than capturing a Emperor of the Sea.
Causing trouble in the Celestial Dragons ' holy land is more serious than destroying the Marine Headquarters. In the original work, Kizaru was promoted to Marine Admiral after defeating Fisher Tiger in this incident.
Therefore, in order to suppress Vic's promotion, they had to hide these things from him. After Fisher Tiger escaped, he had been hiding from the Navy in the first half of the Grand Line, and Vic is also in the first half now!
Vic thought that by staying away from Marine Headquarters, he could stay away from this incident and avoid becoming an accomplice in the Celestial Dragons' suppression of slaves. At least then, out of sight, out of mind would be less painful.
But when he saw the newspaper and learned that the incident had actually happened, images of the Celestial Dragons abusing their slaves flashed through his mind—images of utter cruelty!
Vic felt as if a huge stone was pressing down on his heart, making it hard to breathe. With each image that flashed by, the bitterness in his heart grew stronger. In the end, all of this turned into a raging fire, burning the newspaper in Vic's hand to ashes!
At that moment, Vic sensed the mysterious area in his mind that stored mental energy again, but this sensation vanished in an instant!
It took Vic a long time to catch his breath. Ignoring the sensations in his mind, he glanced at the newspaper ashes falling in front of him and then vanished in Inazuma at the bow of the ship.
Vic's unusual behavior had already caught Rebecca's and the others' attention. During this time, Vic had been spending some time every day carefully reading the newspaper.
This was unusual, but they didn't question it and continued their training according to the schedule. However, Vic's emotional changes were so drastic that they drew everyone's attention to him.
They watched in disbelief as the newspaper in Vic's hand burned to ashes without a flame. Just as they were about to ask him anything, Vic vanished.
A few people on deck began to whisper among themselves. They didn't know what was wrong with Vic, why he had suddenly left without saying goodbye. In the past, Vic would often leave the warship, but he would always inform one of them first.
They guessed it must be related to a news article in the newspaper. Vic's emotions had changed drastically after reading the newspaper. They found another newspaper to see which news article had caused Vic to lose his composure.
They searched through all the papers but couldn't find the culprit. Although Vic was powerful, they were still somewhat worried, not about safety, but about their mental well-being!
Vic was gone for a week, using the Rumble-Rumble Fruit's extreme speed to travel at full speed, and immediately descending upon any bustling islands he encountered.
He put away his naval attire and cloak of justice, and was shrouded in a red robe, just like the black-robed man who appeared last time!
He transformed into a mysterious man in a red robe and wiped out all the evil gangsters, pirates, and slave traders on the island without using a knife or his Devil Fruit powers.
Everyone died under his Wind Conception blades. He only needed to stand there, without even moving his hands, and these people had their throats slit in gusts of wind. The wind was hot because it carried Vic's boundless rage!
Vic didn't know which way to go, how many islands he visited, how much time he spent, or how many villains he killed. He only knew that he had to vent his anger. In the end, although he vented his anger, he also made a deep grudge against the Celestial Dragons!
When Vic regained consciousness, he saw a scene of carnage. It was a slave-capturing ship; all the slave traders were dead, and the slaves, terrified by Vic's ruthlessness, were scattering and fleeing. Vic ignored them, took out Rebecca's Vivre Card, checked the direction of her movement, and disappeared from the spot.
It was a week later when Vic returned to the warship. He sat cross-legged at the bow and didn't speak to anyone.
Rebecca and the others breathed a sigh of relief when Vic returned. He had been gone for a week, with no word from him and no answering his calls. They were really worried.
However, the strong smell of blood on Vic and the terrifying look in his eyes when he returned prevented them from disturbing Vic; they assumed Vic would explain himself to them soon.
Vic remained seated in Alabasta for a week, neither eating nor Vic, sitting there as still as a rock.
It wasn't until they arrived in Alabasta that Rebecca carefully woke Vic. By then, Vic's emotions had returned to normal. However, no matter what Rebecca asked him about what had happened, he didn't answer and instead changed the subject. Rebecca noticed that Vic's eyes had recovered, but they were somewhat different from before!
"This is Alabasta, a country built on a desert oasis. Shah Crocodile is hiding in this country."
World Government agents had previously spotted him in this country, but since the island is large, it would be difficult for them to pinpoint his location if a Logia-type Logia user with sand-related abilities were hiding there.
However, we both possess Observation Haki; it's difficult for a strong person to conceal their aura. We'll search slowly.
Vic wasn't sure if Crocodile was in this country. Crocodile wasn't Shichibukai yet; he was still a pirate and didn't dare to show himself openly.
Moreover, there were still more than a decade before he seized the country in later years, a long time in which his whereabouts could not be determined at all.
However, with the World Government's intelligence and Vic's understanding of Crocodile's personality, he could be completely certain. It's just that the island where this country is located is too large to be called an island anymore; it can be described as a small landmass, which even Vic's Observation Haki cannot fully cover.
"Should we all split up and search?"
Rebecca noticed a change in Vic's mindset since he returned after disappearing for a week. Before, he was always in a rush to finish the mission quickly, but now he was telling them not to rush and to take their time. She was very curious about what had happened to Vic while he was gone that caused such a big change in him.
"It's not that we're separating, it's that I'm leaving this search to you. It'll be easier for you since you can fly on a sword."
Furthermore, I don't think Crocodile is that strong. You can test your strength against him once you find him. If you really can't beat him, then come find me. We'll be waiting for you at the palace."
Vic's mindset has indeed changed somewhat, but it hasn't reached the point where Aokiji is; he's just considering more things now.
Previously, he focused more on his spiritual practice, letting external matters take their natural course, simply waiting for that moment to arrive in the future.
But now he finds that he can no longer ignore what's going on around him; he must plan for the future and take the initiative to do something. Now he's going to the palace to read the Poneglyph that record Pluton ' existence.
Although he already knows that Pluton is in Wano Country, and although he cannot decipher the Poneglyph, he will definitely seek out Robin to learn from her in the future. The more Ancient Script he memorizes now, the faster he will learn in the future.
It's not safe for Luffy to reveal the truth from 800 years ago. The Navy also needs someone with authority to announce the truth. It's difficult to gain the other side's trust when they're on opposing sides. If Vic wants the entire Navy to join the effort to overthrow the Celestial Dragons, he needs to make more preparations.
"Huh? Am I going to go alone?"
Rebecca stared at Vic in disbelief, pointing to her face with a dazed expression. She hadn't expected Vic to push the task onto her so directly. While Vic's words made sense, wasn't she the one who could fly the best? Were you just lying down?
"Yes, such strong opponents are hard to find these days. Every fight is one less opportunity. Go quickly, you don't need to come with us. We'll be waiting for you at the Alabasta Royal Palace!"