Karol took out his notebook:

“All collected.”

“Currently, the forces in the New World are beginning to consolidate.”

“The Big Mom Pirates, the Steam Pirates, and the Flying Pirates of the Golden Lion.”

“A three-way division of power.”

“Most of the territory is occupied by these three factions.”

“Among them, the Big Mom Pirates…”

“Due to Charlotte Linlin’s strength and her fewer clashes with the Marines in recent years…”

“They are currently the strongest and hold the largest territory.”

“Next are the islands controlled by the Golden Lion.”

“After the last time the Golden Lion’s fleet was destroyed, many of his islands were lost and taken by various forces.”

“But not long ago, the Golden Lion reappeared and bloodily purged the Galipen Archipelago.”

“Using ruthless means, he reclaimed quite a bit of territory.”

“However, he showed no signs of further expansion.”

“Instead, he has been searching for scientists across various regions. A large number of scientists have been abducted and taken to the Golden Lion’s territory—whereabouts unknown.”

“Last are the Steam Pirates.”

“The Steam Pirates originally held territory at the junction of the spheres of influence of Whitebeard, the Golden Lion, and Big Mom.”

“They were suppressed by all three.”

“Later, during the Battle of Skegli, Whitebeard died and most of the Golden Lion’s fleet was destroyed.”

“The Steam Pirates took the opportunity to invade Whitebeard’s territory.”

“While occupying the majority of Whitebeard’s territory, they also expanded their underground network.”

“They now control the New World’s arms trade, maritime routes, loan-sharking, and other dark underworld forces.”

“Through various methods, including sacrificing short-term interests…”

“In a short amount of time, they established cooperation with various powers of the New World and secured their footing.”

“These three factions now control the majority of the New World.”

“The rest are fragmented territories held by the new generation of pirates.”

“Such as Azure Dragon Kaido, Gecko Moria, and others.”

“And some are powerful lone wolves like Red the Aloof and Byrnndi World.”

“Rogers Pirates and other powerful solo forces…”

“Wander around the world and do not get involved in the conflicts of the New World.”

“Overall, the power structure of the New World has largely stabilized.”

“The chaos sparked by Rocks’ death is gradually settling.”

“It’s time to consider redeploying Marines to the New World.”

Sakazuki pondered for a moment:

“No rush.”

“How’s the investigation in the West Blue going?”

Karol responded:

“It’s true that someone in Ohara is forming an expedition team.”

“But judging from their current pace, they won’t be setting off within the next year or two.”

“They lack funding and manpower support.”

“Just relying on that group of scholars—it’ll be difficult.”

Sakazuki nodded:

“How’s the weathering of that booklet going?”

Karol pulled out a booklet he carried with him and handed it to Sakazuki.

Sakazuki skimmed through it; nothing seemed off.

He handed it back to Karol and thought for a moment:

“Just leave it for now. Even if we can’t see any flaws…”

“Those scholars in Ohara specialize in this kind of research.”

“It won’t be easy to fool them.”

“Keep monitoring them.”

“Wait for the right opportunity.”

Karol nodded silently.

Suddenly, Sakazuki said:

“The soldiers on the ship have matured enough, haven’t they?”

Karol said:

“More or less. Most of them can skillfully use Haki.”

“Enough to suppress the pirates across the Four Blues.”

Sakazuki nodded:

“Then let’s begin.”

“Assign these soldiers, along with others who have trained at Headquarters…”

“Send them to the branches in all the Four Blues. Accumulate power, wait for the right moment.”

“Make sure every single branch gets reinforcements.”

“If necessary, eliminate the leeches and replace them with our own.”

He paused:

“Control the numbers.”

“Each year, no more than five branch commanders should die ‘unexpectedly.'”

“This era hasn’t gone wild just yet.”

“Too many deaths would be suspicious…”

…

New World, Nankesha Island.

The harbor at the shore had already been cleared.

Only the Black Mist Pirates stood there, waiting for something.

The captain of the Black Mist Pirates, a Smoke-Smoke Fruit user—Dean Langfellow—stood with arms crossed.

At that moment, thick smoke poured from his body, compressing in his hands.

His gaze sharpened as he looked toward a massive ship on the horizon:

“They’re here.”

The enormous ship was painted crimson.

The menacing Jolly Roger depicted streaks resembling steam.

