Five days after the Dressrosa incident.
In the waters of Victory Island in the New World, the sky was dim and covered with thick gray clouds. A massive, dark red battleship sailed slowly through the continuous drizzle.
On the *Freewill*, Nami walked out the back door of the navigation room holding a cup of hot cocoa and approached the News Coo standing by the balcony railing.
"Working so hard even in the rain, thanks for your trouble."
*Ding~*
Nami smiled as she dropped a coin into the money box strapped to the News Coo's chest and took the newspaper from its beak.
The sea breeze carried a hint of chill. She walked over to a small white round table by the balcony, set down her hot cocoa, and turned to look at the aft deck below.
In the pattering rain, a shirtless Allen stood on the aft deck. His eyes were closed as if in meditation, occasionally snapping open as he slowly threw a punch at the sea before him.
That seemingly slow punch appeared to distort space itself, causing the falling raindrops to automatically veer off to the sides.
When his arm reached its full extension, an invisible force suddenly erupted from his fist, striking the sea and blasting open a massive whirlpool!
"To think he's actually started training again after half a year. Is he preparing for the upcoming battle?" Nami muttered.
It had been half a year since she last saw Allen train.
According to what he said back then, the strongest opponent the Demon Brain could simulate—Big Mom—could no longer pressure him, making further training pointless.
Now, on the verge of war with the Animal Kingdom Pirates, Allen had unexpectedly resumed his training. It was clear how seriously he was taking Kaido.
Nami withdrew her gaze, sat down in her chair, took a sip of hot cocoa, and unfolded the newspaper to read.
The first thing that caught her eye was the report regarding the Dressrosa incident.
The Straw Hat Pirates wreaked havoc in Dressrosa, Doffy was stripped of his Warlord of the Sea title by the World Government, and an Emperor launched a sudden attack, severely injuring an Admiral and snatching the criminal Doffy.
The phrase "sudden attack" gave the impression of a sneak attack, subtly painting Allen as a villainous figure.
This was the World Government's usual tactic, and Nami was already well accustomed to it.
She flipped through the rest of the paper. Aside from a few reports about the Revolutionary Army sparking a war in some country, there was no other major news.
Putting the newspaper away, she felt the ship's speed gradually slowing down. Recognizing this familiar inertia, Nami knew they were about to dock.
The rain gradually stopped. The coast was covered in a lush green meadow, moist and cool with dewdrops. The crew disembarked and began setting up camp.
Allen grabbed a towel to dry the rainwater off his body, threw on his clothes, and leaped onto the ship's superstructure, reaching the grassy shore in a few bounds.
This was an uninhabited island. The terrain gradually rose toward the center, transitioning from meadows to hills and then to peaks. There were no dense forests; the entire island was simply draped in a layer of emerald green grass.
His subordinates had already taken the lead in setting up a camp, arranging tables, lounge chairs, drinks, and fruits for the officers to rest.
Allen walked over to a lounge chair, sat down, and pulled a bottle of liquor from an ice bucket.
He crossed his legs and leaned back. Just as he tilted his head to take a sip, Nami walked over, snatched the bottle from his hand, and scolded, "We're already in the waters adjacent to Wano Country. Aren't you going to finalize a battle plan? We are going to war with the Animal Kingdom Pirates, right?"
"A battle plan?"
Allen paused for a moment, then said flatly, "Probably just storming their front door and announcing that we're at war, or something like that."
"Simply put, you haven't made any plans at all, have you?" Nami stared at him in disgust.
Allen didn't reply. He merely shrugged, reached out to take the bottle back, and said, "It's not really necessary. I think our overall combat strength is more than enough to deal with the Animal Kingdom Pirates."
"Don't make it sound so simple. The terrain of Wano Country is treacherous. Aside from those with the ability to fly, the rest probably won't even be able to make landfall."
At that moment, Sanji's voice came from the side as he walked up and took a seat, continuing, "The fleet is almost done assembling, but Wano Country sits at a very high elevation and is surrounded by raging waterfalls on all sides. Getting up there is going to be difficult."
"A massive army pressing in will definitely be easily spotted by the enemy. If they launch an attack from the high ground, we'll be put in a very passive position."
"The flagship shouldn't have a problem making landfall, but if the others can't get up there, the disparity in our troop numbers will become absurdly large. We'd easily get pinned down."
Sanji laid out a map as he spoke.
King against king, commander against commander.
But if the numerical gap was too large, a massive army of soldiers could use their numbers to pin down a commander, and a large number of commanders could similarly use their numbers to pin down a king.
Wano Country's terrain was unique. Its overall shape resembled a massive mountain rising from the sea, surrounded by raging waterfalls on the outside, with an inland sea like a crater lake nestled in the valley.
Both Wano Country and Onigashima floated within that inland sea. It was a highly defensible terrain, and acting rashly could easily lead to heavy losses.
"My suggestion is that we go up first, bypass Onigashima, and land on Wano Country. We'll cause a commotion there to draw Onigashima's forces, allowing the rest of the fleet to seize the opportunity to climb up to Wano Country and provide support."
Sanji lowered his head and lit a cigarette as he spoke.
"And what if we can't hold out until their support arrives?" Nami countered. "Rumor has it that Wano Country is home to incredibly powerful samurai, and Onigashima has a massive number of Artificial Devil Fruit users. Their strength can't be underestimated either."
"Good question, Nami-san. That's exactly why we need to land on Wano Country instead of Onigashima."
Sanji pressed his finger against the Wano Country section of the map and said, "Wano Country has a much larger landmass, giving us room to maneuver against the enemy. Onigashima's reinforcements will also need to cross the inland sea, so stalling them for a while shouldn't be too difficult."
"Once the rest of the fleet's forces make it up, launching a full-scale counterattack will be much easier. It might not be a brilliant strategy, but it's better than charging in recklessly."
Sanji slowly exhaled a plume of smoke as he finished.
Allen glanced at the map, unable to help but recall the scenes of King and Marco each kicking Big Mom and her pirate ship away.
After a moment of thought, Allen nodded. "Let's go with your plan. We'll make landfall tomorrow morning and have the rest of the fleet stand by in the surrounding waters."
At the same time.
On Hachinosu, located two sea areas away from Wano Country.
In a bustling, cheap tavern by the sunlit port, the crowd was packed tight. The sounds of drinking games and cheering echoed endlessly.
A pair of straw sandals stepped through the doorway. A man wearing square-framed glasses walked straight toward the bar.
"Take a look at this, Ace."
Marco arrived at the bar, tossed an intelligence report onto the counter, sat down on a stool, and casually picked up a glass of alcohol to drink.
"Have they started making their move?"
Ace's expression was calm. He picked up the report and glanced at it, his mature, stern face showing no ripples of emotion.
Marco nodded and replied, "The Demon Lion's major fleets are almost done assembling in the waters near Wano Country. It's confirmed that they've begun their operation."
"Yeah, let's head out too."
Ace spoke in a calm voice. He adjusted the orange cowboy hat on his head, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.
"Tell everyone to get ready. The second world war is about to begin."