"One Piece:The True Codex"Chapter 388: The Steam Whistle
Hearing William mention the Big Mom Pirates, Sherlock asked, "What's the plan with the Four Emperors now?"
"We'll maintain the status quo," William replied. "I've already become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, so it's not appropriate for me to interact with them directly. But there's no need to completely sever ties either. You all can handle the communications with them."
"And what about Big Mom? She sent people to propose marriage, didn't she?" Edmond couldn't help but grin as he brought up the topic. "You suddenly became a Warlord without giving any prior notice. I wonder what Big Mom's people are thinking about that."
"I never agreed to the proposal," William said nonchalantly, brushing his eyebrows. After a moment of thought, he added, "Send them some of the new experimental weapons from our lab, along with a few airships as a token of goodwill. I heard Big Mom loves food, right? During my trip to the Grand Line, I had a pleasant conversation with the mayor of Pucci, the City of Gourmet. Send some of Pucci's specialties and delicacies to Big Mom as well."
Sherlock chuckled lightly. "Big Mom's people might not even be upset. Aramis seems to be getting along quite well with them. If his reputation grows a bit more, perhaps Baron Tamago will suggest him as a potential son-in-law to Big Mom."
Harden, standing nearby, pursed his lips, unsure whether he was envious or annoyed.
…
Marineford, Marine Headquarters.
Several warships were docked in the harbor. Unlike the uniform design of the surrounding Marine vessels, these ships came in various shapes and sizes. Most notably, many of them bore pirate flags.
In this world, only the ships of the Seven Warlords of the Sea could enjoy the privilege of docking safely at the Marine Headquarters' harbor.
The Marines stationed at the base were on high alert, treating the situation as if preparing for battle. Even for these seasoned elites, it was rare to see so many infamous pirates gathered in one place. Despite being nominally part of the World Government's armed forces, the Warlords were still pirates, and no one dared to let their guard down.
"One, two, three, four..." A dark-skinned Vice Admiral stood by the window, counting the pirate ships docked at the harbor. He sighed, "What a rare sight. To think so many would actually show up for this Warlords meeting."
The skepticism surrounding the Warlords system wasn't unfounded. Many Marines had voiced their discontent with the arrangement, and the Warlords' summoning meetings were a prime example of why. Typically, no matter how the government or Marines tried to notify them—be it through phone calls, letters, or personal messengers—these unruly pirates would ignore the summons. It was common for none of them to show up, let alone all of them.
This time, however, four Warlords had already arrived—a rare occurrence indeed.
"Who's here?" asked another Vice Admiral, who was casually playing cards in the room.
"Donquixote Doflamingo, Sir Crocodile, 'Fish-Man' Jinbe, and the 'Empress,'" replied the dark-skinned Vice Admiral by the window.
The card-playing Vice Admiral perked up at the mention of the last name, shifting his gaze from the cards to his colleague. "Boa Hancock? She's here too?"
"She just docked. Didn't you see? Her ship is full of women..." The dark-skinned Vice Admiral clicked his tongue as he spoke.
"Why would she come?" the card-playing Vice Admiral muttered, clearly puzzled.
"To watch the Marines make fools of themselves, perhaps!"
A tall, lanky man pushed open the door and walked in. He had short, curly black hair and wore a pair of brown sunglasses. Despite his crisp yellow-and-white striped suit, the unshaven stubble on his face and his lazy tone gave him an air of sloppiness.
This was none other than Borsalino, also known as Admiral Kizaru.
Kizaru entered the room, holding a cup of coffee. With his usual unhurried demeanor, he strolled over to the window, draped an arm over the dark-skinned Vice Admiral's shoulder, and took a sip of his coffee. Smacking his lips, he said, "They must want to see, with their own eyes, the scene of the Marines exchanging prisoners with Morgan William. Such a nasty bunch of pirates!"
The two Vice Admirals remained silent. They knew that one of the captured Marines, Vice Admiral Strawberry, had once been Kizaru's subordinate. Despite Kizaru's seemingly casual attitude, they suspected he wasn't as indifferent as he appeared.
Just then, a knock on the door interrupted their thoughts. A Marine Commander entered and addressed Kizaru. "Admiral Kizaru, we've just received a report from the reconnaissance ship. Morgan William's vessels have been spotted and are approaching the headquarters."
"I should personally witness the 'grandeur' of this new Warlord," Kizaru said with a sly smile, setting his coffee cup on the table.
As he spoke, his body began to emit a dazzling light. The other three officers in the room instinctively closed their eyes. In an instant, Kizaru's body transformed into beams of golden light, which shot out of the open window and reassembled into his form at the harbor below.
The sudden appearance of Kizaru startled the Marines stationed at the harbor. After a brief moment of shock, they quickly saluted. Kizaru waved them off nonchalantly.
Not long after, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, accompanied by Vice Admiral Tsuru, emerged from the fortress behind the harbor, having also received the news.
As Sengoku reached the edge of the harbor, a Marine officer handed him a pair of binoculars.
"Is that the 'Black Ship' Morgan William's crew relies on?" Sengoku muttered as he peered through the binoculars. The first thing he noticed was the towering black smoke rising into the sky. It wasn't long before the steel warships came into view, cutting through the waves.
Sengoku observed the steam-powered ships for a while before shifting his gaze toward the tall buildings in the fortress behind him. As he expected, several figures could be seen at the windows, watching the ships with great interest, completely ignoring the presence of Sengoku and the other Marines.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, should we instruct the reconnaissance ship to guide Morgan William's fleet to the other side of the island?" a cautious Marine Captain suggested.
"The other side leads to the town," Sengoku replied calmly, lowering the binoculars. "I'd rather receive our captured soldiers openly at the main gate of the fortress. We may have suffered some losses in the East Blue, but Morgan William still has to return the captured Marines. Any underhanded tricks would only make us look weaker in the eyes of others."
The Captain fell silent, realizing the futility of his suggestion.
As they spoke, the three massive steamships drew closer to the harbor. Just as the Marines prepared to act, a deafening blast from the ships' steam whistles echoed across the harbor. The sudden noise caught many Marines off guard, causing a moment of chaos.
The steamships only slowed down after the sound subsided, gradually docking at the harbor.
In the fortress's tall buildings, Donquixote Doflamingo clapped his hands and laughed loudly at the scene. Meanwhile, in other rooms, Crocodile, Jinbe, and Boa Hancock each reacted differently—some with schadenfreude, others deep in thought.
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