Chapter 302: I Have a Plan
This intercepted intelligence was essentially a comprehensive ledger. It clearly documented exactly who in the North Blue colluded with the Underworld, and who the primary shot-callers of the criminal enterprise were, with terrifying precision.
It was no exaggeration to say that if the Marines simply made arrests based on the names on this list, they could execute a complete, sweeping purge of the entire North Blue.
This was the precise reason Rosinante had remained deep undercover for so long: he wanted to seize the ultimate opportunity to thoroughly cleanse the region. However, for some inexplicable reason, despite frequently contacting Fleet Admiral Sengoku via Den Den Mushi, he had never once transmitted this specific, highly actionable intelligence.
Perhaps the hopelessly single-minded Rosinante had simply forgotten he could do so.
Furthermore, the document also contained highly classified tactical information: Doflamingo was actively planning to orchestrate a coup d'état against Dressrosa.
"I remember His Majesty Nereus has a very good relationship with Dressrosa, right?" Ginny asked, reading the encrypted notes.
"Yes, His Majesty and King Riku are good friends," Kuma nodded calmly. "Why do you ask?"
"Look at this! My previous deduction was completely correct! This Donquixote Doflamingo is an actual, legitimate member of the Donquixote Family from Mary Geoise!"
The handwriting on the paper was neat and meticulously detailed. It explicitly mentioned that the Donquixote Family used to be the original sovereigns of Dressrosa centuries ago, and that Doflamingo intended to violently reclaim the country. It meticulously outlined Doflamingo's twisted master plan, alongside Rosinante's own desperate countermeasures.
"No, we have to send this intelligence to His Majesty Nereus immediately," Ginny declared, folding the paper. "Tell Luna we aren't going back to the ship just yet. We need to deliver this intel and the Devil Fruit straight back to Fish-Man Island first."
"Understood."
If there was any location in the world where Kuma's teleportation was exceptionally difficult to target, Fish-Man Island was definitely one of them. Given its geographical location 10,000 meters beneath the sea, directly sending someone there would essentially require blasting them straight through the solid rock of the Red Line.
Ultimately setting their target coordinates for the nearby Delta Island, Kuma raised his paw pad and initiated the teleportation.
Meanwhile, Rosinante was acting incredibly panicked. After frantically fleeing Minion Island alongside Doflamingo, he finally realized that the highly classified intelligence slip hidden on his person was completely gone!
He was deeply relieved that an unknown third party had stolen the Op-Op Fruit, meaning his cover wouldn't be blown by his inability to eat it. But if that intelligence document was discovered by Doflamingo or any other executive in the Family...
His brain wasn't very sharp to begin with, and the sheer terror of overthinking made him prone to catastrophic physical blunders. "Corazon" had been making frequent, comical mistakes lately—tripping over flat ground was a regular occurrence, and he had even accidentally hoisted himself high into the air by getting tangled in the ship's rigging while bringing in the sails.
Ironically, it was precisely because of this constant, clumsy distraction that Doflamingo completely dismissed the idea of Rosinante being the traitor.
After all, if he were the mole, he should have been thrilled the Op-Op Fruit was stolen. There was absolutely no logical reason for him to act so genuinely frantic and disorganized.
"Corazon, the Op-Op Fruit being stolen isn't your fault. You don't need to blame yourself like this," Doflamingo sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"..."
"I will naturally find a way to get the fruit back... That bastard who attacked us was clearly an ability user. Let's just hope he doesn't immediately feed the fruit to someone else..."
Doflamingo still desperately hoped one of his own crew could consume it. If the thief gave it to someone else, he would have no choice but to track down the new user and forcefully subjugate them to his will.
But making an unknown ability user submit and willingly perform the Immortality Surgery wasn't an easy task. Therefore, Doflamingo was already actively plotting his next moves, utilizing all his Underworld connections to scout for any news regarding the fruit's reappearance.
However, before he could execute any of those plans, Doflamingo had to deal with the immediate, lethal threat constantly biting at his heels: Vice Admiral Tsuru.
