"..."
This…
Watching Issho, who was clearly blind, reveal a smile brimming with absolute confidence, Vice Admiral Doberman froze for a moment.
He had long heard rumors about Issho's strength, but now that the atmosphere had been pushed to this point…
As one of the last remaining high-ranking members of the "Absolute Justice" faction, Doberman weighed the situation briefly in his mind before giving a decisive nod.
After all, even if he lost, the price wouldn't be that high. For a gamble with virtually no cost, why refuse?
"Childish!"
Though he had already made his decision internally, Doberman's words remained sharp and unyielding.
"To gamble over something this serious—are you planning to turn the Marines into a casino?!"
"But…" Doberman's tone shifted.
Knowing that the abolition of the Seven Warlords of the Sea was now inevitable, he went along with it.
"If you can truly wipe out a Warlord crew all by yourself, then what harm would there be in letting you sit in the Admiral's seat?!"
Even the weakest Warlord possessed the power to effortlessly kill a Marine Vice Admiral.
If Issho truly had the strength of a Marine Admiral, Doberman had no intention of embarrassing himself further.
The reason he stood up at this moment was to prove something—to Kuzan and the rest of the Marine high command.
Even though Fleet Admiral Akainu had fallen, the hardliners of the Marines had not!
Hearing Doberman accept the wager, Issho smiled knowingly.
Clearly, someone who was still concerned with internal Marine factional struggles at a time like this wasn't exactly clever.
But Issho wanted precisely someone like that.
He had originally worried that assuming the Admiral position so abruptly would leave him with shaky footing—unable to gain recognition from the rank-and-file Marines, making future operations difficult.
Doberman's appearance, however, had given him the perfect opportunity to prove himself.
First, overwhelming power.
Then, mercy born of absolute strength.
The mercy of the strong is praised.
The mercy of the weak is spat upon.
Though Issho didn't fully agree with what Lord Red had once told him, he had to admit—
His former, one-sided kindness truly made it difficult to accomplish anything.
Now, standing with one foot in the darkness, he instead found himself with far more room to act.
Pirates.Revolutionaries.Marines.
Under Lord Red's grand design, what kind of world would ultimately emerge?
He truly… wanted to see it with his own eyes.
…
…
The New World — Dressrosa Kingdom.
A wondrous land filled with passion, flamboyance, and childlike innocence.
Throughout its streets and alleys lived all kinds of cute and comical toys, coexisting with the island's residents as if it were perfectly normal.
Dancers' skirts fluttered, taverns overflowed with fragrant wine, casinos rang with heated arguments, and amusement parks echoed with excited cheers.
This city seemed to possess endless enthusiasm.
Yet beneath all this joy lay a blood-soaked factory of oppression and enslavement.
The Donquixote Family.
A massive pirate crew that, by virtue of its Warlord status, had nearly monopolized the underground weapons trade through official channels.
The wealth and resources gained from arms trafficking were then reinvested entirely into recruiting forces and developing even more powerful weapons.
Even one of the Four Emperors—Kaido—was secretly trading with them.
On the surface, their Warlord status ensured smooth dealings with the Marines and the World Government.
In the shadows, Kaido's intimidation ensured no one dared touch them.
Feasting on both light and dark, the Donquixote Family expanded rapidly in this perfect environment.
Until…
The new era created by Red arrived.
…
…
"Doffy, two more long-term clients canceled their orders yesterday. That makes six times this month already! Are we really just going to let this continue?!"
Inside the royal palace of Dressrosa, Trebol, his disgusting snot dangling, slammed a report onto the table with an ugly expression.
"The underground factories that were once overwhelmed with demand are now piling up inventory…"
"If this keeps up, our finances are going to fall into the red!"
"..."
Opposite him, Donquixote Doflamingo, draped in a pink feathered coat, wore a dark expression.
Staring at the financial report, the man who once laughed boldly and welcomed the new era found himself momentarily speechless.
The Straw Hat Pirates, allied with Kaido and Whitebeard, smashing the World Government's fleet in one decisive battle—no force in the world could have predicted that.
Not even the ever-cunning Doflamingo.
But what he never expected…
Was that after the World Government's defeat, the first to be affected by the Straw Hat Pirates would be his weapons trade!
Rustle—
A breeze swept in through the palace window, flipping the documents on the table.
After several pages, an image appeared in Doflamingo's view—
A long-nosed man pointing his thumb at himself, wearing a confident grin.
Beneath the image, a single line of text pierced Doflamingo's nerves like a needle:
[Green Vine Arms — The Best Partner in War!]
This seemingly ordinary yet cruel slogan was the fundamental reason the Donquixote Family's weapons business had plummeted.
That's right!
Under Red's arrangements, the Straw Hat Pirates—now firmly established in the underground world—not only expanded their existing industries, but also opened entirely new fields.
Such as Green Vine Arms, spearheaded by Usopp and Franky, with Wapol handling manufacturing!
Backed by the Straw Hat Pirates, Green Goblin Arms caused a massive upheaval in the underground weapons market the moment it launched.
The reason?
Their weapons were absurdly cheap!
At the price of a single gun from the Donquixote Family, one could buy five from Green Goblin Arms!
