One Piece: New Order

Nusjuro's voice came through sharply. "The Germa Kingdom matter needs a proper explanation, Sakazuki. After all, they are a member nation of the government. If word gets out, what happens to our credibility?"

"The technology Germa holds is far too dangerous," Sakazuki replied calmly. "Given enough resources, they can create an army of elite soldiers in no time. It's better if we hold onto something like that.

"Besides, Dr. Vegapunk's research has hit a wall. Vinsmoke Judge used to work alongside him, though their research paths were very different. I've asked Enel to bring the data to Vegapunk, maybe it'll give him some inspiration."

There was a pause on the other end of the line.

Truthfully, the Elders were tempted by Judge's technology too. The ability to mass-produce soldiers indefinitely. And when it came to resources, no one had more than the World Government.

But taking it openly was difficult. If the government were seen snatching technology from a member nation, even one as disliked as the Vinsmoke family, it would look bad.

There's an old saying: even a fox feels sorrow when a rabbit dies.

No matter the Vinsmokes' reputation, a direct move by the government would set a dangerous precedent. But if a marine admiral acted on his own...

The Elder spoke again, "This matter ends here and must not be repeated, but handle the aftermath properly to ensure none of it leaks."

Sakazuki hummed. "Understood."

Click.

The line cut off.

Enel looked surprised. "That's it? It's over?"

"Of course not. We still have cleanup to do." The admiral smiled lightly and turned to Bullet. "Go back one more time and break both his legs. Let it be a lesson. Make him hate me instead."

Bullet laughed. "Consider it done."

He stomped the ground. In a flash, he vanished. Moments later, a warship slowly pulled out of the harbor.

Watching Bullet set sail, Enel frowned and then asked, "Uncle, handing Judge's tech to Teacher Vegapunk… If that project he's working on really gets completed, wouldn't that make them even harder to deal with? In the future..."

"Don't worry. It won't succeed. Not anytime soon. At least twenty years," Sakazuki said with certainty.

Enel tilted his head, confused.

The admiral chuckled at that. "How do you know Vegapunk isn't... one of us?"

Enel's face froze with a stunned expression. "What the hell! How come I didn't know anything?!"

"There's a lot you don't know," Sakazuki responded quietly. "The Five Elders... hmph. We decide when he succeeds. And what he succeeds in."

Enel rolled his eyes. 'Do you even understand any of this?'

Smack!

A lightning-fast flick landed on his forehead as Sakazuki's voice followed. "I can tell you're thinking something rude."

Straightening up, Enel called out, "No! Not at all! You're the best, Uncle!"

Sakazuki smiled. "It's not that I don't want to tell you. It's just that even if you knew, it's useless. You wouldn't be able to do anything with it, so just focus on growing stronger."

Enel furrowed his brows. "Huh? Aren't you underestimating me too much? I may not be as... ruthless as you all, but I'm not dumb."

The admiral looked at him. "Then let me test you. What's the purpose of this 'Four Blues Sweep Campaign'?"

Enel answered fast, "To crush the wave of pirates triggered by the Pirate King, Roger. Stop its rising momentum in the shortest time possible. Stabilize the global situation."

Sakazuki shook his head. "That's just the surface, a cover. You only guessed the last part right; the real goal is to stabilize the world. Roger's era of pirates can't be stopped. Desire grows over time and always has. This campaign only needs to delay the pirate surge for three years. Do you know why?"

Enel stayed silent, completely lost.

Sakazuki explained, "Because only by quickly suppressing people's urge to set sail can we prevent the Revolutionary Army from getting exposed too early. It also gives them time to grow.

"If we don't launch this campaign, the number of rookie pirates setting sail each year will multiply. A few years later, the government will notice a global decline in productivity.

"And once they investigate, they'll find the reason. There's no easy fix for it. But in that climate, the Revolutionary Army's ideology becomes extremely threatening. The government would eliminate them immediately."

In the original timeline, Dragon had explored things on his own for more than a decade. Only after some success did he begin to start actual revolutions. But now things had changed. He'd basically had a revolutionary handbook dropped on his head. Whether he wanted it or not, growth was inevitable.

If the rise of pirates wasn't suppressed now, then in a few years, after the government began investigating the root cause, the Revolutionary Army, with its dangerous ideology, would be the first to get destroyed.

But with Sakazuki holding down the pirate wave, things would go differently. Productivity would dip slightly worldwide, but not enough to raise alarms.

The government wouldn't think too much of it. Then, after a few years, when people forgot their fear and started setting sail in large numbers…

By the time the government noticed the real productivity drop, even more years would have passed. At that point, the Revolutionary Army would already be everywhere. Too widespread to wipe out.

Then once the moment was right, just send Robin over. She'd bring with her the knowledge to kickstart an industrial revolution…

Sakazuki went on, "That's why this must be kept under control. The government doesn't yet see the danger of the Revolutionary Army. Because, currently, productivity hasn't fallen.

"Even though many people live difficult lives, they can still survive. But years from now, as large numbers of young people leave their homes, and the workforce declines, while the Heavenly Tribute remains the same, people won't be able to live under that pressure.

"Once they can't survive, what do they do? Revolt. If they start a revolution that affects the entire world, the folks at the Holy Land won't be able to sit still. And when the time comes…"

He let out a cold chuckle.

Enel still looked confused. Clearly, he wasn't cut out for this kind of long-game strategy.

"But... Uncle," he asked, "What if the Revolutionary Army becomes too big to handle? What then? We can't just kill everyone."

Sakazuki waved his hand dismissively. "Killing the leader is enough. I had you record Dragon's electromagnetic field for a reason. We just need to cut off the head. Their ideology may sound great, but it's been trimmed down a lot.

"Revolution sounds noble... but not everything in this world can be solved by revolution. This isn't a world controlled by ordinary people. The most overlooked factor… is strength."

In the early stages, things might go smoothly for them. Most countries in the Four Blues are still in an agricultural era. Sure, there are powerful people, but the Revolutionary Army can handle that much.

But once they reach the Grand Line… the New World…

They're in for a brutal awakening.

Pirates there won't care about their ideals. Doesn't matter how many revolutionaries show up. Even if they gathered 100,000 or 200,000 troops, Knox could vaporize them with a single steam blast.

They'd all become roast meat. So what would they use to carry out a revolution then?

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