Seemingly convinced that Doflamingo had successfully acquired the Op-Op Fruit, Tsuru's pursuit was exponentially more aggressive than usual. Even if he managed to temporarily shake her off, he wouldn't find peace for long.
While Doflamingo and Tsuru played a lethal game of cat-and-mouse across the North Blue, Kuma and Ginny had long since arrived at Delta Island. After quickly organizing their findings, they seamlessly delivered the stolen items to the Ryugu Palace.
"Hand this specific portion of the intelligence over to Otohime and Jinbe. They will know exactly what to do with it," Nereus instructed from his throne.
The documents contained a staggering amount of data detailing the North Blue's illicit trades: illegal organ harvesting, black-market arms dealing, and underground slave trafficking.
Doflamingo absolutely hadn't been idle all these years; he had his fingers deeply embedded in practically every illegal enterprise operating in the sea. Rosinante's undercover investigative work was truly exceptional, bringing all these dark truths to light.
The Ryugu Kingdom simply opposed the tyrannical rule of the World Government; they were absolutely not an anti-humanity terrorist organization. Violently cracking down on vicious crime syndicates provided the perfect, ready-made banner of justice for the Neptune Army to wield.
"As for this remaining portion detailing the coup..." Nereus tapped the armrest of his throne. "Nanamo, give this to them when you visit Dressrosa. You can hand it to Scarlett or Dold, however you see fit. You handle the subsequent arrangements."
As for the highly coveted Op-Op Fruit itself, they couldn't find a suitable candidate to consume it immediately.
This fruit wasn't something you could just eat and instantly master. If the user possessed absolutely zero foundational knowledge of medicine and anatomy, they couldn't effectively utilize the fruit's true potential. Casually swinging a sword to cut things up inside a ROOM was fine, but performing complex, miraculous surgeries was impossible without a medical degree. Therefore, it was temporarily sealed away in the royal vault.
"Dad, how did you know I was planning to go there?" Nanamo asked, tilting her head.
"Isn't it Scarlett's birthday soon? You go to visit her every single year. I'm not blind," Nereus smiled warmly. "Take whoever you want with you and handle the situation over there however you see fit."
Even though Nanamo spent practically every waking moment enthusiastically playing and throwing concerts, she was more than capable of effortlessly crushing someone of Doflamingo's caliber. Nereus trusted her completely.
Since she was already preparing to depart for Dressrosa anyway, Nanamo didn't linger. Hopping onto Hermes, she soared into the sky.
"Your Majesty, are you not going to simply order his assassination? Because of his former Celestial Dragon status?" Ginny asked curiously.
"I couldn't care less about his supposed 'noble' status. It's just that this particular individual still holds some strategic value," Nereus replied calmly. "He's a minor character incapable of stirring up any truly apocalyptic waves on his own; there is absolutely no need for us to personally eliminate him just yet."
Doflamingo—the future legendary Underworld broker—possessed his own highly unique, deeply entrenched intelligence and smuggling channels across the sea.
Even though the powerful Devil Fruits he procured rarely ended up in the hands of his own executives, as long as they kept a close eye on his movements, they could effortlessly intercept a massive amount of valuable intelligence regarding rare fruits and black-market movements. Keeping him alive as an unwitting intelligence gatherer was highly beneficial.
"Is that so? Still, it's incredibly bizarre to see a Celestial Dragon slumming it in the North Blue doing things like this," Ginny mused.
"No, he's not an active Celestial Dragon. He is a former Celestial Dragon," Nereus corrected smoothly. "I actually happen to know a bit about his background. His father, Donquixote Homing, was a truly bizarre anomaly among the Celestial Dragons.
"Not only did he violently oppose the atrocities committed by his peers and openly advocate for equality among all races, but he voluntarily abandoned his divine status and took his entire family to live among commoners."
"There are actually people like that among the Celestial Dragons?!"
