Chapter 49: All the World's a Stage

"Could these two guys..."

"Are they actually idiots?!"

After hastily dispatching another costly flying surveillance Den Den Mushi, the mysterious man never expected that what he would see on the screen was none other than Chuy and Mihawk squatting on the ground, seriously debating whether the surveillance snail was edible!

Hey, hey! The vibe is completely wrong here!

Shouldn't you two be suspecting that you are under surveillance?

Why does it look right now like a couple of toddlers squatting down to watch ants move their home?!

For a moment, the mysterious man was at a loss, completely unable to grasp Chuy and Mihawk's train of thought, or rather, entirely failing to keep up with their mental journeys.

"What happened to the epic showdown? Just a moment ago, you both looked ready for a life-or-death battle, and now you've shaken hands and made peace?"

"I'm certain of it now..."

"You two aren't just idiots... you're maniacs! Absolute maniacs!"

Staring fixedly at the surveillance feed on the screen, the mysterious man was on the verge of a mental breakdown thanks to Chuy and Mihawk.

Just as the mysterious man finally managed to steady his crumbling sanity, taking a deep breath to calm his churning emotions...

The one thing that truly drove him over the edge happened!

"Huh? Mihawk, look over there! A flying snail!"

"A flying snail? I've never tasted one before! Shoot it down quickly!"

"Alright!"

The moment Chuy's voice fell—

*Whoosh!*

The Blade of Shura swept down lazily, and a flash of cold light became the very last frozen image on the mysterious man's monitor before the screen shattered into a blizzard of static.

With the corners of his mouth twitching violently, watching helplessly as Chuy destroyed yet another expensive flying surveillance Den Den Mushi, the mysterious man hesitated for a long time over whether he should send a third one to keep tabs on the pair.

Yet, after driving himself to the brink of madness for quite a while, the mysterious man ultimately chose to...

Give up!

"Forget it, they're going to explore the island anyway, so let them wander."

"As long as they harbor ambitions toward this island, they..."

"They won't escape the palm of my hand!"

With that thought, the mysterious man slowly drew a miniature Den Den Mushi from his sleeve. Regaining his composed and astute demeanor, he spoke coldly into the receiver:

"Dispatch the third squad to harvest Shura's genes. His genetic makeup possesses immense research value and must be acquired."

"Hmm... If possible, we also need the genetic samples of that swordsman named Mihawk."

"The sixth squad is currently under construction; his genes might hold significant research value as well. Understood?"

With that, listening to the affirmative response echoing from the Den Den Mushi, the mysterious man narrowed his eyes slightly, lost in inscrutable thought.

Meanwhile...

On the other end, the moment the mysterious man abandoned his surveillance of Chuy and Mihawk, the two individuals who had just been acting so childishly over whether to eat the surveillance snail dropped their act entirely.

Their expressions instantly turned calm and collected!

Obviously.

All of life is a stage, and success depends on good acting!

Everything Chuy and Mihawk had just done was purely to throw the mysterious man off guard, ensuring that he would call off his surveillance without alerting the enemy.

Now that the plan had been successfully executed and sensing not the slightest trace of any lingering surveillance presence, Chuy smiled faintly, turned to Mihawk, and chuckled, "Mihawk, when you asked whether that surveillance snail was edible just now, I bet the person watching us from the shadows was losing their mind. Your acting skills are genuinely impressive; you could easily win an award for best actor back where I'm from!"

"Best Actor?"

Mihawk raised a brow slightly, asking with mild curiosity, "Is that some kind of honorary title among swordsmen?"

"Pfft..."

Chuy let out a chuckle at Mihawk's reply, though he quickly caught himself and hurried to explain, "It's not a swordsman's honor. It just means you played your part very well."

"I see."

As they spoke, Mihawk casually tossed the two captured flying surveillance Den Den Mushi in his hands and asked once more, "Seriously, Chuy, I am actually a bit hungry. Do you think this thing is edible or not?"

"Uh..."

Veins popped across Chuy's forehead as he replied, "Maybe it is?"

"What kind of side dish would go well with it? Olive vegetables?"

"Mihawk... do you seriously want to have a picnic here?" Chuy asked helplessly, burying his face in his hands.

"Hmm... judging by the marks on this surveillance Den Den Mushi, your slash was decent, Chuy, though the angle was a bit off."

"If you had sliced from this angle instead..."

Saying this, Mihawk picked up a tree branch, gestured with it in front of Chuy, and continued murmuring, "Then we would have been able to strip away the shell entirely and eat it!"

Fine.

Mihawk truly was a conversation terminator.

Forget about driving the person spying on them insane; Mihawk was well on his way to driving *him* crazy!

Chuy realized that Mihawk only seemed slightly normal when facing enemies—displaying superb combat intelligence and even winning an "actor's" award when acting was required—while at all other times...

Chuy felt that Mihawk was the kind of person who could easily drive anyone to exasperation and despair.

Right now, for instance, he had originally intended to have a serious discussion with Mihawk about how to proceed with exploring the island, only for that guy to start rambling off on his own tangents again!

So...

He was going to have to figure out the subsequent plan all by himself, huh?

Sighing inwardly, Chuy completely ignored Mihawk's ongoing monologue, squatted back down on the ground, and began to analyze quietly:

"Judging by the clues Mihawk and I have gathered, there are three things on this island that we must clarify."

"First, the aura of Devil Fruits on this island—I can basically conclude they are artificial Devil Fruits. What deserves attention is whether these artificial fruits function like the one Mihawk accidentally ate earlier, which could only maintain its abilities for a limited time, or..."

"Whether this island has already produced artificial Devil Fruits that can truly rival regular ones!"

"Second, those bizarre men in black robes."

"Sigh... what a waste..."

At this thought, Chuy glanced regretfully at the black-robed man Mihawk had dispatched, sighing, "If only Mihawk hadn't killed that guy. Now we have no way of knowing whether he, like the one I took down, possessed the ability to wield two or more fruit powers like Blackbeard. With that clue cut short, trying to unravel these secrets is quite a headache!"

"Therefore, we must firmly grasp the third point: the exact identity of the person spying on us in secret!"

"Are they people working for 'Joker' Doflamingo, or..."

"Agents of the World Government?"

As he analyzed the situation, Chuy furrowed his brow slightly, realizing that available manpower was running a bit short.

It was true that Mihawk was formidable.

However, when it came to searching for clues among countless mysteries and unearthing the truth, he certainly wasn't as resourceful as Edogawa—

Bah, bah, bah! I meant Tiger, that well-traveled and knowledgeable fellow!

That being the case...

It was time to gather the team!

Nodding with a faint smile, Chuy turned directly to Mihawk and said, "Mihawk, I'm going to go fetch Tiger. I'll be right back."

"Hmph, so do you think this thing is better braised, or..."

Mihawk's thoughts were still entirely absorbed by the surveillance snail in his hand. Aside from giving Chuy an automatic, absent-minded nod of acknowledgment, he was clearly lost deep in his own culinary contemplations.

Yet, before Mihawk could even finish his sentence—

Suddenly!

Chuy's figure vanished from thin air right in front of Mihawk, and by the time he reappeared...

Mihawk's slightly contracted pupils locked instantly with Tiger's gaze of utter bewilderment!

"Red fat fish-man?!"

"St-Stupid swordsman?! Why is it you!"