Brannew, who handled intelligence on the East Blue, stood up and began his report.
"...In conclusion, the target, Norton, and his associates have now left the waters around Sambas. Our latest intelligence indicates that they are moving toward Loguetown. The accompanying vessels have been confirmed to include the former Black Cat Pirates' ship, as well as-"
He paused and turned a page of his report.
"-the floating restaurant Baratie. According to eyewitness testimony, Baratie's head chef, Red-Leg Zeff, and his entire crew have declared that they are joining Norton."
A few quiet gasps sounded around the conference room.
"Red-Leg Zeff..." an officer responsible for security in the East Blue began slowly. "The man who sailed the Grand Line for a year and came back in one piece. Even he..."
Sengoku slowly removed his glasses and wiped them with a soft cloth.
"Gentlemen," Sengoku said, his voice quiet but strong enough to silence every murmur in the room, "we must reassess Norton."
"Under normal circumstances, a mere rookie from the East Blue would not warrant the trouble of convening this meeting."
"But this man is no ordinary rookie."
Sengoku stood and walked over to the projection screen, tapping the hundred-million bounty poster with a finger.
"He no longer falls within the category of a rookie pirate."
"Even setting aside the incident in the Sage Kingdom, where he killed the king and hundreds of guards... including CP0 agents!"
"In this incident alone," his finger moved to the photograph of the warship wreckage, "we lost three warships, three branch captains, and Smoker-a Marine Headquarters captain with a Logia power."
"A force of that size should have been capable of wiping out any pirate crew in the East Blue!"
"And the result? Total annihilation! The enemy didn't even suffer a single injury!"
Sengoku turned to face everyone, stressing every word. "That record alone demonstrates how dangerous this man is! Even on the Grand Line, he would warrant serious attention!"
"We must eliminate him as soon as possible, while he is still in the East Blue! We cannot allow his forces to keep growing!"
"He is unquestionably a super rookie even more dangerous than Fire Fist Portgas D. Ace!"
The conference room fell briefly silent.
Akainu was the first to speak, his voice a low rumble from the depths of a volcano.
"The East Blue branches have too much trash. We should send a vice admiral to lead an encirclement and eliminate him."
He's just a rookie from the East Blue. However dangerous he is, does he really warrant a dedicated meeting?
Let the vice admirals discuss it. A man at that level shouldn't even come to the attention of the admirals or the Fleet Admiral.
If they had not just finished a strategy meeting concerning the Four Emperors, Akainu would never have had the patience to listen to a rookie pirate's exploits.
Aokiji yawned. "Oh, my... Sounds like a pain. But we really can't just leave him alone."
Kizaru tilted his head. "A hundred-million bounty really is too high for the East Blue~ But from what Sengoku says, it might not be high enough~"
Sengoku returned to the head of the table and folded his hands again.
Only he knew that the man named Norton had killed far more than just the king in the Sage Kingdom. He had also killed Celestial Dragons!
If the higher-ups weren't determined to keep this from getting out...
"His bounty must be adjusted! A hundred million beli no longer reflects the threat he poses, nor is it enough to motivate the Marines and bounty hunters in the East Blue," Sengoku said sternly.
He looked at the officer in charge of issuing bounty posters.
"Prepare a new bounty poster. The amount..."
"Two hundred million beli!"
Silence filled the conference room. The officers could not hide the astonishment in their eyes.
Two hundred million.
In the East Blue, that number belonged to legends.
It was unprecedented!
Even the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, had only broken the hundred-million mark after entering the Grand Line!
"Furthermore," Sengoku added, "notify every East Blue branch, as well as the bases near the entrance to the Grand Line. Norton and his crew must be treated as major pirates from deep within the Grand Line. There must be no underestimating them!"
"If they are sighted, no one is to act on their own. Headquarters must be notified immediately!"
The orders were swiftly recorded and relayed. The new bounty posters were printed and distributed at the greatest possible speed.
And when the posters were carried around the world by seagulls, the first to catch a whiff of something unusual was Morgans, president of the World Economy News Paper.
"Two hundred million?! In the East Blue?!"
He flapped his wings in his airborne office, excitement gleaming in his avian eyes.
"In less than a month! From an initial bounty of a hundred million to two hundred million! And still in the East Blue!"
"Hahahaha! Big news! This is definitely big news!"
He immediately summoned his staff. "The front page! Revise tomorrow's front page!"
