The New World, Totto Land, Whole Cake Island.
In the towering Cake Castle—standing quietly in the northern part of Whole Cake Island, its layered structure resembling a towering confectionery masterpiece—the Pirate Emperor, Queen of Totto Land, the strongest female pirate on the seas, and captain of the Big Mom Pirates, Charlotte Linlin, was savoring today's desserts with evident delight.
Each of these desserts contained enough sugar to be lethal to an ordinary person.
Yet Charlotte Linlin devoured them voraciously.
One after another, the sweet cakes were first imbued with special "souls" by the power of the Soul-Soul Fruit.
Then, before these newly born entities could even experience the beauty of the world, they were unceremoniously stuffed into Charlotte Linlin's mouth.
The silent wails of their souls, inaudible to ordinary ears, gradually faded into the abyss of her throat...
This was the Soul Queen in her element!
After polishing off an entire platter of desserts, Charlotte Linlin patted her stomach in satisfaction.
While waiting for the next batch of fresh sweets to arrive, she turned her attention to her eldest son, who had been standing by patiently.
"Mamamamama... Perospero."
Charlotte Linlin let out a cheerful laugh. In her satiated state, she was a relatively amiable Mother.
"You've been waiting so long—do you have some 'big news' to share with me?
"Speak quickly! Don't interrupt my dessert time."
"Yes, Mother!"
The "Candy Duke" of Totto Land, Charlotte Perospero, stiffened slightly.
Activating his Lick-Lick Fruit abilities, he conjured a candy elevator, delivering a freshly printed bounty poster to Charlotte Linlin.
"Today, the World Government suddenly issued a bounty for a rookie pirate and distributed it to every affiliated nation across the seas.
"According to the bounty, the World Government has labeled this pirate as 'Whitebeard Jr.'."
"Whitebeard!?"
The moment the name left his lips, a sharp glint flashed in Charlotte Linlin's eyes.
In the eyes of the world, the Emperors were considered equals.
But among the Emperors themselves—
There were still hierarchies.
Though Charlotte Linlin was reluctant to admit it, in her mind, the four Pirate Emperors were indeed ranked by strength...
Take Red Hair Shanks, captain of the Red Hair Pirates, who had suddenly risen to prominence this year.
That former cabin boy from the Roger Pirates had grown strong enough to unsettle even Charlotte Linlin.
Yet no matter how the rankings among the Emperor crews shifted,
One man's position remained unchallenged—
Whitebeard!
The strongest man on the seas!
Even Charlotte Linlin acknowledged his power without reservation.
Now, hearing the name "Whitebeard Jr.", her interest was immediately piqued.
She snatched the bounty poster and casually snapped off the candy elevator Perospero had created, chewing on it like a lollipop.
"This face... It really does look like Whitebeard in his younger days!"
As Charlotte Linlin studied the photograph of Edward Teach on the bounty poster, the intensity in her gaze grew even sharper.
She had once been a member of the Rocks Pirates alongside Whitebeard, and in their younger days, they had fought side by side.
Thus, Charlotte Linlin was very familiar with Whitebeard's appearance in his youth.
At one point, she had even considered inviting Whitebeard to join her Totto Land and become her husband…
After all, both Charlotte Linlin and Edward Newgate were pirates who deeply cherished the concept of "family."
From this perspective, Big Mom and Whitebeard seemed like a "match made in heaven."
Unfortunately, the past was too painful to revisit.
After the dissolution of the Rocks Pirates,
Big Mom and Whitebeard went their separate ways.
Each established their own pirate crew, carved out their own territories, and eventually rose to become recognized Pirate Emperors…
The regret of never having built a family with Whitebeard suddenly welled up in Charlotte Linlin's heart at this moment.
Big Mom couldn't even be bothered to check the bounty of this so-called "Whitebeard Jr."
She simply stared at Whitebeard Jr.'s face and uttered words that sent shivers down the spine of Charlotte Perospero beside her.
"Perospero, what do you think about making Whitebeard my new husband?"
"Deploy all our forces—turn the entire sea upside down if you have to—but find this Whitebeard for me!"
...
New World, Wano Country, Onigashima.
The Beast Pirates had also obtained the bounty poster of Edward Teach that had shocked the seas.
Beast Castle, third floor, banquet hall.
A grand feast that had lasted for several days was nearing its end.
Kaido of the Beasts, unusually sober, sat at the head of the table and announced to the others in the hall:
"From today onward!"
