Chapter 705: Stirring Up Trouble Is a Technical Job
On the sea, a pirate ship drifted with the waves.
Under the bright moonlight, the sea surface was unusually calm and peaceful. Most of the pirates on the ship had already fallen asleep.
A pirate standing watch on the mast put down his single-tube telescope, stretched, and yawned. On such a quiet night, it was easy to feel drowsy.
Just as the watchman was getting groggy, he suddenly heard a fluttering sound. Startled awake, he looked up and saw a News Coo perched on the edge of the mast.
The watchman was stunned. In the moonlight, he clearly saw the News Coo pat its own bag, then extend a wing toward him.
"What... what does this mean? Is it forcing me to buy a newspaper!?" The watchman finally snapped out of it, but he wasn't angry at all—the News Coo's behavior was just too unusual!
It was the first time he'd ever encountered a News Coo delivering newspapers at night. Not only that, but the News Coo had landed on the ship without anyone calling out to buy a paper. Its insistence on making a sale made the watchman immediately realize that something major must have happened.
Without a second thought, he quickly pulled out a 100 Berry coin and handed it to the News Coo.
However, to the watchman's frustration, the News Coo shook its head, indicating it wasn't enough!
What the hell!? Another price hike!?
Fine, I'll take it! The watchman pulled out two more coins, and only then did the News Coo hand him a newspaper. In other words, this newspaper cost three hundred Berries!
Watching the News Coo fly away, the watchman grumbled as he opened the paper, reading it by the moonlight.
If this news wasn't worth three hundred Berries, the next time he saw that News Coo, he'd catch it and roast it for dinner! That was what the watchman was thinking...
But when he saw the headline, he froze completely. Then, as he quickly skimmed the article, he let out a scream, clutching the paper as he scrambled down the mast. In his haste, he fell from mid-air and crashed onto the deck with a loud thud!
The pirates of this crew, still dreaming, were jolted awake by the sudden noise. Thinking an enemy was attacking, they frantically jumped out of bed, grabbed their weapons, and charged out of the cabin with loud shouts.
But when they reached the deck, they found no trace of an enemy—only their watchman, who had thrown out his back and was groaning in pain...
"What the hell is going on!?" the pirates demanded angrily. No one likes being woken up in the middle of the night.
But the watchman, still clutching his back, tremblingly held up the newspaper for everyone to see...
That night, countless people, just like this pirate crew, were startled awake by the unusual behavior of the News Coo. Even those sleeping at home were woken by the News Coo scratching at their doors, forcing them to buy the overpriced special edition newspaper.
And once they woke up and saw the news, most of them couldn't go back to sleep!
They felt like they were dreaming. Everything had been fine yesterday, and now, after just one night's sleep, someone was telling them the world had turned upside down!?
Especially for those living in the New World, the names of the Four Emperors were already deeply familiar. They were used to associating the Four Emperors with Red-Haired Shanks, Whitebeard, Kaido, and Big Mom. But now, someone was telling them that one of the veteran Emperors had been taken down by the Seven Warlord, Black Dragon Ian!?
"Am I still dreaming and haven't woken up?" countless people asked themselves.
Yet, they also knew that the news in the newspaper couldn't be fake, especially with the clear photos accompanying it.
Many recognized Big Mom's massive figure, and they saw the huge bloody hole in her chest. Though they weren't sure why Big Mom was naked, one look told them that Big Mom was truly dead...
So, their attention shifted to Ian's photo.
Morgan's photography skills were commendable. Even just a single photo conveyed Ian's terrifying power to everyone who saw it!
Countless timid people, upon seeing that photo, trembled in fear, unable to sleep again for fear of nightmares...
Countless religious people, upon seeing Ian's photo, knelt in terror and prayed quietly...
With just one newspaper, Ian's demonic image was deeply etched into the world's consciousness. Originally, in the World Government's propaganda, the Four Emperors were synonymous with fear. Now, Ian, the new Emperor, brought a terror that seemed to surpass the other three Emperors...
But he was so much younger than the other three! That meant he still had room to grow—his strength hadn't yet reached its peak!
Would he become the strongest Emperor in the future? Or perhaps, would he become the next Pirate King after Gol D. Roger!?
Every time they thought about it, people felt a sense of helplessness and despair...
"This is... a powerful enemy we created by our own foolish actions..."
In the Holy Land Mary Geoise, the World Government headquarters was still brightly lit. The Five Elders, the highest authority, could no longer rest. They gathered in the hall, staring at the newspaper on the table, feeling an immense headache.