Market verification soon revealed that while Green Goblin weapons were indeed slightly below average in quality, this flaw was completely negligible compared to their price.
As a result, massive orders from across the world shifted toward the Green Goblin factories.
Though long wait times were unavoidable due to limited production capacity, people were willing to endure it—after all, the Straw Hat Pirates stood behind them.
But their patience spelled disaster for other weapons suppliers.
Many collapsed due to broken cash flow, going bankrupt and vanishing into obscurity.
Even the Donquixote Family, with its long-standing prestige in the underground world, had no choice but to bow its head before the name of the Emperor Straw Hat Pirates, swallowing this loss in silence.
"Maybe… we should change industries while we still can…"
Trebol suddenly made the suggestion.
If things continued like this, their factories would eventually meet the same fate as those other suppliers.
Better to cut losses early than drown in unsold inventory.
Hearing this, Doflamingo clenched his hand after a moment of silence.
"At this point… we have no other choice."
"Notify Monet. Have her tell Caesar that the Donquixote Family will be transferring a large sum of funds to him."
"And what he needs to do is—"
"In the next three months, mass-produce enough SAD to create one hundred artificial Devil Fruits!"
"The world is already this chaotic. There's no need to keep hiding anymore!"
The Donquixote Family would not fall so easily.
A dark glint flashed in Doflamingo's eyes.
With the Straw Hat Pirates dominating the scene, traditional weapons trading truly had no future left.
But that didn't mean Doflamingo would abandon the underground factories he had nurtured for years.
He knew it well—
Given the Straw Hats' style, their involvement in the weapons market had to conceal a deeper secret.
He refused to believe they would recklessly enter an unfamiliar field purely for money, using such shameless low-price tactics.
For now, he was merely shifting focus.
As long as those unfortunate toy people continued to serve as labor, everything he lost would someday be reclaimed.
Of that, he was absolutely certain.
However…
Just as he reached this decision, a violent explosion suddenly echoed from outside.
Before Doflamingo could even turn his head, the Den Den Mushi on his desk rang.
"Buru—"
He picked it up instantly.
The Den Den Mushi's face twisted in panic.
"Disaster!!! Doflamingo-sama!!!"
"All the toys in the SMILE Factory suddenly turned back into humans! The entire factory is in chaos!!!"
"What did you say?!"
Doflamingo's pupils contracted sharply.
He looked toward the thick smoke outside—the direction of the SMILE factory!
At the same time, another Den Den Mushi rang beneath Trebol's tattered cloak.
He answered it at once.
What he heard made both of their already grim expressions darken further.
Other underground factories had erupted in similar riots.
They simply hadn't reported it immediately due to their lower priority.
The two exchanged glances.
"Sugar is in trouble!!!"
Trebol's face turned deathly pale.
Protecting Sugar and the factories was his responsibility.
This riot was undeniably tied to his failure.
But now was no time for blame.
Doflamingo stood up abruptly, his voice icy.
"Where is Sugar?!"
"Below the Corrida Colosseum, processing the newly acquired slaves!"
Whoosh—
Doflamingo vanished, moving at a speed rivaling Six Powers · Shave, using his Devil Fruit ability to fly toward the colosseum.
…
…
Inside the underground toy-conversion factory beneath the Corrida Colosseum.
Issho, wearing wooden sandals reminiscent of Luffy's slippers, stepped over fallen pirates and stopped beside Sugar.
Crushed by overwhelming gravity, Sugar had already rolled her eyes back, unconscious.
Buzz—
A faint purple wave of energy spread and enveloped her.
Sugar's body floated into the air.
Issho murmured to himself:
"According to Lord Red, this should be enough to draw Doflamingo here."
As if in response, the factory doors burst open.
Blinding light poured in, casting a long shadow that stretched to Issho's feet.
"A Marine?!"
Doflamingo frowned, fury blazing.
Whoosh—
A transparent string shot forth, carving a crescent moon through the air and stabbing straight toward Issho's heart.
Then—
It stopped.
With a casual wave, Issho shifted Sugar half a meter aside, revealing his gentle smile once more.
"Using a little girl like this does go against benevolence… but your sins are too grave. Allow this old man a moment of selfishness."
He grasped Sugar by the collar and spoke calmly:
"If you want to save her… follow me."
Boom!
The ground shattered into a perfect circle and rose skyward, tearing open the factory ceiling.
Issho ascended into the sky with Sugar, flying toward the edge of Dressrosa.
"Damn it…"
Doflamingo glared upward.
He knew this was a trap.
But Sugar's identity—and her importance—left him no choice.
A string shot skyward, anchoring to a cloud.
With a leap, Doflamingo followed.
…
…
"So he really followed…"
Sensing the presence behind him with Observation Haki, Issho raised an eyebrow, marveling at the Straw Hats' intelligence network.
Thanks to Red's information, luring Doflamingo out was effortless.
After all…
Issho had no intention of unleashing a battle capable of destroying half an island in Dressrosa—home to millions of civilians.
His path of benevolence would not allow harm to innocents.
Not even for justice.
Guided by Sugar, the two figures landed one after another on a deserted island near Dressrosa.
And here…
Their battle would finally begin.
(End of Chapter)