The Grand Line.
Headquarters of the World Economy News Paper.
News King Morgans set down the Den Den Mushi, his face still tinged with lingering shock.
"That woman, Stussy… she really dug up an amazing individual."
"First he defeated Golden Lion Shiki, and now even Dracule Mihawk has acknowledged him as the true World's Greatest Swordsman?"
"How many years has Mihawk held the top swordsman title? Ten? Twenty?"
"This Arton…he's practically skyrocketed to the pinnacle the moment he set sail. No, given who he is, he's bound to stir up countless storms on the seas from now on."
"I'd love to interview this man in person."
Morgans murmured to himself, his body trembling slightly with excitement.
"Priority rush—this has to be published as soon as possible!"
"This story will shake the whole world!"
"Come to think of it, it's strange. I already put out the news that Arton took out Shiki, but the Marines haven't even tried issuing a bounty on Arton or his Flameblade Pirates. Those guys must be scheming something…"
Morgans stroked his chin, deep in thought.
"And Stussy's interest in Arton is worth noting as well. Could there be something about him I'm still unaware of?"
After a moment's consideration, Morgans picked up a different Den Den Mushi and dialed Stussy's number. By their agreement, whenever he learned of Arton's whereabouts, he was supposed to pass that intel along. And while he was at it, he wanted to see if Stussy knew why the Marines weren't going after Arton.
The call rang twice before a calm yet sultry voice came through on the other end:
"Morgans. To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"
"I've received information on Arton's whereabouts. Didn't you say you wanted to know his location at all times? How about it—want some exclusive intel from me?"
"Oh, so you're calling to keep your word. It's a pity, though—I already got intel on my own. Arton's near the Baratie in the East Blue, right?"
"Hmm?! You already know?!"
"Heheh, what a coincidence—I happen to have someone stationed there."
Stussy smiled softly, her gaze drifting to the floating Diary Copy hanging beside her. This time, Arton had outright revealed his own location. He'd even mentioned his next destination in the diary itself, making Morgans's intel unnecessary.
"You really do have your hands everywhere," Morgans remarked. "But since you know Arton's been at the Baratie, you must also know he defeated Dracule Mihawk."
Once his initial surprise subsided, Morgans came straight out and said it.
"Yes! I was shocked when I first heard it," Stussy replied. "But after confirming the details with my people, I'm now certain it's true."
"Then did your people manage to get any pictures?" Morgans asked quickly.
Unfortunately, Ellie—his reporter—had arrived at the Baratie too late. She'd only managed to learn what had happened by interviewing eyewitnesses, so she had no photographs. A news story without photos to back it up loses a significant amount of its impact, which was the last thing Morgans wanted.
Moreover, hearing Ellie's report of Arton's battle—and even Nami's fight—only made Morgans more eager to see any images captured.
Stussy remained silent.
"What's wrong? Stussy, don't tell me you really do have pictures," Morgans pressed. "If you do, hand them over. I'll owe you for this one. Whatever you need in the future, I'll help."
From Stussy's silence, Morgans could guess she did indeed have those photos.
"Calm down, Morgans."
"How am I supposed to calm down? This is world-shaking news!"
"I understand, but regarding the photos…"
"What, is there a problem? Or are they not clear enough? That's fine—even if they're blurry, as long as we have them—"
"It's not that they're blurry…" Stussy let out a small sigh as she flipped through Arton's diary entries.
Rather than blurry, they were too crystal clear. In fact, they weren't just photos; they were videos. The footage Arton recorded using his system was so clear that Stussy had never seen anything like it. Even a top-of-the-line Imaging Den Den Mushi couldn't compare to the clarity of the videos captured by Arton's Sailing Diary System.
Stussy actually didn't mind doing Morgans a favor by handing over screenshots from Arton's recordings—provided she chose angles carefully, so Arton wouldn't realize someone was stealing his footage. That way, he wouldn't suspect that other people had access to his diary.
The real problem, however, was that there was no way to take screenshots from the copy of the diary. Even if she aimed a camera at the diary, the camera would capture nothing but empty air.
After some thought, Stussy said into the Den Den Mushi, "In truth, my associate did record Arton's fight with Hawkeye, but not with a camera—it was thanks to her Devil Fruit power."
"A Devil Fruit?" Morgans' eyebrows rose.
Stussy nodded lightly. "Yes, it's a fruit with camera-like abilities. However, the images she records with that power can't be directly turned into photographs."
In reality, Stussy was fabricating the story about the Devil Fruit user. But in a world with countless Devil Fruits, she wasn't too worried Morgans would doubt her.
