Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 240 Bane: Keep the music playing, keep the dance going!

As soon as he stepped out of Pongel Castle, Bane heard a commotion of cursing and swearing coming from the distant street.

He glanced in that direction and then frowned.

Celestial Dragons.

Recently, because he has been on Mary Geoise, Bane has inevitably encountered some Celestial Dragons and witnessed some tragic scenes.

Even in Mary Geoise, when these Celestial Dragons go out, they are always surrounded by a large entourage, protected by many guards and members of the CP organization, and they also have a large number of attendants to meet their various needs at any time.

The most conspicuous of all were undoubtedly the miserable slaves.

It cannot be denied that some of them were pirates who were captured and enslaved, but most of them were ordinary people.

Even the vast majority of people on Mary Geoise, upon seeing a Celestial Dragon, still need to kneel and bow their heads in respect.

However, as a Marine Admiral, Bane doesn't need to do such a thing. As the saying goes, even the Five Elders don't require them to kneel down and obey, or to be given a certain level of respect, so how could ordinary Celestial Dragons possibly force Marine Admirals to kneel down and obey?

Even so, Bane didn't want to run into the Celestial Dragons; it was too troublesome. He was afraid that if he lost control of his emotions, he would kill these bastards, and then things would be difficult to handle.

Therefore, Bane stopped and did not go any further.

At the same time, his attention was also focused on the slave being ridden by a Celestial Dragon.

Bartholomew Bear!

The last time I saw this guy was during the Marineford War at Marineford, when Bartholomew Kuma should still have some self-awareness.

Now, it is clear that he has been completely transformed.

He was carried on the back of the Celestial Dragon like a mount, kneeling as he moved forward. He looked tattered and covered in wounds, exposing many of his body parts to the air.

"It's really infuriating that the kindest people are being treated so cruelly," Bane muttered, a hint of disgust flashing in his eyes.

At the same time, as a strong person, he was also somewhat annoyed to see Bartholomew Kuma, who was also quite strong, being insulted by a useless Celestial Dragon.

Sometimes, he had to accept Kaido's ideology.

Violence is indeed fair.

Watching Bartholomew Kuma carry the Celestial Dragon towards the gate of the God's Abode, Bane gradually withdrew his gaze. However, just as he was about to step out of the alley, a strange voice suddenly reached his ears.

"Your eyes look a lot like mine back then."

Bane stopped and looked up at the rooftop, saying with some surprise, "It's making things difficult for me, Dorag, that you're appearing so openly in front of me like this."

To be honest, Bane was quite surprised by Dragon's sudden appearance in Mary Geoise. What was even more incomprehensible was that this guy actually appeared in front of him so openly and even talked to him.

You're a traitor, aren't you? I'm a loyal subject of the world's legitimate government!

The two had never met before, but their conversation seemed quite familiar.

"Sorry." Dragon turned his gaze from Bartholomew Bear's retreating figure to Bane, saying apologetically, "I didn't mean to bother you, but after noticing your gaze and thinking about what happened in the New World, I suddenly realized that perhaps there's a possibility we can communicate?"

"What's going on in the new world?" Bane asked Dragon.

"Your G-6 Navy gathered a large number of refugees in Melvure," Dragon explained, then continued, "In fact, our Revolutionary Army has been doing the same thing recently."

"I've heard about that too," Bane nodded, not continuing the topic. He asked, "As an enemy of the World Government, why are you here during the World Conference?"

"I'm here to declare war." Dragon made no attempt to hide his identity, stating quite frankly, "During this World Conference, I will represent the Revolutionary Army to formally declare war on the Celestial Dragons."

"That's big news," Bane remarked, then added, "So you want me to kill you right here and now?"

"I've heard that you have a very good relationship with my father, so could you please spare me this time for his sake?" Dorag said with a smile as he sat on the roof.

"If Mr. Karp saw you, he probably would have already made his move," Bane said, taking a cigarette from his pocket, lighting it, and then turning it on.

There was a look of reminiscence in Dolag's eyes, and he said after a moment: "You are right, he almost beat me up last time in Donghai."

Before Bane could speak, Dragon quickly asked, "What are your impressions of Mary Geoise?"

"If you don't disappear from my sight within ten seconds, I'll kill you." Bane didn't reply, but exhaled a puff of smoke, his eyes suddenly turning much darker.

Dragon glanced at Bane, his expression slightly helpless, but he didn't say anything more in the end. Soon, he got up and disappeared from the rooftop.

Bane didn't give chase. He scratched his ear, looking somewhat annoyed, and said, "What a troublesome time. One after another, they all pop up."

He didn't care about Dragon's appearance in Mary Geoise, and he didn't take the guy's sudden conversation to heart. He figured it was just that the guy wanted to test his attitude. Maybe he had sensed something, but it didn't matter and wouldn't affect anything.

