Chapter 132: Rejecting the Seven Warlords, Bounty Skyrockets

"These are the exact words Sengoku asked me to pass on to you."

Garp pinched his chin. "Huh, no, wait—these seem to be the exact words from the Five Elders' mouths; he was just passing them along too."

"Then they seem to have gotten one thing wrong."

Siano said indifferently, "When have I ever not sailed openly and honorably across this sea?"

The youth pointed behind him at the Curtain Fall, where that white flag was fluttering in the wind.

"See that, old man?"

"What's this?" Garp burst out laughing. "So you never even flew a pirate flag to begin with!"

"Stop playing dumb."

Siano grinned. "If I had truly engaged in pirate deeds, would you still be speaking to me with this attitude? But if I'd signed the Seven Warlords agreement, then no matter how much I talked, I couldn't clear my name; I'd truly become what they call a 'great pirate,' wouldn't I?"

The Seven Warlords?

What benefit could he possibly gain from becoming one of the Seven Warlords?

Was it merely to have his bounty canceled, for that legal right to plunder that countless pirates dream of?

To hell with that!

For something as foul-smelling as the Celestial Gold, to willingly become a lapdog of the World Government, thereafter obeying every order and decree, even having to contribute his own blood?

In that case, he might as well have joined the military alongside Garp back in those days at Mount Colubo!

By now, at the very least, he would be a Vice Admiral at Headquarters!

"Speaking of which, old man."

The youth lifted his gaze and locked eyes with Garp:

"There's one thing I'm quite curious about: do Sengoku and the rest of the Marine Headquarters high command actually know clearly that I am not a pirate at all?"

Garp fell silent for a moment, then sighed:

"For the great figures, sometimes face matters more than the truth."

"So it is just as I thought?"

Siano laughed heartily, tossed the document straight back, "Then take this waste of paper back with you. Also, please pass a message to them: if they wish to strip me of my right to 'sail openly and honorably' upon this sea, then let them just come and try!"

"Sigh..."

Garp took the document, rubbed his face. "This is truly troublesome. How am I supposed to report back? Though I expected all along that you, kid, would say something like this..."

Not yet giving up, he slanted a glance at Siano:

"Really not signing?"

"No."

"I brought several bags of fine tea leaves; what if I give you two bags?"

"..." Three black lines appeared on Siano's forehead.

"I know, I was just joking! Pu-hahaha!"

Laughing loudly, Garp stood up, casually tore the document into fragments; snowflake-like paper scraps scattered in the sea breeze:

"Then continue sailing across this sea, kid! Let me see just how far you can go on this path!"

He strode toward his dog-head warship; Bogart immediately rushed over and draped a new Justice Cape over him.

Siano remained seated where he was, quietly watching Garp's retreating figure through the sky-full of drifting paper scraps.

"Oh, right."

Garp suddenly turned back, scratched his head. "Almost forgot: Sengoku's order to me was, if negotiations failed, to arrest you on the spot."

"I'm out of strength."

Siano spread his hands. "But if you still want to continue fighting, I can accompany you to the end."

"Pu-hahaha!!!"

Garp waved his hand while laughing. "What kind of joke is that? Just now, I even used Supreme King Haki, and still couldn't take you down, kid, could I?"

He turned and strode toward the warship, waving his hand at Siano with his back turned:

"Let's leave it at that! When I get back, I'll just say I couldn't find anyone! Anyway, with this sea being so vast, getting lost is perfectly normal!"

The dog-head warship slowly sailed away; the Marine soldiers on deck still gazed at that shattered ice field with lingering fear.

Standing beside Garp, Bogart wore a worried expression and asked in a low voice:

"Mr. Garp, is it really no problem returning like this?"

"What problem could there be?"

Garp pulled out a pack of rice crackers with complete indifference. "That kid is right; he was never a pirate to begin with. On what grounds should he sign some damn Seven Warlords agreement?"

"But what about the Five Elders' side..."

"Who cares about them!"

Garp stuffed a handful of rice crackers into his mouth and spoke indistinctly, "Anyway, I don't have the ability for that. If those old bastards truly have the skill, let them come and capture the person themselves!"

Hmm?

Wait.

Garp suddenly realized something wasn't quite right and reached up to touch his bald crown.

Where's my dog-head hat?

Garp looked utterly bewildered, searching all over his body. He clearly remembered that during the earlier exhilarating fight, finding the dog-head hat obstructed his vision, he had yanked it off and stuffed it into his trouser pocket.

This scene seems very familiar...

Bogart's heart tightened; subconsciously, he also reached up to touch the top of his own head.

