While Sengoku was still digesting Peach Rabbit's earlier report, her voice came again from the Den Den Mushi:
"Marshal, I've already proposed cooperation. As long as we bring what he wants, he'll give us the same weapons Doflamingo got from him."
"If we provide ships, we might even receive stronger ones…"
The entire conference room froze.
Sengoku blinked. "Food… magazines… comic books…? Entertainment goods?"
"And ships?"
To be honest, these conditions were far stranger than anything he expected.
"He doesn't want money?" Sengoku muttered.
The high-ranking Marines looked around, all equally confused.
Garp scratched his beard. "We really stumbled upon a weird organization this time…"
"Oh my~ sounds like someone with a lot of money," Kizaru said lazily.
Tsuru shot him a cold stare. "Kizaru, is your brain not working today?"
"If he's so rich, why ask for these things?"
"He could just buy them himself."
Everyone agreed.
Which only made it more illogical.
If the mysterious force needed resources, why not ask for beli?
It really was a bizarre faction.
Sengoku pushed up his glasses. Curiosity aside, this wasn't important.
He finally spoke to Peach Rabbit:
"Accepted, Peach Rabbit. Since those are his terms, it's good for us. We don't need to spend much."
"As for the ships—use seized pirate vessels or decommissioned Marine ships."
"I want to see just how impressive his weaponry truly is."
Akainu suddenly spoke.
"Marshal, we don't need to humor them at all. I'll personally lead a fleet to the New World. I want to see if they dare act arrogant when I arrive."
Sengoku shook his head.
"No."
"Akainu, this isn't yielding—this is observation."
"The New World is unstable. With Whitebeard's crew shaken, we must conserve strength in case he erupts."
"So for now, with this new mysterious faction, we must avoid unnecessary conflict."
Akainu folded his arms, snorted coldly.
He didn't like it—but Sengoku was Marshal. He had to obey.
Sengoku assigned the mission to Kizaru.
"Bring entertainment goods and a few ships. If they're not hostile, don't act aggressive."
Kizaru nodded. "Oh my~ I understand, Marshal."
Inwardly thinking: So, I just have to paddle and avoid trouble.
New World, on the Moby Dick.
Whitebeard answered Marco's call.
"Marco. Have you caught that bastard Teach yet?"
Marco had originally left to hunt Blackbeard. Hearing the call, Whitebeard assumed it was done.
"No, Pops," Marco said. "Without a vivre card, he's too slippery."
Whitebeard wasn't upset.
"Hmm."
He sighed. "Come back for now—"
"No, Pops. This call isn't about Blackbeard. It's something else entirely!"
"Oh?" Whitebeard was surprised. "Speak."
Marco relayed everything about the fortress—every detail.
After a long silence, Whitebeard finally spoke, sounding intrigued:
"A fortress force on an island?"
"And its weaponry can kill a Marine Admiral-candidate?"
"Gurararara… quite a fearsome thing."
He sounded amused more than concerned.
Whitebeard had seen too much in his life for anything to truly shock him.
He also understood what Marco really wanted:
to strengthen the crew's firepower so he wouldn't need to fight as much.
Whitebeard pretended not to notice Marco's intentions.
"Heh. Handle it however you see fit, Marco. Pops won't interfere."
"If you want to cooperate with them, have Jozu prepare the supplies."
He handed the Den Den Mushi to Jozu.
Jozu listened.
Looked at the old man hooked to IV tubes.
He clenched his fists.
"Marco, I'll handle it. What does this force want? Beli? Treasure?"
When Marco said the list—food, magazines, comics—Jozu went silent.
Completely stunned.
"You… didn't get scammed, right?"
Marco snapped, "Scammers don't ask for that! And I saw the firepower myself. Stop talking nonsense and prepare it!"
Jozu reluctantly agreed.
He still felt something was off…
But Marco was First Division Commander—he must know what he's doing. Probably.
The three major factions began preparing what Mork wanted.
Half a day later, the Donquixote Family arrived first.
Doflamingo grinned widely.
"Fufufu… Sir, these are the supplies you asked for!"
—------------------------------
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