A grand feast that lasted five days finally came to an end.
The Red Hair Pirates arrived healthy and hearty, but left staggering and half-conscious.
Sakura tossed their whole crew onto their ship and set it adrift in a random direction. She was sure her dear friend would be immensely grateful upon waking up to find himself thoughtfully returned to the open sea!
The Revolutionary Army and the Ryugu Palace's guard members also departed from Punk Hazard one after another, while the Fish-Man Pirates and the Giant Mercenary Corps led by Oimo and Kashii stayed behind.
Leaving these groups to Tiger and Sato Sakura to settle, Sakura herself began handling the most important matter upon assuming her new position… meeting with the ghosts and goblins of the underworld.
King of Dressrosa - Donquixote Doflamingo.
King of Germa - Vinsmoke Judge.
Warehouse Industry - [The Concealer] Giberson.
Loan Sharking - [God of Fortune] Du Feld.
Transportation - [Deep Sea Current] Umit.
Funeral Services - [Major Undertaker] Drug Peclo.
Pleasure District - [Queen of the Pleasure District] Stussy...
And finally, the News Industry — [Big News] Morgans!!!
"You damn bastard, I'm gonna kill you!"
In the research facility's lobby, repurposed as a reception hall, the moment Morgans appeared, Sakura's eyes locked onto him.
Then, a spatial phantom light faster than any speed flashed. The girl was already on top of the bird-man, ready to boil water, pluck feathers, and cook some poultry.
"Wait, beautiful Miss Sakura, we should have no grievances, right?!"
Feeling the increasingly turbulent aura emanating from Sakura, Morgans pleaded for mercy again and again.
Although... he probably had a good idea why he had offended this newly ascended Emperor.
But still, he wanted to argue his case a little more! It was all for the news!
"You bastard, think about how many times you've slandered me with fake news!"
Sakura raised a fist wreathed in Armament Haki. "No more words. Let me punch you a few times first!"
A surge of blazing light followed. The last thing Morgans remembered before losing consciousness was many people trying to stop her, but they were all effortlessly brushed aside.
His consciousness drifted in chaos for a long time. When Morgans regained his senses, he found himself seated at a large conference table.
Doflamingo and Judge had numerous contusions, while the others still wore expressions of shock and awe.
"I told you to write less false reporting. Tasted the iron fist now, didn't you?"
Stussy, propping her cheek on her hand, glanced sideways with a smile, her chin resting on the back of her hand.
"You don't understand. Born for the news, die for the news… that's my life's creed!"
Morgans became agitated, but the intense pain in his head made him wilt again.
"Alright, since you're already injured, try our product."
Having vented her anger, Sakura narrowed her eyes and clapped her hands, signaling Kuina outside to bring in the items.
Liquid glowing with an emerald light, contained in glass test tubes, was handed out by Kuina to Doflamingo, Tesoro, and Morgans.
"Miss Sakura is truly cunning. Getting angry initially was also aimed at showcasing your product, right?" Stussy cast a captivating look at Sakura, her watery, rippling eyes quite alluring.
'Truly a CP agent from the pleasure district. Speaking of which, this woman seemed to be affiliated with Vegapunk!'
Thinking of this, Sakura smiled at her. "No need to be so formal. Just call me Sakura. After all, our ability to meet on the sea is all thanks to the help of a certain genius, isn't it?"
'Help' was an understatement. From the deliberately externalized control chip on Sato Sakura, to the intentionally left-behind artificial Devil Fruit beneath Punk Hazard, and the frozen Galleila... Vegapunk had quietly sent Sakura quite a few things during this battle.
Stussy knew exactly who Sakura was referring to, but it also made her frown, curious how Sakura knew about their connection.
"Fufufufu, don't be so warm only towards Stussy. We might get jealous!"
Doflamingo joked, the contusions on his body already healed by the effects of the potion.
Morgans was even more energetic, checking his body and exclaiming in amazement.
"Cough, let's discuss the matters of drug sales and profit sharing."
Surprisingly, among everyone, the one who seemed most anxious was Judge, who appeared the most detached.
