Chapter 96 The Players' "Dogs" and Public Opinion Manipulation...
"...Ms. Bellemere of Cocoyasi Village hereby expresses her gratitude to this newspaper for the operation of the 'R'leye Fruit and Vegetable Express', thanking them for discovering the problem with the pirates in advance and for using their wisdom and courage to..."
In Marineford, Sengoku ate senbei (rice crackers) while reading the steaming hot newspaper that had just been delivered that morning by the newspaper seagull.
The newspaper's front page still featured the Whitebeard Pirates. Whitebeard, wielding the Murakumogiri, leaped upwards, his golden hair blending with the dazzling sunlight. His spirited appearance made Sengoku secretly gasp, suspecting that the picture wasn't taken by a reporter at all, but rather by his good sons who took it and provided it to the World Economic News.
Thinking about the white hair he had just pulled out this morning, Sengoku was so depressed that he almost couldn't even eat his snacks.
To ensure a good mood for the day, Sengoku flipped through three or four pages in one go until he knew Whitebeard wouldn't appear, before continuing to read with peace of mind.
Then I saw this heartwarming news.
Although I don't know why the newspaper devoted so much space to describing how high the quality of the "Ralleya Fruit and Vegetable Express" was, how nutritious the vegetables were, and how sweet the fruits were...
In short, this report, as a short story, interweaves various elements such as wits, ghosts, adventure, and suspense, with a plot full of ups and downs, and finally ends with a very noble and righteous ending where justice triumphs over evil.
Anyway, I still have some lingering thoughts after reading about the Warring States period.
I don't know who wrote this, but the writing style is quite good. I hope that the World Economic News will incorporate more stories like this in its future reports.
However, the La Leyeh Fruit and Vegetable Express, oh dear, this report has really piqued my curiosity.
Unfortunately, according to the report, the Rahley fruit and vegetable delivery line is currently limited by production capacity and can only supply reputable restaurants located near the East China Sea. However, the newspaper also promised that once Rahley's production capacity increases, they will gradually expand their delivery range, striving to cover the entire world so that everyone can enjoy healthy and delicious fruits and vegetables.
If you really can't wait to enjoy the delicious food, you can first go to the partner restaurants of the La Leyeh Fruit and Vegetable Special Line to enjoy the food.
So this really is an advertisement, right?!
Thinking of the pomegranates that were as red as jewels and the thin-skinned, seedless watermelons described in the newspaper, Zhan Guo suddenly felt that the senbei in his hand was dry and not fragrant at all.
A restaurant in Donghai, um, Donghai?
Sengoku immediately pounced on the Den Den Mushi, skillfully dialed Garp's number, and then bluntly commanded, "Garp, how many days have you been gone? It's time to come back!"
"Don't forget to bring back some local specialties from the East China Sea for me and A-He." After saying that, Sengoku, fearing that the hint wasn't obvious enough, added, "Remember to check the newspapers; there are reports about your East China Sea. Just bring back some easy-to-carry items for me and A-He." He didn't want to make things difficult for Garp with something so simple as soup or soup.
Beep beep—
Garp, wearing floral shorts and a white shirt, looked at the Den Den Mushi that had suddenly hung up, and picked his nose with his little finger: "Newspaper? Bogart, is there any news about the East Blue in today's paper?"
The taciturn man who was meditating and practicing swordsmanship in the back looked up upon hearing this, thought for a moment, and replied, "It seems there are rumors that the 8th Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates is heading towards the East Blue."
Garp flicked away an unidentified object: "Eighth Division, um, Eighth Division..."
Bogart sighed helplessly: "It's that merman Namur."
"Oh, it's him." Garp scratched his head in confusion, still using the same hand as before, which made Bogart's brow twitch wildly. "What did that guy do to offend Sengoku?"
"...Mr. Sengoku?"
"Ah, Sengoku wants me to capture Namur and take him back to Marineford." And if you're going to capture Namur, just capture Namur, why are you being so hesitant, talking about local specialties one minute and reading the newspaper the next, making it all so complicated.
Upon hearing this, Bogart had a question mark appear above his head. Thinking of his superior's usual unreliable behavior, he couldn't help but ask, "Lieutenant General Kap, are you sure Mr. Sengoku meant to capture Namur and bring him back to Marineford?"
Isn't this a bit too sudden?
"Yes, based on the tacit understanding between Sengoku and me after so many years of fighting side by side, it's definitely true!"
Karp slammed his hand on the railing, causing the entire dog-headed ship to rock: "We've been fighting together since boot camp. I know that bastard's about to... the moment he sticks his ass out..."
"Lieutenant General Garp!"