"Jack will become one of the All-Stars of the Beast Pirates!"
"Additionally, Ulti and Page One will be promoted to the Flying Six!"
The Lizard King had died at the hands of the White Dragon.
He had once been a member of the Beast Pirates, but now he was dead.
With the Lizard King gone, his position was naturally vacant.
After a brutal and bloody internal competition,
the 22-year-old fish-man Jack defeated numerous powerful contenders and became one of the three All-Stars of the Beast Pirates!
Meanwhile,
the two Ancient Zoan-type Devil Fruits that Donquixote Doflamingo had sent to Wano Country a few days earlier
had been stolen outright by Ulti in a bold move.
Of the two Ancient Zoan Devil Fruits, Ulti kept one for herself and gave the other to her younger brother.
Kaido of the Beasts was furious about the "theft" of the two Ryu Ryu Fruits, Ancient Zoan-types.
But since Ulti and Page One had already eaten the Devil Fruits, there was no way to force a Devil Fruit Rebirth.
While the death penalty was spared, punishment was inevitable.
Taking advantage of Jack's promotion,
Kaido also subjected Ulti and Page One to challenges from other members of the Beast Pirates.
However,
thanks to their extensive combat experience honed since childhood and their newly acquired abilities from the [Pachycephalosaurus/Spinosaurus Fruits],
the siblings not only weathered Kaido's thunderous wrath but also defeated all other challengers, securing their promotions as members of the Flying Six!
With this battle, Ulti and Page One made a name for themselves and solidified their positions.
The Beast Pirates had lost a Lizard King…
But in exchange, he got a mammoth and two new dinosaurs.
Kaido of the Beasts was in a rather good mood.
Just then, two pirate underlings burst into the banquet hall, clutching the bounty poster of Whitebeard Jr.
"Lord Kaido! Big news! There's been huge news!"
"Whitebeard! The World Government has issued a bounty for Whitebeard Jr.!"
Amid the sudden silence, the shouts of the pirate underlings echoed throughout the banquet hall.
"Whitebeard?"
"Jr.?"
"How is that possible?"
Kaido of the Beasts was equally puzzled. He narrowed his eyes and focused on the bounty posters held high by the two underlings—instantly recognizing the face imprinted on his memory.
That wasn't the elderly Whitebeard.
It was the young Whitebeard from the Rocks Pirates era!!
"Worororo!"
Kaido stared at Edward Teach's bounty poster for a moment before suddenly erupting into deafening laughter.
"A rookie who looks exactly like Whitebeard in his youth? Could this be Newgate's son?!"
The next moment.
Kaido saw the bounty amount on Edward Teach's poster.
A staggering 1,999,000,000 Belly!
This figure far exceeded the bounties of 99.99% of the pirates on the seas.
Even the combined bounties of many crews in the New World might not reach this number.
Kaido understood exactly what this figure meant.
Among the current Emperor crews—
Aside from the captains themselves—Whitebeard, Red-Haired Shanks, Kaido, and Big Mom—
The highest bounty among their subordinates barely reached around 1 billion Belly.
Of course, the Red Hair Pirates were a special case, as their average bounty was exceptionally high.
Take the Beast Pirates as an example.
Kaido's bounty was 4,611,100,000 Belly.
Beneath him, the right-hand man of the entire crew, Flame Disaster King, had a bounty of only—1,390,000,000 Belly.
This amount was tied to King's position—he wasn't a captain, but the second-in-command of the Beast Pirates.
But more importantly, it reflected King's strength.
For the World Government to assign a bounty of nearly 2 billion Belly to this "Whitebeard Jr."—
It meant…
At least in the eyes of the World Government, this "Whitebeard Jr." was far stronger than the right-hand men of the Emperor crews!
Latest updates at 6-9-n-o-v-e-l-b-l-o-g!
A surge of ambition instantly ignited within Kaido.
"Listen up, brats! Find this Whitebeard Jr. and bring him to me! I want to recruit him into the Beast Pirates!"
"If we can get this guy on our side, we'll crush 'Red Hair,' 'Linlin,' and even 'Whitebeard' himself!"
"Everyone, move out! Worororo—"
...
New World, a certain island.
The Red Hair Pirates, who had just become one of the Four Emperor crews this year, were currently stationed here.
"Mihawk, thanks…"
Red-Haired Shanks expressed his gratitude through the Den Den Mushi.
