Dressrosa, Doflamingo had just received a call from Shampodi Islands.
The boss of the human auction house, Disco, was crying to Doflamingo about his ordeal, but Doflamingo laughed at his cries.
"Fufufufufu...."
"Isn't this a laughing matter? Isn't this your store?! Mr. Doflamingo, where are you?
Now the store's reputation is ruined, and it's causing trouble for the Rozward family. They'll definitely come after us; you should quickly quell this matter."
"Fufufufufu, you see, human auctioning is outdated, you fool! The trend is no longer this; some people don't like such transactions, so I've lost interest.
Disco, the store is yours now; don't call me anymore."
"What?! You're abandoning me in this crisis?!"
"Shut up! Troublesome guy, while you're pinning your misfortune on me, a new era is quietly arriving, little Disco. I, no, we have already received a marine summon from Navy Headquarters.
Navy Headquarters + Seven Warlords of the Sea vs. Whitebeard Pirates, what do you think of this future? Disco, fufufufufu..."
Doflamingo laughed as he hung up on Disco. Human trafficking was once a major business for him, but after connecting with the Hundred Beasts, he looked down on this business more and more, especially since the high-ups of the Hundred Beasts seem to dislike this kind of business.
To curry favor with the Hundred Beasts, those slave traders were mostly sold by Doflamingo to Olga, which is why Olga could accurately predict their appearances later on and enforce fishing operations.
This business hasn't been completely abandoned, only because it still holds some value. Nevertheless, when faced with a major problem, Doflamingo gladly shook it off completely.
On the beaches of Dressrosa, Doflamingo wore vacation attire, sipping on iced juice while leisurely watching the sea surface, seemingly envisioning what the sea would be like in the future.
"Dof, the marines have been waiting for two days already."
Trebol came up behind Doflamingo, reporting on the marine activity nearby.
"I know, there's still nine days left before the battle, right? Tell them I'll depart in a few days. Oh, and send the details of the war to the Hundred Beasts. That monster won't miss such an opportunity.
The future era is becoming increasingly interesting, fufufufufu."
"Understood, Dof."
.....
At nearly the same time, in the sea area of Nine Serpent Island, a battleship had docked in the Windless Zone, with the corpse of a Sea King Type still floating on the sea surface. Vice Admiral Mouse was negotiating with his soldiers and the Nine Serpent Pirates.
"Daring to stop in this sea area, you guys sure have guts."
"Although there's new technology on the ship, if we stay too long, we will still be discovered. But there's no other way; according to the agreement between Nine Serpent and the World Government, we can't get closer than three kilometers to the Nine Serpent Island coast.
As a result, we can only wait in the central area of the Windless Zone.
But I can't wait any longer; I am Headquarters Vice Admiral Mouse. Seven Warlords of the Sea, Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock! Come out, the Navy has come to collect you!"
Mouse stood on the battleship's side cannon, delivering the marine's orders.
But Hancock did not come out; only the whispers of Nine Serpent's women reached Mouse's ears.
[Haven't seen a living man for a long time.]
[Yeah, those men outside would probably run away if they saw us. These marines seem quite capable, killing such a large Sea King Type.]
[Still no match for the Snake Princess though.]
"Though you verbally agreed to the summon, there hasn't been any action.
This forced summon for the Seven Warlords of the Sea is a World Government order. If you refuse, previous agreements will no longer be valid, and your title as a Warlord will be stripped.
Think carefully about what this means. Without this title, you can no longer act freely under the World Government's flag. Do you hear me, Boa Hancock?"
"Are you threatening me? As compensation, I'd like you to hand over all the goods on your ship, can you?"
"What nonsense! Who would agree to such a demand! Do you think you're a child?"
Listening to Hancock's words, Mouse's frustration from being left hanging for days was about to burst, but his soldiers immediately slapped him in the face.
"Sure!"
"Quickly, move all the goods out! Give them all to her!"
"Damn it! Everyone stop that!!"
Soldiers with eyes of red heart couldn't control their actions; even with Mouse's restraint, they couldn't help but look at Hancock. At that moment, a pink light wave engulfed the entire battleship, and except for Mouse, everyone turned into stone statues.
"I accept your summon. I will depart tomorrow."
"Then what are you doing this for?!"
"Because I don't like them. When it's time to depart, I'll release their petrification."
Leaving Mouse alone in the Windless Zone, Hancock returned to Nine Serpent and called Olga.
"Sister Olga, did you receive the news of the war? I have accepted their summon and will appear on the battlefield. If needed, don't forget to contact me~"
...
New Fishman Island, Jinbe made a different choice. He did not refuse the summon but accepted the marine's orders because it was all Tiger's intention.
"Brother Tai."
"Jinbe, this is something you cannot stop. The Fishman Race finally has another safe territory; refusing their summon would not benefit us.
Moreover, if you really want to do something, you'll have your chance at Marinfanto."
Tiger put down the Rotom Phone, seemingly just having finished sending intelligence.
He was different from Jinbe; he respected Whitebeard, but only just that. He had no intention of risking everything for Whitebeard, even Jinbe's respect for Whitebeard was partly divided by the Hundred Beasts.
The nominal protection of Fishman Island comes from Whitebeard, but the actual benefits come from the Hundred Beasts, and he was aware of that.
"Alright, there might be new developments by then; just adapt as necessary. If there's nothing important, there's no need to risk your life for others."
"I understand, Brother Tai. During this time, I'll have to trouble you with Fishman Island."
"That's what I should do, isn't it? No matter what, I am also a member of the Fishmen."
...
Doflamingo, Jinbe, Hancock—the news from these three Warlords appeared almost simultaneously in the conference room in Wano Kuni, and in this conference room, Kaidou's face was brimming with unabashed excitement.
"Everyone, war, is here!"