The next day.
Early in the morning, the World Economic News Paper's delivery birds spread the big news from the Goa Empire in the East Blue around the world.
The Goa Empire's King of Exile, Wang Shi, had traveled through the night and reached the Flaws Kingdom the very next day. He exiled the royal family of the Sasba Kingdom and mercilessly wiped out the royal family of the Flaws Kingdom.
He had seized the entire territory of the Flaws Kingdom.
The Goa Empire now controlled the lands of eight kingdoms, making it the largest and most powerful nation in the East Blue.
It now held the other East Blue nations under its formidable sway.
With his "Six-Nation Slash of East Blue," Wang Shi had completely outshone Judge's "Four-Nation Slash" in the North Blue all those years ago.
His domineering presence as a great conqueror had stunned the Affiliated Nations around the world.
For a time, comparisons between the Emperor of the East Blue and the Overlord of the North Blue were everywhere.
More importantly, Vinsmoke Niji, the Germa Kingdom's super-modified soldier and second prince, had been exiled with a mere wave of Wang Shi's hand.
The Vinsmoke royal family had lost a powerful fighter and been thoroughly humiliated.
With Judge's arrogant personality, he would never let Wang Shi get away with this.
Every force eager for a spectacle wanted to see a war erupt between the Germa Kingdom in the North Blue and the Goa Empire in the East Blue.
Better yet, they wanted to see these two top Affiliated Nations fight to the death.
Even the Four Emperors and the Shichibukai had begun paying attention to the rising King of Exile.
After all, if he could make Germa 66 suffer a setback, Wang Shi had to be capable of something.
Even Big Mom, one of the Four Emperors, coveted the Vinsmokes' advanced technology. They were certainly powerful and capable.
These two top Affiliated Nations were fully worthy of catching the Four Emperors' attention.
However, the Four Emperors were all under the watch of the World Government and Marine Headquarters. They rarely left the New World for the Four Blues.
The World Government would never allow these great pirates to enter its sphere of influence and pillage or wreak havoc.
Civil wars between Affiliated Nations were permitted, as long as they paid the Heavenly Tribute.
But pirates pillaging Affiliated Nations was forbidden.
In a certain stretch of the North Blue.
A great fleet of Snail Ships sailed across the sea.
"Useless Flaws! Useless East Blue!"
Judge was reading the day's newspaper, and it had infuriated him all over again.
A useless country like the Flaws Kingdom had actually dared to call itself a powerful nation in the East Blue. It was nothing but trash.
It hadn't even lasted a day!
Ba Dodeshinai was even more useless. Wang Shi had killed him before he could even wait for the East Blue Allied Nations Fleet to arrive.
Those East Blue Allied Nations Fleets were just as useless. Wang Shi had scared them off so badly that they had disbanded on the spot.
The Weakest Sea really was the weakest sea!
They were all useless, completely beneath notice.
"Father, we can't underestimate Wang Shi's Exile Ability, especially since we'll be fighting across the sea.
"Perhaps we should try negotiating with him first and get Niji back."
Reiju furrowed her brow. This newly risen emperor of the East Blue was nothing like the worthless rabble there.
Wang Shi had dared to kill the King of Flaws even after the East Blue Affiliated Nations had united against him.
It took extraordinary nerve to do that.
She had heard that the World Government had even issued a warning to the Goa Empire.
But Wang Shi had still acted.
This reckless emperor, who feared nothing, filled Reiju with wariness and worry.
She was truly afraid that she and her two younger brothers would be exiled with a mere wave of Wang Shi's hand.
No one knew just how powerful Wang Shi's abilities were!
The Germa Kingdom and the Goa Empire had no deep-seated hatred or conflict between them to begin with.
Germa 66's cooperation with the Flaws Kingdom had been nothing more than an ordinary hired job.
Their relationship could still be smoothed over.
"Hmph! If we don't put Wang Shi in his place this time, who'll hire us in the future?"
"We'll lose all our business in the East Blue, and even our mercenary work around the world will suffer!"
"So what if he has the Exile Ability? As long as he's a Devil Fruit User, he has a fatal weakness."
"You are our finest creations. You have no weaknesses."
"Once the time comes, you'll equip yourselves with Seastone weapons and Seawater Launchers and kill this so-called King of Exile."
Judge was furious with that brat Wang Shi. He had exiled Judge's strongest son and shattered Germa's record of invincibility.
This wasn't over!
Judge guessed that Niji had been exiled because he'd underestimated Wang Shi and fallen victim to his strange ability.
As long as they prepared properly, they could kill a mere brat, no matter how powerful or bizarre his abilities were.
"I'll bring you Wang Shi's head, Father."
Ichiji, his hair bright red, spoke with cold confidence.
He felt no concern whatsoever for Niji's safety.
Instead, he thought Niji had disgraced the Vinsmoke royal family. He couldn't even complete an ordinary mission, and now they had to travel thousands of miles to rescue him.
In his eyes, Niji had already been cast out of the royal family's glory.
"So Niji got exiled, huh? If we rescue him, he should call me 'big brother'!"
Yonji, his hair bright green, thought that Niji, a failure, didn't deserve to be his big brother.
Just because Niji had been born a few minutes before him!
From now on, Niji would be just like that loser Sanji. Neither of them deserved to be his big brother.
As princes of the Germa Kingdom, standing high above everyone else, they would never accept defeat.
Hearing his two younger brothers speak, Reiju felt helpless. Her cold-blooded brothers, stripped of emotion, truly chilled her heart.
After his failure, Niji would probably be mocked and shunned by Ichiji and Yonji.
Just as they had once shunned and bullied the weak Sanji.
Even Judge's brow furrowed slightly at his sons' words.
He had stripped his sons of their emotions so that those feelings would never interfere with their fighting.
But he didn't want the three brothers to turn against one another, either.
Who knew what might happen in the future?
It was all that bastard Wang Shi's fault. Wang Shi had to die.
New World · Dressrosa.
"Fufufufu! This Wang Shi's got some skill. He scattered the allied forces of the East Blue Affiliated Nations in no time!"
"I was hoping to make a few more fortunes selling weapons!"
"Those East Blue weaklings really are hopeless."
Doflamingo had thought the East Blue would erupt into a major war involving more than a dozen Affiliated Nations. Then he could peddle weapons on the black market and make a huge profit.
But before he could even celebrate, Wang Shi had killed the King of Flaws, the leader of the coalition.
"I heard Judge has already led Germa 66 toward the East Blue."
Diamante grinned broadly. Back when they had risen to power in the North Blue, they had clashed quite a bit with the Germa 66 Evil Legion, the Overlord of the North Blue.
Seeing Judge lose a son in the Weakest Sea, the East Blue, made Diamante immensely happy.
"Why don't we try selling black-market weapons to the Goa Empire?
"This Goa Emperor looks like a troublemaker. He's bound to be a potential customer.
"And selling weapons to the Goa Empire could cause trouble for the Germa Evil Legion, too.
"I'd like to see that bastard Judge have a bad day."
Trebol cackled. His snot almost flew onto Doflamingo's pink feathered coat.
They hadn't forgotten how the Germa 66 Evil Legion had threatened and driven them off when they were first rising to power.