I, Kizaru, only came to the chat group after I became invincible

Chapter 485 Insiders
"What is it?" the bartender asked while wiping the glasses.

"Have you heard of a pirate called 'Scaling Master Cassius'?" Sanji asked.

The bartender paused for a moment.

“Cassius?” He frowned. “That name… I feel like I’ve heard it a long time ago.”

"Really?" Sanji perked up. "Please tell me!"

The bartender put down his glass and thought for a moment.

“That was many years ago,” he said, “probably ten or twenty years ago. There was a pirate who called himself the ‘Scaling Master,’ and his ability was very strange; he could change the size of objects.”

"That's him!" Sanji exclaimed excitedly. "Do you know where he is right now?"

“Well…” The bartender shook his head. “I’m not too sure. That guy’s mysterious, his whereabouts are unpredictable. I heard he’s looking for something, wandering around everywhere.”

"What is it?" Sanji pressed.

“I don’t know,” the bartender said. “Some say it’s treasure, some say it’s ancient ruins, there are all sorts of theories.”

"Has he ever been to this island?" Sanji continued to ask.

“He’s been here before,” the bartender nodded. “More than once. The last time was probably ten years ago? He stayed here for a few days, replenishing supplies, and it seemed he was also gathering some intelligence.”

"What are you asking about?" Sanji pressed.

“It seems to be about the Eye of Eternity,” the bartender said. “He’s been asking around, asking everyone if they know where the Eye of Eternity is.”

"The Eye of Eternity?" Sanji asked, puzzled. "What is that?"

“I don’t know either,” the bartender shrugged. “It sounds like some legendary treasure.”

At this moment, a drunken old sailor chimed in.

“The Eye of Eternity?” he hiccuped. “I…I’ve heard of it.”

Sanji immediately turned to him.

“You know?” he asked.

“I know a little.” The old sailor took another sip of his drink. “It’s…it’s an ancient legend. It’s said that deep within the Grand Line, there’s a mysterious island, and on that island stands an ancient temple, enshrining the ‘Eye of Eternity.’”

"What is the purpose of the Eye of Eternity?" Sanji asked.

“It is said,” the old sailor said mysteriously, “that the Eye of Eternity can grant people eternal power. Any ability will be enhanced, and any wish can be fulfilled.”

“That sounds unreal,” Sanji frowned.

“I don’t know if it’s true,” the old sailor said, “but that Cassius seems to believe it a lot. He said that if he could find the Eye of Eternity, his powers would be permanent, and he could even change the size of the entire world.”

"Change the whole world?" Sanji was shocked.

"Just the talk of a madman," the old sailor waved his hand. "Don't take it seriously."

But Sanji had already obtained important information. He returned to the table and told his companions everything he had heard.

“The Eye of Eternity.” Robin mused, “I think I’ve seen this name in some ancient book.”

"Is it true?" Nami asked.

“I’m not sure,” Robin said, “but if Cassius believes it exists, he’ll definitely go looking for it.”

“The question is, where is that island?” Sauron said.

“I’ll probably have to find an intelligence dealer for this,” Robin said. “Only professional intelligence dealers have this kind of confidential information.”

“Then let’s go find the information merchant!” Luffy said.

“Wait a minute,” Nami interrupted, “Information brokers aren’t cheap. And we don’t even know who to contact.”

“I know someone,” Borsalino suddenly said.

Everyone looked at him.

“There’s a very famous intelligence dealer on this island,” he said slowly, “codenamed ‘Thousand Eyes.’ It’s said there’s no intelligence he doesn’t know.”

“Thousand Eyes?” Nami asked. “Where can we find him?”

“In ‘Shadow Alley’ on the west side of town,” Borsalino said. “That’s where the intelligence dealers gather.”

“Let’s go now!” Luffy stood up.

"Wait a minute," Sanji said. "Let's eat first."

At that moment, the bartender brought over a table full of dishes.

“Come on, eat it while it’s hot!” he said enthusiastically.

"I'm starting!" Luffy immediately began to eat heartily.

After eating and drinking their fill, the group left the tavern and headed west.

The atmosphere was noticeably different on the west side of town. The streets were narrower, the lights were dim, and the buildings on both sides looked dilapidated. People passing by were also in a hurry, their eyes wary.

