The tea party on Whole Cake Island lasted an entire week, during which Ortoren made the acquaintance of many figures from the underworld.
That bastard Doflamingo was downright deranged—he even went so far as to introduce Ortoren to some scumbag who specialized in smuggling human organs.
At first, Ortoren was stunned. Why the hell are you introducing this guy to me? I'm not about to sell the organs of our Marines.
Later, Doflamingo whispered to him in private that he had already checked with Moria. Those zombie laborers could function just fine even without their organs.
Only then did Ortoren realize the truth: that bastard intended to sell the organs of dead pirate slaves.
Inhuman.
As a man of justice, Ortoren could never take part in something so vile. It was far too dark. He told Doflamingo outright that he would never get involved—it was too cruel.
Doflamingo, of course, brushed it off. He was born a bastard, didn't care in the least, and would simply handle it himself.
There wasn't much Ortoren could say to that. Doflamingo wasn't his subordinate—just a business partner. He had no authority to stop him. In the end, all Ortoren could do was shake his head, feeling a pang of pity for those pirates who couldn't even rest in peace after death.
The tea party itself passed without incident. Everyone who had received an invitation attended, and no one caused trouble.
What followed was the usual string of political marriages. Charlotte Linlin personally selected those she deemed worthy, using her marriageable children as pawns to secure engagements with them.
This further expanded the Big Mom Pirates' web of influence while also strengthening their intelligence network.
In truth, these tea parties always ended in arranged marriages. The children of the Charlotte family were long used to it—those chosen got married, while the rest went about their business.
Not only her children, but Charlotte Linlin herself also selected a new husband once the gathering ended, preparing for yet another of her countless weddings.
Ortoren had no interest in this ridiculous farce. As soon as the tea party concluded, before Charlotte Linlin could even bring up anything about "Mama's wedding," he gave a quick word to Katakuri and left swiftly.
He had arrived with Moria, but when it came time to leave, Moria refused to go. He insisted on staying on Whole Cake Island, saying he absolutely had to witness Charlotte Linlin's wedding in person to show respect or some nonsense like that.
He also told Ortoren that afterward, he had already arranged to meet Dr. Hoggback on another island. Once he finalized an agreement with him, he promised he would immediately seek out Ortoren to proceed with their next stage of cooperation.
Ortoren suspected Moria was looking for a chance to run. With a heavy tone, he warned his partner: if he dared to flee, the G-5 Marines would hunt him down to the ends of the earth and skin him alive.
Shaken, Moria swore over and over again that he absolutely wouldn't run.
...
As Ortoren made his way back to the G-5 Naval Base, the tea party on Whole Cake Island came to an end. Meanwhile, the World Government was preparing to convene a major conference.
The Reverie—held once every four years—was about to begin. The Navy was busy as ever, dispatching numerous commanders to form escort fleets. Their task was to guard the royal families of the allied nations traveling across the seas to attend the Reverie at Mary Geoise.
But by the time Ortoren returned to the G-5 Naval Base, he still hadn't received any orders from headquarters to escort anyone. It seemed this mission had nothing to do with him.
At that moment, inside Ortoren's office at the G-5 Naval Base...
Momonga held a Devil Fruit in his hand, staring at it with curiosity and disbelief.
"Eating this thing... you really get powers like Kaidou's?"
"More or less. The color's different though—it turns you into a pink dragon. So not a Blue Dragon, but a Pink Dragon..." Ortoren replied casually, then added, "Are you eating it or not? If you're not, stop fiddling with it. Show some respect for food, alright?"
At that, Momonga tossed the precious Devil Fruit onto Ortoren's desk without hesitation and shook his head. "I'm not eating it. I've no intention of becoming a landlubber. Wait until Gion returns and see if she's interested..."
Dropping the subject of the Devil Fruit, Momonga leaned back on the sofa and asked, "So, HQ didn't notify you about this Reverie?"
"Notify me about what?" Ortoren asked, puzzled.
