Chapter 263: Fabricating an Identity!
After hanging up the call, Ryuunosuke pulled out the Dragon Hunting Order from inside his coat. His gaze sharpened, his voice calm and decisive.
"Everyone," he said, "when you fight, suppress your strength by half."
A beat of silence followed.
"Also, start building new identities. Pass them around quickly—make them stick."
He paused, then added, "This world is divided into Four Seas. Go scout them out and gather intel yourselves."
The message quickly rippled through the crew.
"Suppress our strength?" Feitan echoed, raising an eyebrow as he folded his umbrella. "Captain thinks we're being too flashy?"
From what he understood, in this kind of world, the stronger you appeared, the better.
"I don't know," Chrollo said calmly. "He must have his reasons."
"Whatever." Feitan shrugged. "Not like we need our full strength to deal with these small fry."
"Right, Machi," Chrollo turned to the woman beside him. "Did he talk?"
Machi, still playing with the half-dead man using her silk threads, sighed in irritation. "Almost done. But seriously, why not just read his memory, Captain? Why make me play with trash like this?"
They were currently holed up in a quiet port town. A luxurious ship sat anchored at the docks—its cargo, none other than Heavenly Gold, tribute bound for Marijoa.
Under normal circumstances, a ship like this would be escorted by top-tier Marine forces. Admirals, even. But the Navy was stretched thin thanks to the chaos caused by the Dragon Hunter Pirates. The World Government, in a rare miscalculation, had decided to take matters into their own hands. They thought removing official escorts might confuse the pirates long enough to sneak shipments through.
Wrong move.
The Phantom Troupe had just landed.
And they knew what Heavenly Gold meant.
If the World Government was demanding more tribute, it only meant one thing—they were low on resources.
So why not cut them off?
"Machi, spill the intel," Chrollo ordered.
"We're about ready to make our move," Feitan added.
"Question is—what sea do we claim to be from?" Chrollo mused. "East Blue, like the captain? Or do we choose somewhere else?"
"The Calm Belt," Feitan said without hesitation. "It reminds me of Meteor Street—abandoned, lawless. Makes sense."
"agreed" Shizuku chirped as she dragged a corpse toward her vacuum cleaner. Her ability absorbed energy from the remains, strengthening her with every cleanup. "It's mysterious. People won't question it."
Chrollo nodded. "Alright. We're from the Calm Belt."
"And we're from the Meteor Empire!" Feitan added with a grin. "Sounds legit enough for these fools."
"Hey, don't ignore me," Machi snapped. "That guy said this shipment is headed to the Kingdom of Bijies. It's the closest ally to Mary Geoise—lots of other nations are stopping there too."
"A tribute hub, huh?" Chrollo smirked. "Perfect."
He turned toward the crew. "The Phantom Troupe of the Meteor Empire… Let's make sure the world remembers that name."
With that, they disappeared into the shadows.
---
Meanwhile…
"Captain said to suppress our strength," Ban muttered, scratching his head. "But we haven't even used our full power once."
Even when they fought Fengyue, none of them had gone all out. If they had, that man wouldn't have escaped so easily.
"Just do what he says," Escanor replied with his usual calm. "Half-strength means we go even easier than before."
Meliodas furrowed his brow. "But what's the point of making up identities?"
He glanced at Ban and Escanor. "Either of you have a clue?"
"Why are you looking at us?" Ban chimed in with a lazy smirk. "I'm just here to fight. I'll leave the planning to the captain."
The Dragon Hunter Pirates didn't complain. They trusted Ryuunosuke. If he said act, they acted. If he said lie low, they vanished like ghosts.
His only real rule?
Don't let the Dragon Hunter Pirates be humiliated. You can bully others—but never get bullied.
The crew received the message loud and clear.
Moments later, chaos resumed.
---
At Marine Headquarters…
"Fleet Admiral!"
A breathless marine burst into Sakazuki's office, eyes wide.
"We tracked the Phantom Troupe—they claim to be from a nation in the Calm Belt. Something called the Meteor Empire!"
Sakazuki looked up sharply. "Meteor Empire? From the Calm Belt?"
That was a problem.
The Calm Belt was a nightmare—infested with Sea Kings and impossible to sail without special tech. If someone had built a nation there… and kept it hidden all this time…
Another officer ran in. "Admiral! We've uncovered more! The fourth division—Ban claims to be from the Red Line, and Escanor from the West Blue. Still nothing solid on their captain yet."
Sakazuki's brow twitched.
But one fact stood out.
Ryuunosuke—their captain—was from the Goa Kingdom, in East Blue.
Finally, a lead.
But then again… Garp was from the East Blue. If things escalated, Sakazuki might find himself on the opposite end of Garp's fist.
And that was not a fight he wanted.
He sat back in his chair, eyes narrowing as report after report flooded his desk.
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