Me, becoming one of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea? Although Storm had long since formulated a plan with the goal of "becoming one of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea," receiving a personal invitation from the Five Elders, the highest authority of the World Government, still filled him with an overwhelming sense of surrealism.
He hadn't even started taking action yet.
Why was the World Government so eager? Was this the legendary feeling of "getting something for free"? Earlier, Storm had deliberately contacted Aokiji, talking about "handing him a merit"...
But that was just diplomatic talk.
At least, it wasn't his true intention.
Storm's real plan was a two-step process.
First, eliminate the Lizard King Hanafuda, creating a vacancy among the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea.
Then, capture all the trash on Banaro Island and use them, along with Hanafuda's corpse, to negotiate with the World Government! As long as nothing unexpected happened, Storm's succession as one of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea was practically a done deal.
In the future, two other Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea would rise to their positions through similar methods.
Blackbeard Teach captured Ace and handed him over to the World Government, then recommended himself to become one of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea; Trafalgar Law seized the hearts of a hundred pirates and handed them over to the World Government, also becoming a new Warlord.
Storm's plan combined the strengths of both Blackbeard Teach and Trafalgar Law's strategies.
He wasn't worried that the World Government would refuse the deal...
Moreover.
Even if the World Government suddenly had a "burst of justice" and rejected Storm's underhanded deal...
Storm would simply continue to target the other Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea! Among the current Warlords, aside from the enigmatic Hawkeye Mihawk, the rest were no match for Storm. Dealing with them wouldn't be as easy as child's play, but it certainly wouldn't be much harder than molding clay.
And even if all else failed...
If a legitimate deal didn't work, an illegitimate one would!
Plundering the Celestial Tribute and forcibly threatening the World Government to secure a position among the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea was also a viable idea...
After all, a "predecessor" had already paved the way for Storm.
Five Elders, you wouldn't want the secret of the Celestial Dragons' national treasure to be exposed to the world, would you?
—From a certain pink flamingo who wishes to remain anonymous.
Ahem.
In any case.
Plans couldn't keep up with changes.
Storm never expected the World Government to proactively invite him to become one of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea! This was truly a pleasant surprise.
As everyone knows, the one who takes the initiative is the one at a disadvantage.
But a certain level of "reserve" was still necessary...
"Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea, huh!"
Storm snorted, his loud nasal tone clearly conveying his disdain for the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea.
Begin your performance, Saint Nusjuro!
Pangea Castle, Chamber of Authority.
Saint Nusjuro, along with the other attending Five Elders, all sensed the disdain in Storm's reaction.
The Five Elders exchanged knowing glances, their unique telepathic communication flowing seamlessly between them.
'Just as the intelligence suggested! This White Dragon brat utterly despises pirates!'
'Otherwise, why would he have slaughtered everyone in the Infinite Hell?'
'He's even more radical than that mad dog Sakazuki!'
'Given his past behavior, it's only natural that he looks down on the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea.'
'Let's proceed with the original plan…'
After some deliberation, the Five Elders reached a consensus.
In the end, it was Saint Nusjuro who was tasked with communicating with the White Dragon.
"White Dragon, I've been keeping an eye on your recent activities," Saint Nusjuro said in a calm tone.
"You made a grave mistake in Impel Down before.
"If it weren't for the government deliberately covering it up, you would have already been wanted by the Navy!"
"Deliberately covering it up? Indeed, it was deliberate," Storm sneered, not fooled by Saint Nusjuro's words.
"But isn't it because you were worried that if the incident in Impel Down got out, it would tarnish the government's reputation?"
"However, the government did halt the Navy's bounty on you," Saint Nusjuro responded calmly.
"But what you did in Alabasta was still too extreme.
"Sand Crocodile is a veteran of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea and has always worked for the government…"
Upon hearing this, Storm quickly controlled his expression.
He was worried that if he didn't manage his expression well, he might burst out laughing.
Sand Crocodile has always worked for the World Government? Elder, have you lost your mind? Sand Crocodile has been scheming to research and explore the ancient weapon [Pluton], which the World Government strictly forbids!
Storm simply responded with a grunt.
"Sand Crocodile, not bad."
This was actually Storm's genuine opinion.
Without a doubt, apart from having a somewhat fragile mentality, Crocodile was undoubtedly a qualified warlord.
His bounty was only 81 million Belly, which indicated that during his rise to fame, he had hardly committed any major crimes. After becoming one of the Seven Warlords, he diligently fought against pirates, maintaining the image of the "Hero of Alabasta."
Although later, Old Croc masterminded the civil war in Alabasta…
But that incident hadn't happened yet.
Storm didn't have a particularly bad impression of Old Croc.
If he truly thought Crocodile was incompetent…
A Sand Crocodile who didn't even know [Haki] wouldn't have survived until today! "Yes, Sand Crocodile has done a decent job," Saint Nusjuro nodded in satisfaction.
"Compared to the other Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea, Sand Crocodile has been the most cooperative with the government's actions.
"However, the commotion you caused in Alabasta still damaged the reputation of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea.
"And even the government's face!"
More nonsense! Storm rolled his eyes inwardly.
The World Government could cover up the incident in Impel Down because Impel Down was located deep in the Calm Belt, where every blade of grass was under strict control.
