OP: My Aircraft Carrier Evolves#11+12: First Contact, Baroque Works, Mr. 3! Codename, Mr. Kite, Infiltrating Baroque Works!

Dawn.

As the first rays of sunlight touched the beach, the ocean rolled in with waves like white foam. The sounds of battle within the town had fallen silent.

The once-bustling streets and marketplaces were now a ghost town. Only the boldest dared to peek out, some hoping to gather news, others looking to scavenge what they could from the chaos.

—————————

Inside the Royal Palace.

Jin was sampling a local delicacy provided by the King of Kilauea—a rare fruit that grew near the island's volcanoes.

The captain of the guard entered. "Your Majesty, Captain Sherlock has arrived."

The King of Kilauea was a portly, middle-aged man. With a complex look in his eyes, he said, "Show him in."

Clack... clack...

With steady footsteps, the blood-spattered Captain Sherlock entered the palace, carrying a cloth bundle. With each step closer to the throne, his heart beat faster. The future he'd never imagined had arrived.

It had arrived.

"Your Majesty," Captain Sherlock announced, "the traitor, Bona Sherlock, has confessed to his crimes. He was killed in the fighting. This is his head."

He tossed the bundle to the floor. A head, its mustache still perfectly curled, rolled out in a gory display.

"Ah! Get it away! Get it away from me!" the King shrieked, leaping from his seat.

The captain of the guard quickly removed it.

The King clutched at his chest. He had lived a life of luxury, and even after Minister Sherlock had usurped his power, he had never lacked comfort. When had he ever seen blood, a severed head, a corpse?

He gagged, bile rising in his throat.

"After all this chaos," he said, his voice strained, "what is it you people actually want?"

Jin set down his spoon. "It's simple."

"You remain the King of Kilauea."

"Captain Sherlock, acting on your authority, has eliminated Minister Sherlock and his accomplices. He will take over the Bona family's assets."

"And I get my five million Berries back."

"At the same time, on behalf of the Winter Blossom Kingdom of Drum Island, I wish to establish friendly diplomatic relations with your nation and open a free trade zone."

"We each get what we want. We all have a bright future ahead of us."

The King was silent for a moment.

"As far as I know," he said, "Minister Sherlock had a business partner, a man named Gano. Did you capture him?"

Jin was surprised. He glanced at Captain Sherlock, who was also frowning. This was unexpected.

"I wasn't involved in all of the family's affairs," Captain Sherlock said quietly.

"Gano is a mineral merchant," the King explained. "But it is said that he and the Minister were involved in weapons manufacturing and smuggling, operating out of the northern cliffs of the island. This Gano is a man of mystery. He seems to be connected to a very secretive organization... Baroque Works."

Crocodile's organization?

Jin raised an eyebrow. "What does he look like?"

"He wears glasses and has a topknot in the shape of a '3'," the King replied. "He looks frail, but he is deeply cunning."

One name immediately sprang to Jin's mind.

The one and only Galdino, aka "Mr. 3."

The guy was a certified genius with a knack for survival, the future strategist of a Yonko crew, and one of the most effective vice-commanders when it came to high-stakes situations.

In the original story, Galdino first appeared on Little Garden, where he single-handedly manipulated two giant captains into nearly killing each other. All while sipping tea, he nearly wiped out the entire Straw Hat crew. Later, after joining up with Buggy, he quickly became his right-hand man, helping the clown secure the title of Yonko.

This was a man of talent.

If Crocodile already had operations in Kilauea, then making contact with them ahead of schedule might not be a bad idea.

With that thought, Jin stood up. "I'll go find him."

"I'll go with you," Captain Sherlock said, worried something might go wrong.

Jin shook his head. "Your job is to show yourself to the public as soon as possible and take control of the Bona family. I don't want any complications."

The core objective of his alliance with Captain Sherlock was to secure the market in Kilauea.

"Don't worry," Jin said confidently. "As long as he's a businessman, there's always room for negotiation."

He had two aces up his sleeve.

First, he knew everything about Galdino's Devil Fruit, his techniques, and, most importantly, his weaknesses. In the first half of the Grand Line, Haki wasn't widespread. Often, a single Devil Fruit was enough for someone to dominate a region. But no Devil Fruit user was invincible. By targeting their specific weaknesses, one could easily turn the tables.

Crocodile was the prime example of that.

Second, Galdino was a strategist. He preferred cunning and manipulation to direct confrontation. As things stood, the situation in Kilauea was already decided.

Galdino's options were limited.

He could flee, fail his mission, and face the wrath of Mr. 0, risking demotion or even being hunted by the organization.

Or he could try to fight back and retake the country. But he hadn't shown his face last night; he'd abandoned Minister Sherlock. This meant that Baroque Works' power in Kilauea was still minimal. Galdino didn't have the confidence for a direct fight.

