The pattern had become undeniable through Sky Screen's revelations—Totto Land faced systematic targeting by multiple powerful forces across the future timeline, each assault demonstrating the Big Mom Pirates' increasing vulnerability.
The first invasion: Admiral Hoshigaki Kisame had penetrated Yonko territory solo, systematically dismantling peripheral defenses, defeating Sweet Commander Charlotte Cracker with casual efficiency, capturing Sea Knight Jinbe through superior water-style techniques that overwhelmed even awakened Mochi Mochi no Mi abilities.
The second invasion: The Founding Titan Eren had controlled the Colossal Titans to assault Totto Land directly—massive transformations devastating infrastructure, psychological warfare through apocalyptic imagery, demonstrating that even Four Emperors' territories weren't safe from coordinated supernatural assault.
The third invasion—currently unfolding in the broadcast—involved the second and third captains of the Blackbeard Pirates waiting in darkness invisibly, wanting to seize the opportunity to steal Charlotte Alluka's Devil Fruit power through Chrollo Lucilfer's Thief-Thief Fruit capabilities. The third catastrophic assault was about to begin while the family celebrated Katakuri's miraculous healing.
Other maritime forces felt extremely sympathetic toward what had happened—and continued happening—on Cake Island and throughout Totto Land. But such sympathy remained purely superficial, masks concealing actual satisfaction at watching powerful rival weaken.
This represented the price of becoming weak—or more accurately, of appearing weak to predators constantly seeking opportunities. There would always be ambitious individuals wanting to bring down those currently in power, eager to seize territories and resources from organizations showing vulnerability.
As Charlotte Linlin frequently suffered from severe schizophrenia in the future timeline—her dissociative identity disorder creating up to twenty different personalities competing violently for control over single body—her children would inevitably pay tremendous prices merely to maintain their position as one of the Four Emperors.
The disorder that caused their mother murdering her own offspring during personality conflicts, that forced them imprisoning her in central tower disguised as "house arrest," that prevented the Yonko from ever leaving Cake Island... these catastrophic internal problems made the organization appear weak to external observers.
The other sea emperors absolutely didn't mind taking advantage of her misfortune—exploiting Charlotte Linlin's incapacitation to absorb territories, poach subordinates, eliminate isolated Big Mom Pirates forces operating beyond Cake Island's protective range.
The territory of Totto Land proved far too attractive to major powers—multiple resource-rich islands, diverse populations, strategic positioning in New World, extensive economic infrastructure. Every ambitious organization coveted those holdings, waiting for opportunity to seize them.
The moment Big Mom truly falls, the predatory calculation operated, we'll carve up her empire like hungry sharks devouring carcass. Her children cannot possibly defend everything simultaneously once the matriarch's protection disappears.
"Charlotte Linlin possesses genuinely great talent," Garp—the eccentric elderly Marine hero—couldn't help sighing with voice mixing admiration and profound discomfort. "One day, a woman will successfully maintain her position as Emperor of the Sea primarily by giving birth to children. If this prediction were told to people in the past, absolutely nobody would believe it."
The old man found himself once again gaining clear understanding of Charlotte Linlin's extraordinary fertility—not merely the quantity (80+ children and counting), but the quality of offspring she'd strategically produced through calculated partnerships.
If Hikaru and Alluka—the twin siblings shown in future broadcasts—genuinely emerged from the belly of Four Emperors Big Mom, the development would create situation undoubtedly resembling Sword of Damocles hanging perpetually over heads of all hostile forces.
Every enemy organization would constantly worry that the Wish-Wish Fruit's causal-killing ability might one day befall them specifically—Charlotte Hikaru making wish that erased their leadership, or Nanica accepting payment that required their organization's destruction as equivalent exchange.
How do you fight against reality manipulation? the strategic nightmare posed. How do you defend against wishes that kill through causality itself? Traditional combat becomes meaningless when five-year-old can simply wish you dead and pay whatever price Nanica demands.
This former Marine hero was definitely not a saint without personal desires. Garp also possessed his own wishes and profound selfishness—dreams he'd never spoken aloud but cherished privately across decades.
