Time flew by, and soon, the Sea Circle Calendar 1511 came to an end, ushering in the year 1512.
At the close of 1511, not long after Jinbei became one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, word spread that Arlong had been bailed out with the help of Kahn, who had strong ties with Doflamingo, his "brother" in the underworld. Arlong officially broke away from the New Sun Pirates.
At the same time, the World Government reached out to Kahn, seeking to purchase Seastone.
Kahn didn't refuse but instead made some specific requests. He asked for the Seastone handcuffs developed by Vegapunk, the Seastone nets, and the Seastone devices installed on the bottoms of ships, which allowed vessels to navigate freely through the Calm Belt.
In truth, through his access to the memories of Vinsmoke Judge and Queen, Kahn had already mastered the technology for Seastone handcuffs, nets, and even Seastone cells. However, he still made the request to the World Government.
The Five Elders, expecting Kahn to demand outrageous terms, were surprised by his seemingly modest request and, relieved, agreed without hesitation.
Unbeknownst to them, Kahn's demand was simply a ploy to mislead them. He made it seem like these technologies were the only things he was after.
But in reality, hidden among the many secret sites of the "Cross Guild," there was a clairvoyant who had consumed a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit, allowing Kahn to easily locate Slug Island, a place most could never find.
When Vegapunk eventually unlocked the secrets of Devil Fruit transmission, developed the technology to imbue objects with Devil Fruit powers, and created artificial Devil Fruits, along with research on Pacifista and the Seraphim, Kahn stole all of these breakthroughs in one swift move.
While communicating remotely via Den Den Mushi, Boa Hancock and her crew were stationed in Dressrosa, keeping them out of the World Government's reach in Wano Country. After Kahn completed his deal with the World Government, he sailed back to East Blue aboard the Grandine, accompanied by Yamato and the three female warriors.
Arriving at the execution platform in Loguetown, where the legendary "Pirate King" Gol D. Roger was executed, Kahn seemed lost in thought. After a moment, he dialled Doflamingo's number.
"Pere~Pere~Pere~Pere~"
"Moshi moshi, I'm Doflamingo."
The Den Den Mushi mimicked Doflamingo's sinister grin and distinctive voice.
"Doflamingo, does your 'Donquixote Family' have any influence in East Blue?" Kahn asked directly.
"Heh heh heh... Kahn, so you've made it to the weakest sea?" Doflamingo instantly understood Kahn's location and replied, "Unfortunately, I don't have much influence in East Blue. In fact, none of the other major underworld players do either."
"The overall strength of East Blue is too low, and the status of the World Government's affiliated countries and the Marines is unshakable there. Besides the occasional scuffle between small-time pirates, there's no real market for arms in that sea."
"And don't forget, East Blue is the homeland of a Marine hero. From time to time, that monster returns home for reasons I can't fully understand. But whenever he does, any pirates or dark forces he encounters are either killed or arrested."
"Anyone captured by that Marine hero, unless they are part of the Seven Warlords of the Sea or have close ties with the Five Elders, can forget about being bailed out."
"Over time, most of the underworld kings lost interest in investing resources or expanding their influence in East Blue."
"I see," Kahn said, slightly surprised, before continuing, "Then, come to East Blue and set up a few hospitals while you're at it. Send some of your people and help me keep an eye out for news about the Paramecia Barrier-Barrier Fruit."
"The Barrier-Barrier Fruit? Got it."
Doflamingo immediately understood what Kahn was after, having seen it listed in the *Devil Fruit Encyclopedia*. He nodded, preparing to use his resources to help Kahn track down the Paramecia-type Barrier-Barrier Fruit.
Since Doflamingo had used the Paramecia Gold-Gold Fruit to secure a position under Kahn's protection in the "Cross Guild" and gain the Cross Guild's flag, he no longer feared the Marines' pursuit. His relationship with both the underworld and legitimate forces had improved significantly. This alliance had granted him a powerful position.
Doflamingo was also one of the few who knew that, aside from Robin, Hancock, and Sonia, there was Monet, a user of the Paramecia Op-Op Fruit within the Cross Guild. Additionally, there were users of the Paramecia Childlike Fruit, Weapon-Weapon Fruit, Gold-Gold Fruit, and the Logia Snow-Snow Fruit, all working for Kahn. Although the exact identities of these Devil Fruit users were still hidden behind their roles as maids, the overall strength of Kahn's cadre far surpassed that of the commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates.
Even though Whitebeard had dozens of division commanders, the combined strength of Kahn's "maid" team was undoubtedly superior.
Doflamingo knew that as long as he remained valuable to Kahn, he would continue to be treated as a close "brother." But if he ever became useless, Kahn would discard him without hesitation. Doflamingo admired this about Kahn, as he was the same way.
Thus, Doflamingo's bond with Kahn only deepened. He even entertained the idea that if the "Cross Guild" ever rose to challenge the World Government, he would be willing to become a subordinate force to aid Kahn in that fight.
With most of the members of the "Donquixote Family" already Devil Fruit users, obtaining rare Devil Fruits was no longer a priority for Doflamingo. In fact, if he ever found one, he would gladly give it to Kahn.
After hanging up the phone, Kahn and Yamato, who had just finished watching the execution platform where Gol D. Roger was executed, prepared to return to the ship. With Monet and the Sugar sisters, they set sail from Loguetown aboard the Grandine, charting a course toward Marine Branch 16 on the East Blue map.
On the map, there was no specific marking for Cocosia Village. It may have been labelled by its island name, but Kahn didn't know the island's name either. However, Kahn had another way of locating the village—by finding the Marine branch that operated in the region where Cocosia Village belonged.
As Kahn and his crew headed toward Marine Branch 16, a sailboat bearing a shark emblem on its bow docked at the shore of a simple village.
A group of towering, fierce-looking Fish-Men descended from the boat, wielding cold weapons of various strange designs.
A catastrophe was about to unfold in the village known as Cocosia.
At that time, 12-year-old Nojiko and 10-year-old Nami witnessed a horrific tragedy—seeing their adoptive mother, Bellemere, shot to death because she couldn't afford to pay for their lives.
This moment planted a deep obsession with money in Nami's heart, similar to Gild Tesoro's fixation after he couldn't afford to save the person he loved and had to watch her become a slave of the Celestial Dragons.
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