Pirates: How Many Divisions Do the Five Elders Have? Hype! It's All Hype!

Shadow Isles.

Shadow Unit base.

Sanji Den Den Mushi, was plunged into Infinity Edge gloom.

He ignored the applause from his comrades around him and the praise from Commander Twitch on the stage.

He was completely absorbed in the sentence on his phone screen.

That was sent by the Miss Meat-Meat.

[Sanji, what's wrong with you? You looked so ridiculous in the press release.]

He became a hero on his very first battle and made the news for the first time, receiving a push notification from Big Bird Network so that the goddess he had been longing for could see it.

Two happinesses combined should have created a dreamlike, blissful moment. But how did things turn out this way?

Sanji clicked on the news link sent by the chubby girl, which redirected him to Big Bird News Network.

[Fight pirates, protect industry, confront the masked kappa, and thwart a shocking conspiracy by a 7,000-strong pirate crew]

Undoubtedly, the article's title, employing euphemisms, exaggerates Sanji's achievements.

Sanji, of course, had no complaints about this face-saving incident.

The article's content is also excellent. Although the writing style is much less mature than that of senior editors from established print media such as the East Blue Daily and World Economy News Paper, it still manages to establish the glorious image of the masked kappa who is fearless in the face of powerful enemies and fights bravely.

Everything seemed so perfect.

But...

What's with the picture in this article?

The Shadow Unit created by Ma Qiao is the Shadow Force. It is not the same as the special assassination tactical unit established by Tobirama Senju in Naruto.

Therefore, the Shadow Unit of the 16th Branches do not need to hide their identities; masks are merely a form of decoration and a personalized identifier. (Of course, the situation is similar in Naruto.)

So after becoming a war hero, Sanji not only gave an interview, but also had photos of his heroic battles featured in the news.

The problem is, why the hell is my drawing a hand-drawn picture?

Because the reporter on the scene accidentally lost the photos of Sanji, Ma Qiao squeezed out his beautiful editor, Vivi, to become a freelance artist and hand-draw a portrait of Sanji.

Vivi's drawing skills, well... let's just say that after the portrait of Fujitora that he drew was handed over to the Alabasta government, the Chaka organization's special forces issued a nationwide warrant for his arrest.

However, Fujitora himself was eating noodles at the royal noodle shop, and no one in the royal guards would even glance at him as they passed by.

Therefore, the Sanji photo appearing on the Big Bird News app is even more outrageous than the hand-drawn wanted poster photo of him in the original work. (See picture)

"No, I can't accept it, Rou Rou, you have to believe me, I don't look like that!"

However, no matter how Sanji explained, there was no further response from the other end of the screen.

It's not that there's none at all.

A new mailing address has been sent over.

That's somewhere in Marineford.

"I understand. I will definitely send it out as soon as possible—my newly developed 'Love's Delicious Jerky'."

Upon receiving this message, Sanji became full of energy again.

Over the next few days, Sanji even kept selecting high-quality pork leg meat and marinating and air-drying it using a special method.

Shortly after it mailed the package, the 16th Branch issued a new mobilization order.

"This time we will be facing an even more formidable opponent."

"Buggy, the right-hand man of Pirate Four Emperors Pirate King Roger and a close friend of Red Nose Red-Haired Shanks, has been spotted in the 374th sea area. Our objective is to arrest him and send him to Loguetown for public execution."

Several days later.

Somewhere in the East Blue.

"Captain Buggy, we're surrounded!"

"It's those guys from the 16th Branch who call themselves Shadow Warriors."

"Their guns are a bit odd!"

"Those guys wearing cloaks with the character 'root' on them are amazing!"

"Damn it, Richie's mane has been plucked!"

The Buggy Pirates are like a leaf in a storm, their situation extremely precarious.

Thanks to the mystery Root Division and the masks they wear, the operation to eliminate the Buggy Pirates actually involved more than just the forces of the 16th Branch.

Among Ma Qiao's cronies, everyone except for guys like Teemo who are only level one and can't do anything except play the flute and grow fungi came out in droves.

Such combat power is certainly beyond the reach of Buggy, whose strength is far from matching his reputation.

Since being persecuted by Shanks and accidentally swallowing Devil Fruit, Buggy has lost his once-proud underwater combat abilities.