The World Government had absolute confidence in preventing any information from leaking.
But Storm's defeat of Sand Crocodile in Alabasta happened in broad daylight.
The World Government couldn't possibly cover it up! Moreover, the Five Elders never intended to hide it in the first place.
"The government has no choice but to issue a bounty on you," Saint Nusjuro continued.
"I know your past; you were once part of the Navy. "Once you're wanted, it means your family, elders, friends… all of them will become your enemies.
"Vongola Storm, you don't want to clash with the Navy, do you?"
This bald guy must be from Wano Country, right!?
Storm didn't hold back and rolled his eyes openly.
"I can't wait for the Navy to come after me! The stronger the Navy, the better!"
Storm's words were absolutely heartfelt.
Are the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea powerful?
Are the Pirate Emperors formidable? The true rulers of the seas have always been the Navy! Among all the forces of the sea.
In terms of the number of strong individuals, the Navy undoubtedly has the most.
Not only are there many, but their quality is also high.
The more Grand Prize Trophies they can provide, the higher the quality.
Storm genuinely hoped that today a Navy Vice Admiral would come, tomorrow a candidate for Admiral...
If the Navy could "train" him like this, his strength would continue to skyrocket! But Storm's heartfelt words.
To Saint Nusjuro, they sounded like the stubbornness of a child.
"Vongola Storm, don't engage in pointless bravado."
Saint Nusjuro chuckled lightly and extended the invitation once more.
"On behalf of the World Government, I formally invite you to join the 'Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea'!"
The Five Elders offered the final olive branch.
Storm didn't continue to "play hard to get."
"I can accept the government's invitation."
Storm nodded first, then shifted the topic.
"But I have a few conditions."
Conditions?
And several? Saint Nusjuro's smile faded slightly, and he narrowed his eyes.
He was well aware that the government needed to pay a certain price to recruit those notorious pirates.
Storm's words only slightly surprised Saint Nusjuro, but he didn't outright refuse.
In the seas, there are few powerful and renowned pirates willing to serve as the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea...
In fact, there are very few.
The World Government's options are quite limited.
White Dragon Vongola Storm is one of the most suitable candidates the Five Elders have found to serve as a Royal Seven Warlord of the Sea.
Perhaps even the only one!
Saint Nusjuro asked, "What are your conditions?"
"First of all, I'm not like Sand Crocodile and the Lizard King, remnants of the old era with no ambition."
Storm said.
"I won't linger in Paradise for long! My goal is only one—
"To become a great pirate, venture deep into the New World, and then... become an Emperor!"
Saint Nusjuro, along with the other Five Elders, didn't expect Storm's conditions to be so...
Simple.
"Haha!"
Saint Nusjuro laughed heartily.
"The Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea are meant to balance the power of the Pirate Emperors.
"If you want to challenge the Pirate Emperors, the government will absolutely support you!"
"My second condition is..."
Storm spoke slowly.
"I want to meet Dr. Vegapunk."
"Vegapunk?"
Saint Nusjuro's brow furrowed slightly.
"Why do you want to meet him?"
"Just to meet the smartest man on the seas."
Storm countered.
"Does that need a reason?"
Saint Nusjuro's intuition told him that White Dragon was hiding something.
But "meeting Vegapunk" wasn't a difficult request...
Saint Nusjuro finally nodded.
"No problem, but you'll need to go to Punk Hazard Island yourself."
"In that case..."
Storm nodded gently.
"I accept this invitation to join the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
"Tomorrow morning, the government's decree will be announced to the world through the World Economic Times."
Saint Nusjuro declared unhurriedly.
"Your bounty, along with the news of you becoming one of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea, will be announced to the world."
Click!
The Five Elders ended the communication.
Storm turned to the black-suited agent who was still carefully holding the Den Den Mushi and gave him a friendly smile.
"You've worked hard. I'll be gentle..."
"Huh?"
Before the black-suited agent could react, Storm sent him to accompany the Lizard King.
Just cleaning up some internal trash from the World Government—would anyone find that inappropriate? Aside from this unexpected CP agent who had intruded.
The identities of the other dozen or so people were all without suspicion.
Storm was too lazy to dig deeper into their secrets and planned to hand them over to the Navy later.
After dealing with the prisoners and tallying up the loot, Storm waved to Robin, who was standing nearby.
It was time for a meal!
The six-star Grand Prize Trophy he had just obtained by defeating the Lizard King.
After Storm personally executed Hanafuda, the originally crystal-clear Diamond Trophy had transformed into a [Blood Diamond Trophy], which now had both wish-granting and stat-boosting effects.
In addition, Red Ogre Brogy, Blue Ogre Dorry, and Hanafuda had also provided three five-star trophies.
"The Platinum Trophy is secondary. Right now, there's nowhere to allocate points, so I'll use the [Blood Diamond Trophy] for that!"
Storm first used the [Blood Diamond Trophy] to boost his [Speed] attribute by one level.
[Speed: ★★★★★★★] (Seven Stars)
Storm's [Strength], [Speed], and [Stamina] attributes had all reached the standard seven-star level! "There's still one wish left..."
Storm looked up at the sky, where clusters of white clouds stretched across the horizon.
"Skypiea..."
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