After arriving in the North Blue, Violet was dispatched to guard the entrance of Reverse Mountain.
Doflamingo's power had driven her to despair.
For the sake of her father's life, she could only become Doflamingo's subordinate.
A pained expression appeared on Violet's face.
She had to obey her enemy's orders, but she was helpless.
She was grateful to Cyrus.
But she felt that the gap between Cyrus and Doflamingo was still vast.
Her purpose this time was, in fact, to secretly give Cyrus a warning.
To remind him that Doflamingo had already sent two executives to the North Blue.
She was also aware that Doflamingo certainly didn't trust her; he only valued her ability.
If she made any moves, her family still in Dressrosa would be in danger.
Violet was conflicted.
Just then, her ability saw it.
The power of the Glare-Glare Fruit allowed her to see the situation at the mouth of Reverse Mountain from a great distance.
A boat wreathed in flames was rushing down from Reverse Mountain.
There were two people on the boat. Having seen his photograph, Violet recognized Cyrus at a glance, the one setting fires at the stern.
"A Devil Fruit user, a flame-type!"
Violet was startled, then her mind began to race.
"They're here, coming down from Reverse Mountain right now!"
After a moment of rapid thought, Violet immediately spoke.
The men on alert in the surrounding area immediately took out their Den Den Mushi upon hearing her.
A moment later, the pirate ships moored at the entrance of Reverse Mountain began to open fire.
Violet could see the flames, the thick smoke, and the fire soaring into the sky.
Her eyes were locked on the place where the battle had erupted, waiting for the result.
...
"Torchlight!"
A Fire Tornado appeared above the sea's surface.
Cyrus stood at the bow, sword in hand.
The incoming cannonballs exploded the moment they touched the flames.
With a single move, he completely blocked the incoming barrage.
"This is?"
Robin grabbed the hull to steady herself and asked, looking at the sword-wielding Cyrus.
"It seems they were waiting for me."
Hearing Robin's words from behind, Cyrus replied in a relaxed tone.
Doflamingo's business in the North Blue was the arms trade, producing various weapons and selling them to countries in the Four Seas and the Grand Line.
From this heavy bombardment alone, Cyrus knew it had to be that flamingo who sent people to intercept him.
Of course, it could also be a test.
The fire wall he had conjured vanished, but the cannonfire continued.
The sound of cannons echoed across the sea as a massive number of shells blanketed the area where Cyrus was.
Cyrus glanced over and saw dozens of ships, bristling with cannons, moored densely together and firing continuously.
"You wait here!" Cyrus said, then leaped into the air. Flames erupted from his body and coiled around the longsword in his hand.
The longsword swung.
A fire wall, taller and thicker than before, appeared out of thin air.
Then, a slash gleaming with fire emerged from within the fire wall, descending upon the distant fleet.
Boom!
The terrifying Flame Slash landed on a ship, cleaving it in two.
The flames began to spread, seemingly igniting the ammunition or something similar on board.
After the ship was cut in half, a huge explosion followed.
The entire ship was blown to smithereens, and its wreckage rained down on the other ships nearby.
The people on those ships scrambled to take cover.
But then, one after another, Flame Slashes descended from the sky.
Explosions rang out in succession, and the glare of fire lit up the sky.
Standing atop the fire wall in mid-air, Cyrus unleashed slash after slash.
The ships below that had surrounded them were split apart one by one, followed by sympathetic detonations.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Amidst the explosions, the glare of fire completely enveloped the sea below.
The fire wall beneath Cyrus's feet disappeared.
And the ships that had been firing from below had all been destroyed by the slashes and explosions.
Thud!
Cyrus landed on the boat.
Robin looked at the sea of fire that came into view after the fire wall vanished, then turned to Cyrus.
"I thought you would leave a few people alive to ask about the situation."
Robin was a little curious.
"No need. I know who the other party is, and I came here specifically for them, so there's no need for that. With Doflamingo causing such a huge stir in the North Blue, it's impossible to hide the news."
Cyrus sheathed his sword and controlled the flames to propel the boat toward the inferno.
As the boat drew near, the sea of fire parted, creating a channel on the water's surface.
The small boat moved forward.
When it encountered the wreckage of a large ship blocking its path, a single slash split it in two.
"There's an island nearby, right?" Cyrus asked, turning his head after cutting a huge piece of ship wreckage in half.
"Yes, there is indeed an island!"
Having known that Cyrus was coming to the North Blue, Robin had long since memorized the sea charts of the North Blue.
Now, hearing Cyrus's question, she immediately gave an answer.
"Let's dock and rest for a bit!" Cyrus said.
Robin nodded, then pointed out the direction for Cyrus.
The boat sailed out of the sea of fire. Robin stood on the boat, looking back at the still-burning sea.
The glare of the fire illuminated her face, making it glow red.
"We should expect continuous battles from now on. You should also be prepared. You can apply the things I've taught you in combat."
Cyrus's voice rang out.
"Mm, I understand. I'll work hard. And of course, there's that Bājíquán, right?"
Robin nodded. As she spoke, she used Chinese to say the three words for Bājíquán.
"That's a type of martial art or a way of generating force from my homeland. You can try to apply this technique when you use your Flower-Flower Fruit."
In truth, if Robin just used her ability well, her strength could improve by leaps and bounds.
At the very least, she could easily handle pirates in the Four Seas with bounties of ten or twenty million.
He came here this time to make good on his words.
If he said he would ruin your business, he would definitely do it.
The best and fastest way was to destroy at least most of your arsenals.
That way, even if some remained, the business would be more or less destroyed.
This might take some time, and there would certainly be resistance.
It all depended on whether Doflamingo would come personally.
During this time, Robin could use this opportunity to quickly accumulate combat experience, at the very least becoming proficient in using her own abilities.
And of course, awakening her Two Colors Haki.
The time had been too short, after all. Robin had probably never encountered an ability like Haki before.
Or rather, she knew the name from records but didn't know how to train it.
There was still a lot of room for imagination in developing the Flower-Flower Fruit.
Of course, improving Robin's physique was also very important.
After all, using abilities and Haki consumed a lot of stamina.
This was especially true for powerful techniques.
So her physique couldn't be neglected either.
However!
Cyrus suddenly turned to look at Robin, his eyes sizing her up.
He had to be careful not to train Robin into a muscle-bound freak.
Noticing Cyrus's gaze, Robin felt that his look was a bit strange, but she didn't know what he was thinking.
"I will work hard!"
Robin guessed at Cyrus's thoughts and said with a serious expression.
"Er, actually, you don't have to work that hard!"
As long as your figure doesn't get distorted!