If he truly succeeds in achieving this goal, the consequences will be unimaginable!!!
"We must stop El from obtaining the Op-Op Fruit at all costs! If he gets it, we Marines will never be able to defeat him. We will be forced to live under his shadow forever!" Sengoku shouted, slamming his hand on the table and standing up abruptly.
"No wonder that man El has been so quiet and inactive on the seas all these years… who would have thought he was planning something like this?!" Zephyr growled, his brows furrowed deeply.
They had all been wondering why El had made no significant moves ever since he revived Rocks. It never occurred to any of them that during all these years of silence, he had actually been secretly searching for the Op-Op Fruit, seeking to gain the power of eternal life!!!
"Rest assured, we will not allow El to get his hands on it. According to the intelligence we have gathered, the fruit is currently in the possession of a man named Diego Barrett."
Kuroba continued his report.
Diego Barrett was none other than the father of X Drake, one of the Supernovas who would rise to fame in the worst generation. He was originally a high-ranking Marine officer, but for reasons unknown, he betrayed the Navy and became a pirate.
After accidentally obtaining this Devil Fruit, he had contacted the Marines, intending to sell it to them at a high price.
The Marines were fully aware of just how valuable and important this fruit was. Therefore, the moment they confirmed its location, they offered him an astronomical sum of no less than ten billion berries!!!
They were determined to ensure that Diego Barrett would not sell it to anyone else.
Hearing this news, all the high-ranking officers in the room let out a collective sigh of relief. As long as the Marines secured the fruit first, El's dream of immortality would be shattered, and the heavy weight on their hearts would finally be lifted.
"The importance of this Devil Fruit to us cannot be overstated. Therefore, I am ordering you to go personally to the island where Diego Barrett is located and retrieve that fruit at all costs!"
Kong stood up, his gaze sweeping across the assembled officers, his expression stern and serious.
No matter what happened, they had to get that fruit. However, to prevent any accidents or interference along the way, they needed to send someone strong enough to ensure the mission was completed safely and securely.
"I'll go, Kong. I don't have anything else to do right now anyway."
Garp was the first to stand up and volunteer.
"The seas have been rather calm lately. The old generation of pirates aren't making any moves, and the rising stars have all joined us as the Seven Warlords of the Sea. I doubt anything major will happen while I'm gone, so I'll go along as well."
Sengoku stood up and added his voice.
"Then I shall accompany you too." Zephyr also agreed.
"Hmm, this task shouldn't take too much time or effort. I might as well come along." Tsuru said.
Garp, Sengoku, Zephyr, and Tsuru — four of the most powerful and legendary figures in the Marines — all decided to personally travel to the island to secure the Devil Fruit.
"Very well. I will entrust this mission to the four of you." Kong nodded in approval.
Although sending four such powerhouses might seem like overkill, they wanted to eliminate every possible risk and ensure the fruit was obtained without fail. Therefore, Kong fully approved of their decision to go together.
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
The Kingdom of Drostland.
Although the country had been completely destroyed during previous battles, El had simply ordered his men to rebuild it exactly as it was, since he couldn't be bothered to move his base of operations elsewhere.
At this moment, El was sitting peacefully by the seaside, fishing.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Footsteps approached from behind. El turned his head slightly and saw Naguri standing there, holding a wooden chest. He walked up to El and spoke respectfully.
"Mr. El, this is a Devil Fruit that Moria has sent as tribute."
"Understood. Put it down over there." El nodded slightly.
The reason Moria was sending Devil Fruits to El dated back several years. Back when El had planned to kill Brook in order to make the Revive-Revive Fruit reappear in the world, he had arrived at Thriller Bark and was unexpectedly attacked by Moria's men.
El had been ready to wipe them all out, but Moria managed to save his crew and his own life by offering several Devil Fruits as tribute. Up until now, this was already the second fruit Moria had found and given to him.
Adding this latest one to his collection, El now possessed a total of forty-five natural Devil Fruits.
On top of that, he also had one hundred Artificial Devil Fruits.
Since ten Artificial Devil Fruits were equivalent in value to one natural one, this meant El effectively had the equivalent of fifty-five fruits available to use!
However… the items in the System Shop had not refreshed for a very long time, so El had simply continued to stockpile them all this while.
"Besides that, I have another important piece of information to report to you, Mr. El." Naguri continued.
"Oh?"
El turned around fully and looked at him with a slight smile.
Right now, the things El was most interested in were the Revive-Revive Fruit, the Op-Op Fruit, and the whereabouts of the Lantern Fish.
And Naguri, being his most trusted steward and the person who understood him best, would only call something "important" if it was related to these things!
"According to our intelligence, a man named Diego Barrett has found the Op-Op Fruit!" Naguri reported truthfully.
"Diego Barrett, huh?"
So it was this man who had found it.
That meant the timeline had already reached the point where Law was working under Doflamingo. Time really did fly by.
At this rate, Monkey D. Luffy must only be a small child of a few years old now.
However, due to El's existence, the future was already beginning to change drastically. Brook had already been killed by El's own hand, meaning Luffy would be missing one crew member in the future.
Of course, even without that change, El never believed for a second that Luffy would ever become the Pirate King in this timeline.
"Prepare a ship for me. I will go there personally."
After quickly analyzing the current timeline, El gave his order.
The importance of the Op-Op Fruit to him was absolute. Therefore, he intended to go himself to ensure he obtained it without any issues.
By now, El had already raised several subordinates who were incredibly loyal and willing to give their lives for him. As long as he got his hands on this fruit, eternal life would be his!
"Wait a moment, Mr. El. According to our investigation, this Diego Barrett intends to sell the fruit to the Navy. It is almost certain that they will send their own forces to retrieve it."
"Should we send more strong fighters to accompany you?"
Naguri asked with concern.
Although they had been searching for the fruit quietly and secretly, they had been doing so for many years. It was inevitable that the Marine's intelligence network would eventually find out that El wanted it.
Now that news of the fruit's location had spread, the Navy would definitely be on high alert. They would almost certainly send powerful experts to that island to secure it.
"Do you think that is necessary?"
El set his fishing rod aside and spoke calmly.
Years ago, El had already fully unlocked all the powers of the Sage of Six Paths. Since then, he had also gained the majority of Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's abilities.
At this point, there was truly no one in this entire world that El considered a threat.
So what if the Navy sent their strongest men?
If he happened to meet those Marines on that island… El wouldn't mind wiping them out completely.
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