The shining moon is up high, and gloomy clouds trail behind it like a shadow.
The ocean at night is profound and captivating.
On an unnamed island, within a dimly lit room, a man examines wanted posters on the wall. His gaze moves around, ultimately fixing on the man in the center, who wears a broad grin.
"The guy who once possessed riches, fame, strength, and even the whole world in his grasp, [One Piece]——"
"Gol D. Roger!"
The man's eyes flare with intensity, and his voice abruptly hushes.
The words he shared before departing spurred people worldwide to flock to the seas.
The man paused, unable to resist mimicking the tone of the speaker. His voice deepened, and the pitch shifted slightly.
"My treasure?"
"I'll give it to you if you want it!"
"Go find it!"
"Everything in the world is there!!"
With that, the man seized the wanted poster from the wall, crumpled it into a ball, and continued to laugh heartily.
"This statement marked the beginning of today's grand pirate era!"
The man turned, and the light revealed his explosive hair and a lit cigar in his mouth, yet his entire face remained veiled in shadow.
"At that moment, I experienced death, not just me, but you too, didn't you?"
The man lifted his head, gazing at the formidable figure supporting the ceiling, and slowly pronounced a name.
"Douglas Bullet!"
The Bullet that the Marines and others are searching for is concealed here!!
A face adorned with stubble and a fierce expression, resembling two sausages hanging from the mouth, confronted the tall man without a trace of timidity.
"But, I can join your plan."
After the man spoke, he placed Roger's wanted poster on the end of the cigar, and the bright yellow flame instantly illuminated the entire face in detail.
Boom--!!!
The man spread his hands nervously, grinning to reveal his yellowed teeth. He held the flaming paper high in his hand and laughed with an extremely arrogant expression.
"Me! Buena Festa holds the most significant piece of information in his life!"
As he spoke, Festa's face became even more crazed.
"I already have the clues to the secret treasure hidden by that man!"
"Just obtain that!"
Festa abruptly pointed his finger at the plain, eternal pose in front of Bullet, declaring, "Everything you desire, you can obtain!"
"Quit the chatter! What about the news you wanted disseminated?" Bullet observed the proceedings silently, and finally, impatience crept onto his face.
"Don't fret! I guarantee this will be the world's premier celebration exclusively crafted for pirates!"
"—The Pirate Festival will proceed as planned!"
Festa's expression stayed unwavering, and he spoke with undiminished enthusiasm.
"That's excellent."
….....
In the air.
Beneath the lingering clouds and mist.
Boom--!!
A news bird abruptly froze, as if it collided with something solid, and then slowly descended.
Miraculously, the unconscious Newsbird didn't plummet straight down but appeared to be lifted by a transparent force.
Snapped--!!
Suddenly, it seemed as if a large hand snatched the news bird, bringing it closer for careful inspection.
Crash--!!
A white envelope was extracted from the Newsbird's claw, and a figure gradually revealed itself.
Silver-white hair, attire exposing a robust chest.
It's Smoker!!
"Brother Atlas, this appears to be related to the Pirate Festival." After a quick read, Smoker shouted.
They had been suspended in the air for days. However, considering the vastness of the sea, even with excellent aerial vision, it was just a small part of the ocean. After all, there were limits to what they could see.
So, essentially, they gained nothing, but the Marines did manage to uncover some leads.
"Oh? Through Newsbird? It seems that Festa guy has some dealings with Morgans." Atlas's eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a cold gleam.
"Buena Festa, aside from being the organizer of this Pirate Festival, also maintains extensive ties with numerous intelligence dealers and arms dealers in the underground world."
Kyros pondered the information he had read earlier, nodded, and provided an assessment, "This pirate consistently appears in negative news and engages in wrongdoing."
"And..."
Kyros massaged his temples with a headache. "According to the information, this guy seems to have died once, but I don't know why he suddenly made a high-profile comeback at this time and got involved with Bullet."
"What's it say?" Atlas asked curiously, looking at Smoker who was examining it closely.
"Huh? Oh."
"It's a flyer about this pirate festival. It roughly means—"
"A celebration exclusively for pirates. The ultimate victor of the treasure hunt will be awarded a Eternal Pose to the final island."
"The event will be hosted at..."
Smoker pulled out a folded chart from his pocket and examined it carefully.
Then, a voice filled with surprise erupted.
"This is it, Brother Atlas!"
"Excellent. We should have a Eternal Pose to this island, right?"
"That's correct."
....
New World, an uncharted sea region.
Ten well-equipped warships sailed side by side, resembling iron ropes crossing the river.
On the central ship, the somber Onigumo suddenly turned his head, addressing the soldier next to him with a trace of impatience in his voice.
"How's it going? Has Marineford received any information about the location of the so-called Pirate Festival?"
"No...no."
The soldier couldn't help but swallow nervously, quickly lowering his head. He rolled his eyes up, cautiously observing the Onigumo's face.
"What's the matter? We're already in the New World. Doesn't a Buster Call without a target become a joke?"
Onigumo was growing increasingly irritable. This marked his first time leading the Buster Call as Vice Admiral, and returning without success was the last outcome he desired, particularly over something as seemingly trivial as intelligence.
"Okay, Onigumo, there's no point in worrying." At this moment, Yamakaji stepped forward with a cigarette in his mouth, gently patting the soldier on the shoulder, signaling that he could step back.
"Yamakaji, you don't have to act like you're not in a hurry every time; this is a Buster Call!" Onigumo displayed no respect whatsoever. He grabbed Yamakaji and roared.
"Don't worry, even if Marine can't find it, there's still the World Government's CP department. When it comes to the professionalism of searching for information, they are much better than us."
"Vice Admiral, sir!! There is news! The latest information came from Admiral Atlas. They already know where Bullet is hiding!!" The Marine soldier who had just retreated suddenly turned back and shouted excitedly towards the Onigumo.
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