In the end, Sean and Iceburg reached a final agreement.
Galley-La would not establish a branch office in the East Blue. Instead, they would employ a leasing arrangement, dispatching two foremen and twenty shipwrights to the 16th Branch to participate in the ironclad ship project.
The term was for one year.
In exchange, Sean would pay the Galley-La Company a staggering fee of one billion Belly.
Additionally, the shipbuilding technology developed during this project would be jointly owned by the 16th Branch and the Galley-La Company. Unless both parties agreed, Galley-La was prohibited from utilizing this technology for commercial purposes.
In reality, the profit that two foremen and twenty shipwrights could generate for Galley-La over a year far exceeded one billion Belly. After all, in the original story, Iceburg and Franky had built the Straw Hat Pirates' ship from scratch in just a few days—complete with a full interior—which was frankly absurd.
It went to show just how quickly ships could be constructed in the world of One Piece. One could only imagine how many orders two foremen and twenty shipwrights could complete in a year.
However, as a gesture of gratitude toward Sean, Iceburg settled on this price.
As for what he was grateful for, it was the fact that Sean had not handed over the Pluton blueprints to the World Government after discovering where they were hidden; instead, he had destroyed them completely.
This was precisely why Sean and Iceburg had discussed the matter. As for whether Iceburg would leak this information, Sean wasn't worried at all. After all, Iceburg couldn't exactly run to the World Government and tell them that Sean had stolen the blueprints that he and Franky had hidden.
Ultimately, Sean was very satisfied with the outcome. Iceburg was equally pleased; while he might earn slightly less money, it was by no means a loss. He had expressed his gratitude without causing the Galley-La Company to suffer a commercial deficit.
The leasing plan was a perfect fit.
However, when Iceburg faxed over the list of personnel, Sean was momentarily stunned.
The first foreman was Barry. This didn't surprise Sean; Barry was indeed one of Galley-La's top foremen and would eventually become the company's vice president.
But the second foreman left him speechless.
Franky...
Why him? And wasn't this guy barely even a formal employee of the Galley-La Company?!
Then again...
Having Franky here was actually a blessing. There was one final critical problem with the ironclad project that Sean couldn't solve, and Franky was one of the few people in the world capable of fixing it.
That was the issue. Sean had no intention of building some ridiculous wind-powered ironclad; that would be nonsense.
While Sean could explain the basic concept of a propeller to the shipwrights, the actual power source was a different story. Sean wasn't a technician; he could share general knowledge from his previous life, but when it came to the specific mechanics, he didn't have a clue.
This was where Franky's value became apparent.
Cola power!
In the world of One Piece, it was a bizarre yet highly efficient propulsion system.
Sean imagined the sight of future warships heading out to sea with their cargo holds piled high with cola. The image was almost too absurd for words.
Regardless, Franky's presence solved the final puzzle.
An ironclad without sails + propeller propulsion + multi-barrel cannons + cola power.
The blueprint for the next generation of warships had finally taken shape in Sean's mind.
'''
Two days later.
Three reporters from the World Economic Journal, who were already stationed in the East Blue, arrived at the Marine's 16th Branch. Upon arrival, they were all struck with awe.
Although the news of the 16th Branch building a fortress base had hit the papers long ago, seeing the fortress in person was still a breathtaking experience. The outer defensive walls were a full 200 meters away from the inner island; the sheer scale of the fortress was staggering.
A few hours later, three medium-sized warships departed from the fortress.
Their mission was to eliminate as many pirate crews as possible over the next month, supported by the intelligence department. Sean had made it very clear: whichever team brought back the lowest number of defeated crews would be dealt with severely.
Lucci was assigned to the area closest to the Calm Belt. Although that vast region lacked sovereign nations or large islands, it was dotted with numerous uninhabited wasteland islands. The deserted island where Sean had first washed ashore was located in this very region.
