But now... Saint Charlos had appeared.
And he had appeared as a hostage.
Did what would happen next even need to be said?
Of course, although the situation had become extremely troublesome, that was not the fundamental reason Kuzan had chosen to close his eyes.
It was because he understood all too well what kind of person the Fleet Admiral was.
Wasn't Ohara the perfect example?
The World Government's justice stood above their justice.
Therefore, what was about to happen next was, in all likelihood, something he was unwilling to see and did not want to see.
But because he still had expectations, he closed his eyes.
'So this is your move, Ren! What a despicable bastard...'
Almost instantly, Kuzan understood what had happened and made his own response.
Kizaru's eyes flickered, as though he were thinking about something.
Akainu clenched his fists. Fury burned in his pupils, along with something difficult to put into words.
Clearly, he too had sensed just how troublesome the current situation was.
'Despicable bastard!'
Sengoku's fingers trembled unconsciously.
Like him, the Navy's top brass had also realized that the situation was extremely unfavorable.
Garp stood there as though he had been carved into a statue, staring straight at the person Whitebeard was gripping in his hand.
He was clearly a Celestial Dragon he had always despised in the past, yet now he looked so—pleasing to the eye!
Tsuru's lips moved, but she said nothing.
She first looked at the Navy vice admirals across the plaza, whose expressions all varied, then quietly glanced at the Den Den Mushi in Sengoku's hand.
It had not rung yet.
There was still one method... but would he do it?
These were the Navy's senior officers who reacted first.
Immediately after that came wave after wave of shocked cries from the Navy soldiers in the plaza.
"C-Celestial Dragon!"
"It's Saint Charlos!"
"Why is he with Whitebeard!?"
The Navy elites could not believe this fact. Mainly, the shock was too great, leaving them somewhat at a loss.
That was a Celestial Dragon.
For eight hundred years, they had stood above all people as "gods." In common knowledge, in inherited beliefs passed down through generations, they were world nobles who absolutely could not be offended!
Even if they snatched away a commoner's wife in the street, or even shot a commoner dead, no justice could punish them.
Because they were the makers of justice!
No matter how absurd or vile a crime might be when committed by someone else, when placed upon a Celestial Dragon—no, it could not even be placed upon a Celestial Dragon at all.
Whatever they did was correct.
That was what Celestial Dragons were!
And yet, at this moment...
They saw a living, breathing Celestial Dragon.
Saint Charlos, whose abduction at the Sabaody Archipelago had caused a massive uproar.
Now he was twisting in Whitebeard's hand like a maggot, battered and wretched.
The halo of sacred inviolability surrounding the Celestial Dragons seemed to crack slightly at that moment.
The overwhelming impact of the scene caused the battlefield to fall silent for an instant.
Immediately afterward, the Whitebeard Pirates' side erupted into cheers.
"As expected of Pops!"
"A Celestial Dragon! It's a Celestial Dragon!"
"Hahaha, I've been sick of those bastards for ages! Sure enough, only Pops has the nerve to do something like this!"
"Ace, just wait! You'll be saved soon!"
Although they were pirates and understood the Celestial Dragons' status as well, they understood their own position and the future that would inevitably follow even more clearly.
They were rescuing Ace because he was family. There was no way they could abandon him.
After rescuing Ace, they would definitely have to face the Navy's full-scale encirclement and suppression.
Since that was the case, what was wrong with taking a Celestial Dragon hostage as a bargaining chip?
Either way, they would have to face the Navy's encirclement!
Shanks, who was mixed in among them, frowned. Because of his own origins, he was not very willing to see this scene.
Of course, he had no favorable feelings toward those "kinsmen" in the Holy Land.
What concerned him more was the state of the world after this.
"How interesting."
Ren, who also showed a look of surprise, suddenly laughed. Then his entire figure vanished.
When he appeared again, he had already arrived at the vantage point where Hancock was.
The Demon, who had forcefully intervened in the battlefield, had now inexplicably withdrawn from it.
It seemed he did not intend to continue participating in this war.
However, at this moment, not many people continued paying attention to him.
Inside the broadcast center at the Sabaody Archipelago, the gathered reporters had already gone completely dumb on the spot.
The hands gripping their recording pens trembled like sieves, revealing the panic and helplessness in their hearts.
A... A Celestial Dragon had become Whitebeard's hostage!?
Heavens.
How could I be having such a dream!?
But reality would not change because of such thoughts. After realizing this, the reporters began recording the tremendous change on the battlefield with fanatical intensity.
This would be the greatest news in eight hundred years!
None would surpass it!
Hound, who was mixed in among them, trembled all over. With a feverish expression, he recorded the latest intelligence and sent it back to headquarters.
President Morgans would definitely love this massive piece of news.
But at this moment, Hound was still paying attention to the person he was most passionate about.
That person had appeared at the position where the Warlord Empress and Hawk-Eye were.
The three of them stood in a formation resembling a triangle.
Were they talking?
"You..."
Hancock lowered her head slightly, hesitating as though she did not know what to do.
Ren merely glanced at her, his gaze falling on her red lips, and she tactfully closed her mouth.
