At the G-2 Branch conference room.
Vice Admiral Gumir sat at the head of the table, flanked by Rear Admirals Ivan and Hina, with other branch officers seated further away.
Of course, Tashigi and Nami were also present.
Vice Admiral Gumir pointed at the nautical chart on the wall, his finger resting heavily on the waters near Alabasta:
"Everyone, I've gathered you here to deploy this cross-sea Celestial Gold escort mission.
What we're transporting this time is the quarterly Celestial Gold submitted by five nations in the first half of the Grand Line—a top-secret mission for the Navy.
Of course, we are only responsible for the area near the Kingdom of Alabasta, focusing on maintaining stability in the surrounding region. The main escort force for the Celestial Gold will be led by a Vice Admiral from headquarters.
Next, I ask for your utmost effort to thoroughly clear out pirates in the nearby waters!"
"Yes!"
After the meeting ended, only Ivan, Hina, and Vice Admiral Gumir remained in the conference room.
Ivan noticed that even after the meeting, Vice Admiral Gumir's expression remained stern, with no sign of relaxation.
Curious, he asked, "Vice Admiral Gumir, is our mission that difficult? Why are you so tense?"
Gumir shifted his gaze from the map to Ivan. "No, not at all. In fact, our task is much easier than that of the Vice Admiral escorting the Celestial Gold."
"But you seem very anxious. Is there something worrying you?"
"Ah..." Gumir sighed, deciding to share his concerns with his outstanding junior. "The Celestial Gold always passes through our G-2 Branch's jurisdiction. I'm worried someone might try to hijack it."
"Who would dare be so bold?" Hina asked, looking surprised.
"Who else but those rats hiding in the shadows—the damn Revolutionary Army. They're short on funds and have a history of hijacking Celestial Gold multiple times, with several incidents occurring in the waters under G-2 Branch's responsibility." At this, Gumir grew even more worried.
If the Celestial Gold were hijacked in G-2 Branch waters, he, as the highest-ranking officer, would undoubtedly face punishment from the Fleet Admiral and even be held accountable by the World Government.
Hina pressed further, "Vice Admiral Gumir, exactly how much Berries is the Celestial Gold worth, that the Revolutionary Army would take such great risks to hijack it?"
Vice Admiral Gumir replied, "In Berries alone, it's over ten billion. More importantly, the Celestial Gold also includes some Devil Fruits and Seastone—all strategic resources."
Ivan hadn't paid much attention to the Celestial Gold initially, as he was focused on finding ways to increase his fame and boost Homelander's Approval Rating.
But upon hearing the term "Devil Fruit," his eyes lit up imperceptibly.
It seemed he might not be entirely opposed to attempting a hijacking of the Celestial Gold.
Just as oil attracts mold, Devil Fruits attract the Shadow Garden!
...
In the first half of the Grand Line, Water 7.
As a world-famous floating city and the most advanced shipbuilding hub, Water 7 always attracts people from all over the world.
Some were traveling, some sightseeing, but most were pirates and merchants from various places, all wanting to commission a new ship to withstand the terrifying natural disasters of the Grand Line.
Ivan had his Wood Clone patrol in his stead while his true self came to Water 7. Of course, it wasn't for a new ship—Wood Release made him a world-class shipwright, so he had no need for others to build one for him.
His main purpose for coming now was for a special Devil Fruit Ability User: Bluno, who had eaten the Paramecia-type Door-Door Fruit!
When Ivan learned that killing an ability user could also earn him lottery draws, he set his sights on this man. After all, if he could draw the Door-Door Fruit through the lottery, he would likely gain spatial abilities.
Such an ability was simply perfect for Ivan, who needed to travel all over the world to stir up trouble!
Ivan stood before a tavern, glancing at the shop sign, which bore the letters "Buffalo Bar."
Without hesitation, he pushed open the double doors and stepped inside.
As he entered, the noisy chatter paused briefly. Everyone stared at Ivan, especially at the mask on his face. Just as Ivan thought these people would flee in terror, he suddenly heard someone burst into laughter:
"Bwahahaha, another guy trying to imitate Shadow Garden! What, are you playing the Tanuki this time?"
Ivan was taken aback, unsure what the man meant.
But when he scanned the room, he was astonished to find that nearly one-fifth of the people in the tavern were wearing animal masks.
Among them, the majority wore fox masks, a smaller portion wore tanuki masks, and some wore masks of yellow dogs, white phoenixes, and other animals.
Noticing Ivan's gaze, these people raised their glasses in greeting, and an enthusiastic man even invited Ivan to join them.
To figure out what was happening, Ivan didn't refuse.
Once he sat down, the black-haired man immediately grinned and said, "Brother, you're a fan of Shadow Garden too, right?"
Ivan was puzzled. "A fan of Shadow Garden?"
The black-haired man was taken aback. "Aren't you someone who admires Shadow Garden's actions and has become a fan of your own accord?"
This left Ivan completely stunned. He had predicted that as his plans progressed, he would attract a large following in the future.
But he never expected that even now, there were already so many fans of his on the seas.
Ivan nodded. "That's right, I'm a fan of the Tanuki. Seeing you wear a fox mask, are you a fan of the Fox?"
"Exactly, I admire the Fox the most!"
"Why?"
The black-haired man chuckled but didn't answer—or perhaps didn't dare to.
Ivan could roughly guess. The Fox's greatest deeds were undoubtedly the assassination of the Celestial Dragons and the purge of scum in the East Sea.
Clearly, the black-haired man admired these actions, but because they were too taboo, he couldn't speak of them openly.
As Ivan conversed with the black-haired man, he discovered that these fans had privately established a Shadow Garden support group, often organizing activities and collecting all kinds of information about Shadow Garden.
The black-haired man, in particular, hoped that the Fox would also come to Water 7, so that the city, like the East Sea, could rid itself of corruption and their lives would improve.
Learning about the fans' actions warmed Ivan's heart.
It meant that his deeds had indeed improved the lives of some people, and the common folk of the East Sea were living better than before.
Originally, Ivan had only intended to kill Bluno and leave immediately, but after receiving feedback from his fans, he decided to do more.
When the black-haired man invited him to the next fan gathering, Ivan shook his head and refused, "Sorry, I have more important matters to attend to."
The black-haired man was puzzled, "What matters?"
Ivan didn't answer. Instead, he stood up and walked straight over to Bluno.
Just as the black-haired man and Bluno thought Ivan was about to order a drink, they heard him ask calmly:
"Bluno, member of CP9, Paramecia-type Door-Door Fruit Ability User, right?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the surrounding customers who heard them froze, falling silent. Soon, this silence spread throughout the entire tavern.
When everyone realized what Ivan had said, including the black-haired man, their faces showed shock: "Huh!"
As for Bluno, his expression changed drastically, and he immediately assumed a defensive stance!