The lingering excitement of the celebration marking the opening of the country had yet to fade completely, but dark clouds were already gathering over the sea again.
Early that morning, a thin mist shrouded Wano Country's coastline. After a night of celebration, most people were still asleep. Only a few fishermen up early for work and samurai on patrol saw the dark outlines of a fleet slowly emerging from the mist.
The World Government's flag snapped atop the flagship's mast. More than thirty large warships sat quietly in battle formation at the edge of Wano Country's territorial waters. An immense, invisible pressure spread with the sea breeze.
The news soon spread throughout the Flower Capital and Onigashima Fortress.
Inside the temporary council hall, the atmosphere was grave. Momonosuke, Denjiro, Kawamatsu, Marco, Lin Yan, Luffy, Zoro, and the others had gathered.
"It's a fleet led by Marine Admiral Aramaki, 'Ryokugyu.'" Denjiro pointed at the nautical chart, his expression stern. "They've been cruising around the perimeter for a month. Now they've finally lost patience. Their forces outnumber ours several times over, and they're all elite troops from Marine Headquarters."
"What do they want? To start a war outright?" Kawamatsu tightened his grip on his harpoon.
"It doesn't look like it," Marco analyzed. "If they wanted an all-out attack, they wouldn't have waited until our celebration ended and we'd begun restoring order. This looks more like... pressure. Or some kind of 'test.'"
"Testing our reactions, testing our limits, and testing..." Lin Yan picked up where he left off, looking out the window toward the sea. "The mettle of this newly crowned member of the Four Emperors."
"Four Emperors?" Momonosuke froze.
"The papers are already calling you that, Lin Yan." Luo walked in, holding the latest edition of the World Economy News Paper. Its