On a distant warship, Strawberry watched the situation unfold and smiled faintly.
"The operation is a success."
Clearly, Lucci's appearance was no accident. From the very beginning, it had been part of the Navy's carefully prepared battle plan.
According to Ortoren's instructions, that brat named Momonosuke was the most important target, and he had to be taken alive.
That was why, from the start, the various Vice Admirals were deployed to draw away the guards around Momonosuke, deliberately creating an opening for Lucci to capture him.
Judging by the outcome, the Navy's plan had been executed perfectly.
With their young master subdued, Kin'emon and the others, no matter how unwilling they were, dared not make another move. One by one, they lowered their weapons and abandoned all resistance.
Before long, the Marine officers had taken everyone into custody.
Yamakaji, a cigar clenched between his teeth, dragged Kanjuro back. Cancer personally fastened Seastone shackles onto Kin'emon, while Stainless restrained Raizo and Shinobu as well.
On Momonga's side, Inuarashi was dealt with calmly and efficiently, then taken into custody.
Out on the distant sea, San Juan Wolf, convinced that he was hiding well, was watching the Navy's movements.
Then he saw a tall figure step out from the cabin of the warship where Momonga was stationed.
It was Katakuri.
At once, the Marine officers who had already finished dealing with Momonosuke's group all turned their gazes toward him.
San Juan Wolf???
Have they noticed me?
The very next moment, Strawberry raised the internal Den Den Mushi and gave the order.
"All ships, full firepower. Bombard San Juan Wolf!"
With that command, more than thirty warships swiveled their cannons in unison. In an instant, the entire sea thundered with artillery fire. San Juan Wolf was blasted head-on by shells, screeching as he staggered up from the water, swinging his massive arms wildly in an attempt to overturn the Marine warships and break out of the encirclement.
But at that very moment, Katakuri, Momonga, Lucci, Yamakaji, Cancer, and Stainless were already charging straight toward him.
...
New World, gateway waters.
A warship was sailing through the area. On the deck, Ortoren lay back on a lounge chair, basking in the sun.
The sea conditions today were unusually calm. There was no strong wind, no torrential rain. The ocean itself seemed peaceful.
Beside Ortoren, Hina held a Den Den Mushi. Momonga's voice came through, reporting the situation.
"The group you instructed us to handle, Kozuki Momonosuke and his companions, have all been secured. San Juan Wolf has also been dealt with. However, Katakuri-san was a bit too heavy-handed. He killed him outright, so we weren't able to capture him alive."
"Dead is fine," Ortoren replied indifferently. "A monster of that size serves no purpose alive. He'd just be wasting food. As labor, he was already unqualified."
Ortoren knew his second brother well. Katakuri valued his siblings above all else. San Juan Wolf had beaten Daifuku so badly that he nearly died. Katakuri had hated him to the bone ever since.
After all, Daifuku was Katakuri's own brother.
So Katakuri killing San Juan Wolf out of sheer revenge came as no surprise to Ortoren. It was entirely reasonable.
After a brief pause, Ortoren asked,
"Have you sealed off the information?"
"We blocked all signals before taking action, so there shouldn't be any leaks. That said, we've sealed off the New World's gateway waters for quite a while now. If the Whitebeard Pirates decide to investigate—" Momonga replied cautiously.
"Make a public announcement," Ortoren said without hesitation. "Say the blockade of the New World gateway waters was aimed at San Juan Wolf. Claim that the Navy discovered he intended to enter that area to attack the royal families of various New World nations and sabotage the World Conference. To prevent that, we had no choice but to seal off the gateway waters and carry out a manhunt. In the end, his resistance was too fierce, and we were forced to eliminate him on the spot."
"That should serve as a reasonable explanation. I never planned to keep this hidden from the Whitebeard Pirates forever. Buying ourselves some time is enough."
Momonosuke was a piece Ortoren intended to use against the Whitebeard Pirates.
