Aboard the Moby Dick.
Some members of the Whitebeard Pirates still remained on this ship.
Newgate's face looked grim. Even Teach, who'd followed Newgate for more than ten years, didn't dare speak as he stood below the captain's chair.
Newgate had been receiving continuous news from the Jam Island frontlines. At every moment, someone would report the situation to the Moby Dick. Newgate was the first to know important developments.
Now, he knew that his son, the captain of the 13th Division, Buffalo Atmos, had been killed on Jam Island not long ago. At Charlotte Linlin's hands.
Of course he was angry. Although Atmos hadn't been the strongest, he was still Newgate's son, a member of his family. He'd called him Pops.
Now he was dead. How could Newgate not be furious?
But what could be done?
Anyone could die in this war. Including him, Newgate!
After a long moment, Newgate's grim expression gradually dissipated. He didn't declare he'd avenge Atmos or anything dramatic like that. There was no need to say it. They'd reach Jam Island before dawn, and then there would definitely be a major battle.
"Pops?" Teach called out tentatively when he saw Newgate's expression return to something approaching normal.
Newgate regained his composure and looked at Teach. "I'm fine."
"I'm glad you're okay, Pops." Teach also breathed a sigh of relief.
After a brief pause, Teach said indignantly, "I'll definitely avenge Atmos!"
"This revenge must be avenged!" Newgate nodded.
At this moment, the Den Den Mushi rang on the table next to undercover agent Lucci.
Lucci glanced at the receiver, then looked at Newgate. "Pops, it's that Smoker guy."
"Answer it," Newgate replied.
Soon, Lucci picked up the Den Den Mushi. Smoker's voice came through immediately. "Whitebeard, can you wait three days for me? I still need three days to arrive!"
A flash of anger crossed Newgate's eyes, but he knew this wasn't the time to vent frustration at Smoker. He said seriously, "Impossible. Charlotte Linlin is on Jam Island, and I lost a captain there. If I give you three more days, the situation on Jam Island will have completely collapsed. By then, I don't know how many of my sons will have died..."
"But there's obviously something wrong here!" Smoker shouted.
Without waiting for Newgate to speak, Smoker continued directly. "I know about the battle situation on Jam Island too, but right now only the Big Mom Pirates are there. Where's Kaido? Where are the Beast Pirates? They're not there! This is obviously a trap. They saw there's no coordination between us. I can't support you quickly, so they set a trap for you on Jam Island. I bet that once you commit, Kaido's forces will emerge and surround you from behind, trapping you all on the island."
Newgate was silent for a long time after hearing this, because what Smoker said was the truth. From the beginning of the battle on Jam Island until now, there had been no sign of Kaido or the officers of the Beast Pirates.
Even Newgate himself didn't believe there was no trap here.
So what Smoker said was very likely accurate. Once he entered, Kaido would emerge and launch a counter-encirclement...
From a rational perspective, it would be better to wait three days for Smoker. After Smoker's main force arrived, there would be room for tactical adjustments.
But if he waited three days, what would happen to his sons who were fighting bloody battles on Jam Island right now?
They would definitely be defeated and killed one by one by Charlotte Linlin!
In truth, it had been inevitable that things developed to this point. They'd reached Jam Island in Totland's waters. Fighting on enemy territory, it was normal for Charlotte Linlin to seize the opportunity to set a trap.
It could even be said he'd been mentally prepared for this.
The current situation was a dilemma. If he went in, he'd fall into an encirclement by Charlotte Linlin and Kaido. Newgate didn't know what other contingencies they had prepared.
If he didn't go in, many captains of the Whitebeard Pirates would die, and the crew would suffer catastrophic damage.
How to choose?
This was Charlotte Linlin's trap. She'd sacrificed several naval battles and islands to dig a pit that was impossible to avoid!
"I'm Whitebeard..." After prolonged silence, Newgate said to Smoker through the Den Den Mushi.
Just a simple sentence left Smoker speechless.
Yes, he was Whitebeard, the world's strongest man. How could he be afraid?
Yes, he was Newgate. A man like him couldn't abandon his sons.
"So you never had a real choice from the beginning?" Smoker asked softly.
"Gurararara!" Newgate laughed, then looked at the Den Den Mushi seriously. "Of course I have no choice!"
"Then I hope you can hold on for three days!" Smoker said gravely.
"Who do you think I am? Three days..." Newgate was stunned mid-sentence.
"Seems you've figured it out. I hope you don't sink Jam Island within three days. Otherwise... it'll be even more troublesome. We might not even make it to your funeral," Smoker said with dark humor.
"Hmph, don't be so arrogant, kid," Newgate snorted coldly.
Smoker smiled and said nothing more. He didn't try to persuade Whitebeard further, because that would be meaningless. He simply hung up the Den Den Mushi.
