After finishing that report, Tesoro moved on to the next matter.
"Regarding Shipbuilding Island, Master Tom has given a clear answer. The ancient technology gifted to you by the Shichibukai, Gecko Moria, is completely viable. If we use G-5 Base as the model and carry out a full warship conversion, it will take about a year and a half. The required investment during that period will be roughly 30 billion Belly," Tesoro said after sipping his tea.
"With you throwing around hundreds of billions and even trillions just now, this 30 billion barely feels worth noticing," Ortoren chuckled, nodding. "Fine, then let's move forward with it. Transform G-5 into a warship—one investment, benefits for life."
"Understood. I'll prepare the proposals," Tesoro replied, then continued, "Aside from that, this year's plan for Shipbuilding Island has already been released. The estimates show that forty standard-issue headquarters warships will be launched, along with thirty armed transport vessels capable of crossing the Calm Belt..."
"Warships I can understand, but aren't the armed transports just refits? We're selecting them from captured pirate ships and modifying them. That shouldn't be all that labor-intensive, so why only thirty? Are those slaves slacking off?" Ortoren frowned.
Thirty ships? That was useless!
How was he supposed to support his dreams of becoming a warlord with only thirty ships!?
Tesoro quickly waved his hands. "Not at all. The pirate slaves are already working sixteen hours a day. With meals and rest, they only get eight hours total. If we extend their hours any further, their lifespans will be cut short—and we still need slaves for many other industries. Pushing them harder would cost us more than it's worth."
"Only sixteen hours!?" Ortoren was genuinely surprised.
Slaves getting eight full hours of rest each day? Clearly, the Marines' moral standards were still relatively high. Ortoren had heard that on Tequila Wolf's bridge construction project, slaves were only allowed three hours of rest.
Tesoro ignored Ortoren's callous remark and explained instead, "The real limit is Seastone. We can't acquire it from headquarters or Mary Geoise. We're relying entirely on black market purchases, and the circulation of Seastone in the underworld is already scarce. That's what restricts armed transport production..."
"So, in the end, it's all down to Seastone again?" Ortoren shook his head helplessly.
"Not just for this project. Master Tom's Sea Train plan also requires a massive amount of Seastone if it's to be laid across the Calm Belt. That's why the plan hasn't been feasible yet—it's still on hold. Master Tom has already submitted multiple requests, hoping you can find a way to resolve this issue," Tesoro said.
"Sea Train technology is already complete?" Ortoren raised an eyebrow.
In his memory, the original story had Master Tom spending nearly ten years developing the Sea Train. How could he be so eager to lay tracks after less than two years?
"It was finished earlier this year," Tesoro explained. "A small circular Sea Train line was built on Shipbuilding Island, but it was dismantled shortly after to maintain secrecy."
Ortoren had been puzzled at first, but then it clicked. In the original story, Tom had taken nearly a decade because he was working out of a small workshop in Water Seven, with little funding, likely having to take commissions to cover expenses while slowly developing the technology.
Now, however, backed by G-5, commanding tens of thousands of slaves, and with ample resources at his disposal, it made perfect sense that he could complete the Sea Train within two years.
He stopped wondering about it and rubbed his temples. "Seastone... am I supposed to go talk business with Kaidou?"
"I understand. I'll keep this in mind. Tell Tom I'll find a solution and ask him to wait a little longer... But while laying the Sea Train in the Calm Belt needs massive amounts of Seastone, the demand should be much lower in normal seas, right?" Ortoren asked.
"Exactly. That brings me to the next point. The Sea Train's commercial prospects are excellent. I'm planning to promote and commercialize the technology. If we can open up a new revenue stream with the Sea Train, it will be a huge boost to our finances," Tesoro said with a nod.
The Sea Train was always meant to be commercialized, and Ortoren agreed. "Draft a detailed plan. Once I review it and it checks out, we'll set up a front and have someone operate it under a cover identity."
Once the Sea Train went public, hiding it would be impossible—how would you even use it if you kept it secret? And if it couldn't be hidden, G-5 couldn't act as the operator behind it. Otherwise, Mary Geoise would inevitably start digging. So Ortoren intended to use a front company and put up a reliable figurehead as the "legal representative."
Thinking it over, Doflamingo seemed like the perfect fit. Dressrosa was rebuilding from scratch; he'd probably love to bring in a Sea Train. With the tech in hand, his underworld smuggling network would scale up dramatically—a win for both sides. More importantly, he and Doflamingo had cooperated enough to build real trust. Their partnership was solid.
After finishing the Sea Train discussion, Tesoro clearly had more to report. Ortoren felt the weight of leadership again—there was a mountain of work. Fortunately, Tesoro could shoulder some of the logistics and finance; otherwise, Ortoren really would work himself to death as G-5's Base Commander.
"The next two priorities are the Calm Belt Development Project and the Flevance Amber Lead Mining Project," Tesoro said, pulling the relevant files from the stack. "We've already sent out four scientific expeditions into the Calm Belt to search for resources."
"Any results?" Ortoren's interest sharpened.
"Yes. Timber is abundant—practically every island in the Calm Belt can supply it. And once logging is done, those islands can be converted to food production. Two birds with one stone," Tesoro confirmed. "Beyond timber, we've located an island with a very rich open-pit iron ore deposit. Surface mining makes it easy to develop. Remember the weapons manufacturing documents you brought back from Whole Cake Island? If we're moving into military production, we can place the lines directly in the Calm Belt. Mine nearby, cut transport costs, and keep everything more concealed..."
He went on at length about the Calm Belt. Compared to Amber Lead, Shipbuilding Island, the Sea Train, or smuggling, the Calm Belt was the more critical play—G-5's current strategic core.
Resources are everything. Right now, sectors like food and mining are largely controlled by the World Government. In other words, even with the technology, you need the resources to apply it. G-5 had mostly met its tech needs, but if they were exposed, the World Government could choke them through resources. No matter how advanced your tech, you can't conjure materials from thin air.
Which meant they had to secure their own resource base. The Calm Belt was that place. Develop it properly, and first of all, food becomes self-sufficient—crucial, because people can go without money, but not without meals. Once food is secure, the G-5 Navy gains the confidence to stand up to the World Government. Then, by covering military funding, weapons production, and warship construction—and steadily reinforcing in the New World—let's be blunt: once Ortoren truly commands half a million troops in the New World, the Five Elders won't amount to a damn thing.
How many divisions do they even have? How dare they raise their voices at His Majesty?
And that's just G-5. If they could also meet Marine Headquarters' resource needs, then when Admiral Sengoku went to Mary Geoise, the Five Elders would have to politely invite him to sit, pour the tea, and talk things through. Even if Admiral Sengoku got annoyed and slapped them twice, they'd still have to smile and take it.