Chapter 112: World Conference And Clouds Of War
“The World Conference is about to convene.”
“Has another four years passed? Time sure flies!”
“The Holy Land’s orders have come down. Here’s the list of countries attending this year’s World Conference.” Fleet Admiral Sengoku knocked on the table, silencing the noise in the conference room. He called the secretary to distribute documents to everyone, handing out a photocopied copy of the list to each person present.
General Sakazuki, codename [Akainu].
General Borsalino, codename [Kizaru].
Vice Admiral Tsuru, who bears the reputation of [Great Advisor].
And several powerful Vice Admirals from Navy Headquarters, such as [Peach Rabbit] Gion, [Tea Pig] Kake, Onigumo, Marigold, Doberman, Strawberry, Dalmatian······ It could be said that this small conference room held nearly two-thirds of Navy Headquarters’ high-level combat power.
This lineup was quite intimidating.
However, Navy Headquarters had gathered so many strong persons not to crusade against New World pirates, but for the World Conference held every four years.
“Fifty countries······ Another fifty Rear Admirals have to be dispatched!”
Vice Admiral Marigold shook the thin sheet of paper in his hand. He, who always wore a gentle smile, rarely restrained that softness and openly expressed his disgust for such matters. Every four years, the World Conference was held at the Holy Land Marie Geoise, wasting a huge amount of Navy manpower to protect these kings and nobles.
Fifty Rear Admirals—that was still the minimum estimate. The actual manpower expended was far greater. Just looking at the two Generals and over a dozen powerful Vice Admirals gathered here instead of suppressing pirates at sea······ The waste of manpower had already begun.
Even though the Navy was vast, pulling out so many personnel would inevitably make the already stretched-thin situation even more full of gaps.
If that so-called World Conference could bring benefits to the world, a little effort wouldn’t be too bad. But this damn World Conference was utterly useless—fifty kings sitting together, and three days of conference time spent nothing but arguing.
At every World Conference, the kings would propose nearly a hundred agenda items, some reliable, some not.
But regardless of reliability, out of over a hundred agenda items, usually only three to five would yield results, and those pitiful outcomes were nine times out of ten trivial matters that didn’t matter. A conference bearing the name ‘World’ hardly influenced changes in the world.
“Jermma Kingdom? What a nostalgic name.”
Vice Admiral Tsuru caught an interesting term amid the jumble of names.
Her hometown was North Blue.
The story of Jermma 66 and Navy Hero Sola was, like all North Blue people, a vivid memory from her childhood. Of course, she wasn’t afraid of the evil organization Jermma 66; she simply felt nostalgic. She hadn’t returned to her North Blue hometown in a long time.
“Hmph!”
Sakazuki, sitting on his chair like a volcano poised to erupt, snorted a hint of disdain and disgust from his nostrils.
Coincidentally, the renowned General [Akainu] also hailed from North Blue, and the General [Kizaru] sitting diagonally across from him was also from North Blue. They all knew of Jermma 66, the infamous evil organization in North Blue. Even when they joined the Navy, it wasn’t without influence from that story.
However, Jermma Kingdom held the status of a World Government Member Nation, leaving Sakazuki, who wanted to eliminate harm from his homeland, unable to act. Fortunately, the current Jermma Kingdom was no longer the powerful kingdom that unified North Blue.
“Eh? Didn’t Jermma Kingdom attend the conference last year? Why is it on the list again this year?” Borsalino’s face showed a strange expression.
The World Government had over 170 Member Nations, but each World Conference had only fifty slots. This meant not every country could participate. Though not all Member Nations cared about attending, most kings, as a country’s supreme rulers, eagerly sought World Conference participation slots.
Countries that managed to secure participation were naturally overjoyed, but those missing out for consecutive years protested dissatisfaction, claiming the World Government was unfair. Faced with dozens of kings’ protests, the World Government couldn’t resort to harsh measures.
They had no choice but to change the rules, establishing the current rotational participation system for the World Conference.
By the rules, Jermma Kingdom shouldn’t be on this list.
“Jermma’s king contacted the Holy Land. The Five Elders have permitted Jermma to attend this World Conference,” Sengoku explained.
In fact,
Borsalino’s question was just casual. General Kizaru, who knew all the dark sides of Navy Headquarters, didn’t care at all about the World Conference.
After all, rules were dead, people were alive—there were always special cases to exploit loopholes.
It was called rotational participation in the World Conference, but superpowers like Alabasta Kingdom, with long history and vast territory, had never missed a single World Conference. Generations of Alabasta kings held permanent seats there.
Jermma Kingdom was the same. The Vinsmoke family had no fixed territory, only a mobile kingdom at sea, but that didn’t stop them from claiming a World Conference slot.
“Jermma and such are trivial. The problem is Eckmond Kingdom······ We need to consider Eckmond Kingdom, the Black Prince.” Seeing no ideal response from the crowd—not even Tsuru, who was clearly distracted by mere mention of Jermma—Sengoku had no choice but to raise the issue he’d suppressed for so long.
“According to intelligence, the Black Prince’s maritime transport network has already influenced most New World pirates. Even the BIG·MOM Pirate Crew and Beasts Pirates have each taken hits to some degree—especially Beasts. That undying monster might target the Black Prince.”
Hearing the Fleet Admiral’s words, the Vice Admirals below exchanged glances, unsure what to say.
What could they say?
The grievances between the Black Prince and the Four Emperors weren’t for them to meddle in. Even Gion and Kake, young yet with strength nearing General level, couldn’t bridge the gap to Four Emperors or Generals without truly reaching that level.
