Hearing Sig say that, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi also became serious.
"Sig Your Excellency may not know, but the prophecy from back then is also closely related to Wano Country..." Inuarashi reminded him, assuming that Sig was unaware of this detail.
"I know that in the prophecy, Wano Country will open its borders when the Child of Prophecy arrives, but... when did I ever say that the purpose of the alliance is prophecy?" Sig proved that he was not unaware of this.
Inuarashi and Nekomamushi were taken aback, not expecting Sig to react this way.
"Captain Roger once lamented, 'We're too early...'" Inuarashi emphasized.
The subtext is undoubtedly—even someone like Captain Roger had to admit that "arriving early was useless," yet you want to ignore the prophecy's timing?
"No, although I don't know why Captain Roger was so concerned about time back then, I don't believe that the name 'One Piece' should be bound by prophecy... The same applies today! To wage war against the World Government, the belief required is definitely not something that can be achieved by placing hope in prophecy," Sig said firmly.
After that, the cave became quiet for a while...
As retainers of the Kozuki Family, and given that Sig helped Wano Country and even nominally returned the Shogunate to the Kozuki Family, it was only natural for Inuarashi and Nekomamushi to join the alliance.
We just need to ask Kozuki Hiyori for permission first before we can all join.
However, Sig emphasized that they should join the alliance "as kings of the Mink Tribe," and Inuarashi and Nekomamushi could easily understand the difference between the two.
"What if we lose?" the Nekomamushi broke the silence first.
"If we wait for the prophecy, then we don't have to worry about losing? Or... can we blame the prophecy if we lose? Are the Thunder Warrior and Mink Tribe Warriors of yesteryear now too afraid to face the World Government and can only hide behind the prophecy?" Sig said, half provoking and half speaking his mind.
Upon hearing this, the Nekomamushi's eyes sharpened. It wasn't that it was hostile towards Sig, but rather that it still harbored a fierce nature and couldn't withstand such provocation.
Just before he was about to agree, Inuarashi interrupted, "Is the Ryugu Kingdom ready for war? Do you even know what war is? Have you thought about... the cost of war?"
Seeing Inuarashi's serious expression, Sig grinned and said, "As expected of Duke Inuarashi, His Majesty Neptune asked me similar questions..."
Sig repeated what he had said in the Ryugu Palace to Inuarashi and Nekomamushi...
When Sig left the cave, he had already obtained a notarized covenant—the second covenant, from the Dual Kings of the Mink Tribe.
Of course, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi didn't know that this was only their second alliance, and that even the Ryugu Kingdom hadn't theoretically joined the alliance; the first one belonged to the Tontatta Kingdom!
Inside the cave, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi remained silent.
Firstly, I was still thinking about what Sig earlier, and secondly...
The two of them still have this "unwillingness to communicate" attitude!
Wanda only "rescued" Sieg after seeing that Sig had already left, but Duke Inuarashi and Boss Nekomamushi had not yet come out. She went inside to look for them.
Finally Wanda, the "King Bird," can relay messages and facilitate communication...
Well, even though we're in the same cave, the procedures still need to be followed, and the message still needs to be relayed!
Meanwhile, Sig returned to the residential area of Mink Principality and found Shanks and Beckman. It seemed that Shanks had once again passed the problem on to "Big Fool".
"Hey, old man, have you figured out where Laugh Tale is?" Sig asked deliberately.
Beckman glared at him—even more confused than before! Before, when he only knew the coordinates of the three islands, he felt like he was just one step away from Laugh Tale...
However, the involvement of "Bilca's" location immediately made things more complicated.
Moreover, judging from Roger's actions back then, this is not a question that can be answered simply by "thinking" about the four islands on both sides of Earth.
"Judging from where the leader disembarked back then, Laugh Tale should be located in the New World, and not far from the three islands we already knew about... That should be correct! The fourth island is actually Bilca... However, its role should be to provide the final clue, as for how it points to us, Ohara will have a clue."
Beckman reorganized his thoughts.
Shanks and Buggy disembarked at Hachinosu, while Roger reached Laugh Tale in less than three months and returned to Hachinosu, suggesting that their location was around the first three islands.
After "Bilca" was added, it could no longer be considered only in terms of common guidance methods such as "intersections", but instead played other guiding roles.
"But there's nothing left in Ohara." Sig didn't think that Ohara, which had been bombed to the point of having no structure above the sea, including the "Tree of Knowledge," would have any clues left.
"That's right, but there are survivors in Ohara." Beckman said, pulling out a wanted poster.
Judging from its condition, it was probably found in an old newspaper—it was a wanted poster for "Nicole Robin," and a children's version at that.
Although the World Government hasn't explicitly stated it, considering the timing of Ohara's destruction, the "Devil Child's " bounty, and the Oldest One location of her appearance, it's easy for anyone with a discerning eye to guess her relationship with Ohara.
Shanks, his face now serious and thoughtful, sighed, "That's right. The good news is that she hasn't been caught yet, and the bounty is still in effect. But the bad news is that nobody knows where she is. If we target the entire West Blue... it will be far too difficult."
Seeing Shanks' expression, Beckman's brow twitched—this was exactly what he had told Shanks before, not a single word changed!
Sig glanced at Nico Robin's bounty poster and then said, "Actually... I have an idea that might help us find Nico Robin."
Shanks and Beckman immediately looked over, especially the latter...
Shanks was used to others being smarter than him, but Beckman was somewhat surprised—"I had no idea, and you actually came up with one?"
"The fleet that carried out the Buster Call back then was led by Akainu and Aokiji, along with several rear Rear Admiral from headquarters, and their target was just a group of historians... It's hard to imagine that anyone could escape with such a lineup, right? They would have sunk the entire island!"
But afterwards, not only did some escape, but Giant Vice Admiral was also 'killed in battle,' Aokiji was sidelined for a period of time. Only in recent years, with the strong recommendations of Sengoku Admiral, Vice Admiral Garp, and others, has he begun to shine again... while Akainu has been given important responsibilities. You know what I mean?"
"You mean it's related to Saul, Aokiji, and Nico Robin's escape?" Beckman recalled some changes in the Navy and it was indeed easy to make that connection.
"That's right, Saul is dead, but Aokiji is still alive... And if Aokiji really did release such an important person, do you think, given Aokiji's personality, he would really abandon him?"
At this point in Sig's sentence, Shanks showed a look of Great Wisdom realization, but Beckman looked helpless. "So what you're trying to say is..."
"That's right, we'll find an opportunity to capture Aokiji and force him to reveal Nico Robin's whereabouts!" Sig's voice turned serious.
Yes, Aokiji must have been secretly tracking Nico Robin's whereabouts!
"Putting aside the consequences of ambushing and capturing Aokiji alive, do you really think Aokiji is the kind of person who can be threatened and interrogated?" Beckman was already getting a headache.
"Even if Aokiji hadn't said anything, we would at least have taken down an Admiral." Sig shrugged.