Chapter 706: Something to Laugh About for a Year
"Hmph!" Hearing the Five Elders' question, Akainu let out a cold sneer.
He spread his hands, flexing his steel fists. As they opened and closed, the fists emitted a clanking sound, along with a faint, grating friction noise. He then spoke: "What do I think? What could I possibly think?"
With that, he leaned back, letting his entire body rest against the chair behind him, wearing an expression of utter indifference.
"Akainu! What kind of attitude is that!?" His demeanor naturally displeased the Five Elders, prompting one of them to scold him.
"What attitude!?" Akainu shot upright, tilting his head with a sneer, a cigar dangling from his mouth. "Hmph! Back then, when you issued a single order to send Arest to the Golden City to protect the Celestial Dragons, did you bother to ask for my opinion!? When Arest chased Ian to Whole Cake Island, why did no one ever tell me that there were CP agents lurking among the Four Emperors!?"
The more he spoke, the angrier he became. Akainu couldn't help slamming his steel fist onto the table in front of him, roaring: "Who exactly approved that woman Stussy to contact Arest on her own and carry out that operation!? Now look—your intelligence agency's personnel are exposed, and the Marine Admiral I just recruited is dead! Instead of holding CP accountable, you come asking for my opinion! Do you have any respect for me as the Fleet Admiral!?"
Akainu was truly furious this time. Ever since he became Fleet Admiral, he had noticed the World Government repeatedly meddling in Marine affairs. Perhaps because they felt Akainu had risen to power thanks to their support, they kept issuing orders that bypassed him as Fleet Admiral.
Although many within the Marines supported Akainu's absolute justice ideology, there were also those who disagreed with his views. Moreover, lacking the achievements of defeating the Whitebeard Pirates and killing Ace as in the original timeline, Akainu's authority as Fleet Admiral was insufficient, and he couldn't fully control the Marines. The World Government's commands could even direct Marine personnel without his permission.
Faced with this situation, Akainu was naturally frustrated. So, during this meeting, he vented his anger directly...
The Five Elders hadn't expected Akainu to suddenly explode like this. They exchanged awkward glances, unable to respond. Indeed, this time when Arest went to Whole Cake Island, the World Government was aware of it and even actively cooperated, temporarily suppressing the news of his recruitment as Marine Admiral. They had hoped Arest could stir up conflict between Big Mom and Ian on Whole Cake Island, using Big Mom's hands to eliminate Ian. Instead, they ended up losing the chicken while the bait was stolen—Arest died, and it only helped Ian ascend to the throne of the Four Emperors.
Originally, Ian replacing Big Mom as one of the Four Emperors wasn't a huge deal. But the problem was that, compared to the other Emperors, Ian's hostility toward the World Government was blatant!
The other Emperors, no matter how strong or vast their influence, had never set their sights on Holy Land Mary Geoise. Only Ian had once set it ablaze, making the Celestial Dragons there regard him as a nightmare.
This time, the photo in the newspaper—that demonic figure—would undoubtedly make many of the World Nobles, the Celestial Dragons, even more terrified of him...
For the Celestial Dragons, who considered themselves descendants of the creators, wasn't the natural enemy of gods the demon?
Who knew what Ian's full name was? Did it also contain a "D"...?
Seeing the Five Elders fall silent after his outburst, Akainu felt a sense of satisfaction. Those old geezers in the Five Elders—did they really think that sitting in their fifty-thousand-square-meter mansion in Mary Geoise, never leaving, could truly rule the world?
Had they ever witnessed the storms at sea? Had they ever seen the rampant lawlessness of pirates?
This interference in Marine affairs might teach them a lesson. At least Ian had done him a favor!
With that thought, Akainu stood up and left directly. He didn't care about the rest. Now that Arest's identity had been exposed by the newspaper, the Marines were in turmoil. He hadn't even calmed things down internally—how could he possibly clean up the mess for the Five Elders?