“So, does that mean dispatching Vice Admirals to escort Eckmond Kingdom’s fleet?” Onigumo asked in a chilling tone.
“Vice Admirals? That doesn’t seem sufficient!”
Dalmatian scratched his head.
“Dalmatian’s right. Even sending Vice Admirals probably won’t help. If Beasts and the Black Prince really clash······ One Vice Admiral wouldn’t even fill the gaps in two ferocious giant beasts’ teeth.”
“Then what do you suggest? We can’t have a General handle escort duty, can we?”
The Vice Admirals began arguing.
Only when Sengoku knocked on the table again, stopping the quarrels, did the room return to tranquility.
“For escorting the Black Prince, just pick any lucky Rear Admiral who can run fast. We don’t need to waste power on the Black Prince. What I truly worry about are G1 Branch and G5 Branch—our only two footholds in the New World. If Beasts and the Black Prince go to war······ The two branches, especially G5 Branch, are a bit far from the Red Line. Sending reinforcements won’t yield quick results, so I plan to send aid to G5 Branch in advance.”
With that, Sengoku’s sharp eyes scanned the faces of the numerous Vice Admirals.
He ultimately selected the reinforcement candidate.
It was Kake.
Codename [Tea Pig], future General candidate, top strong person who nearly claimed a General seat.
But Kake looked annoyed, muttering nonstop that Gion hadn’t accepted his pursuit yet, he didn’t want to leave headquarters now, best if he could act with Gion······ All delusions.
As the saying goes, an arm can’t twist a thigh. Kake’s little arm couldn’t resist Fleet Admiral Sengoku’s super thick thigh command.
He could only sigh “Bad luck” repeatedly, pinching his nose to accept the G5 Base support mission.
“Borsalino, you go sit at G1 Branch. No matter how the New World flips upside down, just watch G1 Branch. Don’t let New World’s chaos impact the Red Line—that’s your biggest mission.” Sengoku made another arrangement.
Borsalino, who ate the Glint-Glint Fruit, had the Navy’s fastest movement speed. With him at G1 Branch, he could support the distant G5 Branch at top speed.
“Garp······ Of all times, he went home now.”
Still feeling uneasy, Sengoku mentally noted his unreliable old friend, vowing to teach that self-willed bastard Garp a lesson when the chance came. His little mental ledger had so many accounts against Garp, yet he’d never found the opportunity—rather, he himself was often angered to heartache.
“Sigh!”
He sighed again.
The New World was about to descend into chaos.
Previously, when the Black Prince’s influence was still weak and conflicts with the Four Emperors stayed within reasonable bounds, even his martial power rivaling the Four Emperors hadn’t attracted their strangling.
Until now—
The Black Prince’s maritime transport network wasn’t just thriving in the New World. With Navy protection in Paradise and the Revolutionary Army as a bottomless pit of a major client demanding supplies, his influence had unwittingly grown into the colossal force now dominating both ends of the Grand Line.
It had even started affecting other Pirate Emperors’ interests.
For instance, Beasts, who racked his brains to acquire Zoan Devil Fruits to build an all-ability user army. In the black market, whenever a Zoan Devil Fruit appeared, unless kept for personal use, everyone sold to Beasts.
However,
Now the Black Prince controlled the maritime transport network, always getting fresh intelligence first. He’d repeatedly snatched Zoan Devil Fruits Beasts wanted, thanks to advance intel from the network.
Naturally, Kaido, robbed of his prizes, wouldn’t smile and say well done. Navy informants reported shocking celestial phenomena around Wano Country, with Beasts Pirates’ affiliated crews gathering toward Wano······ Barring accidents, once the Black Prince left Eckmond Kingdom with his father for the Holy Land to attend the World Conference, Beasts would almost certainly launch war on Eckmond Kingdom.
Even if the Black Prince got advance intel and skipped the Red Line······ With Beasts’ cunning and warlike nature, war wouldn’t stop.
The Black Prince warring with a Four Emperor was what Sengoku had once hoped for, but······ When it truly happened, he immediately felt immense pressure. He knew the principle of pulling one hair moves the whole body.
If massive war erupted in the New World, it would inevitably affect Paradise and the Four Seas. Whether the Navy liked it or not, they’d be dragged in—grabbing chestnuts from the fire tested skill.
And it coincided with the World Conference,
Unable to muster full power against the New World’s potentially dire situation, diverting major effort to protect kings bickering at the Holy Land—Sengoku had been headaching since realizing the impending circumstances.
“Sakazuki, you go to the New World! Besides Eckmond Kingdom, five other Member Nation kings are attending this conference. Don’t let them get collateral damage en route.”
Sengoku continued issuing orders.
“Leave it to me!”
Sakazuki readily accepted the unsafe mission.
Though such escort tasks didn’t suit his personality or abilities, with General [Aokiji] absent—recently sent to South Blue at World Government request to aid the CP Department in exterminating rebels claiming Ohara’s legacy—who else?
No choice but to have Sakazuki step up. Once Sakazuki and Borsalino left Marineford, Navy Headquarters would have no Generals stationed. Sengoku considered recalling Zephyr, busy fighting pirates in the New World, to hold for a while, but was refused.
For Zephyr, half-retired and fighting pirates purely on willpower, Sengoku couldn’t force him.
Next,
Sengoku continued assigning missions. None of the present Vice Admirals escaped—even Vice Admiral Tsuru was tasked. She needed her superhuman wisdom and vast experience to manage this World Conference while monitoring New World war winds.
The meeting lasted over six hours, from nine in the morning until afternoon.
However,
What ended was just this meeting. The real trouble was about to begin!
