That reputation sounds glorious, but it is nothing more than a nice title.
In truth, before Whitebeard extended his protection, life on Fish-Man Island was miserable.
Many pirates and poachers traveled there to traffic its people.
After all, the profits were immense.
Female merfolk and fish-men could be sold for incredibly high prices at auctions.
Anyone who managed to capture them stood to make a fortune from very little effort.
If Fish-Man Island hadn't been located ten thousand meters beneath the sea—making it extremely difficult to reach—it would have been destroyed and conquered long ago.
It was only after Whitebeard claimed it as his territory that the people there finally found some measure of peace and security.
However, what very few people knew was this:
The legendary Ancient Weapon, Poseidon, resided right within this island.
And hidden there as well was a Poneglyph.
Whitebeard thought for a moment, then turned to the others.
"Alright then—you tell me. What place do you think is suitable to give him?"
His question left everyone speechless.
He was right. If not Fish-Man Island, what other territory could they possibly offer El?
Or what other asset of comparable value?
They simply couldn't think of anything.
Every other land under Whitebeard's flag was either a major base where their men were stationed...
Or it belonged to the crews of his vast alliance fleet.
Fish-Man Island was the only territory officially belonging to the Whitebeard Pirates that had no permanent garrison or direct administration from them.
After a long silence where no one spoke up...
Whitebeard let out a heavy humph. "Now—does anyone still have an objection?"
"No objections at all! Father is absolutely right!"
"Exactly! As expected of you, Father—you have thought of everything!"
"Father is truly magnificent!"
Elsewhere, aboard El's ship.
Crocodile and Jinbe stood around El, deep in discussion.
Mihawk sat to the side, quietly polishing his beloved blade.
"Boss, that suggestion of yours was pure genius! The Marines were completely stunned!" Crocodile said excitedly to El.
Jinbe nodded repeatedly. "Indeed. They never expected that Lord El would demand compensation from them... it was simply brilliant!"
Crocodile continued, "The only thing left to wonder is... what terms are you going to propose next?"
El replied calmly, "I have already decided."
"I will demand they hand over the Kingdom of Alabasta."
At his words...
Everyone present was shocked.
Even Mihawk stopped what he was doing and pricked up his ears.
Crocodile was utterly stunned. "Alabasta... isn't that the place..."
"That's right. It is exactly the place you have always wanted," El said calmly to him.
Crocodile's heart surged with overwhelming excitement.
It was like seeing light at the end of a tunnel!
He had honestly thought that after joining El's crew, his chance to ever fulfill his ambitions in Alabasta was gone forever!
He never imagined the opportunity would present itself right here, right now!
Most people were unaware, but El knew the truth:
The location of the Ancient Weapon Pluton was recorded on the Poneglyph hidden within Alabasta.
Though, truth be told, that mattered very little to him.
After all, he was already powerful beyond measure; he had no need for such things.
At that moment, Jinbe spoke up in confusion.
"But that doesn't make sense... Alabasta is an independent kingdom."
Jinbe's point was completely valid.
Alabasta was a sovereign, independent nation.
In recent years, the quality of governance within the kingdom had declined, certainly...
But it wasn't defenseless or weak.
Let alone pirates...
Even the Marines held very little real control or authority over that region.
El replied calmly, "It doesn't matter. In the face of overwhelming power, such things mean nothing."
"As long as I make the Marines promise never to interfere there again... that land becomes ours."
In El's mind, as long as the Marines stayed out of it...
Alabasta was already in his pocket.
And his reasoning was flawless.
No matter how capable or strong Alabasta might be, they stood no chance against El.
Crocodile was now trembling with emotion.
He never dreamed his lifelong dream would be fulfilled in such an unexpected and roundabout way.
Over at the Marine side...
The atmosphere was the complete opposite of the joy and celebration found among the pirates.
Here, the mood had dropped to absolute freezing point.
From the Fleet Admiral and Admirals down to the lowest ordinary soldier...
Every single face was dark and gloomy.
Their bodies were covered in wounds and bandages.
Countless weapons had been snapped in two or shattered.
The scene was truly miserable.
To make matters worse, they didn't even have a conference hall to meet in anymore.
The strongest fortress in the world had been blown to smithereens by a single Tailed Beast Bomb from El.
The high-ranking officers had no choice but to hold their discussion temporarily aboard a ship.
"Very well... speak your minds. Tell me what you think," Fleet Admiral Sengoku said gravely.
He himself was completely out of ideas.
He could only ask his subordinates for their input.
Vice Admiral Garp, however, paid no attention to any of this.
Wearing his signature dog-earred cap, he was fast asleep in a corner.
He was the only person here capable of sleeping soundly.
To the other Marines, this was a catastrophic, devastating defeat.
But for Garp? It was neither good nor bad.
Yes, the Marines had lost... but Ace had been saved, hadn't he?
And there was Luffy too. Even though the boy had become a pirate, he was safe and full of energy.
As a grandfather, that was all the reassurance and happiness he needed.
Garp was able to put everything else out of his mind simply because he had a heart big enough to carry it all.
Sengoku knew his personality well and didn't bother trying to wake him or force an opinion out of him.
He turned his attention to the others.
Akainu was severely wounded, wrapped head-to-toe in bandages that were still slowly seeping fresh blood.
Yet, even in this state, he maintained the unyielding, hardline stance of a true hawk.
"We must absolutely refuse to agree to their demands! Post-war compensation? What about the dignity and honor of the Marines?!"
His words were fierce and passionate.
Under normal circumstances...
The Vice Admirals present would have been stirred to fiery passion and resolve by such a speech.
But today, they had all suffered crushing defeat after defeat. No one had the heart to feel excited or defiant anymore.
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