Chapter 235: Execution Upon the World! (10k) (Part 1)

Chapter 235: Execution Upon the World! (10k) (Part 1)





After Straw Hat defeated the demon, Oz, whom Moria had created with great effort, Moria, who was already wavering due to Sagar, completely lost his will to fight. His obsession with using an army of zombies against Kaido had clearly failed.

Even the strongest demon, Oz, couldn't achieve his goal, and a group of zombies, who were only undead because of their shadows, was utterly useless.

What truly saddened and left Moria bewildered was Absalom's death. He had dismissed those zombies, and their shadows returned to their original hosts. Among them were quite a few pirates who had tried to seize control of his terrifying three-masted ship and happened to clash with Absalom.

Although capable, Absalom had just been defeated by members of the Straw Hat Pirates and was already injured. His invisibility ability allowed him to stop some of them, but there were too many people. By the time Moria reacted, Absalom had already been killed.

He had lost another companion. In his pursuit of eternal zombies, he had lost yet another.

Perona, too, had disappeared, and no one knew where she had gone.

With Oz's failure and the death and disappearance of his companions, Moria finally faced the truth within his heart. The idea of eternal zombies and immortal partners was all false; only these living people could truly be his partners!

In the end, he was still the same Moria who relied on others and liked to have others do everything for him.

He hadn't changed at all.

"I want to try one more time!"

Moria's expression turned solemn as he stood up and began walking toward the No. 60 area of Shabondy, "One last time, I want to see how far I am from Whitebeard!

In the past, he had even been crazy enough to covet Whitebeard's corpse. But now that he had seen the truth, he wanted to know how much they had diverged over the years!

If he still couldn't see any hope of surpassing him...

Moria glanced back at Sagar, who was drinking, "Sagar, let me also see where the gap between you and them lies!"

"You will find out."

Sagar took a bottle of wine from the wooden box and flung it forward. It was caught by the shadow behind Moria.

The shadow handed the wine bottle over, and Moria reached out to take it. Instead of drinking it now, he just held the bottle and left with Hogback.

Watching his departing figure, Donquixote Doflamingo smiled sinisterly, "Is that the acceptance wine? It seems he didn't drink it. Hehehe, tomorrow will be the most exciting time. Hey, Sagar, if you want to join in, it will be even more exciting!"

Speaking, he walked toward the No. 60 area with his hands in his pockets and a stride that seemed begging to be broken by others.

"Someone will come to take over at night, so I'll leave first, Sagar."

"Zeha ha ha, then I'll be off too."

Teach drank the last cup of wine and finished the food in front of him. He wiped his mouth and laughed heartily, "As for the banquet, let's hold it next time, Sagar. Next time, we will definitely hold the grandest banquet! Guys, let's go too!"

He stood up and led his men toward the No. 60 area.

Of course, after descending from Mariejois, they would arrive at Shabondy. Here, the Seven Warlords would gather before proceeding to Marinford to await orders.

"Ah, if you can survive, good luck to you. Magellan is not so easy to deal with."

Sagar drank the wine in the jewel-encrusted cup, but the smile on his face only grew wider. He stood up, spread his arms wide, and his low chuckle turned into a booming laugh.

"Hmm hmm hahahaha, whoo hahahaha! The sea is truly a wondrous place!"

"Those who gamble their lives to become the conquerors of the New World! Those who would throw away their lives for their goals and stir up the world like petulant children! Those who no longer need partners but now think they do! And that old man who's about to die but wants to fight the world's greatest conqueror! It's all too exciting! It's precisely because of these strange and wondrous people that the sea is so fascinating!"

"Only by becoming a pirate can you meet so many interesting people. Hahaha, Lily, don't you think so too!"

Lily thought for a moment and replied with a chilly tone, "There's also that guy who wants to rule the world."

"Yes, and there's me too, hahaha! Let's continue the revelry, guys!" Sagar waved his hand grandly, "Tonight is the send-off carnival for tomorrow's excitement!"

The group drank until midnight before finally passing out on the ground. In the meantime, some of Umit's men really did appear out of thin air. They took inventory of the valuables and then took the money with them.

