Sengoku was, quite frankly, exasperated.
He himself had personally approved Diamante's bounty. After all, anything concerning a Warlord of the Sea was not something Rear Admiral Tibus of Loguetown could authorize on his own.
Originally, Sengoku had thought Don would eventually clash with Doflamingo only after entering the Grand Line.
Yet now Don had suddenly appeared in the North Sea, striking directly at Doflamingo's influence there.
Even before he became Fleet Admiral, Sengoku had long taken note of Doflamingo.
After all, his adopted son, Corazon, had been killed by none other than Doflamingo—his own elder brother.
Of course Sengoku wanted nothing more than to capture Doflamingo. But the man had been made a Warlord by the direct decree of the World Government itself.
So if someone else chose to target Doflamingo, Sengoku naturally had no objections.
But raising such chaos in the North Sea? That was something even the Fleet Admiral could not ignore.
"Just keep tracking his location for now. Do not engage. I'll send someone else to make contact."
"Yes, Fleet Admiral!"
The voice on the other end answered crisply before the Den Den Mushi clicked off.
"What a reckless fellow."
Sengoku stared at the phone snail in his hand, helpless.
He wasn't a pirate—yet his wanton destruction surpassed what many pirates dared to do.
And yet, he wasn't wantonly slaughtering civilians either.
Still, Sengoku's brow furrowed. "This cannot be allowed to continue."
He dialed again.
Moments later, the snail's features shifted into a sly, almost lecherous grin.
"Yo~ Fleet Admiral Sengoku, what's the order?"
That languid, almost mocking voice could only belong to Kizaru.
"Ahem. How are the negotiations going?"
"No results yet. Neither side is remotely satisfied with the other's terms."
Kizaru's reply was blunt.
"So… it'll take quite some time still?"
"Seems that way. But surely you didn't call me just to ask about that, did you, Fleet Admiral?"
"Indeed. It's about the North Sea. Don's been causing major disturbances there—you should remember who he is."
"Ah, that young man from East Blue."
Kizaru had been present when Sengoku had once berated Garp over the matter, so the name came easily to him.
"So he's the one making a mess of things in the North Sea now."
Realization tinged his voice.
"Fleet Admiral, the World Government already wanted me to move against him before. But I refused."
"Not a direct order?"
Sengoku's tone sharpened instantly.
If the Government itself had issued a command to an Admiral, even he could not oppose it. In that case, Don might well have already been branded a pirate.
"No. Just one of the negotiators whispered it to me privately."
Kizaru's answer eased Sengoku's heart.
"I see. In that case, I want you to go. Find him, and stop him from continuing this rampage."
In truth, Sengoku would have preferred to let things run their course.
After all, wars between nations in the Four Seas and Paradise were becoming more frequent. And often, the soldiers of those nations wielded weapons even finer than those of the Marines.
Undoubtedly, this traced back to Doflamingo.
If Don's hand could destroy his factories, all the better.
But if things continued unchecked, the World Government itself might bypass the Marines and issue a bounty directly.
And Sengoku wasn't ready to give up his idea of pulling Don into the Marines.
"Do you want me to bring him in?"
Kizaru's voice oozed lazily from the snail's mouth.
Hmm? Not a bad idea.
For a fleeting moment, Sengoku almost agreed.
But then reality struck—this man was so reckless that if Kizaru failed, the consequences would be obvious.
"You can extend the invitation. If he refuses, so be it. What matters most is stopping him from making a bigger mess in the North Sea."
"And if he resists?"
"Then subdue him."
Sengoku frowned, giving his final order.
"Understood."
"Handle it quickly. And when this is over—since the negotiations with Germa Kingdom haven't borne fruit—you may return."
Sengoku added.
"Tch. And here I thought I'd scored a few extra days of paid vacation."
Sengoku's temple twitched twice before he slammed the receiver down.
Three Admirals under him—one too rigid, one always slacking off, and one who looked like he had no drive whatsoever.
And then there was that bastard Garp.
If Garp had just brought the boy back from the start, none of this would have happened.
Grumbling, Sengoku shoved the Den Den Mushi aside.
"In that case, I'll dock Garp's entire salary for this month!"
Muttering to himself, he shoved a file across the desk toward his ever-faithful goat.
The old goat wasted no time, chomping down on the paper and chewing leisurely.
…
"Twenty already?"
Doflamingo was no longer calm.
He had thought his plan flawless.
Yet the World Government, paid handsomely to keep things in order, had done nothing.
Of course, even they could not easily order around a Marine Admiral like Kizaru.
"Young Master, this must be stopped. If it continues, our business will suffer heavily."
Trebol warned.
"I know!"
Doflamingo shot to his feet.
"I'll deal with this pest myself."
His tone was ice cold, murderous intent spilling forth.
"Doffy!"
Trebol rushed to stop him.
"Dressrosa is more important!"
His words gave Doflamingo pause.
The artificial Devil Fruit factory was still under construction.
Punk Hazard's research was still underway.
Soon, those would be the key to trade with Kaidou.
Not just money—Kaidou's power and name were also invaluable.
All of this was essential.
"There's time yet. But if I let these factories be destroyed without response, then it won't stop here. Today it's this bastard—tomorrow there will be more."
Doflamingo inhaled sharply.
"Trebol, you'll oversee everything here."
With that, he strode out, his little pointed shoes tapping across the floor.
Trebol opened his mouth to dissuade him further, but stopped.
He had followed Doflamingo for years—he knew his Young Master's nature. Persuasion was useless now.
Doflamingo's departure was known to very few.
His ship slipped out of Dressrosa, setting course for the Calm Belt.
"Young Master? We're heading back to the North Sea?"
Baby 5, only fifteen, looked at him curiously.
"Yes. Some bastard's destroying our factories there. This time, I'll kill him."
Doflamingo turned, gaze sharp as he gave his answer.
"That fool dares provoke the Donquixote Family."
The others had only just been gathered, unaware of the situation. But upon hearing this, they erupted in furious cries.
END OF CHAPTER
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