Sengoku swiftly dialed the emergency Den Den Mushi line for Admiral Kuzan. Of all the admirals, he trusted Kuzan the most for a task of this nature. The other two admirals were far too ruthless, and he feared they might complicate matters.
On the other end, Admiral Kuzan's lazy voice greeted him. "Oh… Sengoku-san. Didn't expect a call from you."
"Kuzan, this is an urgent matter. We have a dangerous individual loose in the first half of the Grand Line, just beyond Alabasta's waters," Sengoku stated firmly. "I need you to track them down and bring them all back to Marine Headquarters."
"Among his crew is none other than the Ohara survivor, Nico Robin."
At this, Kuzan's nonchalant expression shifted slightly. He had been the one who had let Robin escape back in Ohara. Now, after so many years, here he was, ordered to pursue her once again. The memory stirred his lingering doubts about the Marines' judgment that day and his wavering faith in their definition of justice.
"Did you hear me, Kuzan?" Sengoku's voice, sharp and insistent, pulled Kuzan out of his thoughts. He coughed twice, masking his unease.
"Understood, Fleet Admiral. And what's the name of this target?"
"Tony, the 'Master of Flames'… a Logia-type with the Flame-Flame Fruit. Don't underestimate him, Kuzan."
With that, Sengoku ended the call, his expression still tense. Though he had confidence in Kuzan's strength, he couldn't shake an uneasy feeling. He hoped things would go smoothly, reassuring himself silently.
But Sengoku's unease had a reason—the Four Emperors. It wasn't only the Marines keeping an eye on Tony. One powerful force also closely followed his actions: the Whitebeard Pirates, led by none other than Edward Newgate, the Four Emperors' most feared figure. Newgate, wielding the might of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, had the power to destroy entire worlds, and even the mere mention of his name struck fear across the seas.
The New World.
Onboard the Moby Dick, Whitebeard reclined in his throne-like chair, taking a hearty swig from his massive jug as he eyed the newspaper featuring Tony's latest exploits. Whitebeard had been tracking the young man's rise ever since his actions back in Cocoyasi Village. For some reason, people from the East Blue always caught his interest. His former rival, Roger, and even Rayleigh, his first mate, had hailed from there.
"Gurararara! This little upstart keeps stirring up trouble, doesn't he? Quite the surprise," Whitebeard chuckled, amused. "Marco, what's your take on this brat?"
Beside him, a man with spiky blond hair sat casually. This was Marco, the First Division Commander, known as the "Phoenix." As a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit user, the Phoenix-Phoenix Fruit gave him strength rivaling that of a Marine admiral.
"Old man, it seems like you've taken a special interest in this rookie. Thinking of taking him under your wing?" Marco replied, familiar with his father's tendency to welcome promising talents as family.
"Gurarara! Marco, you know me well. The kid drove that sand crocodile running from Alabasta, and it makes my old heart sing. I'd love to meet him myself soon."
"Crocodile!"
At that moment, Marco's face also showed an expression of astonishment. He could hardly believe that a newcomer on the first half of the Grand Line had managed to defeat a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
"Incredible… Tony, huh… quite an interesting guy." Marco couldn't help but take another look at the cool image of Tony on the bounty poster.
"There are too many Marine spies around, so I won't go personally. It would only attract unnecessary attention," Whitebeard said. "Marco, you and Vista should go. Try to gauge what kind of person this kid is, and if possible, bring him here. I want you to officially invite him to join the Whitebeard Pirates!"
Whitebeard twirled his crescent-shaped mustache with a satisfied smile.
Marco nodded. "Since you're that interested, I'll go with Vista. I'm curious to see what makes this 'Tony' so special."
…
"Heh, if he's managed to earn Whitebread's respect, then I, Vista, would love to meet him myself," Vista chimed in. With that, the two of them departed, setting off toward Tony's location.
In the meantime, both Marine Headquarters and the Whitebeard Pirates sent powerful forces in pursuit of Tony.
Unaware of all this, Tony sat at the bow of his ship, still relaxing without a care, blissfully ignorant of the admiral-level forces closing in on him. He suddenly shivered and muttered, "Ah-choo… Strange, I'm the Flame Man, so why would I feel cold? Guess I'd better head back to the cabin and rest—probably just someone cursing me out."
Tony strolled back to the cabin, and upon opening the door, found three lovely women peacefully asleep. A grin spread across his face. Because it was a small sailboat, their space was limited. After setting up the kitchen, storage, and bath, Rayleigh had only arranged for a single large bed—no separate rooms. So Tony had "no choice" but to "squeeze in" with the three ladies.
Inwardly, he had already thanked his mentor Rayleigh a thousand times. "Love ya, Master! Mwah!" he whispered to himself as he settled in next to Nami and Robin, eventually falling asleep to the sound of their gentle breathing.
Meanwhile, Marine Headquarters issued updated bounty posters. Given Tony's recent defeat of Crocodile in Alabasta and his rumored abduction of the nation's princess, along with his previous offense of killing a Marine base captain, his bounty rose dramatically. Tony, the "Master of Flames," now had a bounty of 580 million Berries! "Devil Child" Nico Robin's bounty had reached 150 million Berries, and "Cat Burglar" Nami was now worth 80 million Berries. Combined, the trio's bounty skyrocketed to a staggering 800 million, sparking a wave of rumors among pirates across the first half of the Grand Line.
In a small tavern on Bass Island, a bustling hub on the way to Sabaody Archipelago, voices were lively with conversation.
"Hey, did you see this?" one pirate with a scar across his face pointed to Tony's wanted poster. "The Marine bounty on this guy has gone up again—580 million Berries! They say he's a demon who slaughters without a second thought. Heard he came all the way from the East Blue, leaving a trail of blood. Seems Alabasta's princess doesn't stand a chance…"
"And that 'Devil Child' Robin," another chimed in. "Apparently she betrayed the Warlord Crocodile just to follow this guy, 'cause he's supposed to be a devil himself…"
"The scariest part," added another, "is that they say the Cat Burglar has some kind of power that can mess with your mind… leaves you completely dazed. Even that sand-crocodile couldn't talk back when she was around…"
"Terrifying… hope I never run into them."
Rumors spiraled, passing from one mouth to the next, twisting the tales into increasingly dark legends until Tony's crew seemed monstrous.
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