Aside from Sagar's collection and the two hundred million berries he kept for himself in the treasure vault, they took away one hundred and forty billion berries, as well as gold, silver, and jewels worth twenty billion berries.

As for whether this money would be embezzled, Sagar didn't care. Money was a medium of exchange, something to facilitate development. If it just sat in his hands, it would be nothing but useless clutter.

As long as Doflamingo acknowledged the debt, that was enough.

After sending away Umit's men, the banquet also came to an end, and everyone rested.

Sagar lay directly on the sofa with his feet propped up as he closed his eyes to rest. Next to him, leaning against the sofa by his feet and sleeping while leaning on him was Reinete. Next to Reinete was Marica.

By the sofa, next to Sagar's head, Lily rested in a half-kneeling position. The long eyelashes of her slightly trembling eyes indicated that she hadn't fallen into a deep sleep yet.

With two Celestial Dragons here, she didn't dare to sleep soundly, even though Agin had already led people to stand guard over the Celestial Dragons through the night. She still didn't feel completely at ease.

Initially, they had planned to have Bruno use his ability to seal people into the spatial door. But Sagar felt it was unnecessary.

When he did something, he always acted openly and aboveboard. Hiding people would only indicate that he truly feared the World Government.

But the World Government seemed to be well aware of Sagar's temperament, and instead of taking advantage of the situation to do anything, they chose to leave each other in peace. And so, they remained undisturbed until the dawn of the second day.

Sagar woke up feeling refreshed. When he opened his eyes, he saw that Lily was already awake, looking somewhat fatigued.

"You know, you're still a bit off. This won't cut it if you want to improve your Haoshoku Haki."

"I have to be certain beyond a shadow of a doubt. It's also my responsibility," Lily replied.

Sagar shook his head and laughed, but then he thought about it, and acknowledged, "Everyone's character and spirit are different; I can't force you to be like me."

"It's fine the way Lily is. Besides, I can't accept a female version of myself; it feels awkward," he added.

"Having one of me is more than enough, given my terrible personality."

"What time is it?" Sagar asked.

"Six o'clock," Lily replied.

"Oh," Sagar uttered, lifting his head to glance at the sky. "Hasn't a news Den Den Mushi come yet?"

"Not yet," Lily said. "I've been keeping an eye out, too."

"What's going on? It's already daytime," Sagar remarked, turning his head to glance at the two Celestial Dragons tied to the gangplank beside them. "Are they giving up? Forget it; we'll see later. There's still some time, Agin."

"Yes, Lord Sagar," Agin responded.

"Go into town and look for one of those image Den Den Mushis that can broadcast live. If you can't find one, go to the Navy base in Shabondy and get one. I want to watch the live broadcast," Sagar instructed.

The war was happening today, and it would be broadcast live.

Watching the live coverage would be a good way to pass the time while they waited.

As Agin left with his men, Lily asked, "What if the World Government doesn't do as we said?"

"Then it's time for Plan B!" Sagar replied, baring his teeth in a sinister grin. "You know I always have backup plans. If, at the outset, the World Government hadn't hidden their news channels and let people know about my jailbreak, I might have only needed one Celestial Dragon to grant me passage through Mariejois."

"Given the current situation, I need to restore my reputation and gain passage. But if I can't achieve either of those things, or if I can only achieve one of them..."

He started laughing quietly. "I never said I wouldn't participate in that war. It's a huge opportunity to make an appearance. I won't let that chance go to the Navy and other pirates. That idiot, Teach, doesn't stand a chance gambling. It'll be his home field advantage then, and that would be too boring. Having two Celestial Dragons would be too much, though."

"Lily, Plan B is to execute someone in front of the World Government and the whole world, watching the live broadcast!"

Sagar extended one hand and clenched it tightly, a malicious smile on his face. "As long as the world recognizes me, I'll be able to develop my influence in the New World!"

His bounty had been the highest in the first half, but in the New World, it was considered ordinary.

Who would recognize some notorious kid? Even a loan shark in the underground world had dared to speak to him condescendingly. Without fame, it would take too much effort to establish himself in the New World.

He intended to go in and fight for territory, and the normal way to gain a lot of land in the New World was to defeat each opponent one by one.

