A black shadow flashed, and Kalifa lunged straight into Roya's arms.
She said excitedly to Roya, "Admiral~ I've received Sengoku's orders. I'll be your adjutant, and I'll definitely take good care of you along the way and keep you nice and comfortable."
Watching Kalifa's actions, Roya's mouth twitched slightly.
Recently, for some reason, Kalifa had been constantly coming over to "crave" him.
"Alright, Kalifa, go get ready. We're leaving immediately!"
"So soon?"
"Of course. Justice can't wait!"
The effects of the newspaper continued to ferment.
Ohara.
Robin, who had just finished training her Devil Fruit ability, sat in Olvia's arms and read the newspaper in her hands.
"The Three Marine Admirals Officially Unveiled! White Dove Roya Is Actually the Strongest!"
That was the newspaper's biggest headline.
As Robin read further down, she saw Roya's appearance.
This was Robin's first time seeing what Roya looked like, yet for some reason, her instincts immediately told her that the man before her was the real Roya.
After all, there were practically no other people on this sea named Roya!
"Mom, when will Brother Roya come back to find us?"
Robin lifted her sparkling eyes to Olvia, her gaze filled with indescribable anticipation.
"Don't worry, Robin. Your Brother Roya will come back to see you before long."
Olvia spoke to Robin.
Robin nodded and studied Roya's picture in the newspaper again, an unconscious smile often appearing on her lips.
Amazon Lily.
Through Amazon Lily's unique training methods, Hancock had already awakened Conqueror's Haki.
By now, she could rely on her Devil Fruit ability to fight the current Empress on equal footing. She was truly a genius among geniuses.
Then again, that made sense. Even in the original story, Hancock's strength had ranked among the best.
At that moment, Gloriosa came to Hancock's side.
After glancing at Gloriosa, Hancock asked, "Is there any news about Roya?"
"Yes. It's all in this newspaper."
The moment Hancock heard Gloriosa's words, her previous indifference vanished.
Her peach-like cheeks instantly flushed red as she snatched the newspaper from Gloriosa.
Looking at Roya in the newspaper, Hancock felt so happy that she was about to faint.
"This is wonderful, Roya! I finally have news of you!"
Gloriosa watched Hancock continuously rub her face against Roya's face in the newspaper.
The wrinkles already covering her face squeezed together even more.
"Hancock, Roya has joined the Marines now! Even I can't guess what he intends to do. We must be careful when dealing with him in the future!"
"So what if he joined the Marines? Roya must have his reasons. Roya saved my life. Even if he wanted to take it back, I wouldn't have a single complaint!"
Hancock looked at Gloriosa and added, "So were you trying to drive a wedge between us just now?!"
Hancock's face was now frosty as she said coldly, "Anyone who speaks badly of Roya is my enemy!"
As Hancock's words fell, her already long legs wrapped in Armament Haki, and she kicked Gloriosa straight into the sky.
Elsewhere, out at sea.
A violent wind carried torrential rain.
The waves surged wildly, each one higher than the last!
The Grand Line's unpredictable weather showed itself in full force at that moment!
Within that stormy, wave-tossed environment, a massive Pirate fleet of over fifty ships sailed across the sea.
Yet under such conditions, those fifty ships looked incredibly small.
"Captain Don Krieg, Ship Number 34 has been damaged. A massive amount of seawater is flooding into the hull!"
"Captain Don Krieg, Ship Number 12's mast has broken. If we don't transfer the crew, they may very well die at sea!"
"Captain Don Krieg..."
Don Krieg stood on the deck, gripping his golden battle lance tightly as he listened to the endless reports, his face dark and grim.
He had set out from the East Blue full of confidence, entered the Grand Line, and intended to make his name known to even more people.
But he never imagined that they would encounter such a situation the moment they entered the Grand Line!
"Abandon every ship with problems!"
"Abandon them?! But Captain Don Krieg, our combat strength will drop drastically!"
"Drastically? It's only four or five ships. At most, that's just four or five hundred people!"
Don Krieg raised his battle lance and said to the men beside him, "We're a fleet of five thousand people. We're only abandoning four or five hundred. That won't hurt our combat strength much at all!"
"Yes, understood, Captain Don Krieg!"
The subordinate withdrew. Don Krieg remained on deck, staring at the rolling waves, unwilling to yield.
"Grand Line, the dream route longed for by countless Pirates. As long as you sail all the way through it, you can become the Pirate King!"
"Only a title like Pirate King is worthy of my strength!"
"Isn't it just a few hundred fighters? When the time comes, I can find an island and make up those numbers again!"
In Don Krieg's eyes, his own strength was only one part of the equation. Numbers mattered even more.
As long as there were enough people, they could crush their enemies to death through sheer numbers alone!
He had relied on human-wave tactics to dominate the East Blue for a long time. That was why he possessed such overwhelming confidence.
What he did not know was that he was nothing more than a frog at the bottom of a well!
The storm had come quickly, and it passed just as quickly.
About half an hour later, the wind and waves finally subsided.
"Captain Don Krieg, we have lost a total of six hundred and seventy-two men and six ships!"
The subordinate beside Don Krieg added, "Also, we discovered a warship in the distance approaching at high speed. However, this warship seems different from those we've seen before. It's larger!"
"A warship?! Can you estimate how many people are aboard?"
"According to the navigator's report, around a hundred."
"Only around a hundred? One warship! Hahaha, are they here to deliver us a ship?"
Don Krieg burst into laughter, swung his battle lance, and ordered his men, "All hands, listen up! Don't fire the cannons. Surround that warship ahead. I'm taking that Marine warship!"
"Captain Don Krieg is mighty!"
"Captain Don Krieg is mighty!"
"Captain Don Krieg is mighty!"
As Don Krieg's words fell, the crew shouted his name excitedly!