After thinking for a moment, Finn asked directly, "What's the threat level of the Straw Hat Pirates?"
Tsuru responded, "Actually, he hasn't done anything particularly egregious. But if we're talking about threat assessment, it's probably quite high."
Shanks' character wasn't especially bad, true. He didn't provoke the Marines at every turn or rob civilians indiscriminately.
Of course, since he flew a pirate flag and didn't engage in legitimate production, eventually managing to become one of the Four Emperors in the original timeline, it was impossible to call him a good person either.
Even Roger had a dark history of destroying a country in a fit of rage.
But as far as Finn knew, Shanks hadn't caused any major disturbances at sea, at least not so far. That's why the Marines hadn't paid much attention to him before.
So why the sudden interest in capturing him?
"What's changed?" Finn asked.
"We discovered that Shanks was once a member of Roger's pirate crew," Tsuru said quietly.
Finn nodded but remained silent.
"Of course, we've known this for a long time. It's not exactly breaking news. You understand that over the years, we've stopped actively pursuing people who were once members of Roger's crew," Tsuru continued.
This was true. In the first few years after Roger's execution, the Marines had still been hunting down Roger's former crewmates. But there'd been no real progress, and in the years since, those people had genuinely gone into hiding and caused no trouble.
It was impossible for the Marines to expend too much energy on people who were no longer an active "threat." Therefore, although the search for Roger's pirate crew continued officially on paper, it had actually been marginalized within Headquarters and was no longer a priority concern.
In fact, Headquarters had known for some time that Shanks was a former member of Roger's crew. But before now, Shanks hadn't made any significant moves, so Headquarters hadn't bothered to focus on him.
"So what's different now?" Finn pressed.
"It's different now because Straw Hat Shanks has returned to the New World with considerable force, and defeated Charlotte Linlin in his first major battle there, demonstrating the formidable strength of his pirate crew. That alone makes him a threat. At the same time, his return to the New World represents something significant: unlike other members of Roger's crew, he has no intention of withdrawing from the seas. Therefore, the label of 'Roger's former crewmate' attached to him can't be ignored by us anymore. Finally..." Tsuru paused.
"Vice Admiral Garp suddenly remembered that Shanks' straw hat belonged to Roger many years ago. It seems that hat was very important to Roger, yet he gave it to Shanks. We have reason to suspect Shanks may have inherited Roger's will, which makes him an even greater threat."
Finn finally understood.
In his memory, or perhaps because he'd been somewhat subjective and self-centered in his thinking, he'd assumed the Marines simply hadn't taken any major action against Shanks, which was why Shanks had become one of the Four Emperors of the New World almost five years later in the original story.
Now, thinking more carefully, the Marines probably had targeted plans against Shanks from the beginning, but they'd simply failed. After all, the characteristics of Shanks' pirate crew were there. As long as you couldn't finish him with one decisive blow and he escaped, it would be extremely difficult to find him again if you wanted to deal with him.
Later, he'd weathered the storms of the New World and finally become one of the four victors in the battle for supremacy among New World pirates, ascending to the position of Yonko.
Something like that.
But now, the situation was fundamentally different. First of all, the New World lacked the foundation for such a struggle for supremacy. Charlotte Linlin had no realistic chance of defeating the Whitebeard Pirates. Kaido had been accumulating strength for, from the time he was captured by the Marines to his "escape." During that period, Wano Country and the Beasts Pirates had been leaderless. Forget development, they'd probably even experienced internal splits. As a result, his power had plummeted. Now he was basically small-time. Apart from himself as a capable fighter and a handful of subordinates, even the Big Mom Pirates could overwhelm him. How could he possibly compete for supremacy?
In recent years, the Marines had been vigorously cracking down on pirates in the New World. Sakazuki was in charge of these operations and had accomplished quite a lot.
This had led to even greater chaos in the New World. Shanks had only recently entered that theater. Therefore, judging from the current situation, there was no foundation for a new round of struggle for supremacy in the New World, because apart from the Whitebeard Pirates, who were the undisputed kings, the other three weren't prepared.
History had been altered to a significant degree.
The Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates hadn't yet reached the point where the Marines were desperate to eliminate them. The Marines' primary defensive focus remained Whitebeard.
But facing the Whitebeard Pirates, the Marines couldn't initiate war easily, because Whitebeard was too powerful and difficult to handle.
At this moment, someone capable of defeating Charlotte Linlin had broken into the New World. This person happened to be a member of Roger's pirate crew and appeared to have inherited Roger's will.
At the same time, his operational pattern was similar to Roger's crew in the past: an elite route with a small number of people, no fixed territory, only one ship for now, but with extremely strong individuals aboard that ship.
Well, based on how this group was developing, the Marines now considered them highly threatening. If this crew was left alone now, they might become the new Roger Pirates in the future.
By then, they'd be thoroughly familiar with the New World, and the Marines wouldn't be able to catch them.
Therefore, Marine Headquarters had immediately focused attention on Shanks' Straw Hat Pirates and reached a unanimous decision: this pirate crew must be eliminated as soon as possible, or they'd likely become the second coming of Roger.
