Chapter 200: Fame Shakes the World - One Piece: It All Started When I Found Shanks' Arm

Chapter 200: Fame Shakes the World

"This... is the main event of today's meeting."

Brannew returned to the front of the whiteboard, his gaze sweeping across the room. "The second tier of the Curtain Call Adventurers, the key officers directly under the captain. There are three of them."

"After much deliberation, our strategic department has tentatively named this trio, these harbingers of disaster, the 'Three Calamities'!"

"Their threat level is to be considered equal to that of the Beast Pirates' All-Stars and the Big Mom Pirates' Sweet Commanders!"

Brannew's hand slapped down on the poster of the silent, imposing man in the fuzzy bear-ear hat.

"On the far left, a new addition just before this war... or perhaps he joined in secret long ago, and we were simply unaware. The 'Tyrant,' Bartholomew Kuma!"

"He single-handedly orchestrated the 'One-Man Revolution Incident,' illegally usurping the throne of the Sorbet Kingdom in the South Blue. Not long ago, he stormed Dressrosa alone and dismantled the entire Donquixote Family! And in this recent battle, his performance was nothing short of astonishing."

"He completely dominated his opponent, killing the Rumble-Rumble Fruit user and fellow Warlord, Enel, on the spot with almost no effort. The damage he sustained... was negligible!"

"With such strength and such a brutally dangerous nature... his original 600 million bounty no longer fits. It doesn't even come close! Of this, there is no doubt!"

"Therefore, after re-evaluation, Marine HQ has unanimously agreed to raise his bounty to 870,000,000 Belly!"

"He is the first of the Three Calamities, the 'Thunder Fall'!"

870 million?!

A collective gasp went through the room. No wonder their threat level was being compared to Marco and Katakuri... with a bounty that high, he was already in their league.

"Next, the one on the far right." Brannew skipped the middle poster for now.

"Just half a year ago, he was a complete unknown. A top-tier officer cultivated entirely by the Curtain Call Adventurers, fiercely loyal to his captain, and user of a rare Ancient Zoan fruit. 'The Mammoth,' Jack!"

"He is impulsive, reckless, and loves to fight. His strength is constantly and rapidly improving! In our last report on him, he could only transform into a mammoth and charge blindly. Now, he has already mastered his hybrid form for combat."

"Dalmatian and Momonga, two of our most renowned and veteran Vice Admirals, were unable to stand against him even when fighting together. They were utterly defeated."

Is that true?!

The faces of the high-ranking officers in the room changed. Two of Instructor Z's prize pupils, both Vice Admirals for over a decade and among the strongest of their rank... defeated by one man? Another damn monster!

"Based on this, Jack's original bounty of 500 million Belly will be raised to 777,000,000 Belly!"

"He is the second of the Three Calamities, the 'Earth Rumbler'!"

Earth Rumbler? The officers nodded thoughtfully. When a mammoth charged, the ground shook as if from an earthquake. The name was fitting.

"And finally, the core of the Three Calamities, the officer most trusted by Shane, his first mate... the 'Gale Swordmaster,' Kuina!"

Brannew's hand slapped down on the poster in the very center.

In the photo, the dark-haired young woman stood on a windswept ice plain, holding Wado Ichimonji. Her expression was cold, her long ponytail whipped about by the wind, revealing several bloody scratches on her forehead and cheek. But the wounds did not detract from her beauty; instead, they added a sharp, sword-like intensity to her features.

"Even before entering the New World, this swordmaster's record was impressive. And recently, her strength, particularly her physical conditioning, has clearly taken another massive leap forward! On the Sabaody Archipelago, she could barely hold off Vice Admiral Chaton for an hour. In this battle, she fought Vice Admiral Gion from noon until nightfall to a complete standstill!"

"According to Vice Admiral Gion's own assessment, her swordsmanship is now nearly on par with her own. She can be considered the single strongest female swordmaster among all pirates, bar none!"

"Her new bounty is set at 940,000,000 Belly! She is the last of the Three Calamities, the 'Wind Erosion'!"

The room was thick with smoke. Some of the officers were starting to feel numb. The bounties just kept climbing. The first mate was already approaching a billion. What about the captain, the man at the very pinnacle of the crew...?

"And finally... the man you've all been waiting for. The World's Greatest Swordsman. A true monster who will be ranked among the greatest legends in the history of the sea—"

"The captain of the Curtain Call Pirates, Shane!!!"

As he spoke, a new wanted poster appeared, magnified to fill the entire screen. It was the same photo taken in the rain on Sabaody—a handsome young man with black hair, black clothes, and black eyes, walking toward the camera, his hand reaching for the sword on his back, his eyes filled with a cold, mocking indifference, as if he were a god looking down on mortals.

For some reason, just looking at the photo... just a photo... made many of the officers shift uncomfortably in their seats, a cold sweat beading on their foreheads. It was as if they were afraid the monster in human skin would step out of the picture and draw his sword with a maniacal laugh...

"On Sabaody, his battle with and subsequent defeat of the Dark King Rayleigh captured the world's attention. At the time, many predicted that it wouldn't be long before he officially joined the ranks of the world's strongest, able to face Admirals and Emperors head-on." Brannew's gaze swept over the officers. "Most of you probably agreed. But... I doubt any of us, myself included, thought that day would come so soon!"

"In the last two months, he first fought Mr. Sakazuki to a standstill. Then, in this battle, he completely and utterly defeated Admiral Kizaru, inflicting upon him the same fate as the Dark King Rayleigh!"

