The current Navy Admiral is still Marshal Kong, and Sengoku is still a Headquarter Admiral. Logically, Sengoku should personally handle this matter. However, at this moment, Kong is at a meeting in Mary Geoise, and Garp has taken several months of maternity leave, citing that his daughter-in-law is about to give birth.
Sakazuki and Borsalino also have their own tasks, and Zephyr is out at sea with his new recruits, so one Admiral must be stationed at Navy Headquarters.
Therefore, this task was given to Kuzan, who is still an Admiral Candidate. As a Vice Admiral, he already possesses strength far beyond that of an ordinary Vice Admiral, but he has not yet reached the point of being appointed Admiral.
The Navy's plan is for the three of them to assume the position of Admiral simultaneously as representatives of the new generation, which will have to wait until Sengoku is promoted.
Though his rank is insufficient, his strength is almost there. However, when Kuzan received the order, Sengoku discovered that this guy was still slacking off.
"A bicycle?!"
Upon hearing Kuzan's excuse, Sengoku felt a throbbing in his temple. This Kuzan was starting to become as troublesome as Garp.
"Yes, Sengoku-san, I always travel by bicycle when I go out, as you know."
"The battleship is ready. Depart immediately, now! If anything happens to that Heavenly Celestial Dragon, you'll be hearing from Marshal Kong!"
Judging by Kuzan's usual bicycle tour travel method, by the time he arrives, it might be too late.
"Yes, yes, I'm leaving now."
With that, Kuzan walked out leisurely, showing no sign of urgency.
...
Meanwhile, just as Kuzan boarded the battleship, Olga had already acquired her spoils of war.
"These guys really are rich."
As a Heavenly Celestial Dragon, he had various payment methods like checks, but he insisted on carrying a large amount of cash to satisfy his desire for an entirely different experience from signing checks to throwing cash at people.
A suitcase stuffed with one billion Belly in cash, and there were forty such suitcases. This Heavenly Celestial Dragon carried a whopping forty billion Belly in cash just for going out.
The Devil Fruits that he had paid for were already in Elizabeth's hands. Looking at those suitcases, she picked up three in one hand, and with her tail, Elizabeth strung five more suitcases together. In total, eleven suitcases and five Devil Fruits were directly stolen.
"Let's go, Elizabeth, time to withdraw."
"Understood."
After blatantly rushing out of the auction house, the two of them left almost invisibly, leaving behind only a dummy assembled from wooden sticks.
With Olga's abilities added on, this dummy was temporarily mistaken for Purilite, and a group of Navy officers was engaging in a battle of wits with it, and the method was similar to how Purilite functions.
"It seems that trading without capital is much more straightforward. This is much easier than earning money."
"Lord Arceus once said, the most profitable methods are written in the law books, it's just a matter of whether you have a conscience or not."
On their way back, Olga and Elizabeth discussed the enormous profit from the robbery. Initially, they had to spend twelve billion Belly to buy two Devil Fruits, but in the end, they were forced to pay nothing, profiting 11 billion Belly and gaining five Devil Fruits.
Though those bills have serial numbers, and if the World Government made an effort to investigate, they could find clues. However, the New World has no shortage of places to launder money. Items stolen from allied nations or the Navy, or the World Government, must be laundered before they can circulate freely.
To use Purilite's guise just once without taking full advantage of it would be a big waste.
The two of them almost appeared out of thin air on the Shadow Fox, and Purilite's appearance once again reverted to the way it was during the hunt for the Slave Catching Ship.
"Boss? How did you get back so fast?"
"It's nothing, just stole some stuff, dive immediately. We should be heading back to the New World."
With the Shadow Fox completing the coating in Shampodi, under Olga's command, the Shadow Fox dived and started heading towards the New World.
For Victarion, who was already planning to join them, this didn't make much difference, but it did disrupt Hancock's group's previous plan.
Amazon Lily is not in the New World, and if they head straight to the New World, going back home would be even harder.
But it was too late now, the coating is a one-time operation. If they surface and get exposed to the air, the coating would shatter, and they couldn't wait another three days to re-coat.
So Hancock's group was directly taken underwater.
Especially when they told Olga their reason, Olga's expression turned helpless.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?"
She didn't expect that they stayed on the ship for such a reason.
"I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"
"Well... what's the good news?"
"The good news is that sending you back shouldn't be a problem." Hundred Beasts ships can easily cross the Windless Zone, and if there are any bonuses, a ship passing by could send them back at any time.
"And the bad news?"
By all rights, that's a good answer, but this twist gave them a sense of foreboding.
"The bad news, ah, the bad news is you won't be able to leave for three years."
The tradition of the Hundred Beasts mandates a three-year silent period. Whenever they secretly pull off something big, unless it's proven that someone is trustworthy, they are not allowed to leave for three years.
Olga just robbed a Heavenly Celestial Dragon while wearing Purilite's clothes, so those on the ship were temporarily stripped of the right to go ashore.
Three years later, the memory of this sea is very short-lived. Once the initial attention diminishes, the aftermath can be handled far less seriously, as was the case with a certain Straw Hat who thrashed a Heavenly Celestial Dragon and seemed to have forgotten the incident two years later.
In a certain sense, the Heavenly Celestial Dragons are quite resilient to being beaten.
"Th-three years?"
No freedom, restricted movement, it seems like a new kind of slave life...
"Don't get me wrong, unless they're defeated pirates, we don't do that kind of thing. But since you're from the Kuja, how about considering joining us? I've heard the Kuja are mighty warriors; the Captain would surely be quite interested."
According to Hundred Beasts tradition, Olga continued recruiting efforts, Kaidou never shunning powerful warriors.
"Um... is there really no way we can leave directly?"
"I'm sorry, no. Please don't make me do anything difficult."
The three-year silent period is for those who are willing to cooperate. If they don't cooperate, it's not a three-year silent period, but a direct disappearance.