David Kyons felt a bit uneasy under the crushing pressure of Rocks' terrifying aura. He knew damn well—if he failed this time, even if he barely managed a draw with the Hell Pirates, he'd still have to face Rocks' wrath.
And if that happened, the Siren Pirates would officially be disbanded and fully merged into the Rocks Pirates. Then, David would be thrown into the pit, fighting for rank among the other Rocks commanders.
Worse, his lover Calypso and his two loyal officers would likely be targeted, bullied, or even hurt by the other maniacs under Rocks' banner.
"I understand. We will defeat the Hell Pirates, bring victory to the Rocks Pirates, and help Captain Rocks dominate the New World!"
David Kyons declared, clenching his fists. He had absolute confidence. Brook's bounty was only 700 million berries, while his own had soared to 1.6 billion. He used to be one of the kings of the sea, and he wasn't about to let some rising punk take him down.
He refused to believe he couldn't deal with the Hell Pirates—newcomers who had only been in the New World for a little over a year. Even if they had absorbed what was left of the Ewald Pirates, it was just a bunch of stragglers!
With that, David Kyons left Beehive Island and returned to his own base on Pso Island, gathering his crew and preparing for the upcoming battle against the Hell Pirates.
Across the seas, every major force was gearing up for war. A storm was brewing, but for now, the New World sank into a tense calm before the chaos. Most of the independent pirate crews had gone into hiding, trying to avoid getting caught in the crossfire as cannon fodder.
Meanwhile, the Hell Pirates officially took control of the waters surrounding Bristol Island, completely replacing the fallen Ewald Pirates—who had once been one of the Six Overlords of the Sea. Even the World Government labeled the Hell Pirates a "quasi-overlord" pirate crew.
With the Ice Demon Pirates in decline, the Siren Pirates conquered, and the Ewald Pirates annihilated, the World Government redrew the map, declaring a return to the rule of the Three Overlords.
Saracha's bounty jumped from 1.55 billion to a staggering 2.2 billion berries—leaving David Kyons' 1.6 billion in the dust—and officially marking Saracha as one of the Three Overlords.
The news drove David Kyons and Willank of the Ice Demon Pirates mad with rage, but there was nothing they could do. The Siren Pirates were already under Rocks' control, and the Ice Demon Pirates didn't have a single real powerhouse left to flex. They only held their ground thanks to the might of the Ice Giant and their few remaining Elbaf warriors.
They were barely hanging on and could only be labeled a quasi-overlord crew.
The World Government and the Navy, meanwhile, were more than happy to let these pirate titans tear each other apart. Even this year's batch of Supernovas decided to stay out of the New World. None of them dared to jump into this brutal warzone.
The infamous Golden Pirates—led by Woonan—had already withdrawn from the New World entirely, retreating to the Grand Line and the Four Seas to resume their usual gold-plundering adventures.
The Byrnndi Pirates and Roger Pirates were keeping a low profile too, quietly exploring and growing stronger while staying out of the limelight.
---
New World — Sky Island: Baron Island
"Hahaha! Brother Brook, we're already being called a candidate for the dominant pirate crews! Once we take down the Siren Pirates, we'll officially be one of the Four Overlords!"
Shiki the Golden Lion was fired up. He had personally planted the Hell Pirates' flag on island after island for days and was absolutely high on adrenaline.
He was finally in position to stand tall before the Rocks Pirates and go toe-to-toe with them. After losing his old Flying Pirates to Rocks, he had been waiting for this moment for a long time.
Brook, meanwhile, was thinking seriously about how to defeat the Siren Pirates and tip the scales of power back to balance.
If the Diger Pirates were defeated, then no one in the New World would be able to stop Rocks. That would mean facing Rocks and his monsters head-on—and they weren't ready for that.
"This time, we're not just taking down the Siren Pirates—we're backing up the Diger Pirates too. We can't let that old bastard Diger fall. He needs to hang in there for a few more years so we can keep building our strength!
Linlin and I will handle David Kyons. You three—take down their three major officers fast and then regroup with us to kill David Kyons! We can't afford to take on a 1.6 billion berry monster with just two or three people. Got it?!"
Brook needed Charlotte Linlin to tank hits and help contain Kyons while he pressured him. The rest of the crew needed to finish their opponents fast and relieve the main squad.
