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"Do we really need that much?"
"I'm not sure, but at least trillions of berries are required."
Hearing this amount, the Five Elders were stunned.
A few months ago, the Marines requested funding and only asked for one trillion berries. Now, even as the situation improves, how many times has that amount increased?
Has all this time been wasted working together?
They were baffled and shocked.
The most concerning thing is that even if the Marines only needed one trillion berries, they wouldn't be able to provide it.
Despite the current situation across the seas, with the Marines gradually gaining the upper hand over the pirates, the era of the great pirates isn't over yet—it's just on the brink of collapse.
In other words, a significant portion of the trade routes between various kingdoms and islands hasn't been reopened.
And if the trade routes aren't open, it means the member nations don't have money and can't pay protection fees.
Without the protection fees, the World Government's financial situation remains unchanged.
The Five Elders sat on the sofa, their faces grim, lost in thought.
They started recalling all of Akira's plans from the past two months.
In fact, there were only three:
The "Honey Plan"—primarily introducing wives to the soldiers to encourage them to fight bravely, while also promising full salaries and numerous extra allowances.
The "God of Wealth Project"—scamming the entire world by opening the Marine Bank and sending money to everyone.
There's nothing that can cover the hundreds of billions in berry shortfalls, except to withdraw civilian deposits from the Marine Bank.
After all this, he successfully secured the position of Fleet Admiral.
Thinking it through now, it's no exaggeration to say he's deeply in debt.
Normally, this debt would need to be repaid. They haven't heard Akira's stagnant water theory.
And as for banks spread all over the world, this is the first time they've encountered something like this, and they're even more unclear about it.
And just recently!
The "God's Generals Plan"—building factories worldwide, calling on the powerful to copy abilities for a fee, and contacting the God of Fortune to find pirates to clone.
Not to mention other miscellaneous expenses.
What's more important is that they realized that the emergence of these strong clones means that few officers can be freed, and veterans can personally lead teams to hunt pirates.
There are quite a few veterans. These people need weapons to lead their teams, right? Need warships, right?
Additionally, to handle the era of great pirates, the number of soldiers at this stage has increased many times compared to the past, so the monthly salaries have also multiplied accordingly.
As for earning money from trade routes, since the introduction of this ridiculous "God's General Plan," the high-ranking officers at the headquarters have been stuck there, copying the strong with transformation leaves, and haven't gone out to make any money.
"So basically..."
"Good grief, the Marines have been losing money with no profitable ventures at all."
The entire Marine force treats the bank like a loan platform, spending tomorrow's money today.
"Hiss!"
Realizing this, the Five Elders all took a sharp breath.
At that moment, from the corner of his eye, the Warrior God of Finance noticed Akira sneaking in through the door.
In an instant, he was fuming.
"Akira!"
The Warrior God of Finance even forgot to be careful with his treasured sword, slamming the end of the scabbard hard onto the floor.
The force was so strong that it shattered the precious tiles.
Seeing this, Akira didn't bother hiding and walked in.
Facing the intense and oppressive gazes of the Five Elders, he came to his usual spot and stood silently.
"How do you explain this?" The Warrior God of Finance demanded furiously.
"Well..."
Akira sighed softly, instinctively reaching into his coat to pull out a cigar. But upon seeing the Five Elders' piercing glares, he quickly put it back.
These five were already on edge; best not give them any more reason to explode.
Akira said, "Honestly, I see this as a necessary cost to fully end the era of great pirates."
"Fine, but have you thought about how to settle these debts?"
The Warrior God of Finance wasn't being unreasonable.
He knew that you couldn't just talk your way out of the era of great pirates—it required serious expenses.
But what he hadn't expected was that the debt would keep growing. If this continued for a few more months, wouldn't it be tens or even hundreds of trillions?
If it truly takes that much to end the era of great pirates quickly, the Warrior God of Finance would rather let the era continue.
After all, pirates aren't causing chaos in the Holy Land.
Moreover, the suffering endured by the people is caused by the pirates themselves, not the World Government. At most, the people might secretly curse the government for its inaction.
