After Bloody Hand Braver raised his question, Sengoku the Buddha didn't boast or posture—he got straight to the point.
"This proves Brook prefers steady development over chaos," Sengoku explained calmly. "As long as we don't provoke him, he won't openly attack member nations. He's even reached out through the Underworld to negotiate the ransom of captured marines. It's clear—he doesn't want total war with the Navy."
Sengoku laid out the facts. Brook, now the Overlord of the New World, had passed up the chance to escalate. With the right agreement, they could maintain balance—no war, no bloodbath. That was the best outcome the World Government could hope for.
"You want peace with Brook? Are you insane, Sengoku?!" barked a hawkish vice admiral, slamming the table. His eyes were bloodshot with fury. "The Navy will never compromise with pirates!"
Many of his subordinates had perished in the recent skirmish with the Hell Pirates.
"Oh? Then you'd rather see all our captured soldiers executed by Brook?" Sengoku replied coldly. "If you're so eager, why not march into his territory and take them back yourself?"
The room went quiet.
"Dealing with the Celestial Dragons won't be easy either," Admiral Kong muttered. "It's one thing to ransom captives—but cooperating with the Hell Pirates? Impossible. Don't forget Brook and Redfield killed Saint Rothschild."
That truth hung heavy in the room.
"Sengoku," Admiral Coss Davo finally sighed, "just negotiate the ransom first. We'll figure out the rest later."
The conversation, meant to strategize against the Hell Pirates, had somehow shifted to bargaining for lives and whispered diplomacy.
"The World Government hasn't finalized a response yet," Admiral Hoss said. "They exempted the Prodence Kingdom from this year's heavenly tribute, and told us to reassess the Hell Pirates' strength and issue new bounties."
It was a smart move. Brook and his four fighters were evolving fast. If the Navy didn't catch up, they'd be crushed later.
Thus began a deep-dive analysis of each member of the Hell Pirates: their fighting styles, Devil Fruits, Haki mastery, and potential weaknesses.
When the new bounty list was finally published, an uneasy silence swept the room.
"They've all awakened Conqueror's Haki Infusion," Coss Davo muttered. "And not one of them is a pushover. Engage them recklessly, and you're done."
He stared at the final bounty list with a heavy heart. How the hell were pirates this talented? Marines trained their whole lives and never touched this level of power.
"Then it's settled," said Admiral Kong. "The three of us will remain stationed in the New World. Once things calm down, we'll rotate back to Marineford."
All vacations were off. Even returning to headquarters was now considered rest.
As the meeting adjourned, each admiral left to fortify key Marine bases across the New World, reinforcing the alliance's defensive line.
Meanwhile, after Rocks retreated to the Beehive Island, the surrounding buffer zone descended into chaos. Even Rocks' own bannered islands were raided or outright conquered.
But Brook's turf? Untouched.
His performance in the recent war sent shockwaves. No pirate crew dared challenge the Hell Pirates. And now, Brook had opened official branches of the Pirate Guild on his route islands—offering sanctuary and structure to wandering crews.
New World – Ballon Island.
The newly recaptured Punk Hazard was positioned right beside Scholar Island, O'Hara, forming a technological alliance. Brook officially appointed Vegapunk to manage it.
The scientists captured during the war were placed under Vegapunk's control. Brook executed a few troublemakers—Professor Bald Eagle, Dr. Sakura, and the bio-torture freak Liam—as a warning.
Those with lesser crimes were pardoned and put to work on high-tech research: cyborgs, war machines, robotics.
All four surviving Lunarians had been taken in by Brook alone, now serving as permanent crew aboard the Golden Island. He gave them the prestigious title of Dark Fallen Angels.
Both Shiki the Golden Lion and Whitebeard had hinted they wanted one of the Lunarians for their own crews, but Brook shut them down gently—and firmly—saying he honored the will of his crewmates.
"The Golden Pirates are now one of our affiliates? Heh... not bad," Brook chuckled, reviewing his growing fleet.
