One Piece Gunslinger

Indeed.

Fujitora also praised, "Using those fifty non-existent cannons as bait to lure the two sides into a fierce battle, while simultaneously weakening our rivals and diverting the attention of major powers, leaving us aside for the time being, is truly ingenious."

Jack watched with a smile, appearing shrewd and unfathomable. But in his heart, he was thinking that if he had a feather fan, this act would be perfect. He would definitely find a chance to get a feather fan when he got back, and he could gently fan himself with it whenever he had a moment. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

After that, things became much easier. The man contacted Kevin via Den Den Mushi (a type of electric scooter) and instructed him to handle the matter. Indeed, with Kevin's elusive and unpredictable abilities, this task was perfect for him.

Then Kevin lived up to expectations and sneaked in during their nighttime conversation. Although he was almost discovered, he ultimately escaped successfully thanks to his superb escape and concealment skills, completing his mission perfectly.

Maxim picked up the crumpled paper and exclaimed, "Wow, what's written on it is incredibly tempting!" It described the approximate location of Hatton's fleet, included their route, and even predicted their arrival time in Paquirth.

Besides all that, the most important and enticing part was the ship's supply list. It included fifty cannons, two thousand rifles, one thousand pistols, two thousand steel knives, plenty of food, and a certain amount of ammunition.

No wonder Yuri found the list so tempting and delicious; he felt it would be disrespectful not to take a bite.

What followed was predictable: after some deliberation, the two decided to go ahead with the deal. If they could seize these items, taking over Pacquirre would be a piece of cake.

They immediately decided to take stock of the personnel, set sail, and rob the fleet under the cover of night. They had no choice but to take advantage of the darkness, as the goods would arrive first thing the next morning.

Hatton was personally escorting this shipment, though the ostensible claim was a pretext to evade orders from the World Government. If the World Government deemed the time ripe and ordered a direct attack on the two major gangs, Hatton could use this as a pretext to buy time and send other generals to their deaths first.

No matter how well Hatton planned, he never expected that Jack and Hardman had the same idea: to lead the two gangs to hijack the ship in order to weaken both of them.

However, unlike Hardman, Jack had even worse intentions. He planned to drag Hatton's backers into the quagmire of war as well. Now that there were only two sides in the quagmire, wouldn't it be too lonely?

Hatton was caught in the middle, incredibly unlucky to be attacked by a large fleet in the middle of the night. Although he had superior ships and cannons and managed to sink several large ships.

But they couldn't compete with the sheer number of other ships, and unfortunately, there was nowhere to call for help. The nearest place was the military base in Pacquia, but even if people from there rushed over at full speed, it would take them two hours to arrive.

But what could we do? We could only call for backup.

Fortunately, Hatton's ships were better than those of the gangs, and Hatton had spent years fighting Sea Kings and pirates. His naval combat strength was considerable, making him a force to be reckoned with.

He managed to hold out until reinforcements arrived, and he found an opportunity to break through the defenses. With the help of the reinforcements, he successfully escaped in his last remaining flagship.

Hatton did not fight again, because even if he launched a counterattack with the help of reinforcements, he would only win a Pyrrhic victory and lose all his resources. How could he then contend for the world and realize his ambitions?

The two did not pursue any further. Since they had already obtained the supplies, there was no need to devour the entire army of Pacqui City at this point, as that would inevitably result in heavy losses. After all, they were skilled in land warfare, not naval warfare.

In this battle, both Hatton and the two major gangs suffered heavy losses. However, compared to Hatton, the two major gangs suffered fewer losses and also achieved their previous goal of successfully intercepting two transport ships.

However, when the two were checking the goods, they almost spat out blood: "Where are the fifty cannons you promised?!"

Chapter 71 Second Minor Victory

Jack orchestrated a clever diversionary tactic, using one force to devour another. This severely weakened Hatton, who had been shirking his duties, nearly costing him his life. It also broke the World Government's silence, dragging them into the quagmire of war and causing the two to fight each other.

In the midst of a multi-factional power struggle, forming alliances and maneuvering becomes extremely important. Everyone has their own agenda, and ultimately, the goal is to become the sole winner.

