One Piece: Get Stronger by Watching Battles

"Actually, having guessed this far, we might as well be a little bolder... The World Government is trying to confirm who is behind Fish-Man Island, behind Shirahoshi!"

Neptune's voice suddenly became more impassioned.

"No, that's not right. They should have already made a judgment about this candidate. They are trying to confirm whether this person is Zhou Ze!"

Fanchexing's body trembled slightly, and he stammered as he spoke.

"Then, Father, what about them now..."

Neptune turned and swam toward the throne.

"That's right, they are now almost certain that the person is Zhou Ze, and Zhou Ze has obviously realized this as well!"

The kingdom's Grand Knight returned to the throne, clenching his fist tightly for a long time.

"Overturned Star, go and deliver a message to Musgard: I... and Fishman Island accept his terms!"

Fanchexing sensed the decisiveness in Neptune's tone, knowing that his father had staked the entire Fishman Island on Zhou Ze.

This "message" is actually no different from a declaration of war... if the World Government defines Zhou Ze as an "enemy"!

……

"So, the Commander-in-Chief of the Army came here with some special mission, and he didn't reveal any of it to you?"

After listening to Garp's account, Lieutenant General Tsuru pondered and summarized.

"Not only that old guy, but also the Celestial Dragon Musgard..." Garp secretly breathed a sigh of relief, finally able to extricate himself from the situation for the time being.

He picked his nose, his tone full of dissatisfaction, "They were acting suspiciously, you could tell at a glance..."

"You retired old man, watch your mouth! I'm still active duty!" Lieutenant General Tsuru glared at Garp and sternly stopped Garp's 'disrespectful' words.

Then, frowning, he said, "If you, an old man, can't get anything out of them, they probably won't care about my opinion as their subordinate."

Garp pretended not to hear and didn't respond, but Vice Admiral Tsuru had no intention of letting him off the hook.

"So what about Zhou Ze? How much is he involved in all of this?"

Karp paused for a moment while picking his nose, but only for a second before resuming his normal action, rudely flicking the booger aside with an indifferent tone.

"That brat is at G4 base, right? With Tina keeping an eye on him every day, what could he possibly get involved in?"

Knowing that this explanation wasn't very convincing, he added another sentence.

"If you care so much, you can ask Tina!"

It would have been better if this hadn't been mentioned. The moment it was brought up, Vice Admiral Tsuru became even more convinced that Garp was trying to cover something up. Tina, that little girl, had also been acting strangely lately, clearly hiding something.

Hmph, these guys, every single one of them, can hide things from me!

As a result, Vice Admiral Tsuru's gaze toward Garp became even more hostile, but she did not tell Garp about Tina's reaction to her.

In fact, Garp really didn't know that Tina was hiding something from Vice Admiral Tsuru, which made him, the old man, take the blame.

However, as Lieutenant General Tsuru's comrade-in-arms for many years, Garp still sensed the change in the old lady's attitude, which immediately put him on alert.

"Ahem, by the way, the 'Quotations of Zhou Ze' that's been circulating widely in the military lately is said to have been created by Zhou Ze to strengthen the psychological resilience of the navy..."

Lieutenant General Tsuru knew that Garp was deliberately changing the subject, but he didn't point it out. He didn't want to let the old man lower his guard. How could he get information out of him?

So the old lady followed up with a remark.

"Yes, that's true. However, Tina told me that this isn't what Zhou Ze wanted. That kid is already compiling new materials."

Oh, so Zhou Ze is considered honest?

Upon hearing this, Garp raised an eyebrow, his guard immediately lowering considerably, and he let out a few hearty laughs.

"Hahaha, I knew it! This has nothing to do with that brat!"

"Is that so, Garp?" Vice Admiral Tsuru smirked.

"Didn't you tell me before that you didn't know what happened? So, what is this 'matter' you're talking about? And how can you be sure that 'this matter' has nothing to do with Zhou Ze?"

Karp's laughter stopped abruptly, as if he had been choked, and his face turned dark red!

Chapter 429 Zhou Ze's Elimination Plan

Grand Line, G4 Base.

"The World Government's envoy has used the excuse that my sister has not yet returned to Fish-Man Island to suggest that further negotiations cannot be carried out for the time being, so my father has not seen Saint Musgard for several days."

In the base commander's office, Zhou Ze sank into a large chair, looking out at the sea through the floor-to-ceiling windows, listening to the Shark Star Prince's narration on the Den Den Mushi on the table.

On the other end of the Den Den Mushi, Shark Star finished saying what he needed to say and fell silent. After a long while, he couldn't help but remind her...

"Zhou Ze, is Father worried that the World Government is...?"

"Oh, is that so!"

Zhou Ze suddenly interrupted Shark Star, tapping his fingers lightly on the armrest a few times. He smiled silently.

"Please tell His Majesty Neptune that there is nothing to worry about, things are not as complicated as they seem...!"