"Don't worry, Brother Brook! Even if those three Siren leaders have higher bounties than us, we'll cut them down easy!!"
Shiki said confidently. His mastery of Ryuo Haki had greatly boosted both his offense and defense.
"If I wasn't trying to test your growth, I would've just let the Seastone Archers and Musketeer Corps handle them first!"
Brook muttered. He wanted his team to improve and truly step into their roles. But if they failed, the Siren Pirates would learn the hard way what seastone weapons could do.
Thanks to support from the Diger Pirates, Brook had built up a deadly Seastone Rifle Team—his personal elite guard, forged in Sky Island itself.
"Don't worry, Brother Brook! I'll crush my opponent and come help you right after!"
Redfield grabbed the wanted poster of Hammerhead Shark Dalma. The bounty was slightly higher than his own, but he wasn't intimidated in the slightest.
"Hmph, making me fight a woman. Whatever. If she's weak, I'll be the first one to finish and join the fight against David Kyons."
Shiki glanced sideways at Redfield.
Newgate picked up the wanted poster of an ugly woman and frowned but didn't say a word. Orders were orders.
"Brother Brook, we've got some updates on those Devil Fruits you asked us to track down," Antonio reported. "No luck yet on the Mirror-Mirror Fruit or Book-Book Fruit, but the Castle Fruit was reportedly spotted in an underground auction in the West Blue. No confirmation yet if it's been eaten.
As for the Pocket Fruit, the user's here in the New World—rumor is, they're an important member of some underground black market transport group."
Antonio and Moore Thomas—now head of the Economic News Agency—had teamed up to expand their intel network globally.
"West Blue, huh? Take some time to check it out. Even if someone's eaten it, we need to find them! Also, Redfield, you're coming with me to Scholar Island—O'Hara."
Brook was planning a raid—or maybe a trade—for some ancient text books. If an eight-year-old girl like Robin could read that stuff, then Redfield—with his talent and deep hatred for the Celestial Dragons—should be able to learn it too, right?
"I understand, Brother Brook,"
Redfield replied with a rare seriousness. He was very interested in ancient texts, especially after what they had seen on Fishman Island—the red poneglyph.
------------
The current structure of the underground world hasn't stabilized yet, but several powerful factions have emerged in the major industries.
In the entertainment sector—customs, gambling, and amusement parks.
In the currency sector—loan sharks and rare materials.
In the transportation sector—shipping, logistics, and trade.
In the commodity sector—raw materials and storage.
The slave sector—human trafficking and assassination services.
And finally, the intelligence sector—news agencies and the breeding and sale of Den Den Mushi.
Each of these industries has some connection to the Hell Pirates, but they all operate between the black and white zones, holding close ties to both the Grand Line and the Four Blues.
Most of these forces are run by families—unlike the pirate overlord crews that change every few decades. As the saying goes: dynasties rise and fall, but families endure.
The New World is no different. Old underground families remain steady, while dominant pirate crews come and go.
Take the Lu Family, for example. They've been in the loan business for generations and run countless underground banks. Before the rise of the Golden Emperor, they were the wealthiest dark family. Backing them is Lu Field—the King of Loan Sharks—one of the Six Emperors of the Underground.
Then there's the Peclo Family. Their business centers on assassinations, organ trafficking, and human slavery. Drug Peklo, also one of the Six Emperors, hails from this ruthless family.
These two families are among the oldest in the dark world, having stood strong for hundreds of years and still leading their respective industries.
Currently, the transportation, storage, and entertainment sectors have yet to be monopolized. Several powerful forces are competing for dominance.
Meanwhile, Moore World Economic News Agency is also aiming to seize control of the intelligence industry. He's successfully broken into the New World's underground world and carved out a foothold.
··
Seeing the underground world still unstable, Brook felt the time was ripe to get involved. The underground world thrives on management, long-term investments, and steady development—unlike pirate overlords who barge in, loot, and destroy the golden goose.
In many cases, the underground emperors are wealthier than the top pirate groups—though an exception is Diger Sparrow. Not only is he powerful, but he's also a savvy businessman. His Diger Pirates are ridiculously wealthy!