"His physicality, his three forms of Haki, his swordsmanship, his hand-to-hand combat... nearly every aspect is at the highest level in the world. He is, in every sense of the word, a flawless hexagonal warrior!"

"With this level of strength, he can face any of the Four Emperors without backing down. He has fully earned the right to be called an Emperor of the Sea! The only thing he lacks... is a direct confrontation with one of the current Four..."

Everyone in the room understood. Being seen as having strength close to a Yonko and actually being a Yonko were two different things. While his top officers were now formidable, his crew as a whole still lacked the numbers and influence. The final piece of the puzzle was Shane himself. He needed the recognition of the other Emperors. Just like Red-Haired Shanks years ago, who had solidified his status as an Emperor only after clashing with another and not losing.

"Regardless..." Brannew said after a pause, "this man is, without a doubt, the most dangerous and untouchable pirate to emerge since Red-Haired Shanks! His bounty is now the highest of anyone who is not a Yonko, and is infinitely close—"

THWACK!

Brannew slammed his fist on the whiteboard, his voice rising to a roar.

"'World's Greatest Swordsman' Shane, new bounty: 2,860,000,000 Belly!!!"

New World, in a sea bathed in the light of dusk.

A figure in a mask and a white coat emerged from the "WE NEWS" airship, used Moonwalk to ascend into the sky, and vanished.

Inside the airship, Morgans watched the mysterious figure go before leaning back in his chair with a grin.

"Well, I'll be. The sun must have risen in the west. An order from CP0 that isn't a list of restrictions and demands... but instead tells me to write freely, to report boldly?! They even gave me permission to exaggerate, to build up the hype around Shane? Interesting, very interesting!" Morgans took a leisurely sip of his coffee, a sharp glint in his eye. "To be so obvious about it... are they trying to provoke the other Emperors, to get them to destroy the Curtain Call crew for them?"

But it probably wasn't that simple. What secrets were those five old men hiding?

"Heehahahahaha!!!" Morgans roared with laughter. "Thinking too much will just drive you crazy! What do I care? As long as I do what the World Government wants, I'll make a fortune!"

"Someone, bring me my quill!"

"Uh, President? You've been taking pictures for days. You must be exhausted. Why not let your subordinates handle the rest?"

"Less talking!" Morgans glared. "I want to write it myself!" He had gotten into this business because he loved it, and he would never forget his roots. Writing was tiring, but for a story that was guaranteed to shake the world, how could he call himself a journalist if he didn't write it himself?!

...Unsurprisingly, Morgans was rushed to the hospital that night. After days of being a frontline war correspondent and then pulling an all-nighter to write a manuscript tens of thousands of words long, the world-famous tycoon's ambition had finally outpaced his age. He had collapsed at his desk. But the first draft was mostly complete. After some editing and polishing, it was ready to go. His staff, knowing what their president would want, worked through the night.

Just before dawn, the first batch of newspapers, with their bold, black headlines, were sent out with the News Coos, scattering like snowflakes to every corner of the world...

East Blue, Mt. Colubo.

Luffy, rubbing his sleepy eyes, crawled out of a hollow tree and patted his rumbling stomach. "Ace—! Ace—! Where are you?! I'm hungry!" he yelled.

No response.

Luffy scratched his head. Just as he was about to look for food himself, he heard a rustling sound. He followed it to find Ace sitting on a rock, staring at a crumpled newspaper.

"Ace!" Luffy's face lit up. "Whatcha looking at? Never mind... you got any meat? Is there any meat left from yesterday?!"

Ace didn't seem to hear him.

"Hey! Ace!" Luffy waved a hand in front of his face, annoyed. "Are you deaf?"

Ace finally snapped out of it. He looked up at Luffy, his expression complex. "Luffy... I'm setting sail." He stared into the distance. "In a few days, it'll be the new year. I'm leaving then. Just like Sabo, I'll set out a year before I'm an adult and head for that place they call the Grand Line."

"Huh?" Luffy scratched his head again. "What's the hurry? Can't you wait until after your birthday?"

"I can't wait," Ace clicked his tongue. "I just happened to buy a newspaper and saw something incredible. Here, look."

He pointed to the headline:

"Uh..." Luffy looked at it, confused. "I can't read, Ace..."

"You idiot!" Ace punched him on the head. "If you want to go out to sea, you have to learn how to read! Ask Dadan to teach you! But even if you can't read the words, you can still read the numbers, can't you?!"

Luffy was about to start counting the zeros when Ace shook his head. "It's about Big Brother Shane. It seems... he's become a really famous, incredible person."

Really? Luffy's interest was piqued. He looked at the paper and found the familiar face under the headline. A wide grin spread across his face. It's been a while since you came to do magic tricks for me, Big Brother Shane. You look so cool now! And even more handsome!

But... that bounty was a little pathetic. 286,000? What are the bounty people thinking? How can a world-famous person have a bounty that low? I'll probably surpass that as soon as I set sail!

"Big Brother Shane has already gone so far ahead. If I keep wasting time here, I'll never even see his shadow again," Ace said, standing up. He ruffled Luffy's hair. "That guy beat me up pretty bad back then. I'm not going to spend the rest of my life unable to get back at him. So it's better if I set out early. Don't miss me too much."

"You'll be the one missing me!" Luffy said, rolling his eyes. "But I don't think you'll ever catch up to Big Brother Shane! He could probably beat you with his pinky finger!"

"No way!" Ace laughed at Luffy's childishness. "That's impossible! I'm... going to be the King of the Pirates!"

"No, I'm going to be the King of the Pirates!"