Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 40 Invited to Participate in the Battle of Marineford!?

Alabasta, the land of rain.

In the basement of the Rain Banquet Casino, in Crocodile's office.

At this moment, Crocodile was sitting in his boss's chair, with his legs propped up on the table, a cigar in his mouth, talking to the Den Den Mushi in his hand.

"You've already seen him?" Crocodile asked.

Nico Robin's voice came through the Den Den Mushi, and she replied softly, "I saw him. He's in the Little Garden right now."

"So, how's the matter I entrusted to you going?" Crocodile asked again.

"It wasn't particularly smooth. He is indeed somewhat interested in you, but he didn't accept my offer to recruit you. He said he would personally travel to Alabasta to meet with you later," Robin replied.

After a slight pause, Robin glanced at Bane, who was sitting quietly beside her, and added to the Den Den Mushi, "But I think you'd better not be too optimistic. That guy is ambitious. His interest in you may not be because he wants to cooperate with you. I think he's more likely to want to get rid of you."

"Hehehe," Crocodile's sinister laughter came through the Den Den Mushi. After laughing, he said nonchalantly, "I already told you, don't treat me like a second-rate pirate. I like ambitious people; they're easier to use."

However, after a moment, Crocodile asked again, "Did you find out anything about his background?"

"He has a strong presence and is quite confident. Although he looks a bit rough, he's not reckless. His mind might be rather complicated. As for the rest, I haven't tested him. I think that guy has a bad temper. With my strength, I might anger him and be in danger." Robin naturally provided some information.

Crocodile didn't think much of it. Although he didn't trust Nico Robin, he didn't think that Nico Robin would betray him just because of such a simple contact with that guy named Bane. After all, it didn't make sense.

At most, Nico Robin might have some inappropriate thoughts, such as using that guy to keep her in check or something.

But Crocodile didn't care about any of that; he was very confident in himself.

Thinking that Nico Robin would need to decipher the Poneglyphs later, Crocodile said, "Then stop probing and focus on your safety."

"I understand," Robin replied softly.

"So, should I go back first? Or should I stay here and keep an eye on him? It seems he's not planning to leave the Little Garden anytime soon," Robin asked again.

Crocodile was puzzled and asked curiously, "Why? Is there anything worth lingering in the little garden?"

"Uh..." Robin hesitated for a moment, then said, "He seems to really like the dinosaur meat barbecue here, saying he wants to eat the dinosaurs to extinction here. Is that a valid reason?"

Crocodile was stunned by these words and remained silent for a long time. After regaining his senses, he sneered, "Then let him eat his fill. I don't need him for anything right now. As for you, if you don't have anything else to do, come back as soon as possible."

"Understood," Robin readily agreed.

After hanging up the Den Den Mushi, Bane smiled and said, "You did well. He shouldn't suspect anything, right?"

"Crocodile is a suspicious person by nature, so I gave him more negative information, which will actually dispel some of his doubts," Robin said calmly.

She had worked under Crocodile for many years and knew his temperament quite well.

Seeing this, Bane didn't say anything more, and said, "In that case, you should go back to Alabasta first."

"What about these eyes I left beside you? Do you want me to take them with me?" Robin didn't object, but instead brought up another matter.

Bane waved his hand and said, "No need, keep them. They'll all be my subordinates from now on anyway."

Just as Bane finished speaking, the volcano on Little Garden Island suddenly erupted, which, like a signal, alerted the two overlords of the island.

Those were the two captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates a hundred years ago: Blue Demon Dorry and Red Demon Brogy.

The central area of ​​the small garden seemed to have turned into an arena, where two giant figures gradually emerged from the dense forest. As soon as they met, they immediately brandished their huge weapons and began to fight.

Robin, clearly unaware of the two giants present, looked at the situation with surprise and asked, "What's this?"

"It's nothing, just two warriors who have fought for honor for a hundred years," Bane waved his hand and said.

However, just as he was watching the battle of the giants with great interest, Nami's Den Den Mushi, which she had stuffed into "Nami Valley," started ringing.

Nami calmly took out a Den Den Mushi from her pocket, glanced at it, and handed it to Bane, saying, "It's for Mr. Smoker."

"Smoker?" Bane took the Den Den Mushi, still carrying Nami's scent and warmth, with some confusion. He answered it curiously, "Smoker? What do you want?"

"Excuse me, Bane," Smoker greeted him first, then said, "As you guessed before, our Navy has confirmed the operation against the Whitebeard Pirates, and the location will be our Marine Headquarters, Marineford."

"Oh?" Bane asked, even more puzzled, "Although I did have some suspicions before, why are you suddenly telling me all this?"

"Vice Admiral Garp means that, as one of the core members of this operation, you would like to go to Marineford to observe the operation and gain a deeper understanding of our Navy," Smoker inquired.

Bane thought for a moment, then retorted, "Observing the battle is just a pretense; the real purpose is to lure the Whitebeard Pirates here, isn't it?"

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

Although the Navy already has Teach and Ace, the more bait the better. Bane, who is recognized by the Whitebeard Pirates as the murderer of Thatch and has a bounty of 500 million Berries, would give the Whitebeard Pirates another reason to come if he also appeared at the Navy Headquarters.

"Ahem." Smoker was clearly embarrassed after being exposed, so he quickly said, "At least our invitation was for observation. As for other reasons, I can't say much. Of course, it's an invitation, so it depends on your wishes. If you don't want to, we won't force you."

To Smoker's surprise, Bane did not refuse. Instead, he smiled and agreed, "No problem. I am very interested in witnessing such a world-class battle live. Moreover, I have great respect for our former Marine Admiral, Zephyr. To be honest, the reason I went to sea to become a pirate hunter is because I admire him. If I go to our Marine Headquarters this time, please be sure to introduce me to him."

Actually, inviting Bane to the Marine Headquarters wasn't Garp's idea, but rather that of Fleet Admiral Sengoku. However, Smoker couldn't say that to Bane, so he pushed the blame onto Garp.

The intention of the Warring States period was undoubtedly the same as Bann's guess: to add more bargaining chips to the war effort.

Upon further thought, introducing Bane to Professor Zephyr wasn't particularly difficult or troublesome, so Smoker readily agreed, "No problem. I should be heading to headquarters in a while. You..."

"I'm currently in the Grand Line. If I get there first, I'll wait for you on the Sabaody Archipelago," Bane replied after a moment's thought.

"Okay, it's settled then," Smoker agreed.

The two didn't say much after that and quickly hung up the Den Den Mushi.

Bane glanced at the Den Den Mushi in his hand, then asked Nami, who was standing beside him, "What's the date today?"

"April 26th, what's wrong?" Nami replied casually, taking Bane's Den Den Mushi and stuffing it back into the valley.

"It's nothing," Bane said softly with a smile on his lips.

Garp's other great grandson is about to set sail. I wonder if he'll be able to leave the East China Sea this time?

You know, Garp is still in Loguetown. Judging from what Smoker just said, he's most likely going to set off with Garp. If he's delayed any longer, Luffy might end up meeting Ace in the prison.

After all, Smoker couldn't defeat Dragon who came to the rescue, so how could Garp, as his father, be allowed to be ridden on Dragon's head?

(End of this chapter)