"President, shouldn't we verify this first..."
"Verify what?! This came straight from Marine Headquarters!"
The news spread at an astonishing speed.
As News Coos carried the paper to every corner of the Grand Line, it caught the attention of certain people.
Dressrosa, the VIP box at the Corrida Colosseum.
Amid the arena's deafening roar, Doflamingo reclined on a luxurious sofa, his gaze cold behind his sunglasses as he looked down at the mortal combat below.
The gladiatorial match reached its climax as a spear impaled a swordsman!
"Fufufu!!" Doflamingo grinned and chuckled, thoroughly enjoying the thrill of holding life and death in his hands.
A figure quietly appeared behind Doflamingo.
"Do... Doffy! Look at this!" Trebol held a freshly delivered newspaper beside Doflamingo's hand.
Doflamingo casually picked it up. His eyes swept over the headline, and his laughter briefly faltered.
"Fufufufu... The East Blue?"
Doflamingo's grin suddenly widened.
"Even those placid waters can breed a venomous fish with spines?"
Without turning his head, Doflamingo told Trebol, "Liven things up in the North Blue, too. We can't let some rookie from the East Blue outshine us! Fufufu!"
His attention returned to the arena, but the newspaper in his hand was silently sliced into shreds.
In a gloomy hall, Moria's enormous body occupied the seat of honor as he played cards with several zombie generals. Perona floated nearby, idly playing with a doll.
Just then, a voice sounded from thin air. "Lord Moria, the latest newspaper. There's an interesting rookie in it~"
Already irritated by how slowly the zombie generals played their cards, Moria waved impatiently. "Kishishishi! A rookie? Bring it here! Let me see!"
Absalom appeared and handed him the newspaper.
Moria glanced at the bounty poster, his eyes narrowing slightly at the words "two hundred million."
He tossed aside his cards and snatched up the paper, closely studying Norton's photograph, especially the vague account of the battle accompanying it.
"Kishishishi... His shadow! That shadow must be powerful!" Moria grew excited.
Mist curled above a luxurious cliffside bath overlooking the waters of the Calm Belt.
Hancock stretched her perfect body, resting with her eyes closed.
Her younger sister Marigold knelt respectfully beside the pool, holding a waterproof tray laden with fruit and a newspaper printed in special waterproof ink.
"Big Sister, today's World News..."
Hancock said languidly, "I have no interest in the filthy affairs of the world!"
Marigold hurriedly added, "A man with a two-hundred-million bounty has appeared in the East Blue! The Marines seem to be taking him very seriously..."
Hancock suddenly rose, exposing her breathtaking body to the air.
She tilted her head high, planted one hand on her hip, and pointed arrogantly at Marigold.
"I have no desire to hear about such things! No man could ever resist my charms!"
"Because I am simply... too beautiful!"
"Big Sister!!"
In a windowless chamber, rainfall records for Alabasta's towns and cities, supply allocation charts, and King Cobra's itinerary lay spread across a table.
With a cigar clenched between his teeth and his brows tightly furrowed, Crocodile tapped the location marked "Yuba" on the map with his Golden Hook.
A woman in a cowboy hat emerged from the shadows and placed a newspaper at the corner of the table. "Today's headline might interest you."
Through the vast glass windows of a magnificent undersea palace, strange fish could be seen swimming in the light of the Sunlight Tree Eve.
Jinbe and King Neptune were drinking tea when a Ryugu Palace Guard respectfully presented the latest newspaper.
Neptune waved a hand. "More conflict in the human world, I suppose? Put it aside for now."
But Jinbe said, "A moment, Your Majesty. News from the outside world, especially Marine movements, concerns the safety of Fish-Man Island. We cannot ignore it."
He accepted the newspaper and, after apologizing to Neptune, unfolded it to read. His thick brows drew together slightly when he reached the news about Norton.
The drizzle had only just stopped that evening, leaving the air cold and damp.
Mihawk stood alone on a stone balcony, a glass of slightly chilled red wine resting on the small round table before him.
A newspaper-delivering seagull fluttered down onto the stone railing nearby and dropped a newspaper.
Mihawk withdrew his gaze from the distance and looked at the paper.
A short while later, he raised his glass and looked toward the eastern horizon, shrouded in sunset light and rain clouds, then drained the remaining wine in one swallow.
Several days later.
Jango woke from sleep feeling as though the whole world were rocking.
He climbed out of bed and looked through the window, seeing huge gray waves surging across the black sea.
