Chapter 158: Recruiting Forces, Intending to Rise Again!

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Walking on the road, Abel was stuffing post-meal fruit into his mouth while flipping through the latest intelligence received from his family.

"It seems that 'Sister Elephant,' Elephante, is no simple character, tsk tsk."

After receiving a considerable loan from Du Feld, Donquixote Doflamingo immediately began to expand the family's power, with the intelligence department being the first to be strengthened.

This was because there had been several occasions where there were errors in intelligence.

Although these did not result in any significant impact in the end, it was only by relying on the formidable strengths of the executives that disaster was averted.

So, after plenty of 'spreading the wealth,' now even the slightest movement in the North Sea couldn't escape the eyes of the Donquixote family.

And Elephante, who wanted to make a comeback in the North Sea after returning from the Grand Line, was naturally targeted immediately.

Then, after some time, complete intelligence was gathered.

This 'Sister Elephant' Elephante was among the many slaves who were rescued during the recent 'Mary Geoise Attack Incident' by the merman hero Fisher Tiger!

Originally, when the Giant Elephant Pirates were active in the first half of the Grand Line, they were quite prestigious.

"The first assessment, strength!"

Captain Elephante, known as 'Sister Elephant,' had her bounty rise all the way to 89 million berries, just shy of breaking the one hundred million mark.

A hero?! Ridiculous!

Elephante felt her bounty was higher than Crocodile's and that her full strength went beyond what the bounty number represented.

Seeing such destructive power, finally, everyone became honest, and the warehouse quieted down.

Although the number was from before becoming a Warlord of the Sea, it was misleading indeed.

"She must be really tall, 'Sister Elephant.' Almost 3 meters, right?"

Even if standards have been lowered again and again, you still need to be good at something, like being brave enough to fight.

So, just by aligning with the Navy, one can transform from a pirate to a big hero in the newspapers?

"Is that woman in the middle 'Sister Elephant'?"

"True, they say the Donquixote family's treatment is the best in the North Sea, but they're very selective in their recruitment, perhaps it's better to stay and try our luck."

The rest need to find their own way out.

But in reality, three years is enough to change many things.

After all, not everyone in the North Sea wants to join the Donquixote family.

Even if Doflamingo collected people desperately, how many could he really gather?

Now, joining could get you a status as an elder and the captain's strength is impressive too, someone returning from the Grand Line with experience and potential for growth.

"What does height matter? You should look at muscles. With a fist that large coming down, you'd be turned into ground meat in an instant!"

......

Inside an abandoned warehouse, a tall and robust woman was seated militantly on a box in the center, holding a large dumbbell, expressionlessly exercising.

"The first person to get this dumbbell into my hands can directly become an executive on my ship."

Elephante was not running a junkyard—naturally, she wouldn't take every piece of trash.

Crocodile's bounty was only 81 million berries.

It was as if heaven itself was helping them!

And the reason for choosing to deal with Crocodile was simple—Elephante thought of Crocodile as a 'traitor,' constantly hunting other pirates under the guise of being a Warlord of the Sea, and often being written as a hero in the newspapers.

This is the first reason, and the second reason is very simple.

Several people who were nearby, so scared that they nearly wet themselves, plopped down onto the ground.

Unlike most other slaves, she returned to the North Blue as quickly as she could, not because she was homesick, but because she wanted to rebuild the Giant Pirates and seize an opportunity to take revenge on Crocodile!

As for the Donquixote Family, she felt there was no need to pay them any attention.

So, what followed was an overabundance of confidence – in layman's terms: she was floating on air!

And 'Elephant Sister' Elephante, who returned to the North Blue alone and extended an olive branch to everyone, was a perfect candidate.

Everyone was initially taken aback, exchanging puzzled looks.

Elephante was not only spared from being locked up in Impel Down, but she also mysteriously appeared at an auction and was bought as a slave by the Celestial Dragons.

The whispers quickly turned into open discussions.

In short, the big shots were giving their responses!

...

And these were just the first batch of crew members, with the second batch waiting to be screened.

Because no one stopped them, the noise inside the warehouse grew louder and louder.

Elephante, clearly annoyed, waved her hand dismissively, "Throw these weaklings out! I don't want anyone who is faint-hearted or has jelly legs. If you want to join my Giant Pirate Crew, show me what you're made of!"

Elephante nodded her head; she particularly liked being called 'Elephant Sister.'

Elephante, not pleased, threw the dumbbell in her hand towards the crowd, creating a big crater on the ground.

"'Elephant Sister,' more than fifty people have already arrived outside, it looks like it's just about these many, should we let them in?"

Soon, the abandoned warehouse was filled with a large crowd.

Scattered around, about twenty or thirty people had gathered, considered her subordinates attracted by the former reputation of the Giant Pirates and the nearly ninety million berry bounty.

Then, they suddenly rushed over, fighting over the dumbbell that had landed in the crater.

However, the ridiculous part was that many people, because they were closer, quickly grabbed the dumbbells on the ground.

But their strength was just not enough; even pulling with all their might, they couldn't lift it. Let alone be the first to deliver it.

Following this group, Abel, who was mingling in the crowd, thought it was better not to rush and to see what other tricks they might play.