Chapter 46: The Prolonged Battle And The Rising Winds
The moon rose to the center of the sky.
The battle was still continuing.
After destroying nearly a quarter of Saiboi Island, the battlefield gradually moved away from this island, which immediately relieved the few strong persons on the island—those who still maintained consciousness after being washed by Elus’s spiritual pressure and BIG·MOM’s Conqueror’s Haki.
These people’s identities were extremely complex.
There were pillars of the state from Ximuyel Kingdom who survived because of their great ability to trim sails without having their heads chopped off by Elus.
There were great pirates who came to the island for fun but unfortunately stumbled upon Elus’s conquest of Ximuyel Kingdom.
There were reporters dispatched by major news agencies to dig up intelligence on the Black Prince; these reporters had been secretly following Elus’s fleet for the past month, and this time they also rode merchant ships to Saiboi Island and successfully discovered this big news.
There were also Revolutionary Army cadres who were originally hiding on this island and vigorously causing trouble······
Even Elus had not fully grasped this motley mix; he was completely unaware of the Revolutionary Army’s presence, or rather, the former royal family and ministers of Ximuyel Kingdom also did not know that the Revolutionary Army was lurking within their own territory.
After all, it was an organization regarded by the World Government as its number one great enemy.
Even if all the Four Emperors were added together, they might not be considered more dangerous than the Revolutionary Army in the eyes of the World Government.
Well!
In any case, tonight was destined to be a night of great activity for the Den Den Mushi.
Pieces of news were transmitted through the biological waves of the Den Den Mushi to different places in the New World. Soon, after brewing for a moment, even larger-scale biological waves centered on the New World further spread toward Paradise and the Four Seas. If there were corresponding monitoring methods, one could discover how frequently the Den Den Mushi’s biological waves were traveling back and forth around the world tonight.
————
New World, Silver Iris Sea Area.
This was one of the territories controlled by the Whitebeard Pirates. The islands in this sea area had very special silver irises that could only survive here; these silver irises were an important raw material for making cosmetics, so this sea area was also one of the Whitebeard Pirates’ important sources of funds.
Tonight, a massive fleet led by the Moby Dick was sailing in the Silver Iris Sea Area.
Unlike the two Pirate Emperors BIG·MOM and Beasts, the Whitebeard Pirates had no fixed large base like Whole Cake Island and Onigashima; the Moby Dick was Whitebeard’s imperial city. This Pirate Emperor insisted that pirates should live on the sea.
Therefore, the Whitebeard Pirates were always constantly roaming the sea areas under their jurisdiction, patrolling their territory like lions.
“Gurarla la la~~~”
Whitebeard, who had not yet rested and was drinking with his sons, suddenly let out an extremely cheerful laugh after taking a call on the Den Den Mushi for a moment.
Yes,
this was an extremely pleasant laugh.
Marco, who had followed Old Man for decades, could certainly hear the emotion contained in the laughter.
“Old Man, is there any good news?”
The man with the golden punk head asked.
“It’s a pretty interesting piece of news!”
Whitebeard hung up the Den Den Mushi on the call, his crescent-shaped white whiskers trembling lightly with the smile. He looked down at his sons sitting on the deck. “Sokachio Elus, do you guys still remember this little guy?”
Sokachio Elus?
That recently rising star, the [Black Prince]?
The image of a one-meter-six tall brat with green eyes and an unusually arrogant attitude immediately appeared in the minds of captains like Marco, Jozu, Vista, Sachi, and Izo.
Of course they knew; how could they forget that arrogant little brat who once rejected Old Man? Back then, when Old Man spoke up, the captains present thought the ship would gain another very young younger brother, but unexpectedly, the pint-sized brat flatly rejected Old Man.
“Old Man, what trouble has that arrogant little brat stirred up this time?” Fifth Division Commander Vista, known as [Rapier], gently stroked his whiskers.
“He fought with that crazy woman BIG·MOM.”
“······Huh?”
Vista’s fingers stroking his whiskers stiffened.
“Old Man, you’re saying that little brat fought with······with BIG·MOM?”
“That’s right. It’s on Saiboi Island in the Frank Aroma Sea Area. They’ve been fighting from this morning until now without ending. It looks like it won’t have a clear result without a few days and nights······ Gurarla la la! This sea has a new king born again.”
