After thinking for a moment, Diarmuid asked directly, "Is this 'Straw Hat Pirates' crew a significant threat?"
Tsuru replied, "In reality, he hasn't done anything terribly bad, but as for the level of threat, it should be considered very high."
Shanks's personality was not particularly malicious. He didn't casually provoke the Marines or plunder civilians. Of course, since he sailed under a pirate flag, didn't produce anything, and managed to rise to the position of a Yonko in the original story, you couldn't possibly call him a good person. Even Roger had a dark history of destroying entire countries in a fit of rage.
But as far as Diarmuid knew, Shanks hadn't caused any major trouble since he began his journey, so the Marines hadn't bothered with him much before.
Why the sudden change?
"What's the situation?" Diarmuid asked again.
"We've investigated and found that Shanks was once a member of the Roger Pirates..." Tsuru said softly.
Diarmuid nodded, staying silent.
"Of course, we've known this for a long time, and it was never considered too important. As you know, we've stopped bothering with and capturing former members of the Roger Pirates in recent years," Tsuru explained.
This was true. In the first few years after Roger's death, the Marines aggressively hunted for his crew, but they made little progress. In the years that followed, these former pirates genuinely went into seclusion and caused no trouble.
The Marines couldn't afford to focus too much energy on people who were no longer a "threat." Therefore, although the search for the Roger Pirates was still officially a priority, it had effectively been sidelined within Headquarters and wasn't given much attention.
Marine Headquarters had also known that Shanks was a member of the Roger Pirates, but since Shanks had remained quiet before, they were too lazy to deal with him.
"Alright, so what's different now?" Diarmuid asked.
"Now it's different. 'Straw Hat' Shanks has made a powerful return to the New World, and in his very first battle, he defeated Big Mom, Charlotte Linlin, showing his crew's immense strength. This is already a threat. At the same time, his return to the New World means he's different from the other Roger Pirates. He has no intention of leaving this sea, so we can't afford to ignore his 'member of the Roger Pirates' label. Finally, Garp-san suddenly remembered that Shanks's straw hat was once Roger's... and it seemed very important to Roger. But he gave it to Shanks. We have reason to believe that Shanks might have inherited Roger's will, which is a much bigger threat," Tsuru said with a grave tone.
Diarmuid now understood. He had always been a little arrogant in his thinking, believing that the Marines hadn't taken major action against Shanks, which was why Shanks became one of the New World's Yonko about five years later in the original story.
But now, he realized the Marines must have had some targeted plan for Shanks from the beginning, but it just wasn't successful. Shanks's pirate crew was the kind that, if you didn't kill them with one blow, they'd escape, and then it would be very difficult to find them again. Later, he rose through the ranks in the New World's pirate power struggle, becoming one of the four winners and reaching the top position of Yonko.
That was likely the real chain of events.
But now, the situation was different. First, the New World hadn't even formed the basis for a power struggle. Charlotte Linlin couldn't beat the Whitebeard Pirates. Kaido, who had been building his strength, had been on the run for almost three years since he was captured by the Marines. During that time, Wano and the Beasts Pirates were leaderless. Forget about growing; they probably fragmented. So his power plummeted. He was just a little brother now. He couldn't even beat the Big Mom Pirates, so how could he compete for dominance?
And for the past few years, the Marines had been aggressively clearing out pirates in the New World. Akainu was in charge of these matters and had done a lot. This had made the New World even more chaotic. Shanks had just entered not long ago, so from the current situation, there was no basis for a new war for dominance in the New World. Aside from the Whitebeard Pirates, who were true kings, the other three factions were not ready.
So, history had already been significantly altered.
The Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates hadn't yet reached a level where the Marines desperately wanted to get rid of them. The Marines' main defensive target was still Whitebeard. But they couldn't just start a war with the Whitebeard Pirates because Whitebeard was too strong and difficult to deal with.
At this very moment, a person who could defeat Charlotte Linlin had entered the New World. This person was a former member of the Roger Pirates and seemed to have inherited Roger's will. At the same time, his path was similar to the Roger Pirates, focusing on a small, elite crew with no fixed territory. He had only one ship, but the crew members were all very strong.
Given their way of developing, the Marines now saw them as a major threat. If they were allowed to grow unchecked, they could become the new Roger Pirates. By then, they would be too familiar with the New World, and it would be impossible to capture them.
Therefore, Marine Headquarters immediately took the Straw Hat Pirates seriously, unanimously agreeing that they had to eliminate this crew as soon as possible, or they would likely become a second Roger. Was this threat not big enough?
