MTLNOVEL Chapter 285: 285 Dressrosa
"No, there's no need to trouble Lord Lynch over something trivial," Hiruzen said firmly, his stance completely opposite to Danzo's.
"If Lynch-sama hasn't given us any instructions, it means he trusts us to handle the Germa family on our own." He exhaled a cloud of smoke.
"If we run to him for every little thing, won't that make us look incompetent?"
Danzo frowned. "Hiruzen, it's better to be cautious. Just let me ask him."
"If you want to ask, go ahead. But I won't."
"You stubborn old fool!" Danzo snapped.
"That's enough!" Hiruzen suddenly raised his voice, pretending to be angry as he set his pipe down with a thud.
"Danzo, I am the Hokage!"
He knew his old friend well—Danzo was capable, but he always loved to argue.
"You'll regret this, Hiruzen!"
Bang!
Danzo stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
Hiruzen leaned back, eyes half-closed in satisfaction.
Honestly, if a day passed without hearing that door slam, he'd probably feel uncomfortable.
...….
New World, Second Half of the Grand Line.
"Waste! You're all useless!" Doflamingo's face twisted in fury as he slammed his fist on the table. "You couldn't even do something as simple as setting off a bomb!"
The room fell into silence. His executives stood stiffly behind him, too afraid to speak.
Hah...
Taking a deep breath, Doflamingo forced himself to calm down. He leaned back in his chair, fingers interlocked in front of him. "Well, at least I covered my tracks. Lynch won't be able to trace this back to me."
Even if the bio-bomb failed, it didn't matter. He would keep sending people to disrupt West Blue.
A thousand days to be a thief, but not a thousand days to guard against one.
But what Doflamingo didn't know was that Lynch was already in Dressrosa.
With the power of the Window-Window Fruit, Lynch could now travel anywhere instantly. All he needed were the coordinates, and a space-time passage would open.
Stepping through the shimmering portal, Lynch, Tashigi, and Kuina quietly arrived in a secluded corner of Dressrosa.
"Wow! So many cute little toys!"
As they walked through the bustling streets, Tashigi and Kuina's eyes lit up.
Everywhere, small toys entertained tourists, and even chefs and waiters were living toys, working as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
But something felt off.
Kuina's expression turned serious. "There's something wrong with these toys. Their intelligence is too high—far beyond what the technology in this country should be capable of."
She closed her eyes, activating her Observation Haki. And then...
Sadness.
A deep, overwhelming sorrow radiated from the toys around her.
How could this be?
Ever since Lynch instructed her to focus on developing her Observation Haki, Kuina had awakened a unique ability.
Unlike advanced Observation Haki that could predict the future, read minds, or hear the voice of all things, Kuina's power was different—closer to Princess Otohime's gift.
It was the Mind's Eye, a legendary ability in Kendo.
With her eyes closed, she could "see" everything around her in a 360-degree view, as if from a god's perspective.
Enemies caught within this range appeared to move one-third slower, making them easier to track and strike.
More than that, she could feel the emotions within people's souls—just like how Princess Otohime could sense good and evil.
"Smart. He noticed something was wrong so quickly." Lynch was impressed.
He had often wondered why no one else seemed to notice the obvious strangeness of these toys. Was it really that hard to see?
Surely, not everyone was as clueless as the adorable Tashigi?
The answer was simple—civilians were blind to it, and those who saw the truth were too afraid to speak.
Perfect.
This was his chance to win public favor.
Defeating Doflamingo was easy, but Lynch had bigger plans—he wanted Dressrosa for himself.
But there was a problem.
With Lynch still based in West Blue, claiming Dressrosa openly in the New World would be a direct challenge to Kaido. The next day, the Beast Pirates would come crashing down on the island.
So, he needed a puppet.
The Liku royal family.
If he could make them indebted to him—grateful beyond words—then they could govern in his name, while he controlled things from the shadows.
And earning their gratitude?
That's not too hard.
"See these toys? They're actually transformed citizens."
Lynch's words sent a shiver down Tashigi's spine. She looked around, suddenly uneasy.
"But… wouldn't their families notice if so many people disappeared?"
"Doflamingo has a subordinate with the Childlike Fruit—a girl who looks like a little loli," Lynch explained. "If she touches you, you'll turn into a toy."
"And once you become a toy, not only do you lose the ability to resist, but everyone forgets you ever existed."
Tashigi paled. "That's terrifying… What kind of Devil Fruit does that?"
Even in broad daylight, a chill ran down her spine. She instinctively moved closer to Kuina.
Lynch chuckled. "Relax. Just don't let her touch you."
"Come on, let's take a look at Doflamingo's territory first."
Dressrosa, the so-called land of love, passion, and toys, was bustling and lively—on the surface.
But Lynch knew better.
It was a city built on suffering, its prosperity fueled by human lives.
As they walked through the crowded streets, the cheerful noise of tourists filled the air.
The steady flow of people brought a lot of wealth to the kingdom.
As they passed a stall, Kuina pulled out fifty beli and bought a piece of black satin from a toy shop owner, tying it over her eyes.
She had discovered that constantly using Observation Haki for navigation was an effective way to train.
"One day, I'll be able to pull meteorites from the sky, just like Brother Lynch said."
Tashigi, trying to imitate Kuina, took a few steps—only to bump straight into a passerby.
The tourists around them burst into laughter.
Some onlookers even looked at them with sympathy.
"Poor little sisters… they're both blind?"
At that moment, Issho, who happened to be in the crowd, turned his head.
"Blind? Who's calling me?" he asked.
A few people took notice of him.
"Oh my, another blind man?"
"Why are there so many blind people today?"
A kind-hearted person, mistaking Issho for a beggar, shoved a thousand beli into his hands.
"Here, uncle. This should be enough for a few meals."
Issho opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he simply accepted their kindness without protest.
He had just flown in from across the sea and hadn't even had time to freshen up.
Sure, he might be a little dusty but did that really make him look like a beggar?
Issho began to question his life choices.
Lynch spotted Issho and walked over with a smile.
"Uncle Issho, do you still remember me?"
Issho tilted his head slightly.
"The guy from the casino, right?"
In Issho's Observation Haki, every person's soul shone with different hues based on their intentions—good or evil.
White, black, orange.
No matter how much a person changed, their soul's color usually stayed within a certain range.
But Lynch?
His soul was so ridiculously colorful that it was impossible to forget.
Lynch chuckled.
"So, Uncle Issho still remembers me."
He stepped in to stop the well-meaning strangers from handing Issho more money.
"It's fate that we meet again. How about I treat you to a drink?"
.
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TO BE CONTINUED
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