Zoro felt a headache coming on. He said to Johnny and John behind him,
"Go and take down the pirate flag up there."
Seeing the two islands that had already appeared in sight, John and Johnny didn't hesitate and went to obey. This also attracted the attention of several people on the ship.
They were all a bit confused why the pirate flag needed to be taken down.
Luffy put down his newspaper, his shock still lingering on his face. He reached out to grab the two men who had climbed to the top of the ship's mast,
"Wait..."
*Bang—*
Zoro kicked him flying, a few black lines streaking across his forehead,
"Stay put!"
Luffy crashed into the cabin wall, fell down, and glared at Zoro with wide eyes,
"What the hell!!!"
Zoro's brow twitched,
"I'm saying..."
"Do you even understand the situation at sea?"
"This isn't how you go looking for death."
He turned back to look at the two islands in the distance,
"See those two islands?"
One was Loguetown, the birthplace of Pirate King Roger, the starting town.
The other island was several times larger than Loguetown.
Nami and Kalifa exchanged glances, looking somewhat puzzled,
"What's wrong with those two islands?"
Zoro shook his head and said,
"I don't care what grudges you have with the Navy."
"But you have to understand your enemy first."
"That island, several times larger than the one next to it."
"It's a Navy base."
"To just hang the pirate flag and sail straight past it is suicidal."
"And do you all know the origin of this island?"
He said, turning to scan the people on the ship. They all looked bewildered.
They had been confined to a small area before, and only Karina and Sanji had some impression of it.
Sanji, smoking a cigarette, blew out a smoke ring and looked at the island,
"Originally, there was no island next to Loguetown. That island, it's said to have been formed by a battle."
His tone was tinged with doubt. Such legends seemed almost mythical...
Karina nodded slightly,
"I have some impression too."
But she was too young then, and they hadn't roamed this far before, so her impression wasn't deep.
Zoro nodded and said,
"That's right."
"It was formed by a battle."
Looking at the massive island, a hint of awe flashed in his eyes,
"Thirteen years ago."
"The legendary pirate Golden Lion, who was once as famous as Pirate King Roger."
"Used his devil fruit abilities to uproot several islands and cross over from the New World, intending to destroy the East Blue."
"He was intercepted by Sakazuki, who is now Fleet Admiral, but was a Marine Admiral at the time."
"They fought a great battle far from Loguetown, and he was defeated."
"And that massive island is the aggregation of islands that lost the effect of the devil fruit abilities and fell after Golden Lion's death."
As the ship drew closer, everyone could feel the sheer size of the island, several times larger than Loguetown next to it.
And the lingering aura it exuded was terrifying...
Seeing the stunned crowd, Zoro said in a deep voice,
"No matter what grudges you have with the Navy."
"You must be clear about who you are opposing and what kind of power they possess."
"You guys..."
"Are you ready...?"
His gaze swept over everyone. If they weren't ready, they should give up now. There was a difference between foolishly seeking death and dying in battle with all their might...
Everyone fell silent.
That island seemed like an insurmountable barrier. Could this truly be accomplished by human power?
Luffy suddenly walked to the ship's bow, adjusted his straw hat, and looked up at the massive island, his eyes filled with a firmness he had never shown before,
"I..."
----------
Meanwhile.
The Revolutionary Army's offensive had slowed.
But they were still gradually eroding the加盟 countries of the Four Seas. Due to the slowed pace, the royal families of the加盟 countries could react.
The Revolutionary Army bore a huge burden of blame, and after the World Government had plundered the accumulations of nearly half the royal families of the Four Seas'加盟 countries, their remaining harvesting plan completely failed...
However, in the eyes of the World Government, the remaining加盟 countries' royal families were insignificant...
South Blue, Revolutionary Army Headquarters.
Sabo returned here after a long time.
He greeted everyone familiarly.
In the war room.
Sabo smiled at Dragon,
"Commander-in-Chief."
The research and development tasks had been completed, and ships and guns were being built day and night.
Dragon also smiled,
"Mm."
Sabo casually pulled out a chair and sat down,
"Are there any other missions?"
"My body's getting rusty these past two months."
Dragon handed him a stack of intelligence reports,
"You can take a break for now."
The intelligence reports detailed the recent situation in Alabasta and Crocodile's stirrings.
Sabo quickly scanned the reports, his expression becoming serious,
"This guy is about to make his move, isn't he?"
Dragon nodded,
"Indeed."
"But there's still some time."
"Go and rendezvous with Robin."
"As for the situation in Alabasta, you can decide based on the circumstances."
"In any case, Robin must be protected, and no accidents should occur."
Sabo showed a slight smile,
"Don't worry."
"It's on me."
Grabbing the intelligence reports in his hand, he turned and waved, walking out.
He couldn't rest for a moment...
----------
New World, New Marineford.
At the heavily guarded port.
Ships that had traveled from the original Marineford slowly docked.
In the Fleet Admiral's office.
"Hahahahaha."
"Sakazuki!!!"
"Our mission is complete."
*Crash—*
The office door was flung open.
Maurice entered laughing, with Zephyr also smiling broadly.
Sakazuki looked up from his desk at the newcomers,
"Oh?"
"So soon?"
Maurice walked over and handed him a booklet,
"Hahahaha."
"Of course."
"Don't underestimate the two of us too much."
Sakazuki shook his head and smiled, taking the booklet to flip through it.
Maurice and Zephyr walked over to the sand table. With Sakazuki's continuous progress, the two could now see Sakazuki's objective from the current sand table.
Zephyr's expression was serious as he looked at the sand table,
"Total annihilation, huh..."
Thinking of that scene, the dormant passion in his heart couldn't help but boil.
Sakazuki was flipping through the booklet, while Zephyr and Maurice were looking at the sand table. The office fell silent for a moment.
A moment later.
Sakazuki closed the booklet and looked across,
"The integration is very detailed."
"In that case."
"I have no reason to stop you two."
"Do you two plan to act together or separately?"
Maurice was about to speak when Zephyr cut him off,
"Put this old man in the most dangerous place."
Sakazuki paused and looked at Zephyr...