So, Diarmuid received the Fleet Admiral's order to go to the New World and deal with "Straw Hat" Shanks.
After a long discussion with Tsuru, Diarmuid finally got a clear picture of the whole situation. He had no objections to the Fleet Admiral's orders. He didn't care if the concept of Yonko would appear or not. From the moment he came to this world, joined Marine Headquarters, and set his sights on becoming a Marine Admiral and even the Fleet Admiral, he knew that this world would be changed by him. So, from the very beginning, he had no intention of following any plot. He didn't feel constrained. If something needed to be done, he would do it.
If he had any hesitation or doubt before, it was gone now that he had brought Ace and Luffy to Marine Headquarters. What was the point of a plot when Luffy and Ace were now Marines? He would deal with whatever came his way, and if things needed to change, he wouldn't hesitate.
Headquarters wanted him to capture Shanks? Then he'd go and capture the hell out of him! There was no reason to refuse.
"Okay, I understand. Is there any intelligence about the location of the Red Hair... no, the Straw Hat Pirates?" Diarmuid asked.
He now understood that the supposed alliance between the Big Mom Pirates and Kaido's Beasts Pirates wasn't the main issue. If Diarmuid showed up in the New World, their plan would likely fall apart. So, he didn't need to get involved. If it didn't fall apart and they did ally, it probably meant they were targeting the Whitebeard Pirates, which had nothing to do with the Marines for now. In fact, if the three crews fought, the Marines would just enjoy the show. So, there was no need to interfere.
Diarmuid's main goal on this trip to the New World was to deal with Shanks!
"No. Three days ago, after their fight with Charlotte Linlin, they disappeared. It's very difficult to track them now. They're probably afraid of being found by Charlotte Linlin, right?" Tsuru said softly.
Diarmuid felt a little disappointed. It seemed he would have to go to the New World and find them himself.
But before Diarmuid could speak, Tsuru added, "However, we've observed that Warlord of the Sea, Dracule Mihawk, entered the New World two days ago. Compared to 'Straw Hat' Shanks, his movements are easier to track because he's a lone individual. He can't travel long distances and has to sail within a certain range of islands to resupply. We've had no major issues tracking him..."
Diarmuid was a little confused. We're going after Shanks, so why are we talking about Mihawk's intelligence?
But he quickly realized what was going on and laughed loudly. "I see..."
"That guy arranged to meet with Shanks, right?" Diarmuid said with a laugh.
"We can't be sure, but it's been almost two years since their last confrontation. When Mihawk suddenly entered the New World, we suspected he was looking for Shanks. As for them arranging to meet... we actually suspect Mihawk has Shanks's Vivre Card," Tsuru said gravely.
Diarmuid was taken aback for a moment, then nodded. "That's very possible."
When you think about it, Mihawk, a lone swordsman, probably didn't have a good intelligence network. But somehow, he always managed to find the carefree Red Hair Pirates in the most remote corners of the world and have an epic duel with Shanks. It was very likely that they each had the other's Vivre Card.
Right now, it would be difficult to find a single ship like Shanks's in the chaotic New World, especially one that was intentionally hiding its movements to avoid being found by Big Mom. So, instead of doing that, it was better to keep an eye on Mihawk... What if he led them to Shanks?
"Alright, then I'll just follow Mihawk," Diarmuid said. It was the most practical approach at the moment.
"Understood. I'll send the relevant intelligence files to Hina. She's already on her way to Mariejois," Tsuru said.
"Got it. Then I won't be returning to Headquarters. I'll head straight for the New World from Mariejois," Diarmuid said with a nod. After clarifying a few more things, Diarmuid hung up the Den Den Mushi.
He looked at Stussy, who had been happily eavesdropping. "Eavesdropping on a Marine Admiral's conversation, and such a classified matter at that, is a major crime..."
"It's not eavesdropping. I was listening openly," Stussy said playfully.
After a short pause, Stussy's eyes sparkled, and she said seductively, "But I'm willing to accept my punishment..."
Without a moment's hesitation, Diarmuid scooped Stussy up by her long, pale legs and carried her toward the bedroom.
As he walked, he said, "Then I won't show you any mercy. If your Pleasure District gets any intelligence on Shanks, be sure to let me know immediately. Also, aren't you on good terms with Charlotte Linlin? Why don't you try to sound her out and see what this alliance of hers is all about?"
Stussy wrapped her arms around Diarmuid's neck and said with a captivating smile, "Well, that depends on your sincerity..."
Diarmuid chuckled, then carried the Queen to the bed and said, "I'm always very sincere..."