"What? He actually fought Hawkeye to a draw! This guy..."
At Navy Headquarters, Fleet Admiral Sengoku's expression changed when he received Tsuru's report. Sengoku didn't particularly care that Daniel Davis had replaced Crocodile; after all, it was just pirates fighting among themselves, and the Navy often found it amusing to watch from the sidelines.
However, once Daniel Davis fought Hawkeye to a standstill, the situation changed completely. It was easy for the Navy to suppress an ordinary Warlord of the Sea; they didn't even need an Admiral—just a few elite Vice Admirals would do. But if someone was on the same level as Hawkeye, even an Admiral would struggle to handle them.
What's more, Daniel Davis was even more dangerous than Hawkeye. While Hawkeye was a lone wolf, Davis had the potential to build a powerful crew. If he wished, he could assemble a force comparable to one of the Four Emperors' crews.
The core strength of a Four Emperors' crew lies in the Emperor themselves, with their underlings merely enhancing the group's power. Figures like the Sweet Commanders or the Three Disasters were rare, but not entirely uncommon across the Grand Line.
Without the combat prowess of an Emperor-level figure, no matter how large the group, it wouldn't be recognized as a Four Emperors' crew. Take the Whitebeard Pirates, for example. When Whitebeard was alive, they were the strongest of the Four Emperors. But after his death, they quickly fell into ruin.
If someone like Davis seriously recruited strong subordinates, it wouldn't be impossible for him to pull together such a crew. Just look at the World Conscription effort after the war at Marineford, where two new Admirals emerged almost out of nowhere.
For the Navy, the Warlords of the Sea weren't a significant concern. But the rise of another Four Emperors' crew? That would be a completely different story, especially at a time when Davis had already weakened the Navy's prestige. A new Four Emperors' crew would be a massive threat.
Davis's earlier actions, such as distributing propaganda and killing a Celestial Dragon, hadn't yet caused widespread impact, but they had planted a seed in many people's hearts. With the right conditions, that seed could blossom into a full-blown revolution.
The top brass of the Navy had once enjoyed immense authority, but thanks to Davis, their credibility had plummeted. No matter how pure their intentions might have been, their integrity was now in question, and all their actions were seen in a much dimmer light.
Had this occurred in a world without overwhelming military power, Davis's pamphlets alone might have already triggered widespread rebellion.
"The East Blue, huh? What are those two doing there?" Garp, munching on rice crackers, chuckled.
"What do you think? They've met your grandson." Sengoku snapped at Garp, who seemed unconcerned.
Sengoku had been aware of Luffy for quite some time. After all, Luffy was Garp's grandson and Dragon's son. Luffy's recent incident with Captain Morgan had put his name on Sengoku's desk.
In fact, Luffy's name had first come to Sengoku's attention even earlier, back when the Red-Haired Pirates had stayed in Foosha Village. The Red-Haired Pirates were a Four Emperors' crew, and even though Shanks was known for keeping a low profile, the Navy still kept a close eye on him. The Navy had always shadowed the Four Emperors' crews.
The Red-Haired Pirates stayed in Foosha Village for over a year, and during that time, Sengoku lost a lot of hair. As a strategic genius, Sengoku had a tendency to overthink situations.
But Sengoku wasn't the only one overthinking. Many across the seas wondered why the Red-Haired Pirates had lingered in the village for so long.
The most popular theory was that Foosha Village held something Roger had left behind, prompting the Red-Haired Pirates to stay there for so long.
It was only because Foosha Village was Garp's hometown that it remained peaceful. If it had been anywhere else, the moment the Red-Haired Pirates left, others would have torn the island apart looking for treasure.
Not long after Roger's execution, the World Government, the Navy, and other major pirates scoured every island Roger had visited, looking for anything he might have left behind.
Roger was dead, but many coveted his logs and the possibility of a Log Pose that pointed directly to Laugh Tale, the island where the One Piece was said to be hidden.
"That brat..." Garp grumbled, suddenly losing his appetite for rice crackers. He had always hoped Luffy would join the Navy, but instead, his grandson had become a pirate. Garp knew Luffy's personality all too well—once he made a decision, nothing, not even a hundred Sea Kings, could change his mind.
"That damn Shanks," Garp muttered, feeling the urge to punch the red-haired pirate for leading Luffy astray.
"Aokiji, you should go." Sengoku sighed, no longer bothering with Garp. Lately, both his role as Fleet Admiral and Garp's status as a hero had become increasingly uncomfortable, especially since Davis had revealed the truth about Roger's capture. Roger hadn't been caught after being cornered by Garp, but rather, he had turned himself in, sick and ready to die.
Most people revered Garp for capturing the Pirate King, not realizing that Garp's title as a hero was more connected to his fight with the Rocks Pirates.
Davis hadn't revealed that yet. He couldn't reveal everything at once, after all.
"Understood." Aokiji said as he stood up, his long legs carrying him out of the room.
"What are those two doing here?" Smoker muttered, smoke curling from his mouth. He was stationed in Loguetown, and now two Warlords of the Sea had shown up in his jurisdiction, making him feel like something big was about to go down.
He immediately reported the situation to Navy Headquarters. But since Loguetown was far from headquarters, reinforcements would take time to arrive.
Fortunately, neither Daniel Davis nor Hawkeye seemed interested in making their presence known, so Loguetown remained calm for the time being.
"I'm going to be the Pirate King!" Luffy shouted from the execution platform where Gol D. Roger had been executed. Brought there to be killed by Buggy and his crew, Luffy boldly proclaimed his dream with a bright, beaming smile.
