Vegapunk gave a wry smile.
"I understand."
"May I ask your name?"
Sakazuki said,
"Sakazuki."
Vegapunk extended a hand.
"Vegapunk."
Their hands clasped.
Vegapunk then led Sakazuki into the large gate.
He opened the hatch, letting all the researchers inside disembark and stand ready.
Sakazuki took a scan.
He also saw some characters from the original work, including Queen and Caesar.
Turning to Vegapunk,
"Is everyone here?"
Vegapunk replied,
"Some personnel are still out in the field collecting materials."
"But I previously informed them not to return."
Sakazuki inquired,
"Do you have the personnel files?"
Vegapunk answered,
"Yes."
He then turned and walked back into the hatch, retrieving several sheets of paper and handing them to Sakazuki.
Sakazuki quickly scanned them.
"Vinsmoke Judge..."
He then collected the stack of documents and said to Vegapunk,
"Do you have any control devices?"
"Please drive away the mechanical animals in the forest outside."
Vegapunk nodded and took a remote with multiple buttons from his pocket.
After pressing a button,
The soldiers on perimeter alert discovered that all the dense red dots in the forest receded into the depths.
They vanished.
Everyone looked at each other, bewildered.
Meanwhile, Sakazuki at the research institute called out,
"Enel."
Enel's voice came from outside:
"Understood!"
Then.
*Crack!*
A peal of thunder sounded, and Enel instantly appeared among the marines on the perimeter.
He gave a salute.
He looked at the highest-ranking officer.
"Sir, Vice Admiral Sakazuki has captured all personnel."
"Prepare to receive them."
Titus returned the salute and nodded.
"Understood."
He turned to the surrounding soldiers,
"All personnel, enter the forest."
"Prepare to receive the criminals."
The surrounding soldiers said in unison,
"Yes!!!!!"
Then, another thunderclap sounded from clear skies.
Enel instantly transformed into a lightning bolt and disappeared.
He returned to Vegapunk's research institute and landed beside Sakazuki.
At this point, Sakazuki and Vegapunk walked outside the research institute.
Looking at the island where the snow had melted,
Vegapunk was lost in thought.
"A scene from my dreams..."
After a moment, he returned to himself and looked at Sakazuki.
"Mr. Sakazuki, is there a way to keep this island like this forever?"
He looked at Sakazuki somewhat nervously.
The warm island made Vegapunk momentarily dazed.
The original dream buried deep within his heart...
It wasn't about weapons, or biology, or Devil Fruits, or researching everything in the world.
It was... to let the people of this country feel the warmth of the four seasons...
Sakazuki glanced at Vegapunk.
"Easily done."
Vegapunk became somewhat excited and wanted to speak,
But he remembered that he was currently a prisoner...
At that moment, Sakazuki's voice rang out,
"Are there any suitable locations for a volcano?"
Vegapunk suppressed his excitement and spoke with a tremor,
"Yes!"
He then looked towards the giant, windmill-like mechanical structure that was half the size of the island.
It was a design he had made in the past.
He had convinced the king and the people, and they had built it with the nation's strength.
But due to subsequent funding and technical issues, it couldn't be completed.
Although no one blamed him, Vegapunk could never overcome his own guilt.
Eventually, he strayed from the right path...
"The area beneath that giant furnace is hollow."
"At the time, due to a lack of funds and technology, it wasn't completed..."
"And the chosen location is also the most suitable on the entire island."
Listening to Vegapunk's explanation,
Sakazuki looked there and nodded.
He raised his right hand.
The magma golden eagle, which had been resting near the research institute buildings, flew up with a roar.
It charged towards the giant furnace,
With a single collision, it directly knocked away the part of the giant furnace exposed at the mountaintop.
Then it shot straight into the sky, retracted its wings, and dived down.
With a "BOOM!!!!!" deafening sound,
The mountaintop was instantly gouged out, creating a crater hundreds of meters wide.
The magma golden eagle within the crater dissolved into a pool of lava.
It flowed downwards at an extremely rapid pace, continuously.
After nearly a thousand meters, it suddenly expanded and assimilated outwards.
Sakazuki then suddenly appeared at the center of the mountaintop.
He plunged his hand into the magma.
While drawing magma from the depths, he also controlled its turbulence.
Beneath the entire mountaintop,
A giant triangular pit, nearly a thousand meters high and several kilometers long, was formed.
The pit was filled with Sakazuki's magma.
The awakened magma was fundamentally durable and resistant to burning.
With the magma stored underground, it could burn for at least three hundred years.
As for what would happen after three hundred years,
With the technology of that era, these things should not be a problem.
The giant dormant volcano began to radiate heat.
He pulled his arm out of the magma and, with a flash of movement, Sakazuki returned to the research institute.
He looked at Vegapunk.
"This dormant volcano can burn for at least three hundred years."
"The filtration system will require your kingdom to produce it."
"After all, it's magma, and the gas still carries a trace of toxicity."
Vegapunk looked at Sakazuki excitedly.
"Thank you."
"Thank you."
"The filtration system will not be a problem."
Vegapunk bowed deeply to Sakazuki.
"Thank you very much."
Sakazuki waved his hand and said,
"No need for such formality, it's a small matter."
The marine soldiers from a distance approached in formation.
Titus, the leader, saluted Sakazuki.
"Vice Admiral Sakazuki."
Sakazuki returned the salute briefly and waved to the excited soldiers.
He signaled them to escort the scientists from the research institute.
In pairs, they escorted a scientist towards the port.
Then Sakazuki beckoned Enel over.
He said to Vegapunk,
"There is something I would like to ask for Mr. Vegapunk's help."
"Enel has been interested in machinery, electricity, and magnetism since he was young."
"Would it be possible for you to mentor him during this period?"
Vegapunk nodded.
"No problem. I am currently a prisoner."
"I'm not sure if that would be appropriate..."
Sakazuki smiled.
"Don't worry, the government will not make things difficult for you."
"A scientist like Mr. Vegapunk is the future of the world."
Vegapunk breathed a sigh of relief.
"Then there's nothing more to say."
"Leave it to me, Vice Admiral Sakazuki."
Sakazuki said,
"Are there any other important items in the research institute?"
"We can have someone help pack them up."
Vegapunk nodded.
"Indeed, there are quite a few."
"In that case, I won't stand on ceremony."
"It will also serve as a test for Enel."
Sakazuki summoned five squads of soldiers.
He instructed them to follow Vegapunk into the research institute.
And to obey Vegapunk's commands in all matters.
At the iron gate, Titus, the marine branch chief from Balgimore, hesitated to speak...