Recruiting Help, Resolving Identities
"Saint Roman, the person has been brought here and is in the living room up ahead."
"Very good."
Although Rob Lucci and his former CP9 members are masters of reconnaissance and counter-reconnaissance, the World Government can still find them if it's determined to. —In fact, their habitual counter-reconnaissance tactics make them more likely to expose themselves.
"Hmph, Lucci! Don't think that just because you've gotten a little stronger you can take on a CP0 officer all by yourself..."
A sinister sound came from inside the room.
"Whether I've gotten stronger is hard to say, but your face has gotten even dumber, Jabura."
The voice was as calm as ever; it was undoubtedly Rob Lucci.
"Both of you should say less."
Kaku, a man of mature beyond his years, offered his advice.
"Yo yo yo, this is~ the Holy Land Mary Geoise! Everyone be quiet~~"
"Kumadori, stop singing."
The only female voice stopped the Lion Kanshō singing. Just as the other party had said, this was the Holy Land Mary Geoise! They were nothing more than a group of shadowy spies, assassins, and agents. Why were they—
Gaa!
As the armored guards pushed open the doors on either side, a young man strode into the room, causing the former CP9 members, who had been arguing to ease the tension, to simultaneously stand up abruptly. Then:
"This--"
"It's you?!"
"How is this possible?!"
"Presumptuous."
The man in the black suit walking behind Roman glanced at the CP9 members in front of him. Although his strength was far inferior to these agents, his high-ranking demeanor, honed from years of dealing with various 'problems', instantly silenced the surprised voices of Kumadori, Kalifa, and the others.
"This is Tokevich Saint Roman,"
"You are of the bloodline of the Creator, the noble Celestial Dragons! Why are you not kneeling?"
When faced with the man in the black suit, Roman simply extended one hand and waved it gently.
No need for formalities.
"You may all leave."
"Saint Roman..."
Roman merely glanced at the worried man in the black suit with indifference.
"Get down."
"Yes····"
"It's nice to see you all again."
Under the scrutiny, wariness, and suspicion of a group of former CP9 agents, Roman walked through them and sat down in the head seat.
"Please sit down,"
As Roman waved his hand, the group of people slowly sat down. — But judging from their posture, with their buttocks dangling in the air and their muscles tense, if Roman made even the slightest movement, they would probably leap backward.
"We met in Water 7, that's right:"
Roman glanced around at the former CP9 agents.
"I am Roman, the strategist of the Straw Hat crew, the 'White Knight'."
········
Although the former CP9 members are very confident in their memories, well: why are you, a Celestial Dragons, not enjoying yourself in the Holy Land, but instead becoming a pirate?!
"In short, I am now the Celestial Dragons Saint Roman."
"And that little trouble you encountered—"
Snap,
As Roman snapped his fingers, the door opened again, and a fawning figure peeked in.
"Spandam!?"
A group of former CP9 members suddenly stood up! This guy was the one who pinned all the blame for Enies Lobby on them and kept sending people to hunt them down...
"Haha, hahaha, hello everyone~~"
"I was wrong about everything that happened before, and I apologize to everyone here."
With an awkward smile on his face, Spandam bowed and scraped under the murderous glares of the former CP9 members. Then, with a wave of his hand from Roman, he left the room as if under a great sway, closing the door behind him.
"Alright, now that we've met our 'old friend,' let's get down to business."
As he spoke, Roman took out a stack of documents, placed them on the table, and pushed them forward slightly. After everyone in the room exchanged glances, Rob Lucci picked up the documents.
?!
"Let us join CP0?"
"That's right," Roman nodded. "CP0 is the World Government's top secret intelligence agency. It's above CP1 to CP9 and is known as the 'Shield of the Celestial Dragons'."
"In other words, once you sign this contract, you're mine!"
"Therefore, neither the Enies Lobby nor Spandam will be a problem. —At the same time, you will also gain a large amount of resources to strengthen your combat capabilities, and:"
Looking at the agents in front of him, Roman knew what they really wanted.
