"So that's how it is…"
After hearing Red's speculation, Nami and the others did not look especially shocked.
For people like them, who had already seen more than enough of the world's grandest scenes, there were very few things left that could truly surprise them.
The next moment, Nami set down the pencil in her hand and let out a silent sigh.
"So in that case, until we find the fourth Poneglyph, we won't be able to find the final island."
"Well, it's the dreamland pursued by pirates all over the world. If it were that easy to find, wouldn't that make it boring instead?"
Red did not think there was anything bad about the situation.
The more complicated the state of the pirate world was, the more resources they would be able to accumulate in the future when they charged into the stars.
"All right, don't waste any more energy worrying about this. As long as our strength rises, everything will naturally fall into place."
"If we really can't find the fourth Poneglyph, then we'll just beat every power in the world into submission."
"When that time comes, if we say Luffy is the Pirate King, let's see who dares object!?"
"Heh~ Your method really is simple and violent." Nami snorted lightly.
Having failed in her rare attempt to make full use of her role as navigator, she could only put away the charts.
"Since it's a rare break, stop thinking about work."
"Sanji just developed a brand-new juice. Give it a try~"
With a thought, Red teleported a freshly made bottle of drink from the banquet table not far away and handed it to Nami.
Ordinarily, this kind of serving work should have been Sanji's responsibility, but Luffy and the others were eating too quickly. Even with his Fruit ability activated and himself spinning like a madman in the kitchen, Sanji could only barely keep things in balance.
Two days later.
The Going Merry, moving at full speed, returned once more to the Pokémon Sea.
And not long after Red and the others had just landed, an unexpected call suddenly came into the captain's cabin aboard the ship.
…
…
"What?! The World Government made a move against the Whitebeard Pirates!?"
Called over by Luffy, Red stood behind the Straw Hats, looking in surprise at the flustered Den Den Mushi.
Stepping forward, Red asked into the receiver in Luffy's hand:
"Don't panic, Ace~"
"Tell us exactly what happened first!?"
"Yeah, Ace!"
Luffy also spoke anxiously:
"Hurry up and tell us what's going on! How are things on your side? Are you in danger!?"
Having managed to save Ace from his destined fate, Luffy now feared more than anything that Ace would once again fall onto the path of destiny and head toward the hopeless end Red had once told him about.
"Don't worry."
As if he could sense Luffy's concern, Ace quickly replied:
"There shouldn't be too much danger on my end."
"The World Government's main targets are the territories and countries under our protection."
"So far, three islands have already been taken from us by the World Government."
"But the strange thing is, they only stripped those islands of all their resources. They didn't actually occupy them."
"Heh~ At this point, it's hard to tell who the real pirates are anymore!"
After hearing Ace's explanation, Zoro immediately let out a scornful laugh.
But Red and the others frowned in response.
"That's strange. Why haven't I heard the Marines mention anything about this at all?"
"Could it be that the World Government has already discovered something unusual about the Marines and has started guarding against them!?"
The thought flashed through Red's mind, and he immediately said into the receiver:
"Tell us the details, Ace."
"Mm."
Ace paused briefly on the other side of the Den Den Mushi, then slowly began recounting what the Whitebeard Pirates had experienced over the recent period.
"This all started half a month ago."
"At that time, we suddenly received news that a group of mysterious people had appeared on Sphinx, Pops's hometown. They were rampaging across the island and slaughtered many of the residents."
"When Pops got the news, he flew into a rage and immediately led us back to his homeland to see what had happened."
"And right at that moment, the Five Elders suddenly descended on one of the islands under our command and looted every last bit of its resources."
"What's even stranger is that according to the eyewitnesses there, the Five Elders seemed to be specifically gathering Devil Fruit users."
"They beat every ability user into a half-dead state, then took them prisoner."
"And just like that, while the Whitebeard Pirates were completely caught off guard, they attacked three islands in succession."
"But when Pops rode the Moby Dick back to the outer seas, the World Government's forces vanished without a trace."
"And just a quarter of an hour ago, Pops suddenly received word again that the World Government's people had gone back to Sphinx and were wreaking havoc there without restraint."