But now, he had an excellent opportunity to make an appearance and let the world know his strength, making it much easier to establish himself in the New World.

"What?" Killing a Celestial Dragon would enrage the World Government? He didn't care about that!

Half an hour later, Agin rushed back, and his men dragged a huge white screen, setting it up on the ground. Agin also brought an image Den Den Mushi and placed it in the corner of the dining table. He made the Den Den Mushi open its eyes and project a screen-like light onto the large screen.

And on that screen appeared a massive crowd of Navy personnel filling the entire square, along with four enormous giants standing there and an even more gigantic execution platform behind them.

The execution platform was currently empty, with no one on it yet.

"So many people!"

Reinette had just woken up and was halfway through a yawn when she caught sight of the screen, startling her. "Is this the war? How many Navy personnel are there?!"

"A hundred thousand," Sagar replied. "And they're all elites. You won't find any cannon fodder here. I assume they've mobilized all the Navy members with actual power and ranks from the Grand Line. It's quite a spectacle."

It wasn't that they were cramming in too many; Marinford probably couldn't hold any more people. They were already packed in tightly, and squeezing in more would be impossible.

"A hundred thousand troops; no wonder they're currently the biggest overlord," Reinette commented.

Sagar smiled and said, "It's a pity. Sometimes, numbers alone can't decide everything."

Otherwise, the Navy would have long crushed the remaining pirates. Haoshoku Haki was indeed a very useful ability.

"Old Hawk, who do you think will win?" Sagar asked, turning to look at Hawkins, who had also woken up early and was sitting on a barrel nearby, drawing cards.

"The Navy," Hawkins replied without hesitation. "'Fire Fist' Ace's probability of death is infinitely close to 100% no matter how I divine it. The Navy has deployed such a massive force, and all the Warlords have been gathered. The execution will definitely succeed. As for Whitebeard, I divined him as well, and his probability of death is as high as 90%. This time, it will be the Navy's victory. So, once Whitebeard dies, his territory will become vacant, and we will indeed have a chance to establish ourselves in the New World."

He had also divined Blackbeard's probability of survival, which was 50%. Just as Sagar had said, Blackbeard was indeed a gambler.

Lily frowned and asked, "With this many troops, are you really going to go in there?"

"Who would be idle enough to go looking for trouble in Marinford, where all the Navy's forces are currently gathered?" Sagar replied, leaning back on the sofa and snapping his fingers. "Bella, pour me a drink."

Bella had also woken up early and had been clearing the dishes from the dining table. She immediately came over and skillfully poured wine for Sagar.

Sagar picked up the jewel-encrusted wine cup and took a large gulp, then exhaled and continued, "Let's talk about it after the fight breaks out. It's rare to see such a grand scene. Let's all watch and see how those famous strong pirates on the high seas actually fight."

Lily nodded thoughtfully and said, "However, broadcasting it live to the whole world; the Navy is indeed very confident. If something unexpected happens, their prestige will also be affected."

"Lily, you don't yet understand the true nature of the world," Sagar said. "For the Navy, anything unexpected could happen. As long as they keep Whitebeard here, other problems won't be significant.

"Killing a Celestial Dragon would enrage the World Government?" Sagar laughed, unbothered by the prospect. "Dry your tears, it's not happening! Executing Ace? Even if he is the son of the Pirate King, letting him run wild will only lead him to become another Emperor of the Sea at best, or maybe he'll surpass his father and become the next Pirate King. Gol D. Roger couldn't rule over everyone, could he? Hahaha, no such thing!"

When it came to the pinnacle of power, it didn't matter who you were; if you didn't settle things with a fight to the death, no one could truly claim to be the strongest.

Even the Pirate King was no exception to this rule.

The execution of Ace was merely an afterthought; the Navy was going to such great lengths primarily to take down a current Emperor of the Sea.

However, Sagar's words shocked everyone present.

Hawkins's pupils contracted, and a bead of cold sweat formed on his brow.

Ulqi stood there with his hand raised, his twisted smile frozen on his face.

Lucci, too, wore an expression of astonishment.

"C-Captain?! Are you saying that 'Fire Fist' Ace is the son of the Pirate King?!"

