As the fierce bird lay defeated, a stick with a piece of deliciously roasted goat meat was suddenly placed in front of it. Nicholas wanted to test the bird's mimicking abilities.
"A monk from the south came with five pounds of sole fish. A mute from the north came with a trumpet. The monk wanted to exchange his sole fish for the mute's trumpet. The mute was unwilling, but the monk insisted. The monk hit the mute with the sole fish, and the mute hit the monk with the trumpet. No one knew who hit whom first. The monk stewed the sole fish. The mute played the trumpet. Did the monk hit the mute first, or did the mute hit the monk first?"
The bird did not respond at all, just stared intently at the meat. Frustrated, Nicholas gave it another round of electric therapy, causing its feathers to stand on end.
After Nicholas repeated the tongue twister again and the bird still didn't react, it received another shock. Finally, realizing it needed to react to avoid being cooked, the bird started to mimic Nicholas's tongue twister. At first, it stammered but got better with practice, and soon it was enthusiastically repeating the phrases. Once it completed the tongue twister, Nicholas gave it the meat, which it quickly devoured.
The bird seemed to understand that mimicking Nicholas's words would spare it from electric shocks and even reward it with food.
Seeing the bird's expectant eyes, Nicholas decided to up the challenge:
"Sixty-six-year-old Old Lu built sixty-six buildings, bought sixty-six barrels of oil, raised sixty-six cows, and planted sixty-six willow trees. The sixty-six barrels of oil were stored in the sixty-six buildings; the sixty-six cows grazed under the sixty-six willow trees. Suddenly, a strong wind blew, toppling the sixty-six buildings, spilling the sixty-six barrels of oil, breaking the sixty-six willow trees, and killing the sixty-six cows, alarming sixty-six-year-old Old Lu."
In the quiet forest, the sound of "Old Liu" and "Old Lu" echoed.
The next morning, a pirate ship sailing in the New World suddenly heard a commotion overhead.
"Hey, did you hear that?"
"Hear what?"
As the two pirates exchanged glances, a voice from the sky rang out:
" The blackened black-ash fertilizer will evaporate and turn into black-ash, which will be called black-ash flowers. The blackened black-ash fertilizer will evaporate and turn into black-ash, which will be called flying flowers. The flying flowers will turn into ash..."
"Red carp, green carp and donkey!"
[AN-chinese idioms, idk the meaning]
The eerie voice quickly flew towards the windless zone near the North Sea, leaving the pirates bewildered.
…
North Sea.
Thunder roared as the wind whipped up storm clouds, and lightning snaked through the sky. The ocean waves rose like mountains, making even the largest ships seem insignificant.
On the deck of a massive ship, a pirate in the Hundred Beasts Pirates uniform looked up at the stormy sky with a helpless expression.
"Such terrible weather, and I'm stuck on deck duty. What bad luck."
"Yeah, anyone on deck in this weather is unlucky," another pirate in the same uniform replied, wiping the sea spray from his face.
Suddenly, a huge black figure emerged from the clouds, transforming into a tall humanoid form as it approached.
"King-sama."
The two pirates guarding the door immediately straightened up and greeted the figure respectfully.
King glanced at them and asked, "No news about Young Master Yamato yet?"
The two pirates exchanged glances and shook their heads.
"No."
King sighed and walked into the cabin.
…
A few days earlier.
Krayincana Island, an abandoned island shrouded in mist. The island was littered with war-torn ruins and rusty weapons.
A relatively intact castle stood out among the ruins, the residence of Shichibukai Dracule Mihawk.
In the castle's dining hall, Mihawk, wearing an apron, sat at the head of a long table, holding a glass of red wine. On the table in front of him was an opened letter.
Mihawk read the simple but significant letter silently. It was the first summons to the Shichibukai since the system was established.
After a moment's thought, Mihawk decided to respond to the summons. The Shichibukai title had brought him many benefits, so he felt obliged to go.
Soon after, the sound of the castle's door closing echoed through the misty forest as Mihawk, carrying his cross-shaped sword, headed toward the coast.
In the forest, baboons wielding various weapons paused their battles and watched Mihawk's departure with reverence. Once he was out of sight, the baboons resumed their fights, their main form of entertainment.
…
North Sea, World Government member nation, Sistad Kingdom.
As an important naval base, Sistad Kingdom welcomed several warships into its port hours later.
Led by Garp, the navy disembarked.
"What a 'frightening' sight," Kizaru commented sarcastically, spotting the newly arrived Shichibukai.
"Scum of the sea," Akainu muttered disdainfully.
Donquixote Doflamingo, having just arrived, felt a hint of fear seeing Garp, Kizaru, and Akainu. Any one of them was a nightmare for the Donquixote family.
Unlike Doflamingo, Crocodile, Bartholomew Kuma, and Mihawk remained calm and indifferent.
Doflamingo, constantly scanning his surroundings, muttered, "Fufufu, they sent three monsters and a few more. What do they plan to do in the North Sea?" Clearly, he felt that Germa and Kaido's Hundred Beasts Pirates alone didn't warrant such a large naval presence.