Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral Office.
Kong was holding a steaming cup of coffee, enjoying a rare moment of peace with both Sengoku and Garp absent.
However, this tranquility was shattered by an abrupt "Buru buru" sound.
Kong put down his coffee cup, his expression turning serious as he answered the call.
The next second.
"Waaah—!!!!"
An earth-shattering wail nearly blew the roof off the office.
Kong's ears were ringing, and he almost lost his grip on the coffee cup in his hand.
The Den Den Mushi perfectly mimicked Kane's face, with two streams of tears flowing freely.
"Fleet Admiral... my dear Fleet Admiral..."
Kane's voice was hoarse, every word steeped in heart-wrenching anguish.
"G-5... our G-5 Base..."
"It... it's gone—!!!"
"What?!"
Kong shot up from his seat, his massive frame knocking over the chair, but he paid it no mind.
"Kane?! What happened to the G-5 Base?!"
"It... it was dismantled! Along with the base's twelve warships, they're all gone!" Kane's crying grew louder, enough to make any listener's heart ache and shed a tear.
The voice on the other end of the Den Den Mushi suddenly jumped an octave, filled with shock and rage. "Dismantled?! Who did it?! Which bastard pirate in the New World has such guts?! Roger? Or Whitebeard?!"
Kong's heart leaped into his throat.
If those two monsters had made a move, Kane and the others, despite their boundless potential, were still too young. The odds would have been stacked against them!
"It was the Red Count! That madman, Baron Redfield!"
Kane's voice trembled, thick with lingering fear and terror. "He launched a surprise attack on the base! That monster is too terrifying! The four of us... the four of us fought with our lives on the line just to barely escape with our lives!"
Standing to the side, the Red Count's mouth had already begun to twitch uncontrollably.
He looked at the Marine Base Commander before him, who one second was boasting about robbing the entire world and the next was crying like a child to a Den Den Mushi, and felt his entire worldview shatter.
Who attacked whom?
Who was it that chased me for two days and one night, trying to cut me down?!
On the other end of the line, Kong's heart sank the moment he heard the name "Red Count."
That lone wolf monster who could stand on equal footing with Roger and Whitebeard all by himself?
Veins bulged on Kong's hand as he gripped the receiver.
"What are the casualties?! Are the four of you alright? That's the Red Count, it's a miracle you even survived!" Kong's tone was filled with anxiety.
A base could be rebuilt, and sunken warships could be replaced.
But if those four monster seedlings were lost to a legendary pirate of that caliber, it would be the most devastating blow to the Navy's future!
"We are gravely injured... cough cough... and the base is gone..."
"But! Fleet Admiral!"
Kane's tone shifted, becoming tragic and impassioned. "For Justice! We did not retreat! After paying a terrible price, we successfully repelled that monster! We have preserved the dignity of the Navy!"
"Repelled him?"
Kong was completely stunned. He even suspected he had misheard.
The four of you... made the Red Count... run away?
The line went quiet for a few seconds, then erupted with heavy, relieved panting.
"Good! Good! Good!"
Kong said "good" three times in a row, his tone filled with the relief of having survived a disaster and heartfelt gratification.
"As expected of the future hope of the Navy! As long as you're all safe! As long as you're all alright, nothing else matters!"
Hearing this, Kane's crying came to an abrupt halt.
This was the sentence he had been waiting for.
"But Fleet Admiral..."
Kane cut off Kong's praise, his voice instantly turning sorrowful and miserable. "We're alive... but we're on the verge of death..."
"Sakazuki's arm was broken... Borsalino's leg is fractured... and that big oaf Kuzan is still unconscious..."
Nearby, Sakazuki watched expressionlessly as Borsalino leisurely trimmed his nails and Kuzan stood there yawning.
The three of them fell into a strange silence.
"Right now... we're just standing on a piece of floating ice..." Kane continued to play the victim, gesturing to Gion with his hand.
Gion's pretty face flushed crimson, so ashamed she wanted to find a hole to crawl into, but she still cooperated perfectly, letting out a few trembling calls.
"So cold... Big Brother Kane... I'm so hungry... I want to go home..."
These few whimpering female cries were the last straw that broke Kong's psychological defenses.
Kong's heart shattered in an instant.
How tragic!
These kids fought a life-or-death battle against a legendary pirate in the New World for the sake of Justice, and now they couldn't even get a hot meal, left to wait for death in a frozen wasteland?
How noble! How heroic!
"Say no more! Kane!" Kong's eyes grew moist. He waved his hand and roared with magnanimity, "Headquarters will never mistreat any of its heroes! Tell me, what support do you need? As long as Headquarters has it, I'll send it to you immediately!"
On the ice field.
The pained expression on Kane's face vanished in an instant.
He raised an eyebrow at the dumbfounded Red Count, the corner of his mouth curling into the smirk of a triumphant swindler.
Then, he spoke into the Den Den Mushi in an extremely sincere and troubled tone:
"Fleet Admiral, supplies and such are secondary. The main problem is... the foundation of the original G-5 site has been completely destroyed. It can't be rebuilt."
"I've 'discussed' it with Sakazuki and the others." Kane glanced at Sakazuki, whose fists were already clenched, his eyes full of threat. "We've decided to establish the new G-5 Branch on an uninhabited, deserted island a hundred nautical miles deeper into the New World from the original site."