Ginny didn't doubt Nereus's words, but she was still utterly shocked. The Celestial Dragons' global reputation was notoriously, irredeemably vile. Even the ordinary royalty of affiliated nations who desperately yearned to become World Nobles knew that the Celestial Dragons were terrifying, sadistic monsters who could not be offended.
The idea that a genuine saint had been born among that demographic was so shocking it nearly made Ginny drop the snack she was eating.
"A demographic group is not a monolith. Every single population contains good and bad individuals; generalizing an entire race with a single stroke is fundamentally flawed," Nereus said calmly. "However, when it comes to the Celestial Dragons... if you arbitrarily execute a hundred of them, you might accidentally kill one innocent person. But if you kill nine out of ten, you are absolutely letting a massive amount of unrepentant scum slip through the net."
The Donquixote Family inherently produced bizarre anomalies: Homing, the eventual reformed Mjosgard, and Rosinante. If individuals like them actually held supreme political power within Mary Geoise, they might truly be capable of reforming the world.
Unfortunately, their noble ideals practically guaranteed their tragic downfall among their psychopathic peers.
"Keep a close eye on Doflamingo. As a former Celestial Dragon, he knows an immense amount of highly classified secrets regarding Mary Geoise. You might be able to intercept something incredibly useful."
"Understood," Ginny nodded firmly. "I'm currently developing an advanced signal amplifier. Once it's finished, my wiretapping range will increase exponentially."
Ginny mentally updated her espionage priority list, resolving to dedicate significantly more focus to monitoring Doflamingo's encrypted channels.
A short time later, Nanamo safely arrived in Dressrosa. As she walked through the familiar, vibrant streets, the citizens warmly bowed and greeted her.
This time, she hadn't brought Chloe or Yamato with her; she had simply ridden her cloud alone. The environment of Dressrosa remained as peaceful and passionate as ever.
While it wasn't the wealthiest superpower in the New World, it was incredibly stable. There were no catastrophic natural disasters, nor was there any internal tyranny from the King. The quality of life was genuinely excellent.
The biggest historical event to happen here in recent years was Scarlett's faked death. Aside from that, any minor pirate incursions were swiftly and brutally suppressed by Kyros and the Royal Army.
Ever since experiencing the absolute, crushing despair of fighting Chloe years ago, Kyros had trained with borderline-suicidal intensity. He had grown significantly stronger, allowing him to effortlessly dispatch any rookie pirates who had just entered the New World.
"Well, if it isn't Kyros? Haven't you clocked out yet? Don't you know what day it is today?" Nanamo asked, spotting the massive gladiator outside the palace gates.
Normally, the Captain of the Royal Guard didn't have the luxury of "off-hours" and essentially lived at the palace. However, Kyros was a highly special case. Because of his secret marriage to the Princess, King Riku usually dismissed him very early so he could return home.
"Princess Nanamo," Kyros bowed respectfully. "I certainly wouldn't forget something so important. But His Majesty Dold wanted to head over to the cottage together, so I'm simply waiting for him to finish his duties."
"I see. You might want to go on ahead," Nanamo advised seriously. "Once I finish telling your King the news I brought, he's going to be brooding in his office for quite a while."
This wasn't something she could casually gloss over. Doflamingo's horrific plot involved using his Parasite strings to mind-control Dold and the Royal Army, forcing them to violently slaughter their own citizens so Doflamingo could subsequently swoop in, execute the "tyrants," and play the messianic hero.
Regardless of who she told first, the intelligence ultimately had to reach King Riku. Therefore, Nanamo headed straight for his office.
Kyros didn't leave his post. Logically speaking, if Nanamo were an assassin, it wouldn't matter where Kyros stood. Even if the entire Royal Palace rose up to fight her, she possessed the apocalyptic power to instantly vaporize the entire structure into dust. Yet, his unwavering duty as a guard compelled him to stay.
"Good evening, King Riku," Nanamo greeted, entering the grand office with proper royal etiquette. "My father recently acquired a highly classified piece of intelligence that he felt you absolutely needed to see. It concerns Donquixote Doflamingo's imminent plans for Dressrosa..."