Jack is the weakest link in this chain, and any of the other parties could easily swallow him up. To survive in this predicament, the only option is to let the powerful and wealthy fight each other first.

"Everyone knows the proverb 'When the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman benefits'; 'The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.'" Jack said this after hearing the news that the supply ship had not arrived. "Nobody doesn't want to be the fisherman; everyone is vying to be the oriole."

“But many people want to do it but can’t,” Haku laughed. “You just happened to be the one who did it.”

“If there’s no opportunity, then create one. If the snipe and the clam won’t fight, then let them fight first.” Fujitora nodded and said, “Once this plan is out, those people probably won’t be able to sit still anymore. Although rationally speaking, it would be better to continue to endure, not many people can endure that.”

Jack was slightly pleased with the success of his plan, but he wasn't entirely at ease. He reminded Jack, "Whether the fisherman and the oriole will ultimately succeed is still uncertain. Maybe in the end, the mantis will turn the tables and catch the oriole. In the end, it all comes down to our own strength."

“Jack is right. In the end, even if you want to clean up the mess, you have to have the ability to do so, or you'll be the one who gets cleaned up by the mess. These new recruits who haven't really been on the battlefield need to intensify their training.”

Jack's involvement in this major news event once again overshadowed his own glory, while the two major gangs and Hatton, the protagonists of their respective news stories, suffered heavy losses.

The main problem was that the two sides fought back and forth, engaging in a bloody battle for a long time, losing many ships and personnel, but all they were fighting for were five cannons, a little bit of ammunition, and less than a thousand guns.

Honestly, if Hatton had known that the two gangs were there for that little bit of stuff, he would have given it up without a second thought. Who would want to fight to the death for something like that?

So Hatton didn't think that way, assuming it was aimed at him and wanted to take his life.

So Hatton naturally reported the matter to his superiors, complaining and even pretending to be crying his eyes out. Well, it wasn't an act; it was a genuine outpouring of emotion. Almost all of the troops who went with him had been wiped out, and now, including the troops originally left at the military base, only about half remained. He had no choice but to cry his eyes out.

This exaggerated report portrayed both gangs as ruthless and unreasonable bastards.

Furthermore, their performance in naval battles was indeed inferior to Hatton's naval capabilities, giving Hatton's two gangs the illusion that they were nothing special. Therefore, the core message Hatton gave to his superiors was essentially the word "mad dog."

"These are like two mad dogs that bite anyone they see. They have no sense of reason. If you show weakness and remain silent, they will dare to bite you. So I suggest that we take action as soon as possible and take the initiative into our own hands. It's better than being caught off guard at any time," Hatton reported solemnly at the end.

“I understand the situation. I didn’t expect those two to be so crazy. Since they’ve come to our doorstep, we can’t just stay silent. We should find a chance to fight back.” Even the shrewd and calculating Hardman was having a bit of a headache at this point.

Hardman's original plan was to have Jack hold the line first, both to wear down the two men and see if they could be forced to reveal any of their hidden strengths. Secondly, they would wait for an opportunity, a weakness, before delivering a fatal blow.

Ideally, they would find the troops the two men were hiding and launch a surprise attack on the reserves. Although the commanders of those reserves were the two men's confidants, they certainly did not reach the same level as the two men.

There's a saying that a lion leading a flock of sheep can defeat a flock of lions led by a sheep. While that's a bit of an exaggeration, for Hardman, with roughly equal numbers, facing the two-man team would be a stalemate, but dealing with the reserve team would be a sure thing.

Of course, now that this beautiful plan has fallen apart, it wasn't unexpected that the two would strike first and assassinate a general. While he might not care about Hatton's life or death, others certainly did. Those other generals were worried about being discarded after their usefulness was over. If the World Government remained silent after a general was attacked, it would inevitably lead to disaffection and doubts about the validity of its previous promises.

So, faced with the provocations of the two major gangs, Hardman could no longer tolerate it and would not allow himself to continue. Reason told him it was a trap, but due to Jack's overt scheme, he had no choice but to jump in.

