"Military warships?"
The moment Admiral Kuzan heard Storm's voice, his heart nearly skipped a beat.
"Storm! What lawless thing have you done this time?"
Huh?
Storm raised an eyebrow at that comment.
"Lawless? Admiral Kuzan, aren't you hurting my feelings by saying this?"
Seated cross-legged atop the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Storm looked down at the sea below. Being this high up meant he didn't have to worry about eavesdroppers, so he spoke without restraint.
"As a member of SWORD, I've always been dedicated to my job and strictly abide by the law!"
Kuzan could maybe believe the 'dedicated' part.
But law-abiding?
That was a joke.
In his eyes, if Storm hadn't joined SWORD, just his actions in Impel Down alone would've been enough to throw him into Impel Down himself!
"Alright, let's not go there," Kuzan sighed, rubbing his forehead as if already exhausted. "What's this about warships?"
"It's like this…"
Storm began his explanation.
"Two days ago, I arrived in the South Blue—"
"South Blue? Wait!"
Kuzan cut in immediately.
"What were you doing in the South Blue?"
"While flying, I ended up drifting out of the Calm Belt…"
Storm shrugged, his Den Den Mushi mimicking his nonchalant expression.
"What could I do? I got lost."
Kuzan felt a headache forming.
This feeling was like stuffing ice cubes into your stomach on a scorching summer day. A piercing chill spread through his veins, making his nerves ache.
He had forgotten—according to intelligence from Impel Down, there was a clear mention of Storm on a dragon and taking flight.
This guy could fly.
That meant he could go anywhere.
Kuzan exhaled slowly.
"Ahh… alright, go on. I won't interrupt you anymore."
Storm continued his report.
He briefly summarized everything that had happened in the Sorbet Kingdom, making sure to emphasize one particular point:
"...In short, that's how I came across these three warships."
Then, as if it were an afterthought, he added:
"If I hadn't arrived in time, those three warships and the thousands of marines onboard would've been nothing but stepping stones for the Tyrant to make a name for himself."
"And when that happens, Marine Headquarters would suffer a huge loss."
The cost of building a large Marine warship was in the billions of Berries.
Even the World Government's budget had limits.
So, in reality—Storm was actually protecting Marine property from external threats!
Wasn't he a great marine?
"...The Sorbet Kingdom, huh?"
Kuzan frowned, thinking back.
"I've heard of it before. There was a recent revolutionary incident there, right? Even the king was replaced."
"The 'Tyrant' you mentioned—he's the new king of Sorbet Kingdom, correct?"
Storm nodded.
"That's what I've gathered."
"Ahh…"
Kuzan sighed, rubbing his temples.
"Storm, you do know that the Marines generally don't interfere in the internal affairs of other nations, right?"
As a branch of the World Government, the Marines' main responsibility was maintaining order at sea—primarily by cracking down on pirates.
As for the domestic problems of World Government nations?
That wasn't their concern.
Just look at Alabasta.
Even when Crocodile manipulated events to spark a civil war, leading to a massive conflict between the Royal Army and the Rebel Forces, the Marines still didn't intervene.
And Alabasta wasn't just any country—it was a kingdom founded by one of the original twenty royal families of the World Government!
If even they got no help…
What were the chances for a small South Blue kingdom like Sorbet?
"I have no intention of interfering in another country's internal affairs," Storm replied calmly.
"But given the situation, should I really just stand by and watch?"
"Do you expect me to let three warships and over two thousand marines get slaughtered by 'the Tyrant'?"
"I'm not telling you to abandon your colleagues…"
Kuzan groaned.
"Forget it. Is that 'Tyrant' really strong enough to take on three warships?"
"Although I'm from the South Blue, that is still the Four Blues…"
"His real name is Bartholomew Kuma."
Storm's voice carried weight.
"If the name doesn't sound familiar…"
"Perhaps you'd recognize his titles instead?"
"Commander of the Revolutionary Army."
"User of the Paw-Paw Fruit."