"Does his bloodline still exist in this world?"

The giant, Stanzen, was equally astonished. "I heard that after Roger's death, the Navy killed everyone associated with him."

"That doesn't matter," Sagar replied with a laugh. "In these vast seas, being someone's son doesn't entitle you to claim anything."

"Otherwise, how could he have been captured by Blackbeard? Hahaha!"

Two hours later, they witnessed Sengoku on the screen, along with Ace being led up to the platform, and they heard Sengoku reveal Ace's identity.

"The son of the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger! To prevent us and Whitebeard, who also realized this, from grooming you to become the next Pirate King, we had no choice but to capture you, as we couldn't easily make a move against you while you were under his protection. But if we had let this matter slide, you would undoubtedly have grown to possess the qualifications to stand at the pinnacle of the new generation of pirates! Therefore, executing you here holds significant meaning!"

Marineford.

Hearing Sengoku's loud declaration, everyone present wore strange expressions.

The revelation of Ace being Roger's son was indeed shocking, but to claim that he would be the pinnacle of the new generation of pirates...

"No, that's not right."

Smoker, who was in the crowd, spoke up with a deep voice. "'Fire Fist' Ace is indeed surprising, but he's not qualified enough."

"Hehehe, I'm sure Sagar heard that."

On the outskirts of Marineford, Donquixote Doflamingo chuckled and turned to Moria beside him. "What do you think?"

"Hehehe, he's not qualified enough!" Moria, who had joined the battle, replied with a hint of his usual cheerfulness returning to his gloomy expression from the previous night.

Even Captain Smoker, standing below the execution platform, was left speechless by this revelation. Though he was grieving, his mind wandered to that reckless disciple of his, always wearing a mischievous smile.

When it came to the pinnacle, Ace still had a long way to go.

That man was the only person he had met in his many years at sea who he could confidently say possessed the qualifications to stand at the very top of the new generation of pirates.

...

"Hahahaha! Sengoku, Admiral of the Navy, you're getting old!"

Hearing Sengoku's voice from the screen, Sagar burst into loud laughter. "It's not that easy to possess the qualifications to be a pinnacle pirate! Hey, where's the newspaper? If it's not out soon, I'll consider our deal null and void!"

An hour ago, he had sensed some presences nearby, hiding in the area.

However, Sagar's words failed to prompt those 'rats' to show themselves immediately. After about ten minutes, a black-clothed agent finally appeared using the Soru technique, a newspaper in hand, and approached Sagar to deliver it.

"The newspaper is out, but it took a lot of effort to rush it out. Please take a look, and if there are no issues, we will grant you passage through Mariejois as promised and release Lords Rozwald and Charlos."

Sagar took the newspaper from the agent and glanced at it before passing it to Lily beside him.

Lily skimmed through it and frowned. "It's from a regular newspaper company, not the World Economic Journal."

The World Economic Journal was the most influential newspaper in the vast seas, and while its credibility might be questionable, there were no other newspapers with as much influence.

"We contacted the president of the World Economic Journal, but he's focusing all his attention on the current war. Your jailbreak news will likely have to wait until after the war for him to cover it," the agent explained.

"Sagar, it's only text," Lily interrupted, pointing to a section of the newspaper. "Aside from the headline saying, 'Disaster Bird has possibly escaped,' there aren't any further details. It mostly talks about our pirate group robbing Shabondy. There's only this much about you."

"Possibly?"

Sagar looked at the agent. "What does that mean?"

"The newspaper company isn't sure either, considering the sensitive nature of your actions. You didn't participate in the robbery, after all, and it was mostly done by your subordinates. This is the best we could do under the circumstances," the agent explained. "Disaster Bird, we've done what we could, and once the war is over, there will definitely be other news reports about your jailbreak. For now, could we..."

"My condition was what?" Sagar fixed the agent with an intense gaze, his voice turning cold.

The agent took a step back, unconsciously intimidated, and stammered, "I-it's to be reported..."

"My condition was to reclaim my reputation!"

Sagar stood up and walked towards the gangplank, grabbing the chain binding Rozwald and dragging him forward. "Reputation!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end