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North Blue. Although one of the Four Seas, it is different from the East Blue, which Garp calls the "Symbol of Peace."
The underworld forces of the North Blue are particularly rampant.
Most famous is its gangster culture; the Mafia, composed of several major families, holds a significant place in the North Blue's underworld.
There is also the assassin family—Vinsmoke. They have no fixed territory and are known as the mercenary kingdom, Germa 66.
This family once ruled the North Blue for a brief period. Although the World Government eventually crushed them, their family's foundation is still not to be underestimated.
The current family head, Vinsmoke Judge, harbours enormous ambition, seeking to restore his ancestors' glory and complete the so-called "Conquest of the Four North Blue Nations."
If it were in the past, Judge might have been able to achieve this ambition with the lineage factor technology he obtained from Vegapunk.
Unfortunately, even though the Germa Kingdom is a member nation of the World Government, the Five Elders have always coveted the cloning technology in Judge's hands, and their surveillance of Germa has never lessened one bit.
Therefore, the Judge in the original story also recognised this reality, which is why he naively tried to use the Big Mom Pirates' power to achieve his goal.
The power structure in the North Blue is deeply entrenched and complex, and its underworld is a motley, chaotic mix.
Even Doflamingo was just a middleman in the North Blue underworld. To think he could truly swallow the entire underworld was a pipe dream.
However, Doflamingo's ambitions did not lie in the North Blue. He swore to turn the world ruled by the Celestial Dragons upside down. The mere North Blue could not contain his ambition.
Although Doflamingo's Donquixote Family engaged in illegal activities in the underworld—such as drugs, human trafficking, and selling large quantities of weapons—his status as a middleman actually served to balance the major powers.
Even after Doflamingo's capture, Vice Admiral Tsuru and others conducted a major cleanup of the Donquixote Family's remnants. However, for the massive underworld, it was far from a crippling blow.
Pekotos Saint Island.
This is one of the largest islands in the North Blue. The island's terrain is mostly plains, and the Bananka Kingdom is one of the rulers on this island.
Why "one of" the rulers?
There are three countries on the island, constantly at war with each other.
Doflamingo previously navigated between the three, providing them with large amounts of weapons for their wars and making a massive profit.
Since Doflamingo's fall, although there hasn't been a large-scale war between the three nations, small border skirmishes have been constant.
However, when the "Soviet Merchant Guild" headquarters made a strong move onto Pekotos Saint Island and acted as a neutral mediator, the island's residents enjoyed a period of peace.
The Soviet Merchant Guild has newly risen in the North Blue. Its logo is a red flag with a hammer and a sickle.
No one knows who is pulling the strings; they only know that the guild president is a man who calls himself the "Gold Emperor."
Although it has only existed for a short time, its rise has been miraculous. It has already successfully become the second-largest merchant power in the North Blue, and its armed forces make the other powers of the North Blue tremble.
They are, without exception, Devil Fruit users.
One must know that, in the underworld exchange, even the price of the most common Devil Fruit starts at 100 million berries.
Often they are listed but unavailable, with many scrambling for one the moment it becomes available. After all, this is the power to reach the heavens in a single step.
The Soviet Merchant Guild, however, has already revealed more than three Devil Fruit users, not to mention the forces hidden in the shadows.
When the guild first appeared in the North Blue, many powers wanted to swallow this "delicious prize" that looked harmless. Among them was the Capone Family.
The Capone Family has three branches and is considered a major player among the North Blue gangster families.
Although the three branches don't always act in unison and even experience plenty of friction among themselves, their attitude toward outsiders is very unified.
The branch that attempted to swallow the Soviet Merchant Guild was the weakest of the three.
At first, they thought they could easily destroy this guild of unknown origin, but they didn't expect to be routed in a short time.
The Soviet Merchant Guild made its name in that battle and became an entity that other powers didn't dare to provoke lightly.
At this moment, on the top floor of the Soviet Merchant Guild headquarters.
This was a spacious office, decorated in luxurious golden hues.
A man decked out in gold and silver stood brazenly before the bright, floor-to-ceiling windows, quietly watching the dense flow of people below.
Sitting on the orange sofa was a boy, cradling a longsword as tall as an adult, its scabbard marked with a "cross" (十) pattern.
"Tesoro, do you already have a way to deal with the Capone Family's revenge?"
Finally, seeing Tesoro looking so calm and composed, the boy on the sofa couldn't help but ask.
Although the Soviet Merchant Guild had recently bared its fangs at the powers of the North Blue, the price was offending the Capone Family, one of the biggest in the sea.
Although they had inherited part of the Donquixote Family's legacy, including some powerful Devil Fruits, their foundation was still insufficient. They lacked a true cornerstone figure.
Even if Tesoro's Gold-Gold Fruit and his Ope-Ope Fruit were already very powerful abilities, they hadn't had them for long, and their physical training had not yet broken human limits.
"The Capone Family? Heh—! If it weren't for a so-called 'Godfather' appearing and forcibly merging the three branches... Oh, no, it's two branches now. We wouldn't be afraid of any single one of them."
Hearing this, Tesoro turned around, swirling the red wine in his goblet, a look of disdain on his face.
"But the reality is, with our own strength, we can't stop them from swallowing us. You should be very clear about their objective."
"This so-called revenge is just to appease the family members. Their real goal is the wealth in our hands."
The young boy's face was calm, showing a maturity beyond his years.
Although the Soviet Merchant Guild hadn't been established long, by relying on parts of the Donquixote Family's legacy and Tesoro's natural business talent, a terrifying commercial empire was already taking shape.
"I know that guy's ambition isn't just us, but..." Tesoro smiled knowingly and drained the wine in his glass.
"No matter how big his ambition is, he'll be beaten back to his original form by that man's absolute power!!"