Kuzan's expression darkened immediately.
"...Dragon's subordinate."
His voice was much deeper now.
"Alright, I get it.
"Getting involved with the Revolutionary Army is dangerous…"
He trailed off, exhaling.
"Forget it. Let's drop this conversation."
"Storm, I want those three Marine warships."
Storm grinned.
Although he could've sold the warships to other forces, his connections with them weren't strong yet.
Handing them back to the Marines was the safest move.
"Admiral Kuzan," Storm reminded.
"It's not just the warships—I've got the marines who were captured on board, too."
"Of course! Of course!"
Kuzan immediately responded.
"We want those marines back as well!"
"Good!"
Storm clapped his hands, smiling.
"Then let's talk payment!"
"...Money?"
Kuzan froze for a second.
"You mean… actual money?"
"Of course!" Storm grinned.
Storm asked back, "You don't want to get something for free, do you, Admiral Kuzan?"
"Each of these 60-meter-long warships costs billions of Berries."
"As for the Marines, I haven't done exact calculations, but each of them gets at least two million Berries a year."
"Three—no, two warships, and more than 2,000 Marines… You don't want to take them for nothing, do you?"
"Are you a Marine or a pirate?"
It was difficult.
Kuzan's fist hardened.
It was the first time his subordinate had directly questioned him.
"Storm! You're a Marine! A member of SWORD!"
Kuzan said, his tone heavy with sorrow.
"How can you… how can you talk to headquarters about something like this—about money?"
Storm was speechless.
"Admiral, I need to eat too!"
"Since we're colleagues, I can give you a super-low discount."
Two warships and more than two thousand marines.
If calculated according to the "market price"—the cost of warships and… well, "human resources".
The two together were worth at least Ten Billion Berries.
But Storm wasn't that greedy.
He could give the headquarters a special deal.
One Billion Berries. That should be fair, right?
Kuzan fell silent.
The ideal of justice was crushed beneath the weight of reality.
"I need to report this to Fleet Admiral Sengoku."
"No problem!"
Storm agreed readily.
"By the way, Admiral Kuzan, I'm only selling two warships. I need to keep one."
Kuzan frowned. "Why?"
"To use for myself!"
Storm answered matter-of-factly.
"Also, the Marines can use this incident as an excuse to put a bounty on me."
"Something like 'stealing a warship, defecting overseas,' 'the greatest disgrace to the Marines'…"
"In short, I need to prove my identity as a pirate!"
Kuzan was silent for a long time.
Then, in a faint voice, he said,
"Storm… you've been planning this for a long time, haven't you?"
"Ah?"
"When I first met you, I was curious. You seemed too skilled at 'defection,' almost like you had a plan ready."
"Ah??"
"If you really want to be a pirate, remember to take it easy, you little brat!"
Click.
Kuzan hung up.
Storm stared at the Den Den Mushi that had lost its signal, utterly confused.
"What's with this 'blue chicken' today?"
Regardless, the deal with Kuzan was settled.
Storm relaxed a little.
He controlled the Blue-Eyes White Dragon and flew back to the island.
The moment he landed, he spotted a huge paw print near Kuma and Bulldog's feet.
That mark could only be created by the "pressure cannon" of the Paw-Paw Fruit.
At the very center of the imprint, human remnants remained.
The original owner of these 'remains' had once been called "King Bekori".
It seemed the tyrant who had ruled the Sorbet Kingdom for years…
Had been executed by the 'Tyrant' himself!
At that moment—
Kid and Killer led a group of clay soldiers, unloading supplies from the three warships onto the island.
Most of it was the food and fresh water they had mentioned earlier.
"Boss! Everything's been moved!"
"The food reserves are massive, but we can't store them for long..."
"It doesn't matter."
Storm glanced at the supplies the clay soldiers brought over.
"Let's just have a party here! Invite everyone nearby to join!"
Storm used the diamond trophy he had just obtained to increase his Endurance attribute to—
[Endurance: ★★★★★★★]
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