Want to read ahead? Join my Patreon for just $7 to get early access to all upcoming chapters!
> > Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations <<
----------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 105: Including Foot Massages in Medical Insurance
Goa Kingdom.
What once shrouded the skies above this land was the decadent perfume of the nobility and the rotting stench of the lower class. The gray smoke and dust that lingered year-round over the Gray Terminal were like unhealing scars, constantly reminding people of the chasm between the classes.
But now, everything had changed.
Sunlight pierced through the clouds, spilling onto the revitalized streets. The air was no longer filled with despair, but with the aroma of food and uncontrollable laughter. Children chased each other and played on the stone-paved roads; they no longer had to worry about being whipped for accidentally dirtying a noble's clothes. Vendors shouted their wares at the top of their lungs, the smiles on their faces coming from the bottom of their hearts, because every single Beri they earned truly belonged to them.
Just the day before yesterday, the high walls symbolizing oppression and privilege had been submerged overnight by a surging tide of humanity. The flames of revolution, moving at an inconceivable speed, burned away the rotting old order.
Dragon, in the end, had made his move.
The monstrous waves Blake stirred up in East Blue didn't just seal away the Golden Lion; they smashed the majesty of the World Government into pieces, creating a once-in-a-lifetime power vacuum. Dragon did not miss this opportunity.
All privileges of the nobility were abolished. They discovered with horror that overnight, they had transformed from "superior beings" into mere "humans." A brand-new order where everyone was equal had been temporarily, yet incredibly realistically, constructed under the shadow of a great existence that no one could resist.
...
In the central district of the Goa Kingdom, inside a newly opened establishment called "Number One Kabukicho," melodious music played, and the sounds of a bustling crowd filled the air.
This place had once been a money-squandering den exclusive to the nobility, but now it was open to any citizen who could afford the fee.
Inside the most luxurious private room, a tall, thin man was leaning lazily against a soft tatami mat. He wore a signature yellow-striped suit, and his face bore an inscrutable, sleazy smile as he was surrounded by a group of geishas laughing beautifully.
It was none other than the Marines' Highest Military Power, Admiral Kizaru, Borsalino.
"Oh my, oh my~, this is truly impressive..."
Kizaru raised his sake cup, allowing the geisha beside him to fill it to the brim. He spoke in a lazy tone, "The service in this shop is truly something else..."
"You flatter us, Lord Borsalino." The head geisha covered her mouth and laughed softly. Her eyes shimmered with the joy and relief of a survivor. "This is all thanks to the lords of the Revolutionary Army. Now, we no longer have to hand over the majority of our earnings to those noble masters. The money we earn is our own, so everyone is much more motivated to work."
She leaned in closer, lowered her voice, and spoke mysteriously, "Moreover, I heard that the lords of the Revolutionary Army are discussing implementing something called the 'Five Insurances' for us! It seems that if we get sick or grow old in the future, we will have security. Even... even spending money here might be included in the reimbursement scope in the future!"
"Oh ho?"
Kizaru's movements paused slightly, a strange light flashing through his eyes behind his sunglasses.
Including consumption at entertainment venues in insurance reimbursement?
He sucked in a breath of cold air.
This move is truly... too ruthless.
This wasn't simply buying people's hearts; this was dismantling the old values the World Government relied on to maintain its rule from the very root. When ordinary citizens discovered that following the Revolutionary Army meant not only being fed and clothed but also enjoying life, living with dignity, and that even "pleasure" became a justified right...
Who would still believe in that "Justice" which sat high above, bringing only oppression and exploitation?
That man, Dragon... is becoming more and more terrifying.
Just as thoughts raced through Kizaru's mind, the rapid ringing of a phone abruptly sounded.
Puru puru... Puru puru...
The golden Den Den Mushi on the table was mimicking a face distorted by extreme rage, its mouth opening and closing as it emitted the urgent sound.
The noise in the private room instantly died down. The geishas looked at the lifelike Den Den Mushi with curiosity.
Kizaru shushed them with a finger to his lips. The sleazy smile on his face receded slightly as he slowly extended his hand. He cleared his throat, picked up the receiver, and spoke in his signature, drawn-out tone:
"Moshi moshi... this is Borsalino..."
"Borsalino! You bastard!!"
Fleet Admiral Sengoku's thunderous roar instantly exploded from the receiver. The voice was so loud that even the geishas nearby jumped in fright and shrank back.
"Where are you right now?! What are you doing?!"
"The entire sea is in complete chaos because of that newspaper! Whitebeard, Kaido, Big Mom—they are all heading toward East Blue! You are the Admiral in charge of surveillance, so where the hell are you?!"
Sengoku's voice was filled with bloodshot exhaustion; it sounded as if he would burst out of the Den Den Mushi the next second to grab Kizaru by the collar.
"Every time I send you to East Blue to handle something, it's always one disaster after another! And now, you've just vanished! The face of the Marines is about to be completely lost by you and that bastard Garp!"
Facing the Fleet Admiral's roaring, Kizaru remained unhurried.
He held the receiver a bit further away, dug at his ear with a pinky, and flashed a reassuring smile at the worried geishas. Only then did he bring the receiver back to his mouth, coughing dryly twice, his tone filled with innocence and helplessness.
"Oh my, oh my~... Fleet Admiral, that is quite a scary tone..."
"You can't blame me for this."
"You aren't unaware of Little Brother Blake's mighty power. You saw that 'moon' in the newspaper too, didn't you?"
Kizaru dragged his words out, his voice slippery and elusive.
"That is simply... beyond the scope of my abilities."
"I am just a salary-earning Marine Admiral, not someone meant to fight a 'God.' If I accidentally upset that person and he kneads me into a little ball to hang in the sky, the loss to the Marines would be huge. That wouldn't be cost-effective, right?"
"Then what are you doing right now? And what is going on with the Goa Kingdom? Why did Dragon appear there? Why didn't you stop it?! Do you know how big of an impact it will cause when word gets out that a World Government affiliated nation had its rule overthrown right in front of a Marine Admiral?"
Sengoku suppressed his anger, firing off a string of questions like cannonballs.
"Hmm... regarding that question..."
Kizaru glanced out the window.
Outside was the brand-new sky of the Goa Kingdom and the celebratory smiling faces of the citizens.
"Fleet Admiral, once the flames of revolution are ignited, they are very hard to extinguish."
He spoke lazily, "Especially when someone... poured a giant bucket of oil on the side."
"Besides, it wasn't the so-called Revolutionary Army that overthrew this kingdom, but the thousands upon thousands of citizens at the bottom. You wouldn't be suggesting that I attack ordinary people, would you?"
"You...!"
Sengoku was so angry he couldn't speak.
- - - - -
Support this fanfict by leaving Positive Review, Comments, and Power Stones.
For Advance Chapters:
Visit > Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations