If we ignore top-tier combatants for a moment, and focus purely on basic soldiers...
The few thousand troops under Jun Lin's command are enough to overwhelm the world's tens of thousands of naval soldiers.
How absurd is that?
People like to say this world only values top-tier power. But in reality, when it comes to maintaining control over the seas, it's the ordinary naval soldiers who do the heavy lifting.
After all, how many true powerhouses exist? Can they appear anywhere in the world at a moment's notice?
Obviously not!
So yes—when judging the strength of a faction, people do look at top-tier warriors.
But when it comes to regional control, it all comes down to the strength of your basic troops.
Otherwise, what happens? A top fighter shows up and everyone retreats. But the moment they leave, enemies just come swarming back.
That's the issue here. The reason they're called basic soldiers is simple—
In this world, only a tiny fraction can ever become true powerhouses.
They don't even make up 0.001% of the world's population.
The vast majority simply don't have the talent or physical potential to reach that level. Even with intense training, most can only become slightly stronger than normal.
Throw in some standard-issue weapons and gear, and what do you get?
The so-called "ten fighters as weak as trash" that Lucci once scoffed at in the original work.
This has been the state of the world for eight hundred years—unchanged.
But now...
When Momousagi used her Observation Haki to sense the strength of Jun Lin's troops stationed at the branch…
The shock she felt was unimaginable.
It wasn't just a matter of how many troops Jun Lin had—it was that...
Luo Lan had shattered an eight-hundred-year-old understanding of the world.
"How... how did you even do this?"
"Take a guess."
Luo Lan didn't answer her question directly.
Instead, he lifted his head slightly and looked up at the sky.
Momousagi followed his gaze—
And froze.
In the distance, a medium-sized ship was slowly descending from the sky.
Yes—descending. But it was clearly controlled descent.
In other words... a flying warship.
Eventually, it disappeared into the sea off the western edge of the island, just outside a hidden military port.
---
After a brief tour of the base with Momousagi—including the return of Hina and the presence of Smoker, who had remained stationed there—they all gathered in Luo Lan's massive office on the 15th floor.
Momousagi stood silently by the floor-to-ceiling windows, lost in thought.
It was a long time before she turned and walked over to the lounge area, sitting down on the sofa.
Her gaze toward Hina was... a little strange.
"Hina, how long have you known?"
"Since my first night stationed in the East Blue."
Hina recalled briefly, then answered.
"And your current strength?"
"Well..."
She glanced at Luo Lan.
That was something she didn't dare casually share with Momousagi, even though their relationship was quite close.
"Sister Gion, you should know—there's no way we can tell you that."
"Ask too much, and you'll hurt our friendship," Luo Lan added with a grin.
Of course, Momousagi understood that.
But trying never hurt, did it?
"Alright then. Let's get down to business."
Luo Lan placed a document on the coffee table.
It was the file that Tsuru had asked Momousagi to bring.
"Luo Lan, the document doesn't clearly state where Doflamingo is."
Hina, handing the file to Smoker, added:
"Even if we wanted to act, we have no direction."
Luo Lan nodded in agreement.
"True. The file doesn't say it. But once I saw that Doflamingo had teamed up with Caesar, I had a good idea where they're hiding."
"Where?"
"Punk Hazard."
"What?! Punk Hazard?! No way! That's impossible!"
The moment she heard the name, Momousagi shot up, instantly rejecting the idea.
"Luo Lan, I've heard of Caesar. And I definitely know about Punk Hazard. That's exactly why..."
"There's no way they'd hide there!"
She shook her head.
Punk Hazard had once been a secret research base for the Navy in the New World.
Many prisoners of the World Government were held there for cruel human experiments.
But one of Caesar Clown's experiments went horribly wrong.
Toxic gas spread across the entire island. Almost everyone died, except for a handful of lucky survivors.
Because of this disaster, Caesar was arrested by the Navy.
And even without considering the island's condition, Doflamingo would never choose a place like that.
Why? Because it falls under the jurisdiction of the G1 Branch, and was once an official Navy research facility.
Too risky. Too conspicuous.
No matter how you looked at it—it was the last place you'd pick as a hideout.
Luo Lan raised a hand to calm her down.
Then he explained:
"It's been over half a year since the incident at Punk Hazard. But…"
"Has the Navy gone back even once? Has the World Government shown any intention of restoring the research base?"
"No. As far as they're concerned, that island has been completely abandoned. Unless something major happens, no one's going to set foot there again for years."
"It's the classic case of hidden under the lamp—the blind spot right beneath the spotlight."
That much was clear from the original story, too.
The Navy didn't check on the island for four years.
"Hidden under the lamp, huh?" Momousagi muttered. "Makes some sense... Should I contact Vice Admiral Onigumo of the G1 Branch and have him send someone to scout it out?"
"What, just to send more people to their deaths?" Luo Lan smirked. "Wait—you said Onigumo is handling G1 now?"
"Yeah, Aokiji is on his way there. So Onigumo's in charge for now."
"And Sakazuki?"
"Sakazuki? Who's that?"
Momousagi tilted her head in confusion.
Luo Lan's eyes widened in shock.
No way...
A terrifying realization hit him. He quickly rifled through his memories.
And found...
Nothing.
His memories of Akainu—Sakazuki—were completely blank.
Then how did he still remember the name Sakazuki?
Because...
It came from his previous life's memories—those weren't affected.
Could this be a bug in the Hobby-Hobby Fruit ability?
Maybe...
Then again, having memories from two lifetimes is a bug in itself.
So—did the brute Akainu get caught up in this somehow?
Now that would be interesting.
"Sister Gion, doesn't it strike you as strange?" Luo Lan asked. "Why are there only two admirals right now?"
"There have always been two."
"No. The Navy has always had three admirals. The previous generation had three too—Kuzan, Borsalino, and Sakazuki. Garp only refused the position."
"I don't understand what you're getting at."
"I mean—this generation should have three as well. And the third admiral was supposed to rotate with Kuzan at G1."
"But now... everyone's forgotten him. Guess what that means..."
"What's really going on here?"
---
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