In the New World, within the territory of the Red-Haired Pirates, a massive pirate ship slowly and heavily sailed out of the harbor.
"Captain, this isn't a wise move!" With a cigarette in his mouth and an expression of bored laziness, first mate Beckman leaned against the rail and said to the grim-faced Shanks the Red-Haired, "It's obvious that brat Uchiha Hikaru is using Clown Buggy's bond with you to lure us into being his weapon!"
A few days earlier, Shanks had paid close attention to the incident that shook the New World, where Blackbeard's army had pressed against Dressrosa. After all, no one understood why Blackbeard, who had become one of the Four Emperors, would launch an all-out assault on Dressrosa in such furious rage.
Although Uchiha Hikaru had established the Uchiha Alliance, which supposedly could spread across the entire world, and appeared immensely powerful on the surface, the truly influential forces all knew that alliances like this were extremely unstable in their early stages. Many hidden dangers lay buried within them, and poor management alone could cause the alliance to collapse without anyone needing to lift a finger.
No matter how much Blackbeard hated Uchiha Hikaru, it was not worth bringing an army to his doorstep and gambling everything he had. Even if Uchiha Hikaru had captured three of Blackbeard's senior officers, Blackbeard's personality gave him no reason to care so deeply about his subordinates.
Even so, Shanks had not taken it to heart. He merely wanted to see how Uchiha Hikaru, who was rumored to be capable of standing shoulder to shoulder with the Four Emperors, intended to use such a weak force to contend against the overwhelmingly powerful Blackbeard.
However, two days ago, while Shanks had still been watching the situation unfold, he suddenly received word.