He vaguely remembered the so-called Golden Pirate. Since Whitebeard once had over forty subordinate crews, the Hell Pirates would aim to surpass even that.
But Brook wouldn't run his forces like the old overlords. No loose alliances based on feelings. His system would be built on tiers of benefits, with real motivation to rise in the ranks.
The Navy, meanwhile, had quietly agreed to ransom negotiations. But when Brook requested a secret cooperation pact as part of the deal, they refused.
Furious, Brook lowered the offer: one Devil Fruit, a legendary sword, and a rare gun—take it or leave it.
The Navy scrambled. They had to petition the Five Elders and the Celestial Dragons for five Devil Fruits just to secure the marines' release. But during the process, several Devil Fruit users mysteriously vanished.
Brook's explanation?
"They died from severe injuries."
The Navy nearly blew a gasket, ready to ignite the war again. But in the end, the exchange went through.
The very next day, headlines exploded across the world: New Bounties for the Hell Pirates!
The numbers were astronomical. Even among veteran pirates, whispers spread: Are the Rocks Pirates… weaker?
Brook's personal bounty was still lower than Rocks', but the gap in leadership style was undeniable. Where Rocks was a monster, Brook commanded monsters.
People began to wonder—if the Hell Pirates and Rocks Pirates fought for real, who would win?
The Hell Pirates had the best crew.
The Rocks Pirates had the strongest captain.
Who truly deserved the title of the world's number one pirate crew?
No one knew for sure. But for now, the two overlords remained uneasy allies. And as the world held its breath, one thing was clear…
The balance of power had shifted.
---------------------
Brook examined the latest batch of bounty posters, freshly delivered by Moore Thomas, who personally flew in from the Economic News Agency headquarters—along with his son, Morgans.
"Godfather, look! I can fly now!" squawked a young albatross fluttering excitedly above Brook's head.
Morgans, only four years old, had already mastered his full-beast transformation—a rare feat even among Zoan-type Devil Fruit users. Thanks to Brook's strict training regimen and a generous helping of Vegapunk's first-generation potential serums, the kid's talent was truly blossoming.
Brook chuckled, catching the chubby bird midair like one would scoop up a mischievous cat. "Not bad! From now on, you can fly to Golden Island from the news agency every day—train your body and come hang out with us more."
Morgans chirped with joy, wings flapping wildly, though his round belly made him more of a bouncing ball than a bird. Clearly, too much nutrition—and not enough exercise.
"Gurarara~ Little Morgan, come here and give me a hug!" Whitebeard Newgate laughed heartily, setting his new bounty poster aside without a care. Entertaining children was far more enjoyable.
Morgans had a natural charisma that made him popular among the Hell Pirates crew. His cheerful energy, paired with his fearlessness, had already earned him a place in everyone's hearts—and probably contributed to that extra padding around his middle.
Charlotte Linlin, now heavily pregnant with Brook's child, watched Morgans with maternal affection in her eyes. She couldn't help but smile warmly. Their baby was due soon, and she prayed their child would be just as kind-hearted and outgoing. More importantly, strong. She had no doubt the little one would be a powerful ally for the Hell Pirates in the years to come.
"Hahahaha~ Finally! The same as that bastard Newgate!" Golden Lion Shiki cackled, holding his own bounty notice with trembling hands. "It took forever, but I've finally caught up!"
Although still trailing behind Redfield, Shiki's 1.55 billion berries bounty now matched Whitebeard's—a symbolic victory that brought tears to the proud lion's eyes. The World Government had finally acknowledged his chaos.
From the Navy's perspective, Newgate was an unstoppable natural disaster—but Shiki, with his island-robbing antics, was equally problematic. Now both carried a pseudo-Overlord bounty of 1.55 billion berries.
Charlotte Linlin wasn't far behind at 1.5 billion. Any pirate with Conqueror's Haki naturally earned a bounty of that level. Redfield topped them all at 1.6 billion, his "Thunder Greeting" technique devastating enough on its own—and he had the added sin of slaying a Celestial Dragon.
