Chapter 162: The Arms Race Begins
Hearing Katakuri's words, Louis almost failed to keep a straight face. He hadn't expected that after all that talk, one sentence after another was just a prelude. The ultimate goal was to covet the bloodlines of the Lunarian race, the Giant race, and Kaido's descendant.
Nearby, Yelena was the first to come to her senses. One hand subconsciously gripped her World-Breaker war hammer, and an unfriendly look emanated from the scarlet eyes beneath her gas mask.
Afterward, the group of giants also belatedly realized the true intentions of the Charlotte Family members, and ugly expressions appeared on their faces.
This scene made the already very nervous Charlotte Daifuku and Oven's bodies tense up, and they silently stood in front of their younger siblings. Katakuri and Smoothie, although alert, did not overreact.
After a long while, Louis suppressed the urge to hit someone and spoke in a calm tone, "If this is what Big Mom has in mind, then you should all leave."
At this moment, Louis felt there was no need to talk with Katakuri and the others any further. Thus, he immediately decided to give up on the idea of getting a Vivre Card to Zou from the Mink tribe living in Totto Land.
Seeing this, a subtle change came over Smoothie's face. She opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something more, but in the end, Katakuri reached out an arm from the side and stopped her.
Katakuri's gaze swept over the crowd, and finally rested on the seemingly calm Louis. "In that case, we will take our leave. I hope Lord Archangel will consider the matter Mama proposed."
With that, Katakuri ended this brief meeting and turned to be the first to head for the giant passage they had come up from. The next moment, Smoothie, Daifuku, Oven, and the group of young men and women who didn't know why they had come, followed.
The giant gate was slowly opened. The group from the Charlotte Family, led by Katakuri, under the watchful eyes of a group of grunts, slowly stepped out of the passage and walked into the streets.
As they walked, the streets, which had been gradually returning to the bustle of Doflamingo's rule, instantly fell silent. The citizens who had recognized their identities all showed various expressions, subconsciously clearing a wide path in the street to let the Charlotte Family pass smoothly.
Soon, Katakuri and the others disappeared from the citizens' sight and, via the still-unmelted mochi staircase, returned to the pirate ship flying the Big Mom Pirates' flag.
After raising the sails and steering the ship away from the coast, which was full of mushroom-shaped rocks, the members of the Charlotte Family had various expressions, feeling a wave of anxiety over their failed mission. They were all worried that Mama would punish them for this failure.
This was not an unfounded fear. They had witnessed Mama take the lifespan of their other siblings for various reasons more than once. Although those cases were not due to mission failure, this time it involved the Lunarian race and the Giant race. They were worried that Mama would fly into a rage and take their lifespans.
Gradually, the group of young men and women focused their gazes on Katakuri, who was standing at the bow, hoping that he could persuade Mama.
Soon, under the expectant gazes of his younger siblings, Katakuri took out his personalized Den Den Mushi and dialed his mother, who was far away on Whole Cake Island.
Brrring~ ru~ brrring~Click. Perhaps because she had been waiting for Katakuri's news for a long time, Big Mom on the other end answered the call very quickly.
"Katakuri, what about the mission I gave you?" A wicked, witch-like voice came from the Den Den Mushi, making the group of young people on the ship shiver subconsciously.
Katakuri's gaze fell on the distant sea. He replied in a slightly apologetic voice, "I'm sorry, Mama. They saw through our intentions and rejected our idea. We are now on our way back."
"Rejected?!" The voice from the Den Den Mushi couldn't help but rise a few pitches, vividly mimicking Big Mom's current expression.
"Yes, Mama," Katakuri replied very frankly.
Big Mom on the other end of the Den Den Mushi seemed to find this unbelievable. "What about Gerd?" she asked again. "She was my playmate back then! How could she refuse to see me?" Big Mom's voice was full of unwillingness and confusion. She remembered very clearly that Gerd's relationship with her back then had been very good.
Katakuri heard this, turned to look at the giant mushroom rock, and explained in a deep voice, "Perhaps it's because the giant race is still angry about the death of the giant hero Jorul back then."
"..."
Big Mom heard Katakuri's words, was silent for a moment, and then continued to ask, "Then what about that Archangel? Why did he reject my invitation?"
Big Mom's words made Katakuri silent for a moment. Then, he told her the truth. "It was probably the topic of a political marriage that angered him, which led to the termination of our conversation."
"Doesn't like political marriages?" The Den Den Mushi mimicked Big Mom's appearance, revealing a terrifying expression. "Without a political marriage, I can't get the Lunarian race. Then there's no way around it—"
In a room in the Whole Cake Chateau, a strange expression appeared on Charlotte Linlin's face, a dangerous light flashing in her eyes.
