Of course, with his current vast influence, he couldn't just disband everything on the spot—things would have to fade away slowly, over time.
Maybe by the time the Worst Generation arrived, his influence would have lessened a bit?
"Beru~ beru~ beru~ beru~..."
While Orin was lost in thought, pondering how to further advance his Conqueror's Haki, a Den Den Mushi suddenly rang out with an urgent tone.
He reached into his coat and pulled out another Den Den Mushi.
Upon closer inspection, it was one from the World Government.
"Click."
The moment the call connected, the five Elders exchanged glances. A flicker of disappointment and helplessness flashed across their eyes.
But none of them showed such emotions before Orin. Such childish displays had long ceased to exist among them—especially now that Orin held leverage over them.
"It's been quite a while, hasn't it, Orin?"
Saint Topman Warcury was the first to speak, offering a greeting.
But Orin clearly wasn't in the mood to exchange pleasantries with a bunch of old men.
"Indeed, it has been a while, Elder-sama. The moment I returned, I was greeted by CP's "Shigan" welcome ceremony. How very passionate of you all~"
Standing on a balcony, Orin looked down below.
Chained to the ground beneath him was a group of captured agents—one of them being a CP0 operative who had led the World Government's assault on Fishman Island.
His words, half mocking and half sharp, made the Elders' expressions shift subtly.
No matter how they tried to reason it, they couldn't figure out how someone they had confirmed to be a fake could actually turn out to be the real Orin in the end.
Could it be that everything had been staged by Orin himself?
But what kind of strong man would be that bored...
What they didn't know was that while Orin hadn't actually done so this time, he might very well become that kind of bored in the future.
After all, he had grown tired of being a boss, recruiting underlings, seizing territories, planting flags, protecting his reputation, fighting wars…
That entire process—so intoxicating in his younger days, when countless subordinates bowed before him—had long lost its thrill.
Now Orin was twenty-five.
And as the saying goes, once a man passes twenty-five, he's basically thirty.
Though still young in body, Orin had grown disenchanted with the whole "ruler of the seas" act.
After all, who could surpass Rocks in domination?
Having once defeated the greatest pirate alive, Orin had lost all drive for conquest.
Unless you were a brainless fanboy, who would want to replay a game they'd already beaten?
Too lazy to argue with the Elders, Orin went straight to the point.
"Release the girl named Ginny—the one a Celestial Dragon recently took from the surface world as his wife. Once she's free, we'll call this matter settled."
The Elders froze for a moment.
They hadn't expected Orin's demand to be… this mild?
Given his scheming mind and twisted sense of humor, they had thought he'd at least extort them for market shares or claim dominion over some island like Duramos.
But all he wanted was for them to release a slave taken as a Celestial Dragon's 'wife'?
In the Elders' eyes, "wife" was just another word for "slave."
Still, since it was such an easy demand, they had no reason to refuse.
And so, after agreeing to his request, the matter was swiftly concluded.
...
"Th-th-th-that man!!!"
"He's back!!!?"
The Calm Belt — Amazon Lily.
Inside the royal palace, Boa Hancock, who had just been crowned as the new Empress, had arrogantly proclaimed herself as the protector of Amazon Lily before all her people.
Proud and elegant, she returned to her chamber—only to see a newspaper laid out on her desk by Elder Nyon.
The moment her eyes caught the front page, her body went limp.
Her face turned pale, her limbs trembling uncontrollably.
She had clearly seen something utterly terrifying.
"Just after becoming the Empress of this country, what's with that disgraceful behavior, Hancock!!?"
Elder Nyon—once known as Gloriosa—leaned on her cane, frowning deeply at Hancock's pathetic reaction.
"Take… take that newspaper away!!!"
Hancock's body trembled violently.
In her mind, the memories of that oppressive fear resurfaced—
From childhood, she had been brainwashed with tales of the dread of Orin-sama.
None were allowed to disobey him.
Orin-sama's greatness was absolute.
He was to be adored and revered.
Even now, though she was no longer a slave and had escaped the Holy Land to become the Empress of Amazon Lily, the terror engraved in her very bones remained.
Just seeing Orin's photograph shattered her inner defenses.
Her arrogance vanished, and trembling, she begged Elder Nyon to remove it.
Elder Nyon frowned and picked up the newspaper.
"'The Black Emperor, Orin'? He really is a fearsome man. Once a member of Roger's crew, wasn't he…?"
As someone who had lived through the God Valley Incident, Elder Nyon's knowledge and experience were vast.
But even she hadn't expected Hancock to react this way.
And it wasn't just her—
The moment she read the newspaper aloud, Sandersonia and Marigold, who had just entered, both went pale and collapsed to the ground trembling.
Only after Elder Nyon shredded the newspaper into pieces did the three sisters slowly regain their composure.
To them, Orin was both demon and emperor—
A being they feared, yet couldn't defy, mixed with a twisted sense of awe…
...
"There are many people out there who admire you, you know. Are you really sure about this?"
Crocodile crossed her legs elegantly, pausing in the middle of handling the ever-growing workload of Baroque Works.
Her sharp gaze fell upon Orin.
Why now, of all times—just when Baroque Works was starting to rise?
"How should I put it… let's say it's for my own growth,"
Orin replied casually, enjoying the service of Lina and Mei.
"I'll be reclaiming all the Black Sun flags except for Duramos Island, Fishman Island, the Golden City, and the key underworld factions. As long as the foundation remains, that's enough. It won't affect the development of you anyway."
"That's not what I meant…"
Crocodile's face darkened, and she turned her head away.
Orin simply didn't want to be anyone's boss anymore.
But his name still carried universal weight—the Shichibukai still served under his shadow.
He no longer planned to meddle in everything.
Instead, he intended to enjoy life, traveling and seeking entertainment.
Besides, if he kept expanding and ended up "clearing" the entire world like a completed game—
Wouldn't that break his promise to Captain Roger to give the new generation a chance?
He was twenty-five now, no longer a young man.
It was time to let the next generation take their shot.
No point mourning the disappearance of the "Black Emperor."
From now on, the stage belonged to the free and unrestrained—Black Gun Orin-sama!!!
"Once the remaining affairs are settled, it's about time I visit Ace and Lady Rouge… and perhaps that 'King' Luffy too."