But none of them held a candle to the highest bounty in the crew.
Captain of the Hell Pirates, Brook. Bounty: 3 billion berries.
Brook had ascended to the peak of the New World in record time. The world had no choice but to take him seriously.
Rocks D. Xebec, however, was on another level entirely. After personally executing two New World overlords—Overlord Ingran and Diger Sparrow—his bounty had skyrocketed.
Captain of the Rocks Pirates, King of the New World: Rocks D. Xebec. Bounty: 5.05 billion berries.
If he succeeded in destroying the Valley of the Gods and escaped alive, that number would no doubt increase—though still unlikely to surpass Pirate King Roger's legendary 5.5648 billion.
Even Whitebeard's bounty, impressive as it was at 5.046 billion, came just short of Rocks. The title "King of the New World" was no exaggeration.
Brook stared at Rocks' wanted poster, smirking. "Man's a monster," he muttered.
Brook could take on an admiral—sure. But Rocks could take two at once and still walk away laughing. The gap was real. Still, Brook had something else up his sleeve.
"My crew's stronger than yours, old man. Bite me," he muttered with a grin.
But truth be told, Rocks had earned his crown. In contrast, the so-called "Four Emperors" of the next generation were embarrassingly underwhelming.
Roger and Garp defeated Rocks. Golden Lion Shiki wrecked half of Marineford. Whitebeard started the Marineford War. Those were legacies.
Linlin and Kaido? Beaten by rookies.
Kaido's record was laughable—constantly captured, constantly defeated. He couldn't even handle Oden. Linlin? Her Cake Island territory was infiltrated and blown apart by the Vinsmoke siblings and Caesar Clown, of all people.
And don't even start on the movies. One by one, legendary pirates like Byrnddi World, Gild Tesoro, Douglas Bullet, and even Shiki were dragged into filler films just to work for Luffy.
Katakuri, once a man's man, reduced to getting fooled by hallucinogenic gas and brawling with his own siblings. What happened to his Future Sight? After mentoring Luffy, the poor guy got tossed in the dumpster like a used toy.
Brook sighed, shaking off the irritation and focusing back on the crew's bounty list. One name stood out above the rest:
Ashura Doji – 500 million berries.
"Finally," Brook muttered, "a senior officer has emerged."
The Four Yama Kings held the top officer ranks beneath him. At 500 million, Ashura qualified as one of them. The others? Still climbing.
Kaido the Beast—the crew's strongest rookie—was now at 200 million berries. Promising. Dangerous.
The ship doctor duo—Crocus and Tia—together tallied 620 million. Sniper Hiruba was at 550 million. Stussy sat at 400 million. Tom held 330 million. Scaredo had 320 million. And Streusen proudly carried 200 million.
Then came the smaller fry:
Kirin Lion – 90 million.
Fisher Tiger – 80 million.
As for Shakky and Memory Seahorse, they were still off visiting the Kingdom of Women. Their bounties remained unchanged.
Antonio, the ever-smiling chief intelligence officer, waved off the numbers. "Means nothing to me," he said casually. But if you asked the tear-streaked baby Den Den Mushi on his desk, they'd tell you a different story.
Warehouse managers Uju and Bra Kara nodded solemnly. Brook would never send them into battle. If either fell, the enemy would loot enough treasure and gear to bankrupt a country.
Imagine slaying a goblin and getting a legendary sword and billions in gold. Surprising? Yes. Unfair? Absolutely.
With the bounties reviewed, Brook began delegating tasks. He especially instructed Redfield to train the new blood.
As for himself, he stayed at Linlin's side. December had arrived, and the baby was due any day now.
But one thing still bugged him—the folks in his dreams hadn't told him what name to give the child.
Brook sighed. "Guess I'll have to grab a dictionary… or maybe dig into some old legends with Linlin."
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