Chapter 131: Rejecting the Warlords, a Skyrocketing Bounty
"That's what Sengoku told me to say," Garp said, stroking his chin. "Huh, no, wait. I think that's what the Five Elders said. He was just relaying the message."
"Then it seems they've made a mistake," Shane said calmly. "When have I ever not been sailing this sea openly?"
The young man pointed behind him, at the white flag of The Curtain Call, which was fluttering in the wind.
"Do you see, old man?"
"What's this?" Garp laughed heartily. "So you've never even flown a pirate flag!"
"Stop playing dumb," Shane grinned. "If I had really been acting like a pirate, would you still be talking to me like this? If I signed the Warlord agreement, then I would really be a so-called 'great pirate,' wouldn't I?"
A Warlord?
What good would that do him?
Just to have his bounty revoked? For the right to legal plunder that countless pirates dreamed of?
To hell with that!
To become a dog of the World Government, to be at their beck and call, and to even have to give them his blood, for something as foul as the Heavenly Tribute?
He would have rather joined the Marines with Garp back on Mt. Colubo!
He'd probably be a Vice Admiral by now!
"Speaking of which, old man," the young man said, looking Garp in the eye, "there's one thing I'm quite curious about. Sengoku, and the other high-ranking officers at Marine Headquarters, do they really not know that I'm not a pirate?"
Garp was silent for a moment, then he sighed. "For the big shots, sometimes, face is more important than the truth."
"Is that so?" Shane laughed heartily and tossed the document back. "Then take this piece of scrap paper back with you. And please, give them a message for me. If they want to take away my right to 'sail this sea openly,' then they can just try!"
"Sigh…"
Garp took the document and rubbed his face. "What a headache. How am I supposed to report this when I get back? Although I had a feeling you'd say that…"
He couldn't give up just yet. He shot a sidelong glance at Shane.
"You really won't sign?"
"Nope."
"I brought a few bags of the finest tea. What if I give you two bags?"
"..." Three black lines appeared on Shane's forehead.
"I know, I know, I was just kidding! Puhahaha!"
Garp stood up with a laugh and tore the document to shreds, the paper confetti scattering in the sea breeze.
"Then continue to sail this sea, kid! Let me see how far you can go on this path!"
He strode toward his dog-headed warship. Bogard immediately rushed over and draped a new "Justice" coat over his shoulders.
Shane remained seated, silently watching Garp's retreating back through the scattering paper.
"Oh, right,"
Garp suddenly turned around and scratched his head. "I almost forgot. Sengoku's order was to arrest you on the spot if the negotiations failed."
"I'm out of energy,"
Shane said, spreading his hands. "But if you still want to fight, I'm game."
"PUHAHAHA!!!"
Garp laughed and waved his hand. "Are you kidding me?! I just used a Conqueror's Haki Infusion, and I still couldn't take you down, brat!"
He turned and strode toward the warship, waving to Shane without looking back.
"That's it then! I'll just say I couldn't find you when I get back! This sea is so big, it's normal to get lost!"
The dog-headed warship slowly sailed away. The Marine soldiers on the deck were still looking at the shattered ice field, their faces pale.
Bogard stood beside Garp, a worried look on his face. He asked in a low voice, "Mr. Garp, will it really be okay to go back like this?"
"What's the problem?"
Garp nonchalantly took out a bag of senbei. "The kid is right. He's not a pirate. Why should he have to sign some damn Warlord agreement?"
"But the Five Elders…"
"Who cares about them!"
Garp stuffed a handful of senbei into his mouth and mumbled, "I don't have the ability to do it anyway. If those old geezers are so capable, they can come and arrest him themselves!"
Hmm?
Wait a minute.
Garp suddenly realized something was wrong and touched his bare head.
Where's my dog-head hat?
Garp looked bewildered and searched himself. He clearly remembered that when he had been in the heat of battle, he had taken off the hat because it was obstructing his view and stuffed it in his pocket.
This scene seemed very familiar…
Bogard's heart skipped a beat, and he subconsciously touched his own head.