Bogart quickly interrupted Karp, then frantically gestured to him with his eyes.
There are still new recruits here, so pay attention to Vice Admiral Garp's image!
The original plan was for these new recruits to be led by Zephyr to the New World to see the true level of pirates who could break into the New World in this era of rampant piracy, and also to confirm one last time whether they were suitable for the dangerous and difficult path of the Navy.
As a result, Whitebeard's intervention completely disrupted Zephyr's training plan.
There's no way around it. No matter how ruthless Zephyr is when training new recruits, it's all to give them a greater chance of survival when they actually encounter danger in the future.
Training is one thing, fighting is another, and courting death is yet another.
Although the chances of the Whitebeard Pirates attacking a fleet of new recruits were slim, Zephyr and Sengoku still chose to halt the recruits' journey to the New World, dispersing them among various vice admirals to begin their apprenticeships ahead of time.
Bogart's keen eyes noticed a recruit standing frozen in the distance, looking dazed and on the verge of collapse.
Bogart has seen that look in his eyes far too often lately. Vice Admiral Garp, known as a naval hero, has too many legendary stories. It's normal to have all sorts of fantasies and longings about him before actually meeting him in the Navy.
This perfect filter, which exists only in fantasy, is usually shattered within a week of meeting Vice Admiral Garp.
Thinking of this, Bogart couldn't help but sigh again. Let it be broken. These young people should also know the dangers of the world.
"Alright, it's decided then. Go capture Namur and bring him back to Sengoku!"
Garp slapped his thigh and immediately gave the order: "Let's go!"
"Wait, Lieutenant General Garp, do you know where Namur is?!"
"Ah, hahaha, I completely forgot about that. But if Miu is a mermaid, she should be in a place where mermaids gather."
"That Mull is a fishman, a fishman, Vice Admiral Garp!"
"Hmm, don't worry about these little details. Okay, it's decided. Let's head to where there are more murlocs!"
——
“Sure, Violet.”
Upon receiving the call from Vera, Namuel beamed, "The fruit and vegetable business is doing quite well; it even made the newspaper!"
Violet: "Hehe, hehe."
Taking Tezzolo on as her professional agent was absolutely the right choice. Within an hour of speaking with Violet, Tezzolot sent her the "interview transcript" to be sent to the World Economic News Agency.
Upon learning that Violet had a good relationship with Fishman Island, and that Fishman Island was trying to resolve the misunderstandings between itself and humans, Tesoro created a second version of Violet's outfit in less than half an hour.
Compared to the first edition, the second edition omits Arlong and his fellow fish-men's identities, emphasizing instead the fish-man Haku's race, Koala's experience of being saved by the fish-men, and the exciting story of fish-men and humans working together to uncover a pirate conspiracy.
Even if the identities of the dragons are exposed, people will only think that even fishmen are divided into good and bad people just like humans, and will not feel too much hatred towards fishmen.
Of course, the main reason why this sense of malice did not arise was that the dragons not only failed to do anything evil, but also made their exit in a rather comical yet somewhat terrifying way.
Namuel: "I really don't know where your professional manager got that kind of magical poison. You have to be so careful with these things. Are you sure that guy doesn't have any ulterior motives towards you?"
To prevent misunderstandings about the products on the R'lyeh Fruit and Vegetable Line, Tesoro cleverly refrained from saying that the dragons' madness stemmed from eating too much monster jerky. Instead, he vaguely indicated that he had given them a slow-acting poison when he noticed something was wrong with them.
Vera shook her head: "It's alright, Tesoro won't betray me."
Tezzolo's dream is to make money, lots and lots of money, and ultimately achieve his dream of shaking the world with money.
At least for now, his personal development path is the same as R'lyeh's. As for the future, since Violet could subdue him once, she can subdue him a second time.
“Good, that’s the kind of presence you should have!” Namuel nodded approvingly. “You’re starting to look more and more like an island lord, Violet.”
"What kind of talk is that? I've acted like the island owner from the very beginning, okay?!"
"Ha ha!"
Arlong's attack on an innocent human island with his fishmen is arguably the biggest diplomatic incident on Fishman Island in recent times, given his highly sensitive status as a former member of the Sun Pirates.
Upon seeing Violet, Jinbe, a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea and the current captain of the Sun Pirates, said apologetically, "I'm sorry to trouble you again, Violet. It was my fault for not keeping a close eye on Arlong."
“How can you blame yourself?” Namuel disliked such discouraging words. “He’s got hands and feet, and he’s not young. You’re not his father; you can’t watch over him every day.”
“That Muir is right. If we really have to blame someone for this, it’s just Neptune and me for not paying attention to what everyone in Fishman Street was thinking.”
