No matter what choice he made, once the Whitebeard Pirates headed to that battlefield to save Ace, he was certain to die there.
Because aside from him, no one could stop the Navy's top-tier fighting forces.
And as it happened, he was tired. Worn out. He also knew that there was no ship in the new era capable of carrying him.
All he could do was leave something behind for his family.
After his death, the Navy would never allow the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates to survive. The other Yonko would also move in to tear apart that piece of fat meat.
Even ordinary pirates would swarm them like wild dogs.
That was also why he had not refused the idea of using Celestial Dragons as commodities.
Either way, they would be hunted down. In that case, it was better to obtain this bargaining chip and preserve more of the Whitebeard Pirates' strength.
Struggling together was still better than being exterminated.
But now, things were different.
Whitebeard had come to truly "know" the man named Ren, even though the two of them had not spent even a full day together.
But for the strong, understanding one another did not require such troublesome means.
That battle which had destroyed Raijin Island had revealed far too many details about this man.
Being willing to gamble one's life to become stronger was nothing special.
This sea had never lacked gamblers.
But when that was combined with a calm mind, the ability to methodically dig a massive pit for the Navy, and his claim to possess prophetic abilities, the meaning became entirely different.
It was an entirely different concept!
People with calm minds were easy to find. Gamblers existed too.
But add to that the ability to calculate, to manipulate factors in order to achieve a plan…
The conclusion was that he was a smart man.
Smart men were not gamblers, because they knew restraint.
Someone who possessed both qualities could only be an intelligent man so confident that he bordered on arrogance—or rather, a bold and ambitious hero of the age!
If his prophetic ability was real, then Ren had persisted in using schemes to restrict him despite knowing full well that he was certain to lose.
Then, under immense pressure, he had succeeded in mastering Conqueror's Haki Infusion.
If his prophetic ability was fake, then that was even more terrifying.
Despite knowing that there was an enormous gap between them, he had still been willing to risk his life for his ideals and accelerate the growth of his strength.
Even knowing there was a risk of death, he had continued forward without hesitation, until he finally mastered Conqueror's Haki Infusion.
No matter how one looked at it, he was a heroic figure comparable to Roger.
If Ren set his sights on becoming Pirate King, Whitebeard believed he would inevitably be the next Pirate King.
Under those circumstances, Edward Newgate chose to believe!
"…Can they become my strength?" Ren thought for a moment before asking that question.
"Marco will," Whitebeard said meaningfully.
"Got it. Some will, and some won't."
Ren nodded, then simply stood up and extended his hand toward Whitebeard. "Happy cooperation."
"Gurararara. Happy cooperation, Ren."
Whitebeard reached out with his overly massive palm and shook Ren's hand with amusement.
"I'll contact you about the details later."
Ren left behind a very special Den Den Mushi. It was a product modified by the angels.
If nothing else, a wiretap Den Den Mushi would never be able to capture the radio waves of this modified Den Den Mushi.
Even if it did capture them, it would have no way to parse the contents.
Because the radio waves were in cipher form and needed to be translated through the modified Den Den Mushi itself.
"Goodbye, Ren."
The disappearance of Raijin Island stirred up a wave of turmoil in the New World.
However, because the situation between the Navy and the Yonko Whitebeard Pirates was growing more tense by the day, most people paid even more attention to the war that was about to erupt.
The newspaper from that day at Sabaody Archipelago was regarded by the world as a provocation against Whitebeard, one of the Yonko.
Anyone who understood the sea knew that Whitebeard would not care about someone's provocation.
But if his family was harmed, that was another matter entirely.
"The one thing you absolutely cannot do on this sea is lay a hand on Whitebeard's family!"
In the New World, those words had even reached the level of a proverb.
As for Marine Headquarters, facing the Whitebeard Pirates truly placed them under enormous pressure.
Sengoku urgently summoned the Seven Warlords of the Sea, issuing an order that anyone who failed to come would be stripped of their title.
Cavendish, who loved standing in the spotlight more than anyone, was the first to arrive at Headquarters. Next was Urouge, who had come out of worry. He was afraid Cavendish would show off and say something reckless.
However, though Cavendish was unreliable, he still had a sense of propriety when it came to major affairs.
The next to arrive was Hawk-Eye Mihawk, but neither Cavendish nor Urouge managed to strike up a conversation with him.
The man disdained speaking with two replacement small fries.
Jinbe did not appear, just as in the original plot.
Then the Pirate Empress Hancock also arrived at Headquarters. With an extremely vile attitude, she petrified a group of Marines at the harbor and took the opportunity to extort a batch of supplies.
Last were Blackbeard Teach and Ren himself.
Well, when Teach would arrive, Ren did not know. As for Ren, he arrived right on time.
Rumble—!
In the sky above Marine Headquarters, a sudden roar of thunder resounded. Then, the weather rapidly darkened.
At the normally calm and drizzly Headquarters, a cold and violent wind began to blow.
The stationed Marines looked at one another, somewhat astonished by the abnormal weather.
But someone quickly realized something and looked toward the harbor.
"That guy really is arrogant."
Smoker expressionlessly held a cigar in his mouth, leaning coldly against a wooden post at the harbor as he looked up at the sky.
