Chapter 171: The Fallen Phoenix!

"Doflamingo actually came?! And he came alone from the sky."

As all of this really happened, Cassandra was full of shock on her face.

But when she looked at Vice Admiral Tsuru, she saw that from beginning to end, Tsuru maintained a demeanor neither arrogant in victory nor discouraged in defeat, showing no sign of joy or anger.

Cassandra suddenly felt somewhat ashamed; she truly still had a long way to go.

Then, she heard Tsuru slowly state, "You know, I actually couldn't be certain he would come."

"Tsuru, you don't need to comfort me. I'm not that fragile."

"I am simply stating the truth. Cassandra, remember, in this cat-and-mouse game, the cat can fail many times, but the mouse cannot afford to lose even once."

"To lose means death."

"So I can calmly lay out my plans based on the intelligence I have, without worrying about whether the opponent will fall for it or not. If it doesn't work once, try twice; if twice doesn't work, try three times. As long as we achieve our purpose once, that's the greatest success."

"Do you understand now?"

Cassandra suddenly gained insight and leveled her mindset about gains and losses.

Perhaps this was the composure that came from the difference in the cost of trial and error.

"What is that?!"

"His head was blown to pieces, how is he still alive?"

"Fire, fire!"

As the smoke cleared, the 'Doflamingo' that appeared in front of everyone was like a tattered puppet.

But eerily, there was not a drop of blood flowing from the wound.

And voices could still come from 'Doflamingo's' mouth, which was truly challenging the onlookers' perceptions.

"Tsuru, you'll never catch me, never!"

Ignoring the barrage of bullets, 'Doflamingo' immediately turned into countless fine threads that burst forth.

This was just an 'Ito Ito no Mi - Clone' after all!

Although out of ambition for the Ope Ope no Mi, Doflamingo chose to risk a solo journey here, the cunning JOKER wouldn't come without any precautions.

At this moment, his real body was actually always high in the sky, overlooking everything happening below.

All he needed to do now was to leave from the sky, and no one could stop him.

But did Tsuru really go to all this trouble to bring him here, only to have so little up her sleeve?

Of course not!

"Fire!"

As the clone made of strings rose to the sky, Cassandra commanded the Marines to launch a large number of strange 'ammunition' into the sky.

This ammunition had little lethality, but when they reached a certain height, they exploded automatically, dispersing some strange black powder within.

Then everyone discovered that the already gloomy weather suddenly became even more tumultuous and terrifying.

The dark clouds began to flash with dreadful lightning, as if some monstrous creature was violently stirring inside.

Doflamingo, who had just retracted his string clone, immediately turned pale and without hesitation started to lower his altitude, attempting to crash down towards the ground.

The next moment, lightning flashed and thunder roared!

Countless bolts of lightning emerged from the clouds, ravaging the entire island.

Those pirates who stayed out of greed, if unlucky, were struck dead on the spot. And those lucky ones were only hiding in corners, trembling, praying not to be affected.

Meanwhile, all the Marines had already retreated to places equipped with lightning protection, safely taking shelter.As for the residents of the island, they had been secretly moved away days ago, leaving only Navy personnel in disguise. Tsuru chose this island due to a combination of factors such as weather, geographical location, and population. The special ammunition she fired into the sky was another gift prepared for Doflamingo!

"He always liked relying on his ability to 'fly,' let's see who dares to fly now! Doflamingo indeed did not dare to fly; staying near the clouds would result in being struck by countless bolts of lightning and turning into char. Thus, he had no choice but to descend. Despite this, several bolts of lightning chased after him. With no other option, he turned and used a mass of strings to weave a shield in front of himself.

"Bang!" Doflamingo, struck by several bolts of lightning, fell like a turkey and smashed heavily into a civilian house.

Tsuru, watching this scene through her binoculars, showed no joy but immediately issued a flurry of commands.

"In 5 minutes, prepare to launch the cloud-dispersing shells."

"Drive all the boats around the island away, sink those without people."

"Notify the three Navy ships stationed near Gaburi Island to keep an eye on the rest of the Donquixote family's officers. If any ships head this way, especially the Flamingo, engage them immediately to harass and delay them as long as possible."

"After orders are issued, activate the jamming devices and cut off Den-den Mushi signals in this area."

With each command, it was as if an invisible net was cast, leaving Doflamingo with no escape within it. Tsuru had thought of using the Ope Ope no Mi as bait to lure out Doflamingo and even had to thank Corazon for taking Law to sea to seek medical help! They caused chaos at every hospital they visited. So when Tsuru received the intelligence, she quickly connected this incident with the Donquixote family's intensified collection of Devil Fruits.

As everyone knows, lead poisoning is incurable unless a miracle occurs. And the Devil Fruits are that miracle! Tsuru perused the Devil Fruit encyclopedia and finally identified the Ope Ope no Mi that could heal any illness!

Would Doflamingo risk his life for the Ope Ope no Mi if it suddenly appeared? Tsuru couldn't be sure, but as she said, it was a risk she was willing to take; she had sufficient margin for error. Even if the plan failed, the loss would not be significant. But if it succeeded, it would completely eradicate the cancer that was the Donquixote family! With such a rich reward, why not try it? That was the rationale behind this rather incomprehensible setup.

Now it seemed that Doflamingo had indeed been careless. Meanwhile, the family officers left on Gaburi Island were waiting for Doflamingo's contact. It should be about time.

"Blu-blu, how's it going, Dofi?" Diamante quickly connected to the Den-den Mushi, only to hear Doflamingo's voice coming from it.

"The Ope Ope no Mi is a fake. It's a trap targeted at me. Come quickly... Hiss, hiss to me."

The signal was cut off. Diamante's expression turned extremely ugly - it always seems to be the things we fear the most that come to pass.