As Admiral Kong's fleet completely disappeared from the waters of G1 Fortress...
Vice Admiral Tsuru's unease reached its peak.
She was afraid—afraid that Kong, Sengoku, and Garp had all become puppets of the King of the World.
"Vice Admiral Tsuru, what are you worried about?"
"Kong is just going to Holy Land Mary Geoise to escort the Devil Fruits back."
"If those news reports were true, the World Government should have summoned all three of us Admirals back at once to be contracted."
Seeing Vice Admiral Tsuru's pale face, Iron Hand Admiral Hande couldn't help but tease the great beauty of the Marine.
It couldn't be that the King of the World looked down on him and Se Gan, the two Admirals, and only intended to contract Kong alone, right?
It was even more impossible for him to imagine that Imu had set their sights on these two Vice Admirals who had awakened Conqueror's Haki.
Admiral Hande also subconsciously ignored the two newly promoted Vice Admirals, Sengoku and Garp.
He thought Kong was just bringing his subordinates, Sengoku and Garp, along to Holy Land Mary Geoise to collect and escort the Devil Fruits back.
"I don't know, I just have an uneasy feeling."
Vice Admiral Tsuru's brows furrowed, as Admiral Kong's behavior had changed slightly from usual.
A terrifying thought flashed through her mind.
Could it be that Admiral Kong himself wanted to become the one contracted by the King of the World!
She had long noticed Admiral Kong's obsession with the positions of Fleet Admiral and General Commander-in-Chief.
Rumor had it that when Admiral Kong was first promoted to Admiral, he was actually met with contempt and ridicule by a CP0 Agent.
From then on, Admiral Kong developed a massive obsession with the position of General Commander-in-Chief.
Only the position of General Commander-in-Chief could command the CP organizations.
Even the Fleet Admiral's status was half a rank lower than that of the CP Chief.
After all, the CP organizations were the power of the Celestial Dragons' direct agencies.
Whereas Marineford, Enies Lobby, and Impel Down were military institutions belonging to the World Government.
Being directly under the Celestial Dragons and being directly under the World Government were two different concepts.
The Celestial Dragons controlled the World Government, but the World Government, which included various Affiliated Kingdoms, did not nominally belong entirely to the Celestial Dragons.
---
"Relax! Those news reports might all be fake."
Iron Hand Admiral Hande didn't know what else to say and could only offer some self-deceiving comfort.
In truth, during the Red Soil Island war, some Marines responsible for blockading the Red Soil Island waters had escaped back.
So, besides the Three Marine Admirals, some high-ranking Marine officers actually knew the truth about the Red Soil Island incident.
The small newspaper agency controlled by the Rocks Pirates had been releasing this information one after another.
Even they, the Three Marine Admirals, believed the probability of the King of the World's existence was at least over eighty percent.
After all, those guys from Rocks wouldn't make claims without reason.
Looking at the worried Vice Admiral Tsuru, a trace of confusion and concern also flashed in Admiral Hande's eyes.
To have become a Marine Admiral, he had long witnessed the brutality and ruthlessness of the Celestial Dragons.
He just hadn't expected that above the Celestial Dragons, there was a King of the Celestial Dragons who could control the lives of others, commanding the high-and-mighty Gorosei and God's Knights.
If this King of the World really laid hands on Marshal Kukulkan and Kong, where would the future of Marineford lie?
Perhaps it would completely become cannon fodder for the World Government, clashing with Rocks until the very end.
This World Government Great Expansion Plan was likely intended to recruit more cannon fodder to wear down the Rocks Pirates.
As it turned out, this big news from the Rocks Pirates exposed the existence of the King of the World, Imu, throwing cold water on the Great Expansion Plan.
Countless powerful individuals were now waiting and watching.
"I hope so."
Vice Admiral Tsuru sighed; she was only a newly promoted Marine Vice Admiral and had no power to change any of this.
If Admiral Kong, Sengoku, and Garp were controlled by the King of the World...
She would definitely find a way to save them.
Even if she had to seek help from the Rocks Pirates, she would not hesitate, especially from that Great Demon Venerable Gu Yue Fang Huo, who was rumored to have prophetic abilities.
Through various intelligence and information, Tsuru had long deduced that all of this was being orchestrated by this Gu Yue Fang Huo.
After all, the intelligence said that Captain Rocks was just a brute.
Almost all actions of the Rocks Pirates were controlled by the Vice Captain, Gu Yue Fang Huo.
There were even rumors that Gu Yue Fang Huo was the true decision-maker of the Rocks Pirates.
The Cadres of the Rocks Pirates were more willing to follow the orders of this great prophet, Gu Yue Fang Huo.
---
Not long after, intelligence that Admiral Kong's fleet had left G1 Fortress quickly reached Fang Huo's hands.
The members of the Rocks Pirates, already assembled on Hachinosu, had long begun their intensive training plan.
"Newgate! You're way too good to the people of Sphinx Kingdom. You actually gave them a ten-billion subsidy. You're so damn rich!!"
Golden Lion Shiki teased Newgate, the "nanny king" who treated money like dirt.
It was understandable for Redfield to empty his entire fortune for the residents of Red Soil Island who had survived the Native Purge Competition.
But Newgate's behavior of throwing money around was a bit frustrating.
A grand Great Pirate and king, yet he didn't keep a single cent.
He even wanted to mooch off Fang Huo and Gram's drinking money... damn, he's got no shame!
Sometimes Golden Lion Shiki really wanted to go and raid Sphinx Kingdom a few times to snatch back all the money Newgate had given away.
"What's it to you! Do you want to sink into the ocean!"
Whitebeard Newgate didn't want to bother with Golden Lion Shiki at all; he could use his own spoils of war however he pleased.
Seeing his hometown, which was once a desolate island, become one of the wealthiest countries in the New World...
...he felt very happy!
Although some of the citizens were a bit lazy, the environment of Sphinx Island was indeed very well-maintained.
The entire island was lush and green, becoming a very livable tourist nation.
Moreover, Fang Huo had helped him find a Consul to manage his treasury and try to eliminate some of the "giant baby" citizens.
---
As Red Soil Island safely settled in the latter half of the New World, the gloomy Redfield's mindset began to change, and his talent fully erupted.
His Conqueror's Haki improved faster than that of Golden Lion Shiki and Charlotte Linlin under the tempering of Rocks and Fang Huo.
He was expected to become the fourth monster in the Rocks Pirates to master Conquerors Haki Infusion.
In the cultivation of Haki, even Roger was catching up to Golden Lion Shiki and Charlotte Linlin.
Redfield and Roger, these two non-ability user monsters, seemed to have entered a period of explosive growth.
At the age of twenty-seven or twenty-eight, they were exploding with potential, their strength rapidly approaching its peak.
"Kong still dares to go to the Holy Land? And he even brought Buddha Sengoku and Iron Fist Garp?"
Fang Huo looked at the latest Marine intelligence; he hadn't expected that even after he had exposed Imu's secrets, these Marines still wouldn't fear Imu.
"However, this seems like a good opportunity to raid Punk Hazard!"
Fang Huo didn't care if Imu would control Kong and the others, but with Kong having left G1 Fortress and Holy Land Mary Geoise becoming busy...
...this was exactly the opportunity Fang Huo had been waiting for.
Move quickly to bring back the frozen Great Hammer Corps from Punk Hazard!
If there's no large-scale war next, then Fang Huo will go to Baldimore, the Island of Machinery on the Grand Line, to bring back the 15-year-old Vegapunk.
If it's on the way, bring back the eight or nine-year-old Soldier Kaido as well—the earlier he's trained, the stronger he'll be!