The Flame-Flame Fruit Reappears, Ace's Parentage Exposed
A barrage of dissatisfied comments immediately popped up on the screen: {Here we go again, God from Beyond the Domain, are you doing this on purpose?!}
{Damn it! I still want to see what that prize that everyone's scrambling for is! You damn God from Beyond the Domain, stop changing the camera!}
{ God from Beyond the Domain, are you trying to make money this way? How shameless!}
{Wait, doesn't anyone care about the SMILE and samurai that the Straw Hat Luffy Pirates mentioned? I think those two are more interesting than that mysterious prize! God from Beyond the Domain, please stop broadcasting! I can't take it anymore!}
{...}
{...}
New World, Punk Hazard, inside the research institute.
"Smile? Where did these guys get this information? Could I be falling into their hands in the future?" Caesar broke out in a cold sweat and muttered, "No, I have to get out of here right now."
Then, he called out to Monet, "Monet, hurry up and pack your things! We need to go hide with Doflamingo; it's not safe here anymore!"
"Ah!? Oh! Yes, Master." A hint of disdain flashed in Monet's eyes, but she still obeyed Caesar's words, turned around, and went to another room to pack her things.
The New World, Dressrosa, King's Plateau, Inside the Royal Palace.
"SMILE? A factory? Where did these guys find out about this?! Could it be that they've already made contact with Caesar?" Doflamingo's pupils contracted, veins bulged, and a hint of fear crept into his voice as he muttered, "No! No, I have to get Caesar back. If Caesar falls into the hands of those brats, Kaido will definitely not let me off the hook."
With that, Doflamingo pulled out Den Den Mushi from his pocket and dialed, "Hello! It's me, Doflamingo. Vergo, go to Punk Hazard and bring Caesar to me."
"Yes, young master." A deep male voice immediately came from the other end of the Den Den Mushi.
The New World, Wano Country, Onigashima.
"Smile? Oh my god, where did these brats find out about that? Could it be that Joker, that good-for-nothing, lost Caesar?! No way, that guy's too weak! I have to watch over Caesar." Kaido took a big gulp of sake, then turned to King beside him and said, "King, go find Jack and tell him to go to Punk Hazard and bring Caesar to Wano Country."
"Yes, Brother Kaido." King nodded, turned, and left the room.
On the other side, no matter how dissatisfied the comments were, the video feed remained locked on the Corrida Colosseum.
Amidst the enthusiastic cheers of the audience, a portly host, flanked by two sultry bikini-clad women, pushed a suitcase to the center of the arena. He then enthusiastically introduced the event to the crowd, saying, "Today's grand ceremony is about to begin. This will be a ceremony that will go down in history. For this day, His Majesty the King has bestowed upon us his most unparalleled treasures."
"That is—the man who died in the Marineford Paramount War two years ago, now a legend Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates — Ace, the son of the Pirate King."
"Legend has it that his fists can burn through warships, incinerate the sky and destroy the earth, instantly turning towns into hell. This terrifying ability has now reappeared in the world as Devil Fruit!"
"The winner of this competition will obtain this forbidden fruit, which is also the highest-level Logia Devil Fruit."
"That's right, this is the Flame- Flame-Flame Fruit."
As the host finished speaking, he immediately pulled off the white cloth covering the box, revealing a bright red fruit to the audience and the world.
But the shocked comments popping up on the screen weren't about the Flame-Flame Fruit, but rather about what the host had just said: {Wh... what? The... the son of the Pirate King? That devil has a child? And he's the Second Division Commander on Whitebeard's ship? How is this possible? Isn't the Pirate King and Whitebeard mortal enemies? How could he entrust his child to Whitebeard to raise?!}
{So, the Devil Fruit can regrow after the user dies? This is the first time I've ever heard of this!}
{Two... two years ago? That means this Jianying is from two years in the future?! No wonder the Straw Hat Luffy Pirates has changed so much, now I know what happened!}
{What the heck is this Marineford Paramount War that's happening at Marine Headquarters? Did the Navy capture Ace and prepare to declare war on Whitebeard? Holy crap! If that's true, this is going to be a huge event!}
{...}
{...}
The New World, Moby Dick.
"Ace... Ace, if he's the son of the Pirate King, this... this can't be possible! I... I've never heard of him... he has a child! I've never heard Ace mention it! This must be a rumor, it must be."
"Whether it's a rumor or not, one thing is certain: Ace... he will be killed in Marineford, and we must stop it from happening."
"Yes! That's right, we absolutely cannot let the Marines succeed. Even if we want to investigate whether Ace is the Pirate King's child, we have to wait until we rescue him."
"Yes! That's right! We absolutely must not let outsiders interfere in our family matters."
"..."
"..."
Hearing the conflicted discussions of his crew members around him, Whitebeard sighed with a complicated expression and muttered, "Ace's situation is getting a bit complicated now!"
"Pops." Marco, standing to the side, looked at him with some worry. He knew that once the fact that Ace was the son of the Pirate King was exposed, it would inevitably cause a stir within the entire Whitebeard Pirates, and might even shake the morale of the crew that was going to rescue him. He had to find a way to explain things clearly to everyone.
Especially regarding Squard, it's even more necessary to explain things clearly. After all, he has a grudge against Roger, and asking him to save the son of his enemy seems like asking the impossible!
On a pirate ship in the New World.
"Ace... Ace is Roger's child? No, that can't be. If he really is Roger's child, why... why didn't Pops tell me?" Squard said in disbelief. "No, no, I have to find Pops and ask him right now."
As he spoke, he prepared to pull out Den Den Mushi from his pocket, but then he thought better of it. Den Den Mushi weren't quite safe, so he immediately turned to his subordinates behind him and ordered, "Tell the helmsman to speed things up. I really want to see Pops right now."
"Yes, Captain!"