Chapter 100: Eagle Eye: How Did You Know the Man I'm Interested In Has a Bounty Over a Hundred Million?

A long while passed.

The crowd's murmurs gradually subsided.

Sengoku cleared his throat and said:

"I hope everyone takes this matter seriously enough."

"The East Blue is the world's most peaceful sea; the average bounty of pirates there is less than five million."

"But now, Knight Gao Wen's bounty has reached eighty-five million, and even this near-hundred-million bounty is insufficient to describe the threat he poses."

"You must know, Smoker fought him twice. The first time, he was powerless against his Logia type, but merely a few months later, during their second clash, he had already mastered Armament Haki proficiently."

"Such potential is even comparable to the monsters who dominate the New World."

An incredible emotion permeated Sengoku's voice.

You must know that since Roger's execution at Loguetown twenty years ago, the East Blue had not seen a powerful pirate for a long time.

It is a peace zone recognized by the world, and a showcase for the Marines and even the World Government.

But now this peace has been directly shattered by Gao Wen; in a sense, it is equivalent to slapping the World Government in the face!

The people sitting in the conference room fell silent, their expressions black as charcoal.

Hiss!

Accompanied by a piercing burning sound, everyone's gazes converged on Akainu, who sat to Sengoku's left, wearing a red suit with a face as cold and hard as steel.

Akainu wore a military cap, his head bowed low, making his specific expression unreadable.

But his voice revealed an unshakable will as he said:

"Evil must be strangled in its cradle."

"I will go. I will crush Knight Gao Wen, along with Fire Fist Ace, who has just risen in the East Blue."

Fire Fist Ace?

Hearing the familiar name, Sengoku glanced at Garp imperceptibly.

He saw the latter's cheeks puffing slightly, his head bowed in silence, while his hand beneath the table was clenched tightly, a posture of suppressing his instincts.

Sengoku sighed inwardly, shook his head, and said:

"Kaido is causing trouble in the New World again. I heard this time he had a direct conflict with Wang Zhi. You go keep an eye on things over there."

"These pirates known as the Four Emperors are the opponents the Marines' highest combat power must deal with."

Akainu nodded, accepting the mission.

Sengoku scanned the crowd, finally fixing his gaze on Zephyr in the corner, who had recently resigned from his position as Chief Instructor of the Naval Academy and returned to the front lines, and said:

"This matter in the East Blue will be handled by you, Zephyr. It is a good opportunity to test the effect of the Crusher."

Zephyr raised his hand to adjust his sunglasses and said indifferently:

"Understood."

"Mm."

Sengoku acknowledged with a sound and instructed:

"Additionally, according to the report obtained by the Marines after surveying the crime scene, the pirate ship that sank into the seabed was cut in half by a single slash."

"Knight Gao Wen must have a certain level of attainment in swordsmanship. With such strength, a bounty of eighty-five million is insufficient to explain the threat he poses."

"The specific bounty amount will be finalized today."

The actions of the Marine Headquarters were far faster than those of the branches.

Just three days later, messenger birds from the World Economic Journal departed from various branches.

Under the World Government's instruction, they delivered the latest newspapers, along with the latest wanted posters, to all corners of the world.

At this moment, in the New World.

Mihawk, who had just passed Fish-Man Island, sat on a crude raft made of several logs lashed together, so simple it could hardly be called a pirate ship, letting the current carry him toward unknown waters.

The sea surface rose and fell, the weather was treacherous, yet the raft beneath Mihawk's feet was as stable as land.

A few minutes later.

On the distant horizon, a messenger bird flew in.

After dropping a stack of newspapers, it took a banknote from Mihawk's hand, skillfully tucked it into the pocket on its chest, and then spread its wings to fly away, disappearing over the horizon.

"This is..."

Mihawk opened the newspaper, and what met his eyes was a wanted poster that was familiar yet strange.

"Although the photo doesn't match the person, the name is undoubtedly that guy's. After such a crushing defeat, he stood up so quickly? And judging by the bounty, his strength seems to have increased again."

Looking at the name and the skyrocketing number on the wanted poster, Mihawk grew even more eager for the day Gao Wen would stand before him and challenge the strongest.

Unlike the Devil Fruit when he was immature in the East Blue.

By then, Gao Wen, with his combat power fully realized, would surely be able to fight him to his heart's content without holding back anything.

Such an opponent, since Red Hair lost his arm, he had been waiting for for far too long.

The corner of Mihawk's mouth curled up slightly, but his eyes sharpened in the next instant.

For the sky in the distance had visibly darkened, the clouds swirling like a vortex, with lightning flashing.

Overlapping giant waves on the sea surface, reaching a hundred meters high, carrying the momentum to swallow everything, surged toward Mihawk.

Merely the pressure generated by the upheaval caused the sea to depress.

Let alone the raft beneath Mihawk's feet, which couldn't even be called a ship; even a Marine warship, facing such a natural disaster, would be swallowed and buried in the sea in an instant.

!

Yet on Mihawk's face, there was only an indescribable excitement:

"Even you want to challenge me?!"

Clang!

The black blade left its sheath, gripped in Hawkeye's hand.

With a light swing, a pale-cyan flying slash tore free and ripped the incoming massive wave to shreds.

Boom!

As one wave subsided, the sea immediately gathered another, even more towering swell.

Not a trace of fear on Hawkeye's face — standing on his wooden raft, he plunged headlong into the raging storm.

He would take the sea itself as his opponent!

……

By the time the storm had passed.

Hawkeye's ship had already come to anchor at a deserted island.

Trees and Lin Mu blanketed the surroundings; beasts darted past every so often, but the instant they caught sight of those hawk-like eyes, they fled in terror.

Hawkeye sheathed his long blade at his back and advanced along the beach, when a familiar voice suddenly reached his ears.

Laughter, a banquet, flowing drink, and that ship moored at the shore — the all-too-familiar Red Force. If it wasn't Red-Hair, who else could it be?

Hawkeye quickened his pace without thinking.

"Yo, Mihawk, you're here too?"

Red-Hair looked at the man before him with mild surprise, then his eyes flicked and, with practiced ease, he pulled a brand-new bounty poster from his chest and boasted:

"You know what?"

"My bounty went up again recently!"

"Hahahahaha!"

Hawkeye blinked, then said instinctively:

"How did you know the bounty on the man I have my eye on went up again?"

The air fell silent in an instant.

The onlookers glanced at Red-Hair, then at Hawkeye, a strange look in their eyes.

Knew it — those two had something off about them all along!

Beckman was, on the spot, won over by this fighting power that was in no way inferior to Red-Hair's.

He could not help but speak up to recruit him:

"Um… you really won't consider joining us? After all, this place is a bit closer to the man you fancy."

"……"

Hawkeye's brow arched; sensing the odd looks from the crowd, and seeing the bounty poster in Red-Hair's hand, he finally realized everyone had gotten the wrong idea.

He hurriedly pulled Gao Wen's bounty poster from his chest, pointed at the figure on it, and said:

"It's the knight Gao Wen — his bounty has gone up again."

"Two hundred and forty-eight million!"

"In less than half a year, his bounty has skyrocketed from eight million by more than thirty times! Even in the New World, a pace like that is rare!"

(End of chapter)