Starting as a Roger Pirates Apprentice

Chapter 538: The Fury of the News King, Proposal to Abolish the Shichibukai

"Oh~~~"

"I understand now~"

"To have even a Navy Admiral personally escort you at sea—in a sense, you’re like a monster yourself~"

Along with that drawn-out response, everyone turned to look at the man wearing a Navy justice coat and a yellow-striped suit, frog-shaped sunglasses on his face. Their eyes nearly bulged out.

"This is...???"

"A Navy Headquarters Admiral, Kizaru!!!"

"There’s actually a Navy Admiral on this ship?!!!"

As the tall figure walked to the bow, he leaped and transformed into light. A beam of yellow brilliance appeared in the sky.

With a dazzling prelude, countless light bullets blasted toward the submarine beneath the sea.

The submarine hadn’t even fired its torpedoes, nor had it surfaced, before it was completely destroyed underwater.

"Truly reliable, Borsalino~"

Seeing this scene, Keek smiled kindly and spoke to Kizaru.

The latter immediately raised his arms as if surrendering, his face showing distress.

"If the World Government found out you were attacked and something happened to you on your way to the World Conference, I’d probably have to retire from the Navy~"

That serious?

The Riku royal family all opened their mouths in shock.

But Keek just waved his hand with a gentle smile, like a kind old grandfather.

"Hahahaha, the consequences wouldn’t be that simple."

After the crisis was resolved, Keek continued playing chess with King Riku, and also took notice of his daughter and granddaughter.

"Quite beautiful~ I wonder if they’re married yet?"

"Well... neither of them is married."

"Then isn’t that perfect?!!!"

Keek, eager to hold a monster great-grandchild, had now begun grasping at straws.

He even set his sights on Rebecca and Viola.

Hmm...

This pink-haired girl was acceptable, but this black-haired one was a bit too old.

As for the fact that Orin himself was already nearly forty, Keek subconsciously chose to ignore it.

Can a monster’s age even be called age?

That’s called experience gained upon the seas.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Borsalino had clearly recognized Vergo, the former Navy Vice Admiral.

"A Donquixote Family executive, an undercover Vice Admiral who infiltrated the Navy, and now you’ve become Duramos’s bodyguard~"

"What exactly is going on here?"

He spoke slowly and calmly, but clearly had no intention of attacking.

"I’m simply following orders."

Vergo, wearing sunglasses, replied plainly.

Interestingly, the two undercover agents who had once stood on opposite sides in the power struggle between the Donquixote Family and the Navy had both returned to peaceful lives and survived well.

Only one side’s boss was still in prison, reading a newspaper.

...

Underwater Great Prison, Impel Down.

Level 6 of Impel Down, inside a dark prison cell.

A crisp sound of footsteps echoed through the prison. This place, which once held countless criminals, had become somewhat empty because of Blackbeard.

"Fufufufufu..."

"How troublesome for you~ Magellan."

"You even made a special trip just to deliver a newspaper to a prisoner like me~"

The golden-haired man was bound tightly in chains, spread in an X-shape against the wall. Hearing the footsteps, he curled his lips into a sinister grin and laughed.

Magellan, who had just finished using the restroom, appeared before Doflamingo’s cell with an unpleasant expression.

As one of Impel Down’s primary authorities, when had he ever personally served a prisoner like this?

But the man before him was different.

Not only was he a former Celestial Dragon who held the World Government’s deepest secrets, he was also one of the original members of the [Shichibukai].

A minor request like reading a newspaper was something both the World Government and Impel Down chose to overlook.

"There’s big news recently—and it concerns you, Doflamingo."

Doflamingo froze slightly upon hearing this.

Magellan sat outside the cell and tossed a newspaper through the bars, which Doflamingo caught in his hands.

On the front page, a smiling photo of Luffy occupied the largest section.

"This is..."

Doflamingo could no longer smile. His hands clenched the newspaper tightly as he stared at the absurd content, which was so outrageous it seemed almost fabricated.

Magellan didn’t seem surprised by his reaction.

"Speaking of which, Straw Hat Luffy’s rise to fame is similar to yours when you were young—barely escaping death from the hands of [Black Gun] and enjoying the glory of the defeated."

"However, losing to Orin isn’t anything shameful. On the contrary, it’s something to be proud of..."

Magellan spoke calmly.

But Doflamingo’s sinister smile gradually faded, replaced by disbelief and anger.

"What kind of joke is this?!!!"

"That Straw Hat actually fought against Orin and survived?!!!"

As someone from the younger generation, he understood better than anyone how vast the gap in strength became as one approached their peak in middle age.

Based on Orin’s performance at the Summit War and his own understanding, even that hidden figure in Mary Geoise might not gain any advantage against Orin.

And now someone who once fought him evenly could resist Orin’s power?

Crack—crack—

Veins bulged across his forehead as he tore the newspaper into pieces.

After a moment of silence, his emotions seemed to stabilize.

"Fufufufufu... It’s just fake news."

"That Morgans really is bold, daring to publish something like this..."

As if realizing something, Doflamingo’s smile returned.

"Or perhaps the so-called strongest rookie... is merely a smokescreen. The future of this world will inevitably revolve around two sides: the World Government and Orin."

"It’s hard to say whether Straw Hat, who has been pushed into the spotlight, is laying groundwork or providing cover for some truly massive conspiracy."

"What Orin is plotting goes far beyond this kind of small-scale chaos..."

He eagerly anticipated the day he could witness it all with his own eyes.

Doflamingo longed for the moment he could escape this prison.

...

As the Straw Hat crew entered Wano Country, the seas gradually became more chaotic.

The once-every-four-years World Government Conference officially began, with participating nations including Alabasta, Dressrosa, Fish-Man Island, and others...

This time, including King Cobra and King Riku, the attending rulers had already prepared to protest before the World Government, delivering speeches and lobbying at the conference.

Their goal was only one—

To abolish the [Shichibukai] system!!!