In recent years, he has been so engrossed in treasure hunting that he has not further developed his abilities, nor has he practiced much physical skill.

Faced with this meticulously planned and coordinated operation by Ma Qiao, with all his cronies involved, Buggy's fate was self-evident.

Finally, after a three-day manhunt, they were apprehended.

Buggy's lucky-colored Haki was exhausted, and he was captured by Plague Rat Twitch, who had stealthily circled behind him, using Seastone Handcuffs that he had just obtained from Marine Headquarters.

It is worth mentioning that during this operation, Sanji, the Kappa, a top student of the Navy Garp the Hero and a leading figure among the new generation of Navy personnel, once again shone brightly.

With his powerful kicking techniques, such as the "Goddess Goodnight Kick" and the "Goddess Bathing Deadly Kick," he successively defeated near-"Emperor's Deputy" level masters like the Beast Tamer Mohji and the acrobat Cabaji, and his fame rose overnight.

Of course, Marineford strongly criticized this kind of propaganda.

In front of the three Admiral, Sengoku slammed his fist on the table and angrily denounced the Momonga's nephew for deliberately hyping himself up in the East Blue!

Although Dark King Rayleigh's appearance previously proved the authenticity of Kenpachi Zaraki Six-Sword Style swordsman.

But...

What Roger's son, what Shanks best friend, what Shadow Unit operatives walking in the shadows, what an incomparably enormous root.

Hype! It's all hype!

At the meeting, Sengoku swore that if Buggy was truly Shanks' best friend, he would replace his pet goat as a paper shredder and eat all the scrap paper.

Somewhere in the New World.

The armed demonstration by the navy, which lasted for nearly half a month, has ended.

The Red Hair Pirates' Dreyfus didn't even get hit by a single cannonball.

Both sides called a retreat.

As usual, Shanks hosted a lavish banquet on a small island.

The pirates mingled with the local residents, creating a lively and bustling atmosphere.

Everyone ate meat and drank wine heartily, singing and dancing with great joy.

Most surprisingly, just a few days ago, Dracule Mihawk, Shichibukai, was standing on his deathbed guarding the Navy. Now, he was sitting to the side, munching on a meat stick.

Shanks, using his one arm, picked up a bowl of fine wine, walked up to Mihawk, and laughed loudly, "Thank you for giving me the honor of staying and having a bowl of rice wine from my hometown, the West Blue."

Hawk-Eye swallowed a mouthful of meat, a faint smile appearing on his lips.

The two wine bowls clinked together.

"I never imagined a man like you could become one of the Four Emperors. I really look forward to fighting you again."

"Forget it, Mihawk, we have no right to fight anymore."

Shanks laughed heartily, seemingly not seeing any conflict between the positions of the Pirate Emperor and the World Government's vassals.

Suddenly, both of them sharpened their gazes simultaneously. "Who's there?!"

One was one of the Four Emperors, and the other was the World's Greatest Swordsman, but at this moment, both of these powerful men were on high alert. Shanks' right hand was gripping the hilt of his sword.

Because of their top-notch Observation Haki, neither of them noticed the intruder who had silently appeared within ten meters of them.

They waited until he made a sound as he stepped on the grass and dirt, thus revealing his whereabouts through the sound.

This guy is definitely going to be a tough opponent.

They are either extremely powerful, or they possess some special Devil Fruit ability.

Legend has it that in the past, someone mastered the Clear-Clear Fruit to its fullest extent, and its ability to become invisible allowed it to evade the lock-on of Observation Haki.

But such a creature hasn't appeared for decades.

Moreover, the guy hiding in front of us doesn't actually have that level of stealth ability.

While passive Observation Haki makes it impossible to detect his presence, when Shanks and Hawk-Eye actively unleash their Observation Haki, they can see a blurry figure in the air.

"If you're friends, don't hide; if you're enemies, come out and have a good fight!"

Shanks vanished from his spot with incredible speed, reappearing a second later where the blurry figure had been.

As a guest, Hawk-Eye had no intention of stealing the spotlight from his host.

Moreover, he knew that no one could outrun Shanks, not even the lazy Kizaru, the Devil Fruit User.