Mihawk, on the other hand, reacted. His falcon-like eyes narrowed as he stared at Ren.
After pondering for a moment, he said with certainty, "This was your handiwork?"
"Why do you say that?"
Ren was somewhat curious.
He had not brought the Celestial Dragon onto the stage himself precisely so that all the attention would not gather on him.
"A swordsman's intuition. And observation."
Mihawk looked toward the battlefield. "This war has been strange from beginning to end. The execution did not seem like an execution, and the rescue did not seem like a rescue.
"I know the Navy's side intended to cut down the Whitebeard Pirates' forces and make one of the Yonko disappear.
"But Whitebeard has seemed especially strange. He appeared to be waiting for something this entire time.
"Looking at it now, perhaps it was that Celestial Dragon who appeared along with you.
"That was Whitebeard's confidence."
At this point, he turned his head and looked at Ren. "But if that is the case, you were far too deliberate."
"..."
Ren smiled, but did not answer.
In this Marineford War, the one who had to stand out the most was Whitebeard.
At this current stage, he still did not want to face the Navy's full-scale encirclement or the World Government's targeting.
It was not time yet. He still needed to wait for one more stage of his plan.
However, he had also said before that one could not treat others as fools.
No matter how well conspiracies and schemes were executed, there would always be traces to follow. There was no wall in the world that did not let wind through.
Besides, the Revolutionary Army was also involved in the work at the Sabaody Archipelago.
The possibility of a third party leaking information also existed.
Therefore, the best method was an open scheme.
Even if someone saw through the truth, for the sake of giving the world an explanation—or rather, for the sake of proof—the World Government would have no choice but to target the Whitebeard Pirates next.
Ace, who carried Roger's bloodline, and the abduction of a Celestial Dragon.
With these two factors combined, they were more than enough to make the World Government go all out against the Whitebeard Pirates.
And that gap was the planning time Ren needed.
Perhaps appearing with the Celestial Dragon would have earned him an enormous amount of fame, helping him expand his faction plan.
But before he possessed enough ability to guarantee that he could resist the risks, Ren was still unwilling to take that gamble.
Of course, that did not mean Ren was giving up all benefits in terms of reputation.
Anyone with a bit of brains would notice his special position within this incident.
That was also the reason he had appeared one step ahead of the Celestial Dragon.
This would become a very good bargaining chip.
"Do you not want to answer?"
Mihawk said, "Then I need to settle a score with you."
"Oh?"
Ren was somewhat surprised.
"Hancock is one of your people, isn't she? Although I do not know what happened, her behavior makes it obvious."
Mihawk's gaze moved between Hancock and Ren.
Their positions were subtle. Ren stood slightly in front of Hancock's side, while Hancock had clearly lowered her head when Ren appeared.
He said, "The Warlords of the Sea are close to existing in name only. After such a massive betrayal, this balanced triangle seems to have lost any meaning of existence.
"If the World Government abandons the Warlord system, then I will have to return to the position of being hunted.
"Granted, that would not be much of a problem, but I would still have been affected by your actions."
"That makes sense. But it is not entirely my problem."
Ren rubbed his chin and pointed at the Pacifista on the battlefield. "Do you see those things?"
"Vegapunk's creations. I have heard of them."
"Their combat strength is quite high. Roughly at the level of pirates worth hundreds of millions. But those things also have an upgraded version called Seraphim.
"The purpose of their birth is to replace the current Warlord system.
"The difference is that those artificial humans still need some time before they can be perfected and appear."
"..."
Mihawk narrowed his eyes, then said, "That is still not enough."
"Of course. I believe we can reach a consensus in terms of affiliation. Zoro will come to find you next.
"That will be a transaction. It will contain something you should be interested in.
"As for what you asked... this world has been rotten for too long. It is time for a little change to happen.
"The gods standing above the world have never been irreplaceable."
Ren shrugged, then said, "Is that enough?"
"You want to overthrow the world?"
Mihawk shook his head, walked a few steps to the side, and then said nothing more.
His attitude was somewhat ambiguous, but it was clear he did not want to get involved with Ren right now.
'Is it still lacking an opportunity?'
Ren withdrew his gaze thoughtfully.
He was good at getting multiple benefits out of one thing. There was no doubt about that.
And Mihawk was naturally among those benefits.
At the World Council in the original story, the kings of Alabasta and Dressrosa took the lead in requesting the abolition of the Warlord system.
And because the replacement Seraphim had appeared, the World Government did indeed abolish the Warlord system.
This caused all the Warlords at the time to return to the position of being hunted.
During that process, Mihawk and Crocodile reached a consensus and prepared to establish an organization for self-preservation.
That was the so-called Cross Guild.
However, in the original story, Buggy, whose luck defied the heavens, became its public chairman.
In the current timeline where Buggy was already dead, the original plot naturally could not continue.
But... Ren did not mind establishing a "Cross Guild" either.
Because the existence of the Seraphim was an inevitable fact, and the World Government's abolition of the Warlord system would most likely happen as well.
(End of Chapter)