Phew, thankfully.

His hat, at least, hadn't been lost.

…………

At the same time, aboard the Curtain Fall.

Nojiko watched the warship receding into the distance and couldn't help but ask, "Brother, what do we do next?"

Although she had expected it.

Still, the scene of her big brother refusing the Warlord of the Sea title so decisively was just too cool!

This was a position that countless people would kill for!

Looking across the entire Grand Line, how many people could actually do it?

Truly worthy of being my brother!

It's just that, with this, the World Government, having been slapped in the face, would surely be enraged by shame, and their future retaliation would definitely be more fierce than before...

However, her question received no response.

Because at this moment, Siano, who appeared to be changing clothes with Nami's help, was actually staring intently at the system panel before him.

【You sacrificed Garp's Dog Head Hat, obtaining 3800 points】

【Remaining points: 27000】

How much was that Dog Head Hat sacrificed back in the Goa Kingdom worth? If I remember correctly, wasn't it 4000?

Why is this one two hundred less?

After thinking it over, the only explanation could be that the previous Dog Head Hat had been with Garp longer, sharing a deeper bond.

That makes sense.

Siano shrugged, casually closed the system panel, completely unaware that he had forgotten there was still some wool to shear from Bogard.

There was no helping it.

Back when they first met at Mount Colubo.

The Sword Master aura faintly emanating from Bogard had been as biting as a blade's edge, making him dare not underestimate the man and sparking his curiosity; he had immediately borrowed the other's hat on the spot to check how many points it was worth.

But now.

Times had changed, and the strength of the two had long since become worlds apart.

Although Siano had indeed used Observation Haki to sense Garp's warship, Bogard, who hadn't shown much of himself, had been directly categorized by him into the tier of having absolutely no threat, so he hadn't thought of such a person at all throughout the whole process.

"Brother? Brother!" Nojiko raised her voice.

"Huh?"

Only then did Siano snap out of it, turning his head to look at her.

"What do you mean, what do we do? Obviously, we eat lunch; I'm starving to death."

He rubbed his empty stomach and said with a smile, "After eating, we do what needs doing and continue our adventure!"

Leading the way, he strode toward the dining hall, while the rest of the crew exchanged glances and smiles before following suit.

"Why do I feel like you're exceptionally happy, Nami?" Smoker, cigar in mouth, walked at the very rear, looking puzzledly toward the right front.

"Nonsense!"

Nami rolled her eyes at him, stretched lazily, and wore an expression of great relief:

"I was most afraid of Big Brother agreeing to sign the agreement; if he became a Warlord of the Sea, wouldn't my bounty be stuck forever at 80,000 Berries?"

"Even if he didn't become one, there's no guarantee it would rise," Smoker said softly.

Nami's movements froze, and she immediately flew into a rage:

"Waaaaah, Cigar-Head, you bastard! I'm going to kill you!"

"Don't even think about it; you don't even know Armament Haki, so you can't even touch me."

"I don't need Haki! I can burn you to death with fire!"

"I've never heard of such a thing; wouldn't smoke suppress flames instead?"

"Bullshit, fire suppresses smoke!"

"It's smoke that suppresses fire."

The corridor became noisy again; the group laughed and frolicked all the way, and the originally somewhat tense atmosphere instantly faded away.

Only Mochi followed at the very back, jumping continuously in an attempt to catch everyone's attention—

Hey! Look at me, look at me! Because I couldn't wait to become stronger and wanted to protect Master sooner, I've already completed my first evolution!

The current me is a Meow-Beast!

Unfortunately, its height was simply too short.

Even after evolving, it was only thirty or forty centimeters tall; jumping up, it still hadn't reached Nami's knee.

For a moment, absolutely no one noticed.

—————

Holy Land, Mary Geoise.

In Pangaea Castle, a CP0 member dressed in a white coat was kneeling on the ground, reporting while covered in cold sweat.

Inside the meeting room, the atmosphere was Solemn.

"Refused?"

Shepard, the blond-haired One of the Five Elders, crushed the teacup in his hand, his expression gloomy:

"This is an invitation to become a Warlord of the Sea that other pirates would kill for; the treatment we offered was even more favorable than usual, yet he still refuses to sign the alliance?"

"Does he look down on the position of Warlord of the Sea?"

Nasjuro, holding a demon sword, said indifferently, "It seems we still underestimated this kid's ambition."

"What about Garp?"

Marcus Mars, with white hair and a long beard, spoke up, "Since the other party is unwilling to sign the agreement, why wasn't he captured on the spot?"