Brook believed that aside from backing the News Agency's intel network, he should also support other dark industries—especially transportation. As they say, "If you want to get rich, build roads first." And in the pirate world? You need sea routes.
Given the violent weather of the Grand Line and New World, shipping families have spent decades exploring safe routes and predicting weather patterns—an essential part of successful maritime trade.
It just so happens that a Pocket Devil Fruit user operates in the transportation sector. Brook would soon decide whether to support or crush their force.
Right now, with the Rocks Pirates potentially launching another assault, the Hell Pirates couldn't afford to leave the New World to search the West Blue for the Fortress Fruit.
But when it came to the dark forces in the New World, Brook and his crew still had time to hunt them down—especially with intel man Moore Thomas continuing to update his underground information.
"Brother Brook, even if we're taking the elite route, we still need more crew and affiliated pirate groups. Otherwise, we won't have enough manpower to protect the dozen islands we control in the Bristol Sea!
Right now, we're only ruling on the surface. We've let some local tyrants manage things, but we haven't deployed real cadres or captain-level subordinates to oversee them!"
Shiki the Golden Lion, who Brook appointed as the direct supervisor of these islands, was getting anxious. He feared other pirates would snatch the territories while they were under-defended.
After a rough screening, he selected a few half-decent subordinates from Sky Island and the remnants of Ewald's old crew to hold the islands.
As for the samurai swordsmen from Wano? Shiki didn't even consider them. These fallen warriors didn't fit in with the outside world—their customs, speech, and mindset were just too out of place.
"It's not easy to recruit new people now! The Diger Pirates and Rocks Pirates are both aggressively recruiting, even conscripting pirates. A lot of smaller crews are panicking and going into hiding!"
Brook wanted to bring in new people, but it just wasn't the right timing. In fact, some crews had already fled the New World altogether.
Brook figured it might be a good idea to invite the Roger Pirates to help out!
Once the idea hit him—he acted on it. Might as well give it a shot!
He took out the Den Den Mushi contact info for Roger's crew. They'd exchanged numbers back on Gunner Island, though Brook hadn't planned to reveal himself over the Den Den Mushi network.
Oh, and they still owed him two Devil Fruits from before—time to remind them!
Brook picked up an ordinary Den Den Mushi and dialed Roger's crew.
"Moshi moshi, who's this?"
A carefree, laid-back voice answered—sounded chill.
"It's me, Brook."
"Yo! What's up, Brother Brook?"
On the Oro Jackson, Rayleigh and Jabba both looked curious. The Hell Pirates were a big deal now, but they were caught in the power struggle between overlords. Were they trying to recruit them?
"I heard you guys entered the New World for an adventure. Wanna swing by my turf?"
"Brook-senpai, we're just out here adventuring. We're not looking to join any factions or fight in anyone's war. Hope you understand."
"Hey, relax. I'm not asking you to fight or take sides—I'm just inviting you to hang out! Come visit my territory—free food, free stay, and I'll even give you a rubbing of a Poneglyph. All I'm asking is that you tour the islands a bit.
If you run into any pirates causing trouble, chase them off. If not, just keep chillin'. Trust in our flag—there shouldn't be many problems!"
Brook said it with a smile, though he was secretly scheming—he just wanted to lure them in as backup. If something exploded later, at least Roger's crew would be there to help.
You had to admit—Roger, Rayleigh, and Jabba weren't any weaker than Shiki. The three of them were top-tier in combat, and none of them even relied on Devil Fruits. Their Haki had probably hit a monstrous level by now!
"Poneglyph? Deal. We're in. But remember—food and lodging are free, and we're not getting involved in any wars. If things go south, we're out."
Roger didn't even notice Rayleigh and Jabba frantically waving at him in the background. The chance to get to see a Poneglyph was too tempting to ignore.
"You're more than welcome here. I promise, we won't drag you into the war."
Brook hung up, satisfied. That was another layer of insurance. If things went sideways, at least Roger's crew could hold off a few enemies. No need to worry about leaving the territory unguarded now!
"Brother Brook, who's this Roger guy? The name sounds familiar…"
As soon as Shiki heard the name, his blood stirred. His fighting spirit flared—felt like fate was throwing him a challenge he couldn't ignore!
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