Starting with helping Zhao Kai ascend the throne in the snow

Outside the town, on the road leading to the sea.

Bruno walked out of the town with the supplies he had just purchased, but was soon forced to stop. Blackbeard stood in the middle of the road, looking at him with a playful expression.

“Blackbeard Teach.” As a qualified intelligence agent, Bruno naturally recognized the recently rising star Blackbeard, and his pupils immediately contracted sharply.

As the saying goes, those who come with ill intentions do not come with good intentions. He did not know why Blackbeard was here, but the scene before him clearly showed that Blackbeard had come looking for him, which made his heart sink completely.

Although Bruno always considered himself extraordinary, he also deeply understood that he was not qualified to fight Blackbeard; the gap in strength between the two was an insurmountable chasm.

"Could it be that our location has been exposed? Is Blackbeard planning to capture us in exchange for the World Government's bounty?... " Many thoughts flashed through Bruno's mind in an instant. It's not surprising that he had such thoughts; Blackbeard had previously served as a Shichibukai, and so far, it's only the Navy that has unilaterally announced his removal from the Shichibukai list. It's unclear whether the World Government agrees. Regardless of his thoughts or reasons, Bruno had only one thought at this moment: escape immediately, escape back, and get Lucci and the others out of this area as well.

"An air door." Bruno thought of this and immediately put it into action, using his Devil Fruit ability to draw the shape of a door in the space in front of him with his right hand.

"Bang." Just then, a crisp gunshot rang out. Bruno felt a huge danger approaching and immediately abandoned the construction of the air gate. He used his Haki and Iron Block to defend himself and also tried to change his position.

The next second, a bullet imbued with domineering energy struck Bruno's shoulder heavily, spurting out a spray of blood. Fortunately, the increased defense from the domineering energy and the iron block prevented the bullet from penetrating more than three inches into his flesh before it was stopped. However, this brought Bruno's escape plan to an end.

"Good job, Van Augur!" Blackbeard exclaimed in praise. Only then did Bruno notice Van Augur, who was perched on a large tree by the roadside, holding a sniper rifle.

"I'm doomed." Bruno's heart sank when he saw Van Auger. He knew he was probably going to die here today. If it were just Blackbeard, he would have a sliver of hope of escaping, but with Van Auger, a long-range sniper, assisting him, he didn't have time to use the air door to escape.

"Blackbeard Teach, we at CP9 have no grudge against you, why are you targeting me? Aren't you afraid of making enemies of the World Government? We at CP9 are a direct agency of the World Government." Seeing no hope of escape, Bruno asked Blackbeard with a face full of resentment. At the same time, he raised the banner of the World Government, hoping to scare Blackbeard away.

Then he quietly dialed the Den Den Mushi in his pocket and called Captain Lucci to let them know that he was in trouble and to get them out of the area as soon as possible.

"Hahaha, the World Government has quite the grand name, but I don't believe you pathetic wretches abandoned and wanted by the World Government can represent its face. So don't try any more tricks, you're dead today." Blackbeard's eyes were full of money as he looked at Bruno; this guy was a walking 2 billion Berries.

On the other side, after receiving the call, Lucci immediately realized from the description of the Den Den Mushi that Bruno was in a bad situation, and immediately shouted, "Bruno, what's wrong? What trouble have you run into?"

Lucci's exclamation immediately attracted the attention of all the CP9 members, and everyone rushed over to surround him.

"Blackbeard, we, CP9, will not let you get away with this..."

"Hahaha, don't blame me, blame your Devil Fruit for being offered 20 billion Berries..."

Through the conversation on the Den Den Mushi, Lucci and the others learned that Bruno had encountered Blackbeard because someone had offered a high price for Bruno's Door-Door Fruit. However, before Lucci could ask any more questions, the Den Den Mushi was disconnected.

"Finished the call? Now you can set off in peace. I, Blackbeard Teach, am still merciful; I've given you plenty of time to say goodbye to your friends." Just after Bruno hung up the phone, Teach suddenly said to him with a sinister smile.

"What...what do you mean?" Bruno was startled by what he saw and immediately had a bad feeling.

"Hahaha, Bruno, I should actually thank you." Blackbeard laughed wildly, revealing his gap-toothed maniac once again.

"What do you want to do?" Bruno asked anxiously.

"Hahaha, each Devil Fruit is incredibly valuable. Searching for them on the high seas is not only time-consuming and laborious, but also often difficult. Bruno, as far as I know, almost every member of your CP9 is a Devil Fruit user, which means they're practically walking Devil Fruits. I originally thought finding them would be extremely difficult, but with your call, I believe they'll come running to their deaths. This is another unexpected windfall." Blackbeard made no attempt to hide his plans from Bruno.

Blackbeard, as a top-tier villain, possesses first-rate intelligence and strategic acumen. Originally, he simply intended to take Bruno's Door-Door Fruit, but after discovering that Bruno had secretly informed him, he had a sudden inspiration and immediately hatched another plan. He intended to wipe out CP9 in one fell swoop, so that he could obtain a lot of Devil Fruits. Even if his own subordinates didn't want them, he could reward them to his other subordinates or use them to exchange for resources, which would also be a good plan.

"Damn it, you despicable bastard, I won't let your scheme succeed!" Bruno was furious after realizing he had fallen for Blackbeard's trick. He immediately took out a Den Den Mushi to send a message, but Van Augur shot it and shattered it.

Left with no other option, Bruno could only unleash the Six Powers of the Navy to attack Blackbeard. However, the difference in their strength was enormous. Blackbeard had been hiding within the Whitebeard Pirates for over twenty years, relying solely on his physical prowess and Haki before acquiring the Dark-Dark Fruit. His strength was such that he had even left several scars on Shanks' face. Therefore, he easily blocked Bruno's attacks. Even Bruno's Door-Door Fruit abilities, such as the revolving door technique, were countered by the Dark-Dark Fruit, leaving him completely powerless. After just a few moves, Blackbeard broke his limbs, leaving him lying on the ground, barely clinging to life.

Blackbeard didn't kill him because he planned to use the seriously injured Bruno as bait to lure Lucci and the others from CP9 to come to his rescue, so that he could capture them all at once.

Meanwhile, upon learning of Bruno's accident, Lucci was furious and was about to head to the island Bruno had gone to, but was stopped by Kalifa and the others.

"Captain, Bruno is facing the Blackbeard Pirates. You must not act rashly. We are no match for the Blackbeard Pirates. If we go, we will only be defeated."

"Yes, Captain, you should think this through..."

Most intelligence agents are cold-blooded and rational. Even if it means sacrificing their comrades, they will prioritize completing the mission. Therefore, they instinctively tried to stop and dissuade them.

"You bastards, don't forget we're not CP9 anymore. We're just a bunch of people banding together to survive. If Bruno is in danger today and we don't go to his rescue, what if Kaku or Kalifa are in danger tomorrow? Will I also refuse to help them? If we can't work together, how can we survive the World Government's pursuit? Think about it carefully. Bruno is our childhood friend." Lucci shouted at the group.

Although Lucci is hailed as the most talented member of the CP organization in eight hundred years, and also the most ruthless killing machine, this is only when he is dealing with outsiders, or rather, his state before the Enies Lobby incident. After being abandoned and wanted by the World Government on Enies Lobby, Lucci, while leading his team to evade capture, developed feelings of care for his team members beneath his cold-blooded exterior, and began to regard them as his family and friends.