“Your analysis was spot on.
The ‘Heavenly Tribute’ really was just a cover for the Kuja Pirates.”
“Yeah, yeah, and then?
Is it some other treasure?” Ron pressed, full of anticipation.
“Their…
real goal is to rescue a crewmate.”
“…” Hearing this, the light in Ron’s eyes dimmed considerably.
After two seconds of silence, he turned to stare at Kaido with a deadpan expression.
“Wait, this has nothing to do with you.
What the hell are you so happy about?”
“You can’t look at it that way,” Kaido explained defensively, full of conviction.
“Didn’t you feel that sudden rush of realization?”
Ron released his grip on Kaido’s shoulder and walked ahead on his own, saying without looking back, “I hereby announce that the Apprentice Alliance is officially dissolved.”
“What are you saying, Ron?
You can’t just throw around words that hurt team unity!” Kaido hurried after him, shouting in dissatisfaction.
…
Indeed, the Kuja Pirates’ true motive was just as Kaido said: rescuing their companion.
According to the intelligence they had gathered, the figures responsible for escorting the convoy this time were Fleet Admiral “Cyborg” Kong and Marine Admiral Sengoku the Buddha.
With their current strength, it was impossible to contend with such a lineup, leaving them no choice but to seek an outside partnership.
Their initial plan was to cooperate with the Roger Pirates, treating the Rocks Pirates as an absolute last resort.
However, as time ran out, the Kuja Pirates unexpectedly ran into the Rocks Pirates while on their way to meet Roger’s crew, and the plan changed right then and there.
The terms of cooperation between the two sides were fairly simple: the Kuja Pirates were solely responsible for providing the navigation routes, and whatever “Heavenly Tribute” was seized would belong entirely to the Rocks Pirates.
The only condition was that if the Kuja Pirates ran into danger they could not handle, the Rocks Pirates had to step in and help.
Meanwhile, across a certain stretch of sea in the New World.
Three massive World Government battleships were sailing side by side at a steady, moderate pace.
Their hulls cleaved through the waves, leaving three long, white trails trailing across the surface of the water.
Aboard the ships were the “Heavenly Tributes” collected recently from various nations, valuable treasures used to offset tribute payments, and…
“slaves” destined for the amusement of the Celestial Dragons.
Inside the main cabin of one of the battleships.
The faint aroma of tea drifted in the air.
“Phew.” Kong blew gently on the tea in his cup and leaned back comfortably against the chair, his gaze drifting out the porthole toward the calm sea.
“It has been quite a while since we sat down together for tea like this, Sengoku.”
“Hahaha…
Thanks to you, I get to enjoy some fine tea for once,” Sengoku chuckled softly, raising his cup for a sip.
Kong waved his hand: “It’s not thanks to me; we both owe it to the World Government.
Everything we’ve achieved today was granted by them.
At crucial moments, we must never let the World Government down.”
Sengoku nodded slightly.
Even if the words sounded a bit bureaucratic, what Kong said was the plain truth.
“Hahahaha!
Justice will prevail!!” Kong said with a smile.
Before his voice fully faded, a young Marine carrying a Den Den Mushi rushed inside.
“Report!
Admiral Sengoku, your personal Den Den Mushi is ringing.”
With that, the young Marine handed the Den Den Mushi over to Sengoku and tactfully stepped out of the room.
Kong watched the entire exchange without saying a word.
Sengoku answered the call.
Soon, a low voice came through the other end.
“Mr.
Sengoku, what you mentioned earlier still stands, right?”
“Of course,” Sengoku replied with a firm nod.
“However, how much you get still depends on the value of the intelligence you provide.”
“Their target is the ‘Heavenly Tribute.’ They are preparing to ambush you along your route.”
“Understood.
Very valuable.” Sengoku’s gaze darkened slightly.
“Hehehe…
I hope you honor the agreement.”
“Naturally.
Our cooperation won’t end with this single exchange.”
Click.
The Den Den Mushi hung up, and the cabin fell quiet for a moment.
Kong, who had remained silent the whole time, finally spoke in a flat tone: “Looks like…
an insider has shown up on our side as well.”
Sengoku put down the Den Den Mushi, his brow furrowing slightly: “What do you plan to do, Kong?
That crew of Rocks’ isn’t easy to deal with.
If the ‘Heavenly Tribute’ gets stolen, we won’t be able to answer to the World Government.”
Sengoku analyzed the situation while running through various counter-plans in his head.
Kong stayed silent for a long moment, the tea in his cup already growing lukewarm.
Suddenly, a slight smile broke across his face: “In that case, we’ll beat them at their own game.”
Sengoku paused briefly before catching on to Kong’s intention, his tightly furrowed brow relaxing: “That is indeed a solid plan.”
Kong stood up slowly, walked to the window, and gazed at the boundless ocean outside: “Sengoku, go make the arrangements.
Let’s give those bastards in the Rocks Pirates a massive surprise.”
A long while later.
A speedboat was cutting swiftly across the sea, churning up a white trail of foam in its wake.
“Those World Government bastards really are cunning,” Ochoku muttered indistinctly from the front of the speedboat, chewing on a slice of pizza with relish.
Here was what happened:
As the Rocks Pirates advanced at full speed along the route provided by the Kuja Pirates, they suddenly received fresh intel.
To prevent an ambush, the Marines had split their fleet into three groups, each taking a different path.
This forced the Rocks Pirates to split into three squads to stage their ambushes.
Among them:
Rocks formed a squad with the Kuja Pirates.
Ron, Whitebeard, Stussy, Kaido, and Ochoku formed another squad.
The remaining members of the Rocks Pirates made up the third squad.
“Speaking of which,” Whitebeard said from the middle of the speedboat, leaning back against the hull with Murakumogiri in hand, his eyes glancing sideways at Ochoku, “it’s far stranger that a guy like you chose to come with me, Ochoku.”
The original plan was for Ron, Whitebeard, Stussy, and Kaido to ambush the World Government battleship reported to have the weakest combat strength.
To everyone’s surprise, Ochoku had voluntarily stepped forward to go with Whitebeard.
“Hehehehe.” Ochoku gave a few dry laughs, took another bite of his pizza, and said casually, “Following those lunatics won’t get me any easy gains.
But with you…
you know how it is.”
He didn’t spell it out completely, but the meaning was clear: Whitebeard had no interest in treasure, while Ron and Kaido were mere apprentices who could be brushed off with scraps.
The only one he actually had to split the spoils with was Stussy.
Even if they ended up empty-handed later, Ochoku didn’t care.
He hadn’t put in much effort anyway—all he lost was the time it took to eat a few slices of pizza.