At sunrise, World Government Headquarters.
Buru~ buru~ buru~ buru~
The Den Den Mushi rang nonstop, and the communications department was in chaos.
The upheaval in the New World had the world's attention, and the government was tense.
The Beasts Pirates and Big Mom Pirates had clashed at the start of the Summit of High West route—the biggest news in a decade.
To keep things under control, Marine HQ sent two elite vice admirals and their best troops to monitor the situation and deal with anything that threatened the government.
But last night, news arrived: their forces had clashed with the Emperors, who stopped fighting each other and teamed up to annihilate the navy.
Vice Admiral Borsalino retreated with his battleship, surviving the first wave, but Big Mom's ship caught up and dealt heavy losses—only Borsalino and a few subordinates escaped.
The other new hope, Vice Admiral Aramaki, was lost on the Summit of High West route—fate unknown.
"Damn pirates! What are the higher-ups worried about!? I said I should've gone myself!"
Admiral Zephyr slammed the table, scattering papers, his anger obvious even behind his sunglasses.
"Zephyr, calm down. We're still in control."
Sengoku, the Buddha, massaged his temple. He'd been involved in this plan—the navy was only supposed to stand by, preventing the Emperors' war from affecting too many New World nations.
Their other task was to climb the Summit of High West, observe, and only intervene if there was real danger—like ancient weapons or Lunarian matters.
But the Five Elders overruled them, ordering Borsalino and Aramaki to kill Gusion if possible.
Sengoku knew this but wasn't too worried. He couldn't say outright to ignore the Elders, but he figured Borsalino would use his judgment.
"Find an opportunity" meant they could skip the mission if there wasn't one.
He trusted Borsalino's nature—not the type to risk his neck for little gain, especially when he was about to be promoted.
But Sengoku underestimated Aramaki, a rookie who actually went after Gusion.
He failed and ended up fighting King instead, but even that provoked Kaido.
Worse, Kaido convinced Big Mom to join him against the navy. Now both pirate crews were hunting Borsalino.
HQ's Den Den Mushi were ringing off the hook—most calls were SOS from bases destroyed by the enraged Emperors.
Borsalino was calling for backup while retreating.
"He's not your student—Gusion killed Strawberry!"
Zephyr raged. If Sengoku hadn't stopped him, he'd have charged into the New World to take on the Emperors.
"Calm down. If we act now, it'll be all-out war with both Emperors. The world order would be at risk."
Sengoku was exasperated. Strawberry had died because he was greedy—what pirate would just let you kill them?
They shouldn't have targeted Gusion. If Kaido was provoked, a global war was inevitable.
The Five Elders were overreacting—Gusion was a threat, but no match for the government's full might. Fighting now would drag in too many parties.
"If we hesitate, are we just letting the pirates run wild? The New World's already slipping out of our control!"
Zephyr's voice was low. "I'm going to bring Borsalino back."
"Seriously," Sengoku grabbed Zephyr. "Don't make things worse. You know Borsalino's power. He'll return by himself. Let's wait for Aramaki's news."
The situation was dire, but still manageable. The Emperors were just wrecking navy bases for now. If they couldn't catch anyone, they'd calm down.
If an admiral moved, it could become a fight to the death.
Harsh as it was, the lives of regular sailors didn't matter—but top-level strength couldn't be risked.
If they lost an admiral, the government's authority would visibly weaken, and pirates would be emboldened.
Sengoku decided they should focus on the Sky Island rumors. If they handled that, it would make up for their losses and satisfy the Five Elders.
"Mr. Sengoku, the new bounties are in. Would you like to review them?"
A staff member arrived, saluted, and offered the bounty posters.
Sengoku checked Gusion's bounty and nodded. "Good. Start printing."
Gusion's threat level was raised—he was a lead performer for the Beasts Pirates, helping Kaido prepare for war, and now confirmed to be a formidable fighter.
Strawberry had been due for promotion, a notable New World figure, but was decisively slain by Gusion in a fair fight.
HQ now believed Gusion was truly strong, especially for his age (21), with room to grow.
From both strength and intellect, Gusion was dangerous—best eliminated soon.
Not that they'd send anyone themselves—they hoped bounty hunters or other strong pirates would go after him, even if that was unlikely. But a high bounty was a signal.
"This Fujitora Issho—was he a pirate before? Never heard of him," Zephyr asked, surprised at the high bounty for a newcomer.
"The report says he's the Beasts Pirates' fifth lead performer, incredibly strong, probably not weaker than us—no normal Emperor's commander could compare."
Sengoku said, raising his guard. With Fujitora's arrival, the Beasts Pirates were even more dangerous.
He'd thought Whitebeard's crew was the strongest, but now the Beasts Pirates clearly were.
Not only did they have a country and war potential, but their top fighters were overpowered.
King was already a top commander and a Lunarian—a government target—and now there was Fujitora. Kaido could dominate the New World.
"They have the power, but use it for evil—choosing to be pirates!"
Zephyr said angrily. "At least we have new recruit—Aramaki's got potential, he shouldn't lose to King. Let's wait for his report."
Buru~ buru~ buru~ buru~
Sengoku's personal Den Den Mushi rang—a call from a high-ranking officer, so he answered directly.
"Moshi moshi, Sengoku speaking?"
A familiar voice answered, the snail even turning green-haired. "Is that you, Sengoku?"
"Aramaki? How are you?"
"It's me. Slightly injured, but I'll be fine soon."
"Did you defeat King?" Zephyr interjected.
"No, we fought on the Summit of High West route, but the White Sea below put me at a disadvantage. He's got the flying dragon fruit and is way too agile."
Aramaki sounded frustrated—he believed he was stronger, but was outmaneuvered.
If they'd fought on land, it would have been different.
"The navy below has retreated. If you're tired, you should too," Zephyr advised. He wasn't greedy for credit—young officers' lives mattered more than the Elders' orders.
Before Sengoku could speak, Aramaki insisted, "Thank you, Mr. Zephyr, but I'm not seriously hurt. After fighting King, the currents separated us. I'll keep pursuing them, and handle everything on Sky Island."
Zephyr was worried but saw Aramaki's sense of duty.
After the call, Zephyr sighed, "This kid could be admiral material."
Sengoku looked odd—he wanted to say Aramaki was just greedy for credit, but the kid was strong. If he did well, he could become an admiral faster than anyone else in history.
…
At the Ballon Terminal on Sky Island, Gusion and his group knew nothing of the navy's chaos, or that Aramaki had split from King and was chasing them.
They were exploring the ruins, huge vines twining through ancient structures steeped in history.
Only by coming here could one feel the true wonder of Sky Island. Gusion now understood why so many sought adventure—new thrills made life exciting.
"Mr. Gusion, could you help unload the ship?" Snow Wind called from outside. They'd just arrived on Sky Island, and the journey wasn't over yet.
The Summit of High West was a White Sea route stretching from the Blue Sea up to 10,000 meters, connecting various Sky Islands.
Ballon was an ancient ruin, not their goal—they needed to head for other islands to find their target.
Gusion stopped exploring and went to help.
But after just a few steps, he got a prompt from End Space.
[Side Mission: Make a Name at Sea—new stage reached. Reward issued.]
Gusion was stunned. The next stage was a billion-berry bounty—he'd reached it?
But he already had Conqueror's Haki...