Whitebeard laughed cheerfully.
However, not everyone could laugh heartily like Whitebeard.
The captains exchanged glances,
feeling nothing but headaches.
Especially the main managing captains like Marco, Vista, Sachi, and Izo: Elus stepping on BIG·MOM’s face to announce the birth of another king on the great sea in the New World was certainly pleasant news—the relationship between the Whitebeard Pirates and BIG·MOM’s pirate crew was extremely bad, even though Whitebeard and BIG·MOM were once shipmates.
Seeing BIG·MOM’s pirate crew become the backdrop for a new king was of course delightful, but the problem was that after the delight, they also had to think about how to handle the relationship between the Whitebeard Pirates and Eckmond Kingdom.
The best situation would naturally be to part on good terms, neither interfering with the other.
The Whitebeard Pirates did not control their territories in a slavish manner but through mutual choice.
The Whitebeard Pirates needed funds and supplies to maintain the crew’s consumption, and in exchange, they lent their flag to protect the forces under them from invasion by the other Pirate Emperors. If some force did not want to maintain this contract, they just needed to return the Whitebeard Pirates’ flag and then go their separate ways.
This was the Whitebeard Pirates’ way of doing things.
Even though Eckmond Kingdom was one of the Whitebeard Pirates’ important sources of funds, the Whitebeard Pirates would not forcibly control Eckmond Kingdom, let alone the current Eckmond Kingdom, which had a prince who could go head-to-head with the Four Emperors.
What Marco was worried about now was that the [Black Prince], after challenging BIG·MOM, would come to challenge Old Man.
Of course,
he had no doubt that Old Man would achieve final victory. If it was an enemy who could be defeated casually, he wouldn’t care how Old Man handled it. What he didn’t want to see was Old Man engaging in prolonged fierce battles; with Old Man’s current body, every high-intensity brutal fight pulled him closer to the underworld.
If possible,
it was best to avoid unnecessary conflicts.
“When I saw that little brat back then, I felt he was very interesting, but······ I didn’t expect him to climb to the peak of this world so quickly! Gurarla la la! Sure enough, this world belongs to the young people of the future. An old antique from the old era like me might have reached the time to exit the stage!” Whitebeard said thoughtfully.
“Old Man!!!”
Hearing this, Marco immediately became anxious.
How could he say such inauspicious words!
Not just Marco; Jozu, Sachi, Vista, Izo, Namiur, and other captains all suddenly stood up.
“Old Man, that young pup is still very green! This sea isn’t their turn to show off yet.”
“That’s right! Old Man!”
“Old Man, your drinking capacity hasn’t diminished at all compared to before. It’s not time to say such things yet!”
The captains’ words were clumsy and messy, but they were so sincere.
Their admiration and love for Whitebeard, their father, were vividly embodied in this clumsy language.
“You guys!”
Whitebeard laughed again. “Alright, Marco, stop glaring at me. I was just saying it casually. I have no intention of yielding the path to such a little guy. Alright, enough of that. Come on! Lads, cheers to this sea that’s become even more lively!!!”
Huge wine cups were raised,
the clinking of toasts echoed on the deck,
and the Moby Dick returned to its lively and boisterous atmosphere.
As for the matter with Elus······ well, we’ll talk about it later! Anyway, it’s still early. The battle between Elus and BIG·MOM hasn’t ended yet, and there’s plenty of time to handle these things.
————
Navy Headquarters, Marineford.
As always, it was another day of overtime. To be honest, with such a huge organization as the Navy, the work was truly endless. Every day, tons of documents were printed out by Den Den Mushi equipped with printers, all coming from bases in the Grand Line and the Four Seas—
some requesting fund allocations, some requesting injury retirement, some accusing colleagues, some requesting support······ the varied contents kept Vice Admiral Tsuru’s staff troops busy from dawn to dusk, with year-round overtime having long become the norm.
Speaking of which, aside from the incident of the Golden Lion attacking Navy Headquarters, in this massive headquarters, the staff officers’ retirement rate was even higher than that of ordinary Marines.
This showed just how harsh the working environment was for Vice Admiral Tsuru’s staff troops.
However,
in this Navy Headquarters, those working overtime without rest year-round were not just the staff troops. Fleet Admiral Sengoku was the number one overtime workaholic at Navy Headquarters. As Fleet Admiral, he could completely delegate the work to his general officers and staff officers, only needing to review and approve.