It was not the world that was rocking!
It was the Black Cat Pirates' ship, pitching violently in the enormous waves!
Such conditions were exceedingly rare in the calm East Blue, but ever since they had begun following the White Pearl, brutal weather like this had become a common sight.
Jango's gaze gradually shifted forward.
Ahead of the Black Cat Pirates, the enormous White Pearl resembled a white whale amid the towering waves. No matter how fiercely the wind blew, the White Pearl remained steady.
It was countless times better off than the violently pitching Black Cat Pirates' ship.
Behind the Black Cat Pirates' vessel sailed the floating restaurant Baratie. At this hour, the cooks were probably preparing dinner for everyone.
"The Grand Line..." Jango murmured as he gazed out at the distant sea. He had heard of those waters, known as the graveyard of pirates, a place of incredible danger.
And they were heading straight toward it!
Aboard the floating restaurant Baratie, Norton enjoyed the food the cooks kept bringing him while discussing their next moves.
Though it could hardly be called a discussion. It was more like the officers sharing a meal and chatting along the way.
Yes, Norton's pirate crew could now be considered sizeable, but it still had only a handful of officers.
There were Nami and Sanosuke, the first to come aboard, followed by Funing, Zoro, and finally Kuro and Zeff.
Including Norton, those seven people made up the core of his entire pirate crew.
Only those seven had private rooms aboard the White Pearl and could request modifications to the ship from Miss Funing, their shipwright.
Although Zoro kept insisting that he was only staying aboard temporarily, he had still not left even after finding the fat man who had stolen his swords.
Norton knew why: Sanosuke.
Until he thoroughly defeated Sanosuke and challenged Norton, Zoro would not even consider leaving.
As a swordsman, Zoro dreamed of becoming the strongest. Reaching the top required honing his skills, and in time, all the strongest fighters in the East Blue would be aboard the White Pearl.
Below the seven core members were the minor leaders, who ranked above the ordinary crew.
Jango, the Nyaban Brothers, Sanji, and Patty.
The six people currently dining at the same table as Norton were Nami, Sanosuke, Funing, Zoro, Kuro, and Zeff.
"What are you planning to do next?" Zeff asked, placing a plate of pan-fried lamb chops before Norton.
"Recruit! Recruit! And recruit some more!"
Norton grinned and raised a finger. "The Buggy Pirates, the Krieg Pirates, and the Spade Pirates are my next targets! Before entering the Grand Line, I'm going to build a fleet large enough for the job!"
"The Grand Line may be paradise for you, but for the weak, it's hell..." Zeff said with feeling. "Numbers won't help. Only the truly elite can survive in those waters."
"Exactly," Kuro said beside him, adjusting his glasses. "Zeff's words may be unpleasant, but they're the truth."
Although he had never been to the Grand Line, its dangers were known to everyone.
"It doesn't matter! Because I'm here!" Norton loosely curled his hand. "That's what makes it a challenge! If no one in the world has ever succeeded at something, then I, Norton, insist on giving it a try!"
Funing covered her mouth and giggled, Nami shrugged helplessly, and Sanosuke gazed at Norton with admiration.
Zoro let out a drunken belch and exhaled at length. "Fine by me! I'm planning to go to the Grand Line anyway! But before that, we need to stop at Loguetown so I can buy a few good swords as spares!"
For a Three-Sword Style swordsman, nothing was worse than not having three swords available. Without them, Zoro's fighting strength would be severely reduced.
Conversely, the sharper his three swords were, the more strength Zoro could bring to bear!
"Once I replace these two with good swords, I'll finally be able to beat that damned ninja!" Zoro accidentally blurted out what he was thinking.
"If you're drunk, go to bed early. Don't daydream," Sanosuke said, casting Zoro an indifferent glance.
"Huh?!" Zoro glared back, his face red, half from the rising effects of the alcohol and half from anger.
"That damned ninja's words might be a little harsh, but they're true, Moss Head," Sanji chimed in as he approached with a plate, a cigarette between his lips.
"What?! You curly-browed bastard!" Zoro sprang to his feet and grabbed Sanji by the collar. "Say that again if you've got the guts!"
"Let go, Moss Head!" Sanji's expression darkened as well.
"Hahaha!" Ignoring the two clowns, Norton turned to Funing and Kuro. "I asked you to track down Buggy, Don Krieg, and the Spade Pirates. Any leads?"