If one day he could make a wish to the user of the Wish-Wish Fruit, Garp knew exactly what he'd request: He wanted his son and grandson to become Marines rather than revolutionary and pirate respectively.
Being a pirate or revolutionary possessed no legitimate future—only death, imprisonment, or perpetual fugitive existence. Both career paths brought tremendous shame to Garp personally, making him the laughingstock of Marine headquarters despite his legendary status.
If three generations of his family all became Marines—if Dragon abandoned Revolutionary Army, if Luffy joined Marine instead of becoming Straw Hat captain—they would represent family of loyal martyrs serving justice across generations. The pride such dynasty would bring...
Garp would willingly pay any price to make that dream reality. His life, his reputation, his legendary status—all expendable if it meant his bloodline serving justice rather than opposing it.
But what would Nanica demand? the uncomfortable question whispered. How many lives to rewrite Dragon's ideology? How many deaths to erase Luffy's dream? Would I truly sacrifice thousands—millions—to force my family into uniforms they'd hate wearing?
The old man didn't have comfortable answers.
"Chrollo Lucilfer represents another extraordinarily tricky opponent," Admiral Sakazuki (Akainu) stated with voice carrying professional assessment rather than emotional reaction. "The Paramecia-type Nusumu Nusumu no Mi (Thief-Thief Fruit) can steal other people's Devil Fruit abilities temporarily. I strongly suspect specific prerequisites must exist for triggering the theft mechanism."
The Admiral's gaze shifted toward the intelligence division officers present in the war room. His expression made his demand absolutely clear without requiring verbalization: He wanted obtaining all available information about Chrollo Lucilfer immediately—complete dossier, psychological profile, combat capabilities, known associates, operational patterns.
Sakazuki needed preparing comprehensive countermeasures against the bug-level Devil Fruit ability this pirate possessed. Fighting opponent who could steal your own powers mid-combat required strategies beyond conventional tactics.
The intelligence officers scrambled to compile reports, understanding that Admiral Akainu's "requests" functioned as absolute orders requiring immediate completion.
The Blackbeard Pirates' second ship captain had already demonstrated ability to steal the Paramecia-type Suke Suke no Mi (Clear-Clear Fruit), rendering himself and Van Augur completely invisible during Cake Island infiltration.
If he could steal Paramecia-type abilities, then logically Zoan and Logia types must pose no problem either—the theft mechanism likely operated universally across all Devil Fruit categories. Sakazuki needed far more detailed intelligence to develop effective countermeasures.
More concerning still: Chrollo Lucilfer could display abilities of two Devil Fruits simultaneously—his native Thief-Thief Fruit plus whatever stolen power he'd most recently activated. And this probably wasn't his actual limit—the capacity might extend to three, four, or more simultaneous abilities.
He could potentially combine various Devil Fruit powers, Sakazuki's tactical mind calculated grimly, and deploy them cooperatively—using stolen abilities in combination that multiplies effectiveness exponentially. If Marine Admirals genuinely encounter such opponent...
Even the Admirals would develop serious headaches attempting to counter combatant who could steal their Logia intangibility, their elemental attacks, their awakened abilities—turning their own powers against them while maintaining his native theft capabilities.
But beyond strategic concerns, Admiral Sakazuki found his thoughts turning toward darker contemplation—personal desire he'd never voiced but maintained with absolute conviction.
Once a pirate, always a pirate, his iron philosophy operated without exceptions. No pirate deserves sympathy. No criminal merits mercy. All must be eliminated permanently for genuine justice to prevail.
Sakazuki—possessing iron-blooded mindset forged through decades witnessing piracy's catastrophic toll on innocent civilians—now wanted making a wish with the Wish-Wish Fruit more desperately than he'd wanted anything in his entire life.
To wipe out all pirates in the world once and for all—every crew, every captain, every subordinate, every pirate sympathizer. Complete eradication through wish-granted causality manipulation.
Even if accomplishing this required paying enormous price—even if equivalent exchange demanded his life, his soul, his very existence as payment—even if he became cursed for eternity as consequence of tampering with causality on such apocalyptic scale—nothing could stop him from pursuing this goal if genuine opportunity emerged.
