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"Besides, the terms he asked for aren't unreasonable."
Someone else in the room chimed in after hearing that.
"Yeah, Cobra's requests are all acceptable."
This man wore a dark red suit, with golden hair and beard, and a noticeable scar across his chest.
He looked a bit younger than the first two.
Looking around at the others, he continued:
"What we really need to focus on now is the situation with the Warlords and the Navy."
"Sure, we don't care if a few pirates live or die, but we can't leave any openings in the Warlord system."
Then, with a cold snort, the blond elder added:
"This sea needs balance."
To the World Government, how many pirates are out there doesn't really matter.
In fact, pirates actually help the World Government.
When regular people feel threatened by pirates, they naturally turn to the Government for protection.
And once they do that, the Government not only tightens its control but also rakes in that sweet, sky-high Heavenly Tribute.
That said, they definitely don't want the pirate forces growing too strong.
Once those criminals get big enough, they stop targeting regular folks and start aiming for the ones at the top of the food chain.
The ruling elite.
And that is something the World Government absolutely cannot allow.
That's why they'd rather hand over the New World completely.
After all, compared to the entire ocean, the second half of the Grand Line isn't that important.
Let the most dangerous pirates fight each other to death in that harsh, lawless zone?
That's a deal they'll take any day.
The Warlord system was created as the third layer of insurance by the Government.
"Legal pirates"—honestly, it's a name soaked in irony.
But to the Government, these guys are the most useful tools they could ask for.
On one hand, if one of the Four Emperors starts stirring up trouble, or war breaks out, the Warlords can be summoned to help out.
This keeps the Emperors in check.
On the other hand, these same Warlords can take care of all kinds of shady, off-the-record jobs for the Government.
And all the Government has to offer them in return is a fake "license to plunder."
With something so useful, there's no way the Five Elders are gonna let it fall apart.
Their one and only goal is to keep the sea in balance.
Only balance ensures the Celestial Dragons stay in power.
They couldn't care less how many lives that "balance" costs.
"We also have to deal with the Navy."
Now, the only elder not wearing a suit finally spoke up.
He was bald, wore a white kimono, and had glasses.
And right now, he was so pissed that he started banging his treasured sword against the floor.
"The Warlords tried to take over a country, and they were stopped by another group of pirates?"
"And all the Navy did was show up after it was over and clean up the mess?!"
"What a freaking embarrassment!"
The Navy's role in this whole thing was pathetically weak.
And now the other member nations had something to criticize them for.
After the Alabasta incident went public, countries everywhere started bombarding the Government with complaints.
They weren't just protesting the Warlord system—they were furious with the Navy.
Some even tried to use this opportunity to demand a reduction in their Heavenly Tribute.
After all, one of the main reasons for that tribute was to fund the Navy's fight against pirates, right?
But now it looks like all the Navy did was send a ship to pick up the defeated ones. How expensive could that be?
Bottom line: the bald Elder wasn't mad because the Navy failed to serve "justice."
He was mad because it threatened the balance of the sea—and more importantly, the flow of Heavenly Tribute.
"What's done is done. Complaining now won't help."
The last Elder, the only one who hadn't spoken yet, finally joined in after the bald guy's outburst.
"Just find someone to take Crocodile's place as soon as possible. As for the Navy, give them a little warning."
"I'm sure Sengoku knows how to handle things."
This man wore a dark green suit, had a bald head, a birthmark on his forehead, and a droopy handlebar mustache.
Just a few calm words, and the world-shaking Alabasta crisis was wrapped up like a file stamped "Case Closed."
Then, the blond Elder asked in a serious tone:
"What about that new pirate crew?"
He glanced at the information CP had collected on the Straw Hats.
"They totally humiliated the Navy this time."
The bald Elder narrowed his eyes at Luffy's profile, clearly annoyed:
"Monkey D. Luffy… he's from that family again?"
The Elder with the long beard took over the conversation:
"Probably Garp's grandson."
"Well, that works. Let the Navy know—they can send Garp himself."
"He's just a rookie pirate. Even if he beat Crocodile, it won't shake the balance of the seas."
The curly-haired Elder, flipping through another file, pulled out a photo of Bai Ye.
"He's not just some rookie pirate. This guy almost killed one of the Navy's admiral candidates."
"If we let him keep growing, it might be…"
The green-suited Elder cut in before the argument escalated:
"According to intel, he's likely dead. Probably used some life-risking move to push past his limits."
"If they even make it to Sabaody Archipelago, then we'll talk."
"After this incident, the Navy will probably raise all their bounties."
He paused, then added:
"And we don't have the resources to deal with those guys right now. According to CP…"
"Red-Haired is about to make contact with Whitebeard."
The second those words came out, the other Elders' expressions changed.
Two Emperors meeting—no matter the reason—could shake the whole world.
Compared to that, the little Straw Hat crew didn't matter at all.
The files on Luffy and Bai Ye were casually tossed aside.
A few days later—
Marineford, in the Fleet Admiral's Office—
Fleet Admiral Sengoku stared at the new wanted posters, lost in thought.
After a long silence, he finally looked up.
Facing the man in front of him—Brian—he spoke:
"Go ahead and send out the bounties as listed."
"Yes, sir!"
Brian saluted, grabbed the stack of posters, and left Sengoku's office.
Walking down the hallway, Brian couldn't help but picture Bai Ye in his mind.
The man who once saved his hometown, and now had saved an entire country.
He muttered to himself:
"What are you really after… Mr. Bai Ye?"
"Obviously, I'm preparing a gift for you, Vivi."
Back in the Alabasta royal palace, Bai Ye grinned at Vivi, who was covering her mouth in shock, eyes full of joy.
Her eyes welled up as she looked down at Bai Ye's right hand.
He was holding a pair of beautifully crafted earrings.
Then Bai Ye said:
"I remembered your weapons are two rings, right? So I made these for you."
"You can wear them as jewelry normally, but in a fight, they double as weapons."
"These earrings are as sharp as a top-grade blade. I even inscribed them with fire elements."
"Perfect for traveling, home defense, or murder—uh…"
He froze for a second, because Vivi had suddenly hugged him.
"Thank you, Bai Ye,"
Vivi said softly in his arms.
"Thank you… for treating me as a real friend."
"....."