*Purupurupurupuru Purupurupurupuru...*
"Hey, Granny." Sin lazily yawned as he picked up the call, and his eyes shot open when he heard the commotion on the other side. "What's going on?"
"We found the Rainbow Mist." Trusu calmly said. "It is covering an entire Island at the edge of Calm Belt..."
Sin listened to Tsuru's words and then got up from the bed.
"Name the closest Islands to your location." He quickly dressed up and then opened the cabinet to pick up the Enternal Log Pose to one of the closest Islands that she mentioned.
"I have an Eternal Pose for Purple Isles." He told her. "It's a trap, Granny. Don't go inside."
"I know." He heard her say. "They wanted us to find them, and the ship that discovered the place went missing an hour ago, just before we arrived here. The main force will reach this place in five hours. Where are you?"
"We should be close to Rumsdale Island, but I am coming over."
"Alright."
Sin arrived at the Main Deck right after he ended the call, and everyone was already waiting for him there, having listened to his conversation since he was not shielding it.
He could see the grins that some of them were wearing, whilst the others were looking quite sombre.
"Your hunch proved right," Yamato said with excitement brimming in her eyes.
"It's no longer a hunch when it comes to him." Bonney sighed.
"Sorry." He grinned, and they helplessly shook their heads."Prepare yourselves for battle and get there as fast as you can." He said and then nodded to his sister before disappearing into the sky.
Robin immediately opened the necklace that she always wore on her neck, and then took out the Vivre Card that belonged to her brother.
She rushed over to the helm of the Ship, and guided Bepo to steer Black Pearl in the direction their Captain was headed.
On the other side, after minutes of exploration, Sin landed on the deck of Tsuru's Warship, and he solemnly looked at the thick Rainbow Fog that was blocking their line of sight.
Yes, it was no longer a mist, but a fog.
A few Marine Warships were already coming from the horizon to join the seven vessels which were assuming their attack formation, and he could sense the unease and nervousness of all the Marines, including the Vice-Admirals who were leading these ships.
However, Tsuru was sitting on her chair on the Main Deck, sipping her tea as she had several Den Den Mushi placed on the table with active calls, appearing very calm.
"You are fast." Sin heard someone say, and he smiled at the girl with waist-length peach-pink hair, who was wearing a red suit.
"Good Afternoon, Hina. You look scared."
"Hina is not scared." She denied his words and lit up her cigarette, but unbeknownst to her, he could sense the restlessness of her heart.
"It's okay to be nervous. We are heading into a war with a very powerful pirate." He smiled. "Ragnus would have been named the Emperor of the Seas had he not gone missing before Roger's execution."
His words only served to make her more nervous, but when she glanced at him and saw the smile on his face, her worries eased a little.
"You are not nervous?"
"No. I am excited." He grinned.
"Hina knew that you were crazy." She told him, which made him chuckle.
"Hina is smart."
"Don't make fun of me! Hina does not like it."
"What does Hina like then?" He mischievously asked, leaning close to her, and she instinctively recoiled, remembering how he had kissed Kujaku yesterday.
Sin grinned at her reaction and turned to look at the lemon-haired girl who was walking towards them.
"Mihawk and Kuma are coming." She informed them.
"Mihawk?" He surprisedly looked at her, and then something clicked in his mind. "For Krom?" He guessed.
"Yes." Simca nodded her head. "Krom was hailed as one of the best Swordsmen in the World when Mihawk started his journey, and when Ma'am invited him to come, he immediately agreed."
"Admirals?"
"Admiral Kizaru and Admiral Kuzan will join the battle. Vice-Admiral Garp is coming too."
"Gion?"
"She's in the New World right now and occupied with something else."
"We should be fine with Admiral Kizaru, Admiral Kuzan, and Vice-Admiral Garp on our side," Hina said and raised her brow when she saw Sin grin at her.
"And do you think that your enemy, who deliberately gave away his position by revealing the Island and allowed Log Poses to find it, is not prepared?" He asked. "Ragnus is someone who has fought against Garp and Sengoku. It would be foolish to think that he has made an error in judgment this time. I am sure he knew that the Marines would gather their best forces to deal with him, and given that we are not under attack already, he is letting us gather our forces."
His words made them both frown, and a sinking feeling sprouted in their hearts.
Hima instinctively turned to look at their Staff Officer, who was trying to gather all the capable people as fast as possible, and then at the Vice-Admirals, who were solemnly staring at the Rainbow Fog, not letting their guard down even for a moment.
"If those Celestial Dragons are still alive, then he has seven of them as hostages." Simca meaningfully said when she thought things over, trying to guess the enemy's plan.
"He will use them against us..." The young Captain frowned, finding it quite plausible.