"Aren't Germa's forces all clones? You're that short on this kind of medicine?" Morgans puffed on his cigar, looking at Judge.
"Germa hasn't been doing well these past two years!" Judge snorted coldly, turning his head away.
Fearing Germa's resurgence to its peak state of ruling the entire North Blue, the World Government had specifically commissioned a serialized comic, [Sora, Warrior of the Sea], in the newspapers, causing Germa's reputation in the North Blue to plummet, making them an evil entity everyone despised.
Consequently, over the past five years, Germa's operations had deteriorated, falling from a major force plotting restoration to war mercenaries begging for scraps.
In short, they were short on money!
"Alright, the North Blue region will be split equally between the Donquixote Family and the Vinsmoke Family. As for the share, I want fifty percent of the sales profits."
Sakura made a domineering, sky-high demand. It was a seller's market anyway… she was the sole supplier on the entire sea. Take it or leave it.
Yet, even under such harsh conditions, Judge and Doflamingo at the conference table immediately grabbed pens and signed the supply contracts.
No more talk. Take the money, hand over the goods!
Now! Immediately! Right away!
There was no choice. Even with the outrageous fifty percent profit taken off the top, they could still make money downstream in this system, and in many ways!
With healthcare across the seas virtually monopolized by powerful kingdoms and the World Government, having a pirate force stand up against multiple pressures to snatch a piece of this pie meant that even picking up the crumbs behind her would allow the Donquixote and Vinsmoke families to eat their fill.
Not to mention, among the hundreds of nations worldwide, the vast majority were either at war or preparing for it. And just the word 'war' should tell you it represents extreme hoarding and reckless squandering. Among the many war supplies, medicine was undoubtedly a highly sought-after commodity.
So, at this juncture, no one would complain about earning too much, and no one would want to earn less. If Doflamingo and Judge hesitated even for a second, it would be disrespectful to the Berries.
"Miss Sakura!" Giberson stood up, removing his hat and bowing. "Might I inquire about your production capacity for the various medicines? So we can..."
He didn't finish his sentence before Sakura cut him off decisively.
"You want how much? I can supply that much!"
For a moment, dead silence fell over the conference room. The other underworld bosses also turned their heads, dumbfounded.
It must be understood that each person present was someone whose business spanned the Four Blues. In other words, they had the ability to spread this operation across the entire world!
'Supply as much as wanted? What kind of boast is that?! Did she think the potions were seawater from the ocean, just there to be scooped up?'
"Miss Sakura, although we few are rats of the underworld, our rat paths extend across the world!"
Feeling slighted, Giberson was also filled with anger. However, being a seasoned veteran of the Underworld for many years, he remained calm and composed, lowering his voice with a gentle tone.
It absolutely wasn't because the woman before him was a newly ascended Emperor who had just defeated the Marines and was at the peak of her fame.
"Hmm, not a problem!"
Sakura extended a finger, drawing a circle on the ground. An emerald vine curled upward, then right in front of everyone, began flowing with healing potion, even extravagantly spilling onto the floor, making them watch with heartache.
"This is a creation of my ability. If there's demand for production capacity, I can produce tens of thousands of units of the type you used earlier per day."
From within the shadows, the girl cast a contemptuous glance over these rats, mocking them thus, "Well? Can you handle that?"
Giberson slumped back into his chair powerlessly, his lips turning pale. He understood that this move was not only an answer to his question but also exposed his little scheme to hoard and manipulate prices.
With this demonstration, coupled with Stussy stepping in to smooth things over, the atmosphere in the room became harmonious once more.
The remaining individuals finished dividing up the regions of the three other Blues and the Grand Line. Amidst cheers of 'pleasant cooperation', they signed the contracts. Thus, this massive pharmaceutical company linking the entire underworld was established through the generous contributions of many 'good people'.
Its name was - Galleila Pharmaceuticals!
Meanwhile, high above the Red Line, a golden-haired man cursed as he hung up the Den Den Mushi.
"Tch, that damn brat actually pulled it off." Shiki clicked his tongue, turning around and shouting, "Indigo, where the hell are you?! Adjust our course immediately! We're setting off for Punk Hazard!"