New World, G-1 Marine Base.
Finn sat in a reserved office, accepting a fax from Hina. He glanced at the Den Den Mushi on the table. "I received the plan. What did he say?"
Smoker's voice came through the receiver.
After dealing with Shank Straw Hat Pirates, Finn hadn't returned to Marineford immediately. He'd stopped at G-1 instead. Sakazuki had taken his forces back, and Shanks and Beckman had been transported away under Sakazuki's custody.
Finn had come to G-1 for a specific reason. After all, he'd entered the New World with such fanfare. He couldn't just slink back quietly, could he?
At minimum, he needed to handle nominal duties, such as inspecting the situation at the New World G-1 base.
He'd stay three to five days, appear in the newspapers, then depart.
He'd only arrived at G-1 today when he'd received news from Smoker about Gild Tesoro's defection.
Finn had been genuinely surprised by this development.
He'd remembered Tesoro many years ago and sent people to locate him, but the search had failed. Eventually, the matter had been abandoned.
Despite that outcome, it didn't mean Finn didn't value Tesoro. On the contrary, he considered him extremely important.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have quickly informed Smoker, Stussy, and others after the Mary Geoise arson incident to keep watch over the New World in case this man surfaced.
In Finn's plan to break the Marines free from economic constraints, Tesoro represented the final piece.
If they could control Tesoro and support him in building Gran Tesoro, once that project was properly established, the Marines' economy would be completely liberated from its shackles.
There was no questioning Gran Tesoro's fundraising and earning capacity. Combined with the Calm Belt operations and the Amway Group, the Marines' economy would stand on two solid legs. There'd be no need to worry about problems in one area causing cascading failures.
At that point, Finn would no longer need to continue playing along with the World Government.
However, Finn had never received any news about Tesoro, so he'd been suspicious previously, wondering if he'd accidentally eliminated this man through some butterfly effect.
If something like that had truly happened, there was nothing he could do about it. So he hadn't placed all his hopes on Tesoro.
He'd been preparing contingency plans. The Amway Group, run by Smoker and Stussy, was actually Finn's talent cultivation ground. Although Amway primarily relied on power and connections to generate profit, taking simple approaches without sophisticated business practices, it could still train people to some degree.
If Finn could discover someone with talent and innovative ideas among them, he'd groom that person to replace Tesoro.
Then, just when Finn had assumed this man had died somewhere, Tesoro had appeared.
Along with a business plan.
While listening to Smoker's report through the Den Den Mushi, Finn examined the plan. He wasn't a business expert either, but he possessed vision and foresight from an era of information explosion, so he wasn't completely unable to understand it. At any rate, he was far better equipped than Smoker.
Just taking a casual look, Finn could appreciate its value.
The Amway Group was currently growing explosively, relying on power, connections, networks, and abundant Calm Belt resources to generate wealth.
Nothing particularly sophisticated about it.
However, Tesoro's business plan proposed many practical and innovative concepts. If implemented properly, it could enable the Amway Group's business to expand faster, grow larger in scale, and earn substantially more money.
However, Finn didn't concern himself too much with these details. He simply used this to confirm that Tesoro still possessed talent and gifts, then tossed the plan onto the table.
Given his position, he didn't need to focus on such minutiae. He simply needed to wait for his subordinates to deliver results in the end.
"Really?" Finn laughed. "If he wants financial support, to operate under your flag, and to personally implement these plans, I can agree to that. I can also grant him status and other privileges. But this Gold-Gold Fruit..." He chuckled darkly. "He's quite ambitious."
It didn't matter if Tesoro wanted these things. Finn wasn't afraid he'd spiral out of control after growing wealthy and powerful.
In fact, it would be impossible for Tesoro to escape these controls.
In the original timeline, he'd already become the boss of Gran Tesoro, wielding enormous wealth. The World Government had been forced to show him surface-level respect, and he'd even established the only recognized neutral zone in the world.
But what had been the result?
The Straw Hat Pirates had blown up his operation in one stroke, and the World Government had immediately turned on him and arrested the man.
Was this because of the Straw Hat Pirates?
Not necessarily. Perhaps the World Government had long wanted to eliminate him, drink his blood, and consume his flesh.
The so-called Golden Emperor, Gild Tesoro, had probably just been a "pig" raised by the World Government for slaughter.
Thinking it through carefully, Tesoro should have understood this too. He might have even devised methods to continue persuading the World Government not to move against him.
But before he could execute these strategies, he'd been killed by Luffy.
Then everything had become moot.
Simply put, even after becoming the richest man and the so-called Golden Emperor, Tesoro had still needed a backer, and that backer had to be powerful enough.
His own strength and influence hadn't been sufficient to support him in controlling such vast wealth. He'd absolutely needed someone backing him.
Finn and the Marines were perfect for this role.
"Are you ambitious yourself and want to eliminate him? Or are you refusing his request for the Gold-Gold Fruit?" Smoker asked through the Den Den Mushi.
Finn thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No need. But tell him this matter isn't that simple. Let him perform his duties properly first and demonstrate results. As for the Gold-Gold Fruit and such, tell him not to worry. Just say you'll handle it."
