Marineford War: I Will Stand in the Sky

"Click-clack..."

A series of petrifying sounds rang out, and Sora and Hikari, who had been giggling foolishly, were completely turned into two lifelike stones, their innocent smiles freezing in place.

At this moment, not only Sora and Hikari were petrified and frozen, but also Arn, Hancock, and Robin, who witnessed this scene, seemed to be petrified and could not come back to their senses for a long time.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Ying, please forgive me..."

The usually proud and willful queen was now almost in tears, while Robin was also tightly pursing her lips, her eyes red as she held the petrified Sora in her arms.

Yann took a few deep breaths, trying to restore his usual gentle and confident expression, and said, "Hancock, Robin, you two should rest first. Leave the rest to me."

"No, Lord Yann, I... I want to go with you too..."

Before Hancock could finish speaking, Yann interrupted her.

"I told you, I will definitely bring back what Sora and Hikari need, I definitely will!!!"

Without giving Hancock and Robin a chance to continue speaking, Yann turned and walked out of the delivery room. His not-so-tall figure seemed to exude an unstoppable aura.

"You all stay here to recuperate, and protecting Sora and Ying is enough. I..."

Yann paused slightly, turned his head to take one last look at Hancock, Robin, and Sora and Ying in their arms, and then spoke.

"I'll be back soon."

The next instant, Yann vanished from his spot, leaving the deserted island almost instantly. His figure disappeared into the high-altitude clouds, heading straight in a certain direction.

This time, Yann held back no power whatsoever, pushing his Instant Step to its limit. His figure darted through the clouds high in the sky, so fast that it left a clear trail in the air.

"What is that?!"

On the sea, a pirate wearing a single eyepatch looked up at the mark above and felt something was strange.

"Could some strange bird live on the nearby islands?"

The one-eyed pirate muttered something to himself, then casually pulled out a telescope from his pocket and looked up.

"Huh? It's gone?!"

However, in just that short moment, when the one-eyed pirate tried to use his binoculars to search for Arn's whereabouts, only a strange trace disappeared into the horizon.

Normally, Arn would never act so ostentatiously, but at this moment, even though Arn knew that Sora and Ying's time had been paused, he was still eager to restore them as soon as possible.

Even just a little bit earlier would be better...

The next moment, Yann increased his speed again and headed straight for his target.

……

Meanwhile, on the edge of the Red Earth continent, dozens of giant snails, comparable in size to naval warships, floated on the sea surface, forming a giant platform resembling an island.

Germa 66, also known as the "Army of Evil," is a powerful military organization led by the Vinsmoke family that once ruled the entire North Blue by force. It is also the only World Government member state on the high seas without a fixed territory.

For Germa 66, their former territory was the entire North Sea, but now their territory consists of dozens of giant snails, each the size of a naval warship.

The snails carry various houses on their backs, and the giant platform formed by their combination is comparable to a medium-sized island. Moreover, the entire giant platform is full of a technological feel that is completely different from ordinary kingdoms.

At the very center of that giant platform, amidst a magnificent complex of buildings, Vinsmoke Judge, the current ruler of Germa 66, was explaining something in a conference room.

However, the people sitting in front of Vinsmoke Judge were not adults, but a group of little kids with different colored hair.

"In short, the next leg of the journey is to cross the Red Line and enter the Grand Line to go to the Holy Land Mary Geoise to participate in the 'World Conference'."

"However, Germa 66 is completely different from the other member states of the World Government. Germa 66 was once a glorious kingdom that ruled the entire North Blue, so the timing of their arrival at the Holy Land Mary Geoise must be extremely important. Whether it is too early or too late, it will affect the prestige of Germa 66."

"You must always keep this in mind, and all your future actions must be based on the primary consideration of maintaining the glory of Germa 66."

As Vinsmoke Judge finished speaking, three little boys and a little girl, sitting upright on the stools with serious expressions, responded in unison.

"Yes, Father."

The three little boys, in particular, had expressions of unparalleled fervor on their faces.

[Chapter 393 Germa 66]

Hearing his children's answers, Vinsmoke Judge couldn't help but show some satisfaction and said.

"Reiju, Ichiji, Niji, Yonji, you are Germa 66's greatest masterpiece, a perfect masterpiece that surpasses humanity. You must make a good impression at the World Conference this time and let the other member states understand Germa 66's strength."

Faced with his father's praise, the blue-haired second son, Niji, replied matter-of-factly, "Father, don't worry, we're not a failed creation like Sanji."

Hearing Niji's sarcastic remarks about his brother Sanji, who was not in the meeting room, Judge showed no dissatisfaction but instead agreed.

"That's right, thankfully Sanji was the only failed attempt."

The fourth son, Yonji, with his bright green hair, grinned and asked, "By the way, Father, where did that cowardly and incompetent Sanji go? I haven't seen him for a while."

“It seems that’s true. Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I’ve beaten up that Sanji guy,” Niji added.

Judge responded as if it were a trivial matter. "Sanji only knows how to run to the kitchen all day long. I've locked him up to prevent him from embarrassing himself."

Upon hearing this, the eldest son, Ichiji, with his red hair, smiled dismissively and agreed.

“That’s true. If the other royal families of the member states attending the World Conference were to discover that one of Germa 66’s princes is a chef, it would truly be an insult to Germa 66.”

"Hahaha... Big brother is right, Sanji is such an eyesore..."

"No, sometimes I still need to go check on Sanji in the cage. That guy is probably wearing that look of fear that only failed creations would have right now, isn't he? Just thinking about it makes me laugh."

In an instant, Ichiji, Niji, and Yonji seemed to have found an interesting topic and began to laugh at Sanji's situation without any restraint.

