Chaos in the north sea!

While Nekomamushi in Wano Country was having an existential crisis...

In the North Blue, off the 71st Marine Branch, a few years ago, Doflamingo had left the North Blue with his family members. Unexpectedly, after many years, he found himself back in the place where it all began.

"Young Master, it's snowing," someone remarked as a snowflake landed on his nose. Sitting on the bow of the Flamingo ship, Doflamingo looked up at the grey sky.

For any pirate, returning to their starting point from the Grand Line was undoubtedly a humiliation. This was especially true for someone as domineering as Doflamingo, who had worn many hats: Celestial Dragon, Shichibukai, underground arms dealer, and leader of the human trafficking business. Doflamingo was not used to such disgrace.

Indeed, Doflamingo was now a proud member of the Shichibukai. Although there were currently only four members, the Shichibukai were beginning to emerge as a significant new force on the seas.

Returning to the North Blue, Doflamingo reactivated the agents he had planted years ago. Using their influence, either overtly or covertly, he stirred up the region's political climate through power, persuasion, and profit. By inciting conflict and creating a sense of crisis, he forced the nations of the North Blue into an arms race. This situation allowed him to profit from selling weapons, thereby accumulating wealth once more.

Doflamingo intended to recruit talent in the North Blue, strengthen the Donquixote family, and then return to the New World in full force.

Though such maneuvers would inevitably lead some nations to resort to war to escape the endless arms race, Doflamingo felt no guilt. In his view, this era of great upheaval was like a wave crashing onto the shore. Ordinary people were like grains of sand on the beach. If they were swept away by the tide, no one would care. Their lives were insignificant, mere footnotes in the grand scheme, as countless nameless grains were destined to be swallowed by the sea.

As Doflamingo's thoughts wandered, a sudden urgent ringing from a Den Den Mushi (transponder snail) pulled him back to reality.

Doflamingo answered the call, and within seconds, his expression changed, and his brow furrowed.

"I understand. Calm the guests down first, then put a bounty on that guy through the underworld. Even if he has eaten the Devil Fruit, we'll cut open his stomach to get it back!"

Soon, one of the Donquixote family members, Trebol, approached Doflamingo.

Trebol handed Doflamingo a sealed document and said, "Information from Vergo."

In this world, it wasn't just the Marines planting agents in pirate crews; ambitious individuals and even World Government member countries also tried to infiltrate the Marines. Among them, the Revolutionary Army and Nicholas were particularly aggressive, planting spies even in the upper echelons of the Navy.

Long ago, Doflamingo had sent one of his trusted lieutenants to become an undercover agent within the Marines. Vergo was Doflamingo's plant in the Navy, capable of delivering crucial intelligence when needed.

This time, Vergo's intelligence was shocking: the Beasts Pirates had entered the North Blue, led personally by Kaido!

This message from Vergo stirred a tempest in Doflamingo's heart.

"Is the information accurate?" Doflamingo asked, frowning. Such critical information required utmost caution.

"It's been verified and confirmed," Trebol said hastily. "Several North Blue Marine branches have been completely destroyed. Based on our analysis, it seems Kaido's target is the armed organization Germa 66."

Vergo learned this information because Kaido was so brazen. Upon entering the North Blue, he destroyed several Marine branches, ensuring the Navy was the first to receive the news.

Unsurprisingly, the news of Kaido and the Beasts Pirates entering the North Blue would soon spread across the region and then the world. No one could predict the global impact of Kaido personally leading the Beasts Pirates into the North Blue.

"Fuffuffuffuffu, how interesting," Doflamingo laughed. With Kaido, a New World powerhouse, entering the North Blue—a region considered one of the World Government's backyards—it was clear what would happen next.

Considering the havoc Nicholas caused at Mariejois and Roger's destruction of Enies Lobby, it was evident a world-shaking storm was brewing.

"Trebol, the tide sweeping across the world has come. Those who don't get on the ship will be left behind, and there's only one person at the helm. And now, we're already on board!"

"You mean...?"

Trebol hesitated.

"For now, it seems the helm of the New World is in Nicholas's hands."

"..."

The world's balance was crumbling, bringing new opportunities. Who would be pulled from their thrones, and who would ascend to new ones?

On Baltigo, the Island of White Soil, the base of the Revolutionary Army, the land was barren and often shrouded in sandstorms, making it an obscure and uninhabited island.

For its concealment, it was unlikely to be discovered by the World Government and the Marines due to its inhospitable environment. The Revolutionary Army's buildings on Baltigo were constructed from the island's sandstone, giving them a stark, white appearance.

Today, Baltigo enjoyed rare good weather, and the perpetual sandstorms had ceased. Many Revolutionary Army members took the opportunity to move their goggles to their foreheads, relishing the rare comfort.

On an open-air balcony in the core area of Baltigo, the Revolutionary Army's leader, Dragon, wearing his well-worn green cloak, gazed up at the sky, his green hood pulled back, revealing a face marked with a red grid tattoo.

"Bad news keeps coming, Dragon," said Ivankov, the large-faced man, stepping out onto the balcony to stand beside Dragon.

"Yeah," Dragon replied in a low voice, still looking at the sky.

After the uproar at Mariejois with Nicholas, the World Government had gone mad. The CP organizations were recklessly hunting for him and the Revolutionary Army's whereabouts, even destroying several secret bases. Due to the World Government's infiltration and subversion, several resistance groups had traitors within their ranks, causing significant losses to the Revolutionary Army.

"Today, the resistance in the Jono Forest Kingdom in the West Blue was wiped out by the king's forces and World Government troops. All comrades were lost. Additionally, there are reports from the North Blue that the Shichibukai Doflamingo and the Beasts Pirates have appeared there. The Navy has dispatched Aokiji, Akainu, and Kizaru."

"I understand. Tell our groups to lay low for now. Cut off all contact except for direct orders from headquarters. Don't trust any other communication. Maintain radio silence. With Nicholas and Roger in the forefront, this storm should pass soon."

"Sigh..."

Ivankov sighed, looking up at the sky, feeling the gathering storm. As a high-ranking member of the Revolutionary Army, he too sensed the impending turmoil. This wave sweeping across the seas would surely engulf many.