A familiar, gentle voice rang out, and upon seeing the newcomer, even Jinbe, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and Namur, the captain of the 8th Division of the Whitebeard Pirates, politely greeted him.
Vera's head popped out from behind the two of them: "Princess Otohime, it's been a long time!"
"Long time no see, Violet." Queen Otohime nodded gracefully to Violet, then turned to Jinbe. "Don't blame yourself, Jinbe. It's not your fault. The dragon, and those who choose to follow him, have a long history of hostility towards humanity. It wasn't caused by any one person, nor can it be eliminated by any one person."
The tall Jinbe nodded obediently in agreement.
“I know you’ve just taken over as captain of the Sun Pirates and a Shichibukai, so you might be a little nervous. Neptune, Tiger, and I all recognize your abilities, so relax, Jinbe.”
After saying this, Queen Otohime looked at Namur, the rebellious "child" who had followed Whitebeard since childhood and never came home.
Even though Princess Otohime was quite frail and her gaze wasn't particularly intimidating, Namur still couldn't help but stiffen for a moment the instant her gaze turned towards him.
"Namuel, if you have the chance this time you come back, you can stay on Fishman Island a little longer."
"Okay, okay."
Wow, Violet thought to herself, is this what a mother's aura is like? Jinbe and Namur are just like brats in front of Queen Otohime.
Namur scratched his head: "Did Queen Otohime come to see us off? Is there anything else she wants to tell us?"
"No, that's not it." Queen Otohime pointed to the large ship beside her. "I'm going with you this time."
Namur: "Huh?"
Vera: "Huh?"
Jinbe: "What?!"
Seemingly finding everyone's incredulous expressions quite amusing, Queen Otohime couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle twice, then winked at them in a less-than-elegant manner: "Can't I go out?"
Jinbe: "No, that's not what we meant, but Your Highness..."
"I was the one who persuaded everyone to land on Fishman Island, and I was also the one who initiated the petition signing campaign." Queen Otohime's tone was gentle yet firm. "How can I cower behind everyone else? I must at least experience life on land myself before I can convince others."
Queen Otohime is not the kind of person who just talks big about how misunderstandings between humans, fish-men, and mermaids can always be resolved through contact, but in reality, she doesn't even dare to approach the land.
This not-so-powerful body contained an unwavering belief and indomitable courage that even Neptune admired.
"Besides, Shirahoshi is preparing for the landing, and as her mother, I can't fall behind."
Both reasons were perfectly valid, and Jinbe and Namur were completely at a loss as to how to refuse.
Violet was quite happy. She still really liked this gentle-spoken, delicious-cooking, and beautiful NPC. So what if she was weak in combat? What game doesn't have a few storage managers and potted plants?!
Violet: "Don't worry, Princess Otohime, I will protect you."
"Then I'll leave it to you, Violet."
Now that things had come to this, Namiya and Jinbe knew they couldn't dissuade Queen Otohime from her "incognito travels." However, they figured there was no need to be so tense; the three of them were all quite capable, more than enough to protect Queen Otohime.
Queen Otohime: "Oh, right, besides me, there's another person who's going too."
After saying this, Queen Otohime looked up at the ship beside her and said, "Ville has arrived!"
Vera also looked up curiously and saw Musgarud, dressed in bulky white clothes and wearing a bubble hood, cautiously peeking out from the ship's side in the backlight. When she met Vera's gaze, she let out a shy moan, covered her face, and turned away.
Vera: ...
She! Is! Going! To! Throw! It!
As expected of Queen Otohime, while everyone was stunned and petrified by Musgard's performance, she still managed to say with a calm expression, "Saint Musgard has been saying for a long time that he wants to see you or speak with you, but I thought that Violet had important matters to attend to, so I haven't agreed yet."
“Musgarud has recovered from his injuries and is able to support long-distance voyages, so I thought I would take advantage of this voyage to put him in a safe place.”
Both Violet and Otohime knew perfectly well that the so-called recuperation was just a high-sounding excuse they used to keep Musgarud under house arrest. Now that Otohime had chosen to release him, there was only one possibility—their brainwashing plan had succeeded.
Violet sensed something glowing on the panel. Upon clicking it, she saw that the [Dog Training Master] title she had previously acquired was excitedly flashing, indicating that there was an object nearby that could activate the title.
...Uh, what was the title again? Dogs, creatures with dog-like personalities, and creatures that consider themselves dogs could be selected?
Violet stared dead at Musgarud, whose face was flushed red.
Which category does he fall into?
-----------------------
Author's Note: Vera: What on earth is he blushing over, like a teapot? [Angry]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com