"Still, you needn't worry too much. Even if she can't convert the recorded footage into pictures…"
"But her drawing skills are top-notch," Stussy continued. "If you need them, I can provide illustrated versions of the key moments from Arton's fight with Mihawk."
"Drawings, huh…" Morgans furrowed his brows, then relaxed after a moment. "They're not as direct as photographs, but having some artwork is still better than nothing. Stussy, I need images of Nami, the fusion of Nami and Arton, Arton using Unlimited Blades Works, and the key scenes from his battle with Mihawk. I'll owe you for this one, too."
Hearing that, Stussy smiled. "I'll get right on it. It won't take long before I can send you these illustrations via the Den Den Mushi. I look forward to your news story, Morgans."
Morgans shook his head. "You already know the outcome of Arton's fight with Mihawk. And let's be honest—you told me to keep an eye on Arton's movements and pass along his location, but it looks like you don't really need my intel at all. Your people seem capable of following him just fine."
Stussy took over smoothly. "It just so happened that my associate ran into Arton, that's all. He was simply luckier than your reporter."
She glanced at her Diary Copy, reflecting on how it really had been luck this time. Given Arton's style of writing in his diary, sometimes he didn't clearly mention his current location or next destination. It was a surprise that he'd explicitly written down the location of his battle with Mihawk and mentioned Cocoyasi Village right afterward.
"Either way, it proves you're watching that man closely," Morgans said. "I imagine you've deployed quite a few people to investigate him. Stussy, do you know something special about Arton? He took down the Golden Lion, yet the Marines haven't put a bounty on him. I suspect that's because of some unique factor about Arton that made the Navy hold back on a wanted poster?"
Morgans narrowed his eyes as he spoke.
Although Arton, judging by his actions so far, has never harmed innocent civilians, the Marines don't refrain from issuing bounties just because a pirate hasn't targeted ordinary people. As soon as they determine someone is a pirate—and potentially dangerous—they should post a bounty. And Arton did defeat the legendary Golden Lion, after all. That alone proves how much of a threat this newly established pirate could be.
Even if the Golden Lion's bounty has been canceled, under normal circumstances Arton should've earned himself a bounty of over a billion by now—at least, that's what Morgans believes.
"You really are sharp, Morgans," Stussy said. "But I'm afraid I can't tell you anything about that. If you want the truth, you'll just have to keep chasing after Arton. And as for why the Marines haven't put a price on his head, it's only a matter of time before they do."
She knew very well that the Marines hadn't issued a bounty because they wanted to recruit Arton as an ally. But Stussy also knew that sooner or later, Arton would make a move against the Celestial Dragons. At that point, even if the female Marines with Diary Copies didn't want to see him listed as a wanted criminal, they'd have no choice but to stand on the opposite side.
"Morgans, Big Mom's tea party is about to begin," Stussy went on. "I need to prepare some gifts, so I can't chat any longer. I'll send you those illustrated scenes from Arton's fight with Mihawk later."
With that, she hung up.
Morgans stared at the silent Den Den Mushi, likewise lapsing into silence.
"That woman…she's just like before." He gave a wry smile. "But it does look like there's some secret behind Arton. Even if you won't tell me, I'll dig it up myself."
Then he left his office to prepare the big article on Arton in person.
…
Meanwhile, Stussy stood and gazed out at the open sea.
"A tea party… There are plenty of women in Big Mom's circle who hold Diary Copies. I wonder if any of them have already set sail to find Arton. Fufu, I should probably look into that myself."
Stussy's lips curved upward as she spoke softly.
When she finished, her gaze returned to the various "Emiya Shirou" stories Arton had uploaded into the diary. In the end, her attention settled on the notes about "Emiya Shirou Alter," whose power Arton had yet to use.
"Heroic Spirit Emiya Alter—a hero of justice whose spirit was burned away by the act of killing the innocent.
He was clearly a great force for good, yet he was tormented because he had to take the lives of some who were blameless.
Even if he fell into hell, even if he scoffed at justice, he still acted for it.
And once his memory was completely lost, he recalled the pure dream of being a hero of justice and fought for it once more.
Even if that dream of 'being a hero of justice' was borrowed, it guided him throughout his life and became his creed."
"Apart from Emiya Alter, every other Emiya who carries the ideal of being a hero of justice also acts on behalf of justice. Compared to Emiya Shirou, the Navy's so-called 'justice' really is laughable."
Stussy shook her head with a smile, thinking of Gion and the others.
"I wonder what those Marines will think once they read Emiya Shirou's story."