The door slid open again.
Stussy stepped back into the room, composed as ever. Ryo, leaning against the wall, opened one eye lazily. He didn't trust her. Not even a little.
But for now, she was aligned with them.
That was enough.
Stussy: I checked outside, and we're completely surrounded in all directions.
Before anyone else could respond, there was a blur of blond and a burst of floating hearts.
Sanji appeared beside her in an instant, practically glowing.
Sanji: Hello, Stussy!
The assassin didn't even flinch. She continued speaking as if he weren't vibrating next to her.
Stussy: It looks like one hundred ships. I'd assume there are around 30,000 Marines.
Nami: 30,000?!
Stussy: Admiral Kizaru is there too.
A subtle tension settled over the room at the mention of his name.
Vegapunk stroked his chin thoughtfully, tongue hanging slightly as always.
Vegapunk: My, this is quite the event.
Sanji, however, was unfazed by the looming armada. He was already spinning back toward Stussy with another burst of devotion.
Sanji: Welcome back, my darling! Would you care for a cup of coffee?
Stussy smiled sweetly—dangerously sweet.
Stussy: Why, thank you.
She then turned her head toward Lucci, her expression immediately hardening.
Stussy: Stop glaring at me.
Ryo rolled his eyes and continued eating. He had burned through a significant amount of energy fighting S-Wolf. His muscles still felt the strain beneath his clothes. Replenishing came first.
Across the room, Vegapunk turned toward Nami.
Vegapunk: So, how does our route look?
Nami lifted the log pose, studying the needles carefully. Her brows furrowed.
Nami: The log pose hasn't recorded a signal. But we still have one steady needle from Wano... seems we'll be going northeast.
Vegapunk's eyes widened slightly.
Vegapunk: Ahh... that would be Elbaph.
The word hung in the air.
Ryo nearly choked on his food before swallowing hard, a slow grin spreading across his face.
Ryo (thinking): An entire island of warriors... just imagine how strong I could become there. Haha!
Across the room—
Luffy/Ussop: Elbaph, really?!
Both of them had stars in their eyes, pure childlike wonder exploding across their faces.
Luffy: We're going!
Ussop: Finally!
Nami couldn't help smiling at their reaction.
Nami: Guess so.
The two turned toward each other, barely containing themselves.
Luffy/Ussop: And what's there?!
They wrapped their arms around each other's necks and shouted in unison.
Luffy/Ussop: The giants!!
They immediately began jumping and chanting, spinning in circles like excited kids.
Giants! Giants! Giants!
Despite the situation outside, the energy inside the lab shifted. Excitement replaced dread.
The plan quickly formed.
It was currently impossible to leave through the port. The Navy had sealed it completely. But since they were heading northeast—that meant the backside of the island.
Luckily, the Sunny was positioned right beside Vegaforce-01.
With its rocket propulsion, Vegaforce could carry them over the blockade. Once that ran out of power, the Sunny could activate Coup de Burst and launch itself another kilometer into open waters.
Vegapunk turned sharply.
Vegapunk: Lilith, take the Sunny to the backside of the island.
Lilith nodded and moved immediately.
Vegapunk, Edison, and Atlas gathered around the console, already working to crack York's passcode and deactivate the Frontier Dome.
Meanwhile, Luffy, Lilith, Bonney, and Franky began heading out toward the Sunny.
Robin's calm voice stopped Ryo mid-bite.
Robin: Hey, Ryo. Why don't you go with them?
The fox boy blinked, genuinely confused. His tail swished lazily behind him.
Ryo: Hmm? Why?
Robin's lips curved faintly.
Robin: Because you might get the chance to fight Admiral Kizaru... if you stick around with Luffy.
A wide smirk spread across Ryo's face instantly.
Without another word, he pushed off the wall and headed straight for the exit, red hair flowing behind him.
He didn't slow down.
He leapt straight through the doorway—high above the ground—diving into open air where soft artificial clouds waited below.
Ryo (thinking): Yeah! Let's get off this island!
Wind whipped around him as he dropped fast, his hair and clothes snapping in the air.
Ryo: Gotta get that Frontier Dome down quickly. But we also need to be ready to move the second it drops... otherwise we're about to get swarmed by an armada.
He landed on the soft cloud with a slight bounce, knees bending to absorb the impact. Without hesitation, he pushed off and sprinted forward, chasing after the others.
Then—
He felt it.
His Observation Haki flared instinctively.
His instincts screamed at the same time.
The air trembled.
A violent shaking rippled through Fabophase, followed by a gigantic flash of blinding light that tore across the horizon.
Ryo slowed.
A thin line of sweat slid down his temple as faint lightning crackled around his fingers.
Ryo: So... he finally showed up.
He knew that presence.
He would never forget it.
The man who had nearly taken his life on Sabaody.
The man he had clashed with again at Marineford, barely surviving.
One of the three Admirals.
Kizaru.
And that's a wrap
This'll be fun