"This is Shadow Alley," Nami said nervously. "It doesn't feel safe."

“Don’t worry,” Zoro said. “We’re here.”

They entered a narrower alley. The alley was almost dark, with only occasional candlelight filtering through the windows.

"Where is the Thousand Eyes shop?" Sanji asked.

“It should be just ahead,” Borsalino said.

Sure enough, at the end of the alley, there was an inconspicuous door. A small sign hung on the door, with a picture of an eye.

“This is it,” Borsalino said.

Luffy pushed open the door.

Behind the door was a small room, dimly lit by candlelight. The room was filled with bookshelves, piled high with various documents and books.

A thin, middle-aged man sat behind a desk, wearing thick glasses, reading a document.

He looked up when he heard the door open.

“Welcome.” His voice was calm. “I am Thousand Eyes. What information do you need?”

“We want to know information about ‘Scaler Cassius’,” Robin said directly.

Behind Qianyan's glasses, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

“Cassius?” he said. “That’s a very old name. Why are you looking for him?”

“That’s our business,” Zoro said coldly. “You just need to tell us the information.”

“Of course,” Thousand Eyes smiled, “but information comes at a price.”

"How much?" Nami asked.

“Basic information about Cassius will cost one million Berries,” Thousand Eyes said. “To know his exact location, we’ll need ten million Berries.”

"What?!" Nami exclaimed, "Ten million?!"

“This is a fair price,” Thousand Eyes said calmly. “Cassius is an extremely dangerous and mysterious figure; information about him is very difficult to obtain.”

“We’ll pay,” Borsalino suddenly said.

"Uncle Kizaru?" Luffy looked at him in surprise. "I have some savings here," Borsalino said slowly, "consider it an investment."

He took a wad of banknotes from his pocket and placed them on the table.

Qianyan counted them and nodded in satisfaction.

“Okay, the deal is done,” he said. “What do you want to know?”

Qianyan pushed up his glasses and pulled a thick file from the bookshelf.

“Regarding ‘The Scaler’ Cassius,” he opened the file, “let me start from the beginning.”

Everyone listened attentively.

"Cassius, real name Cassius Melvin," Thousand Eyes read from the data, "Born in the North Sea, fifty-six years old this year. Twenty-five years ago, he ate the Scaling Fruit, gaining the ability to change the size of objects."

“Scaling Fruit,” Robin wrote in his notebook.

“This fruit’s ability is very special,” Thousand Eyes continued, “It can enlarge or shrink any object it touches, including living things. It can enlarge objects to ten times their original size and shrink them to one percent of their original size.”

“One percent,” Nami calculated, “that means a normal person can be shrunk to only two centimeters?”

“Theoretically yes,” Thousand Eyes nodded. “But according to the records, his most frequent scaling ratio is about one-tenth of the original size. The residents of Spring Breeze Island should be at this scale.”

"Then why do they inherit this size?" Chopper asked, puzzled.

“That’s the most terrifying aspect of the Scaling Fruit,” Thousand Eyes said. “If he uses the ability of ‘permanence’ while changing the size, then this change will be etched into the organism’s genes and may even be passed on to future generations.”

"Such a thing is possible?!" Everyone was shocked.

“Yes,” Thousand Eyes nodded, “However, ‘permanence’ requires a lot of physical strength and has a certain failure rate. Cassius has clearly mastered this technology.”

"That bastard," Zoro gritted his teeth.

"How do we undo this?" Luffy asked eagerly.

“There are two methods,” Thousand Eyes said. “The first is for Cassius himself to voluntarily dissolve it. But given his character, that’s almost impossible.”

"What about the second one?" Nami asked.

“The second method,” Thousand Eyes adjusted his glasses, “is that there’s a short window of opportunity, about twenty-four hours, before he applies ‘permanence.’ If you defeat him during this period and render him unconscious, the ability will automatically dissipate.”

“But the inhabitants of Spring Breeze Island have been here for over twenty years,” Robin frowned.

“Yes, so the second method won’t work on them,” Thousand Eyes said. “The only way is for Cassius himself to dispel it.”

"Then I'll beat him until he agrees!" Luffy clenched his fist.

“This might be difficult,” Thousand Eyes said. “Cassius’s strength should not be underestimated. His bounty is 380 million Berries, which makes him one of the top pirates in the first half of the Grand Line.”

