The conference hall on Whole Cake Island.
Creed, Big Mom, Shiki, Redfield and the others were all present.
Everyone's expression was solemn, not a trace of laughter in sight.
The civilians in the area chosen as the main battlefield had already been evacuated. But just an hour or two ago, all the spies and informants they had planted in the Marines' new Headquarters had been cleaned out by the Marines at the very first moment.
Not a single one had escaped.
This move from the Marines was obvious: they were carrying out their final mobilization—and it was aimed squarely at Creed and everything he'd done.
For all they knew, the Marine warships might already be on their way to Totto Land.
Time was a little tight.
"Since they're coming," Redfield said, "we should be fully prepared to meet them head-on."
He wasn't nervous in the slightest. On the contrary, he looked even a little excited.
This battle would surely leave its mark in the annals of history!
If their side won, yet ultimately failed to overthrow the World Government, then this era might well become another blank century, erased from history.
And if they won and did topple it? That was even more unimaginable.
Leaving aside the distant future, in the short term Creed would undoubtedly become the new Pirate King, commanding the New World.
No matter how it ended, Redfield felt this would make his latter half of life worth every second.
A man's life, he thought, should be spent making a grand, earth-shaking ruckus at least once!
What surprised Redfield, though, was that everyone present seemed just as excited as he was—if not more.
Especially Shiki. A man-eating killing intent flashed in his eyes, and his hands rubbed together non-stop.
"Perfect," Shiki growled. "I was just worrying they might not make us their main target. This time, I'm gonna settle old and new grudges all at once! Sengoku or Garp—just leave one of them to me!"
At that moment, Big Mom shot him a strange look, making Shiki feel a bit confused. Then it suddenly hit him that Garp was Creed's grandfather.
He jolted, hurriedly correcting himself.
"Alright, it's decided then! Sengoku is mine! No one fight me for him! The hatred between us is as deep as the sea—we can't live under the same sky!"
Creed didn't care about who fought whom.
Next, he even handed over most of the supreme command to Shiki, which made the old lion's eyes sting with heat as a wave of emotion surged through him.
"Captain, rest easy!" Shiki pounded his chest. "Whether it's a naval battle or a land battle, I've got it covered!"
He gave an iron-clad guarantee.
He had a wealth of experience in large-scale naval warfare, and now was the perfect time to put it to use.
Big Mom, who was serving as his deputy, was somewhat displeased.
Having to take orders from someone she'd once sat beside as an equal made her feel a little annoyed.
But since Creed had already made the decision, she could only comply.
"Release all scouts," Shiki ordered. "I want eyes on all of Totto Land and everything within a hundred miles beyond it! And you must report back to me every fifteen minutes!"
That was the first command he issued.
As one order after another left his mouth, Totto Land entered first-level wartime alert. The atmosphere grew extremely tense.
At this time, Creed also received a call that took him pleasantly by surprise.
Dragon was leading the remnants of the Revolutionary Army toward Totto Land as well.
"I'll go personally to welcome him," Creed said.
Originally Redfield wanted to go meet them, but Creed stopped him.
Dragon was going to be very important in Creed's future plans, so Creed wanted to show as much sincerity as possible.
On the sea at the edge of Totto Land's waters, Creed and Dragon met face to face.
"Captain Creed, you're too courteous," Dragon said with a faint smile. "You came so far out just to welcome us."
He was a little surprised, and a little moved as well.
They had clearly agreed to meet on Whole Cake Island, yet Creed had come several hundred miles out to greet them.
That level of sincerity was indeed overflowing.
Thanks to the two layers of connection—Garp and Luffy—even though it was their first time meeting, there wasn't the slightest barrier between Dragon and Creed.
On the contrary, it felt like two old friends reuniting after a long separation, the conversation flowing so easily that they talked as if they'd known each other for years.
Perhaps it was because the two of them shared the same goal.
After all, they both wanted to overthrow the World Government and drag the Celestial Dragons down from their thrones.
"It's been so many years," Dragon said, looking Ain up and down with some emotion, "and little Ain has grown so much, and so beautiful. I still remember when I left the Marines—you were just a snot-nosed little girl back then. But you and our Creed really do make quite the pair. When are you two going to give our family a chubby little baby?"
Dragon knew Ain as well. After his emotional sigh, that teasing remark made Ain's cheeks flush bright red once again, and she could only lower her head and mumble in response.
His joke had hit her right in the heart.
These past days, once Creed and Ain had tasted the sweetness of each other, they couldn't help but cling together whenever they were in the same place, endlessly wrapped up in each other, never tiring of their intimacy.
The odds of her getting pregnant were, honestly, pretty high…
Just then—
"So you're the big brother Luffy keeps talking about?"
A young man with a pipe between his teeth stepped forward, eyes shining with curiosity.
"My name is Sabo. I'm also Luffy's brother."
This was the Revolutionary Army's Chief of Staff, Sabo.
Back when they were children, Luffy had told him about this big brother Creed, who was incredibly strong—a remarkable swordsman who had easily beaten the mountain bandits with big bounties on their heads.
At the time, he and Ace had just assumed Luffy was bragging.
But now, seeing Creed in person, Sabo couldn't help feeling moved.
Every peerless overlord, it seemed, was already far beyond ordinary people even in their youth—so far ahead that others could only stare at their backs in awe.
"Nice to meet you," Creed replied casually.
When Creed brought Dragon, Sabo, and the others back to Whole Cake Island, Shiki and Big Mom were stunned for a moment—then overjoyed.
They had known Dragon was in contact with Creed, but they hadn't expected Dragon to actually defect and come over in person.
This was a powerful new ally.
"Dragon! It's been so long!"
Big Mom clearly had some history with Dragon. The moment she saw him, her gaze softened, becoming complicated and distant.
Creed couldn't help being a little curious.
Could Dragon really have some kind of past with her?
Everyone knew that when Big Mom was young, she had been a stunning beauty. She was also extremely unrestrained in matters between men and women, with forty-three husbands on record.
So if she had once had something with Dragon, Creed wouldn't be surprised in the slightest.
"Ahem… long time no see," Dragon coughed lightly.
His reaction made Creed even more certain of his guess.
However, he had no mood to dig into gossip at a time like this.
After introducing everyone to each other, Creed had Dragon and Shiki jointly take charge of commanding this war, splitting the overall command between the two of them.
Of course, if things developed to a point where a final decision had to be made by a single person, Creed himself would be the one to make the call.
Shiki was extremely happy about Dragon's arrival.
Back when he'd been in hiding, the main headlines of the newspapers had been dominated by the Revolutionary Army, and Dragon's wanted poster had appeared so often that Shiki was practically sick of seeing it.
Because of that, he was actually very appreciative of Dragon.
After Dragon led the remnants of the Revolutionary Army into Creed's alliance, the defensive arrangements and deployments throughout Totto Land underwent yet another large-scale adjustment.
Fortunately, there still seemed to be enough time.
Only after Dragon and Shiki finished their coordination did the Marine warships finally appear, three to four hundred miles out from the waters of Totto Land.
The appearance of the Marine fleet instantly put Creed's side on high alert, and they immediately entered first-level wartime status at the very first moment.
(End of Chapter)
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