Every pirate dead, the vision burned with religious intensity. Every criminal eliminated. Every threat to innocent civilians erased permanently. True justice finally achieved across all seas. Whatever the cost, I would pay it gladly.
The genocidal desire consumed him completely.
"Oh my, it turns out that Devil Fruits genuinely possess their own consciousness," Admiral Borsalino (Kizaru) stated in that classic drawling tone that simultaneously communicated information while making listeners want to punch him. "This is really so scary~"
The emotion supposedly conveyed by the word "terrible" was completely absent from his face—expression remaining utterly neutral, almost bored. The delivery sounded deliberately provocative to everyone else rather than genuinely concerned, as though he were mocking their alarm.
Several Marine officers shot irritated glances toward Borsalino, silently communicating variations of If you're not actually scared, stop saying you're scared in that annoying voice.
However, the high-ranking Marine leadership found themselves continuing to make concerning associations following Admiral Kizaru's superficially flippant comment. His words—despite irritating delivery—had triggered cascade of uncomfortable realizations.
There existed many things they genuinely didn't want knowing—truths that, once recognized, couldn't be unlearned or ignored. And certain implications proved extremely terrifying if one thought about them carefully rather than accepting surface explanations.
The Sky Screen wasn't merely hinting through subtle implications or ambiguous phrasing—it was stating explicitly through visual evidence and character designations that the Five Elders who ruled the world might not actually be human beings.
The five elderly men occupying positions above even Fleet Admiral—those who nominally commanded Marine, controlled World Government, dictated global policy—might have been completely possessed by Devil Fruits centuries ago, their original human consciousnesses long since consumed.
The evidence proved undeniable: Saint Jaygarcia Saturn had been marked as "Cow Demon" in the Sky Screen's character identification system. Not "user of mythical beast-type Devil Fruit." Not "Zoan transformation user." Simply "Cow Demon"—suggesting the demonic entity had become his primary identity rather than supernatural ability he wielded.
The five Celestial Dragons who nominally held the highest power in this world were actually five mythical beast demons wearing human faces—ancient entities that had consumed their original hosts entirely, maintaining facades of humanity while pursuing unknowable demonic agendas.
This horrifying conclusion could be reached through minimal logical deduction—anyone willing to connect obvious dots would arrive at same disturbing answer. And many high-ranking Marine officials who recognized the seriousness of this problem couldn't help gasping audibly, cold sweat forming despite the war room's climate control.
They found themselves admiring Vegapunk tremendously for daring to investigate such dangerous truths, for pursuing knowledge despite catastrophic personal risk.
Vegapunk knew tremendous secrets in the future timeline—dangerous knowledge about Devil Fruit consciousness, about the Five Elders' true nature, about the fundamental corruption permeating World Government's highest levels.
He resorted to desperate measures—developing the Anti-Life Equation specifically—in order to completely end this world ruled by demons masquerading as human authorities.
The weapon's horrifying purpose suddenly made terrible sense: After all intelligent creatures had been brainwashed through electromagnetic frequency manipulation, after seven billion minds had been rewritten to follow predetermined templates, after consciousness itself had been restructured around imposed values...
Would this planet finally usher in true peace?
Or would such "peace" represent merely different form of slavery—everyone dancing to single will, all pretense of free thought eliminated, humanity transformed into biological automatons serving whoever controlled the Anti-Life Equation?
Vegapunk's trying to fight demons, the realization struck with profound horror, by creating weapon that could enslave all life on Earth. Cure potentially worse than disease. But what other options exist against enemies who've ruled for eight hundred years, who cannot die, who possess power approaching genuine divinity?
No wonder the New Marine of the future would intentionally break away from World Government control—severing institutional ties, establishing independent command structure, building Rome as sovereign fortress-city rather than subordinate military installation.
The separation wasn't merely willful behavior of rebellious next-generation Admiral selfishly pursuing personal agenda. Rather, Artoria Pendragon was taking the overall strategic situation into account—commanding this New Marine from far more comprehensive perspective that recognized threats beyond mere piracy.