Wasn't that threat significant enough?
That's why Finn had received orders from the Fleet Admiral to go to the New World and eliminate this Straw Hat Shanks.
After discussing the matter with Chief of Staff Tsuru at length, Finn finally understood the complete picture.
He had no objections to the Fleet Admiral's orders.
Finn didn't particularly care about the Four Emperors or whether that power structure would emerge. After he'd arrived in this world, he'd joined Marine Headquarters with aspirations of becoming an Admiral or even Fleet Admiral.
He understood perfectly well that this world would inevitably be changed by him. From the very beginning, he'd had no intention of relying on any predetermined plot, and he didn't feel constrained by it. He simply did what needed to be done.
If he'd been somewhat hesitant before, he no longer had any concerns after he'd made up his mind to bring Ace and Luffy to Marine Headquarters, especially after the events at Marineford.
Hell, Luffy and Ace were both Marines now. What plot was there to worry about?
He'd seize the opportunities he could. If he couldn't, and changes needed to be made, he wouldn't hesitate. He'd just do it.
If Headquarters wanted to capture Shanks, then they'd capture Shanks.
There was nothing to refuse.
"Alright, I understand. Is the intelligence ready regarding the whereabouts of the Red Hair... no, the Straw Hat Pirates?" Finn asked.
He now understood that the supposed alliance between the Big Mom Pirates and Kaido's Beasts Pirates wasn't the main issue. If Finn deployed to the New World, their plan would likely fall apart anyway.
So he didn't need to worry about it.
If the two of them truly formed an alliance without involving the Marines, it would mean they were most likely targeting the Whitebeard Pirates, which had nothing to do with the Marines for now. Even if a three-way brawl broke out between them, the Marines would be happy to watch from the sidelines. No need to interfere.
Finn's primary objective for going to the New World this time was to deal with Shanks.
"No, three days ago they disappeared after the clash with Charlotte Linlin. It's difficult to trace their whereabouts now. I suspect they're deliberately hiding to avoid being found and targeted for retaliation by Charlotte Linlin," Tsuru said softly.
Finn felt somewhat disappointed. It seemed he'd have to go to the New World and search for them himself.
But before Finn could respond, Tsuru continued, "However, we've observed that one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Hawk-Eye Dracule Mihawk, entered the New World two days ago. Compared to Straw Hat Shanks, his whereabouts are easier to track. Because he's alone, he can't sail far. He must operate within a certain range of islands for resupply. It shouldn't be too difficult for us to locate him."
Finn was momentarily confused. We're going to deal with Shanks, so why are we looking for information about Mihawk?
But he quickly realized what was happening and laughed. "I see."
"That man has an appointment with Shanks, doesn't he?" Finn said, still chuckling.
"We can't be certain, but it's been almost a year and a half, nearly two years, since they last fought. This time Mihawk suddenly entered the New World. We suspect he's looking for Shanks. As for an appointment to meet..." Tsuru's voice grew more thoughtful. "In fact, we suspect Mihawk has Shanks' Vivre Card."
Finn paused, then nodded. "That's very likely, actually."
Think about Mihawk. He operated alone, his intelligence network must be fairly limited, yet he could always find the elusive Red Hair Pirates in remote corners and then have a major duel with Shanks.
If you thought about it carefully, there was a high probability they held each other's Vivre Cards.
It was extremely difficult to find Shanks' ship in the chaotic New World now, especially one deliberately hiding its whereabouts to avoid being discovered by Big Mom.
So rather than that, why not keep an eye on Mihawk instead?
What if they followed him and he led them straight to Shanks?
"Alright then, I'll track Mihawk," Finn decided.
This was the most feasible approach at this stage.
"Good. I'll have the relevant intelligence documents sent to Hina. She's already en route to Mary Geoise," Tsuru said.
"Understood. Then I won't return to Headquarters. I'll head directly to the New World from Mary Geoise," Finn confirmed.
After clarifying and explaining a few more details, Finn ended the call.
He looked at Queen Stussy, who'd been happily eavesdropping the entire time, and said, "Eavesdropping on an Admiral's conversation, especially regarding such important and confidential matters, is a serious offense."
"What do you mean, eavesdropping? I was listening openly," Stussy said, raising her chin defiantly.
But after a brief pause, her eyes flickered with mischief and she said charmingly, "Though I am willing to accept punishment."
Seeing this, Finn didn't hesitate. He swept his arms under Stussy's long, pale legs, lifted her horizontally into his arms, and walked toward the bedroom.
As he walked, he said, "Then I won't let you off easy. If you get any information about Shanks' situation through Pleasure Street, remember to let me know immediately. Also, aren't you on good terms with Charlotte Linlin? Why not test the waters, see what she really means by this alliance?"
Queen Stussy wrapped her arms around Finn's neck and smiled. "That depends on your sincerity."
Finn smiled, tossed the Queen onto the bed, and said, "Of course I'm sincere."
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