Chapter 200: The Disbanded Organization, the Returnee
"Captain Roger? You know where it is? Then why didn't we head there first?"
Because Inuarashi and Nekomamushi weren't on the ship, searching for the Road Poneglyph on Zunesha's back had cost them a massive amount of time. For a while, they had even wandered the sea like headless flies.
The difficulty lay not just in locating the giant elephant; it was the fact that they couldn't even be completely certain a Road Poneglyph was actually on its back.
"I'm not entirely certain myself; I can only say I'm about eighty or ninety percent sure. Destination: Fish-Man Island! Everyone, we're setting sail once again!"
Having decided on their course, the Roger Pirates set sail anew, embarking on a fresh journey along the Grand Line they had traversed who knows how many times.
Meanwhile, on Fish-Man Island, a gathering of veteran officers was taking place.
The former members of the Fish-Man Pirates had all assembled. Even the office at the Sabaody Archipelago had hung up a "Closed for Business" sign.
However, this wasn't due to any absolute maritime blockade, but rather because the executives simply couldn't spare the time to garrison the outpost.
Although the office could still function with ordinary personnel managing it, the volatile environment of the Sabaody Archipelago meant that without an executive holding down the fort, it simply wasn't safe enough.
Over in the New World, exactly as Ochoku and Nereus had anticipated, a sort of purge was underway. Coupled with the annihilation of those reckless fools and Nereus's pre-existing reputation, that half of the New World's sea routes remained exceptionally peaceful for the time being.
Conversely, among the pirates arriving from the first half of the Grand Line, there was no shortage of overly ambitious hotheads. Having a major executive keep an eye on them was the only way to feel reassured.
Regardless, pausing operations for a few hours wouldn't affect Fish-Man Island.
"Wobbegong, welcome home!"
"Your kid is already this big, and you didn't even tell us? You really know how to keep a secret, kid!"
"They look exactly the same! Pushi~ pushishishi, how rare."
Wobbegong's ordinary height made him look like a little shrimp in front of massive brutes like Sebastian. They couldn't even casually slap him on the shoulder.
Inherently a scientific researcher, Wobbegong possessed average combat prowess. If they weren't careful, they might actually swat him flat onto the floor.
However, their attention was far more focused on the tiny figure standing next to Wobbegong. Wobbegong had black and white stripes, whereas this little guy was blue-purple.
"My son, Zeo. Don't be shy, come meet your uncles. We'll be living here from now on."
Zeo, son of Wobbegong, currently five years old. Under normal circumstances, a father and son looking alike is perfectly standard.
But for Fish-Men and Merfolk, while facial shapes and features might be similar, the randomness of fish genetics meant that parents, children, and siblings could look wildly different from one another.
A father and son being the exact same species of fish and looking like they were carved from the same mold, like Wobbegong and Zeo, was exceptionally rare.
"Getting married and having a kid... you're certainly keeping up with Big Bro's pace. Don't tell me you developed some drug that controls genetics and determines the appearance of the next generation?"
Babel stared at Wobbegong with a curious gaze, seemingly wondering if there was any connection between genetic serums and his own need for hair growth potions.
"How is that possible?! That's that madman Judge's idea; he genuinely plans to use his own children as test subjects... My situation is just pure luck. However, Zeo does have a talent for scientific research; his grasp of pharmacology is quite impressive."
"Nobody asked you about that!"
"Having talent is a good thing. Today's Fish-Man Island isn't the same as it was over a decade ago. Even if MADS has disbanded, we have an adequate platform here. The equipment and personnel are mostly ready; you're just the right man to head the project."
While Wobbegong was showing off his child's talent, Nereus also arrived at the welcome party and noticed Wobbegong's son.
Back then, Nereus brought Wobbegong out to sea simply because he was one of the individuals from the Fish-Man District willing to follow him. It wasn't until he saw the son Wobbegong mentioned that Nereus recalled a few details.
Zeo. In the original timeline, he was a member of the New Fish-Man Pirates. Among that group of arrogant, ignorant youths, Zeo was considered the only one with any actual capability.
The Energy Steroid (E.S.) was a drug mass-produced specifically through Zeo's research.
"Big Bro!"
"We agreed I'd send someone to pick you up. Why did you come back on your own?"
"I'm not a child anymore; this little distance is no problem for me. Zeo! Come say hello! Don't just hide there!"
"I... I'm not hiding. I just looked up at people for too long, and my neck is a bit sore..." Zeo muttered, already displaying his stubborn habit of making excuses to save face.
After exchanging a few simple pleasantries, Wobbegong brought up the matter regarding MADS.
"Back then, Vegapunk discovered the Lineage Factor and chose to make it public to the world. Since then, we've been continuously researching related subjects.
"But last year, just a few months ago, the World Government suddenly classified this project as extremely dangerous research and subsequently bought out MADS entirely.
"It happened very suddenly. If you hadn't constantly reminded me to keep extra backup copies of our data, Big Bro, it really would have been hard to smuggle it all out."
At this point, Wobbegong paused and spoke about the whereabouts of the other core members of MADS.
"Saen... no, he goes by Queen now. He quit MADS a few years ago and joined Kaido's Beasts Pirates last year. You should be aware of this, Big Bro.
"I heard that guy has now become Kaido's most capable executive. It seems Kaido hasn't managed to recruit any useful subordinates over these past few years.
"Judge returned to the North Blue, planning to revive the glory of the Germa Kingdom. Before leaving, he left me his contact info, hoping to reach some agreements with us after establishing his nation.
"The vast majority of the personnel, along with Vegapunk and Caesar Clown, were absorbed by the World Government."
The primary research achievements of MADS all came from Vegapunk. The others made some contributions, but the rest of the researchers largely acted as assistants.
However, being Vegapunk's assistant required genuine skill. Since this team had built up a lot of synergy over time, they were simply absorbed together.
Vegapunk needed the funding and resources provided by the World Government. His research projects were money-burning machines, and practically only the World Government could afford to supply all his research endeavors.
However, unlike Caesar Clown, who just wanted to blow massive amounts of funds on wine and women, Vegapunk had his own ambitions.
Wobbegong had openly shared all of this in front of everyone. But at the very end, he approached Nereus and whispered:
"Big Bro, there's one more thing. Back then, it seems Bakkin and Vegapunk reached some sort of agreement. Vegapunk used Bakkin to create a clone named Stussy.
"A few months ago, after the World Government classified MADS as a dangerous organization, she was taken in by Cipher Pol under the guise of an orphan, following Vegapunk's orders.
"If nothing unexpected happens, she will become a sleeper agent embedded in the intelligence agency by Vegapunk."
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