Nanamo formally outlined the horrific situation. The moment he heard the surname "Donquixote," King Riku's face paled, instantly understanding the gravity of the threat.
"Is that so... I never expected them to return," King Riku murmured heavily, slumping into his chair.
"Correction: not them. Just Doflamingo," Nanamo clarified. "He has already lost his Celestial Dragon status. He is fundamentally distinct from the bastards currently residing in Mary Geoise. But... was this country really theirs in the ancient past?"
"Yes. Centuries ago, before the outbreak of the Void Century, this country was ruled by the Donquixote Family.
"After the alliance of the Twenty Kings emerged victorious and founded the current World Government, the Donquixote Family voluntarily abandoned this kingdom and moved to the Holy Land to become Celestial Dragons.
"Following their departure, my bloodline—the Riku Family—took over the throne and has ruled ever since."
King Riku briefly summarized the history of Dressrosa. It wasn't entirely common knowledge, but it wasn't a heavily guarded secret either; anyone willing to dig through historical archives could uncover it.
"Rest assured, Your Majesty. This really isn't a massive crisis," Nanamo smiled comfortingly. "My father simply wanted me to give you a heads-up to prevent any tragic accidents.
"If the actual Donquixote Family residing in Mary Geoise wanted to officially reclaim this country, utilizing the Marines and the World Government's political pressure, that would indeed be incredibly tricky to handle.
"But Doflamingo is just a wanted pirate. Dealing with him is exceptionally easy."
Whether out of personal friendship or her commitment to her "official security insurance business," Nanamo absolutely wouldn't let Dressrosa fall.
Geographically, whether departing from Fish-Man Island or their heavily fortified New World branch office, Dressrosa wasn't far away. If a true emergency arose, Ryugu Kingdom reinforcements could arrive incredibly quickly.
"I see... Please relay my deepest gratitude to your father," King Riku sighed, rubbing his temples.
He had occasionally seen Doflamingo's name in the newspapers, but it wasn't until Nanamo's arrival that he fully confirmed this "Donquixote" was indeed the very same bloodline from his nation's history.
If he didn't possess the absolute backing of Nereus, King Riku genuinely wouldn't know how to survive Doflamingo's assault.
Beg the World Government for military aid? Even though Doflamingo was no longer a Celestial Dragon, the World Government's ultimate political stance in a dispute involving a former World Noble was a terrifying, unpredictable variable.
"By the way, I actually have a minor personal question," Nanamo said, her eyes sparking with sudden business acumen. "Do you happen to know the current political status of the other nineteen affiliated nations?"
"The other nineteen? You mean the nations formerly ruled by the descendants of the other Twenty Kings?"
"Yes! How are they doing nowadays?"
"I... I'm not entirely sure," King Riku frowned in confusion. "But they should all be in the exact same situation as the Donquixote Family. The original royal bloodlines all moved to the Holy Land, and new families took over. Why do you ask?"
King Riku felt he vaguely understood what Nanamo was getting at, but he couldn't be completely certain.
"Oh, nothing major!" Nanamo beamed brilliantly. "I was just thinking... this might be an absolutely fantastic opportunity to aggressively market our premium security insurance policies to them!"
"I don't know the specifics of the other nations' current geopolitical climates. Your father possesses a far deeper understanding of world history than I do; he might know their exact situations better."
King Riku didn't offer a definitive opinion. While Nanamo's aggressively capitalist thought process aligned with his own guess, his primary concern was the immediate safety of his citizens. Doflamingo's orchestrated "coup" was a horrific, bloody strategy.
However, the other Kings of the world might not view the situation so calmly. After all, they intimately knew their own histories. If the horrifying details of Doflamingo's plot were deliberately leaked to them, they would inevitably suffer extreme paranoia, terrified that the former Celestial Dragons of their own nations might suddenly return to violently butcher them and reclaim their thrones.
And successfully thwarting Doflamingo's coup here in Dressrosa would serve as the absolute, flawless marketing case study to prove the Ryugu Kingdom's insurance reliability.
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