That smile made Smoker and even Hawkeye pause for a moment. There weren't many people in this world who could smile so brightly in the face of death.
"Buggy sure is an interesting guy." For someone like Buggy, who had once been part of Roger's crew and still deeply respected him, choosing to execute Luffy at the very spot Roger had died was a strange contradiction.
Even stranger was the straw hat Luffy wore—the same one that had once belonged to Roger. Buggy had to recognize it.
"Maybe I'm overthinking things," Daniel Davis thought. "Buggy is just lucky."
Boom!
Just as Buggy was about to strike Luffy, a bolt of lightning suddenly crashed down on the platform, sending Buggy and Luffy flying. As a rubber human, Luffy was immune to the electricity and was unharmed, though Buggy's hair immediately stood on end.
"Hmm." Hawkeye's sharp eyes swept to the left. No one else seemed to know why the lightning had appeared, but Hawkeye's keen senses immediately identified the source. His gaze landed on a tall figure cloaked in green, who exchanged a glance with both Daniel Davis and Hawkeye before disappearing.
"Arrest them all!" Smoker ordered, taking advantage of the chaos caused by the lightning. With his Smoke-Smoke Fruit powers and the Navy's Sea-Prism Stone weapons, many pirates were quickly captured.
Buggy and Alvida, however, managed to escape. Buggy used his Chop-Chop Fruit powers, while Alvida sped away barefoot, gliding across the ground with her Slip-Slip Fruit. She was so fast that the average Navy soldier couldn't catch her.
If Smoker had stayed, she might not have escaped, but he was busy chasing Luffy. Orders from Navy Headquarters were clear: Luffy could not be allowed to enter the Grand Line.
"She's barely tapped into that fruit's potential," Daniel Davis muttered, shaking his head as he watched Alvida. Typically, clothes and shoes wouldn't interfere with a Devil Fruit user's abilities. For example, when Luffy's arm stretches, his shirt stretches too.
But Alvida still needed to remove her shoes to use her power, which showed just how undeveloped her ability was. Of course, there was also the possibility that she had only recently acquired the fruit. Later on, Alvida would be able to use her powers without taking off her shoes.
Davis couldn't help but think of another woman who ate the Paste-Paste Fruit and had to strip off her clothes to use it—only to end up trapped in a bottle by Nami. She was probably the weakest Devil Fruit user of all, even weaker than the Swamp-Swamp user the Straw Hats trapped in a barrel.
If a skilled fighter ate the Slip-Slip Fruit, it would undoubtedly make them stronger. The ability could cause anything touching the user's skin to slip away, including attacks.
If the power were awakened, the user could likely make any opponent unable to stand against them. Compared to that, the fruit's beautifying effects were secondary.
Of course, for a man, the power was paramount. For a woman, the beautification might be more valuable.
In a small alley in stormy Loguetown, Sm
oker had just subdued Luffy when he felt a large hand on his shoulder, freezing him in place.
"Well, this is lively," Daniel Davis said as he and Hawkeye entered the alley.
"Who are you guys?" Luffy, having just escaped, cheerfully waved at Davis and Hawkeye. But before anyone could respond, a gust of wind swept through the alley, and Luffy was blown away.
"That's an impressive ability," Davis remarked. It wasn't just the alley—Loguetown was now being lashed by fierce winds, which lifted only the pirates into the air, leaving the Navy unharmed.
"Monkey D. Dragon. So that's it," Smoker thought, finally recognizing Luffy's identity after Dragon released him.
Though Smoker now realized who Luffy's father was, he didn't act. The power difference was too great.
The Navy wasn't only responsible for capturing pirates—they also fought against the Revolutionary Army. And in terms of bounties, Dragon's was even higher than that of the Four Emperors.
"More people are coming." Davis's words caught Smoker's attention, and he turned to where Davis was looking. Dragon and Hawkeye had already sensed the new arrival.
"Well, this is lively," Aokiji said, echoing Davis's earlier words as he entered the alley.
"Admiral Kuzan!" Smoker greeted Aokiji and stepped forward to speak, but the Admiral waved him off, signaling for him to stay behind.
"I believe the Warlords of the Sea are obligated to assist the Navy in apprehending criminals, correct?" Aokiji said, his eyes settling on Dragon.
Dragon and Aokiji had been close when Dragon was still in the Navy. But after Dragon betrayed the Navy and joined the Revolutionary Army, things had changed. If Dragon hadn't defected, he might have been one of the Admirals today.
"Sorry, I just remembered something urgent. I'll be going now." As soon as Aokiji finished speaking, Daniel Davis vanished. Hawkeye silently followed suit.
Aokiji could only sigh. Technically, he was right—the Warlords were supposed to help the Navy, just as they did during the war against Whitebeard's pirates.
But that was just on paper. In reality, none of the Warlords took that responsibility seriously. Didn't Boa Hancock attack both pirates and Navy soldiers during the war?
At least Davis had the decency to make an excuse. Hawkeye didn't even bother.
"Both of them left. Are they planning to fight?" Davis mused, watching the battle between Aokiji and Dragon unfold from a distance. He had already knocked out Alvida and retrieved her Devil Fruit.
"Looks like they're really going at it." Davis reappeared from the Mirror World just in time to see the towering tornado and colossal iceberg forming in the distance, clear signs that Dragon and Aokiji had begun their clash.
The two were clearly holding back to avoid destroying Loguetown. With their strength, if they fought there, the town would be wiped off the map.
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