On the other end, Hawkeye Mihawk remained indifferent, offering only a cold reply.
"I'm also quite interested in the strength of this 'Whitebeard Jr.' You might be able to help me find him."
After saying this, Hawkeye Mihawk directly hung up the Den Den Mushi.
"Hawkeye..."
Beside him, Benn Beckman chuckled and shook his head.
"He's always been like this, hasn't he?"
"I really want to share another drink with Hawkeye..."
Shanks set the Den Den Mushi aside, picked up a cup of liquor with his only remaining hand, raised it toward a certain direction over the sea, and then downed the entire contents in one go.
As if he had just clinked glasses with Hawkeye from afar...
"Captain, what do you think of this 'newcomer'?"
Beckman wiped the smile off his face and spoke solemnly.
"Whitebeard Jr.—the fact that the World Government set such a high bounty on him means he must have done something major that we don't know about, something that made them recognize his strength and threat level."
"How do I see it? Well, obviously with my eyes! Hahaha..."
Shanks, holding the bounty poster just faxed over by Hawkeye, was about to crack a joke when Beckman shot him a sharp glare.
"Don't be so serious, Beckman.
"Newcomers emerge on the sea every moment—like that White Dragon from before—"
"White Dragon and Whitebeard are not even in the same league!"
Beckman mercilessly cut off his captain's words, delivering a rather harsh assessment.
"One doesn't even have a bounty of 100 million, while the other's is close to 2 billion.
"The former is just a government lapdog, while the latter's power can shake the entire sea!
"At the end of the day, that's Whitebeard we're talking about!"
"So what?"
Shanks slung an arm over Beckman's shoulder, grinning cheekily.
"Whitebeard is Whitebeard, and we are who we are!"
"It's not the same, Captain."
Beckman snatched the bounty poster from Shanks' hand and gave it a firm shake.
"The Whitebeard Pirates definitely won't overlook keeping tabs on this 'Whitebeard Jr.'
"The Beast Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates also harbor immense ambitions—they won't easily let go of a pirate with such a high bounty.
"We have to take some action too!"
"Are you saying we should recruit this 'Whitebeard Jr.'?"
Shanks more or less grasped the subtext of Benn Beckman's words and studied Whitebeard Jr.'s face closely.
"No!"
"Huh?"
"I said, no!"
Shanks shook his head vigorously.
"Just imagining having a man with Whitebeard's face as a comrade...
"It's like having a stranger standing behind you while you pee—I wouldn't be able to go.
"Let things take their course, Beckman.
"The storm of the new era hasn't begun to blow yet..."
...
Paradise, Marine Headquarters.
A grim-faced Sengoku and a pained-looking Kizaru descended from Mary Geoise and returned to Marine Headquarters.
After entering the headquarters building and arriving at the Fleet Admiral's office—
Kizaru, who had maintained his agonized expression the whole time, finally couldn't hold back any longer.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, I sustained extremely severe injuries in the previous battle and must request leave!"
This "request for leave" was delivered with absolute firmness, devoid of his usual slippery, lazy tone.
Sengoku glanced at Kizaru.
He couldn't care less about Kizaru's injuries.
If you can speak with such vigor, how can you claim to be seriously wounded?
Stop lying!
You damn salary thief!
"I have matters to attend to. Go to the medical department yourself later."
Sengoku briefly dismissed the topic of "leave approval" with those words.
Even he, the Fleet Admiral, couldn't enjoy a vacation.
And you, an Admiral, still want to slack off?
Not a chance!
Seeing Sengoku trying to downplay the matter, Kizaru was about to say something more when—
A sudden knock interrupted them.
Vice Admiral Tsuru stood at the door of the Fleet Admiral's office, closing it behind her as she entered.
"Sengoku, have you submitted all the previous analyses to the Five Elders?"
"Everything's been reported, including the speculation about 'Whitebeard's illegitimate son'..."
"Hmm..."
Tsuru nodded, hesitating for a moment before continuing.
"Actually, I just recalled something—we might have discovered information about 'Edward Teach' much earlier."
At those words,
both Sengoku and Kizaru's expressions shifted immediately.
"Tsuru, what did you find?"
"Around the beginning of this year, the name 'Edward Teach' had already appeared once in headquarters records."
Tsuru spoke slowly.
"Regarding this intelligence about a 'Whitebeard' who seemed to have sprung out of nowhere...
"Why don't we ask Storm about it?
"Vongola Storm!"