But he just couldn’t help being a born workaholic. As long as his stamina and energy allowed, his overtime wouldn’t stop. Fortunately, he was a Zoan Devil Fruit ability user, truly exceptional in endurance. More than ten years of overtime hadn’t worn him down.
Tonight,
the Fleet Admiral’s office was still brightly lit.
“Tsuru, what did you say?”
Suddenly, Fleet Admiral Sengoku’s shout transmitted outward from the open window.
“Sengoku, calm down.”
Vice Admiral Tsuru sat on the guest sofa, her upright posture like a finely honed blade. Sipping hot tea slowly gave a sense of unshakable composure, as if even if the world was about to end the next moment, it wouldn’t disrupt her tea-drinking.
In fact, back then, among the batch of Navy recruits including Sengoku, Garp, Zephyr, and Tsuru, the current wise general Sengoku was just like Garp and Zephyr—an impulsive young hothead. Once his blood boiled, he charged ahead recklessly, and even their superiors couldn’t rein in these troublemakers.
Only Tsuru,
as the only woman in the small group, was the sole person who could rein in the three wild horses: Sengoku, Garp, and Zephyr.
“······After so many years, I still can’t be as calm as you, Tsuru!”
Sengoku leaned back in his chair, looking at the composed tea-sipping Vice Admiral Tsuru, a self-mocking bitter smile on his face. But he couldn’t be blamed for his poor composure; with such news, it was impossible not to feel surprised.
“Tsuru, the news······ is it reliable?”
After slightly calming his suddenly heated brain, Sengoku restrained the fatigue and helplessness he only showed to a few people, resuming his dignified and composed demeanor, and gravely asked about the news brought by Vice Admiral Tsuru.
“Eighty percent certainty.”
Vice Admiral Tsuru nodded lightly.
“The news was first provided by Vice Admiral Vergo of the New World G5 branch, then the same intelligence came back from Dormouse stationed at the G1 branch. Before coming here, the chess pieces we planted in the New World also sent similar intelligence. With such commotion, it shouldn’t be fake.”
Sokachio Elus, Crown Prince of Eckmond Kingdom, codename [Black Prince]. Latest intelligence: His Highness the Black Prince clashed in the sky above Saiboi Island in the New World Frank Aroma Sea Area with one of the Four Emperors, BIG·MOM. The battle lasted an entire day and has yet to conclude.
This was the news brought by Vice Admiral Tsuru.
Another strong person comparable to a Pirate Emperor had appeared in the New World, just like that world’s greatest swordsman who had dueled multiple times with one of the Four Emperors, Red-Haired, without a definitive victory or defeat.
However, it was clear that this Black Prince was not a lone wolf like [Hawk Eyes].
As a crown prince, he was born a ruler of a force. Elus’s rise would inevitably bring unimaginable impact to the New World.
“I thought he was just shaking up the New World’s structure, but I didn’t expect······ he’d directly destroy the four-corner balance so quickly, and in this way······” Sengoku was half pleased, half worried.
The pleasure was naturally because Elus’s appearance disrupted the New World’s power balance. It was foreseeable that the New World would welcome a new massive storm next. As long as this storm was confined to the New World, Sengoku was certainly happy to see the pirates biting each other.
The worry was because Elus’s strength exceeded his expectations, making him somewhat concerned about what path Elus would choose in the future. Logically, Eckmond Kingdom was a World Government member nation, so Elus should naturally belong to the camp of the World Government and the Navy.
However, things in the New World were not so simply black and white.
Eckmond Kingdom was still flying the Whitebeard Pirates’ flag! Plus, Elus’s brutal act of massacring twenty thousand people at once on Whale Tail Island also made people worry that this prince might make choices contrary to the World Government and the Navy.
“Sengoku, what about Garp······?”
Vice Admiral Tsuru asked.
With BIG·MOM as this touchstone delivered right to the door, Garp no longer needed to test if Elus qualified as the Navy’s ally in the New World. Now the question was whether Elus was willing to be manipulated by the Navy and turn Eckmond Kingdom into the Navy’s bridgehead for a large-scale return to the New World.
“Garp······ continue the mission.”
After a moment of contemplation, Sengoku made the decision.
