39 Future Plans and Preparations

In the Chief Justice's office at the Judiciary Tower, I was reading the newspaper while sipping on the coffee Pochi had brewed. The article mentioned the Red-Haired Shanks, now known as one of the Four Emperors, ruling the seas.

Shanks became one of the Four Emperors about 3 to 4 years before the start of the original story, which would be around the time Ace set out on his journey and established the Spade Pirates...

Regarding Water 7, everything seemed to follow the original story; Iceburg became the mayor, and I also confirmed the information about Franky and the dismantler family from Bruno's report.

There were no discrepancies with my knowledge of the original story. It seemed to be progressing almost as I remembered it.

Now, with the original story about to start soon, I should decide on my plan for the Water 7 arc.

Namely, should I let the Straw Hat crew's rescue of Robin happen just like in the original story or end their adventure here...?

First, let's consider the merits and demerits of each option. If I were to annihilate the Straw Hat crew, it wouldn't require much effort. At least at the level they were during the Water 7 arc, I could defeat them all in less than 10 seconds. Perhaps, I could leave it to Pochi, and it would be over even faster.

Even if some kind of miracle occurred, like Luffy awakening his Devil Fruit or others mastering Haki, it would only prolong the time to defeat them to about 10 to 15 seconds.

The execution itself wouldn't be a problem... The benefit would be maintaining the status quo. It wouldn't be an outstanding outcome, but it wouldn't be a bad or risky result either.

However, the demerit is significant. If the Straw Hat crew were to be wiped out here, my knowledge of the original story would become almost meaningless from that point onwards. Losing that advantage of future information would be a bit regrettable.

Next, for the case of rescuing Robin as in the original story and having Enies Lobby collapse... This would also be feasible. Assuming Pochi and I don't intervene, it would likely follow the original story. Concerning Fizz, if I assign him a distant mission, he could be absent during the Enies Lobby arc.

While CP9 members are stronger compared to the original, there is still a significant factor that makes it likely they would lose if they fought according to the original story.

The reason being that I'm slightly struggling with how to handle them... I can see "arrogance" in the CP9 members. Well, in a sense, it might be inevitable. Since becoming members of CP9 after leaving Guanhao, they have remained undefeated. They have never even had a tough fight, winning each battle with ease.

Unbeknownst to them, this has led to a sense of arrogance in their hearts, hindering their growth. Somewhere inside, they believe that they are already sufficient and lack the eagerness to become stronger.

The problem here is that for CP9 members, Pochi and I are recognized as "opponents they should lose to." So, even if I were to beat them in training or something similar, they would accept it as a natural outcome without feeling any frustration.

Experiencing defeat would be a very beneficial experience for CP9, as it would lead to great leaps in their future growth... However, in their regular missions, defeat could potentially lead to death, making it difficult to give them such experiences.

From this perspective, the Enies Lobby incident is an exceptional opportunity. Fighting opponents of equal strength and surviving would be an extremely valuable experience. If we think about their future, this would be a highly significant battle.

However, there are exceptions... Fizz. After being defeated by Shanks and imprisoned in Impel Down, he acquired a hunger for becoming stronger.

Initially, his combat abilities were inferior to Lucci's, but he showed significant growth compared to the other members. By the time of the original Enies Lobby arc, he might be on par with or even surpassing Lucci.

Moreover, his experience of defeat allowed him to avoid arrogance and complacency, making him highly reliable in handling missions. He could handle distant and difficult missions with peace of mind, making him the second-highest in my personal evaluation of CP9 members, after Pochi.

Well, in terms of members gaining experience, there are significant merits. Apart from that... I'd like to think there's a slight possibility of entering the course of demotion.

...Honestly, in the past, I might have worried about it, but now I don't feel like causing the complete annihilation of Enies Lobby would result in demotion. However, I want to keep a faint hope, so I'll consider this as a merit as well.

As for... whether I can rebuild Enies Lobby? Given that it's an island that has been around for 800 years, there are buildings in quite a severe state of disrepair or structures that are no longer in use.

We've been making individual repairs, but the frequency of damage is quite high... Perhaps it would be better to demolish everything and conduct a crash-and-build?

Oh, and if Enies Lobby were to collapse, the CP9 members would have some free time, so it might be a good opportunity to teach them Haki.

It's a technique that will definitely be necessary in the future, and it takes time to master, so if they have a long period to concentrate on it, it might not be impossible to teach everyone.

Furthermore, naturally, the merit of following the original storyline... It's a bit troubling; there are so many merits to the collapse of Enies Lobby.

"Hmm? What's wrong, Panda? Did you come across an interesting article?"

"...I was just wondering why you're here as if it's your natural right."

"I've completed all the proper procedures for my stay and come to have some fun, so it's fine, right? Oh, this time I plan to stay for about two nights, so please take care of me. Also, I've made the cooking utensils Chelsea asked for."

"Really? Thank you so much!"

The one who approached me was Lillith, a researcher-style individual dressed in a suit with a white coat draped over it. Until a moment ago, she had been sitting on the sofa in the Chief Justice's office, casually sipping on the cafe au lait that Pochi had prepared.

Lillith occasionally obtained a temporary stay permit and came to Enies Lobby for a few days, during which she would just stay at my house without permission.

Since I had a spare room, I told her she could use it as she pleased, and it had turned into a makeshift laboratory for Lillith... It was convenient, so I let her have her way.

"...Lillith, there's something I want you to make for me."

"Hmm? What is it?"

"It's nothing urgent; you have three years to complete it. What I want you to make is-"

"...Hmm. Well, I don't mind making it, but... are you planning to blow up Enies Lobby?"

Lillith tilted her head in wonder at the request I made. Well, it wouldn't be surprising if she interpreted it that way, and in reality, that was the direction I intended to take.

"...If it gets blown up, won't you end up getting demoted and sent to some distant sea?"

"It's impossible. Even if I'm higher up, I won't choose to cut you."

"I thought so... Well, it's fine. Anyway, I'm counting on you."

"Leave it to me... By the way, Panda. Is it okay if I create an underground lab at your place?"

Lillith made a request... Obviously, she didn't mean in the sense of her personal home but in the sense of my house's underground.

"Do you mean at my place?"

"Yes. The room is a bit small, so I want a slightly larger research lab."

"...Do as you please."

"Great! As expected of Panda! You understand."

Getting permission was at least better than doing it without asking, and since I had just made a somewhat troublesome request earlier, I decided to grant Lillith' wish.

Well, it would also be beneficial if she could produce more things here, so there was no problem.

As I was thinking that, Lillith came closer to where I was sitting, and with a cajoling voice, she spoke while leaning forward.

"Hey, Panda. How about showing me the Twelve True Strikes... pretty please?"

"Rejected."

"Aww, come on! It's not something that would decrease by showing it! It's an incredible move, isn't it? Just hearing about it makes my brain juices flow like crazy! I really want to see it! Come on, just a little, just the tip... adadadadadada!?"

Since hearing about the Twelve True Strikes from Pochi, she had been pestering me like this whenever she had the chance... However, it wasn't a move I could easily demonstrate, so I rejected her request.

Well, Lillith wasn't the type to give up easily, and she kept pestering me, so I decided to silence her with an Iron Claw.

"Pochi, please bring another refill."

"Yes!"

"Igididididi!? W-Wait, I was wrong! Let me go... igiiii!?"

While listening to the noisy background music, I tore open the wrapper of a candy stick I took out of my pocket, placed it in my mouth, and picked up the newspaper again.

***

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