Phew, good.
His hat was still there.
...
Meanwhile, on The Curtain Call.
Nojiko watched the retreating warship and couldn't help but ask, "Big Bro, what do we do now?"
Although she had expected it, her brother's decisive rejection of the Warlord offer was so cool!
This was a position that countless people would be green with envy over!
In the entire Grand Line, how many people could do that?
As expected of my brother!
But now, the World Government, having lost face, would surely be enraged. Their future retaliation would undoubtedly be even more fierce…
However, her question was not answered.
At this moment, Shane, who seemed to be changing his clothes with Nami's help, was actually staring intently at the system panel in front of him.
[You have sacrificed Garp's dog-head hat and received 3800 points.]
[Remaining points: 27,000]
How much was the dog-head hat from the Goa Kingdom worth again? If I remember correctly, it was 4000?
Why is this one two hundred less?
After thinking about it, the only explanation was that the previous hat had been with Garp for longer and had a deeper emotional connection.
That made sense.
Shane shrugged and closed the system panel, completely forgetting that he could have also sheared Bogard's wool.
It couldn't be helped.
When he had first met him on Mt. Colubo, Bogard's faint swordmaster's aura had been as sharp as a blade, and he hadn't dared to underestimate him. Out of curiosity, he had "borrowed" his hat to check its point value.
And now, times had changed. The gap in their strength was now a world apart.
Although Shane had scanned Garp's warship with his Observation Haki, he had dismissed the barely-seen Bogard as a non-threat and had completely forgotten about him.
"Big Bro? Big Bro!" Nojiko's voice grew louder.
"Huh?"
Shane finally snapped out of it and turned to look at her.
"What do you mean, 'what do we do'? Of course we're having lunch. I'm starving," he said, rubbing his empty stomach with a smile. "After lunch, we'll get back to what we were doing. On with our adventure!"
He led the way to the dining room, and the other crew members exchanged smiles and followed.
"Why do you look so happy, Nami?" Smoker asked, a cigar between his teeth, as he walked at the back of the group.
"Of course!"
Nami shot him a look and stretched, as if a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders. "I was so afraid that my brother would agree to the agreement! If he had become a Warlord, my bounty would have been frozen at 80,000 Berries forever!"
"It might not go up even if he didn't," Smoker said calmly.
Nami froze, and then she exploded with rage.
"Waaah! Smokey, you bastard! I'm going to kill you!"
"Don't even think about it. You can't even use Armament Haki. You can't even touch me."
"I don't need Haki! I can burn you to a crisp with my fire!"
"I've never heard of that happening. But smoke can suppress fire, right?"
"No, fire suppresses smoke!"
"Smoke suppresses fire."
The corridor was once again filled with chatter, the group laughing and joking all the way. The tense atmosphere from before had completely vanished.
Only the little mochi-like creature was left at the back, hopping up and down, trying to get everyone's attention—
Hey! Look at me! Look at me! I was so eager to get stronger, to be able to protect my master, that I've already evolved for the first time!
I'm Nyaromon now!
Unfortunately, it was still too short.
Even after evolving, it was only thirty or forty centimeters tall, and it couldn't even jump as high as Nami's knee.
For the time being, no one noticed.
—————
Holy Land, Mary Geoise.
In Pangaea Castle, a CP0 agent in a white coat was kneeling on the floor, sweating profusely as he gave his report.
The atmosphere in the meeting room was grim.
"He refused?"
The blond Elder, Shepherd, crushed the teacup in his hand, his face dark. "An invitation to become a Warlord, which other pirates would kill for, and we even offered him better terms than usual, and he still refused to sign?"
"He doesn't care about the position of a Warlord?"
The Elder in the kimono, Nusjuro, said impassively, "It seems we have underestimated this brat's ambition."
"What about Garp?"
the white-haired, long-bearded Elder, Mars, asked. "Since he refused to sign the agreement, why didn't he arrest him on the spot?"
