Chapter 51: The Mad Scientist

"Did you find something?"

Snapping back from his thoughts about the conceptual "Flying Thunder God Technique" upon hearing Jinbe's exclamation, and realizing that Jinbe had managed to find a clue about this mysterious island simply through a surveillance Den Den Mushi, Yi gave a subtle smile. He thought that bringing Jinbe along was indeed the right decision, and after a brief pause, he asked, "Jinbe, do you know the origin of this type of surveillance Den Den Mushi?"

"Naturally, I do."

Jinbe nodded. As he spoke, his astonished expression gradually morphed into a look of lingering pain. Pointing at the surveillance Den Den Mushi in Mihawk's hand, he explained, "Look at this surveillance Den Den Mushi. The difference between it and a regular surveillance Den Den Mushi lies in these white markings on its body. At a glance, these white marks are not natural growths, but something added later on, specifically for..."

"Preventing others from stealing the data recorded by this surveillance Den Den Mushi!"

Oh? These white markings...

Could it be that they grant a surveillance Den Den Mushi the same properties as a white Den Den Mushi?

This is getting interesting!

Yi knew about the function of white Den Den Mushi undoubtedly from the original *One Piece* series—let's not forget he was a seasoned fan of the franchise.

Therefore, even though white Den Den Mushi barely made a few appearances in the original story, Yi clearly remembered that the leader of the Revolutionary Army, Luffy's mysterious father Monkey D. Dragon, frequently kept a white Den Den Mushi by his side precisely to prevent others from eavesdropping on the internal communications of the Revolutionary Army.

He never expected that the effect of a white Den Den Mushi could be incorporated into a surveillance Den Den Mushi.

Staring with keen curiosity at the severed half of the Den Den Mushi in Mihawk's hand, Yi raised both eyebrows and asked Jinbe again, "Then Jinbe, you said that throughout the entire sea, only two people can use this kind of surveillance Den Den Mushi that combines both monitoring and anti-eavesdropping functions. Who are they? Tell us, don't make me and Mihawk guess!"

"Hmm."

After a moment of silence, as the look of pain on Jinbe's face slowly faded, he took a deep breath and said, "Similar to the surveillance Den Den Mushi in the idiot swordsman's hand, there are only two people in the entire sea who can use it. The first person, naturally, is the inventor of this surveillance Den Den Mushi—the very person who now serves the World Government..."

"Vegapunk!"

"What? Vegapunk!"

To be honest, hearing a name that was universally known to anyone who was a fan of *One Piece*, Yi felt an extreme shock.

Because even though he had guessed that this island was bound to be connected to some scientific genius in the world of *One Piece*, his wildest guess placed the culprit at most at the level of Caesar Clown.

As for Vegapunk...

Vegapunk, famed for holding technology five hundred years ahead of the world, was a presence Yi never could have imagined!

After all, comparing it to video game statistics, Caesar was merely a high-level account, whereas Vegapunk was an absolute max-level powerhouse fully equipped with endgame gear!

Moreover, simply hearing Vegapunk's name made the corners of Yi's eyes twitch violently, driving an urge to flee the island immediately.

Vegapunk's capabilities weren't just rumored by others; they were visible to the naked eye!

One only had to look at the Pacifistas in the original *One Piece* series—combat cyborgs developed using one of the Warlords of the Sea, the "Tyrant" Bartholomew Kuma—to understand what kind of terrifying armaments must exist wherever Vegapunk was stationed.

In the original story, the "Iron Man" Franky merely... merely obtained some of Vegapunk's early scientific achievements, and his strength underwent a "qualitative" leap.

If Vegapunk were indeed on this island, and had already treated them as experimental subjects, Yi felt that... even if he, Mihawk, and Jinbe joined forces, defeating Vegapunk would be quite troublesome!

"Although the timeline is different from the original *One Piece* story, and Vegapunk might not have invented such terrifying creations yet, but..."

"If this island really is Vegapunk's laboratory, just looking at these artificial Devil Fruits is enough to tell. Vegapunk's experiments must have reached a very critical stage, and it's highly likely that he has created some kind of monster in the process!"

"A terrifying entity a hundred or even a thousand times more horrifying than the Pacifistas modeled after the 'Tyrant' Kuma!"

Gulp...

Taking a deep breath, Yi finally managed to calm the rather turbulent emotions churning in his heart. Just as he was thinking that his panic was embarrassing enough, Mihawk's sudden exclamation echoed in the ears of both Yi and Jinbe.

That's right.

Just as Jinbe finished speaking, the one who cried out in shock was Mihawk, not Yi.

Therefore, following Mihawk's exclamation, even Yi couldn't help but wonder how on earth that guy Mihawk even knew the name Vegapunk.

"Could it be..."

"Mihawk was originally a child with cognitive impairments, and in the original story, he met Vegapunk, gradually recovered his intellect, and turned into that wise, composed, and very... very gentlemanly 'Hawk-Eyes' from the original work?"

Musing silently to himself, combined with Mihawk's current chaotic state, Yi nodded inwardly, genuinely feeling that his guess might actually be true.

Of course.

That was all just Yi's wild imagination.

Because as Mihawk's emotions gradually calmed down and he fell into deep thought for a brief moment, he spoke up: "This can't be the island where Vegapunk is located. No... or rather, I can be certain that this place has nothing to do with Vegapunk. Wherever Vegapunk is, there are Marine troops stationed. Look at this place instead—where is there any sign of the Marines? So, you fat red fish-man, just tell us who the other person capable of using this kind of Den Den Mushi is!"

"Eh? Mihawk, how did you suddenly get smart?"

Hearing Mihawk's words, Yi asked with genuine curiosity.

Could it be that simply mentioning Vegapunk triggered the efficacy of Mihawk's medicine?

And that's why he became smart?

Unexpectedly, upon hearing Yi's words, Mihawk merely gave him a side-eye, as if to say, *I've always been smart, okay?*

On the contrary, after listening to what Mihawk said, although Jinbe was still somewhat angered by the nickname Mihawk had given him, he completely agreed with his point of view and nodded heavily.

And right at that moment...

"Whoosh!"

The pupils of Yi, Jinbe, and Mihawk contracted slightly almost simultaneously. The reason was that their Kenbunshoku Haki simultaneously perceived that someone—no...

More accurately, a large group of people—was approaching!

Immediately afterwards, just as those hostile figures, each draped in eerie black robes, slowly emerged and materialized before Yi and the others, Jinbe clenched his fists tightly and said with undeniable conviction:

"That's right, Vegapunk couldn't possibly be on this island. So this island belongs to the other madman capable of using that kind of surveillance Den Den Mushi!"

"The notorious scientific maniac..."

"DJ Dimou!"