The news about the bounty on the Lunarians was everywhere on every island, and Asie had seen similar news before, but he had no interest in speaking up about it. In fact, he was happier this way.
Whether it was pure gold or the Lunarians, they would all avoid the World Government, making them genuinely like grasshoppers tied to the same rope.
However, Queen was quite happy because, after several months, Kaidou finally recruited the first batch of subordinates, filling most of the vacancies in the Hundred Beasts Pirates.
But for Kaidou, these people weren't true followers. They were more like expendable troops. He wasn't following a purely elite path; numbers were part of his requirement.
Currently, everyone on this ship joined voluntarily, and such things were not uncommon. Pirates live by the law of the strong; powerful pirates often have groups of fans that follow them.
After Kaidou's wanted poster was updated, even in the New World, he was regarded as a powerful pirate, not to mention in Paradise. It's not surprising that someone would seek him out to join his ranks.
After a few months, they understood that, except when Kaidou was drunk, they were mostly safe.
Moreover, Kaidou rarely managed things; the major matters on the ship were mainly handled by Queen and King.
Queen handled miscellaneous affairs, while King managed the broader issues. However, anything related to Arceus would catch Shaina's attention.
Through her actions, Shaina made them understand the status of Arceus on this ship. One person who spoke inappropriately was almost burned to ashes by Shaina.
But now, there was a small problem on the ship.
The Captain of this ship, the Governor of the Hundred Beasts Pirates, Kaidou, was missing.
No, to be accurate, he drank too much at the banquet a few days ago, turned into a dragon, and flew off to who knows where. This had happened before, but he would usually fly back himself in two or three days, thanks to the Life Card Queen gave him.
At first, the people on the ship would panic, but they gradually got used to Kaidou's periodic disappearances and weren't surprised anymore.
Usually, the frequency of his disappearances was relative to the frequency of banquets.
But this time, it had already exceeded the usual timeframe, and Kaidou still had not returned, plus the direction his Life Card was moving seemed a bit off.
It wasn't until this morning when the newspaper arrived that the people on the ship understood what had happened.
"Lord Saint Beast, are you there? Mr. Kaidou seems to be in trouble; he... has been captured again."
Shaina was holding the newspaper just delivered by the News Bird.
In general, the Navy G-4 Branch discovered an unidentified creature entering the base's warehouse, and upon inspection, they found it was the wanted Kaidou, who is now detained and will be sent to the Undersea Prison- Impel Down soon.
"G-4 Branch... Who is the officer there?"
"The original Vice Admiral of G-4 Branch has retired; now it's Headquarter Vice Admiral Hedra temporarily managing."
The World Government's branches on the Grand Line are named G-X, and the Shampodi Islands happen to be near G-4 Branch.
Unlike the Four Seas Branches where ranks are three levels lower compared to the Headquarters, the ranks in the Headquarters and the Grand Line's branches are equivalent, so there isn't much difference.
Just like pirates' strength can be roughly judged by bounty, the Navy's strength can be estimated by rank, though there are exceptions, such as Garp, who refuses promotions.
"Hedra... a name I've never heard of."
Excluding the monsters within the Navy, Kaidou wouldn't be easily defeated. After all, the power span at the Vice Admiral level is huge, so a name that leaves no impression on him likely rules out Kaidou being defeated.
Given Kaidou's character, Arceus thought he probably went to drink round two in the Navy's warehouse and got caught while still hungover, maybe not even sobered up yet.
Based on his impression of Kaidou, though he couldn't recall the specific times, Kaidou had definitely been captured numerous times, and barring any incidents, he would find a way out eventually if they waited longer.
However, Arceus could clearly feel that the ship changed its course.
"Has the course changed?"
"Yes, specifically... Listen for yourself."
With that, Shaina pointed to the deck below.
"We need to rescue Boss Kaidou!"
"Oh!"
"We'll show those Navy our strength!"
"Oh!"
"These guys are really spirited. Do they even know what a Navy Vice Admiral is?" Though the henchmen Kaidou recruited were already strong considering the front half of the Grand Line, trying to rescue someone from a branch was like hitting a stone with an egg.
Just being able to shout such things is enough to show how naive they are, but in the pirate community, there will never be a shortage of such naive individuals.
"Lord Saint Beast, should we stop them?"
"No need. After all, it's a partnership. It's quite reasonable for them to want to rescue their Captain, but they absolutely cannot save him, just consider it a stealth training for Olga."
Relying on these people to save Kaidou was unrealistic. At most, they could sail the ship, fire a few cannons, or put on a show against some ordinary soldiers.
Either launch a strong attack and snatch Kaidou out, or unlock Kaidou's handcuffs and let him escape on his own; Arceus believed Kaidou could escape by himself.
Even though he was likely put in Seastone Handcuffs, if the purity of Seastone couldn't adequately restrict his abilities, he could still use his powers freely.
Seastone primarily comes from the unique mineral veins in Wano Kuni and is scarce in the outside world, and before Kurozumi Orochi usurped the General's position, Wano Kuni was a closed country with little external contact.
Though Seastone has been exported, the quantity is limited, and most of it is in Impel Down. The purity of Seastone in the garrisons may not even affect Kaidou.
If the concentration isn't sufficient, once he sobered up he could naturally free himself.
But just in case, they still decided to make a trip.
Collaboration has been quite satisfactory so far, and Arceus had no intention of changing partners.
Olga had been developing Zoroark's skills quite well, maybe due to her personality; she was more proficient at transformation abilities, while she mastered only a few attacking skills like Dark Pulse, and hadn't yet mastered the former species-exclusive skill Night Daze.
In a way, she is someone who's lived for over a hundred years, and a little combat training is necessary.
In the future, for the purpose of finding Plates, infiltration and intelligence gathering will be inevitable, a perfect chance to let her practice. Otherwise, Arceus wouldn't have chosen Zoroark.
The Phantom Master's ability isn't something to be wasted.
"Lord Saint Beast, isn't this too soon for her? Perhaps I should go instead..."
"Don't worry, if anything happens I'll get her out. Your temperament is not suited for this kind of task."
The Hundred Beasts' ship sailed in the direction of G-4. The position of the Shampodi Islands and the G-4 Branch Base wasn't far apart, and at full speed, they soon reached the vicinity. They waited until dark, then Elizabeth led Olga to begin the infiltration mission.