It was important to remember that this was four years before Luffy set out to sea. Crocodile was only just beginning to lay the groundwork for his Alabasta plan.

Therefore, the overall strength of Baroque Works was far from what it would be in four years. The same was true for Galdino.

Jin was confident he could reason with him.

—————————

The situation was just as he'd expected.

The northern part of Pincer Island was riddled with a network of caves carved out by the sea. Influenced by the nearby volcanoes, the area was rich with sulfur deposits.

Due to the toxic volcanic gases, few people ever ventured there.

But hidden within one of these caves was a black-market weapons factory—one of Baroque Works' sources of armaments.

Inside the foreman's office, Galdino was waiting for news, pacing back and forth. Last night's events had thrown him into a state of indecision.

In his early days, though Galdino was clever, he was prone to cowardice when his life was on the line. It was only after his time in Impel Down, influenced by Luffy and Bon Clay, that he began to find his courage.

That's why he had chosen to flee last night instead of fighting to protect Minister Sherlock.

Now, he was regretting it. Minister Sherlock had been a valuable asset. He shouldn't have given up on him so easily.

"If the President's plans and business are affected... I'M DEAD!" he muttered, his anxiety mounting.

"Then we'll just have to make sure they're not affected."

The voice came out of nowhere.

Galdino jumped, whirling around. He didn't know when, but a figure in a gas mask was now crouched in the window frame.

It was Jin, who had snuck in.

"WHO—? WHAT ARE YOU?"

Galdino secretly began to release a white substance from the soles of his feet—the "wax coating" of his Paramecia-type Wax-Wax Fruit.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Candleman—" Jin said calmly. "—Saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal make for a rather potent black powder. And there's a lot of it piled up around here. If a fight breaks out, one little spark... Boom. We all go up together."

Galdino's pupils contracted. How did this person know he was the user of the Wax-Wax Fruit? He'd only obtained the fruit after joining Baroque Works. Very few people knew about his ability.

"Who are you?" Galdino asked, his mind racing. "Were you sent by the President?"

The moment the words left his mouth, he knew he'd made a mistake. He clapped a hand over his mouth. If this person wasn't from the organization, he'd just exposed himself.

Seeing this, an idea suddenly sparked in Jin's mind.

Baroque Works operated primarily on a need-to-know basis. Its members were largely strangers to one another. He, on the other hand, knew all about them.

Could he...?

<><><><><><><><>

Inside the cave.

Jin and Galdino were locked in a standoff.

Jin had initially planned to simply negotiate, but upon seeing Galdino, a devilish idea had sparked in his mind.

He let out a cold laugh. "Have you forgotten the rules? You are not to inquire about other agents."

Galdino's expression hardened. Was this man really sent by the President? And so quickly? A sliver of doubt remained.

Jin leaped down from the window. "But I'll tell you this, Mr. 3. I am the President's closest associate. My codename is Mr. Kite. I am responsible for monitoring all agents, including you, and handling... special affairs. I am a ghost, an operative outside the official rankings, with authority superseding even the Officer Agents. Within the organization, my power is second only to the President, Mr. 0. You've just never known of my existence until now. I only appear for the most critical missions—all for the sake of our grand 'Operation Utopia'."

Galdino was stunned. The doubt in his eyes vanished. "Operation Utopia" was the ultimate goal of Baroque Works.

Very few knew of its existence. Even he had only been briefed on it after his promotion to Mr. 3.

And the inner workings of Baroque Works were a mystery, even to its own members. The "President" was an enigma.

Yet this man before him spoke with such familiarity, such casual confidence, that Galdino had no choice but to believe him.

Furthermore, he had correctly identified his codename. Galdino had only been promoted to Mr. 3 last year.

He didn't know that it was his topknot that had given him away. Galdino's topknot would change shape to reflect his mood, becoming an exclamation point or a question mark. A "3" on his head had to mean something. If he held a different rank, it would likely be displayed in a similar fashion.

—————————

"In that case, Mr. Kite," Galdino said, "what brings you here? Are you taking over my duties?"

"No," Jin replied. "I have another mission. It's classified. However, I will require your cooperation."

After a masterful string of bluffs, Galdino was successfully bamboozled.

He believed every word.

It wasn't that Galdino was a fool.

It was that who could have possibly imagined that a complete outsider, someone with an intimate knowledge of Baroque Works, would show up to pull off such a scam?

Jin peppered his story with inside information that even Galdino had only heard rumors of.

Faced with such a convincing deception, anyone would have been fooled.

If a stranger tells you about the birthmark on your girlfriend's most private of places, are you going to assume they've never met?

More importantly, believing Jin's story was Galdino's only way out. It absolved him of his mission failure. Out of his fear of the "President," even if Galdino had his doubts, he would have convinced himself that it was all true.

If everything was business as usual, he was safe.

If he questioned it, he was finished.