Conspiracy plots leave traces and flaws, while overt schemes unfold spontaneously and leave no trace. Once an overt scheme takes shape, it is difficult to crack.

Meanwhile, Yuri and Maxim were sitting in their base camp.

“Well, judging from this spoils, we really did fall for their trap. And thinking about it, who else could have delivered the note but Jack?” Maxim said dejectedly.

"Yes, putting everything together, yesterday they first gave us an impression of those advanced weapons, and then they used this bait to make us think, 'If Jack gets these things, things will get complicated.' Plus, we also need these things to attack the city. This forced us to take the bait." Yuri, in a way, was wise after the event, working backward to finally understand everything.

"The worst part is that bastard even used fake bait in the end. The hook was straight and the bait was salty, yet he still managed to hook us both. We fought tooth and nail for half a day and this is all we got. The losses are much greater than this. Don't let me catch you, or I'll make you wish you were dead." Maxim was getting angrier and angrier, and he slapped the ground with gritted teeth.

"Hey, my old buddy. You've already broken three tables today, and this is the fourth. If you keep doing this, we'll all be out of tables."

Yuri looked at the table, now shattered again. What could he do? He had no choice but to comfort the furious Maxim, and at the same time, comfort himself.

"But at least the situation is still under our control and proceeding according to plan, so it's not a complete loss. This time, Jack only won a small victory. Thanks to him, we've at least entered the second half of my plan. After we deal with the army and the Wolf Fang Gang, we'll settle accounts with him slowly."

"Hmph, let him be smug for a few days. Let him win a few more small victories. We just need one big win in the end." Perhaps Yuri's comforting words had an effect, or perhaps he was looking forward to the next move, Maxim calmed down a lot.

Yes, Maxim knows that many small victories are not as good as one big win. Does Jack not understand this? Jack has already won two small victories, but when will he have a big win?

Chapter Seventy-Two: Game Rules

Jack deduced the plan was successful by the fact that the cargo ships had not arrived at the shore, and the two gangs launched a surprise attack on the transport fleet.

Other forces, of course, also had their own ways of obtaining intelligence, and they all learned of this matter after Jack.

Even though the two gangs used pirate flags when intercepting transport convoys at sea, everyone knew perfectly well that using the pirate flag to commit crimes and then shifting the blame afterward was standard practice. Besides, if you're only focused on flying the pirate flag, the ship's design will give you away.

Although gangs are considered legal organizations under Yutaka's Basic Law, no matter how legal you are, you can't directly attack the military. You have to impersonate pirates; as long as you're not caught with direct evidence, no one can say, "I did it." What's wrong with being a captain? There are plenty of ships of similar design in the world.

If you insist on taking it seriously and going through the legal process, with all the investigation, evidence collection, and court hearings, the whole process will be over by then, and you won't even know who will be on trial.

So, after all that, what I'm trying to say is that both the Mercury Group and the Villain Party are morally legitimate organizations. Even if Hardman wants to retaliate, he needs to find a legitimate reason.

Hardman and his gang couldn't simply transform into pirates and fight back like the other two gangs. They usually stayed on land and didn't have many opportunities to go out to sea; they were currently locked in a battle with Jack.

Of course, launching a forced attack isn't out of the question. After all, Yuri and Maxim's intentions are common knowledge. They can simply wave the banner of righteousness and unleash a devastating attack.

But the greater good was King Donald's greater good. After this wave of support for the king, the old King Donald, who did nothing but lie in bed, became the biggest winner. He could win while lying down and get a share of the pie while sitting up.

Not to mention the two sides fighting each other in a land battle, it's hard to say who would win.

In Hardman's view, this deal was clearly a bad one. Hardman's goal was to truly control the country.

This brings us to the crucial question of how to achieve true control over this nation. This isn't just a problem for Hardman alone, but a challenge faced by all powers.

The first and best way to have complete control over the country is to become king yourself.

However, this goal is also the most difficult to achieve. First, you have to kill the current King Donald, or even the entire royal family. Otherwise, you would never have the chance to become king. And this action needs to be done covertly. If others find out that you killed the king, then your actions will instantly become illegal, and others can easily take you down under the guise of avenging the king.

