While the photographs documenting the Celestial Dragon's execution hadn't been released by the Hell Pirates, both the Marine and World Government were undoubtedly aware of the incident.
However, for the following days, the seas remained deceptively calm.
It was as if the events in the Kingdom of Bore had been nothing more than a collective hallucination. The World Government was clearly suppressing any news of the incident, though their reasons for the media blackout remained unclear.
Everyone across the world knew that Oboro still lived, which meant the Hell Pirates weren't finished and would inevitably return. Furthermore, with another Celestial Dragon's death on their hands, logic dictated that the bounties on the Hell Pirates, including their captain, should have increased dramatically.
Yet the reality proved otherwise.
Beyond appearing on standard wanted posters, the bounties on all seven crew members remained exactly the same as they had been in the North Blue.
This stagnation was clearly anomalous.
Even from an ordinary citizen's perspective, the God Slayer had yet to prove his worth against truly formidable forces on the seas. Given the widespread attention and the threat he posed to the World Government, a bounty of several hundred million wouldn't have been unreasonable. Before the Battle of Twin Capes, the underground bounty on Oboro in the New World alone had reached three billion berries, a staggering amount.
Of course, this sum had been publicly announced by the Donquixote Family. Doflamingo wasn't foolish enough to actually pay such an amount. He believed Oboro could still "escape death," meaning no one could successfully capture him. With this premise, he could offer any astronomical sum, whether three billion or even five billion, purely to stoke the flames of chaos.
Meanwhile, the seven members of the Hell Pirates focused their attention on the upcoming "major operation."
With another Celestial Dragon's assassination, the East Blue would soon be heavily fortified. This time, if nothing unexpected occurred, Oboro felt certain that even if the Five Elders didn't take direct action, CP0 would be forced to mobilize. The Marine and World Government would definitely dispatch elite forces to hunt him and his companions. Until now, there had been no external rumors or media reports of any military response from the Marine, but that didn't mean the World Government would allow another Celestial Dragon's murder to go unanswered.
This time, however, he had learned from experience and employed more cunning tactics.
That terrifying force was undoubtedly already en route to the East Blue.
Therefore, Oboro refused to waste precious time.
He had to acknowledge that aside from himself, the other six weren't yet capable of facing the ocean's true powerhouses in direct combat, they still needed to grow stronger.
Furthermore, among those six, aside from Dom and Yurivich, the remaining four each harbored their own hidden agendas. Oboro could see that Lucci and Dorans weren't the only ones concealing something significant.
"Where are we headed?"
Over the East Blue, the seven men soared through the sky with apparent aimlessness.
Dorans couldn't resist cautiously probing for information.
Everyone was curious about their captain's true purpose for this journey to the East Blue.
What objective could be more urgent than eliminating a Celestial Dragon?
"To find someone," Oboro replied calmly. "A legendary pirate who once dominated the world stage in a previous era."
A pirate?
"Who?" Yingge raised an eyebrow with interest.
Pirate King Roger had ushered in a new chapter in maritime history. The great figures who had shaped the old world, those still alive and prominent, largely ruled from the New World, represented by the Four Emperors. These individuals had crossed over from the old era into the new, but the fact that their captain addressed them as being "from the old era" suggested they bore the distinct characteristics of that bygone age. The first person who came to mind was Edward Newgate, Whitebeard himself.
The problem was that he ranked among the Four Emperors, and his territory lay firmly within the New World.
In a "weak" training ground like the East Blue, how could any legendary pirates from the old era possibly exist?
If there were, the news would have spread throughout the world long ago.
"Shiki the Golden Lion," Oboro announced with measured calm.
"What?"
A moment of stunned silence preceded Kaka's exclamation.
"That old man is still alive?"
The seas no longer bore any trace of the Golden Lion's influence, and history had largely forgotten the man. Few people remembered or even mentioned him anymore, except for occasional references when discussing Pirate King Roger's exploits. To most of the world, Shiki the Golden Lion was already considered a 'vanished' or 'deceased' figure. Even though he had created some disturbances during his last known appearance, his fame had considerably dimmed. Many people remained completely unaware of his existence.
Furthermore, with so many years having passed, countless younger pirates had never even heard his name.
However, Oboro naturally knew the truth. Using the power of his Float-Float Fruit, Golden Lion had created a territory high above the East Blue, similar to an artificial sky island, where he conducted research on a plant called IQ. The SIQ serum produced from this plant stimulated the brains of living creatures, driving them into madness while causing them to evolve rapidly.
Golden Lion's ambition involved "dominating and ruling the world" by breeding a massive army of mutant beasts. Once his experiments and preparations reached completion, he planned to destroy everything, beginning with the East Blue, Roger's homeland.
To accomplish this goal, he had vanished for twenty years.
Regarding Shiki's actions and motivations, Oboro had only two words: ridiculous.
Golden Lion had been as famous as Roger and Whitebeard, and at one point had even surpassed Roger in notoriety. Oboro harbored no doubts about his abilities and ambition during his youth. However, Roger represented both his greatest success and ultimate failure. As a rival, Roger had spurred Golden Lion's growth, but Roger's death had also profoundly impacted Shiki, causing him to become increasingly confused. Unlike the more "clear-headed" pirates like Whitebeard and Roger, Golden Lion suffered from a fundamental character flaw.
Whitebeard and Roger both understood exactly what they wanted.
Golden Lion, however, seemed to desire world domination for its own sake, nothing more.
Yet his determination to achieve this goal lacked the strength and purity of the former two.
Simply put, this dream was too superficial. He lacked the inner drive and emotional foundation necessary for such an undertaking.
He had become a pirate because he wanted power and world domination, but that desire didn't necessarily drive him to remain a pirate. External factors easily distracted him from his path.
Throughout his entire life, this man had been influenced by others, lacking his own genuine "path."
First, it had been the Rocks Pirates, then Roger. With Roger's death, he seemed to have lost his true "purpose."
Yet Golden Lion remained undeniably a man of profound character, bearing the authentic hallmarks of the pirates from the old era.
"Captain, what do you want from him?" Rob Lucci realized the implications.
"Well, success isn't guaranteed. He's the type who looks down on New Era pirates. In other words, he wouldn't take us 'little brats' seriously. We'll probably fail in our recruitment attempt. But I didn't come here solely to bring him aboard. I mean, he possesses something I need."
"He's actually in the East Blue?" Lucci expressed shock.
As a member of the government intelligence system, he was well aware of Golden Lion's reputation and capabilities.
"That's correct."
"..."
"Dear God, I can't imagine what would happen if Golden Lion actually joined us," Kaka gasped with a mixture of awe and terror.
"Think carefully about this first. If we actually encounter him and he decides to attack, how will we survive?" Lucci suddenly spoke in a grave tone.
He sensed that if they truly met Golden Lion, the Hell Pirates would likely end up fighting Shiki directly.
And that man, though forgotten by the modern world, had once been an absolute leader at the pinnacle of the pirate hierarchy. His power was utterly terrifying.
They could all die.
Not only them, even Lucci, who had witnessed Oboro's incredible strength firsthand, didn't believe the God Slayer would emerge victorious.
To put it bluntly, the God Slayer was also taking an enormous risk.
He, too, faced the genuine possibility of falling in battle.
Considering it carefully, this prospect felt hardly different from facing Whitebeard, one of the Four Emperors.
At least, that's how Lucci, who understood Shiki's background, perceived the situation.
It was simply madness.