"So… the Whitebeard Pirates have been completely pinned down by the World Government, haven't they!?"
"…Yeah."
Even though he hated to admit it, Ace knew very well that compared to the Straw Hat Pirates, who had beaten the World Government into not daring to act recklessly, Whitebeard's overall combat strength was still far too lacking.
Even though, with Red's help, quite a few members of the Whitebeard Pirates had already loaded Pokémon templates, at present the only ones with strength on the level of an Emperor's right-hand man were still just him, Marco, and Jozu.
In the entire crew, the only one capable of standing against the Five Elders was Whitebeard himself.
That was also the key reason they could not split up and deal with both fronts at the same time.
And so, driven into a corner, Ace had no choice but to call Luffy for reinforcements.
Otherwise, the Whitebeard Pirates would absolutely be toyed to death by the World Government's tactics.
"We understand now~"
After hearing Ace's explanation, Red immediately nodded with a serious expression.
Beside him, Luffy quickly asked:
"What do we do, Red!?"
"Can we go help Ace and the others?!"
"We absolutely have to help!" Red nodded as he spoke. "But right now, we still don't know what the World Government's true objective is…"
"And with the Five Elders' ability to summon the rest of their group as long as just one of them is in position, we're at far too great a disadvantage in mobility."
"And besides…"
At this point, a sharp gleam suddenly flashed through Red's eyes.
"Playing defense and counterattacking is way too passive!"
"That's not our style at all!"
"Ace, you said the World Government's people are currently at Sphinx, right!?"
"Yeah." The Den Den Mushi opened its mouth, transmitting Ace's voice. "But I'm guessing it'll be the same as last time. Once they notice the Moby Dick moving, they'll immediately retreat and then use the chance to plunder other islands in Whitebeard's sea."
"Mm, I think so too." Red nodded. "The World Government calculated this perfectly. That's why they keep harassing you like this."
"In that case, Ace, tell your old man to just keep following the script the World Government laid out!"
"Though doing this may involve some sacrifice, if we want to beat the World Government into submission in one go—make them fear us for real—then we have to use extraordinary measures!"
"..."
Ace on the other end fell silent for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said:
"Then say it, Red. How do we cooperate with you!?"
"No need to cooperate!"
Red grinned.
"It's not every day the World Government hands us such a perfect opportunity. So of course, what we need to do is seize it tightly!"
"Don't worry, Ace."
"I guarantee that after this, the World Government will never dare act recklessly against you again."
"All right! Then we'll wait for your good news on our side!"
A decisive light flashed in Ace's eyes, and he nodded firmly.
After that, Luffy exchanged a few more words with his brother before the call for help came to an end.
The next second, all of the Straw Hats' gazes focused directly on Red.
Luffy immediately asked:
"Red, how are we going to help Ace and the others?"
"Don't rush."
Red waved a hand with a smile and said slowly:
"Do you remember what we did when we first entered the New World?"
"When we first entered the New World?" Luffy looked puzzled.
But Sanji and the others beside him instantly lit up in realization.
"You mean… when we attacked the Holy Land, Mary Geoise!?"
"That's right! If the Five Elders have all gone to attack Whitebeard's sea, then that means the Holy Land, Mary Geoise will be left unguarded!"
"When that time comes, if we strike Mary Geoise directly, we'll definitely deal an unimaginably heavy blow to the World Government and the Celestial Dragons!"
"Exactly!"
The corner of Red's mouth lifted, revealing a provocative smile.
"Who said the World Government is the only one allowed to have the initiative!?"
"What happened last time, when the Five Elders launched a surprise attack on the Pokémon Sea, still hasn't been properly settled."
"This is the perfect opportunity to announce to the world that the Straw Hat Pirates are not to be messed with!"
"Nami, Robin, notify all members under the Straw Hat Grand Fleet whose strength is above Level 50. Tell them to report to Whole Cake Island immediately!"
"This time, we're going to play big with the World Government!"
"Understood!"
Nami and Robin accepted the order at once and used their Personal Terminals to send instructions to everyone in the database.
One day later, the Going Merry, carrying several hundred people, slowly rose from Whole Cake Island.
On the deck of the ship, a crowd of pirates in all kinds of outfits had their eyes shining, and quite a few of them were trembling with excitement.