She was preparing to fight demons.
The fighting between pirates and Marine represented, in the general sense, merely human race battling itself—fratricidal conflict that depleted humanity's own foundation through endless casualties on both sides. Humans killing humans while true enemies watched from shadows, perfectly content allowing self-destructive behavior to continue indefinitely.
Was this outcome something the Five Elders orchestrated intentionally? Had demon-possessed authorities been deliberately engineering human conflict for centuries, ensuring their livestock remained too divided and weakened to threaten demonic rule?
The next Fleet Admiral had introduced the concept of adventure groups—legitimizing pirate crews who registered officially, transforming criminals into explorers operating under Marine oversight. From previous perspectives, this seemed merely pragmatic attempt to reduce number of enemies Marine needed fighting simultaneously.
But now the true strategic purpose became clear: Artoria wanted preserving the human race's overall strength—making preparations for future catastrophic conflicts against non-human threats. She was uniting humanity rather than allowing it to self-destruct through factional violence.
The knight girl Artoria Pendragon possesses genuinely far-reaching vision! the collective realization struck Marine leadership simultaneously. She's not thinking about next year or next decade—she's planning for existential war against demons who've ruled for eight centuries!
The concept proved extraordinarily profound—all races uniting together to fight against demonic entities that had infiltrated humanity's leadership positions. Not humans versus fish-men, not Marines versus pirates, not kingdoms versus revolutionaries.
Humans, fish-men, minks, giants, sky islanders, long-arms, long-legs—every sentient species united against common enemy that viewed all biological life as livestock to be controlled.
It turned out that the layout of the twelve Admirals represented far more strategically far-reaching preparation than mere military expansion. Each Admiral recruited from different backgrounds—Admiral Kisame from fish-men, Admiral Kennen from Fur Tribe, potentially others from giant populations, sky island warriors, minority species historically oppressed.
This kind of tremendous talent and strategic vision—this capacity for thinking beyond conventional factional boundaries, for recognizing existential threats transcending normal political divisions—represented exactly the kind of Fleet Admiral that most people genuinely wanted following.
Not someone who merely commanded obedience, but leader who inspired genuine loyalty through demonstrating they understood what truly mattered, who could articulate vision worth fighting and dying for.
She's not building Marine, the profound understanding crystallized. She's building army to fight demons. And she's doing it by uniting every species, every faction, everyone who values their consciousness remaining their own rather than being consumed by fruits or rewritten by equations.
Artoria Pendragon had been dozing off in her seat—the exhausted young woman catching brief rest during portions of Sky Screen broadcast less relevant to her immediate concerns. Her tremendous workload and inadequate sleep schedule made such moments of unconsciousness nearly involuntary.
But soon she felt many burning gazes concentrated on her simultaneously—dozens of eyes staring with unprecedented intensity, examining her with expressions mixing awe, calculation, and desperate hope.
The knight girl thought it must be her turn to speak—some question directed at her specifically, some input requested from the future Fleet Admiral regarding strategic matters. She immediately opened her eyes and observed the situation surrounding her.
She found that the war room appeared no different from usual—everyone was discussing with each other in normal conversational clusters, analyzing Sky Screen revelations through their particular expertise areas. No formal presentations occurring, no questions awaiting her response.
But they kept glancing toward the girl repeatedly—quick looks, sustained stares, whispered conversations while gesturing in her direction. The sensation of being noticed by so many people simultaneously made her feel genuinely uncomfortable, skin crawling with self-conscious awareness.
What did I miss? Artoria's confused thoughts wondered. Why is everyone looking at me like that? Did the broadcast show something about me personally? Or did they reach some conclusion about my future intentions that I'm not aware of yet?
The attention felt simultaneously gratifying and oppressive—validation mixing with pressure, recognition creating new expectations she'd need meeting.
As for the news regarding the attack on Nine Snake Island—Blackbeard Teach's presence there shown briefly in broadcast previews—different opinions circulated throughout Marine headquarters. Some advocated immediate intervention to prevent whatever catastrophe the Sky Screen had foreshadowed. Others argued maintaining current observation protocols without premature action.