But this incident had genuinely not been part of his original plan. It was an unexpected development.
Because of that, many preparations were still incomplete. Ortoren needed time to carefully plan the operation against the Whitebeard Pirates.
He didn't need to keep the truth hidden forever. All he needed was time.
"I understand. Then what's next? What should we do?" Momonga agreed to Ortoren's arrangement first, then asked.
"Which Marine base are you closest to right now?" Ortoren asked.
Momonga didn't hesitate. "Stainless's G-3 is the closest."
"Then have everyone assemble at G-3. I'll be there shortly. We'll discuss the rest face to face," Ortoren instructed.
"Understood," Momonga replied immediately.
They didn't say anything more and soon hung up the Den Den Mushi.
"Hina, adjust our course. We're heading straight to G-3," Ortoren said, turning toward her.
Hina put the Den Den Mushi away and answered, "Understood, Admiral."
"Also notify Gion, Issho, and Tokikake. Tell them to prepare for a video conference. By the time I arrive at G-3, all Vice Admirals in the New World Navy are to attend the meeting I'm convening," Ortoren added.
"Yes, Admiral," Hina responded right away.
"Don't put the Den Den Mushi away. Hand it to me. I need to contact the Fleet Admiral," Ortoren said, extending his hand.
Hina paused for a moment, then handed the Den Den Mushi over. Without lingering, she quickly left to pass along the Admiral's orders.
Ortoren toyed with the Den Den Mushi in his hand as he reclined in the lounge chair, eyes closed, thinking through the current situation.
The Whitebeard Pirates… compared to his own strength.
The Whitebeard Pirates were powerful, but their strength lay mainly with Whitebeard himself. Among his commanders, Kozuki Oden had likely already crossed that threshold and reached the true top tier. As for Marco, Jozu, and the other division commanders, they probably hadn't reached that level.
By that estimate, Marco and the others could be handled by Vice Admirals like Momonga. As for the lower-ranked so-called commanders, Smoker and Lucci would be more than enough.
At the same time, within the New World Navy under Ortoren's command, there were quite a few elite Rear Admirals. Added to that was Ortoren's authority to mobilize the Shichibukai. At the mid-tier combat level, the Whitebeard Pirates held no real advantage.
As for top-tier combat power, the Whitebeard Pirates had two.
Newgate himself, and Kozuki Oden.
But Ortoren's side was no less formidable. He himself was a top-tier powerhouse capable of facing Whitebeard head-on. Under his command were three more heavyweights: Gion, Tokikake, and Issho.
You could even say that Momonga, whom Ortoren had previously grouped among the Vice Admirals, was now capable of fighting at the highest level as well.
And setting aside the Navy's strength alone, Ortoren also had the Big Mom Pirates in the New World as potential external support.
Turning the Den Den Mushi over in his hand, Ortoren thought for a moment before opening his eyes.
"No matter how you look at it, it's eight hundred thousand against six hundred thousand. The advantage is ours. Sweeping away the Whitebeard Pirates shouldn't be a problem, and there's no need to request any support from headquarters."
That's right. Ortoren had no intention of borrowing the strength of Marine Headquarters at all.
He planned to use the power of the New World Navy alone to wipe out the Whitebeard Pirates.
If they succeeded, it would truly prove that even without relying on headquarters, the New World Navy still possessed top-tier combat strength and scale.
It was also a test Ortoren was setting for the New World Navy. Whether they were a horse or a mule, they had to be taken out for a run. If they could eliminate the Whitebeard Pirates, the New World Navy would gain its first truly famous battle and a solid foundation of authority.
That said, an operation of this magnitude still needed to be communicated to Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
After all, the Navy's long-standing strategy had been simple: as long as Whitebeard didn't cause trouble, leave him alone. Now that Ortoren suddenly intended to make a move against Whitebeard, headquarters had to be informed.
With that thought, Ortoren rubbed his fingers together lightly and sent a Den Den Mushi call to Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
...
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