"Three hundred and eighty million," Nami swallowed hard. "That's more than Luffy's."

"The bounty isn't everything," Zoro said coldly. "Even the strongest person has a weakness."

“That’s right.” Thousand Eyes nodded. “Cassius’s weakness is that he needs to touch his target to activate his ability. If he can maintain distance, it’s difficult for him to use his ability.”

“This information is very useful,” Robin wrote down.

“Furthermore,” Thousand Eyes continued, “his ability is less effective against users of Haki. If the target’s Haki is strong enough, it can resist some of the scaling effect.”

"That's impressive," Luffy thought to himself.

“Next is his whereabouts,” Thousand Eyes turned to another page, “According to intelligence, Cassius has been wandering the Grand Line for years, searching for the legendary ‘Eye of Eternity.’”

"Is it the one that the old sailor in the tavern was talking about?" Sanji asked.

“Yes.” Thousand Eyes nodded. “The ‘Eternal Eye’ is a relic of an ancient civilization, said to be able to enhance the abilities of Devil Fruits, even allowing them to break through their original limitations.”

"Breaking the limits?" Franky became interested.

“For example,” Thousand Eyes explained, “Cassius’s current scaling range is limited, and permanentization requires a lot of stamina. But if he obtains the Eye of Eternity, his abilities might become stronger, and permanentization would become effortless.”

"Isn't that even more dangerous?" Nami said nervously.

“Indeed.” Thousand Eyes nodded. “That’s why many people are trying to stop him from finding the Eye of Eternity.”

"A lot of people?" Zoro asked.

“Yes,” Thousand Eyes said, “including the Navy. Naval Headquarters has listed Cassius as a high-risk target and dispatched multiple forces to hunt him down.”

“Navy?” Borsalino’s eyes flickered.

“That’s right.” Thousand Eyes glanced at him. “And just a month ago, Cassius had a large-scale conflict with the Navy.”

"A month ago?" Everyone perked up.

“Yes.” Thousand Eyes turned to the latest page. “The location was in the ‘Stormy Seas,’ three days’ voyage from here. At that time, the Vice Admiral led five warships to besiege Cassius’s ship.”

"Five warships." Nami exclaimed in surprise, "That's quite a force."

“Yes,” Thousand Eyes nodded, “but even so, Cassius still escaped.”

"How did you escape?" Zoro asked.

"It's said he used his power to shrink his ship to the size of a small boat," Thousand Eyes said, "and escaped in the chaos. The navy's cannons ran out of fire."

"You can do that?" Chopper exclaimed in surprise.

“That’s the flexibility of the Scaling Fruit,” Thousand Eyes said. “He can change the size of his ship at any time, making him extremely difficult to catch.”

“And then what?” Robin asked. “Where did he go?”

Qianyan shook his head.

“This is the limit of what I know,” he said. “After the battle, Cassius vanished. Nobody knows where he went. Some say he was badly wounded and went into hiding to recuperate. Others say he found a clue to the Eye of Eternity and is on his way.”

"So, the trail has gone cold?" Nami said disappointedly.

"This is the current publicly available information," Thousand Eyes said. "If you want more detailed information, you'll probably have to contact the Navy."

"The Navy?" Luffy frowned. "Will they tell us?"

“Generally speaking, no,” Thousand Eyes said. “The Navy’s intelligence system is very closed; unless you’re an insider, it’s very difficult to obtain information.”

Borsalino suddenly stood up.

“I have a way,” he said slowly.

Everyone looked at him.

"Uncle Kizaru?" Luffy asked, puzzled.

“Don’t forget, I used to be a Marine Admiral,” Borsalino said. “Although I’ve left the Navy, I still have some old friends there.”

"You're going to find the Navy?" Nami asked in surprise.

“It’s not about going to them,” Borsalino shook his head, “it’s about making contact. I know a few reliable people who should be able to provide intelligence.”

“But…” Sanji hesitated, “if you’re with us now, won’t the Navy see you as a traitor?”

“Possibly,” Borsalino laughed, “but some people will understand my choice. Besides, I don’t intend to reveal my location; it’s just remote communication.”

“Are you sure?” Zoro looked at him seriously. “Doing this could get you into trouble.”

(End of this chapter)