East Blue, Loguetown.
[Oh――Oh――Oh――]
"Look, the News Coo is here!"
A young boy, hearing the sound, immediately looked up and excitedly pointed at the large bird descending from the sky. Beside him, his relatively young father smiled and waved his hand.
Soon, the white bird landed. It was a yellow-billed bird wearing a white hat and a red bag around its neck, and its eyes and expressions appeared remarkably human-like.
"Here, one hundred."
The father casually took a coin from his pocket and placed it in the red bag on the bird's chest, then received a freshly delivered newspaper. Meanwhile, the little boy carefully touched the News Coo's wings.
"Oh~"
The News Coo showed a happy expression at the successful transaction, and soon, men and women around gathered, ready to buy the latest issue of the newspaper.
"Give me one!"
"Me too!"
But these people didn't notice that the young father who bought the newspaper first suddenly changed his expression upon seeing the headline.
Quickly, more and more people saw the content, even the News Coo flying away went unnoticed, each person wore a look of astonishment.
[Shock! The Pirate King Gol D. Roger's Grand Treasure ONE PIECE has been found!!!]
The article detailed that the World Government had discovered the Grand Treasure on an island in the 'New World,' and a fleet of ten warships led by Marine Admiral Sengoku and Marine Hero Garp had already arrived at the island.
Moreover, the World Government would conduct a public live broadcast tomorrow, showcasing the fleet escorting the treasure back to Mary Geoise, allowing the world's populace to witness all the treasures before they were stored in the Holy Land Treasury.
"This is impossible!!"
At the Kizaru Bar in the Sabaody Archipelago, a handsome man with golden hair sat at the bar, staring blankly at the newspaper in his hand.
"Ah, what's wrong?"
Shakuyaku, who was wiping a glass with a cloth, looked over with a puzzled expression, as Rayleigh rarely reacted so strongly.
"It says here that the World Government found Laugh Tale and Roger's treasure, and that the gold and jewels filled two large cargo ships." Rayleigh placed the newspaper on the bar with a complex expression.
"Really?"
Shakuyaku, surprised, set down her glass and cloth to pick it up. She read quickly and then laughed, "I didn't expect you guys to be so wealthy back then. Why didn't you bring some back? We wouldn't have to live so poorly now."
"You're mistaken. We didn't leave any gold or silver treasures on that island." Rayleigh shook his head and sighed, looking at the whiskey in his glass with a face full of helplessness.
"Who would have thought that Roger's plans would be exposed by the World Government so quickly and in such a manner? Impressive!"
He thought about how Roger would surely be furious if he learned of this from the Land of the Dead.
Shakuyaku, being an extremely intelligent woman, immediately understood the implication of his words. She raised an eyebrow, holding the cigarette between her fingers, letting the smoke curl up slowly.
"So this is a show put on by the World Government. It's indeed a clever move, effectively mitigating half the impact of the treasure rumors, mainly cutting off any further fermentation."
"Eh――"
Rayleigh sighed again, downing the whiskey in one gulp, feeling unwilling!
In the latter half of the Grand Line, in the center of the New World, on Cake Island, Big Mom had just finished listening to her eldest son Perospero relay the contents of the newspaper.
"Ma~Ma~, what an astonishing move by the World Government."
At this moment, Charlotte Linlin's figure had not fully bloated yet; she looked somewhat plump, sitting on a massive throne, sensually crossing her legs.
"So those Marines are somewhere in this sea, right?"
"Yes, mama."
Twenty-six years old, Perospero, who had already taken on the role of Minister of Candy, nodded with his long tongue sticking out.
"Find them for me!"
Charlotte Linlin revealed a cold smile.
"Although I'm not sure if the treasure they found is real or fake, it doesn't matter anymore. Even so, I can't let those Marines leave this sea easily. I want to join in on this excitement~~"
To her, ONE PIECE had previously only been a symbol to prove her status as the Pirate King, after all, the saying on the sea was that whoever found it would become the next Pirate King, which is why she sought the Poneglyphs.
But now, with the World Government conducting this public live broadcast, that symbolic meaning was lost!
If the treasure escorted by the Marines was real, then there was nothing to say. But even if it was fake, it was still found, and as long as no one could prove it was fake and ensured that most people believed it, there would be no difference between the fake and the real.
Even if a member of the former Roger Pirates stood up, compared to the media power controlled by the World Government, the former's influence was negligible. Moreover, they would broadcast the escort process live and pile all the treasures together for the world to see, creating a profound impact.
In the face of 'facts' and 'evidence' with videos, images, and objects, those rumors were utterly powerless.
So even if she found the real ONE PIECE in the future, found Laugh Tale, not many would believe or acknowledge it, thus losing the legitimacy of her identity as the Pirate King! "It seems the World Government's actions have made mama a bit angry."
Perospero, holding a cane made of pink and white candy, understood his mother's expression immediately, being her eldest son.
The reason was easy to guess; the existence of ONE PIECE and Laugh Tale actually provided these Emperors of the Sea with a way to become the Pirate King without excessive conflict.
Just like Gol D. Roger, he didn't become the Pirate King by defeating Shiki the Golden Lion, Edward Newgate, or Charlotte Linlin, but by finding Laugh Tale.
But now, the situation had reverted to what it was decades ago. To become the next Pirate King, one must defeat all competitors in a manner akin to raising a poisonous insect, just like Rocks.
In East Blue, fifteen-year-old Shanks, wandering alone, sat on a beach outside a town, holding a newspaper, his expression growing increasingly grim, even angry.
"Nonsense! We didn't have that much treasure!!"
When they reached Laugh Tale, due to Buggy's sudden high fever, he stayed behind to take care of Buggy and didn't go ashore.
But one thing was clear: they hadn't moved that much treasure from the ship to the island, and Roger particularly loved throwing parties. Whatever money was stored on the ship would be spent entirely on food and drink, with the rest used to buy medicine and medical supplies to suppress Roger's terminal illness.
"Figarland Shanks, right?"
Suddenly, a cold voice came from behind Shanks. He instantly became alert and turned around, discovering a man in a white mask, accompanied by two men in suits.
"World Government personnel!"
"Come with us. The Five Elders have summoned you back to Mary Geoise."
Upon hearing this, Shanks, wearing a straw hat, froze for a moment, then his expression turned grim.