"A deserted island?" Kong was taken aback for a moment. "Which island?"
"Punk Hazard."
Kane uttered the name, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.
"It has no magnetic field, its location is concealed, and it offers better strategic depth. It's more suitable as our Navy's bridgehead in the New World!"
Kong pondered for a moment, then nodded. "Since this is the result of your careful consideration, I approve. It's a deserted island anyway, so it doesn't involve any territorial disputes with Affiliated Countries."
"But, Fleet Admiral..."
The time had come to reveal his true intentions.
Kane took a deep breath, his tone becoming somewhat sheepish and embarrassed.
"Building a base from scratch on a deserted island, one that can withstand monsters of the Red Count's level... the cost... might be just a tiny, tiny bit high."
"A tiny bit high?" Kong grew wary. "How much do you need?"
"As you know, we need to build walls that can withstand a full-power attack from the Red Count, purchase the most advanced surveillance equipment, and build warm dormitories for the soldiers... Oh, right, we also need to build a deep-water port to facilitate support from Headquarters at any time..."
Kane counted on his fingers, listing the items one by one, before tentatively stating the figure.
"One hundred billion Berries... do you think that's enough?"
"Pfft—!!!"
Kong, who had just picked up his coffee to calm his nerves, spat it all out, splashing it all over the important documents on his desk.
On the face mimicked by the Den Den Mushi, his eyes were wider than saucers, and his mouth hung open, unable to close for a long time.
Kong's roar pierced through the office, making the glass of the entire building hum.
"One hundred billion?! Why don't you just go rob someone?! Do you have any idea what the total annual military budget for Marine Headquarters is?! Are you trying to build the G-5 Branch, or are you planning to build another Pangaea Castle next to Mary Geoise?!"
"But Fleet Admiral, this is for the long-term development of Justice!" Kane's tone was filled with grievance.
"You son of a bitch!" Kong completely lost his composure, pointing at the Den Den Mushi and cursing, "I think you've gone crazy for money! Ten billion at most! Not a single Berry more!"
"Ten billion? Fleet Admiral, ten billion isn't even enough to lay the foundation! Are you telling my soldiers to live in tents?" Kane immediately started playing the pity card. "At that rate, forget pirates, a strong gust of wind in the New World will blow our new base away!"
"Fifty billion! That's the bottom line!"
"Eighty billion! No less, for the honor of Justice!"
"Kane, you bastard! Are you haggling with me?!"
"I'm going to file a complaint! I'm going to the Five Elders! I'm going to tell the whole world that the Marine Hero sheds blood only to be met with tears!"
"You dare! One hundred billion! One more word of nonsense and you won't get a single cent!"
"Deal! Thank you, Fleet Admiral! The Fleet Admiral is generous! May the Fleet Admiral enjoy good health!"
Kane spoke with astonishing speed, as if afraid Kong would go back on his word, and shouted directly into the Den Den Mushi.
"Also, besides the money, we want independent procurement rights for supplies, authority over personnel appointments, and... absolute jurisdiction over the waters of Punk Hazard! Since you didn't give us enough money, you can at least give us some policy support, right?"
On the other end of the line, Kong was already so angry he was suffering from a lack of oxygen to his brain. He just wanted to hang up on this bastard as quickly as possible.
"Fine, fine, fine! It's all yours! As long as you don't tear a hole in the sky, you can do whatever you want on that damn island! Just guard the gate to the New World for me!"
Click.
The call was brutally disconnected.
Kane let out a long sigh of relief, casually tossing the Den Den Mushi to the petrified Gion, a triumphant smile gracing his face.
"Done."
He turned around to face the group of "spectators" behind him, each with a different expression.
"One hundred billion in official funding, plus a series of policy supports."
Kane snapped his fingers, pointing towards the empty sea ahead as if a majestic fortress already stood there.
"Add to that the fifty billion in 'private funds' we have on hand, and the 'donations from kind-hearted individuals from all walks of life' that will soon be pouring in."
His gaze swept over the Red Count, seemingly without focus.
"It's enough."
"We will build, on Punk Hazard, a true fortress of 'Justice' that even the World Government wouldn't dare to interfere with lightly."
[Ding! Detected that the host has used false information to maliciously extort the supreme commander of the Navy!]
[Judgment: Extremely shameless! Insubordinate! The art of deception has been pushed to its absolute limit!]
[Violation Value Acquired: 50,000 points!]
[Current Violation Value Balance: 551,800!]
Listening to the wonderful notification from the system, Kane was in high spirits.
"Borsalino, stop trimming your nails."
"Kuzan, freeze the sea surface a bit more solidly. We're about to start moving."
"Sakazuki, don't look so grim. A portion of this money is your 'severed arm fee'."
Kane laughed heartily and took the first step, walking towards the unknown future.
The Red Count watched that retreating back. Although his injuries were severe and his body was weak, for the first time, a light called "anticipation" flickered in his eyes.
This Marine...
Perhaps he could really bring some unexpected "surprises" to this stagnant sea.
"What an... interesting bastard."
Leaning on his broken umbrella handle, the Red Count staggered to his feet and followed.