Smoker, who was chasing Luffy, had just finished replying to Sengoku's message and wished he could crush his phone!
He clenched his fists, his face filled with anger and unwillingness:
"Damn it, I was just about to catch Luffy! Why did Fleet Admiral Sengoku suddenly give such an order?!"
He was almost fuming, having chased at full speed for so many days, only for the duck in his hand to be suddenly ordered to change direction. This was simply unacceptable to him.
But Tashigi, who was beside him, looked at Smoker in surprise. She could feel his anger, but she had a different idea.
In her opinion, catching up to pirates didn't necessarily mean they could capture them.
She had a strong premonition that even if they caught up, Straw Hat would escape in the end, just like last time.
But she couldn't say these words directly, so she could only comfort Smoker from a different angle.
"Colonel Smoker, you should think of it this way: compared to a pirate, the safety of a country is clearly more important!"
Hearing this, Smoker was stunned for a moment, looking up at Tashigi, who then continued to brainwash him righteously,
"I believe Fleet Admiral Sengoku also understands this principle, which is why he had us change course midway to Alabasta."
At this point, Tashigi seemed to suddenly realize something, looking at Smoker with pleasant surprise,
"Colonel Smoker, do you think Fleet Admiral Sengoku's intention might be: to have us go to Alabasta in advance and wait for Straw Hat Luffy to take the bait?"
Smoker was suddenly stunned, as if his mind had been struck by lightning, and he froze in place, unable to move.
After a long time, he trembled, suddenly looked up, his eyes shining with understanding.
"I understand! It must be like this!"
"Princess Vivi is on Straw Hat Luffy's ship and might be taken hostage. If that's the case, then even if we catch them, it'll be useless."
Smoker's voice carried a hint of excitement, and his eyes grew brighter as he spoke,
"And once they reach Alabasta, Princess Vivi will definitely leave the Straw Hat Pirates, and that's when we make our move!"
Smoker's eyes grew brighter as he spoke, as if he completely understood Fleet Admiral Sengoku's meaning.
Then, he looked at Tashigi admiringly and patted her shoulder,
"Tashigi, you've finally grown up."
"...."
...
White Island,
A desolate island covered in white, where a moist sea breeze constantly blows, sending stone chips flying. This is the secret headquarters of the Revolutionary Army.
However, in a hidden cave somewhere, Dragon's hearty laughter could be heard,
"That child Luffy is truly spirited and young. He dares to challenge the Shichibukai as soon as he enters the Grand Line. He's even more fierce than his old man was when he was young."
Dragon sat on a rock inside the cave, holding his phone, with Luffy's latest video playing on the screen, a satisfied smile on his face.
Since their parting in Loguetown, he had thought he wouldn't know when he would see Luffy again.
But unexpectedly, with the advent of the phone, he could see Luffy every day and even keep track of Luffy's movements, as if Luffy were right beside him.
This result was more than satisfactory.
"How can you be young if you're not spirited?" Sabo walked in from outside the cave with a smile, carrying a hint of the sea's fishy smell on him, clearly having just returned from outside.
He saw Dragon watching Luffy's video and couldn't help but tease, "Dragon, watching Luffy's new video again?"
"Yes, this kid keeps shouting about becoming the Pirate King every day. It's hard for him not to attract attention."
Sabo also smiled. Dragon's son was a bit too bold.
However, looking at Luffy's appearance, he felt a strong sense of familiarity, as if he had seen him before, but he couldn't remember where.
(PS: The author found that many readers here don't understand and say that it has been mentioned before, so why mention it again? The author explains: The previous meaning was that Dragon would mention Luffy in casual conversations with Sabo, and also mention that Luffy is younger than Sabo, so it's natural to treat Luffy as a younger brother. But Sabo hadn't recovered his memories yet, he only knew Luffy's name, and would feel familiar when seeing photos. At this point, he still hadn't recovered his memories. He recovered his memories after the Summit War ended, when he saw the news of Ace's death.)
Moreover, every time he tried to think hard, he would get a headache, which made him feel very strange. Could it be that the two of them knew each other before?
He later asked Dragon about this, but Dragon denied it.
Because Dragon said that Luffy grew up in Windmill Village when he was a child, while the place where he saved Sabo was an island where the Celestial Dragons resided.
The distance between the two was too far, and the difference was too great; it was simply impossible for them to have any interaction.
Sabo also thought the same. Perhaps in the memories he had lost, there were some people who resembled Luffy, causing him to feel a sense of familiarity when he saw Luffy.
He shook his head, pushing this strange feeling aside, and turned his attention back to Luffy's video.
"This kid really makes people worry." Sabo said softly.
"Alright, enough about Luffy. How did this mission go?" Dragon looked at Sabo and asked with a smile.
"We struck gold!"
Sabo's eyes were full of smiles. He took out a map from his Pregnant, unfolded it, and pointed to a direction as he reported, "Our phones are selling exceptionally well in West Blue. Morgans sells them for 100 Belli, and we sell them for 300 Belli. Although our price is three times theirs, we can't even keep them in stock!"
"Hmm, that's to be expected." Dragon nodded. Even he himself knew that he had been playing on his phone all day except when he was sleeping.
This shows the appeal of phones!
Once people have a phone, they develop a very strong dependency on it, a dependency that cannot be easily shaken off.
"Of course, it also lived up to expectations. After getting phones, the residents also understood: there are countries beyond their own, and many islands beyond their own island!"
Sabo described the scene with longing in his eyes, "We helped those residents find their personal value, helped them control their own destiny, and become masters of their own countries, taking charge."
At this point, Sabo seemed to recall something interesting and looked at Dragon with a smile, saying:
"Dragon, you wouldn't believe it, but there were even two or three tyrannical countries that were overthrown by their own residents.
It's quite interesting, they all watched the videos we filmed before, and it was as if they awakened and stood up. And all these people have now become our fans."
Dragon nodded, a hint of satisfaction in his tone: "There are many countries like this. They just need a little help to become their own masters."
Sabo also nodded and continued, "Additionally, phone sales in East Blue, North Blue, and South Sea are pretty much the same as in West Blue.
Almost as soon as we arrived, the phones were snapped up. The phones we ordered from Morgans were simply not enough. Now, every base is calling daily, urging for shipments."
As phones became more widespread, more and more people could see the world beyond their islands.
The countries that were not oppressed and did not suffer daily beatings were what they yearned for, so their consciousness began to awaken, and their free will gradually emerged.
Sabo was also very happy to see this. They had helped many people, and their dream was for all oppressed and exploited people across the entire sea to stand up and control their own destinies.
Just then, Sabo's phone suddenly vibrated, and a message popped up. He glanced at it, then looked up at Dragon and said,
"Dragon, I'm leaving. Morgans's shipment has arrived."
"Okay, go. Pay attention to the Marine's movements." Dragon instructed.
"Yes!" Sabo nodded and turned to leave the cave.
-------------------------------
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