"You can eat a meal messily, but you can't speak without caution. Why is Red Hair considered an old acquaintance of mine?" Rowen questioned.
Their brief encounter had allowed Rowen to witness the power of a Yonko reigning over the New World for the first time.
The crown towering above the sea surface and the grandeur of a sword akin to a natural disaster had left a deep impression on Rowen.
Whitebeard's incomparable Tremor Devil Fruit, Kaido of the Hundred Beasts with his indestructible body, the monstrous power of BIG·MOM, and Red Hair's profound Haki and swordsmanship— all of these were forces to be reckoned with.
After witnessing the true combat power of the world's Top Level figures, Rowen had made up his mind not to provoke them unless he had another breakthrough himself.
Even a rabbit will bite when it's cornered!
And especially a Yonko.
The current strong position of the Marines and his series of actions had pushed the Yonko to the brink of eruption. Continuing to pressure them would only lead to a situation where someone's back would be against the wall.
At that point, it wouldn't be Rowen who would bear the consequences, but rather the Gorōsei (Five Elder Stars) would be the first to skin him alive!
"Why does Rayleigh want to find Shanks? Hasn't he disappeared for a long time?" Rowen asked, setting aside his intention to correct Kizaru's statement.
"I'm not sure, but it certainly can't be anything good! Can't be just to drink and reminisce, right?" Well, actually, that might be a possibility! Rowen silently quipped in his heart.
Knowing Rayleigh's current status of waiting for Monkey D. Luffy to set sail as the inheritor of Roger's will, he could deduce his adventurous personality.
If he happened to pass by Red Hair's territory, he would surely pay him a visit.
"If we go after Rayleigh, will Shanks stand up for him?" Rowen suddenly asked.
Shanks was special among the Yonko. Did the Marines really have a plan to fight him?
"I think you've misunderstood something, Rowen..." Kizaru's voice elongated calmly and slowly, as he reminded, "Yonko have always feared the Marines, but the Marines have never feared the Yonko."
"If Shanks wants to fight, then let's fight!"
The Marine Headquarters was the strongest force in the Grand Line, without a doubt!
The Shichibukai, Yonko, Marineford— these only maintained a balance to a certain extent, but it didn't mean their strengths were equal. Even allowing this balance to exist was because the government needed stability to maintain its rule.
Even if it meant losing face for their own institution, the Marine Headquarters, in order to pacify the seas by luring pirates.
"Stability" was an unshakable premise.
Even if they had to endure some losses, they remained indifferent.
But in reality, the Marines had never feared going to war with the Yonko and Shichibukai.
Considering combat power alone, all the Shichibukai combined only had the qualifications to fight against the Marines. Although the overall power of the Yonko was terrifying, divided into four parts, even if two Yonko crews joined forces, the Marines wouldn't be afraid of them.
This was the root cause of the frustration felt by all the Marines, leading to their unfavorable view of the Shichibukai system!
It wasn't that they couldn't win, but that they couldn't fight!
Hearing Kizaru's response, Rowen was taken aback.
Then he smiled wryly. "Sorry, I asked a stupid question."
"Well, actually, I understand your thoughts... After all, in recent years, the Marines have always prioritized maintaining stability. It's normal for the younger generation to have the idea that Marines wouldn't dare to fight with the Yonko," Kizaru said, understanding Rowen's perspective.
The passionate era had passed, and only the older generation knew how glorious the Marines were before Roger became the Pirate King!
It went without saying that in that era, they could easily take on New World pirates without giving up Raftel!
Later, in order to balance the incessant waves of piracy in the pirate era, the Shichibukai system was established, and the Marines began to reduce their forces to maintain stability.
At the same time, the Yonko gradually established a foothold in the New World, forming a tripartite standoff with the government.
Therefore, it was only natural for the younger generation to have such thoughts.
---
New World, Nameless Island.
The dappled shadows of trees fell on the lush grass, the sunlight was intense, and the air carried a mixture of earthy scent and the fragrance of grass.
In a basin-like area, a group of pirates danced and sang, joyfully celebrating.
In the center of the crowd, two world-renowned pirates sat cross-legged on the ground, each holding a cup the size of a human head.
"Is that so? I see!" Shanks, one of the Yonko, listened attentively to the story, his eyes slightly glazed over, and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "So, there's a Haoshoku user in the East Blue now. I'm sure the Marines must be quite shocked!"
"I don't know if the Marines are shocked, but I certainly am," replied Rayleigh, also smiling.
Thinking about that little guy, Rayleigh couldn't help but smile.
Then, he looked deeply into the wine in his hand. "But attracting too much attention will only make his journey more difficult."
