"Hahahaha... Didn't you guys come to free Ace... And leave us... Hahahahah... Your precious brother isn't even here."
"Fuck you guys. Now Magellan will come and imprison you."
Such harsh and cruel words were thrown at them from inside the prison as Ken and others felt betrayed. Ivankov again got angry and used his Death Wink to silence them, putting an end to their offensive remarks.
"What should we do now?" Luffy asked, feeling a little panicked.
"What more can we do? Get to Marineford and save his ass," Sabo said with a sigh. It was actually Sabo who didn't want to start a war and free Ace earlier. The Revolutionary Army wasn't ready to expose themselves so soon. But now that plan had gone down the drain, and they were back to square one.
"Sabo, take Luffy and the others out of Impel Down. I will come later," Ken said.
"What?" Sabo looked at Ken, puzzled.
"Yeah, return to Merry with everyone. I will join you later," Ken reiterated.
"Hey, are you not coming with us? We can go to Marineford to save Ace," Luffy, who had been silent until now, said. He was looking forward to saving Ace, but now it seemed they would have to go to war to achieve it, which was fine with him.
"Luffy, I will come, but I need to finish something here," Ken said.
"Are you sure?" Luffy looked deeply into Ken's eyes and asked.
"Yes," Ken replied.
Luffy nodded and then looked at Sabo. Understanding the signal, Sabo didn't waste much time and opened a portal. This surprised not only Ivankov but also the prisoners, who were mocking them. They never expected that Sabo possessed such abilities.
"Sabo-kun, what is this?" Ivankov asked. On their way, he had seen Sabo using unconventional methods to engage enemies, but this was totally new. Sabo had a smirk on his face and gestured for everyone to step into the portal.
"This is magic that I learned."
Soon everyone had gone through the portal back to the 5th floor, where Buggy and others were waiting for them.
"We will be waiting for you on Merry. Come fast," Luffy said.
"I will be there in no time," Ken replied.
With that, the portal closed. The other prisoners didn't expect someone to have such a Devil fruit that could open huge portals for others to walk through. After the portal closed, Ken stretched his body a bit. They had been fighting for a long time now, so he was a little sore, though not exactly tired.
He had achieved what he wanted to achieve. He needed to keep Luffy and others away from Magellan, and they were successful in doing so. They had moved to Level 5 so fast that Magellan wasn't even able to catch up and confront them.
His help had led the team safely through Impel Down, and Luffy didn't have to lose years from his life. He was mostly happy about that.
"Ha.. Ha.. Ha.. Ha.. It's been some time, Punisher Kenny," Ken heard a voice from one prison. Ken could easily recognize the voice.
Crocodile.
"Yo.. I thought you would keep your mouth shut after the trauma that we gave you," Ken said as he turned around and looked at Crocodile. He was in his prison dress and still had his golden hand.
This made Crocodile sulk and look at Ken with glaring eyes.
"Don't give me that death look. I can kill you right now without even batting an eye," Ken casually said.
"What do you want, Punisher Kenny?" Crocodile said.
"I am not in your home to declare what I want," Ken said as he walked away. He was here to do something before they could reach Marineford.
He walked a bit, ignoring the narcissist, and reached a prison cell. These prison cells were quite far from Ace's, which surprised Ken, but nonetheless, he was here.
"I have been looking for you, Jinbe," Ken said. There was a slight clanking of chains as a huge head turned around and looked at Ken.
"You are?"
"Monkey D. Kenny, and I am here to free you," Ken said as he took out his Stormbreaker and swung it at the prison cell. A surge of lightning followed by a huge blast occurred, destroying the prison cell. Jimbei, who was in darkness, had his mouth wide open. He couldn't believe that someone could actually do that—destroy Sea stone cells?
"What the hell is this guy?" Jinbe wondered, astonished.
Soon, the dust settled, and an uproar spread among the prisoners who witnessed someone destroying prison cells with bare hands. This was unheard of before.
"You are the brother of Ace?"
"Yes," Ken replied as he slowly walked and stood in front of Jimbei. Jimbei was really huge. No wonder people hugging him wouldn't even reach his waist. Despite the situation, seeing this bear-like guy, Ken couldn't help but feel like giving him a hug.
Without much delay, he swung his Stormbreaker again and cut the chains holding Jimbei down.
"Why are you freeing me? And how are you here?" Jinbe asked as he touched his wrist to numb the pain from the chains. The commotion among the prisoners made it difficult for him to see what was happening.
"We came to save Ace. Looks like we have been fooled. Since there was another guy who was here for the crimes of my brother, I guess we do owe you one."
"We?" Jinbe was confused. Ken proceeded to narrate what was going on and how he reached there. The more Jinbe heard, the more surprised and grateful he became. Now he could join them in saving Ace.
"Then we can leave now," Jinbe said.
"Not so fast. I need to take care of something else here," Ken said.
"Are there more prisoners here who support Ace?" Jinbe wondered if there were any other allies of Ace that the World Government might have caught.
"No. I am here to kill a few men," Ken said and then gave the most innocent smile possible.
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