"We did fight, but we still let that kid escape."

That CP0 member hurriedly replied with respect, "According to our intelligence, Garp chased him for a day and night afterward, but ultimately lost his direction on the sea, allowing the other party to slip away."

Several of the Five Elders furrowed their brows one after another.

"Useless old man."

Saturn sneered coldly, "Where has the skill gone that once chased Roger to the ends of the earth and the depths of the underworld? Now that he's been given a chance, he can't even capture an eighteen-year-old brat."

"Although Garp's strength has naturally declined due to his age, he still cannot be underestimated; such a situation can only mean that this kid's power is even greater than anticipated."

Nasjuro narrowed his eyes slightly, "Of course, there is another possibility: just as Sengoku said, that fellow Garp has an old friendship with this brat, was unwilling to strike with lethal force, and deliberately went easy on him."

"That old man..."

Recalling the past incidents where Garp repeatedly refused promotion to Admiral, Saturn's expression grew much uglier.

He shook his head, not wanting to bring up the matter again, and turned his gaze instead to the CP0 member kneeling on the ground:

"What is Siano's current bounty?"

"540 million Berries," the CP0 member answered swiftly.

"Not impressive enough! He consecutively defeated... no, killed two members of the Qiwuhai Alliance, and subsequently escaped from the hands of both Akainu and Garp."

"This bounty is completely unable to match his current level of threat!"

Saturn stood up and issued a cold command:

"Go, notify Marine Headquarters to immediately draft a new bounty and set it high! Additionally, finalize the deliberations and submit the candidates for the two vacant Qiwuhai Alliance positions as soon as possible; the balance of the seas must absolutely not be broken."

"Yes, Lord Saturn!"

The CP0 member saluted, stood up, and departed in a hurry.

————

Marine Headquarters.

Rain poured down like a torrent, heavy dark clouds pressing down over Marineford as if about to swallow the entire fortress.

Ever since the news that Siano had rejected the Qiwuhai Alliance agreement reached Headquarters, the atmosphere throughout the fortress had become as gloomy and oppressive as this weather.

Marine soldiers in the corridors hurried along with a Solemn Demeanor, even lowering their voices when conversing.

"Yes, Fleet Admiral, I understand, yes, please rest assured."

Senior Staff Officer Brannew put down the Den Den Mushi, tapped his knuckles lightly on the desk twice, and locked his brows tightly.

He raised his head to look around; several colleagues in the office had long since stopped their work, their gazes all sweeping toward him in unison.

"The situation is worse than anticipated; my lords in the Holy Land are extremely furious and have ordered us to update this group's bounties at the fastest possible speed."

Brannew stood up and said in a heavy voice:

"Assemble the remaining colleagues from the Staff Department and prepare for a meeting! Within one hour, I want to see a complete combat power analysis report, and within two hours, a new bounty proposal must be drafted!"

———

In the New World, on some nameless island.

Morgans was holding a cup of coffee, pacing back and forth behind the sofa in irritation.

"The results are out, President!"

The wooden door of the office was suddenly banged open, and his deputy, dressed in a suit and leather shoes, burst in panting, "Siano rejected the Qiwuhai Alliance, the high command of Marine Headquarters is furious, and the new wanted posters have already been transmitted!"

"Rejected?!"

Morgans snatched the document over, "Let me see!"

He scanned the entire intelligence file at top speed, then shifted his gaze to the figures on the new wanted poster.

Clatter!

The coffee cup in Morgans' claw fell to the floor, splashing brown liquid onto his snow-white feathers.

Yet the president of the World Economic News Company remained completely unaware, his beak stretching exaggeratedly to his ears:

"Yi-hahaha! He truly didn't disappoint me; big news! This is headline news sufficient to shake the entire sea!"

It didn't even require any embellishment from him!

The news of Boss Hua Zha's death could be released, coupled with the rejection of the Qiwuhai Alliance pact, and Siano's escape from the hands of the renowned Marine Hero Garp...

Plus the final blockbuster piece of news—the new bounty for Siano's crew!

Morgans dared not even imagine how best-selling this edition of the newspaper would become across the entire world!

He grabbed the Den Den Mushi on the desk and dialed the printing plant's number:

"It's me, President Morgans!"

"What? Tomorrow morning's newspapers are already being printed? Immediately halt all current printing! Throw those waste papers into the garbage heap; I will personally formulate tomorrow's front page!"

After hanging up the phone, Morgans returned to his desk, humming a little tune as he excitedly took out the quill pen from the inkwell.