"To better uphold justice!"
·········
"Excuse my bluntness, Saint Roman."
When faced with the Celestial Dragons' offer of recruitment, Rob Lucci did not immediately bow down; instead, he looked Roman straight in the eye.
"How can you guarantee the truthfulness of what you say, after all—the last time we met, you caused a huge scene on Enies Lobby."
"You can see for yourself what I do and hear for yourself."
Roman leaned back in a boss-like posture.
"However, I can reveal my purpose to you—"
That would end the Great Pirate Era!
"That's right, let's end the Great Pirate Era!"
In the Hall of Power, Roman spoke eloquently to five elderly men at the pinnacle of the world.
"As long as we find 'One Piece' in advance, with the wealth, power, and strength of the Celestial Dragons, we can modify this so-called 'Greatest Treasure' however we want!"
"We could even build an amusement park on Laugh Tale, where anyone who wants to visit 'One Piece' only needs to pay a certain amount of Beli to witness the coronation of the King of the Pirates. — Of course, what exactly this so-called 'One Piece' is is entirely up to us Celestial Dragons to decide!"
Faced with Roman's confident proposal, the old men exchanged glances and then just chuckled.
"You're thinking too simply. Not to mention the mysterious location of the Island of Conclusion, the 'thing' there... cannot be modified or erased."
Roman responded confidently to the blond-haired, golden-bearded old man's words.
"I know it's just a boring thing that records some old, outdated stuff."
"Leaving aside the fact that such an ancient relic from hundreds of years ago might not be of any use, why don't we just put a 'shell' around it and write Ancient Script praising our Celestial Dragons ancestors on it? That way—wouldn't the so-called 'One Piece' be a complete joke?"
"A joke written by one of us Celestial Dragons, which will make countless idiots bang their heads against the wall and bleed!"
Faced with Roman's absurd proposal, the five old men at the pinnacle of the world looked at each other in bewilderment.
"So, what kind of help do you need?"
When questioned by the Five Elders, Roman smiled proudly.
"Nothing is needed!"
"Just wait for my good news."
"This little guy has only improved his strength a little bit, but he's already incredibly arrogant."
The old man with long, straight white hair, a bushy white beard, a flat cap, and a scar on his left cheek was the subject of the sarcastic remark. The old man with long, straight white hair and a long beard shook his head.
"Young people are bound to be a little arrogant, that's normal. When we were young, didn't we also think we could rule the world?"
"So, we'll just let him continue his nonsense?"
Faced with the question from an old man with a mustache shaped like the number eight and a birthmark on his forehead, the blond-haired, blond-bearded old man nodded.
"Let's wait and see. It's just a little guy, and besides—"
"We should pay more attention to him: Marshall D. Teach!"
He waved the Bounty Poster in his hand: it featured the arrogant, wicked, and wildly unrestrained Blackbeard.
"He stole Whitebeard's 'Tremor-Tremor Fruit' during the Marineford War, thoroughly outmaneuvering both the Marines and the Whitebeard Pirates! A dual Devil Fruit user, he boasts that his era is about to begin..."
"It's no wonder that he's now taking over Whitebeard's territory in the New World —after all, he was originally one of Whitebeard's men."
"Another 'D'? What a troublesome family."
"A Supernovas worth hundreds of millions has already fallen victim to his evil deeds! We must be careful of this guy..."
"Very well, then let's begin with the first task:"
Facing the former CP9... no, now I should say CP0 members, who had changed into white suits, Roman pushed Nami's photo forward.
"Make her identity 'complete' for me."
"Marine Ensign: Serk-An"
PS: Before Oda created One Piece, he also published the short pirate manga Dawn of Adventure Vol.1 and Dawn of Adventure Vol.2. The female protagonists of the two manga are the blonde Silk and the blue-haired Ann, both of whom are prototypes of Nami.