It was none other than one of the three great powers in the New World—the Steam Pirates.

Suddenly, a figure shot out from the ship.

Whoosh—

The sharp screech of steam cutting through the air echoed.

Boom!

They landed with force.

Amid the swirling dust, a brash and ruthless voice rang out:

“Langfellow, have you given it some thought?”

“As long as you join me, I’ll let you keep your current territory.”

“You only get one chance—don’t think too highly of yourself.”

“Cracklalalalala—”

Langfellow narrowed his eyes:

“How very kind of you.”

“The one and only, great Steam Knock-sama.”

Heatwaves surged from the pit in the ground, dispersing the dust.

Knock didn’t seem to catch the sarcasm in Langfellow’s tone:

“So, what’s your choice, Langfellow?”

Langfellow sneered.

The dense smoke compressed even more rapidly in his hands.

Knock’s mouth twisted into a grin:

“Ungrateful bastard.”

Boom!

A massive burst of pressure and steam exploded from Knock’s body.

He transformed into a 200-meter-tall steam giant, towering over the Cloud Mist Pirates.

Langfellow snorted coldly:

“Ashes of Oblivion!”

He hurled the compressed smoke bomb in his hand at the steam giant.

BOOM!!!!

It exploded against the giant’s chest.

Countless fine particles corroded the steam giant’s body.

In the blink of an eye, half of it was destroyed.

Next, an endless mist formed into a giant equal in size to the steam one, coated in Armament Haki, and charged at Knock with a raised fist.

Knock looked at the oncoming Langfellow, letting out a cruel laugh:

“Good, very good.”

With that, his half-destroyed body suddenly expanded by another 300 meters.

He directly pinned the mist giant down.

Cracks spread across the steam giant’s body.

Langfellow, having transformed into the mist giant, narrowed his eyes as a sense of intense danger surged over him.

His giant form rapidly shrank and compressed:

“Particle—”

Before Langfellow could strike back—

Knock’s indifferent voice echoed:

“Explosive Steam Kill.”

Sssss——

A sharp, high-pressure steam hiss filled the air.

BOOM!!!!!!!

A deafening explosion followed.

A mushroom cloud of white mist, half the size of the island, soared into the sky and spread in all directions.

Back on the Steam Pirates’ ship, still far from the coast, the crew exclaimed in awe.

“Whoa.”

“Boss used that move again.”

“Poor bastards.”

“Wonder how many will die on that island this time.”

“Always so damn impressive to watch.”

“Hey hey, stop right there.”

“Not safe to land for now.”

“Back to the cabins—the heat is coming!”

“Move it, move it, move it!”

The world only knew the Steam Pirates as ruthless and cold-blooded, using all kinds of methods to cement their power in the New World.

And thus ignored their sheer strength.

Few knew that the captain of the Steam Pirates, Knock—

Was a master of maximizing the potential of his Devil Fruit.

Under a single move—Explosive Steam Kill—everyone on the island was nearly vaporized in an instant.

Island-level massacres with no survivors had become the Steam Pirates’ signature…

And precisely because no one survived—

Some pirate crews didn’t even realize his strength and often ignored his invitations.

That, too, was one of Knock’s twisted pleasures.

He deliberately lured enemies in by appearing weak, then annihilated them with overwhelming force.

On the steam-shrouded beach, Langfellow lay coughing up blood, surrounded by the corpses of his crew.

He stared at Knock in terror:

“You… how could you possibly…”

“Cough cough…”

A mouthful of blood spurted out.

Knock walked up to Langfellow and crouched down.

He grabbed Langfellow’s hair and lifted his head, meeting his eyes.

Knock broke into a neurotic laugh:

“Hahahahahaha!”

“That expression!!!”

“It’s absolutely delicious~”

His hand coated in Armament Haki, his powers activated.

Scalding hot steam enveloped Langfellow’s head like a dome.

Watching Langfellow struggle—

Knock’s cruel voice rang out:

“Yes, yes, just like that!”

“Struggle! Struggle!!”

“Hahahahaha!!!!”

Langfellow’s head gradually turned red… then fell motionless…

Knock casually tossed him aside and kicked the body away.

He spread his arms wide, taking a deep breath.

Inhaling the strange mix of steam and something else that filled the beach—

He slowly exhaled:

“Hoooo—”

“Absolutely divine…”

—

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