"The times have changed. The Marines... are too terrifying!" Reflecting on everything he had seen during his journey, Rayleigh couldn't help but feel worried. "Do you know, Shanks, that in the East Blue now, the only pirate with a bounty exceeding ten million is Buggy, with a bounty of only 15,000,000!"
"Although the Independent Commission Against Corruption doesn't directly intervene in the cleanup of pirates in the Four Seas branch, the positions they occupy are all important hubs for entering the Grand Line, which ordinary pirates cannot pass through," Rowen explained.
The Vice Admiral of the Headquarters was originally a core force in the Marines, even surpassing the likes of Luffy, the protagonist, who could only confront them after the second volume. Their presence in the generally low-seas of the Four Seas seemed somewhat underutilized.
In the past, the Marines would never let precious Vice Admiral-level combat power meddle in the Four Seas.
But now, just a single stimulation from the Lightning Device had caused a surge in the mid-level combat power of the Marines, enough to compensate for the loss of high-end combat power.
"Not to mention... that guy!"
Marine's Soryu (Azure Dragon)!
A thoroughbred Monster!
"Haha, what's there to worry about, Vice Captain Rayleigh!" Suddenly, Shanks burst into laughter. "Even Buggy can live well in the East Blue, it seems that the Marines aren't that formidable after all!"
"Pff!" Rayleigh almost choked on his drink, chuckling, "That's true!"
Meanwhile, in a cave on a certain island in the East Blue, Buggy, who was hiding from the Marines' search, rubbed his bright red, oversized nose and looked around suspiciously.
There are always troublemakers trying to harm me!
After the laughter died down, Shanks pondered for a moment and said, "You didn't come to see me today just to tell me about Luffy's situation, did you?"
Despite being on Red Hair's territory, Shanks dared to guarantee that the news of Rayleigh meeting him had already been placed on the desks of the Gorōsei (Five Elder Stars) and Sengoku.
As remnants of the Roger Pirates, capturing Rayleigh was more important than defeating a Yonko's crew.
Taking such a huge risk, just relying on Luffy, wasn't enough!
"That's right!" Hearing this, the gleam in Rayleigh's eyes beneath his round glasses flashed, nodding.
"Shakky's information network has collected some interesting information, and combined with what I've seen in the past year while hiding and observing, I've noticed something."
"Oh? What is it?" Shanks set down his cup, his expression serious.
"The government is searching for the Ancient Weapons!"
"The Ancient Weapon revival project!"
Shanks's pupils suddenly contracted, exclaiming incredulously, "How is that possible? Are they insane?!"
"At the beginning of the pirate era opened by Captain Roger, there were voices within the government to end this era using the Ancient Weapons. Now, they're just putting their ideas into action."
Rayleigh understood why Shanks was so surprised and reminded him, "Be careful, Shanks."
"Do you remember the news two years ago about the Mayor of Water 7, Iceberg, being killed?"
"According to the information Shakky found, it turns out that the ones who acted back then were not the pirates as claimed, but the World Government's spy organization, the mysterious CP-9!"
"CP-9?" Shanks couldn't help but frown. "Does that mean they found the Pluton blueprint?"
Pluton was a super battleship built by the ancient shipwrights of Water 7, a fact known to any significant power with some background. But no one knew the true whereabouts of the Pluton blueprint.
After Iceberg's death, fearing that the government would obtain the blueprint, Shanks had sent people to investigate, and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that nothing unexpected had happened.
"No, whether the Pluton blueprint actually exists is still a mystery. There were rumors that the blueprint was in the hands of Tom, so the government pressured Tom to death. But now, even Tom's disciple, Iceberg, has died, and the blueprint hasn't surfaced."
Rayleigh shook his head and said, "Just knowing about Water 7 being the work of CP-9, I can now be sure that the government has begun searching for the Ancient Weapons."
"Perhaps you're not aware, but not long ago, Fish-Man Island was plunged into a major crisis!"
"The slave-catching teams were capturing Fish-Men and Mermaids on a large scale, causing the residents of Fish-Man Island to be in an uproar, almost coming to blows with the government and engaging in a full-scale conflict."
"And the mastermind behind the scenes, although well hidden, has countless connections with the government."
"Wow..." Shanks sucked in a breath of cold air.
One Fish-Man Island might be a coincidence, but when combined with the Water 7 incident carried out by CP-9, it was no longer a coincidence.
The government was really starting to search for the Ancient Weapons, wanting to revive those terrible weapons of war!
...
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1. I am not Interested In Devil Fruit
2. Marvel Disassembler