But it wouldn't be worth it if the World Government got dragged down because of this era of great pirates.
"I initially thought that once we ended the era of great pirates quickly, trade routes would reopen, allowing the World Government to collect taxes.
"Then, I'd ask the five of you to allocate the yearly share that should go to the Marines, and gradually pay back the bank.
"Later, when we have more freedom, we can send some officers to resume business operations and generate revenue."
Akira explained.
"If you had all this planned out, why are you dumping this mess on me...on the CP0?"
The Warrior God of Finance was so frustrated that he almost let something slip.
But fortunately, years of self-restraint allowed him to catch himself in time.
Though he was furious, he also felt a bit relieved.
If Graeme hadn't been there to oversee the handover, it might've been too late to intervene.
By then, this hot potato would've been impossible to shake off.
"Only when you're the one running things do you realize how tough it is to make money."
Akira put his hands in his pockets, gazed up at the ceiling with a deeply frustrated look, and continued:
"I didn't mean to dump this problem on purpose."
"The reason Marine Bank is still afloat is because of all the people's deposits."
"Today, I rob Peter to pay Paul, and tomorrow, I'll rob Paul to pay Peter."
"This kind of patchwork approach can work for now, but with the World Government Bank stepping in..."
"Its appearance directly ripped off Marine Bank's underpants. Of course, I had to hand it over, because this trick can't be played anymore."
Akira deliberately lowered his head to look at the CP0 captain, his tone full of mock gratitude, saying, "Honestly, I can't keep up with this anymore; the pressure is just too much.
"And I don't want to compete with the World Government Bank, which is run by Mr. Graeme—it wouldn't look good."
"We're all part of the same family, and causing trouble would be hard to explain to the Five Elders."
"So since Mr. Graeme intends to take over and play this wall-breaking game for the Marines, of course, I couldn't wait to hand it off."
"It'll be much easier if I can just focus on catching pirates rather than constantly figuring out how to make money."
As Akira finished speaking, Graeme clenched his teeth so hard that they almost cracked, his head lowered in frustration.
'Who's a family with you? I'm CP0, meant to shield against your spear' he thought bitterly. But he only dared to roar these thoughts in his mind, not voicing them in reality.
The Warrior God of Finance took a deep breath, instinctively glancing at his four colleagues, hoping for some advice.
But all he got were blank stares.
After all, their understanding of finance was limited; none of them were experts in this field.
Seeing this, the Warrior God of Finance didn't press further and looked away.
It was normal, after all—if the Warrior God of Agriculture came to ask him which crop would mature faster, he'd be just as clueless.
"Graeme, after taking over Marine Bank, can you solve this?"
The Warrior God of Finance asked the CP0 captain.
Even now, he hoped the Marines would stick to military affairs and leave financial matters alone.
But he hadn't considered that if even he wasn't confident in handling it, how could his subordinates manage it?
And if Graeme took over this mess, he wouldn't get any credit for doing it well but would face punishment if he failed.
From where he sat, different considerations came into play.
Even if the Marines handled the finances, it wouldn't necessarily hurt the CP0.
After all, they belonged to two separate systems, usually without conflicts.
So Graeme replied without hesitation, "This subordinate is ashamed!"
The Warrior God of Finance sighed.
For such a significant situation, he couldn't forcefully hand it over to the CP0.
Otherwise, if they botched it, things could become even worse, possibly returning to the chaotic situation at the beginning of the great pirate era.
At least for now... the Marines can still play the wall-breaking game, can't they?
"Akira, sit down!"
The Warrior God of Finance looked at Akira, his previous anger replaced with a more amicable expression.
"Understood," Akira replied, finding a nearby seat and sitting down.
"Hey, I didn't realize Marine's situation had gotten this bad. It seems Marine Bank still can't do without you."
"No, no, in fact, the world can function without anyone; I'm just a small cog in the World Government."
"Oh, don't underestimate yourself. Let's not hand over Marine Bank; keep it as it is."
