Chapter 610: The Upcoming Navy Grand Competition

Mary Geoise, Pangea Castle.

Slap~

Saturn placed the newspaper reporting the Navy's "victory" on the table as if in a fit of pique: "Shanks has been captured. The Navy's strength is truly getting stronger and stronger!"

"Sigh~ If we could borrow the Navy's power, we wouldn't be in such a passive situation now."

Mercury replied coldly: "The Navy is just a bunch of fence-sitters, just waiting for us and the Revolutionary Army to fight until one of us is destroyed."

"That's not necessarily true. I've heard that the Navy is holding some kind of Navy Grand Competition, seemingly trying to imitate that thing Buggy the Clown came up with a while ago... the Cross Guild?"

Saturn shook his head: "There's no point in talking about that now. We must actively mobilize the forces of the Army and the Science Unit to deal with the wave of rebellion the Revolutionary Army has stirred up in the affiliated nations. Don't forget, the Revolutionary Army now has Vegapunk. If we give them any breathing room, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Navy Headquarters, Marineford.

The Navy Grand Competition will be held in 5 days and will last for 10 days. At that time, 50% of the Navy will be eliminated, either choosing to retire or joining the new department led by Sakazuki—the Adventurer Guild.

For most of the Navy, they naturally hope to stay at Navy Headquarters and carry out justice as members of the Navy, rather than becoming the first batch of adventurers in the Adventurer Guild, but some Navy members see this as an opportunity.

A new department means new opportunities. Within the Navy system, they cannot get promoted, but perhaps they will have a chance within the Adventurer Guild?

Consequently, Zephyr's training camp has been overcrowded during this period, with everyone hoping to make a final sprint before the Navy Grand Competition begins, even though the current Chief Instructor is Shuzo, and Zephyr is only an Instructor Consultant.

Meanwhile, Sakazuki is in the middle of a heated debate with Karl.

"Karl, isn't an investment of 200 billion Berries too little? Don't forget, according to calculations, we need to establish at least 80 Adventurer Guild branches to maximize coverage of all islands and countries. 200 billion Berries, split among each branch, is only 2.5 billion Berries. Do you think that's reasonable?"

"Admiral Akainu, 200 billion Berries is already quite a lot. How much more do you want? Of those 80 Adventurer Guilds, at least 40 can be established on the basis of former Navy branches. That will save a huge amount of funding!"

"Besides, my Holy Light Group is investing 200 billion and only holding 49% of the shares. That's already me doing charity. What else do you want?"

Watching the two arguing incessantly, Kuzan had no choice but to step in as a peacemaker: "Alright, alright, stop arguing. I have a solution. See if you think it works."

"Look, the Revolutionary Army is currently at war with the World Government, and some countries are still in turmoil. So I think we don't need to build so many adventurer branches at the start. That's the logic, right?"

Sakazuki nodded, but he wanted to get it all done at once.

"You have to eat a meal one bite at a time; you can't be too impatient. The most important thing now is to confirm the locations for the Adventurer Guilds, get the main guilds in the Four Blues and the Grand Line established first, and then consider expansion."

Karl nodded repeatedly: "Not bad, that's exactly what I meant. In short, we want the Adventurer Guild to make a name for itself and get running. That way, we can not only discover and correct problems in a timely manner but also earn money to use for expansion, forming a virtuous cycle."

"My 200 billion Berries is definitely more than enough. If it weren't for the fact that you're responsible for paying the salaries of the Adventurer Association, I might not have even put up 200 billion! 150 billion would have been enough."

Sakazuki's face darkened: "We agreed on 200 billion, you can't go back on your word!"

Karl waved his hand: "Don't worry, I always keep my word. Have you decided on the addresses for the Adventurer Guild headquarters?"

Sakazuki was silent for a long while, then pointed to the map and said: "East Blue, Loguetown."

"West Blue, Neudeko Island."

"North Blue..."

"South Blue..."

"First half of the Grand Line, Little Garden, Sabaody Archipelago; second half, Dressrosa."

"That's it for now!"

In general, the Adventurer Guild headquarters in the Four Blues are all located on islands near the Reverse Mountain of the Red Line, while the selections for Paradise and the New World are close to the Red Line.

This way, no matter what happens to the Adventurer Guild, the Navy can provide support at the first opportunity. That's the first point.

The second point is that no matter where adventurers or clients come from, as long as they want to reach the Grand Line or the New World, they will at least pass by one or two Adventurer Guild headquarters, which provides full exposure and serves as a form of promotion.

Karl and Kuzan nodded in unison. Karl said: "Then go ahead and prepare! I'll have people send the Berries over. It would be best if the Adventurer Guild could be operational right after the Navy Grand Competition ends."

"By the way, have Vice Admiral Pone join you during this time!"

Waste not, want not; it would be a shame not to use the power of the Float-Float Fruit for construction.

Five days later, the Navy Grand Competition began.

The Navy all over the world became nervous, except for officers above the rank of Vice Admiral, because the officers required to participate in the Navy Grand Competition were capped at Vice Admiral.

There was no disagreement about this; whether they were Headquarters Vice Admirals or Branch Vice Admirals, they had already proven with their abilities that they were the elite, the backbone of the Navy, so naturally, they didn't need to participate in this elimination tournament.

However, the Vice Admirals weren't idle either; they were responsible for serving as chief judges, in charge of the competitions in various "divisions."

"Everyone, two years ago, the Whitebeard Pirates were destroyed. Although the Navy wasn't severely crippled, I still decided to let the Navy rest and accumulate strength."

"Now, the BIG MOM Pirates have been destroyed, the Beast Pirates have been destroyed, and the Red Hair Pirates have been destroyed."

"The four Emperors of the Sea who once shook the world have become things of the past. There are very few great pirates left wandering the seas..."

"In short, the Navy's current strength is already too vast, even somewhat bloated, so I have to make this decision."

"The purpose of this Navy Grand Competition is to select more excellent Navy members, Navy members with more potential, because the current Navy only needs elites to concentrate its strength to do great things."

"However, those who are eliminated don't need to worry about their future path."

"You can choose to retire from the Navy, and the Navy will pay you a generous severance package."

"Or, you can choose to join the Adventurer Guild and continue to shine and contribute for the Navy!!!"

"As Fleet Admiral of the Navy, I announce that the Navy Grand Competition officially begins!!!"

The atmosphere finally reached its peak, exploding like a bomb. The Navy soldiers were filled with fighting spirit, unable to help but look at their colleagues around them. If they could, they would rather be among the 50% who remained!

Things are heating up... ===== CHAPTER 612 =====