Sakazuki came alone and boarded Diarmuid's warship. Sky Islands weren't exclusive to the airspace above Jaya Island. There were scattered ones all over the world. The White Sea and White-White Sea converged at an altitude of 10,000 meters, meaning those two seas were located in the airspace above most of the world. So Diarmuid and Sakazuki's plan was to simply take off from Mariejois, enter the White-White Sea, sail on it, and then look for Kaido.
As a veteran of the sky, Diarmuid had been to a Sky Island before, and under his command, the warship quickly ascended to the White-White Sea. On the deck of the warship, Diarmuid stretched, a pleasant expression on his face. He wasn't taking this fight with Kaido too seriously.
Although Kaido seemed incredibly powerful, he probably hadn't reached his peak yet. Judging by Charlotte Linlin's strength in their previous encounter, Diarmuid figured Kaido was likely on his level. He had nothing to fear, even in a one-on-one fight.
Besides, he had brought people with him this time. Sakazuki, Gion, and Garp were all formidable opponents for Kaido. Add Diarmuid himself to the mix, and it would be a four-on-one fight. Beating Kaido would be as easy as playing a game. So he felt no pressure at all.
Nearby, Sakazuki walked over, a cigar clamped between his teeth. He seemed to be in a more complex mood.
"What's wrong? You don't seem very excited. Wasn't this 'outdoor excursion' your idea?" Diarmuid asked, teasing him.
Sakazuki was stunned. "Outdoor excursion?" he thought. But he didn't mind Diarmuid's teasing. He sighed. "I was hoping to use this fight with Kaido to prove I deserve to become an Admiral, but with the three of you here, I'm not sure it's much of an accomplishment anymore. Anyone else in my place, even some useless Celestial Dragon, could probably take down Kaido. It just feels a little pointless now."
He was right. If only Diarmuid had come, Sakazuki would have been one of the two main characters in this operation. But with Gion and Garp here, the difficulty had plummeted, and it just didn't feel as meaningful.
As he said, if they found Kaido, even if a useless person took his place, Diarmuid, Gion, and Garp would probably still be able to beat him to a pulp. How could he claim any credit for that? But they were all here to help, and Sakazuki couldn't tell them to leave. That would be an insult, and he couldn't prioritize his personal gain over the Marines' interests. That was why he was so conflicted.
"Hahaha, don't worry about it. Even if you take care of Kaido this time, you still have to be a base commander for a couple of years before you can become an Admiral. Speaking of which, Borsalino definitely has a bit of an edge over you there…" Diarmuid said with a smile.
Sakazuki nodded. "That's true. It is what it is. There's no use dwelling on it."
Diarmuid was right. Even if they took down Kaido, it would just be a ticket for Sakazuki to take the next step. Just like Diarmuid did, he would have to spend a few years as a base commander to prove he was more than just a fighter. Only after he went through this process would he be properly promoted to Admiral.
This was the standardized procedure for the Marines, unlike the future, when someone like Fujitora could be appointed as an Admiral directly from being a wanderer. Compared to Sakazuki, Borsalino had been stationed at Punk Hazard for years, so he was much more experienced in that regard.
"Where are you planning to go?" Diarmuid asked.
"Ballon. I've heard Kaido went there. There are old reports about him, and it's very likely that Kaido is from a Sky Island himself. His hometown is probably Ballon," Sakazuki said.
Diarmuid: What?
He knew about Baron. It was the same Sky Island that would later become "Ballon Terminal of the Wasteland," the place where Kaido jumped from 10,000 meters in the original story. The island hadn't become a ruin yet, but he heard the people on the Sky Island had moved away a couple of years ago, so it was only a matter of time before it became a wasteland.
But… that's not what I was asking!
"No, I mean, where are you going to be a base commander after we take down Kaido?" Diarmuid quickly asked.
Sakazuki realized his mistake and chuckled. "I thought you were asking about Kaido."
"We already talked about that. Of course I know he's on Ballon…" Diarmuid said, rolling his eyes.
Sakazuki didn't get flustered. He thought for a moment and said, "G-1."
"G-1?" Diarmuid raised an eyebrow. "I thought you'd choose a base in the first half of the Grand Line."
"I thought about it at first," Sakazuki nodded. "But I don't think it would be a good fit. Choosing a base in the first half of the Grand Line would mean focusing on protecting against new pirates and focusing on development. The new pirates are not a problem for guys like us."
Diarmuid nodded, agreeing with Sakazuki. That's right. For him and Sakazuki, rookies and even Supernovas were just fodder.
"But development, to be honest, I'm not very good at it. I'm not even as good as Borsalino, let alone you. So choosing a base in the first half of the Grand Line wouldn't take advantage of my strengths, and my achievements might not be as impressive. The New World, however, is a different story," Sakazuki said with a small smile.
