The doors of the Alabasta Naval Base were suddenly thrown open.
Michael folded his wings and stepped inside, his face glowing with vitality.
"Rear Admiral Michael! You're back!"
"Dammit, Marine HQ already announced it to the entire force! It's Vice Admiral Michael now!"
"Who cares about rear or vice admiral? The important thing is that Boss Michael is finally back! Any longer and I'd have gone stir-crazy from boredom in Alabasta!"
Looking at the SWORD members crowding around him, Michael's lips twitched slightly.
It was clear there really weren't any opponents in the Alabasta region worthy of their serious attention.
And the only two individuals who might cause trouble were now wearing Navy uniforms, sitting right inside the Alabasta branch office.
Raising his head, Michael nodded toward Hawkeye and Crocodile nearby.
"You two seem to be adjusting to your new identities."
Hearing Michael's words, Crocodile and Hawkeye instinctively exchanged glances...
Indeed, two wanted criminals had miraculously transformed into Marines.
This was an unprecedented experience.
"Hmph, spare us the sarcasm," Crocodile rolled her eyes dramatically, crossing and uncrossing her long legs... before suddenly launching a miniature Desert Spada at Michael's head.
"Where the hell are you looking, you bastard!"
Michael tilted his head to dodge the attack, his gaze never wavering...
"Tsk, Crocodile, I don't recall marine women's uniforms including skirts..."
"I had it custom tailored! Got a problem with that?" Crocodile flipped her hair defiantly.
"You already changed me back into a woman completely, can't I wear a skirt now?"
"Absolutely, no problem at all." Michael chuckled.
Who wouldn't appreciate the sight of a two-meter-tall beauty with legs for days?
Compared to the now-female Crocodile, the girls in the SWORD seemed...
Way too damn immature!
Noticing Crocodile's presence, Michael moved closer and asked quietly.
"These past couple days... have you met with Cobra?" Michael's question instantly darkened Crocodile's expression.
After struggling internally, she finally answered slowly.
"He... didn't recognize me." Her voice carried both relief...
Affected by hormones since her gender reversion, Crocodile's emotions had become increasingly complex.
It seemed... she could never return to being that ruthless and merciless Desert King.
While he intended for Crocodile and Cobra to eventually reconcile, now wasn't the right time.
Such matters required perfect timing to maximize benefits.
"By the way... where's Issho? Not gambling again, is he?" Michael scanned the room, noticing the corner-loving blind man was absent from the Alabasta branch.
"If he wants to gamble in Alabasta, he'd have to go all the way to Rainbase!"
"No, Issho-san left on business the same night you departed..."
Stella shook her head, about to continue when rapid "tap-tap-tap" footsteps sounded from outside the door.
This was one of the most familiar sounds to the SWORD Classified Special Forces.
The tapping of a cane against the ground.
Sure enough, as the rhythmic "tap-tap" of the cane grew closer, the door swung open once more.
The newcomer was none other than Issho.
Stella swallowed the second half of the sentence she had been about to utter.
The two of them had left one after the other!
And now they were returning the same way!
"Issho, where have you been?" Michael asked curiously. "Did you go to the Rainbase casino?"
"Ahem, Michael, as an advisor to the Classified Special Forces, I don't just spend my time at casinos... I took this opportunity to follow up on that matter you asked me to look into."
At Issho's words, Michael's eyes instantly lit up.
"Wait, Issho, are you saying you found it?"
"Indeed. Mission accomplished."
After receiving the confirmation from Issho, Michael's face broke into a delighted smile.
He then turned to the entire SWORD Classified Special Forces and announced with a grin.
"Comrades, we have a new mission!"
A small Sky Island located in the southern region.
Compared to the largest Sky Island, 'Skypiea' it could be described as an almost uncivilized little village.
The people here still lived a life akin to that of a primitive tribe.
They worshipped their so-called "god" with utmost devotion and the tallest structure on the entire island was an altar dedicated to this deity.
But today, Birka was about to witness...
And this so-called "end" would be brought about by lightning.
A tall man with unusually long earlobes stood at the highest point of the altar.
He gazed down with boredom and disdain at the people of Birka kneeling below.
"You still kneel before the god in your hearts..."
"Yet you have no idea that I, the one who wields the power of lightning... am the true god you should be worshipping."
Perhaps his muttering grew louder, for the kneeling Birka people below looked up and shouted at him.
"Get down from our sacred altar at once!"
"Your filthy demonic power will surely bring divine retribution upon you!"
The voices of these insignificant insects, amplified infinitely in Enel's ears by his innate "Mantra" combined with the power of the Goro Goro no Mi, grated against his already volatile nerves.
At first... he had genuinely wanted to lead Birka... towards a brighter future.
Why was he, the chosen god, being called a demon by these people?
But... it no longer mattered.
If Birka were destroyed, all these voices would disappear, wouldn't they?
"Since you reject the love of your god..."
"Then you shall bear his wrath."
With that, his body transformed into its elemental state, rising into the sky.
He raised his hand, and the full force of his "200,000,000 Volts" lightning surged forth.
Striking the elastic surface of the Island Cloud.
Though it allowed people to live upon it, in the end... it was still just cloud.
The lightning instantly pierced through the Island Cloud, revealing the White-White Sea beneath.
To the people of Birka, it was nothing short of an apocalyptic disaster descending from the heavens.
"Sigh, someone really needs to cure that chuunibyou syndrome."
However, just as everyone had lost all hope, a voice rang out from afar.
Instinctively, people looked up to see pure Holy Light descending from the skies, blocking the apocalyptic lightning.
Snow-white Wings appeared before everyone's eyes.
The people of Birka gazed at the angel descending from the sky, their eyes brimming with tears.
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