Grand Line, Sabaody.
When war broke out and the seas were choked with smoke and fire, the Sabaody Archipelago, once a pirate gathering ground, ironically became one of the safest regions.
As the gateway port to the Holy Land, the Marines had fortified Sabaody with their heaviest defenses. Not even a fly could slip past the Holy Land's harbor. It was the critical hub both sides were vying for.
At this moment, deep inside a hotel room, Orrick sat with a grim face, fists clenched tight.
"So you're telling me… Wano Country is gone?"
To infiltrate Sabaody, Orrick had spent an enormous amount of time and effort. Only today had he finally managed to receive a report. Yet the news struck him like a hammer to the skull, leaving him seeing stars.
To be precise, it wasn't that Wano itself was gone, just that their forces in Wano had been wiped out. But his subordinate didn't dare clarify, only nodding nervously.
"Y-Yes… sir."
"It all happened too fast. That monster, the Soryu (Azure Dragon), launched a lightning assault. We had no power to resist. Trapped by Wano's perilous seas, fewer than one in ten of us made it out alive…"
"Trash!" Orrick roared, springing to his feet and grabbing the man by the collar. "And Kurozumi Orochi?! What the hell was he doing?!"
Crushed beneath that terrifying pressure, the subordinate trembled like a leaf, face ashen.
"Lord Orochi… he confronted the Soryu (Azure Dragon) himself, but was defeated. Whether he lives or dies… we don't yet know."
'But survival was unlikely.'
Otherwise, with Orochi's obsession with Wano, how could he have allowed the Soryu (Azure Dragon) to run rampant and topple their base of operations?
"…"
Orrick fell silent. Of course, he had already guessed as much.
Releasing his grip, he slumped back into his chair, asking wearily: "And Kaido? Where is he now?"
Kaido had gone out to wipe out the Marines' assassination unit that had infiltrated the interior, but there had been no word since. With Wano lost, they would need a new stronghold.
At that question, the subordinate stiffened, lips moving soundlessly.
Noticing the hesitation, Orrick's expression darkened.
"If you tell me you don't know… I may just decide to purge the entire Information Department."
"S-sorry, my lord!"
His voice was thick with killing intent. The subordinate all but collapsed to his knees, face twisted in fear.
"Since that day, the Beasts Pirates haven't contacted us at all. After such a long silence, we finally dug up one piece of news, but… Because it was so outrageous, we've been scrambling to confirm it."
"Oh? Let's hear it." Orrick raised an eyebrow. Had Kaido stirred up some massive commotion again? Hopefully, this time, it will be good news.
Gulp…
The subordinate swallowed hard and whispered: "Rumor has it… Kaido has disbanded the Beasts Pirates."
"At present, the news hasn't spread far, confined mostly to the New World. In the first half of the Grand Line, remnants of the Beasts Pirates are still attacking the Marines. So we can't confirm its authenticity. We suspect it might be false information deliberately sown by the Marines to shake morale."
Crack!
The cup in Orrick's hand shattered. He shot a disbelieving glare at the man.
"What?!!"
…
There was a simple logic that subordinate had clearly overlooked: If Kaido had disbanded his crew, why would they need to judge authenticity based on the actions of his subordinates in the first half?
The Beasts Pirates were never known for loyalty.
If Kaido had declared the crew disbanded, everyone would simply go their own way. Aside from a few ambitious figures trying to rally followers to form their own groups, who would bother passing the word along?
The only ones to spread news of the disbandment would be rivals, the Marines, and bystanders eager to watch the chaos.
Which meant Orrick was absolutely certain, the rumor was true.
Kaido had disbanded the Beasts Pirates.
The fact that the remnants in the first half of the Grand Line kept fighting only confirmed it further. After all, with the crew dissolved, why would anyone care about them anymore?
That was exactly the Beasts Pirates' style.
…
At the same time, the Gorōsei (Five Elder Stars) had also received the news.
Vice Admiral Tsuru, who was overseeing orders at Marine Headquarters, rushed to the Holy Land to report to them.
"Impossible?!" Her eyes widened in shock as she drew a sharp breath.
"Don't doubt it," The mustached Elder said calmly. "Our agents inside the Beasts Pirates have confirmed it. We've already locked down the information. We called you here to ask, do you know anything more?"
Tsuru startled, then quickly answered: "As it happens, last night Rowen reported in. He has already taken control of Wano Country and wiped out all of Kaido and Orrick's forces stationed there."
"Oh! Not bad, that brat!"
The Elders exchanged bright looks, as if suddenly understanding why Kaido had chosen to disband his crew. To defy the World Government, even with a hundred thousand men, a pirate crew had no chance.