Galdino knew which path was in his best interest.

—————————

With Galdino handled, the situation in Kilauea was stabilized. There would be no more trouble for the foreseeable future.

Jin spent two more days on Pincer Island. On one hand, he negotiated with the king, signing a formal trade agreement. On the other, he sparred with Captain Sherlock, exchanging information not only on combat, but also on the surrounding seas.

He also acquired Captain Sherlock's ship's log and his collection of hand-drawn nautical charts.

"The Grand Line is different from the Four Blues,"

Captain Sherlock explained. "The magnetic fields here are chaotic. You can't navigate by charts alone. In the first half, there are seven routes that all lead to the Sabaody Archipelago. Once you choose a starting point, you have to record the magnetic field of each island you visit to navigate to the next. That's why you can only move forward on one of the seven routes; you can't just switch between them. Not unless you have a Log Pose for a specific island."

"But," Captain Sherlock said, a note of pride in his voice, "I've been sailing these waters for years. With my memory, my experience, and my charts, I can find most of the islands."

Jin didn't doubt him. No matter how much the weather of the Grand Line changed, the islands themselves didn't move. It was only natural that someone with enough experience would learn the routes by heart.

After eliminating his brother... Captain Sherlock, with the king's official endorsement, had been "rehabilitated" and appointed as the new Minister of Finance. His crew, in turn, became the kingdom's new royal guard.

As a gesture of gratitude, he gifted his priceless collection of charts and logs to Jin.

Jin gladly accepted.

Sherlock's days at sea were over, but Jin's were just beginning. He desperately needed the charts and logs to build up his database.

Furthermore, those among Sherlock's crew who still dreamed of a life at sea were transferred to Jin's command. They were all veteran sailors with a wealth of experience, perfect for training the new recruits of the Winter Blossom Kingdom.

—————————

Two days later.

Jin returned to Drum Island with a massive haul of vegetables and fruits purchased from Kilauea, as well as a new shipment of weapons.

"The king is back!"

"My goodness, look at all that fruit!"

"Did the Ice Mushrooms really sell?"

At the docks, a crowd of villagers had gathered, their excited chatter filling the air. Their eyes shone with a newfound hope.

The Ice Mushrooms their new king had developed could actually be sold for money!

Suddenly, life was full of promise.

A palpable energy filled the air.

Dalton breathed a sigh of relief. Everything had gone smoothly. His decision that day had been the right one.

—————————

In the carrier's main hall.

Jin held a meeting.

In attendance were:

• Minister Dalton.

• The mayors of the six towns.

• Patrol Captain Jeston.

• Razor Dahm.

• Wilson, the former helmsman of the Vulture Pirates.

It was called a meeting, but it was essentially a one-man show. Having secured the market in Kilauea, Jin was now laying out his plans for the next phase of development.

"Dalton, take this down," he began. "The families who breed and harvest the Ice Mushrooms will be allocated a certain portion of the vegetables and fruits. The rest will be sold at a fixed price. Additionally, those who have rendered meritorious service to the Winter Blossom Kingdom will be able to exchange 'Merit Vouchers' for monthly benefits."

"Merit Vouchers?" Dalton asked, confused.

Jin smiled. "It will be a form of paper currency, issued internally within the Winter Blossom Kingdom, that can be used for trade."

He produced a piece of "paper," similar in size to a Berri note. On one side was a picture of the aircraft carrier; on the other, a portrait of himself.

Ai had printed them using the printer on board, complete with simple anti-counterfeiting measures.

When Jin was building his model aircraft carrier, he'd naturally needed to look up information and print out blueprints. It was no surprise that he had a printer and a laptop in his workshop.

"Your salaries will be paid in Merit Vouchers," Jin explained. "You can use them to purchase vegetables, fruits, weapons, and other goods. In the future, villagers who contribute to the kingdom will also be issued these vouchers. Alternatively, you can exchange 10 Berries for 1 Merit Voucher."

"I call it the 'Winter Blossom Kingdom Merit Voucher Act'."

Jeston and the others were surprised. Wasn't this just another form of the Berri? Was there really a difference?

It didn't seem like it.

In any case, it didn't affect them.

Jin smiled to himself. The World Government's continued rule was based on four main pillars of power.

First, military power. The Marines, Cipher Pol, the God's Knights—all formidable forces.

Second, cultural power. The deeply ingrained belief in the superiority of the Celestial Dragons was a clear manifestation of this.

Third, technological power. They restricted the technological development of other nations while conducting their own advanced research on islands like Egghead. Steam-powered warships, laser weapons, Seastone technology—they held a technological advantage over every other nation.

And fourth, financial power.

The world currency—the Berri—gave them an invisible control over the Global Economy. It was the most subtle of their powers, but its influence was profound.

To challenge that power, was it enough to simply defeat the Celestial Dragons in battle?

No. It wasn't enough.