Shark Star didn't detect anything wrong in Zhou Ze's tone, and immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He had been so tense when he heard his father's assessment that he could barely breathe.

"So, what's your and your sister's itinerary...?"

"Yes, the itinerary will not change. Shirahoshi and I will return in a few days."

Zhou Ze remained gazing at the sea. "I need a few more days. There are still some things I haven't finished."

Then, before Shark Star could say anything more, he spoke again.

"Don't worry, I'll handle it. That's all for today!"

After saying that, he hung up the Den Den Mushi.

In the inner bay of the base's plaza, Shirahoshi was idly using it as a swimming pool, slowly drifting around.

These past few days, Zhou Ze has not left the G4 base, nor has he asked her to leave, and she hasn't even gone to Alabasta again, which makes her miss Vivi a little.

Bai Xing looked up at the largest floor-to-ceiling window in the base, her eyes filled with a mixture of worry and curiosity.

"What has Lord Zhou Ze been writing in his room these past few days? Wasn't the previous material already completed?"

In the office, Zhou Ze's gaze shifted from the outer sea to the bay, lingering on Bai Xing for a long time before he blinked his sore eyes.

The materials needed for the Navy's psychological preparation were indeed completed several days ago; what he's been writing these past few days is for Vivi and Binz...

He can still remember the 'knowledge' in his mind!

The notebooks that recorded 'knowledge' were stacked one on top of another on his desk, and there were already several piles of them. This scene made him feel like he was sitting at a high school senior's desk.

"hey-hey!"

Thinking of this, Zhou Ze suddenly chuckled self-deprecatingly.

"I've been frequently recalling scenes from my past life lately, which isn't a good sign!"

……

The Holy Land, Mary Geoise.

The five elders gathered together, some standing and some sitting, but no one spoke first, creating a very oppressive atmosphere.

After an unknown amount of time, the old man with the cane gently tapped his short cane.

"Five days have passed since Steelbone sent back the message. The facts should be clear by now!"

The bald man with the knife tapped the scabbard against his shoulder, producing a pleasant clinking sound, his eyes flashing with a fierce light.

“That’s right. If we couldn’t accurately distinguish who ‘that person’ was between Zhou Ze and that group of traitors from the Nefertari royal family before, now it’s certainly enough for us to make a judgment!”

The blond man, standing like a pine tree, turned around.

"Recent intelligence indicates that the traitors have had very limited contact with the mermaid princess, and the mermaid princess has not reappeared in Alabasta. The problem of these traitors can be put aside for now. The most urgent task is to eliminate Zhou Ze!"

"And immediately, right away!"

The old man with the birthmark on his head added sternly, glancing at the others.

"You all know very well what decisions Lord Im made in response to this incident, those Celestial Dragons..."

"Cough cough!" A violent cough from the long-haired old man interrupted his 'indiscreet' words.

“We are all well aware of the seriousness of the problem, even if you don’t go into details. After all, Lord Im has already accurately narrowed down the suspects to Nefertari Vivi and Zhou Ze…”

"This is enough to show that Lord Im has been paying attention to 'that person' for a long time. Let's discuss how to 'eliminate Zhou Ze' as soon as possible!"

The atmosphere fell silent again as the five elders fell into deep thought.

After a long, long time, the group finally looked up and observed each other's expressions, confirming that they all had some ideas in mind.

The length of time they spent contemplating the matter showed that this time, they were taking it more seriously than ever before.

The bald man with the sword was the first to speak, immediately rejecting one option.

"Since Sakazuki took office, his attitude towards Zhou Ze has been inexplicable, and the new generation of naval personnel holds Zhou Ze in the highest esteem..."

"The navy is not trustworthy!"

The bald man's definition of the navy surprisingly made the other four nod in agreement.

"As for CP spies... given the strength Zhou Ze demonstrated in the Xixiluo Island incident, they are not of much use."

At this point, the bald man lightly tapped the scabbard with his fingers, and with a crisp "whoosh," a section of the blade of the first generation Kitetsu, gleaming with a chilling light, was revealed.

"Therefore, this time, I plan to take action myself!"

The other four agreed with the bald man's earlier assessment; however, during their long deliberation, none of them had considered the possibility of them taking action themselves.

They were all surprised that the bald man with the knife was going to personally take action.

After a brief silence, the old man with a birthmark on his head, sitting next to the bald man, spoke up in protest.

"No, that's not appropriate. Given our status, taking action in the lower realms, regardless of our motives, will unsettle all forces. Unless absolutely necessary, it's the worst choice!"

These words greatly displeased the bald man with the knife. Just as he was about to retort, the old man with the cane spoke up.

"It's best to be cautious!"

This made the bald man even more dissatisfied. "The Navy doesn't dare to use it, and we don't have enough CP. So tell me, what other forces do we have to eliminate Zhou Ze?"

The old man with the cane glanced first at the blond man and the long-haired old man who hadn't yet expressed their opinions, before looking at the bald man with the knife.