He hadn't yet decided how to write the headline, but without a second thought, he skillfully wrote the first two characters of the title on the blank paper:

【Shocking—】

…………

The next day, early morning.

In the office, Morgans was currently lying sprawled across his desk on his back, his beak slightly open and his feathers messily scattered over the tabletop, clearly having fallen into a deep sleep after pulling an all-nighter to finish the manuscript.

Beside his claw still rested a quill pen with ink not yet dry.

On the desktop, meanwhile, were piled draft papers covered densely with headlines that had been repeatedly revised.

As a journalist extremely passionate about his profession, Morgans always maintained very high standards for his writing.

The finalized front page of the newspaper had already been carefully taken away by his deputy and sent to the printing plant.

The pungent smell of ink permeated the factory floor.

Brand new newspapers flew off the assembly line like snowflakes, quickly bundled into stacks by workers and loaded into the mailbags of the News Coo.

"The first batch of newspapers has been loaded!"

"Release the birds! Release them immediately!"

At the command, countless News Coo, carrying mailbags and flapping their wings, surged into the sky, flying toward the four seas against the morning sun.

Spreading these weighty pieces of major news to every corner of the world...

————

The New World.

A grand banquet was underway aboard the Moby Dick.

It was held to celebrate the conclusion of their war with the Beasts Pirates.

Although the Four Emperors generally maintained a balance in the grand scheme, the situation was not always calm.

There were always some frictions and collisions.

This war, though not large in scale, was a microcosm of that.

Neither side's main commander had personally taken the field; only a small portion of their officers had led their subordinates into battle.

The Whitebeard Pirates had ultimately achieved victory, severing the Beasts' claws extending from Wano Country and successfully expanding their territory slightly.

Bonfires blazed Xiong Xiong on the deck, and wine barrels were stacked like mountains.

Marco raised his wine glass and leaped onto the main mast's crossbeam.

"Lads!" he grinned broadly. "For our new territory, for this great victory of ours—cheers!"

"Ooooh!!!"

The crew responded with a roar, the clinking of glasses interwoven with hearty laughter.

"Gurararara!"

Whitebeard's laughter exploded like Lei Ting; seated in his exclusive giant chair with Murakumogiri leaning against his shoulder, he tilted his head back and downed an entire barrel of strong liquor:

"Kaido's little whelps are still too green! How can they compare to my sons!"

"Hey, Pops! Drinking a whole barrel in one go is way too unfair!"

Thatch, commander of the 4th Division, popped up from behind, dissatisfiedly snatching away the remaining barrel. "For your health, you should drink less!"

"Thatch!" Whitebeard flew into a rage. "You party-pooper, give that wine back to Laozi!"

"No way, no way, absolutely no way!"

Thatch hid the barrel behind his back; Whitebeard slashed his hand out to grab it. As the two struggled back and forth, the pirates around them burst into loud laughter.

Just then, a News Coo flapped its wings and landed by the ship's railing, a fresh newspaper clamped in its beak.

"Hey, Teach!"

Thatch shouted to the crewman beside him, "I'm busy with my hands; go get the newspaper and see what big news we have today!"

"No problem, Captain!"

Blackbeard Teach grinned, revealing a mouth missing several teeth:

"Zehahahaha! What perfect timing, little white bird! In my opinion, the newspaper office must have learned the result of this war and rushed out an extra edition overnight to announce our Whitebeard Pirates' victory to the world!"

He strode over, took the newspaper from the News Coo's beak, and casually tossed a few coins to it.

Then, still grinning, he patted the News Coo's head and watched it fly away.

However.

When Teach unfolded the newspaper, the smile on his face instantly froze.

There was no Whitebeard, no Beasts; the front-page headline had nothing to do with them.

Dominating the page was a huge wanted poster, featuring that black-haired youth carrying a sword, laughing wildly in the lens.

And above it was an extra-large headline in bold, black print!

—"Shocking the Grand Line! Two Warlords Slain in Succession! The Most Arrogant Pirate, Swordmaster Siano, Rejects Warlord Invitation! World Government Enraged, Emergency Bounty Increase!"

"Zehahahaha... This is truly..." Blackbeard narrowed his eyes, staring at the headline as he murmured softly, a strange glint flashing in his gaze.

"Hey, Teach!"

Marco noticed his odd behavior, jumped down from the mast, and snatched the newspaper: "What's wrong? What news has you so shocked?"

When he saw the content clearly, his pupils contracted sharply, and he cried out in alarm:

"One billion?! A full one billion Berries? This guy's bounty actually doubled in one go?!"

(End of Chapter)