"The Marines take part in the Reverie too. There's always a delegation sent over. Looks like you're not part of it..." Momonga said, his tone dripping with disdain.
"You talk like you're on the list. Mary Geoise isn't exactly a fun place. I couldn't care less about going. As for what you're talking about, Admiral Sengoku asked me on my way back. I told him I wasn't interested." Ortoren waved it off with disdain.
He wasn't lying. Sengoku really had asked, and Ortoren genuinely had no interest in the Reverie.
Word was, Garp had also refused to attend as a Navy representative. Under Sengoku's pressure and persuasion, he instead rushed into the New World overnight with Bogard in tow, currently leading a large-scale manhunt for Dracule Mihawk.
Before that, Garp had specifically called Ortoren over the Den Den Mushi, cursing him out. He ranted that he'd finally gotten some downtime at Headquarters, only to be screwed over by that bastard Ortoren.
At first, Ortoren flatly denied it, insisting it wasn't his fault. But Garp told him straight up that Sengoku had already sold him out. That left Ortoren with no choice but to apologize, trying to smooth things over.
Inwardly, though, he muttered that Sengoku was unreliable as hell. Better to steer clear of such a schemer in the future. It was safer to work with someone honest like Zephyr-sensei.
Still, during that conversation, Ortoren confirmed an interesting piece of information. After stirring up trouble in the South Blue, Dragon had been lying low on an island in the East Blue.
He didn't tell Garp the exact location, but he did reveal that he had found his true love—a simple farm girl whose family ran a dairy business. They had already held a wedding in some small East Blue village, and his wife was pregnant.
That news actually put Garp in high spirits. Before long, he would be a grandfather.
Dragon had even discussed plans with him, saying that since his work was dangerous, he couldn't raise the child himself. Once the baby was born, he would send the child to Foosha Village, asking Garp to look after his grandson.
Garp seemed more than willing. From the way he bragged to Ortoren, he fully intended to raise the boy into an outstanding Marine.
Ortoren offered half-hearted congratulations, silently hoping Garp wouldn't end up coughing blood from frustration someday.
Garp also revealed that the World Government intended to officially respond to the Revolutionary Army issue at the Reverie.
By the looks of it, Dragon wouldn't have many peaceful days left in the East Blue.
...
While the world's situation shifted dramatically, things at G-5 were relatively stable.
The New World remained as chaotic as ever—it wasn't going to quiet down just because the World Government held a meeting. Still, there was one thing worth noting: construction on Shipbuilding Island was now complete. The pirate laborers, grinning ear to ear, had all returned to their posts, finally contributing to the Marines' cause of justice.
The plan was for the system to be fully operational within a month, with warships beginning to roll out one after another. That would give the G-5 Navy its first steps toward independent shipbuilding.
However, the new Seastone technology Ortoren had brought back from Dr. Vegapunk still wasn't fully understood by Master Tom. Production would likely be delayed by ten to fifteen days.
On top of that, Ortoren had also faxed over the ancient technology he obtained from Moria—the island warship conversion technique. He wanted Tom's workshop to study it as soon as possible. If viable, the G-5 Naval Base would become the first experimental site, fully cooperating to turn the base into a fortress capable of transforming into a warship.
Meanwhile, Doflamingo had once again crossed the Calm Belt and returned to the North Blue. He had decided to launch his big move during the Reverie.
With the Navy's top brass concentrated in Mary Geoise to safeguard the conference, their grip on other territories would inevitably loosen. Doflamingo intended to take advantage of this gap to strike at the Heavenly Tribute, and he had already scouted the route.
Ortoren could only wish him success, hoping he'd pull it off cleanly and secure the position of Shichibukai in one go.
On the Navy's side, since Sengoku was fully aware of the deeper implications behind the Donquixote family's cooperation with G-5, the Marines would play along—as long as Mary Geoise didn't block Doflamingo's bid for Shichibukai.
For now, it seemed everything was moving exactly according to Ortoren's plans.