It was the war factories, weapons, equipment, medicine, food, everything supplied by Wano, that had been the real heart of the Beasts Pirates.
Kurozumi Orochi had poured all the resources he squeezed out of the people into the war effort. Only because of that did the Hundred Beasts Pirates have the capital to go toe-to-toe with the World Government.
Now, however, with Wano Country completely purged by Rowen, the allied forces of three factions crushed and stripped bare, Kaido had no means of sustaining his operations. Trying to command armies with nothing but his own overwhelming might? Impossible.
The war had begun with Rowen's kidnapping as the fuse, and ever since then, they had been on the back foot, constantly being beaten down. Even when the Marines planned a counterattack, it never got past the "planning" stage.
And now, with Rowen single-handedly reversing the tide, the Gorōsei (Five Elder Stars) had no idea what to say. He was always creating miracles! After the initial shock, a chilling sense of "getting used to it" settled in.
"But we can't let our guard down!" Vice Admiral Tsuru digested the contents of the report and spoke: "First, Rowen's successful encirclement wasn't just because Orrick's kidnapping plan failed. It also tied directly to why Orrick and Kaido left Wano Country in the first place. Even if Kurozumi Orochi is gone, the remaining two are still not to be underestimated."
The Gorōsei pulled themselves back from their brief joy and nodded.
"First, you said? Then what's the second point?" The long-mustached Elder asked curiously.
"Second, it's the same issue as when you ordered this news suppressed." Tsuru frowned deeply and continued: "Kaido's dissolution of his pirate crew is sixty percent good, forty percent bad. The good is that without his direct orders, there won't be too many pirates willing to keep fighting us to the death. Large-scale neutralization of their threat is virtually guaranteed.
"But the bad… the bad is what desperate pirates will do once they realize their captain has abandoned them! The frenzied pirate tides from the dawn of the Great Pirate Era may very well rise again!"
Back then, countless pirates had surged into the Grand Line, setting sail in madness.
It was the darkest, most chaotic period in the government's 800-year history. And the greatest change was that the word "pirate" stopped referring to a handful of wicked rogues and instead became the mainstream of the entire age.
"That possibility… you must already be prepared for it, yes?" The long-mustached Elder narrowed his eyes slightly. "Rowen's proposal has been in effect for years now. Are you confident it will hold?"
Tsuru thought for a long moment before answering solemnly:
"Yes. But it will spread our forces thin."
This was the Marine's golden era. Not only did it show in the explosive growth of individual strength and military equipment, but also in the flawless, web-like transportation networks that left no gaps.
Even in the face of another Great Pirate Era, the present day was nothing like before, this time they had the means to handle it.
"That is enough! The Holy Land is not so weak that it needs you to coddle it!"
Under Tsuru's startled gaze, the long-mustached Elder's eyes snapped open, radiating authority.
"Immediately summon Soryu (Azure Dragon) back to base. Orrick and Kaido no longer have the strength to stir up too much trouble. The only target left to them is the Holy Land. We need to concentrate our strength to meet the assault that's surely coming."
"I… understand." Tsuru lowered her head, her expression complicated.
If only they had stood tall sooner. Through her investigations, she had long noticed something wrong between Akainu and Rowen, with their likely goal pointing straight at the World Government itself.
After a long inner struggle, she had chosen to stay silent.
If the Holy Land had risen up earlier, stood tall the way it did now, perhaps Orrick's incident would never have happened at all. But that was impossible. The existence of the Celestial Dragons had shackled the Government's resolve.
They were its strength, and also its downfall.
Now, it was too late.
At that moment, a knock came at the door.
The five men inside exchanged a glance. The long-mustached Elder spoke:
"Come in."
"My Lords!" CP0 agent Kalifa, clad in a white suit, entered and bowed respectfully. Her words were clear and firm: "Admiral Aokiji has awakened, just moments ago!"
"Oh! What a day this is, nothing but good news." The Gorōsei smiled in delight. But Tsuru suddenly frowned.
"Did he say anything?"
Unlike the Gorōsei, the Marines knew best about the code Aokiji had left behind.
With that reminder, the Elders also recalled the earlier incident and looked over at her.
Feeling the weight of the world's top powers' attention on her, Kalifa swallowed hard, lowered her head, and replied:
"Yes. He did."
"Admiral Aokiji's first words upon waking were: 'Beware the Sea King, she is not Shirahoshi!'"
At that, all their pupils shrank in shock.
"What?!!"
(End of Chapter)
This novel is finished, and I have posted all the advanced chapters on my Patreon https://www.patreon.com/darkshadow6395