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Corrupting Poison shot out of the Den Den Mushi City Fortress, flying toward Haiyna's outstretched hand, reaching for Robin.
Robin murmured to herself, "You knew all along they were hiding inside..."
"Ooooooh!" Kamui roared again, transforming into a massive Unicorn Rhino and charging at Stussy.
Compared to the mountain-sized Unicorn Rhino, Stussy appeared petite. Yet her punches and kicks repeatedly drove the beast back.
"Wicked!" Kamui, bloodied and with bloodshot eyes, bellowed and charged again, shifting mid-air into a half-human, half-beast form.
But even this transformation couldn't overcome Stussy.
No matter how Kamui attacked... As she took a beating, she glanced at the three unconscious figures of Rasha, Coyatl, and Giorno lying nearby, and then at Haiyna... 'What's going on? How did things suddenly turn into this...?'
'If I hadn't acted so recklessly and rushed here sooner…'
'Would things have turned out this badly?'
"Aooo! Aooo! Aooo!"
Kamui roared furiously, her eyes blazing with rage.
In the background, the sounds of Kamui and Stussy's fierce battle echoed, the thud of blows, the clash of weapons...
The Corrupting Poison from the others was drawn out by her, flowing from her fingertips into her body. Haiyna, still watching Robin and Giorno, said slowly, "Save them."
"Huh?" Liam exclaimed in surprise.
Robin remained silent. Haiyna's tone remained unchanged as she stared at them. "Don't worry about me. Rasha, Jiabode, Coyatl, Kamui, please get them out of here..."
"Haiyna!" Kamui, knocked down again by Stussy, bled profusely as she charged forward with a Unicorn Rhino horn, shouting, "Don't beg them!"
"If we fail to defeat you, it won't matter whether those hiding hear the truth or not..."
Robin spoke slowly, "And if there's even the slightest chance you might lose to us, these people are your contingency plan, your escape route. Is that right, Haiyna?"
Haiyna seemed not to hear, her gaze fixed on the two of them. "As long as I can save them, I'll do anything. Even lick your shoes..."
"How pathetic, Haiyna."
Stussy leaped high into the air, her expression hidden behind tea-colored sunglasses.
"I know you still have stamina, Giorno..." Haiyna lay on the ground, her eyes locked on Liam and Robin. "Jolyne Cujoh, you haven't been fighting at full strength from the start, have you? I can see it in your eyes..."
A faint smile touched her lips. "Your gaze has never wavered."
Liam sighed. "Seriously? Flirting even at a time like this?"
Robin remained silent.
Thud!
The battered and bruised Kamui was thrown toward them.
Stussy straightened her clothes, pulled a small, exquisite compact mirror from her purse, twisted out her lipstick, and applied it to her plump lips while staring coldly at Giorno, Jolyne Cujoh, Kamui, Haiyna, and the others through her tinted sunglasses.
"Haiyna..." Kamui, the white-haired girl covered in wounds, slowly crawled toward her.
Haiyna reached out to touch Kamui's blood- and tear-streaked face, gently pinching her cheek. A faint smile appeared as she whispered, "Take the three of them and go. Be good. Listen to me."
"...?!" Kamui, still crying, suddenly felt herself being lifted into the air.
Boom!
Haiyna, who had been lying still, suddenly lunged up, unleashing a flurry of slashes from the rising dust cloud that pierced straight toward Stussy's shocked face.
"How could this be...?"
The slashes were real, and Haiyna's sudden attack was genuine. A crimson gash appeared on Stussy's cheek as she dodged aside with a swift movement.
"Still has stamina?! Wait!"
Stussy jerked her head up, spotting Kamui swooping overhead and rapidly descending toward the unconscious Rasha, Jiabode, and Coyatl lying in the ruins.
Through the swirling smoke and dust, Haiyna saw the massive form of a Unicorn Rhino.
The giant creature gently scooped up its three companions in its mouth, tears streaming from its large eyes. It glanced back one last time at the woman's silhouette standing amidst the smoke, then, with a thunderous roar, charged away without looking back.
"You outsmarted me, Haiyna," Stussy's charming facade hardened. "The Oka Shichibukai truly can't be underestimated, no matter the circumstances..."
Giorno, standing behind her, scoffed, "Idiot! It was her Corrupting Poison that she reclaimed!"
Corrupting Poison... Stussy gritted her teeth inwardly. 'Did she regain some stamina using that?'
Liam chuckled. "You weren't actually moved by her pitiful act, were you?"
Robin shook her head. "After all, she's a CP agent. It's impossible to trick her so easily."
Liam pondered. "So, Miss Stussy, you've truly fallen in love with her? That's why you so readily believed her pleas for help and pity... I see now..."
Stussy, her gaze hidden behind tinted sunglasses, coldly swept her eyes over the two of them. Instead of retorting, she first turned to Haiyna.
The smoke and dust quickly dissipated, revealing Haiyna standing motionless amidst the wreckage. Her flame-like seaweed hair cascaded down her back, her clothes torn and disheveled, yet she remained upright.
"Don't worry, Stussy," Haiyna murmured, her eyes fixed on the direction the Unicorn Rhino had fled. "I don't even have the strength to fall anymore..."
Stussy turned back. "Then, that leaves just the two of you. Jolyne Cujoh, Giorno..."
"No!"
Rose rushed forward, spreading her arms to block Stussy and Liam.
Stussy lowered her head, her eyes behind tea-colored sunglasses fixed on Rose. "Little Princess, they're pirates. Are you protecting them?"
Rose glared, tears streaming down her face, and suddenly pointed in the direction the Unicorn Rhino had fled. "Those four are pirates too! Why aren't you chasing them?"
Stussy took a step forward. "My mission is to uncover the mastermind secretly targeting the Heavenly Tribute, Haiyna, and arrest her..."
"Then Big Sister Jolyne and Big Brother Giorno aren't your targets either!" Rose shouted, her eyes squeezed shut. "Just focus on your mission and arrest Haiyna!"
"Do you realize how dangerous these pirates are?" Stussy stood before Rose, her gaze sweeping over Giorno and Jolyne Cujoh, who stood expressionless behind her. "400 million Bounty gold, 300 million Bounty gold. Pirates of this caliber could overthrow an entire nation single-handedly... By harboring such wicked criminals, RosePrincess, I have the authority to execute you on the spot."
Rose's pupils constricted.
"Even if you are a member of the Allied Kingdom..."
King interrupted Stussy, his voice booming, "Even if you're an agent of the World Government!"
His once-splendid robes were now tattered and disheveled, his graying hair a mess, yet he radiated regal authority.
Fixing his gaze on the blonde female agent, his voice deep and laced with fury, he declared, "You have no right to interfere in our nation's internal affairs! Whether you're with the Marines or a CP agent, listen carefully, since the pirates are on our soil, we will handle them ourselves! Jolyne Cujoh and Giorno, who have invaded our West Kai'al Kingdom, will be repelled by our own forces!"
King's voice boomed like thunder, echoing across the ruins of the Royal City Fortress.
Stussy's expression turned utterly blank as her gaze shifted between King, Rose, Jolyne, and Giorno.
"You're quite the hothead, old man," Liam said, slapping King on the shoulder, making the latter flinch. King turned to see the pirate grinning at him. "Being driven off by someone with such presence is understandable!"
(End of This Chapter)