Before Diarmuid could speak, Sakazuki continued. "The pirates in the New World are stronger and more to my liking. Besides, as an Admiral, you know better than anyone that the Marines' focus is always on the New World. One day, we will launch a full-scale counterattack and hunt down all those wretched pirates, one by one."
"I see. So you've really thought this through…" Diarmuid said, finally understanding.
"Of course," Sakazuki said, ending the conversation.
The Marines were definitely going to counterattack the New World in the future. In the first half of the Grand Line, Sakazuki wouldn't be able to use his strengths to the fullest. But in the New World, his aggressive and fiery nature would be on full display. So he probably never intended to prove his administrative skills. He just wanted to further showcase his powerful combat abilities.
The Marine bases in the first half of the Grand Line and the New World had two different roles. The bases in the first half of the Grand Line and the four Blues were responsible for blood donation to Headquarters—they were for development. The bases in the New World were for bloodletting—they were for conquest.
This way, at least until the final goal of conquering the New World was achieved, Sakazuki could use this to prove that he was an indispensable person. If he could perform well in the New World for a few years, his experience and accomplishments would make him an undeniable candidate for Admiral.
In the original story, Sakazuki must have been the G-1 base commander for a while. No wonder he moved Marine Headquarters to G-1 after he became Fleet Admiral. It was his home base, just like G-7 was for Diarmuid.
"Speaking of which, what about you? You look like you don't have much to do these days. Have you gotten soft after becoming an Admiral?" Sakazuki suddenly asked.
Diarmuid gave him a side-eye. "You're thinking too much. How could I get soft? Actually, as an Admiral, my main job is to sit in Marineford. It seems like the Fleet Admiral and Admiral Sengoku both want me to handle more of the Marines' internal affairs and development instead of external battles. That's why I seem to have a lot of free time. You might not know this, but last year, I handled Amazon Lily. The pirates who have been passed down from generation to generation are now considered Marines. The next empress of Amazon Lily is currently learning how to be a good Marine at G-7…"
Sakazuki genuinely didn't know about this. After all, it was a very secretive matter known only to a few high-ranking Marines. But he could have known, as he had the right to be informed as an Admiral candidate. So Diarmuid didn't hide it from him. Sakazuki looked at Diarmuid in utter shock. "So you eliminated the Kuja Pirates, a crew that has been around for hundreds of years, from the root?"
"Ah, not exactly, but almost. I plan to let the next empress of Amazon Lily, after she comes of age, go back and take over the Kuja Pirates and operate under the guise of a pirate…" Diarmuid said with a smile.
Sakazuki immediately understood. He said solemnly, "As a pirate, she'll join the Warlords of the Sea?"
"That's right," Diarmuid nodded.
"You are truly amazing," Sakazuki said with a sigh.
"Besides all this, after we take care of Kaido, I'm also going to start working with Smoker to use his Warlord status to set up a trading company. It'll make it easier for him to take over the productions from the Calm Belt in the future," Diarmuid said, stroking his chin.
"You know about this stuff, too?" Sakazuki asked, surprised.
Diarmuid glanced at Sakazuki. "Just a little."
The business model of this world was a bit too simple, and Diarmuid had many shrewd plans he could implement. But in reality, he didn't need to do anything overly complicated. Power was the foundation of everything. In the face of power, all those flashy business strategies were meaningless; they would just end up benefiting others.
Right now, Diarmuid held immense power and could even connect with the Warlords of the Sea and Queen Stussy of the Cipher Pol. If all else failed, he could just drag Doflamingo into the business as well. Just setting up this kind of operation would guarantee they wouldn't lose money. It would be a huge profit! So Diarmuid didn't need to know too much about business.
The development of the Calm Belt had been progressing smoothly for the past few years. The year before last, they had discovered a plant that had been extinct for over 200 years. That plant was used to make cigar tobacco and was controlled by one country. It was very difficult to transplant, so it was considered a unique product. Then, over 200 years ago, the island that the country was on sank, and the plant was declared extinct. But now, it had been rediscovered in the Calm Belt, which meant they could set up a tobacco company. Smoker, the heavy smoker, would be the perfect guy for the job.
And with the increasing number of pirates, the consumption of such products was also increasing. They could create a brand of cigars and cigarettes, like "Binks' Sake," that would be loved by pirates. Making money from pirates. And Smoker, a Warlord of the Sea, would be the perfect spokesperson, right? What's more, if all goes well, these cigars would be manufactured by pirate prisoners. That would be very meaningful: if a new pirate didn't smoke a cigar made by an old pirate, could they even be considered a pirate?
In short, these were all backup plans. Diarmuid was going to use Smoker's Warlord status to establish a large trading company. In a decade or so, it could become a massive conglomerate that could consistently provide funding for the Marines. Once that problem was solved, the World Government could just back off.
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