After Ain graduated from the Navy Academy, Gion, having learned that Ain was Wood's sister and understanding why she had joined the Navy, immediately transferred her to serve as her assistant.
Ain's rapid rise through the ranks was due in part to her natural abilities, but Gion's guidance also played a significant role.
Over the years, through careful observation, Gion had come to trust Ain completely. Wanting to prevent further misunderstandings between Ain and her brother, Gion revealed some of the truth about Wood's situation to her.
As a result, Ain had become one of the few people aware of Wood's true mission. Upon learning the truth, her admiration for her brother, who had endured so much for their cause, only deepened.
"According to the information we gathered this morning, it seems that Wood left Alabasta last night. We must have just missed him," Gion said.
It wasn't only Ain who had hoped to see Wood after all these years. Gion, too, was curious about how Wood was faring.
Their mission to Alabasta wasn't only to calm the royal family; they also had questions for Wood and a special assignment from headquarters to deliver to him.
When Smoker and Tashigi handed Crocodile over to Gion, Crocodile, for reasons unknown, revealed that Alabasta had an ancient weapon known as 'Pluton.'
Due to the significance of the ancient weapons, the Navy Headquarters decided to handle Crocodile's case differently. Instead of sending him directly to Impel Down, they offered him a reduced sentence in exchange for information about 'Pluton.'
Though Gion and Ain expected Crocodile to resist interrogation, they were surprised when he willingly provided the information about 'Pluton' without the need for coercion.
Following his lead, Gion and Ain snuck into Alabasta's royal tomb and found traces of a Poneglyph. Unfortunately, the part of the wall containing the Poneglyph's information had been deliberately destroyed.
Having gained vital information about 'Pluton,' the Navy couldn't simply let the matter rest. They interrogated Crocodile further and discovered that aside from him, two others had been present at the time—Wood and Straw Hat Luffy.
If anyone had copied the Poneglyph's information and then destroyed the original, it had to be one of them.
Crocodile's intention was clear: if he was going down, he wanted to drag Wood and Luffy with him.
However, what Crocodile didn't know was that Wood was still working as a Navy undercover agent. Since the ones investigating were Gion and Ain, who fully trusted Wood, they immediately dismissed him as a suspect, focusing their attention on Luffy instead.
Luffy, having defeated Crocodile and possibly possessing information about 'Pluton,' was deemed a significant threat by the Navy. His bounty was raised to 120 million Berries, and orders were given to capture him alive.
Due to the importance of 'Pluton,' Gion's other missions were put on hold as she was tasked with pursuing the Straw Hat Pirates.
As for the mission Gion had for Wood, it was one she had initially been assigned herself. But since she had to chase the Straw Hats, she needed Wood to take over.
She had hoped to explain the mission to Wood in person, but since he had already left Alabasta, she had no choice but to contact him via Den Den Mushi.
"Buru-buru-buru!"
Meanwhile, on Wood's ship, as they sailed away from Alabasta with some crude oil they planned to refine, his Den Den Mushi suddenly rang. He pulled it out, and upon seeing who it was, Robin's face immediately darkened. She knew that particular Den Den Mushi connected Wood with the Navy.
And when the female voice came through the speaker, Robin's displeasure deepened—it was someone she particularly despised.
"Vice Admiral Wood, regarding the situation in Alabasta, Fleet Admiral Sengoku has praised your handling of it. However, he also said that in the future, when dealing with sensitive intelligence, you should report to Headquarters first to avoid losing the Navy's trust in places like Alabasta."
That's right. After over a decade of diligent undercover work, combined with the military supplies he occasionally provided to the Navy, Wood had risen to the rank of Vice Admiral.
If things had gone his way, he would have requested a quiet post in a remote branch and retired peacefully. Unfortunately, the better his standing on the seas, the more valuable he became to the Navy.
Hearing Gion's praise, Wood was taken aback. He hadn't really done anything in Alabasta, had he?
Crocodile had been defeated by the Straw Hat Pirates, the war was stopped by Princess Vivi, and Smoker's marines cleaned up the aftermath. As for Wood, he had just been there to observe and check in. Was destroying the Poneglyph really considered a great accomplishment?
"Wasn't it you who defeated Warlord Crocodile?" Gion continued. "Smoker reported that it was Straw Hat Luffy, but no one at Headquarters believes that a pirate with a mere 30 million Berries bounty could do such a thing.
