Lately, all eyes across the seas have been fixed on the first half of the New World like a spotlight.
That's because right now, the Marines no longer seem as powerful as they were shortly after the Summit War.
At the very least, both the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates have taken many islands from the World Government, and the Marines seem to be doing nothing but defending their own ground. They haven't fought back at all.
Even the Whitebeard Pirates couldn't sit still anymore and managed to take back a bunch of their old territory.
This has made people across the seas feel confused.
~~~~~~
"What's going on with the Marines lately? Their islands are being taken by pirates and they just let it happen?"
"Who knows… the minds of these major powers are as deep and hard to figure out as the ocean itself."
"It's such a pity. Both sides looked ready to fight, and I was excited to watch a big battle… but in the end, nothing happened."
"I get the feeling it's like the calm before the storm. They're both holding something back!"
"I heard things have been a mess ever since that guy Saint Saturn died. Do you think that's a good thing or a bad thing?"
"Shhh! Are you trying to get yourself killed? That was a Celestial Dragon!"
"So what?"
"Yeah!"
"Didn't the Dream Exploration Team already take care of the Celestial Dragons?"
"Exactly. Those so-called Five Elders, the highest power in the world—they're not that scary after all!"
...
Inside a bar in the Kingdom of Dressrosa, the customers were chattering loudly like a bunch of noisy sparrows, passionately discussing the current state of the world.
More surprisingly, no one was stopping them.
Even the patrolling guards who overheard it didn't seem to care—it was just everyday talk to them.
The bar owner glanced at the clock on the wall, then stopped wiping the glass in his hand.
"Everyone, it's about time. We should head to the port to welcome the Dream Exploration Team!"
"Whoa!"
"Oh no, I almost forgot! King Rebecca said they'd be arriving in our country this afternoon!"
"It's already past noon!"
"Let's go! If we're late, we won't get a good spot!"
"Hurry!"
...
With all the noise and shouting, everyone put down their drinks and food and rushed toward the door like a wave crashing forward.
The bar, which had been a little crowded before—
Was suddenly empty, with only a few messy tables and chairs left behind, as if silently witnessing the excitement that had just happened.
Even the bar owner didn't bother to clean up. He quickly joined the crowd heading to the port.
But—
When they finally made it to the coast, they were shocked to see they were already too late.
Even though the Dream Exploration Team hadn't arrived yet, the entire port was already packed with people. The crowd was so dense that it was hard to even find a place to stand.
From a distance, it looked like a sea of heads, gently rippling in the wind like waves on dark water.
Everyone was on their tiptoes, stretching their necks, trying hard to find the perfect spot in the sea of people, just to catch the first glimpse of the Dream Exploration Team.
After all, they knew very well that the only reason the Kingdom of Dressrosa was able to recover was thanks to the team's involvement.
You could say the Dream Exploration Team was the savior of their entire country!
~~~~~~
While the Kingdom of Dressrosa was busy preparing a grand welcome for the team...
Somewhere else in the New World, two unmarked ships quietly arrived at a deserted, uninhabited island.
This island had been carefully chosen by both the Marines and the Revolutionary Army as their meeting point.
Dragon, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, showed up in person. Right behind him were Sabo, Ivankov, and a few other officers handling different tasks.
On the Marine side, Akainu and Vice Admiral Tsuru led the group of navy soldiers.
The moment the two sides met—especially when Akainu and Dragon locked eyes—it felt like sparks were flying in the air.
"It's been a long time, Dragon," Akainu broke the silence first.
"Heh heh..." Dragon gave a small smile. "Sakazuki, I honestly didn't expect you to end up as Fleet Admiral. That was a surprise."
His dark cloak billowed like a battle flag in the sea breeze.
But Akainu only grew angrier after hearing Dragon's words—he could sense the sarcasm underneath.
And truthfully—
Dragon did look down on Akainu becoming Fleet Admiral.
In his eyes, Akainu was a hothead—someone who always charged in without thinking things through.
"Enough," Vice Admiral Tsuru stepped in before things escalated. "Dragon, let's focus on why we're here. I don't care about your old grudge with Sakazuki."
The conflict between Akainu and Dragon went back a long way.
Back when Dragon was still in the Marines, the two never got along. And right now, Tsuru had no patience to hear them argue again.
"Heh heh heh…" Dragon turned his gaze to Tsuru, and his tone softened immediately. "Vice Admiral Tsuru, it's been a while. You're still as elegant as ever."
"No need for flattery," Tsuru replied flatly.
Still, even though she brushed it off, she was secretly pleased to hear it. She was never one to enjoy compliments, even in her old age.
"Alright," Dragon said.
"There's one thing that's been bothering me."
"Once the Celestial Dragons are gone, and without the World Government keeping the world in check, things will definitely get more chaotic."
"The Dream Exploration Team said they would send out a powerful force to help us quickly bring the seas under control. What kind of force were they talking about?"
Dragon had been wondering about this for a while.
"We don't know either," Tsuru replied. "But Garp trusts Ryuen. I thought maybe your side knew more about it." She said this while giving Sabo a long look.
"Uh… (⊙o⊙)..."
"Vice Admiral Tsuru, don't look at me like that. I may be close with them, but they never told me that!" Sabo quickly waved it off.
"Hi-ha!"
"So even you don't know!"
"But the Dream Team spoke so confidently—what kind of force could actually bring order to the sea in such a short time?" Ivankov jumped in, clearly shocked.
"In that case…"
"There's one possibility that comes to mind—Ancient Weapons," Dragon said, lowering his voice.
The group instantly fell silent.
Tsuru and Akainu said nothing either—because that's exactly what they had suspected too.
Only Ancient Weapons had that kind of overwhelming power.
---
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