"Did he refuse the invitation to become a Shichibukai?" Longinus muttered.
"A rookie who received an invitation from the government and actually dared to reject it!" Skar said unhappily. "Pirates really are all arrogant, conceited idiots!"
"Arrogant and conceited, sure, but calling him an idiot is going too far." Longinus smiled. "I was planning to recruit a pirate who wasn't too brutal, but it seems I've failed!"
Skar nodded. "Compared with the other rookie pirates, his crimes are indeed fewer. I wonder why the government gave him such a high bounty?"
Longinus pondered silently. The World Government had probably guessed something, but didn't want to publicize it, so they planned to observe him in secret.
What they hadn't expected was that Ace was too impatient. In less than half a year, he charged straight into the New World and caught them completely off guard.
Of course, to Longinus, none of this was meaningful. The only reason he was paying attention to Fire Fist Ace was because of Ace's usefulness as a tool.
"Other than him, is there any other news worth paying attention to?" Longinus asked.
"Worth paying attention to..." Skar pondered for a while before continuing. "First, the auction in the Gold City is about to begin. They say there'll be some interesting items. Second, there's news about the Supreme Great Sword, Ame no Habakiri. Third..."
"Wait, the Supreme Great Swords?" Longinus asked in surprise.
"They say it's a treasured blade from Wano Country." Skar paused before asking, "Do you remember the Giant Elephant Zou incident from sixteen years ago?"
"Of course." Longinus nodded.
"As for the cause of that incident back then, besides the succession rights to Wano Country, there was another factor: the legendary Great Grade Blade, Izuminokami Kanesada!" Skar said.
"Some said that blade was taken