The tactical decision was made swiftly—so swiftly that even Lafitte found himself momentarily dazed...
After Sengoku agreed to the proposal, he immediately took out his Den Den Mushi and issued several consecutive orders.
It was as if the Marine Headquarters had been waiting for the Blackbeard Pirates to put forth this suggestion. Now that the conversation had begun, the rest of the plan seemed preordained—ready to be executed step by step without hesitation.
"Heh... Impossible. I must be too excited. Looks like I still need to work on my emotional control."
Lafitte shook his head slightly, dispelling the odd thought from his mind. At this stage, the arrow was already nocked; there was no room for hesitation or delay.
Carrying the key details of their agreement with Sengoku, Lafitte leaped out of the conference room window. With a flap of his snow-white wings, he took off into the sky at high speed.
The agreed-upon terms included the ambush's time and location. As for the exact execution, that was the Marines' concern. The Blackbeard Pirates only needed to cooperate once the Marines made their move.
Lafitte wasn't particularly worried about the Marines turning on them. While such a betrayal was within the realm of possibility, he wouldn't have made the proposal without a backup plan.
As a flying-type Devil Fruit user with mobility on par with Marco, Lafitte would be providing a real-time aerial broadcast of the operation. The recipient of this live transmission? None other than the world's greatest media mogul—the president of the World Economy News Paper, Morgans!
Morgans had all but openly severed ties with the World Government at this point. His unique advantage—his fleet of News Coo—was something even the World Government couldn't suppress. No matter how many rival news agencies they propped up, none could compete with Morgans on any level.
Thanks to his successful media campaign surrounding Admiral Wright's rise to power, Morgans was at the peak of his influence. After a failed assassination attempt, the World Government had no effective means to deal with him.
He had, after all, formed an alliance with the Gran Tesoro. This coalition was beyond the World Government's ability to suppress in the shadows.
As a result, Morgans had transformed from the World Government's mouthpiece into a supposedly "objective," "neutral," and "third-party" global news authority. To the world at large, news reported by him was regarded as indisputable fact.
In times of controversy, a single preemptive declaration in the World Economy News Paper served as irrefutable evidence—no room for denials or cover-ups.
Lafitte had proposed this tactic to Sengoku, and with the Fleet Admiral's approval, the plan was set in motion.
Sengoku never intended to eliminate the Blackbeard Pirates just yet. For one, the Shichibukai system required new candidates to fill the vacancies. Secondly, granting Blackbeard a seat among the Seven Warlords of the Sea would serve as the perfect catalyst to provoke Whitebeard.
With this, the strategy was flawless. Whatever grand scheme Teach was pursuing by securing a Warlord position paled in comparison to the immediate priority—dealing with an enraged, fully-recovered Whitebeard.
Wright, the man who had orchestrated most of these events behind the scenes, could have easily leveraged Morgans to rewrite the narrative and condemn Blackbeard outright. However, doing so would hinder Morgans' long-term utility.
Moreover, Wright was well aware of what Teach had planned next. He had prepared for this moment years in advance.
Magellan, now free from his chronic stomach issues, had also grown even deadlier thanks to his prolonged use of Purification Crystals. His poisons were more potent than ever.
With Ace out of the equation, Luffy's protagonist aura would no longer extend to Impel Down. The infamous prison would finally reveal its true horrors.
Ensuring that Impel Down remained unbreached was now a top priority. In the original timeline, the World Government's mishandling of the Impel Down escapees dealt a severe blow to Sengoku's faith in the organization.
This former champion of the World Government's interests had undergone a radical shift in perspective following that event.
At present, while Sengoku had rekindled his ambition to "bring order to the seas" and was growing increasingly disillusioned with the World Government's attempts to maintain a fragile balance, one final, decisive event was needed to expose the government's corruption to the Marine high command.
Thus, controlling the scale of any potential uprising within Impel Down while achieving the same impact was paramount.
For that, the aid of allies was indispensable.
...
Revolutionary Army Headquarters – Baltigo, the "Island of White Soil."
Even for a man as steadfast as Dragon, recent developments had left him somewhat... unsettled.
No, to put it more accurately, he was outright baffled.
His son, Luffy, had just delivered a resounding slap to the World Government's face—storming Enies Lobby, annihilating CP9, and escaping the Buster Call completely unscathed...
That was nothing shocking. After all, he was his son. Such determination and capability came as no surprise to Dragon.
But then they stomped on the World Government's dignity a few more times. In less than two months at sea, Luffy—a rookie pirate—had taken down a Warlord of the Sea, Gecko Moria, right in his own domain!
Alright, that still wasn't too surprising. His son was his son, after all. With his talent and rapid growth, this was still within expectations...
A grandfather who was a Marine hero, a father who was the leader of the Revolutionary Army, a mentor who was a Marine Admiral, and crewmates who were each extraordinary in their own right...
The only issue was Luffy's carefree, childlike attitude.
By contrast, the Revolutionary Army's Chief Strategist—who wasn't much older than Luffy—was far more composed. Otherwise, Dragon would never have entrusted him with the position of second-in-command at such a young age.
Saving this child all those years ago had truly been a stroke of fortune.
The day after this realization, the Chief Strategist returned from a successful mission in the South Blue.
And Dragon was immediately stunned by his "composed" strategist's first words upon arrival.
"Dragon-san! I... I've regained my memories!"
Sabo, still clad in his formal attire, had just hung up his coat and set down his steel pipe when he practically sprinted over to Dragon.
"I... I remember who I am!"
"..."
Dragon blinked. Ever since he had rescued Sabo from the East Blue, the boy had been suffering from amnesia—barely able to recall his own name and the fact that he had a few relatives.
Hmm... An uncle, and two brothers?
"You remember? So suddenly? Did something happen?"
Dragon's expression softened with concern. Regaining lost memories was undoubtedly a good thing, but such occurrences usually required a significant emotional trigger. Whether that trigger was a good thing was another matter entirely.
"Yes... Dragon-san, I finished my mission and came back to see the latest newspapers."
Sabo took a deep breath, his expression turning somewhat complicated.
"It was the Enies Lobby incident..."
"Enies Lobby?"
Dragon's instincts immediately sharpened. Something felt off.
"Yes, you've heard of the crew that caused the uproar, right? The Straw Hat Pirates? Their captain, Straw Hat Luffy?"
Sabo's excitement surged, completely abandoning the "composed" demeanor his leader had praised him for. His sheer joy was palpable—even Dragon found it somewhat...
"Oh? Straw Hat Luffy, yes. Quite the interesting young man..."
"He's my brother!"
"Cough, cough, cough—"
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