In the end, only the Five Elders remained in the meeting hall. After a heated discussion, the decision they reached was somewhat surprising.
Their decision was to hold the World Economy News Company responsible!
There was no other choice. They couldn't control Ian, but the World Economy News Company had, without their permission, revealed Arest's identity as a Marine Admiral, making it impossible for the World Government to suppress or cover up the matter. Moreover, the news had mentioned CP0, which the Five Elders couldn't tolerate. In the public eye, the World Government's intelligence agencies only ranged from CP1 to CP9—there was no such thing as CP0. Even if rumors about this organization had circulated, none had ever been confirmed. Now, by publishing it so openly in the newspaper, the whole world had learned about this secret intelligence organization...
...
As time passed, the sky gradually brightened. With the arrival of a new day, the news birds flew farther and farther, spreading the newspaper to more distant corners.
Aboard the Moby Dick, the flagship of the Whitebeard Pirates, Whitebeard held the newspaper, which seemed tiny in his hands, and snorted disdainfully: "Hmph! That brat actually managed to stand on equal footing with me..."
Noisy sounds came from the deck, drifting up continuously. Whitebeard grew annoyed and shouted: "Marco! What kind of party are you throwing at this hour!?"
"Haha! Old Man!" Marco raised his glass and laughed. "This is a celebration! A celebration!"
He then turned to the gathered members of the Whitebeard Pirates and yelled: "Am I right!?"
"RIGHT!!!" Everyone answered in unison.
Marco raised his glass again: "Then—to our family member Ian! To our pride, Ian! To the birth of a new Four Emperor! Cheers!!!"
"CHEERS!!!"
Clanking sounds rang out as the Whitebeard Pirates clinked their glasses with all their might, as if trying to shatter each other's cups, before drinking heartily.
"Hmph! A bunch of foolish sons!" Whitebeard Old Man let out a tsundere snort. "Having a party without inviting me!? Bring me my barrel of sake!"
The Whitebeard Pirates were genuinely happy for Ian's achievement. So, early in the morning, they got completely wasted. When they were drunk and bleary-eyed, someone finally brought up the key question.
Flower Sword Vista, tipsy, held a newspaper and stared at the photo for a long time. Finally, he wiped the wine stains from his lips and beard, winked, and said: "You know, I'm really curious. Why is Big Mom completely naked, with all her clothes gone? What exactly did that kid Ian do to her?"
Everyone was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, clutching their stomachs in pain. They clearly caught the implication in Vista's words.
Marco, the pineapple-head, was also flushed from drinking and couldn't resist joking: "If you ask me, it's probably not about what Ian did to Big Mom, but what Big Mom did to him! Have you forgotten? Big Mom has had many husbands. Maybe she took a liking to Ian and wanted to do something with him, but he resisted desperately, fought back, and... and then he became a Four Emperor!"
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Many people who were drinking spat it all out at Marco's words. Then the entire crew rolled around on the deck, laughing uncontrollably.
Even Whitebeard Old Man couldn't help but let out a "Gurarara" laugh!
Who knew if Ian would strangle Marco after hearing this, but for the Whitebeard Pirates, this joke was something they could laugh about for a whole year!
Not just the Whitebeard Pirates—as time passed, people gradually recovered from the shock of Ian ascending to the Four Emperors and began to notice the peculiarities in the photo of Big Mom's death.
On an island in the New World, Hawk-Eye, who was drinking with Red-Haired Shanks, looked at the photo of Big Mom's corpse and couldn't help twitching the corner of his eye.
It seemed his little junior disciple had rather... heavy tastes...
Shanks seemed to understand Hawk-Eye's thoughts and slapped him on the shoulder, laughing: "Lighten up, Hawk-Eye! Young people always prefer more mature women..."
Hawk-Eye silently stared at the drunken Shanks. What the hell was the point of saying that to him? If you've got the guts, go say it to Ian himself...