Lafitte: An Answer That Will Satisfy You

"My captain knows very well that with his current record and reputation, he is not yet qualified to get the Five Elders' approval. He has never expected to become a Shichibukai with just a few empty words."

Lafitte lowered his voice slightly, but it became even clearer, each word like a carefully polished bead landing steadily on the table, "So, he asked me to pass on a message to you gentlemen."

He paused, the curve of his lips growing even more sinister. "He will deliver a truly impressive answer. A perfect answer that will silence the entire ocean."

The Five Elders frowned slightly. "What answer sheet?"

"Well..." Lafitte tapped his shoulder lightly with his cane, his smile mysterious and dangerous. "You all will know when the time comes. I can only say that the weight of this report will be no less than that of Crocodile conquering the Desert Kingdom—in fact, it may be even heavier."

Doflamingo chuckled, took off his sunglasses, wiped the lenses, and said with a smug, amused tone, "Interesting. A guy who got beaten up and ran away in the West Blue is now coming to Mary Geoise to boast that he'll hand in a perfect score? I'm really curious."

"It is my honor to have Lord Doflamingo's curiosity." Lafitte bowed gracefully to him, his smile undiminished.

The Five Elders holding the sword snorted coldly and exchanged glances with the other four Five Elders.

There was no curiosity, no expectation, not even much seriousness in his eyes—only a condescending, almost indifferent scrutiny.

They'd seen far too many arrogant pirates arrive in Mary Geoise with wildly boastful plans and empty promises, only to either vanish into the annals of history or be crushed to dust by the Marines. Blackbeard was just the latest example.

However, the position of Shichibukai definitely needs to be filled as soon as possible.

After Crocodile's downfall, the balance of power among the three major forces has begun to shift subtly. If this drags on any longer, who knows what new variables might emerge?

Since someone has taken the initiative to come to us, we might as well give him a chance—whether he can seize it or not is up to him.

The Five Elders with the Long Beard withdrew their gaze and looked back at Lafitte.

His voice was calm and indifferent, as if stating a fact unrelated to himself, each word carrying the almost mechanical authority unique to the world's highest ruler. "Tell Blackbeard that we don't care what he does or how he does it."

As long as he can capture a pirate of sufficient stature to prove he deserves the position of Shichibukai —giving him that position is fine."

He paused, then added one last sentence, "But the prerequisite is that the pirate's stature must be worthy of the title of Shichibukai."

Lafitte's smile finally blossomed completely at this moment.

The smile was no longer polite, no longer gentle and restrained, but rather a kind of almost manic, long-suppressed excitement, like a gambler seeing the dice about to land before making a desperate gamble, or a hunter finally hearing the footsteps of his prey step into the trap after a long wait.

He slowly straightened up, tucked his cane back under his arm, and bowed deeply to the five elderly men at the end of the long table.

That bow was more respectful and exaggerated than ever before, with his forehead almost touching his knees.

Yet, those eyes held not a trace of respect, only a burning, determined light.

"The Five Elders are wise." His voice was as soft as a sigh, yet carried an unmistakable excitement. "Please await good news, sirs. The Blackbeard Pirates will not disappoint you."

Before he finished speaking, his body floated up from the conference table like a feather blown by the wind.

The pair of pure white wings on his back unfolded silently, carrying him through the air in a smooth yet eerie arc, before he landed steadily by the window of the council chamber.

Hawkeye removed his fingers from the hilt of the Black Blade.

From beginning to end, he never really intended to draw his sword—a lowly soldier who came to deliver a message wasn't worth drawing his blade for.

But he saw clearly the ambitions behind these uninvited guests.

Jora Mihawk had lived on this sea for too long, seen too many people and too many things, and his sharp, hawk-like eyes were never blinded by superficial sweet talk.

He knew that the man named Teach was far more dangerous than the navigator who delivered the message.

Kuma turned his gaze back to the window.

He didn't utter a single word from beginning to end.

Bartholomew Kuma, the tyrant, is always the most silent and the most secretive of the Shichibukai.

No one knew what he was looking at, nor what he was thinking.

Only Doflamingo let out a meaningful chuckle at the last moment before Lafitte's figure disappeared out of the window.

He put his sunglasses back on, propped his feet up even higher, and his pink feather coat spread out like wings on the back of the chair.

He turned to look at the Five Elders at the end of the long table, his tone full of amusement. "Hey, gentlemen, you don't really expect that clown Teach to come up with anything decent, do you?"

"A traitor who was raised by Whitebeard for half his life, plus a good-for-nothing who was terrified by Uchiha Natsu —how much weight can such a person's 'satisfactory answer sheet' carry?"

"That's not something we need to worry about," the bald Five Elders said coldly, flipping through the documents in front of him without glancing at Doflamingo again.

"If he can produce it, he'll get the position of Shichibukai. If not, the Navy will deal with him. The World Government never does anything that doesn't benefit them."

The Five Elders with long beards raised their hands, signaling for the meeting to continue.

His aged and cold voice rang out in the council chamber, bringing the topic back on track, as if the uninvited intruder had never existed. "The vote on the successor to Crocodile as Shichibukai will be postponed for now."

The next topic is the update of Uchiha Natsu's bounty poster and the specific deployment of the West Blue blockade. Sengoku's proposal needs to have several details finalized...

Outside the window, Mary Geoise was still bathed in sunshine, with white clouds drifting slowly across the Holy Land. Everything looked so peaceful and orderly.

But Lafitte had already passed through the light and disappeared into the shadows.

His wings folded, and his figure moved like a silent ghost, passing through the layers of defenses in Mary Geoise, heading towards some unknown hiding place.

He knew that after this meeting, the entire ocean would continue to turn.