Therefore, the reason why the major powers fought to the death ten years ago but still didn't kill King Donald wasn't because they couldn't, but because they were unwilling to.

Of course, some might say that Doflamingo did just that, didn't he? He designed King Riku, then stepped in as the savior and successfully manipulated Dressrosa.

Doflamingo's actions seem reasonable at first glance, but they don't stand up to scrutiny. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that he's using the power of the String-String Fruit to manipulate things. If it weren't for Doflamingo's status, which led the World Government to turn a blind eye and tolerate and conceal his actions, could such a momentous event as a change of government in a member state have been so easily accomplished?

Besides, if a powerful warlord had been standing by at the time, he could have easily taken you down. If he couldn't attack King Riku, why couldn't he attack you, a usurper?

However, we can also attribute it to the fact that the people there are rather foolish.

The previous incident involving Shi Yingguo was overthrown spontaneously by the people. As for King Charles's crimes, there was sufficient evidence and irrefutable proof. The remaining matters were also handled secretly by the revolutionary army.

This path is quite difficult to navigate. Since the first path is not easy, let's settle for the next one.

Secondly, although they cannot have complete control over the emperor, they are still the de facto rulers. This operation is relatively easier; simply put, it's about "using the emperor to command the feudal lords."

This is also the ultimate goal that many forces are currently very eager to achieve. Everyone knows this clearly. No matter how much they fight for it, Donald is still the king on the surface. No matter how much everyone fights, they are just hiding behind the scenes.

Donald, a shrewd and experienced man, understood this perfectly. Although he wasn't actually involved in the struggle, he was at its center. Like a storm raging outside, Donald sat firmly in the eye of the storm, waiting for the victor to emerge. This was the meaning behind his earlier words to his son.

While this sounds relatively easier to achieve, from any perspective, the path is fraught with peril. It means defeating everyone else in that storm and successfully reaching Donald.

When the strength of opposing forces is relatively even, any single faction seeking to stand out will inevitably face attacks from all sides. Unless it can overwhelmingly dominate the entire field, greater strength does not necessarily equate to a higher chance of victory. This is why the Mercury Group and the Villain Party, the two largest factions, chose to form a powerful alliance.

So what if even the second path is blocked? After all, even with the alliance between Yuri and Maxim, there's no guarantee they'll ultimately prevail.

Therefore, the third, last resort, and worst-case scenario is to divide the cake.

If you can't take the whole cake, then multiple factions will divide it up. This was the method used ten years ago, and this pattern of dividing the cake continued until Jack appeared.

Everyone wants a bigger slice of cake, and everyone wants to grab the biggest piece. What should we do?

One word: Fight!

This is why the Mercury Group and the Villain Party seized this opportunity to start a fight. If the two of them have the last laugh, then they shouldn't fight anymore; turning against each other wouldn't benefit either side. It's better to divide the pie in half.

Therefore, the purpose of this struggle is to redistribute the pie. Both major gangs feel they have less of the pie and want to take it back from others. And the others feel the same way, also wanting to snatch the pie from the others.

Finally, if by some stroke of luck one faction defeats everyone and seizes all the cakes, then congratulations, they have achieved the second point. In other words, taking the entire cake is the ultimate goal of all factions.

Therefore, this struggle is essentially a war to redistribute the pie, and in the end there may not be only one winner; it all depends on who can get the biggest slice of the pie.

The same applies to Hardman; their goals are the same. So how can they grab a larger share of the pie, or even achieve their ultimate objective?

As analyzed earlier, Hardman cannot simply tear off the mask and launch a direct attack; he must abide by the rules of the game.

However, these rules of the game are not only subject to Hardman's supervision, but to everyone's. This time, Hardman has set his sights on the rules themselves.

Chapter Seventy-Three: The Ten-Year Term

“I’ll leave this to you for now,” Jack said to Haku. “Fujitora and I will be right back; they shouldn’t be attacking for a while.”

Jack's words were based on the movements of Yuri and Maxim.