"I've never heard that name before," Moria said skeptically.
To become a Warlord of the Sea, one should at least be a renowned pirate. Was some nobody really suitable for the position? Wouldn't that cheapen the standing of the Warlords—and by extension, cheapen him?
Kuma replied, "Blackbeard was previously a pirate aboard Whitebeard's ship. He defected after killing one of the division commanders and recently offered a pledge of loyalty to the World Government."
"Oh? Kishishishi. Killing one of Whitebeard's men? That's a tough bastard."
Moria let out an even louder laugh, tinged with schadenfreude. "Sounds like another restless soul. But isn't that good? The seas have stabilized again, and the Warlord positions are filled. Those old geezers in the World Government must be pleased."
"Not exactly. That's why they sent me here."
Behind his thick glasses, Kuma's gaze swept over Moria's massive, shadow-hidden form. His voice remained cold. "The World Government is currently concerned about you, Gecko Moria."
"Me?"
Moria's laughter stopped abruptly, his voice laced with offended anger. "What do you mean by that, Kuma?"
"The Straw Hat crew should have already arrived on your island," Kuma said.
"That's what this is about?"
Moria seemed to find this utterly ridiculous. His voice rose sharply, thick with disdain and fury. "You think I'm going to lose to some rookie crew that just came out of the East Blue, a bunch of snot-nosed brats with no experience, like that failure Crocodile?Kishishishi! Don't be ridiculous! This is my kingdom—Thriller Bark!"
Kuma was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke: "Straw Hat Luffy, not long ago on Long Ring Long island, clashed directly with Admiral Aokiji Kuzan and did not lose."
He deliberately omitted the far more shocking fact that Luffy had defeated the legendary pirate Golden Lion Shiki.
Revealing too much intelligence too soon might tip off his prey or put certain overly arrogant individuals on guard.
Sure enough, Moria let out an even louder sneer, thoroughly unimpressed. "A clash with Aokiji? Kishishishi. That's it? Ridiculous! Back in the New World, I used to go toe-to-toe with Kaido of the Beasts. What's a mere Admiral?!"
And besides—
His voice dripped with conspiratorial mockery. "Everyone knows about Aokiji's relationship with Garp. That Straw Hat brat is Garp's grandson, isn't he? Hmph. Aokiji probably let him win. The ocean might as well have been his handicap! And you're trying to scare me, Gecko Moria, with that kind of record?"
Kuma said nothing more. He simply stood there silently.
The message had been delivered. The emotions had been stirred.
Having witnessed Luffy's battle with Shiki, Kuma understood that Moria's defeat was only a matter of time.
If this were the Moria who had gone toe-to-toe with Kaido, perhaps he might last longer. But this beer-bellied Moria? If he lasted until morning, that would be a success.
"If needed, I can intervene," Kuma said.
The World Government had given instructions: if one Warlord wasn't enough, send two. At the very least, avoid another Warlord being defeated.
But under the current circumstances—
"Kishishishi. Not necessary!"
Moria rubbed his sharp fingernails in the shadows, his eyes gleaming with cruel excitement. "Straw Hat brat, is it? He's come at the perfect time! His shadow and the shadows of his crew, who look quite impressive will become the strongest soldiers in my zombie army! Then let's see who dares to underestimate me, Gecko Moria!"
"Let those old geezers in the World Government watch!"
"Why are all these zombies rioting?"
Luffy was confused. Before, these zombies had seemed content just to scare people.
They had that "lie flat if you can" mentality. But now, it was as if they'd suddenly received a layoff notice from their boss—everyone was scrambling.
These zombies' immortality was somewhat troublesome. Luffy simply unleashed a wave of Haoshoku Haki, knocking them all unconscious and leaving them sprawled on the ground.
Seeing the Hogback mansion's zombies scattered everywhere, and Luffy—who had unleashed such terrifying force with a casual gesture—the wild boar zombie Lola's fangs chattered with fear.
She carefully shuffled over to Nami, poked her arm with a thick finger, and whispered in awe, "Hey, Nami-sensei, your man is terrifying! That aura is even scarier than when Moria-sama gets angry."
Nami was watching Luffy's tall, upright back, feeling an indescribable sense of security and a secret hint of pride.
Hearing Lola's words, she almost instinctively raised the corner of her mouth. "Of course."
Only after realizing that she hadn't immediately denied that he was her man did her cheeks flush crimson.
Oh no. I'm too used to this.
But aside from the last thing, we've basically done everything, haven't we?
I'm way ahead of Uta!
Nami still couldn't get Uta out of her head.
Luffy, however, wasn't paying attention to any of that. Zombies were nothing compared to Moria.
Meanwhile, deep within the castle's shadowy throne room, Gecko Moria was stomping his feet in frustration, the ground shaking with each heavy step.
After being mocked by that bastard Kuma, Moria naturally wanted to send all his subordinates to capture the Straw Hat crew.
But—
"Kishishishi... Kishishishi!"
His laugh carried barely suppressed fury. "Where the hell is that pervert Absalom? And Hogback?! And that girl Perona, always acting cute at the worst times—why won't anyone answer me?The moment I need them, none of them are reliable!"
Ever since his devastating battle with Kaido of the Beasts in the New World, Moria had been left with two psychological scars.
First, an extreme fear of losing comrades.
He was terrified of experiencing that despair again—watching the people important to him fall one by one. That was why he had gone mad creating zombies.
If all his subordinates were immortal monsters—if he had no living comrades—then he would never lose anyone again, right?
Second, he had unconsciously begun to avoid relying on his own strength.
He had fallen into the habit of leaving things to his subordinates.
"I'm leaving this to you," "You figure it out"—these had become his catchphrases, as if doing so would also distribute the burden of failure.
But now, when he truly needed his subordinates to deal with invading enemies, he found that none of his three most capable fighters were responding to his call!
This feeling of betrayal and isolation made him both furious and uneasy.
"Bastards! Bastards! Bastards!"
Moria clawed madly at his disheveled hair. Finally, his eyes, gleaming with malice in the shadows, turned toward an even more sinister area deeper in the castle.
"No choice. I'll have to deploy the zombie generals!"
***
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