Furthermore, because the Loguetown branch was the only presence in a region covering nearly half of the East Blue—and was located near Reverse Yamakaji—Loguetown was practically unable to reach this area effectively. Consequently, many pirate crews used these uninhabited islands as their hideouts.
Kaku was responsible for the region spanning from the Goa Kingdom and Coto Island to Shells Town and Orange Town, extending all the way to Syrup Village. Although this area accounted for less than 10% of the East Blue, it was the place where pirate raids occurred most frequently, as it housed the most bustling commercial shipping lanes in the East Blue.
Finally, there was Jabra. He was responsible for the Conomi Islands and the surrounding waters filled with small islets. This was the second most prosperous shipping route after Kaku's area.
Normally, with a month of time and the support of the intelligence department, taking down a certain number of pirate crews in this region wouldn't be difficult.
The problem was...
The 16th Branch was located in this very region!
The 16th Branch had become notorious in the East Blue, to the point where most pirate crews now feared to even approach the area. Upon learning his target zone, Jabra immediately went to Sean to complain.
"Where am I supposed to find any pirate crews in this place now? Are you sure you're not intentionally targeting me?"
In response, Sean tossed him a report that had just arrived from the intelligence department.
The report stated that in response to the threat of the 16th Branch, a major pirate with a bounty of 12 million Belly had invited over twenty pirate crews—each with bounties over one million—to discuss an alliance.
Interestingly, these fools wanted to hide in plain sight; the designated meeting point was less than 200 nautical miles from the 16th Branch.
The audacity was staggering.
The moment Jabra read the intel, his miserable expression vanished, replaced by a wide grin.
This was perfect! If he could wipe them all out in one go, that would be over twenty pirate crews in one swoop!
He was satisfied—absolutely satisfied.
'''
After Lucci and the other two departed with their respective squadrons...
Chapter [Number]: The Undercover Mission
Blueno entered Sean's office.
"Commodore!"
"Hmm. Does it seem strange to you? Kalifa and the others have all been deployed, so why did I leave you behind?"
Hearing this, Blueno nodded.
"Don't worry; you have a far more important mission."
"What mission, sir?"
"Your old line of work!"
A string of question marks practically appeared over Blueno's head.
"Blueno, as you know, the vast majority of the new recruits will graduate in three months. Once the branch has sufficient manpower, I intend to form a Pirate Guerilla Force to enter the Grand Line and hunt the pirates there."
"Before that happens, I need you to enter the Grand Line ahead of us to make the necessary preparations. That way, once the Pirate Guerilla Force arrives, you can provide essential intelligence support."
"So... Blueno, go back to being a bar owner. Specifically, in Mock Town on Jaya Island. There is a bar in town, and as for how to 'replace' the previous owner... I imagine you are quite experienced in that regard."
Mock Town was also known as Pirate Town.
Aside from pirates, there were almost no civilians living there. Furthermore, the pirates in Mock Town loved nothing more than lounging around in bars. Consequently, if one wanted to gather a vast amount of intelligence, this was an ideal location, as almost every pirate passing through would stop there to see the sights.
Besides, being a bar owner... wasn't that Blueno's specialty?
"Understood. I will depart immediately!"
"No rush. Go to the logistics department first and pick up six months' worth of Type 2 Jerky. Your training cannot be neglected."
"Yes, Commodore!"
With a nod, Blueno left the office in a crisp, efficient manner.
Sean stood up and walked to the window, gazing outside.
'Individual strength, new firearms, new artillery, and new warships.'
'The conventional combat power is sorted. All that's left is the Zanpakutō squad, but there's no rush for that; I must be more cautious.'
'If necessary, arranging that after we head to the New World in a year or so is also an acceptable option.'
'In three months, the 16th Branch will shock the entire world!'
'When the time comes, perhaps I'll start by performing some "surgery" on Crocodile. Pluton is already reserved for me, and as for those Warlords...'
'It's time they were cleaned up.'