Hawk-Eye could already picture Shanks striking the spy with the hilt of his sword, then grabbing him by the back of his collar and bringing him back.

However.

Hawk-Eye stared in disbelief at the scene before him.

The officers of the Red Hair Pirates were all stunned.

In their minds, the captain was always spirited and incredibly composed, but now he was like a little girl who had seen a cockroach, screaming and running away.

What terrified him so much was nothing more than a Jack in the Box toy on the ground that popped out little figures.

You're the one I'm playing a prank on!

A thin man with face paint and dressed in Shaco costume gradually appeared in the background.

The Demon Jester Shaco.

A very sunny and cheerful hero in the League.

Ma Qiao used his last funds to recruit and upgrade him.

The Big Bird Consortium is currently facing a very tight cash flow situation.

However, this money has to be spent.

This matter is crucial to opening up the global market for smart Den Den Mushi.

If the advertising campaign surrounding the execution of Buggy the Clown is a resounding success, then spending any amount of money will be worthwhile.

Shanks had by then returned to normal.

He shook his head, trying to banish the terrifying memories that had flooded his mind just moments before.

"What an interesting and terrifying ability!"

Shanks drew his sword, looking somewhat displeased. "But if you're here to play a prank on me, you've chosen the wrong person."

"Mr. Shanks, you wouldn't want your best friend Buggy to be executed by the Navy, would you?"

Shaco uttered those words calmly.

The sword Red-Haired Shanks drew hovered in mid-air, unable to move forward even an inch.

Buggy, an incredibly important man in Shanks' life.

For him, Shanks once gave up the opportunity to follow Roger to Laugh Tale.

After witnessing Captain Roger's execution in Loguetown with tears in his eyes, Shanks' first thought was to invite Buggy to join him and build a new pirate crew together.

You could say that Buggy has tormented me a thousand times, yet I still love Buggy like my first love. This is the most realistic portrayal of the relationship between Shanks and Buggy.

However, more than twenty years have passed since they left Loguetown.

Shanks has grown into a sea emperor capable of rivaling the powerful figures of the old era. But his former best friend Buggy has disappeared without a trace.

There were previous rumors that Buggy was in the East Blue.

But Shanks didn't take it seriously.

One reason is that he himself had spent a long time in the East Blue, but had never heard of Buggy's deeds.

On the other hand, in that rumor, Buggy was portrayed as Captain Roger's trusted advisor.

Although Shanks knew that Captain Roger did have a son, the idea that he entrusted Buggy to take care of his son seemed highly improbable.

So he just laughed off all the subsequent news.

However, the Shaco- clad man who appeared before him brought the horrifying news that Buggy had been arrested by the East Blue 16th Branch, was in grave danger, and was very likely to be executed in Loguetown. Shanks had no choice but to believe him.

Based on Shanks' understanding of Buggy, if he were to form a pirate crew, he would definitely recruit a group of subordinates similar to circus performers.

The Shaco actor in front of them, who called himself Shaco, was clearly the kind of henchman Buggy liked best.

Moreover, after observing him closely, Shanks discovered that although Shaco's abilities were quite strange and even caught him off guard, causing him to suffer a minor loss, he was actually not very strong.

This is indeed a character that Buggy can handle.

Most importantly, he knew Buggy so well that he even knew the details of how Buggy missed Laugh Tale because of a fever.

The person who could reveal these things either had Buggy under severe torture and confessed them, which were then used by the Navy to set a trap for him, or he was truly Buggy's confidant.

However, the navy has just staged a large-scale armed parade, which is enough to satisfy the world, so they are unlikely to put on such a pointless show.

"Loguetown? What a place I both worry about and miss."

Shanks sighed, making up his mind, but before that...

"Brothers, keep the music playing, keep dancing, let's continue to eat, drink, and feast and have a good time!"

"Yo ho ho ho, yo ho ho ho"

"Yo ho ho ho, yo ho ho ho"

The melodious and stirring strains of "Binks' Sake" once again echoed over the island.

Shaco, who was treated as a guest and brought to the table with others, magically produced fine wine and meat into his takeout box.

Unfortunately, the Big Bird Consortium is currently facing a major financial crisis.

Let's take whatever we can.

The Shurima Town still has over two thousand mouths to feed...