Tzige Island.
This is the headquarters of the Capone Family, the largest gangster family in the North Blue.
With Tzige Island as its centre, its influence radiates to the various islands of the North Blue.
The three branches of the Capone Family occupy half of the entire North Blue Mafia territory.
At this time, in the Capone Family assembly hall.
In the centre of the lavishly decorated hall, there was a long table that took up most of the room.
At the head of the table, a portly middle-aged man sat on a chair inlaid with jewels and gold. A steaming steak was on the table before him.
The man's expression was calm. He meticulously removed his hat, revealing slicked-back, curled hair.
He then removed the scarf from his neck, took a napkin from an attendant, and tied it, as if afraid of staining his new pinstripe suit.
Capone Bege, the new "Godfather" of the Capone Family. At only 30 years old, he unified the Capone Family through ruthless means. He is a man of great ambition and decisiveness.
"Has the Soviet Merchant Guild offered me any explanation?" Capone Bege asked his subordinate quietly, while slowly cutting his steak.
Although this was the family's assembly hall, it was now completely under Capone Bege's private army's control.
Even the family elders were intimidated by his bloody methods and dared not speak out.
The Capone Family had become Bege's one-man show. Of course, the vast majority of the family respected and identified with him.
Unlike the old men, addicted to power and gradually decaying, the hot-blooded young members could naturally see that this was a leader who could guide the Capone Family forward.
"Godfather, the Soviet Merchant Guild has been very quiet recently. No movements, as if nothing happened."
A man in a black suit and black hat stepped forward, bowed his head, and whispered to Capone Bege.
"Oh?" Hearing this, Bege's steak-cutting hand paused, a hint of surprise on his cold face.
"Do they have something else they're relying on?
"It's unclear. We have basically investigated their intelligence completely."
"They're just a bunch of lucky guys who happened to get part of the Donquixote Family's legacy. If it were the real Donquixote Family, we might be wary. As for them... Hmph..."
The black-suited subordinate sneered disdainfully. As a well-known gangster force in North Blue, they naturally had an intricate intelligence network.
Almost no disturbance in the North Blue could escape their notice.
The so-called Soviet Merchant Guild did seem mysterious, and the few Devil Fruit users they revealed were enough to make people fear their power.
But on closer inspection, there were many flaws. First, doesn't the timing of the Soviet Merchant Guild's rise coincide too perfectly with the fall of the Donquixote Family?
If that was just a coincidence, then the abilities they revealed confirmed the Capone Family's suspicions.
As the largest middleman in the North Blue underworld, Doflamingo naturally had many dealings with the Capone Family.
Moreover, Bege, with his love of swords and guns, was one of the Donquixote Family's biggest arms buyers.
As it happens, they had a product catalogue for the Donquixote Family's next auction. This was a small privilege that Doflamingo granted to the major powers.
The cursed sword Kikoku, the Compress Fruit, the Sound Wave Fruit... These were clearly listed on the manifest!!
Therefore...
Bege was certain these guys had just stumbled upon a part of the Donquixote Family's legacy.
Their Devil Fruit abilities were probably not even well-developed. With the Capone Family's strength, swallowing them would be all too easy.
Bege wanted to show all the powers of the North Blue: under absolute firepower, even the so-called "Treasures of the Sea," Devil Fruits, would kneel and surrender!
As for the Soviet Merchant Guild being backed by the Marines? Bege hadn't considered this at all.
The Marines rarely focused on the Four Seas; they wouldn't do something so petty.
And, although he didn't really understand politics, as the manager of a massive gangster family, he understood the basics of balancing power.
Trying to pull a fast one right under the World Government's nose was nearly impossible.
"Right, that Devil Fruit we got a while ago. Have we identified its ability?" Bege gently put down his utensils and reached for the napkin tied at his neck.
"Godfather, we found it. It's the Paramecia-type: Castle-Castle Fruit." The black-suited subordinate answered respectfully.
"What are its specific abilities? Tell me." Bege's expression was unchanged. Although he believed in firepower, it didn't mean he rejected the power of Devil Fruits.
For all these years, he had been searching for a fruit ability that suited him.
After all, to achieve his ambition of unifying the North Blue underworld, he had to possess absolute strength!
This Devil Fruit had fallen into the Capone Family's hands by chance during a recent shootout with a smaller gang.
Although for a power like the Capone Family, Devil Fruits weren't impossible to find... they certainly weren't cheap or common.
Every time they got one, they did their best to identify its abilities.
"The ability is... it allows the user to turn their insides into a castle. They can shrink things, including themselves, and arrange them inside their body. If they leave the user's range, they return to normal."
After speaking, the black-suited subordinate's expression was a little strange.
It was basically a walking fortress. Devil Fruits were truly worthy of the title "Treasure of the Sea."
Even with the side effect of being cursed by the sea, it didn't stop people's passion for them.
Such a magical ability was far beyond what humans could achieve!
"...Bring it up," Bege said after a moment's thought, having made his decision.
"You intend to..."
"That's right. I plan to eat this Devil Fruit and gain its power!" The Castle-Castle Fruit.
It was, he thought, the most suitable ability he had seen in years.
A human tank, possessing both firepower suppression and overwhelming force.
It could effectively integrate the family's forces under his command, perfectly solving his deficiency in physical combat.
Of course. The so-called deficiency was only relative to those monsters who specialised in physical combat.
It didn't mean his own combat skills were terrible.
It's just that, compared to a physical brawl, he much preferred using firearms for a high-powered strike!
"Yes, sir!"
Soon, a grayish-white Devil Fruit was brought to Bege.
Mysterious spiral patterns crisscrossed its surface, like the brickwork on a castle. It was squarish, with a shape very different from that of a normal fruit.
Paramecia-type: Castle-Castle Fruit!
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