Chapter 40: Navy Headquarters
Su Xiao opened the treasure chest from Cracker, and not only did he find a Demon Fruit, but he also obtained a scroll of [Grandmaster Force Fragment]. Su Xiao had acquired this before, and its purpose was still uncertain. So far, he had obtained [Grandmaster Force Fragment] ×1 from Cracker’s chest, which fully compensated for the poor luck from the previous chest. Just the reward of Soul Crystal (Large) ×10 alone was a massive profit, let alone the Demon Fruit, Grandmaster Force, and other items.
Su Xiao looked at the Biscuit Fruit in his hand. This item would definitely be in high demand within Reincarnation Paradise, with many large adventure groups willing to pay a high price for it.
However, Su Xiao had another idea. Compared to the contractors in Reincarnation Paradise, there was actually a bigger buyer—someone who would absolutely be willing to pay a steep price for the Biscuit Fruit.
That person was Charlotte Linlin. The Biscuit Fruit was originally Cracker’s ability. Setting aside its combat power, just its functionality made it irreplaceable for the Big Mom Pirates.
80% of the islands in Totto Land were made of various foods, including cheese, nuts, chocolate, and so on.
Perhaps because Big Mom loved sweets, the buildings on the islands were also constructed from food. Over 95% of these food houses were built with a framework of biscuits, and extremely hard ones at that.
The origin of these biscuits was obvious—they were created by Charlotte Cracker using his fruit ability.
After Cracker’s death, the biscuits made by his ability wouldn’t disappear, but building new structures or renovating old ones would require Cracker’s power.
Did Big Mom build her territory this way purely out of a love for sweets? Not really. In reality, those biscuits, chocolate, cream, and other materials were all produced by ability users. This meant these items served as food, building materials, and weapons all at once.
If a rebellion broke out in Totto Land, Charlotte Linlin only needed to send a few of her children to suppress any uprising among the commoners.
In other words, no matter the cost, Charlotte Linlin would seek out the Biscuit Fruit again. If someone else ate it and developed its abilities, that person could control all the biscuits in Totto Land.
A dilemma presented itself to Su Xiao: if he showed the Biscuit Fruit to Charlotte Linlin, would she go berserk on the spot? A rampaging Big Mom would make any negotiation impossible.
Su Xiao lay on the bed, pondering until he drifted off to sleep.
After a few hours of sleep.
Bang, bang, bang…
A faint knocking came from the door. Su Xiao’s eyes snapped open. While in a derivative world, he never entered deep sleep.
The door opened, and outside stood Sugar, wearing a white tank top.
“The young master told me to tell you, it’s time to set off.”
“Oh.”
With a bang, the door slammed shut, making Sugar jerk her head back in surprise. She clenched her little fists in anger, but she didn’t dare provoke Su Xiao.
Among the few people Sugar feared most was the fierce-looking Jack. A few days ago, she had witnessed Su Xiao’s battle with Jack firsthand, and since then, she had been noticeably more obedient around Su Xiao. She no longer dared to say things like, “I hate this guy.”
Half an hour later, a pink-hued ship sailed out of Dressrosa. The bow was shaped like a flamingo wearing sunglasses, or rather, the entire ship resembled a giant flamingo. This was Doflamingo’s vessel, and on the sea, it essentially represented him.
For this negotiation, only Doflamingo and Pica from the Don Quixote Family were present. As long as Pica didn’t speak, standing behind Doflamingo gave him a commanding presence.
Of course, there were also over 200 elite pirates on board, all loyal to Doflamingo. It was these pirates, mixed in with others, who had stabilized the situation on the war front.
Su Xiao sat on the deck, maintaining his Dragon-Slaying Flash, while Bubu Wang wandered around the ship. Before long, Bubu Wang sidled up to Su Xiao and nudged him.
“Woof.”
Bubu Wang’s dog face wore a smirk, as if to say, “Doflamingo’s ship is really flashy, huh? That garish pink color, tsk tsk.”
“Maybe it’s a personal preference.”
Su Xiao also had doubts about Doflamingo’s taste. A flamingo was fine, but as Bubu Wang said, the entire ship being that garish pink was a bit much.
Before the garish pink ship had gone far, a cake-shaped vessel approached—it was Katakuri.
The two ships stopped side by side on the sea. Su Xiao sheathed his Dragon-Slashing Flash and glanced at the other ship. Katakuri stood by the railing.
Their eyes met, and Katakuri immediately looked away, struggling to suppress the killing intent in his heart.
“Fufufufufu, Charlotte Katakuri, you must be disappointed that Dressrosa didn’t sink into the sea.”
Doflamingo also disliked Katakuri. After fighting for so long, mutual animosity was natural.
“No, I’m more disappointed that I didn’t tear your head off.”
“Is that so? Then you’ll have to keep being disappointed.”
As Doflamingo finished speaking, the pirates behind him raised their flintlock rifles, and Katakuri’s men did the same. The two sides glared at each other, and if not for the upcoming negotiations, bullets would have been flying.
Doflamingo raised his hand to signal his men to hold back, and Katakuri did the same.
After a few seconds of staring, they both ordered their crews to set sail. The two hostile ships moved across the sea.
A few seagulls flew overhead as the two large ships cut through the waves, heading straight for the Sies Sea.
…
First half of the Grand Line, Marineford Island.
Marineford was almost at the center of the world. This island held extraordinary significance, representing justice in the eyes of the common people.
Several dark green warships were docked at the circular port. On the port stood a row of navy soldiers in white uniforms, standing at attention.
The Navy Headquarters was located on Marineford Island, the center of naval power. At that moment, in the Fleet Admiral’s office at Navy Headquarters.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku the Buddha picked up a document from his desk and fed it to a goat. The document faintly showed several keywords: “Itomira Plan,” “Weapon Construction,” “Pluton,” and “Dray.”
The snow-white goat chewed on the document as a knock came at the door.
“Come in.”
Sengoku, with his braided beard, spoke, a hint of weariness in his voice.
A navy messenger pushed open the door, saluted with a standard military gesture, and entered the room.
“Fleet Admiral, we’ve just received intelligence from the CP department. The Four Emperors, Charlotte Linlin and Red-Haired, have left their respective territories, with the Sies Sea as their suspected target.
Donquixote Doflamingo has also set out for the Sies Sea, accompanied by Charlotte Katakuri… That is all.”
The messenger saluted again and handed over a file.
Sengoku took the file and glanced through it briefly.
“A reconciliation, huh? They still think they can use Big Mom to eliminate that tumor. Dismissed.”
Sengoku tossed the file aside and gestured for the navy soldier to leave.