"Then we'll just go bankrupt, and I don't want to deal with it anymore. If I need berries in the future, I'll just ask the five of you."
Akira and the Warrior God of Finance continued their conversation, going back and forth.
Akira expressed how tired he was and took the opportunity to shift back to his previous mode, aiming to make his role as easy as when he was a simple commander.
The Warrior God of Finance insisted that avoidance isn't a good habit and that a leader should lead by example.
Akira countered by praising the World Government Bank, saying it's indeed much better than Marine Bank.
The Warrior God of Finance responded, and the conversation dragged on for a full six hours.
In the end, they reached a mutually satisfactory outcome.
The World Government Bank would close starting tomorrow, no longer accepting deposits, and all the berries would be transferred to the Marineford headquarters' bank warehouse.
The Marines would retain the privilege of conducting business, along with the maximum degree of freedom.
Seeing such sincerity from the Warrior God of Finance, Akira knew he couldn't be stingy in return.
Akira promised that once the era of great pirates came to an end, he would personally resolve the debt issue plaguing Marine Bank and ensure that what the World Government inherited would be a fully functional and pure bank. He also expressed his understanding of the Five Elders' decision to send a CP0 to supervise the bank, reassuring them that as long as they could relax and not worry about Marine's activities, they could proceed as they saw fit.
Akira's attitude greatly satisfied the Five Elders. Despite everything, Akira never showed any sign of defiance or rebellion against them from the start. Their concerns and actions were merely due to the natural suspicions of those in high positions. However, they had no evidence to suggest that Akira had any intention or capability to rebel.
All they knew for certain was that Akira was diligently working to end the era of great pirates.
As the warship departed from the Red Line and returned to the port of Marineford, Akira walked into the office building, hands in his pockets, humming a tune.
Amidst the greetings from various officers, he made his way toward his office. When passing by the staff department, he paused and changed direction.
"Call Vice Admiral Garp and ask him to return to headquarters to see me," Akira instructed a civil servant at a nearby desk.
"Yes, Fleet Admiral," the civil servant responded promptly, standing up and saluting before immediately taking out a Den Den Mushi to make the call.
Not waiting for the result, Akira continued toward the Fleet Admiral's office.
As he approached the door, he overheard Vice Admiral Tsuru's voice from inside, "Good boy, don't worry. As long as you complete this task well, I'll accept your dinner request."
With the door slightly ajar, Akira decided not to knock and simply pushed it open.
Tsuru, who was on a call with the Den Den Mushi, glanced over. Seeing that it was Akira, her expression shifted to one of mild surprise.
Akira smiled, gesturing for her to continue, and then walked over to Robin, who was busy with paperwork.
"Huh? Brother, why are you here?" Robin asked, feeling a gentle hand on her head. She looked up, her eyes lighting up with surprise.
"I came to get a report from Aunt Tsuru. What about you? What are you up to?" Akira responded with a chuckle.
"Brother Rosinante is away, so the news department is temporarily under my care. I'm reviewing the manuscripts sent by the others," Robin replied.
"Oh~~~ Let me see. Ah, it's the promotional drafts for the Admirals. You're doing great; keep it up."
"Uh-huh!" Robin nodded enthusiastically, clenching her fists in determination.
At this point, Tsuru finished her call and approached them.
"Fleet Admiral Akira, what brings you here?" she asked.
"I was just passing by. Is the list of big pirates I asked for ready?" Akira inquired.
"Yes, I've got it right here." Tsuru walked back to her desk, rummaged through a drawer, and then handed him a document.
Akira stood in place, scanning the document, his eyelids drooping slightly as he muttered the names listed.
"Douglas Bullet, Byrnndi World, Sanjuan Wolf, Avalo Pizarro..."
She suddenly asked in a low voice, "Did you just come back from the Holy Land?"
"Yes," Akira confirmed with a nod.
"And the World Government Bank?"
"It's temporarily out of business. Until the era of great pirates ends, they won't add to the chaos," Akira replied.
Akira paused, then tucked the document into his coat and smiled slightly. "Gather the officers for a meeting."