Marine Headquarters — Marineford.
"Fleet Admiral, there's a message from the King of Dressrosa!"
Ain entered the Fleet Admiral's office, eyes glancing at Wright, who was buried in paperwork. A trace of concern flashed across her face.
He's not much older than me… and yet he works so hard…
Having someone like him as Fleet Admiral — no, not just for the Marines, but for the whole world — it's truly a blessing.
"Oh? So King Riku sent word? Did he stumble upon yet another one of Doflamingo's secret vaults?"
Wright chuckled. "Lately, there've been a lot of those popping up. Who would've thought Doflamingo was such a packrat, hiding stashes like a hamster?"
"Uh… this time, it's about the samurai."
Ain stepped forward and handed over the compiled report.
"It's just like you instructed — they've appeared. The samurai we were watching out for. But these aren't the ones headed to Zou. They're the Akazaya Samurai!"
"Oh?"
Wright took the report and skimmed through it, nodding thoughtfully.
"Kin'emon, Kanjuro, and Momonosuke — the retainers of the Kouzuki Family — who set sail from Wano's port for Zou recently?"
"But Raizo isn't with them?"
"That's right. The ninja didn't land with them. However, Princess Viola noticed that Momonosuke addressed Kin'emon as 'Father'."
Ain recalled how the intel specifically highlighted how Kin'emon and Momonosuke referred to each other.
"They must be hiding their identities… Could it be that they encountered pursuers? But there's no record of that from Vice Admiral Rosinante. And Wano's samurai are notoriously averse to setting foot outside their homeland."
"Hiding their identities is the right move."
Wright pointed at the intel. Though Viola had to maintain distance and couldn't use her powers to read their thoughts, she had observed their behavior with precise detail.
"They've been inquiring about two things lately — 'Zou' and the Navy. Law is already ahead of them preparing for Zou…"
"But it seems they've dug up more on the Navy than they did on Zou."
At this point, Ain couldn't help but sigh.
"They crossed over from twenty years ago. No matter how you look at it, it's unbelievable. The Navy has changed too much since the world they remember."
"Wano… their view of the Navy must be complicated."
Wright shared some of Wano's hidden history with Ain. After learning what the World Government had done to Wano, her eyes darkened.
"So that's how it is… Wano avoided destruction because of their powerful samurai. But if they hadn't had such strength or natural defenses… wouldn't they have been erased from history, like so many others?"
Wright shook his head. "Looks like they're trying to seek help — but still wary of the Navy, given we operate under the World Government."
"As for Zou… 'accidentally' leak some information on its location. If they're planning to go up against Kaido, their strength could be valuable."
He glanced at the intel again, particularly at how Kin'emon and Momonosuke reacted to the dancers in Dressrosa. Wright rolled his eyes.
"They're like headless chickens. Even with the help of the Minks on Zou, they have zero chance against Kaido — they probably couldn't even scratch him."
And this is before Kaido has even formed his full "Gifters" army. His forces are still weakened. Without Luffy's protagonist aura or internal sabotage, they wouldn't even make it close to Onigashima.
"Yes, Fleet Admiral! I'll pass on your orders right away!"
Ain saluted, then rushed off to deliver Wright's strategic instructions — after all, this involved one of the Four Emperors: Kaido.
…
"Kanjuro! Momonosuke! There's finally news about Zou!"
Kin'emon excitedly shared the discovery with his companions.
"I met some stationed Marines here. While chatting, they mentioned they had recently received orders to locate Zou — and they were tasked with related affairs!"
Looking around cautiously, Kin'emon leaned in close to whisper to Kanjuro:
"They gave away Zou's location — not with much detail, though. Zou's always on the move, so it's likely the position is already outdated."
"But still, it's the most concrete lead we've had so far!"
Kanjuro nodded solemnly.
"Very well. I shall depart for that location at once!"
"With Zou being so massive, my art magic can create birds to scout the area. If it's within range, we should find it soon enough!"
Kanjuro was full of confidence — only to meet with matching expressions of dismay from Kin'emon and Momonosuke.
"…You two really have so little faith in my art?"
…
"Fleet Admiral Wright — another message from Dressrosa…"
Ain entered once again as the chapter's latest report landed.
Wright looked up, surprised. "Already? That was fast."
"Yes, Fleet Admiral. Kin'emon, leader of the Akazaya Nine from Wano, and Kouzuki Oden's son Momonosuke — they're requesting to speak with you directly."
"…"
Wright raised an eyebrow, intrigued.
"They're not heading to Zou?"
"That's right. Kanjuro left alone by boat toward the location we leaked. Meanwhile, Kin'emon and Momonosuke stayed behind and managed to contact our stationed forces on the island — they're formally requesting a direct audience."
"Huh… Kin'emon's hedging his bets. One side goes to find allies at Zou, while the other seeks contact with the Navy… but to directly request to see me?"
Wright laughed. "They do know that, with no name or rank, directly requesting to see the Fleet Admiral is virtually impossible, right?"
"If we weren't already monitoring them, this request would've taken forever just to reach me."
"True — I suppose they're just lucky."
Ain smiled back. While the Marines did have ways to transmit reports to Marineford, not all messages were treated equally.
"Alright then. I'll meet them. Notify Kuina — have her bring them to G-5 Base. I'll meet them there."
Ain saluted and left. Wright stood up, stretching briefly — only to see the Lightforged Beacon flare again with another urgent message.
"Heh… It really is one thing after another."
Picking up the encrypted letter, Wright's eyes swept over the content swiftly.
"Kaido has received intel that Raizo is heading for Zou. He's sending one of his All-Stars — the 'Plague' Queen — to intercept and eliminate him."
"If Kaido received the message, he'd assume Raizo, Kin'emon, Kanjuro, and Momonosuke were all heading to Zou."
"But now, it's just Raizo… meaning Kanjuro must've lost contact with him… no, more likely, once he reached Dressrosa, he found a way to send a message to Orochi."
"It's been over three months since they traveled through time… and with how atrocious Kin'emon's navigation is, Raizo still hasn't arrived at Zou. But he should be close."
"If Queen's on the move, with Kanjuro having provided a rough location, it won't take long. A month at most, and Queen will find Zou."
"Well… if Law's there, he should be able to coordinate with the others to intercept Queen. The Navy can't step in yet — if Queen dies, he mustn't send word back to Kaido first."
"This time, Queen… you got lucky."
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