After staring at the disconnected receiver, Teach looked at his captain. "Pops?"
Newgate smiled. Then a ruthless look flashed in his eyes. He said firmly, "Speed up and rush to Jam Island. I'm going to sink that bastard Linlin to the bottom of the sea to feed the fish!"
The Moby Dick forced itself to accelerate even faster.
Maria Happy Island, Queen Stussy's base camp.
The Queen held a mysterious jar in her hand with a puzzled expression.
It was a transparent glass container filled with pink liquid. In the center of the liquid, an irregular stone was suspended.
"What is this?" Queen Stussy asked curiously.
She felt like she'd seen this thing before, but couldn't remember where.
At the same time, holding it in her hand, it felt... dangerous somehow?
"Lady Stussy, this is a new weapon that's been circulating on the black market the past two days. We conducted a careful investigation and learned it's called Dyna Stone, and it seems to be..." one of Stussy's subordinates said excitedly.
Stussy, who had been listening curiously to the introduction, changed her expression when she heard this!
What the hell!?
This guy might not know what Dyna Stone was. He'd just heard about it on the black market. But how could Stussy not know what Dyna Stone was?
As a senior CP-0 executive, she knew perfectly well that Dyna Stone was a product of the New World, a special mineral that would produce a violent explosion once it came into contact with air.
The explosive power far exceeded ordinary bombs. This substance had always been classified as top secret by Mary Geoise. Large numbers of personnel had been dispatched to develop and protect it. Even the Marines' Science Unit was involved. It was vaguely praised as "explosives comparable to Ancient Weapons." Once the quantity was sufficient, it could destroy an entire island in minutes.
And now such a ferocious thing was being played with in her hands?
No wonder it looked familiar. Hadn't she seen related documentation when she'd been in Mary Geoise?
If her hand trembled and the glass fell to the ground and broke, there was a very good chance that everyone in the room, including herself, wouldn't be able to react in time. They'd all die!
Stussy's eyes filled with shock and anger. Her face trembled slightly as she asked, "Who brought this thing to this island? How many are there?"
Stussy's subordinate didn't seem to notice the change in the Queen's expression. He continued speaking casually. "We just seized these from the port. There were several small smugglers, and their boat was full of them..."
"Block the port immediately and arrest everyone related to this Dyna Stone. I want to interrogate them personally!" Stussy roared.
When the Queen showed her power, everyone in the room was frightened. After all, in their impression, Queen Stussy was always a smiling person who never got angry easily.
Even if someone offended the Queen, they'd only die mysteriously within three to five days. Therefore, although these people knew the Queen was ruthless, they rarely saw her lose her temper.
Soon, the Dyna Stone on Maria Happy Island was quickly secured under lockdown, and a large number of people were arrested for Queen Stussy's personal interrogation.
The New World, Totland waters.
On Smoker's ship, Finn looked out the cabin window at the sun slowly rising from the sea and said softly, "Newgate should be reaching Jam Island about now, right?"
"If nothing unexpected happens, he should be there. Judging from their distance, the Moby Dick can definitely reach Jam Island before dawn," Smoker stood behind Finn and said seriously.
Finn smiled when he heard this. "I've already warned Newgate. There shouldn't be any problems..."
"Then according to the plan, by the time we arrive, Charlotte Linlin, Kaido, and Newgate should be fighting fiercely. What about us?" Smoker raised his eyebrows and asked.
"What a great opportunity! In fact, if we could bring Sakazuki and the others, we could find an opportunity to annihilate these pirates here," Finn nodded and murmured.
But after a brief pause, he smiled again. "But Fleet Admiral Sengoku would probably go insane. Never mind, never mind. He's the Fleet Admiral. Just listen to him. It's only five years, isn't it? I'll just coast through and it'll be over..."
Before Smoker could ask what "coasting through" meant, Finn continued, "When we get there, we'll assess the situation. If Newgate's in trouble, we'll go after Kaido and Charlotte Linlin. If both sides are evenly matched, it would be best if the three of us fight together and beat them all..."
"What if Newgate has the upper hand?" Smoker suddenly asked.
Finn was stunned for a moment, then laughed. "That would mean Charlotte Linlin and Kaido are both incompetent idiots!"
After laughing, Finn looked at Smoker. "Do you think they're idiots?"
Smoker also laughed and shook his head. "No."
If Charlotte Linlin and Kaido were both idiots, then what were all the others who couldn't compare to them?
"Exactly," Finn said with a smile.
Just as Finn was talking with Smoker, Hina suddenly walked in from the door, holding a Den Den Mushi. Her expression was extremely serious. "Admiral, it's Sister Stussy..."
"Stussy?" Finn was momentarily confused. "What's wrong?"
"Finn, we have a serious internal problem. Two months ago, a large amount of Dyna Stone from the New World leaked into the black market..." Stussy said gravely.