"Imagine what would happen if two Admirals, two Legendary Vice-Admirals, several other Vice-Admirals who are present here, and three Warlords fall today." He grinned, and his words sent shivers up their spines. "Will it shake the world more than the death of seven Celestial Dragons?"
"They are already considered dead by most..." Simca said, and then her eyes widened in realisation.
"Yes. It won't matter much. Let them die, and focus on eliminating the War Pirates. There's always some collateral damage in Wars. It's better if those who are dying are scums."
Both the girls paled at his words and worriedly looked around, and though they saw the frowns on the faces of the Vice-Admirals, who had heard Sin's words, none of them seemed to find them unreasonable or even looked their way.
"Doctors, check the vitals of everyone onboard!" Tsuru's voice suddenly reverberated on the Ships as she spoke into the loudspeaker. "Get the Gas Masks ready and wear them as soon as the doctors clear you... Check your weapons and ammo again..."
For the next few minutes, she kept hurling orders, and all the Soldiers followed her commands regardless of which Vice-Admiral's Ship they were on.
Sin smiled when he saw how much they all had calmed down once the orders were given and everyone got busy.
As long as things seemed under control and they felt like their superiors had clear plans, their hearts would remain at ease.
"Here." Simca brought him a mask, but he shook his head.
"I will be fine."
"There could be poison."
"It won't work on me thanks to my Devil Fruit." He informed her, and she surprisedly looked at him before nodding her head.
Minutes later, another Fleet of Marine Warships arrived at the location, and Sin narrowed his eyes when he saw Marine Battleships, which were used in Buster Calls, coming from the Horizon.
"Just in case." Tsuru, who walked over to stand by his side, informed him.
"As long as the call is in your hands, it's fine." He smiled and then grinned when he saw Kujaku walk onto the Main Deck.
She looked at him and smiled back, but he could sense that she was looking forward to a chance to get back at him for what he did yesterday.
"Like your new powers?"
"Yes." She politely nodded to him, making Tsuru glance at her in curiosity, but the old lady then turned her eyes to the horizon as one more Ship came into sight, following the massive Battleships.
"Is he always eating crisps?" Sin chuckled when he saw Garp leisurely sitting on the dog-face figurehead of his Ship, eating a bag of crisps.
"Not always." Tsuru giggled and shook her head.
"Man, I am hungry. Do you have anything to eat other than fruits?"
"Sweet Potatoes, boiled." Simca smiled at him when he rolled his eyes. "We have boiled eggs too."
"Nice." He sighed. "Bring them up."
"Yes, Sir!" She teasingly said before she went inside the ship to bring him the two delicacies that were available today.
Minutes later, Sin was sitting cross-legged on the deck, eating Sweet Potatoes with salt, pepper, and lemon juices. And as they all watched him finish one basket after another, they curiously looked at him.
"Do you always eat this much?" Kujaku frowned, and he nodded to her as he peeled an egg at a lightning-fast speed and ate it up.
"But I skipped dinner last night and missed the breakfast this morning. We left early..." He informed them and then glanced at his side, where Garp was now standing on the railing of their ship, looking at the Rainbow Fog.
"Sir!" The Marines all saluted to him, and even the Vice-Admirals on the surrounding ships turned to look his way and nodded or bowed to him.
"Any sign of him?" The man asked in his gruff voice, and Tsuru, who was back in her chair, taking calls, shook her head.
"Other than Bach, no other War Pirate has been sighted."
"Tried probing the fog and looking past it?"
"Yes. Lost connection to the Visual Den Den Mushi," The old lady informed him.
"How are they keeping eyes on us then?" He looked at his colleague, waiting for an answer.
"We are not sure if they are keeping their eyes on us," Tsuru replied and raised her brow when she saw Sin shake his head.
"They are." He said, and Garp turned to look at him.
"How?"
"Sea Animals." He said and smiled. "A lot of them are keeping an eye on our ships, and they are communicating with a few very weak mermaids, who are not in the best health. Merfolk can communicate with sea creatures."
The reminder made Tsuru's eyes go wide in realisation.
"Those creatures could be carrying Visual Den Den Mushi to record us from time to time, and since their signatures are too weak, we have been ignoring them."
"They are." He nodded.
"How do you know that?" Garp raised his brow at him.
"I just know." He smiled and then peeled himself another Sweet Potato. "By the way, if you want to avoid the War, let me Destroy the Island that is inside this fog. Even if someone survives, they won't be left with ground to stand upon."
The sinister smirk on his face chilled their hearts, and Hina, despite herself, gulped in fear.
"They likely have thousands of our Marines as hostages, and we don't know how many innocents are being held captive by them."
"I understand." He nodded to the Old Lady and did not say anything more.