Bane wasn't surprised that the Revolutionary Army would appear in Mary Geoise. He had considered this possibility before. Their purpose in coming here was twofold: to formally declare war on the Celestial Dragons and to rescue Bartholomew Kuma.

Neither of these matters would affect Bane's plans or interests; in fact, they might even have some positive implications. He had no reason to stop them.

Meanwhile, Dragon returned to the underground space of Mary Geoise, a place 'pushed' out by the Revolutionary Army's transvestite giant, Mori, using his powers.

"What's wrong with you, Dragon!" Ivankov said, somewhat annoyed, "The operation hasn't even started yet, and you've already exposed yourself to a Marine Admiral. What were you thinking?"

"Don't be so anxious, Eva. I'm just confirming one thing," Dragon said, stroking his chin. "It doesn't matter whether we expose ourselves sooner or later, because I've already confirmed Bear King's location, so there's nothing to worry about."

Ivankov frowned, somewhat puzzled, and asked, "What are you sure about?"

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

"The attitude of a Marine Admiral." Dragon grinned. "Just now, I was actually prepared to launch the operation to rescue Kuma-kun ahead of schedule, but that Bane didn't directly attack me. Although he didn't intend to communicate with me either, that's enough to prove one thing: he's not loyal to the World Government. Don't you find that interesting?"

At this point, Dragon chuckled to himself and said, "As expected of Koushirou's disciple."

Dragon brought some of the Revolutionary Army's elite troops to Mary Geoise to cause trouble. Declaring war was something that could be done at any time. So, once it was confirmed that Bartholomew Kuma was in Mary Geoise, and even that he was currently in the House of God, there was no need to hide anything anymore. They could act at any time. Therefore, under these circumstances, Dragon risked showing himself to test Bane's attitude.

Even if Bane had attacked him directly just now, it would have simply been a matter of bringing the plan forward a little.

Bane quickly arrived at the Navy's banquet hall. Upon entering, he found the hall, which should have been bustling with activity, to be unusually quiet. Many naval officers were reading newspapers and discussing something among themselves.

"What happened? Why didn't you continue playing the music and dancing?" Bane asked curiously.

Upon hearing his voice, Ain quickly turned in their direction and said, "General, breaking news! The Germa Kingdom of the North Sea has completely relocated to the New World and joined the Totto Land system. Vinsmoke Judge, one of the original royal families that joined the alliance, has become related to Charlotte Linlin by marriage, and his son, Vinsmoke Yonji, has married Pudding of Charlotte's family!"

"The newspapers say that the Germa Kingdom has publicly announced its withdrawal from the World Government Member States system. With the World Conference just around the corner, this kind of thing is probably going to bring shame to Mary Geoise, isn't it?" Nami casually remarked.

"Has something this interesting happened?" Bane chuckled. "Are the Vinsmoke people really that prone to gambling? Choosing to side with Big Mom at a crucial moment?"

"For so many years, the Vinsmoke clan has been trying to rebuild their kingdom in the North Sea. However, the World Government has been rejecting their demands, considering their past atrocities and the already chaotic situation in the North Sea. I suppose Judge couldn't see any hope here, so he made this choice," Chief Advisor A-Tsuru said softly.

Speaking of Germa, compared to the Four Emperors, they may be far inferior, but they were once glorious and even dominated the entire North Blue, becoming the overlords of the North Blue.

The world's ruling government certainly did not want such an existence to appear in the four seas, so it interfered with Germa's ambition to unify the North Sea, ultimately causing them to fail and even lose their fixed national territory, leaving them to rely on the War House and wander the seas.

The Vinsmoke people have always hoped to restore their homeland, but given their past deeds, the World Government has not agreed.

"So the Vinsmoke clan is thinking of helping Kaido and Charlotte Linlin defeat our Navy, thereby further intimidating the World Government, or even overthrowing the World Government, and ultimately achieving their own ambitions? They're really dreaming!" Bane couldn't help but complain.

"A madman can do anything crazy, it's all reasonable. But considering Germa's extensive experience in warfare and their mastery of advanced technologies, their joining the pirate alliance can indeed greatly enhance the enemy's strength in a short period of time, tsk," Garp said with a frown, somewhat displeased.

Germa itself isn't very strong; a group of clone soldiers plus Judge's sons and daughters are just average.

But if it were to combine with the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates, things would be different.

It is well known that pirates are far inferior to the Navy in combat. War can be considered an art, and the Navy is the big shot in it, while pirates are a bunch of rabble. However, Germa is a very famous warmonger, and their combat level is quite high. If they were to command pirates in battle, it would undoubtedly increase the strength of the pirate side.

"But no matter what, we are stronger in every aspect, and the advantage is on our side. So there's no need to worry about what has already happened. We can deal with it all at once when the time comes. Alright, alright, don't let such trivial matters spoil everyone's fun. Come on, let's keep playing the music and dancing!" Bane didn't care too much about these things and waved his hand.

(End of this chapter)