"They did fight, but the brat still got away," the CP0 agent respectfully replied. "According to our intel, Garp pursued him for a day and a night, but in the end, he lost him at sea, and he escaped."
The Five Elders all frowned.
"Useless old man," Saturn sneered. "Where's the skill he used to chase Roger to the ends of the earth? Now he's given the chance, and he can't even take down an eighteen-year-old brat."
"Garp's strength has declined with age, but he is still not to be underestimated. In this situation, it can only mean that this brat is even stronger than we thought," Nusjuro said, narrowing his eyes. "Of course, there is another possibility. As Sengoku said, Garp and this brat have an old friendship, and he was unwilling to go all out and deliberately let him go."
"That old man…"
Remembering Garp's repeated refusal to be promoted to Admiral, Saturn's face darkened.
He shook his head, not wanting to talk about it anymore. He turned to the kneeling CP0 agent.
"What is Shane's current bounty?"
"540 million Berries," the CP0 agent quickly replied.
"Not enough! To consecutively defeat… no, kill two Warlords, and then escape from both Akainu and Garp."
"This bounty no longer matches the threat he poses!"
Saturn stood up and gave the order coldly, "Go, inform Marine Headquarters to immediately issue a new bounty, and a high one! And the two vacant Warlord positions, have them filled as soon as possible. The balance of the sea must not be broken."
"Yes, Saint Saturn!"
The CP0 agent saluted and quickly left.
————
Marine Headquarters.
A torrential rain was falling, and thick, dark clouds hung over Marineford, as if they were about to swallow the entire fortress.
Since the news of Shane's refusal of the Warlord agreement had reached Headquarters, the atmosphere in the entire fortress had been as gloomy as the weather.
The Marine soldiers in the corridors walked with hurried steps and grim faces, their voices lowered in conversation.
"Yes, Fleet Admiral, I understand. Yes, please rest assured."
Senior Staff Officer Brannew put down the Transponder Snail, his knuckles tapping lightly on the desk, his brow furrowed.
He looked up and saw that his colleagues in the office had all stopped their work and were looking at him.
"The situation is worse than we expected. The Elders in the Holy Land are furious. They have ordered us to update this group's bounties as quickly as possible."
Brannew stood up and said in a low voice, "Gather the other members of the staff office. We're having a meeting! I want a complete combat analysis report in one hour, and a new bounty proposal in two!"
———
In the New World, on an unnamed island.
Morgans was pacing back and forth behind his sofa, a cup of coffee in his hand, looking annoyed.
"We have the results, President!"
The wooden door of the office was suddenly thrown open, and his assistant, in a sharp suit, burst in, panting. "Shane has refused the Warlord offer! The higher-ups at Marine Headquarters are furious! The new wanted posters have already been sent over!"
"He refused?!"
Morgans snatched the documents from him. "Let me see!"
He quickly scanned the entire intelligence file, his gaze then turning to the new bounty numbers.
Clang!
The coffee cup in Morgans's claw fell to the floor, the brown liquid splattering on his white feathers.
But the president of the World Economic Journal didn't even notice. His beak stretched into an exaggerated grin that reached from ear to ear. "Eeyahahaha! He didn't disappoint me! Big news! This is headline news that will shake the entire sea!"
And he doesn't even have to embellish it!
The news of Hanafuda's death can be released, and with the rejection of the Warlord agreement, Shane's escape from the legendary Marine Hero, Garp…
And on top of that, the bombshell news—Shane's crew's new bounties!
Morgans couldn't even imagine how well this issue of the newspaper would sell all over the world!
He grabbed the Transponder Snail on his desk and dialed the number for the printing press. "It's me, President Morgans!"
"What?! Tomorrow morning's paper is already being printed? Stop all printing immediately! Throw that scrap paper in the trash! I'm coming down to write tomorrow's front page myself!"
After hanging up, Morgans returned to his desk, humming a little tune, and excitedly took out his quill from the inkwell.
He hadn't decided on a headline yet, but without even thinking, he skillfully wrote the first two words on a blank piece of paper:
[SHOCKING—]
...
