A small merchant ship was sailing along the border between the bustling region and the desolate waters of the East Blue.
The captain lifted his spyglass, scanning the horizon in all directions.
Suddenly—
He narrowed his eyes.
He had seen something.
Reaching into his coat, he pulled out a Den Den Mushi.
Buru buru buru...
"Speak."
"This is Unit 7. We've spotted the target, Portgas D. Ace, roughly 17 nautical miles east of the Baratie sea restaurant. He appears to be heading toward the Calm Belt. Requesting further orders."
"Excellent. Others will take over from here. You've been exposed—leave immediately. Don't alert him."
"Understood, Chief!"
The captain put down the Den Den Mushi.
With a wave of his hand, he barked, "Change course. We're pulling out."
"Aye!"
Soon after, the merchant ship vanished from Ace's line of sight.
Not that Ace had noticed it to begin with. At that moment, he was fast asleep on his tiny raft, completely unaware that he had drifted into the desolate region of the East Blue.
Meanwhile, at a Marine base, Ian pushed open the door to Rear Admiral Luo Lan's office.
"Colonel, we've found Ace's trail!"
"Where?"
Ian unfurled a map of the East Blue, circling a spot with his pen.
"Here... near the Baratie sea restaurant?"
"That's right. The one on the border of the prosperous and desolate seas. Their dishes are pretty good too... ahem."
Mid-sentence, Ian suddenly realized something and turned stiffly.
Luo Lan was staring at him, radiating killing intent.
"I heard a meal there costs at least a few hundred thousand Berries?"
"I swear, sir—that was money I saved up on my own!"
"Really?"
"Truer than pearls!!"
"I don't buy it. Unless you take me there a few times."
"Of course! Uh... Sir?"
Seeing Luo Lan's sly smile, Ian froze.
He was setting him up!
And more than once?
His meager Marine salary would never cover it...
He'd saved up for ages for that one meal—just once while running errands in the prosperous zone!
"Alright, enough nonsense. Back to business."
Luo Lan cut off his inner complaints.
"If he stays on this course, he'll eventually reach the vicinity of Lodestar Island, right?"
"Yes. At his current speed, it should take around 12 days. That raft of his isn't exactly fast."
"You've arranged the surveillance?"
"All in place. Our ships have formed a perimeter with a 10-nautical-mile radius around him. Even if he changes course, he'll run into one of our vessels. His movements are under control. But…"
"But what?"
"It's Dory… he's been missing for days. Are we sure following Ace will lead us to him?"
Ian's doubts were valid.
According to intelligence, Ace and Dory had no known connections. Dory's disappearance had only circulated among pirates and intelligence circles—Ace, a lone wanderer, likely hadn't even heard of the Flame-Flame Fruit.
Yet most of their Intelligence Division was now tailing Ace.
If this lead didn't pan out...
It would all be for nothing.
"Don't worry. I have a plan. Just trust me like you always have."
"Yes, Sir. I understand."
---
On the Raft.
Ace stirred awake.
"Huh? Where am I?"
"Eh, who cares. As long as I keep moving forward!"
"Hopefully the next island's got a navigator I can recruit. That'd make things easier, hahahaha!"
Laughing without a care in the world, he pulled a bottle of booze from his pack and took a hearty swig.
---
Over 200 nautical miles away,
A battered sailing ship was also heading toward the Calm Belt.
Its hull was riddled with damage, and the sails were full of holes—clearly, the crew had seen better days.
"Boss, we've found the traitor. It's him!"
Two pirates dragged a bloodied man to the deck.
Wearing a tattered captain's coat and a weathered pirate hat, Dory turned around.
"It's you?"
His face twisted with rage.
He'd been tracked down twice by Krieg's forces—he had long suspected a spy among his crew.
But never did he imagine it was this man. A trusted subordinate. One who had even taken a bullet for him.
"Why?"
"Why betray me?!"
Dory's roar echoed across the deck.
"There's no 'why.' I was sent by the Admiral to monitor you from the start. As for that incident back then… just part of the act."
"Dory, you should go back and apologize to Admiral Krieg. Don't worry, with that Devil Fruit in hand, the Admiral—"
Bang!
A gunshot rang out before he could finish.
Smoke curled from Dory's pistol.
With the traitor dealt with, Dory turned to his crew.
"We're diving deeper into the desolate seas. Once I figure out how to use the Devil Fruit's power…"
"Forget Krieg—this entire sea will belong to us!"
"Women, riches—you'll have it all. More than the nobles. Better than the nobles!!"
The small-time pirates roared in agreement, fully hyped up by the speech.
"Now then… we need a place to lay low. Anyone familiar with this area?"
"Boss! Me! I'm from these waters!"
One young pirate eagerly stepped forward.
This was his moment to shine!
"You sure?"
"Yes, sir! There are a few scattered villages in the desolate zone. My village was deep in this sea!"
"Good. Any good hiding spots?"
"Well... not many, but—wait! There's one perfect place!"
"Spit it out!"
"There's a Marine outpost nearby. Right on the edge of the Calm Belt!"
"There's a Marine outpost here? You joking?"
"No no, I swear! It's real! Only a handful of Marines are stationed there—less than ten! And they only get supplies every few months. If we take that post…"
Dory's eyes gleamed.
Quietly land, eliminate a few low-level Marines, and they'd have the perfect hideout. Nobody would suspect a thing.
"Brilliant. Tell the navigator the coordinates."
"Yes, boss!"