But the senior Marine officials including Fleet Admiral Sengoku found themselves tremendously looking forward to witnessing exactly what kind of power Blackbeard would demonstrate in the timeline five years hence.
Their desire to eliminate Marshall D. Teach grew with each passing day—every revelation about his future capabilities, every glimpse of his strategic operations, every demonstration of his multiple Devil Fruit wielding intensified the conviction that this man represented existential threat requiring permanent neutralization.
He's too dangerous, the collective assessment concluded. Growing stronger daily. Accumulating powers that should be impossible. Recruiting powerful subordinates. Operating with strategic sophistication suggesting genuine intelligence beneath brutish appearance. Must be eliminated before reaching full potential.
Boa Hancock's sixth sense had proven accurate—her intuitive certainty that major events would definitely occur involving herself and Nine Snake Island in the future. The premonition that had haunted her for weeks now found validation through Sky Screen's preview.
But the Empress had not expected that Blackbeard would be involved specifically—that Marshall D. Teach would appear on Amazon Lily for purposes still unclear. Even more disturbing, it seemed likely that certain Marine Admiral might somehow participate in whatever crisis unfolded.
"Teach, don't let me find you at sea," Boa Hancock declared with voice absolutely dripping with murderous intent, her beautiful face twisted into expression of pure hatred. "Or I'll chop you into pieces and feed you to the dogs—slowly, ensuring you remain conscious throughout the process."
The only female among the Seven Warlords of the Sea had fallen into state of apocalyptic rage—the kind of fury that transcended rational calculation, that promised violence regardless of strategic consequences.
So never provoke a woman carelessly, the ancient wisdom operated, because women possess narrow-minded tendencies and will hold grudges for entire lifetimes. What men forget within days, women remember for decades, nursing resentment until opportunity for revenge emerges.
The Conqueror's Haki emanating unconsciously from Boa Hancock made Jinbe standing beside her break into cold sweat despite his tremendous combat experience. The Sea Knight possessed zero romantic interest in human women—fish-men generally didn't—but he remained genuinely afraid of being petrified through proximity to enraged Empress.
Everyone present had heard extensive accounts of Boa Hancock's terrifying reputation—the Pirate Empress who turned enemies to stone casually, whose beauty served as weapon more devastating than conventional combat, whose pride tolerated no insults.
Better maintain safe distance, Jinbe's survival instincts concluded. Angry Hancock more dangerous than most Admirals. At least Admirals kill you quickly.
However, some members of the Seven Warlords of the Sea assembled in this chamber felt seriously offended by emerging pattern they couldn't help noticing.
Everything related to the Seven Warlords system shown in Sky Screen broadcasts represented series of tragic passion stories—humiliation, betrayal, violation, exploitation recurring across different Warlords with disturbing consistency.
First it was Donquixote Doflamingo—his organization infiltrated, his subordinates' loyalty tested, his criminal empire's foundations exposed to global scrutiny.
Then Jinbe—captured by Admiral Kisame, imprisoned in Still Water Prison, facing potential execution or permanent detention.
Now Boa Hancock—whatever catastrophe awaited her on Nine Snake Island, whatever involvement Blackbeard possessed in her future crisis.
The fate of Bartholomew Kuma proved even more catastrophic—transformed into unconscious cyborg through Pacifist program, his consciousness erased, his body converted into programmable weapon serving the very World Government he'd opposed, his daughter Bonnie forced watching him become living corpse.
The question haunted remaining Warlords with increasing dread: Would it be Crocodile's turn next? Or Dracule Mihawk's?
Are we all doomed? the paranoid calculation operated. Is the Seven Warlords system merely delayed execution—temporary reprieve before World Government finds excuse to eliminate us, transform us into weapons, steal our abilities for Seraph program? Should we defect preemptively before our individual tragedies manifest?
The alliance built on mutual convenience and shared threats suddenly seemed far more fragile than previously assumed.
Perhaps the Sky Screen's greatest service, several Warlords' thoughts concluded independently, is warning us that loyalty to World Government guarantees only betrayal, exploitation, and eventual destruction. Better to recognize that truth now than learn it too late to escape.
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