Smoker wasn't surprised. He'd had extensive contact with Doflamingo and maintained a decent relationship with him. Naturally, he knew that Doflamingo sought help from the Marines while simultaneously fearing Admiral Finn.
If the Admiral took action, he should be able to secure this Gold-Gold Fruit.
But they couldn't let Tesoro think this was too easily obtained. They needed to test this man first.
"Yes, I understand, Admiral," Smoker responded.
"Don't let him access secrets he shouldn't know about. Let him handle the rest freely. I'm optimistic about this kid's money-making ability and hope he can bring sufficient surprises," Finn added another instruction.
"Understood," Smoker acknowledged.
"Well, anything else?" Finn asked.
Smoker hesitated momentarily, then said, "Boss, it's the end of 1510 now. It's been eight years, almost nine. It's been three years, then three years, then three years... almost ten years..."
"Ahem, the organization believes in your loyalty, Smoker. Don't worry, just do your job properly. I have other matters here, so I'll hang up first." Finn quickly offered some perfunctory words and ended the call.
Smoker stared at the disconnected Den Den Mushi, confused. Was I questioning loyalty or not?
But soon, he laughed helplessly. Never mind. Ever since he'd been tricked out of Marineford all those years ago, he'd already fallen into this deep pit. Now he couldn't climb out even if he wanted to!
On the other end, after Finn put away the Den Den Mushi, he looked at Hina. "Burn this document."
Hina picked up the business plan from the table and nodded. "Yes, Admiral."
"Any news from Headquarters? Have Whitebeard and Big Mom fought yet?" Finn asked after taking a sip from his teacup.
"No, how could a fight break out so quickly? By the time we return to Marineford, they might not have even started. As for Headquarters, I heard Admiral Sengoku accepted a political mission. There doesn't seem to be anything else new," Hina said with a smile.
"A political mission?" Finn asked with surprise.
He'd handled political tasks himself in the past, such as managing affairs in the Sorbet Kingdom and the Bartholomew Kuma incident.
However, as relations between the Marines and World Government had deteriorated, the concept of "political missions" hadn't been mentioned for years.
Now that Admiral Sengoku had suddenly received a political mission, it could be regarded as a sign that the World Government and Marines had reconciled to some extent.
"Yes, it's not secret news. Apparently, the higher-ups want Admiral Sengoku to find the Ope Ope no Mi," Hina said casually.
Without waiting for Finn to respond, Hina asked curiously, "Admiral, is the Ope Ope no Mi really that powerful? Why is it so important to the higher-ups? Admiral Sengoku is even offering a bounty of 5 billion berries in the underworld."
Hina had only heard about this from others, so naturally she didn't understand the Ope Ope no Mi's significance.
Finn had been slightly surprised when first hearing the news, but he quickly calmed down and said with a smile, "It's quite impressive. Rumor has it this Devil Fruit can grant someone the power of eternal life."
Hina had just been asking casually but ended up learning such shocking information.
"Ah, this..." Hina murmured in surprise, then her eyes gleamed. "Can it keep you young forever? If I ate the Ope Ope no Mi, I could stay this beautiful forever? Oh, what a shame, I'm already a Devil Fruit user..."
"Why so conceited? And 'stay this beautiful'? Does that mean you think you're beautiful?" Finn teased with a grin.
"Isn't that obvious?" Hina said proudly.
Judging from her expression, she genuinely seemed quite pleased with herself.
However, it had to be said that over recent years, Hina had become increasingly attractive. Her figure and appearance had matured, losing childishness and gaining beauty.
"If the Ope Ope no Mi user employs that ability, they'll die. So don't think of it as such a wonderful thing," Finn said suddenly.
Then, before Hina could say anything else, Finn waved her off. He picked up the Den Den Mushi and called Admiral Sengoku.
A moment later, Sengoku answered. "Finn? What's wrong? Is there a problem at G-1?"
"G-1 is fine, Admiral Sengoku," Finn replied politely, then asked, "I heard you took on a political mission? Looking for the Ope Ope no Mi? Hahahaha! Have you found any leads?"
Sengoku didn't take this particularly seriously. There was nothing to keep secret, otherwise Hina wouldn't have heard about it. After hearing Finn's question, Sengoku laughed and scolded, "How could you find something so easily? What, do you have connections?"
"Not a damn thing," Finn said with a smile. After a slight pause, he continued, "It's like this, Admiral. Please give me Rosinante's contact information."
"What for?" Sengoku asked warily.
"I need his help. I want something from Doflamingo," Finn said directly without hiding anything.
"What kind of thing?" Sengoku asked curiously.
"The Gold-Gold Fruit, a Paramecia. I have a major plan that requires this fruit's assistance. I've already confirmed the fruit is in Doflamingo's hands. Rosinante has followed Doflamingo for so many years without much usefulness. I think we should extract him. Before he returns, can you help me obtain the Gold-Gold Fruit? Hahahaha," Finn laughed.
Sengoku had begun searching for the Ope Ope no Mi. It was unclear how long it would be before Minion Island became an issue. No matter how one looked at it, Rosinante was a liability in this matter. If Finn could take advantage of this opportunity to extract him before trouble arose, it would be like repaying the friendship this kid had shown him years ago.