"Sengoku is convinced that you received intelligence about Crocodile's plot to seize Alabasta, and that's why you went to stop him. But because of your undercover status, your success had to be credited to the Navy, and Smoker is taking the credit. After all, he is one of your few old acquaintances, so I assume you don't mind."
Hearing this, Wood finally understood why Sengoku had praised him. From the Navy's perspective, Wood was the one who had stopped Crocodile's plot and defeated him.
Wood wanted to explain, but whether Gion believed him or not, Headquarters certainly wouldn't. After all, there was a world of difference between "the Navy saved Alabasta" and "pirates saved Alabasta." Even if the Straw Hats had done everything, the Navy would never admit it publicly.
"Gion, there's more to this than just Alabasta, right? You wouldn't contact me just to talk about that," Wood said, already guessing there was a more pressing reason for her call.
"After the Alabasta incident, Headquarters suspects the Straw Hat Pirates have obtained information about the ancient weapon 'Pluton.' They've tasked me with pursuing them. As for the mission I was supposed to complete, I'm assigning it to you now. Sengoku also believes you're better suited for it."
Gion then detailed the mission, as well as the individuals Wood would be working with. Upon hearing the specifics, Wood's face twisted in frustration.
"That old man Sengoku has assigned me another dangerous and difficult mission. I've been a Vice Admiral all this time, yet almost no one knows, I've never received a salary, and Headquarters still owes me a ton of supplies! Now they're sending me on another life-threatening task. Doesn't that old man feel even a little guilty?!"
The mission Gion outlined wasn't life-threatening, but it was far from easy.
Big Mom, one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, was hosting a tea party soon. Wood's mission was to attend the tea party, make contact with Stussy, the "Queen of the Pleasure District," and work to inflame tensions between the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates.
Though both were Four Emperors, Big Mom and Kaido had never been on the best of terms. Recently, skirmishes over territory had further strained relations between the two pirate crews.
Wood's task was to assist Stussy in convincing Big Mom to take action against Kaido's crew.
Unknown to many, Stussy wasn't just a ruler of the underworld; she was also an undercover agent for the World Government, a member of the most powerful intelligence agency, CP0.
The Navy had not disclosed Wood's undercover status to Stussy, only informing her that they were cooperating with him. Sengoku had no intention of revealing Wood as the Navy's secret asset.
Because of Wood's unique position, operating in the gray areas between the law, the Navy, and the underworld, it made sense for him to work with someone like Stussy.
"Because of the importance of 'Pluton,' I have to focus on pursuing the Straw Hat Pirates," Gion explained. "If you don't want this mission, I can have Ain contact Stussy instead. But for Ain's safety, I would only ask her to exchange information and not attend Big Mom's tea party."
Besides Gion herself, Ain was the most capable person she had with her. If it was only about passing on intelligence, Gion was confident Ain could handle it.
"Are you out of your mind?!" Wood exclaimed. "Big Mom's tea parties are held in her stronghold, Whole Cake Island. The attendees are usually the rulers of the underworld, and Big Mom's Sweet Commanders aren't to be trifled with. Sending Ain, a Navy captain, into that kind of danger is a death sentence! The Navy has plenty of powerful officers; send one of them instead!"
As Gion had said, exchanging information without showing herself to Big Mom or provoking her into action against Kaido wouldn't be too dangerous. But Wood hadn't seen Ain in years, and to him, she was still the shy, timid little sister he remembered.
Whole Cake Island was the heart of Big Mom's empire. Any Navy officer caught there wouldn't survive.
As Ain's brother, Wood didn't want her anywhere near such danger.
"She needs to grow, Wood," Gion replied. "Ain's overall strength has already surpassed that of most Navy captains. And with her Devil Fruit ability, she's perfectly suited for infiltration missions. Other than you, I can't think of anyone more qualified."
Ain had eaten the Return-Return Fruit, a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit that allowed her to "reverse" time for objects and people she touched.
It wasn't a literal reversal in the sense of turning back time on the world, but more of a temporal regression. Anything Ain touched—whether living or not—would revert to its state 12 years prior.
Ain's current limit was a 12-year regression, but this could improve with further mastery of her power.
———————-
Next bonus 600
________________________
P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 400+ at p@treon.com/Betek (@->a)