No one had expected Ian to suddenly kill Big Mom and ascend to the throne of the Four Emperors!
In the Five Elders' memory, Ian was still the one who had traded a Celestial Dragon identity chip for the position of Seven Warlord. Even after he helped the Whitebeard Pirates win the Battle of New Edd War, their impression of him hadn't changed much.
After all, they had never actually met Ian. Everything they knew about him came from intelligence reports gathered from various sources.
It was precisely because Ian had used the identity chip to blackmail his way into the Seven Warlords that the Five Elders realized Ian still feared the Marines and had to resort to such means to protect himself.
But ironically, when Sengoku was still the Fleet Admiral, he had strongly opposed Ian becoming a Seven Warlord. It was the Five Elders, concerned about the Celestial Dragons, who ignored Sengoku's objections and struck a deal with Ian, exchanging the Seven Warlord position for the chip!
It was this incident that gave Ian a chance to breathe, time to improve his strength, and grow stronger. And now, he had killed Big Mom and become a new Emperor!
"If we had known this would happen, we shouldn't have compromised back then. We should have kept sending Marine Admirals to hunt him down..." the Five Elders now regretted deeply. "If we had gone all out to kill him back then, none of this would have happened."
The Five Elders' frustration wasn't without reason. Ian becoming a new Emperor wasn't necessarily a problem in itself—if he rose, Big Mom would fall. For the World Government, it was just a replacement, keeping the total number of Emperors at four.
But the key issue was... the timing of this news!
The World Government and Marines had recently received Edward Weevil and the Golden Emperor Tesoro, captured by Arest. Tesoro was useless now, but Edward Weevil was different. Both the World Government and Marines had discovered his immense potential value. He looked very similar to Whitebeard, was incredibly strong, and, crucially, he was simple-minded. Without Bakkin's control, Edward Weevil could be made to fight for them with just a few small favors.
This was the ideal Seven Warlord in the eyes of the World Government and Marines—one completely under their control!
So, even knowing that Edward Weevil was the enemy of Black Wrist Zephyr, they still went ahead and let him join, filling the severely vacant position of Seven Warlord.
But what they didn't expect was Zephyr's reaction, which caught them off guard!
The Five Elders had thought that someone like Zephyr, who had served in the Marines his entire life, would swallow some grievances and not turn against the Marines. They could compensate him in other ways. But they never expected Zephyr to be so resolute this time, directly quitting on the World Government and Marines!
Not only did he leave the Marines, but he also took the entire Pirate Hunter Squad he had built...
The Five Elders had forgotten one thing: before Zephyr left, they had forced Aokiji out to make room for Akainu's rise! With that precedent, Zephyr left without hesitation!
It was a chain reaction...
Now, with Zephyr leaving the Marines and Ian becoming an Emperor, directly killing the newly recruited White Wolf Arest, the Marines had effectively lost two Admirals at once!
Although, following Akainu's proposal, the Marines had expanded the Admiral ranks, they all knew that Akainu had been forced into it. The originally trained Vice Admirals Momousagi and Chat Don, who were being groomed as future Admirals, still lacked strength. The plan relied on the World Military Draft to bring stronger fighters to Marine Headquarters. But now, with this mess, Akainu's efforts had completely backfired! The high-end combat power of Marine Headquarters had been knocked back to square one, even regressing compared to before!
Now, they only had Momousagi, Chat Don, Kizaru, and Akainu. The retired Sengoku and Garp, hurt by the Aokiji incident, had clearly stated they would no longer involve themselves in Marine affairs after retirement...
With Ian pulling this stunt, he had ascended to the Emperor's throne, but during this power transition vacuum, countless pirates would appear on the seas, fighting over territory!
Would the Marines intervene or not? If they did, did they have enough manpower and combat strength?
If they didn't? Then the world's trust in the Marines would plummet to an all-time low!
First, they lost the Battle of New Edd War, then Aokiji and Zephyr left one after another. The Marines' prestige had taken a massive hit. If they couldn't restore their glory, even the World Government's rule would be in jeopardy!
Carefully analyzing these details, the Five Elders were at their wit's end. Ian seemed to be specifically opposing them, constantly stirring up trouble, and every time he did, the timing was so perfect it made them want to vomit blood...
Turning around, the Five Elders looked together at Akainu, who was sitting in a corner chair with his arms crossed, wearing a silent expression.
"Fleet Admiral Sakazuki, have you thought about it? How do we solve this situation?"