"No, that's not right!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru frowned deeply. She did not even wait for Rear Admiral Avada to finish speaking before interrupting him.
"This is the large end-of-year auction. Are you telling me that today's auction will have Celestial Dragons attending?"
Her voice carried a rare note of urgency.
"It is not speculation, Vice Admiral Tsuru," Rear Admiral Avada replied nervously. Sweat gathered along his temples. "Yesterday I received direct notification that the Celestial Dragons would be visiting the Sabaody Archipelago today."
Tsuru's expression darkened.
"Then why was I never informed that the Celestial Dragons were arriving today?"
Avada lowered his head further.
"The message came directly from the World Government through Den Den Mushi. The order did not pass through Marineford first."
Tsuru's brows tightened.
This was not the time to question why the World Government had bypassed Marineford and contacted the local base directly. What mattered was the situation unfolding right now.
More importantly, she could not be certain that Ash would avoid encountering the Celestial Dragons.
Thinking about that possibility alone gave Tsuru a headache.
After trying to contact Ash through Den Den Mushi and receiving no response, she let out a helpless sigh.
"Gion, come with me."
Tsuru immediately began walking toward Island No. 1 while pulling out the Den Den Mushi connected to the Fleet Admiral's office.
Rear Admiral Avada had no clear information about the exact landing location or time of the Celestial Dragons. Because of that uncertainty, Tsuru could only head toward Island No. 1, the location of the famous auction house.
Islands 60 through 69 were normally designated as the official entry and exit ports for Marines and World Government personnel.
However, anyone familiar with the Celestial Dragons knew they rarely followed rules.
Those arrogant nobles could easily decide to land anywhere they pleased across the archipelago.
Tsuru intended to contact Fleet Admiral Sengoku to confirm the Celestial Dragons' arrival details. At the same time, she hoped Sengoku could warn the escort team accompanying the Celestial Dragons not to provoke unnecessary trouble.
Because Tsuru understood something very clearly.
Given Ash's personality, combined with the lingering hostility between him and the Celestial Dragons from the time they placed a bounty on him, the outcome would be disastrous if the two sides met.
The Celestial Dragons also had the infamous habit of forcing ordinary people to kneel before them.
If they tried that with Ash...
Tsuru was almost certain that a violent conflict would erupt.
The Den Den Mushi clicked as the connection was established.
"Hello, this is Sengoku. Tsuru, how are things? Has everything been handled?"
Sengoku's voice came through clearly.
"The situation has been resolved, but a bigger problem has appeared. Listen carefully."
Tsuru quickly explained the situation.
After finishing the call, she and Gion immediately rushed toward Area 1 of the Sabaody Archipelago.
Meanwhile, inside Marineford, Sengoku rubbed his forehead with a frustrated expression.
He and Tsuru had worked extremely hard to arrange Ash's appointment as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. The goal was to counter certain manipulations from the World Government.
Now, just after completing the first step, Ash might clash directly with the Celestial Dragons.
Sengoku trusted Tsuru's judgment completely.
Based on the personality profiles both of them had studied, Ash was not the type of person who would ever kneel to a Celestial Dragon.
If anything, Sengoku felt they would be lucky if Ash merely insulted them instead of burning them alive.
Helpless, Sengoku picked up another Den Den Mushi and began contacting the World Government.
While Sengoku and Tsuru were scrambling to prevent disaster, Ash himself had already arrived at Island 30 of the Sabaody Archipelago.
This island was famous for its bustling shopping streets.
Saff and the others were very likely somewhere nearby.
After walking through nearly half the street, Ash finally spotted Saff and Perona near the civilian district of Area 31.
"Where are the others?"
Ash walked over casually and took the large stack of shopping bags they were carrying. With a quick motion, he stored everything inside his storage ring.
Saff waved him over.
"First help us load the furniture sets we picked out."
She began walking toward a nearby furniture shop as she explained.
"Tsuki stayed with us for a while, but he got bored quickly. He rented a bubble bike and went to the Soap Bubble Park around Islands 32, 33, and 34."
"And Youki said he wanted to visit other islands to buy cigarettes and alcohol from different parts of the world."
Hearing the word cigarettes made Ash pause for a moment.
Only then did he realize something strange.
Since arriving in this world, he had always felt as if something was missing.
Now he finally knew what it was.
Cigarettes.
In his previous life, Ash had grown up in an orphanage. Without any family background, he relied on scholarships year after year while pushing himself relentlessly to succeed.
After finally establishing a successful business, he continued donating money back to the orphanage and supporting younger children.
From the outside, his life had looked admirable.
But few people knew how much pressure he had endured.
Under that constant pressure, smoking had become one of the few habits that helped him stay calm.
Because of that experience, adapting to life in the pirate world had been surprisingly easy.
Here, he was free.
Free to travel, free to fight, free to live however he wished.
Back when he worked as a travel streamer, things were very different.
Streaming rules prohibited smoking, drinking, and even casual swearing.
Yet when people went out to explore the world, who did not want to relax and enjoy themselves?
If it were not for work and money, who would want to walk around holding a phone and constantly talking to an invisible audience?
Still, Ash had never regretted it.
After all, he had many younger siblings in the orphanage depending on him.
Making money honestly was nothing to feel ashamed about.
But that life was now part of the past.
Since arriving in this world, Ash had gradually allowed himself to relax completely.
He often drank fruit wine, enjoyed good food, and spent his time exploring the seas.
Yet until Saff mentioned cigarettes just now, he had not realized that he had completely forgotten about them.
Ash scratched his chin thoughtfully.
Perhaps the excitement of this new life had produced more happiness than smoking ever could.
Or maybe his new body simply did not crave nicotine anymore.
After all, with his strange abilities and the miniature sun within him, alcohol and nicotine would barely affect him anyway.
Still, a thirteen year old constantly smoking and drinking would look a little ridiculous.
Ash shrugged and dismissed the thought.
There was no reason to pick the habit back up.
The brief memories of his past life faded quickly as he caught up with Saff and Perona.
"What about Brook?" Ash asked with a grin. "A walking skeleton wandering around the street would scare people to death."
Perona giggled.
"He tried to disembark earlier but fell into the sea. He got exhausted and went back to guard the ship with Bro Youki."
Saff gestured toward several neatly arranged furniture sets.
"That's everything we picked. Ash, what do you think?"
Ash did not know much about furniture craftsmanship.
However, through his connection with the wood element, he could easily sense the quality of the materials.
Every piece was well crafted, sturdy, and elegant.
"They look great. Is this everything?"
The shop owner quickly approached with an enthusiastic smile.
"Honored guest, this is only one set purchased by this beautiful lady. The rest are stored in the courtyard behind the shop. Please follow me."
A short time later, Ash finished storing all the furniture into his ring.
The shop owner stared in disbelief as the massive collection disappeared one piece after another.
When Ash stepped back outside, he spotted Youki already waiting with Saff and Perona.
"Bro Youki," Ash greeted him with a smile. "Back already?"
Youki laughed.
"The shopping and civilian districts only sell common souvenirs for tourists. Plenty of variety, but nothing truly valuable."
He crossed his arms confidently.
"If I want rare goods, I will need to visit the Four Seas myself someday."
Then his voice lowered slightly.
"The truly interesting merchandise around here is usually hidden in the illegal areas between Islands 1 and 29."
Youki leaned closer with a mysterious grin.
"I just went there for a short walk."
"I also heard a rather interesting piece of news."
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