The next morning, in the office, Morgans was sprawled out on his desk, his beak slightly open, his feathers a mess. He had clearly passed out from exhaustion after pulling an all-nighter.
Beside his claw was a quill, the ink still wet.
And on the desk were piles of rough drafts, the headlines repeatedly revised.
As a journalist who was extremely passionate about his work, Morgans had always had high standards for his writing.
The final draft of the front page had already been carefully taken by his assistant and sent to the printing press.
The pungent smell of ink filled the factory.
The brand-new newspapers flew off the assembly line like snowflakes, and the workers quickly bundled them into stacks and loaded them into the News Coos' mailbags.
"The first batch of newspapers is ready!"
"Release the birds! Release the birds immediately!"
With the order given, countless News Coos, their mailbags full, took to the sky, flying toward the Four Blues in the morning sun.
They carried this momentous news, spreading it to every corner of the world…
————
New World.
On the Moby Dick, a grand feast was underway.
It was to celebrate the end of their war with the Beast Pirates.
Although the Four Emperors generally maintained a balance of power, it wasn't always peaceful.
There were always frictions and clashes.
This small-scale war was a microcosm of that.
Neither of the main commanders had personally participated. Only a small number of officers had led their subordinates into battle.
The Whitebeard Pirates had emerged victorious, cutting off the Beast Pirates' reach from Wano and successfully expanding their own territory.
A bonfire roared on the deck, and barrels of liquor were piled high.
Marco, holding a cup of liquor, leaped onto the main mast. "Men!" he grinned. "To our new territory, and to our great victory—cheers!"
"OHHHHHHH—!!!"
The crew roared in response, the sound of clinking cups and hearty laughter intermingling.
"Gurararara!"
Whitebeard's laugh was like a clap of thunder. He sat on his giant, custom-made chair, his bisento, Murakumogiri, leaning against his shoulder. He tilted his head back and chugged an entire barrel of liquor. "Kaido's little brats are still too green! They're no match for my sons!"
"Hey, Pops! Chugging a whole barrel in one go is against the rules!"
The fourth division commander, Thatch, popped up from behind and took the remaining barrels away. "For your health, you should drink less!"
"Thatch!" Whitebeard roared. "You killjoy! Give me back my liquor!"
"No, no, I won't!"
Thatch hid the barrels behind his back. Whitebeard reached for them, and the two of them began to wrestle, much to the amusement of the surrounding pirates.
Just then, a News Coo landed on the ship's railing, the latest newspaper in its beak.
"Hey, Teach!"
Thatch shouted to a crewmate. "I'm a little busy here! Go get the paper and see what the big news is today!"
"No problem, Commander!"
Blackbeard grinned, revealing his missing teeth. "Zehahaha! Well, well, what a coincidence! If you ask me, the newspaper must have heard about our victory and rushed out a special edition to announce the triumph of the Whitebeard Pirates to the world!"
He quickly walked over and took the newspaper from the News Coo, tossing it a few coins.
He then grinned and patted the News Coo's head, watching it fly away.
However, when Teach unfolded the newspaper, the smile on his face instantly froze.
There was no Whitebeard, no Beast Pirates. The front page had nothing to do with them.
It was dominated by a massive wanted poster of a black-haired young man with a sword on his back, laughing wildly.
And above it was a massive, bolded headline!
—SHOCKWAVE THROUGH THE GRAND LINE! AFTER KILLING TWO WARLORDS, THE MOST ARROGANT PIRATE, TACHI SWORDSMAN SHANE, REJECTS WARLORD INVITATION! WORLD GOVERNMENT ENRAGED, URGENTLY RAISES BOUNTY!
"Zehahaha… well now…" Blackbeard narrowed his eyes, staring at the headline, a strange light in his eyes.
"Hey, Teach!"
Marco, noticing his strange reaction, jumped down from the mast and snatched the newspaper. "What is it? What news has you so surprised?"
When he saw the contents, his pupils also constricted, and he cried out in shock, "A billion?! A full billion Berries?! His bounty doubled just like that?!"
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