Because they had replenished their manpower so heavily back on Festival Island, and because Red had not set the threshold particularly high, many pirates who had only recently joined the Straw Hat Pirates were also given the chance to take part in this surprise assault on Mary Geoise.
Of course, despite the large number of people, that was only because the Straw Hat Pirates had too many capable subordinates.
Out on the wider seas, anyone with strength above Level 50 would at the very least be worth over a hundred million in bounty terms.
At this moment, on the deck of the Going Merry:
Buggy the Clown, as the first one to join the Straw Hat Grand Fleet, naturally took it upon himself to act as the overall commander of this makeshift force.
Red was more than happy to let him do it.
After all, he had long since witnessed Buggy's bizarre charisma and brainwashing ability in the anime.
Quite a few people in this force had not joined the Straw Hat Grand Fleet for long and still lacked a certain sense of belonging.
Letting Buggy properly indoctrinate them a bit was a good thing.
At this moment, Buggy was holding a shell-like item that could amplify sound, directing all the pirates into lines and orderly formation.
"Ahem~!"
"Listen up, everyone!"
"Lord Red already explained the details of this operation to you just now!"
"I don't think I need to overemphasize just how important this mission is."
"I only want to say one thing…"
"This operation is enough to go down in history!"
"So I do not want to see anyone dragging this mission down!"
"No matter what pirate crew you used to captain, no matter what important figure you may once have been in some organization, once you're on this ship, you only have one identity…"
"That is to be the sharpest blade and the sturdiest shield in the hands of the Straw Hat Pirates!"
"Once we arrive at Mary Geoise, Lord Red will establish a mental network for us to assist our actions."
"At that time, Lord Red will send me information on the situation in Mary Geoise, and I will act as supreme commander, taking full charge of your action plans."
"Remember this!"
"Lord Red can see every move you make through the mental network!"
"The Straw Hat Pirates will not mistreat a single person here. So even though the Holy Land of the Celestial Dragons will no doubt contain mountains of gold, silver, and treasure, I do not want to see any idiot disobeying orders and losing all sense the moment they spot valuables. And even less do I want to see anyone embezzling or stuffing their own pockets!"
"You all need to think this through clearly. This may very well be the only chance in your entire lives!"
"Whether you open a brand-new page in your family lineage, or break halfway up the mountain because of your own greed—that should be something you understand better than I do!"
Whoooosh—!!!
A hurricane suddenly blew in through the clouds, and its howling roar sounded like battle drums, stirring the blood.
The clouds rolled behind Buggy like dragons roaring across the heavens.
Behind him, the crimson cloak on his back snapped violently in the gale, making his presence feel strangely grave and imposing.
At that moment, it was as though the entire world had fallen silent, as if even the heavens themselves were waiting for Buggy's speech.
Then Buggy slowly extended the arm hidden in his fist and swung it fiercely toward the sky.
"So…"
"Men!!! Together with me, together with the Straw Hat Pirates…"
"CRUSH THE CELESTIAL DRAGONS!!!!"
Boom—!!!
That shout, filled with power and resolve, exploded in everyone's ears like thunder.
On the deck, although a small number of people still remained unmoved by Buggy's speech, far more had excitement blazing in their eyes. Copying Buggy's motion, they raised their arms and swung them hard toward the sky!
"Crush the Celestial Dragons!!!"
"Crush the Celestial Dragons!!!!"
"Crush the Celestial Dragons!!!!!!!!"
Each cry rose higher than the last, each one more fervent than the one before.
Buggy's words were like a blazing flame that instantly lit the fuse in their hearts…
And then, following the unwavering determination in Buggy's gaze, it exploded with a roar!
For a time, it felt as though the very sky had been shattered by the aura gathering aboard the Going Merry. The clouds churned and parted, opening a clear stretch of heaven in the direction of the ship's advance.
At the doorway leading into the cabin, Red had just stepped out in time to witness the scene. He froze on the spot and muttered softly:
"Did this guy really eat the Split-Split Fruit!?"
"With this kind of effect, it feels even stronger than a Cheer-Cheer Fruit would be, doesn't it?!"