The dim room.
A low voice came from the other end of the Den Den Mushi:
"Is it done?"
"Karol."
Karol said languidly:
"It's done~"
"Sir."
A light laugh came from the Den Den Mushi:
"Well done."
"The reward has been prepared."
"When we meet, I will hand it to you personally."
Karol's lips curved slightly:
"Thank you~ Sir~"
After a pause, he continued:
"However..."
"Vice Admiral Sakazuki."
"This dim atmosphere and suggestive conversation..."
"Why do I feel like we're bad guys?"
On the other end of the Den Den Mushi, the low, hoarse voice disappeared.
Sakazuki's normal voice sounded:
"That's called atmosphere."
He continued:
"You are now an informant secretly selling Navy intelligence."
"A voice and conversation like this are fitting."
"You really have no sense of humor."
"Karol."
Karol in the room touched his nose.
With a look of helplessness.
What do you mean I sold it?
Didn't you give the order!
And you talk to me about humor... really...
"Yes, yes~"
"Speaking of which."
"Vice Admiral Sakazuki is in a good mood."
"You even have a sense of humor."
The Den Den Mushi in Karol's hand simulated Sakazuki's slight smile.
Then Sakazuki's voice came:
"Of course, the gains this time."
"Have far exceeded expectations."
"Hurry back, there's a gift for you."
Karol smiled:
"Received~"
After the two hung up the Den Den Mushi.
Karol pushed open the door and threw off his cloak.
Swish!
A sound of breaking air, and the figure disappeared.
----------
Marine Headquarters, Sakazuki's home.
Sakazuki sat on the sofa, hanging up the phone.
He controlled the curve of his lips.
The harvest was too great.
It was a critical hit.
The original plan was to leak a little information.
Lure out the Golden Lion, and find an opportunity to seize the Float-Float Fruit.
Then... that's it.
It was that simple.
Just wanted to get a fruit.
But plans could not keep up with changes.
Human beings were not so easily predictable.
Who would have thought that merely receiving a little wind.
The Golden Lion would gamble his entire fortune.
In this regard, the Golden Lion was indeed worthy of being a pirate who could dominate the sea.
Such boldness was not possessed by ordinary people.
Then there was the return of Sengoku and Garp.
At that time, Sakazuki calculated that besides Fleet Admiral Kong, he was the only one who could fight at headquarters.
And with his strength, fighting the Golden Lion.
Even with the Golden Lion's powerful aerial control, it would be the Golden Lion who died.
As a tank, he could wear down such a high-attack assassin.
But the return of Sengoku and Garp was unexpected.
He could only make the best of a bad situation.
The result was even more unexpected.
Otherwise, how could one say it still had to be the Golden Lion.
He was truly formidable.
Sakazuki was momentarily stunned when he sensed the Golden Lion's fleet at sea.
The scale of this fleet was clearly aimed at destroying headquarters.
The Golden Lion's ambition, the unexpected return of Sengoku and Garp, the plan was completely unrecognizable.
Fine, let's destroy it.
Thus, Sakazuki sent the two of them to charge forward, using the tactic of information disparity.
After all...
The first thing people thought of when facing an attack should be to attack or dodge.
Instead of using Observation Haki to scout before making a decision...
If one scouted with Observation Haki for every attack from an opponent.
And then decided to attack or dodge after scouting.
Then perhaps you would have died when the opponent unleashed their first move...
So, they successfully tricked the Golden Lion.
And with the Golden Lion gone, the other pirates, even the high-bounty Blizzard Frank,
were not their opponents.
The crushing difference in combat power was not a joke.
The next variable was the impact of the Fleet Admiral's hidden injuries erupting.
A miraculous comeback.
By chance, the things obtained were several times more abundant than originally expected.
The impact was immeasurable.
This also indirectly proved...
Those plans that were meticulously devised, chaining from A to Z based on understanding human nature and successfully executed...
Were nonsense.
Even a simple chain from A to B had such huge variables.
The Golden Lion's boldness, the unexpected return of Sengoku and Garp, the power struggles of the government's higher-ups.
These factors actually influenced this simple A to B plan.
He sighed.
I'm not cut out for scheming...
Sakazuki walked to the window and looked at the sky.
However, the Golden Lion was not dead, so there was still a chance.
"Float-Float Fruit..."
----------
Grand Line, New World.
A secret realm soaring into the clouds.
"/
"Hoo—"
"I am..."
"The Golden Lion!!!"
A burst of Conqueror's Haki erupted from his body.
As if to prove himself.
Without using his Devil Fruit ability.
He endured the severe pain with his own strength.
Using his swords to prop himself up.
The surging Conqueror's Haki disturbed the giant beasts leisurely grazing on the island.
The Golden Lion looked at the giant beasts, each hundreds or thousands of meters in size.
A new plan began to form in his mind.
With a ferocious and crazy grin:
"Gahahahahaha."
"I will not be defeated!"
"They are merely stepping stones on my path to conquering the world."
"One day, you will pay the price!!!"
"Gahahahahaha!!!"
Accompanied by his laughter, the surging Conqueror's Haki surged forth.
A phantom of a giant lion seemed to flash across the sky.
Nothing could defeat him.
The Golden Lion, with his severed arm, looked at the "treasures":
"Just you wait."
"Marines!!!"