Just as Big Mom was about to hang up, Katakuri's voice sounded again. "Mama, I discovered a suspected trace of the Golden Lion in Dressrosa."
"Hm?" The strange expression on Big Mom's face was swept away, replaced by a look of interest. "That guy Shiki has appeared again? He's reappeared with a ship's wheel on his head? Does he want to be beaten to death in the New World?"
To this, Katakuri narrowed his eyes slightly, his tone becoming peculiar. "Mama, it's not yet certain if it's a new user of the Float-Float Fruit, or the Golden Lion."
However, before he could finish, Big Mom interrupted him. "No need to guess. It's that guy Shiki. That guy won't die so easily! Even if he does die, he won't die quietly. He'll definitely cause some big news before he does!" Big Mom stated that she knew Shiki very well and knew that if he was hiding, he was definitely planning to give the world a big surprise. Once he appeared, it meant the sea would become chaotic.
"..."
Katakuri heard her, and a strange light flickered in his eyes as he pondered Shiki's purpose in appearing in Dressrosa. Soon, a bold idea appeared in his mind, and he quickly became serious.
"Mama, that guy the Golden Lion... could his purpose in going to Dressrosa be to seek treatment from the Archangel? You see, the Archangel's healing ability is publicly recognized as the best in the world. Even on the brink of death, under his ability, one can be restored to peak condition in a matter of seconds."
"..."
Big Mom heard this and subconsciously sat up from her throne. She also became serious. "That guy Shiki... how dare he entrust his life to someone else's hands? Isn't he afraid of being killed by that Louis during the treatment?"
The thought of the wheel possibly being removed from Shiki's head made Big Mom feel uncomfortable all over. To her, the Golden Lion with a ship's wheel on his head was the Golden Lion she wanted to see.
The Golden Lion's Float-Float Fruit allowed him to fly with islands in this world where everyone else was sailing the seas and could at most temporarily hover in the air. To many, this was a dimension-crushing ability. No one could stand being woken up in the middle of the night by Shiki himself, who would drag them out to fight, and then, when you couldn't get away, he would drop a dozen small islands on your head.
In this situation, besides that guy Whitebeard, who had the ability to shatter small islands from a distance, only the World Government and Marine Headquarters had the ability to cope. If she or even Kaido were to be held up by the Golden Lion, they would most likely just have to watch as their homes were smashed to smithereens.
Thinking of this, Big Mom's face became extremely ugly. Then, she picked up the phone again and almost roared at Katakuri, "Katakuri, get back to Totto Land right now! It's time for you to try and learn that!"
In order to prevent her home from being destroyed if she were to fight with the Golden Lion in the future, Big Mom had a sudden idea. She planned to teach her second son to learn the technique that only a few powerhouses could master. She had originally planned to wait a few years, or perhaps not teach Katakuri at all. But to guard against that guy Shiki, she had no choice but to have this idea. If the Archangel was going to remove the wheel for Shiki, she had no way to stop it. Therefore, she could only find a way to enhance her own side's combat power.
Meanwhile, Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
Marine HQ High-Level Conference Room.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku sat at the head of the table, addressing the group of flag officers with a solemn expression.
"Everyone, the worst-case scenario has become a reality. After destroying a World Government fleet and stealing the Dyna Stones, the Golden Lion Shiki has appeared in the former World Government member nation of Dressrosa. It is highly likely that the Golden Lion will use the Dyna Stones as payment to ask the Archangel to treat him, to restore him to the peak condition of his age."
At these words, the group of flag officers present immediately erupted.
"How is that possible?! Isn't that guy Shiki afraid that the Archangel will kill him?!"
"That guy Shiki! He's so old, yet he won't just retire peacefully! He has to cause such big trouble!"
"Are the Flying Pirates going to reappear?"
"..."
For a moment, the entire conference room became abnormally noisy. The group of high-ranking officers were all discussing this in an almost argumentative tone.
Seeing this, a hint of fatigue flashed in Sengoku's eyes. After glancing at Aokiji and Kizaru and receiving their nods, he took a deep breath, slammed the table to quiet the room, and then accurately threw a stack of documents in front of each of the flag officers.
He spoke in a serious tone. "Ever since the Archangel Louis appeared out of nowhere, the Marines have suffered successive blows. From the Buster Call to the ambush incident a short while ago, we have already lost more than a dozen Vice Admirals, and both Admirals have been injured. In addition, a World Government member nation has completely become a pirate's territory not long ago, and many member nations have protested to the Five Elders. Therefore, I plan to propose to the Five Elders an expansion of military spending and... a great military draft."
The group of flag officers lowered their heads and all looked at the document on the table, which was titled "World Military Draft."
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