Only Reiju, the eldest daughter with pink hair, sat to the side without saying a word, letting out a subtle sigh.

"Alright, let's not waste time on Sanji's failed creation. Next is an instruction on etiquette. As princes and princesses of Germa 66, you must not be disrespectful in the Holy Land of Mary Geoise and affect the other member states' evaluation of Germa 66."

"In addition, during the World Conference, you should make the most of your age to gather intelligence and identify which World Government member states have a tendency to wage war and are potential clients that Germa 66 is looking for."

After a pause, Judge continued.

"Or, you could try to find an opportunity to instigate conflicts and disputes between the royal families and start a war. In that case, Germa 66, as mercenaries, would only gain more benefits."

"Yes, Father..."

The meeting was still ongoing. In addition to teaching his four daughters royal etiquette, Judge was also secretly instructing them on how to obtain useful information about Germa 66 during the World Conference and... to instigate wars between the other World Government member states.

For Germa 66, a mobile kingdom without a fixed territory, those giant snails that make up the territory are essentially war fortresses.

Germa 66's main source of revenue comes from its mercenaries joining wars to gain huge profits.

Therefore, the chaos at sea is what Germa 66 is looking forward to.

And what Judge has always hoped for is that Germa 66 can become strong and glorious again through the baptism of war, and then once again rule the North Sea as it did in the past, and reproduce the glory of Germa 66.

The reason why Judge is so anxious now is that he is even eager to secretly provoke conflicts between the member states during the World Conference.

This is also because the situation in the North Sea has become increasingly calm in recent years, and the frequency of wars between kingdoms has reached its lowest level in nearly a century.

This has led to a continuous deficit in the finances of Germa 66, which is based in the North Sea, and it is almost on the verge of collapse.

In particular, despite these circumstances, Judge continued to maintain huge expenditures on research funding and military spending, refusing to make any cuts.

"In short, we must find a way to provoke a war, and then crush the enemy with the absolute power of Germa 66..."

Just as Gaji was summarizing things to his children, a rapid Den Den Mushi (snail phone) suddenly rang.

"Bru bru~~"

Judge picked up the Den Den Mushi and asked, "Who is it?"

"Is this Mr. Vinsmoke Judge, King of Germa 66?" A serious voice came from the other end of the Den Den Mushi.

“That’s right, that’s me,” Judge replied.

"Hello, I am Major General Kras, who is in charge of escorting you along the way. I have arrived at the designated location. May I ask if Mr. Judge's journey is going smoothly and how much longer until we arrive?" Major General Kras asked.

"A rear admiral? Is the navy out of people? They only sent a rear admiral for the escort mission. What's the difference between that and having no one at all?"

Hearing Judge's contemptuous and disdainful words, Major General Kras paused for a moment, but still managed to hold back and explain.

"Mr. Judge, you can rest assured. The Navy has already conducted a safety check on the route we're traveling on beforehand, so there won't be any unexpected incidents. Furthermore, I will take full responsibility for Mr. Judge's safety and prevent any trouble from the pirates of the Grand Line..."

"Heh, just you wait..."

Before Major General Kras could finish speaking, Judge hung up the Den Den Mushi in his hand, his face unconsciously showing a look of dissatisfaction.

Judge didn't care about Major General Kras's abilities or whether he could be promoted to the guard position; what Judge cared about was Major General Kras's rank as the guard.

No matter what, Germa 66 was once the overlord that ruled the entire North Sea. How dare the Navy underestimate it and only send a rear admiral to deal with it?

It's important to know that if a royal family is valued and joined by the World Government and the Navy, the escorting Navy officer might even be an admiral or a naval hero.

The fact that only a Rear Admiral was appointed is enough to show that the World Government and Navy did not take Germa 66 seriously at all, and this will also affect the evaluation of Germa 66 by the other member states.

"Damn it, those bastards..." Judge said through gritted teeth.

"Father, don't worry. Once I see that major general, I'll find a reason to teach him a lesson and make him understand that a mere major general is not qualified to match the status of Germa 66."

As young Nicholas spoke, he grinned with a somewhat cruel and belligerent smile.

[Chapter 394. Sit upright in the frost, Hyōrinmaru]

"Tsk..."

Judge nodded noncommittally, and then spoke.

"We delayed for a while, specifically to have the navy wait for us at the designated location. Now that the navy has arrived at the designated location, let's begin entering the calm zone."

As Judge's orders were relayed, the dozens of giant snails, comparable in size to naval warships and forming an "island," began to slowly separate from each other, each carrying a house or structure on its back as it climbed from the sea towards the red earth continent.

After these giant snails climb to a certain height on the red earth, they begin to move laterally along the red earth.

Beneath these giant snails lies the Calm Belt, where countless colossal sea kings dwell.

However, for the giant snails that can easily climb the red earth, no matter how terrifying those giant sea kings are, it doesn't matter.

The sight of these dozens of giant snails clinging to the cliffs of the red earth continent, spanning the windless zone, was clearly seen by Arn, who stood in the void above the clouds.

“Germa 66, House Vinsmoke… found…”

Yaen took a deep breath, calming the fatigue from traversing almost half of the North Sea, and murmured.

"These guys, who should have already rendezvoused with the Navy according to the scheduled itinerary, are only just beginning to enter the Calm Belt? I've been going around in circles for ages."

"That's good. Otherwise, it would be too difficult to control the situation if we wanted to seize the 'bloodline factor' sequence of Germa 66 without harming our naval colleagues."

"Being in the calm zone now is just right; even if negotiations fail, we can choose other peaceful solutions."

Immediately, Yann took off his glasses and casually tossed them into the windless belt below. "Life Return" controlled his hair to grow wildly until it reached his waist, and the clothes that Baby-5 had transformed into quickly changed into a white straight trench coat.