"A fiendish god who arrives with thunderstorms, signifying ill omen, heralding destruction. Those who encounter him must retreat, or else they will be reduced to ashes.
"For a pirate legend like that to be spreading across the sea… it really is a failure on our Navy's part."
"But that person…"
Tashigi, who was standing nearby, hesitated. She wanted to remind her superior that the other party was currently a Warlord of the Sea.
But unfortunately, she also knew Smoker's temper very well. All she could do was look helplessly toward the figure ahead. "Admiral Kuzan…"
"Oh, Miss Tashigi, it's fine. That person won't care about this."
Kuzan, who was likewise waiting there, waved his hand casually.
However, his words and behavior made Smoker furrow his brow.
"I never heard that he escaped from your hands. How do you know him?"
"I heard about him."
Kuzan brushed it off with a laugh, then changed the subject. "He's here."
Rumble—!
Another clap of thunder sounded. Lightning exploded at the harbor, revealing a slender figure.
"Who's there?"
"An enemy?"
"No, that appearance is… is…"
The stationed Marines first cried out in alarm, growing tense, before noticing the clues from his features.
Black hair, crimson eyes, purple gourd earrings—
"It's one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea—Demon Ren!"
At this stage, every Marine stationed at the harbor was an elite force of the Navy.
Placed in any of the Four Blues, they would be powerful backbone officers at the rank of field or company officers.
Yet when facing this sudden visitor, the Marines still became tense despite themselves.
This was a monster who had consecutively killed two Warlords and fought Yonko Kaido head-on while gaining the upper hand!
It was said that Dressrosa, the site of their battle, had undergone large-scale terrain changes.
And one of the parties responsible for that result was now standing right in front of them!
For some reason, even though the Marines had not exchanged a single word with him, merely meeting his gaze made their breathing quicken. They felt the atmosphere around them rapidly grow oppressive.
Their hands and feet went weak. Dense cold sweat covered their foreheads. Their hearts began beating faster.
And it was not only the nearby Marines. Even Tashigi felt it.
She seemed to realize something. Immediately, she stepped forward, braced herself, and shouted, "Welcome to Headquarters, Warlord of the Sea Demon Ren! I am the assigned guide for your route!"
With one sentence, the oppressive atmosphere immediately vanished.
Kuzan withdrew his gaze, no longer confronting Ren head-on, then put an eye mask over his eyes.
"How boring. Even ice blocks hold grudges?"
Ren muttered, then calmly walked forward with both hands in his pockets, heading toward the beautiful swordswoman Tashigi and the familiar man beside her with the sour expression—Smoker.
"Yo, Smokey. Still alive? I thought you'd gotten beaten to death."
"You haven't been arrested yet. How could I go before you?"
"I'm afraid you'll die before you ever get to see that happen."
"Heh…"
After all, there was already a grudge between them. The two disliked each other on sight, so they simply exchanged a couple of barbs first.
Tashigi watched from the side, a little dumbfounded. After all, Smoker had previously said that the other party was a good person, but this behavior looked more like he wanted nothing more than to eliminate him at once.
"Talk about arresting me once you actually have the ability. Right now, I'm a Warlord, you know."
Ren raised his middle finger, ending the topic, then turned to look at Tashigi. "Lead the way. I don't want to keep getting tangled up with this smoker."
"But…"
"Ren!"
Smoker's face darkened, and he was just about to say something.
However, Ren raised his middle finger again, then grabbed Tashigi and ran off.
He no longer wanted to stay beside a guy who "held grudges."
Tashigi cried out in alarm the entire way, but unfortunately, the gap in strength was too large. She was sent flying along like a kite.
At that moment, a perfectly timed "tsk" sounded.
"I thought you two would chat a little longer. It'd be best if you could draw some information out of him."
Kuzan, who had just been standing there like an ice sculpture, took off his eye mask and scratched his head in distress. "The higher-ups did say they wanted to learn more about this person.
"And the situation this time is also very strange. He came alone. We didn't even see that ship said to be capable of diving underwater."
"…That doesn't seem like something an Admiral should be doing, does it?"
Smoker suppressed his anger and stared at Kuzan suspiciously. "Working enthusiastically and all that is the complete opposite of your usual style.
"There was also something wrong with your conversation just now, and with the situation itself. Do you know him? Or have you even fought him before?"
"…"
Kuzan smiled but did not answer. Instead, he said, "Smoker, it seems like you see him as an opponent?"
"Huh? What does that have to do with what we're talking about now?"
"Answer quickly. This is an Admiral's order."
"Of course I do."
Smoker's face was black as he exhaled a mouthful of white smoke. "The fact that guy was able to rise to this point is partly my fault.
"If I had dealt with him back in the East Blue, maybe there wouldn't be such a huge problem now."
"I see. Then let me give you a piece of advice."
Kuzan walked over and patted Smoker on the shoulder, his tone serious. "Give up on that thought. Forget the fact that he's currently a Warlord. Even if his Warlord title is stripped tomorrow, you still wouldn't be his match.
"That guy isn't someone just anyone can deal with. In the current Headquarters, only a few people can truly take him down."
Just as Smoker was stunned and about to say something,
Kuzan left without hesitation, avoiding the trouble of being interrogated to the end by his friend.
(End of Chapter)