Atop the cliff overlooking the channel.
Sentomaru held a Den Den Mushi to his ear, nodding periodically. "Yes... yes, understood."
Click. He hung up the receiver and turned to relay the new orders to his subordinates. "Word from HQ. Target identified: 'Hyena' Bellamy. Subject independently destroyed a Marine branch base. Approximately one month ago, led his crew in eliminating the North Blue's strongest pirate crew at the time: the Red Flame Pirates. Bounty amount: currently undetermined. HQ directive: cease current action, await arrival of nearby Marine reinforcements."
Finishing the report, Sentomaru breathed a silent sigh of relief internally. Phew, now no one will know I didn't attack right away because I was scared, he thought gleefully. Hehehe.
"He said it out loud again!" his soldiers whispered frantically amongst themselves, aghast. Their captain was just as unreliable as ever.
Sentomaru clamped a hand over his mouth abruptly. "Nonsense! I didn't say a thing!" He puffed out his chest. "I am the most tight-lipped man in the world!"
"More like the least tight-lipped!" one of the soldiers muttered under his breath.
"Shut up!" Sentomaru snapped.
——————
"I keep feeling like someone's watching me," Bellamy mused. His Observation Haki had swept the area several times now, but he hadn't detected anything specific. He couldn't help but wonder if there was some other strange phenomenon on this island causing the feeling. It hadn't occurred to him that someone might simply be observing him from a great distance with a telescope.
The herb gathering itself, however, went surprisingly smoothly. Before long, they had collected a decent bundle of Hundred-Eye Grass. According to Mia, this amount should be sufficient for their immediate needs. Trying to preserve much more would be difficult anyway.
Since they'd finished their primary objective in just half a day, Bellamy considered sending the others back to the ship first. When Mia heard his intention, she immediately protested, switching to her most wheedling tone, "Aww, Captain~~! We came all this way! Can't we gather just a few more useful herbs while we're here? Please?"
If the island were truly safe, staying a few extra days wouldn't matter. But Bellamy still had that persistent, nagging feeling of being watched.
"You three head back to the ship first," he decided. "I'm going to take a look around from above." He hated feeling passive like this. Better to flush out whoever was hiding in the shadows. Bellamy trusted his intuition implicitly. He hadn't awakened Observation Haki for nothing; even if he couldn't pinpoint the source, the internal alarm bells hadn't stopped ringing.
With a powerful spring-jump, Bellamy launched himself high into the air, then used Moon Walk to begin patrolling the skies above Bird Dropping Island. Whether by coincidence or guided by his subconscious senses, the direction he headed was precisely towards Sentomaru's hiding spot.
On the cliff top, Sentomaru's subordinates spotted the figure approaching through the air and cried out in alarm. "He-He's coming this way!" "Damn it, he spotted us!"
Sentomaru snatched up the massive broadaxe leaning nearby—an axe easily taller than three men stood end-to-end. "You lot fall back! I'll intercept him!" "Captain!" Though he often appeared utterly unreliable, when push came to shove, Sentomaru was actually a dependable man. "Just remember to call for backup!" With that, Sentomaru shouldered the giant axe and charged, leaping boldly off the cliff edge. The remaining soldiers exchanged uncertain glances, momentarily unsure what to do.
Bellamy hadn't been using Moon Walk for long before he spotted the cluster of soldiers attempting to conceal themselves on the cliff top. "So, it was Marines after all." They weren't making any effort to hide their uniforms or affiliation; Bellamy recognized them instantly. "But why would Marines be deployed to this godforsaken pile of bird crap?" Were they here for him? Seemed impossible. No one outside his own crew knew his specific route or destination. The Marines couldn't possibly have set up an ambush here in advance. Besides, if they were seriously trying to capture him, this small group surely wouldn't be sufficient, would they?
As Bellamy pondered this, a furious roar erupted from the forest below. "Get down here, you bastard!" A massive axe blade came hurtling up through the canopy, aimed directly at him. An attack of this level was hardly a threat; Bellamy's Observation Haki barely registered it. He sidestepped effortlessly in mid-air, letting the axe fly past, then descended smoothly to the forest floor, walking towards his attacker. "That was reckless. Doesn't feel like a planned ambush targeted at me." It seemed more likely these Marines were here on a separate mission and had simply stumbled upon him by chance. "You guys could have just pretended you didn't see me," Bellamy thought, annoyed. He really couldn't be bothered tangling with Marines right now. Wouldn't his time be better spent reading? But since they'd decided to be impulsive, he supposed he had no choice but to engage.
A moment later, his attacker emerged from the trees. A large, round man wearing a peculiar bib-like garment. The bizarre appearance was instantly recognizable. Isn't that Sentomaru? Vegapunk's bodyguard? What's he doing here?
"Oi," Bellamy called out casually. "What are you Marines doing on this island?" With Sentomaru, asking directly was usually the most efficient approach.
"I definitely won't tell you that we're here looking for a certain ancient book!" Sentomaru blurted out immediately.
"Ah, I see." So they're after the Book of Curses. Just as he thought, it had nothing to do with him.
"What?! How did you guess?!" Sentomaru gasped, horrified. "Damn it! Now that you know, I definitely can't let you leave!" Sentomaru looked panicked, instinctively reaching for his axe. Only then did he remember he'd already thrown it. A large bead of cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
Bellamy watched the spectacle, his mouth twitching. "Guess? You literally just told me, you idiot." And this guy holds a position in a supposedly secret Marine science division? Utterly ridiculous.
Bellamy had little interest in dealing with this scatterbrained oaf. Since they weren't here for him, he might as well leave. He started to turn away, but then a thought struck him. "Wait a second." Sentomaru... isn't he supposed to be an Armament Haki user?
"Hey, Sentomaru," Bellamy asked directly. "You use Armament Haki, right?" If it had been anyone else, Bellamy might have just tested them directly. But with this guy, a simple question was likely to yield the answer.
And sure enough, Sentomaru replied almost automatically, "My Six Powers training isn't complete yet, so I can't learn Armament Haki properly."
"Oh?" Hasn't even mastered the Six Powers? Bellamy's interest in Sentomaru plummeted instantly. However, the implication of his words—that there was a connection between mastering the Six Powers and learning Armament Haki—piqued Bellamy's curiosity. Well, he wasn't doing anything else at the moment. Might as well ask one more question.
"Why? Why can't you learn Armament Haki until you've mastered the Six Powers?"
"Well, obviously, it's because..."
And so, the self-proclaimed 'World's Most Tight-Lipped Man' began to explain the intricate connection between the Six Powers and Armament Haki to Bellamy. The explanation contained detailed insights derived from Dr. Vegapunk's extensive human experimentation data—information likely unique and incredibly valuable.
Listening intently, Bellamy quickly realized the significance of what he was hearing. His casual question had accidentally unearthed a goldmine!
"Hold on, wait. Let me jot this down," Bellamy interrupted, quickly pulling out the paper and pen he carried. He began rapidly scribbling notes. He'd originally brought the paper and pen to make notes on herbs, never expecting they'd prove useful for recording top-secret Marine science intel.