*Chapter 226: Deidara, Minister of Thermonuclear Division*

Recently, the seas have been unexpectedly calm, with no intense battles in sight. Even Morgans' newspapers have stopped circulation for a while, only reporting trivial matters each day.

For most people, peace on the seas is good news, but for someone like Morgans, the head of a news agency and a journalist, the lack of news is a failure in his profession.

Morgans himself has been personally roaming the seas, searching for the kind of news he craves. However, no matter how hard he searches, he only finds stories about what the Supernovas are up to or pirates with bounties of two to three hundred million Berries causing trouble in the territories of major pirates. Yet, these incidents are quickly dealt with, without the appearance of big names like Charlotte Linlin.

Morgans even went to their territories to investigate, but it seemed like Charlotte Linlin had left the seas altogether. Kaido, Whitebeard, and even the Navy Admiral were nowhere to be found. Not to mention Uchiha Raijin, who has been making headlines recently. It’s as if all these people vanished from the seas during this time.

Morgans sensed a big story and decided to stake out the Whole Cake Island territory. Finally, today, he spotted a ship!

On a seemingly ordinary large ship, there sat a burly woman. Morgans instinctively pulled out his camera and snapped a picture.

"Charlotte Linlin is missing an arm?"

Morgans' eyes widened in shock, and he felt an overwhelming urge to laugh. He suddenly realized that these individuals must have been up to something big during their absence.

Morgans immediately contacted his reporters stationed in Whitebeard's territory and quickly received some breaking news: Whitebeard's First Division Commander had died. Whitebeard personally carried Marco's coffin and buried him.

A huge story! A genuinely massive story.

"Hmm? I didn’t expect the news agency to move so fast—they already know about both of them."

Raijin was a bit surprised as he looked at the newspaper. Just yesterday, these people had left Dressrosa, and now, they were already in the news. The speed was impressive.

"Hahaha! I can't believe they suffered such heavy losses! Zephyr, did you give Whitebeard any trouble?" Garp, sitting beside him, laughed so hard that he almost cried. After so many years of battles with minimal casualties, they go on one trip and stir up this kind of trouble.

Garp dared to laugh out loud like this only in Dressrosa. If he went to Whitebeard or Charlotte Linlin’s territory, he’d probably be close to death.

"Can I behave recklessly just because these pirates do?" Zephyr crossed his arms, a stern look in his eyes. Garp had done a good job protecting Dressrosa, so Zephyr wasn’t giving him a hard time. After all, Garp’s grandson, as well as his other grandson, were in Dressrosa. If Garp hadn’t protected the place well, it might have been taken over.

"That’s true! Let’s go, Zephyr. It seems Kuzan stayed behind in Dressrosa. He’s planning to take a break here. I’ll call him up to drink with us," Garp said, excited, and quickly dragged Zephyr away from the palace.

Watching the two old men leave, Raijin summoned Shikamaru Nara and released the impatient Sasori of the Red Sand, Orochimaru, and Deidara. He led them into an underground facility that was still under construction. Raijin originally planned to make the walls out of Seastone, but the materials had to be ordered from Wano Country, so the project couldn’t be completed for now.

"This will be your research lab. Of course, you can also choose to set up your own research facility elsewhere."

"Orochimaru, from now on, you will be the Minister of Science for Dressrosa, and Shizune will be the Deputy Minister of the Biology Division. You two will work together to strengthen the Uchiha Clan."

Raijin led Orochimaru into a room where a disheveled woman was busy with something, seemingly oblivious to Raijin’s presence.

"Interesting! I think I will enjoy life here," Orochimaru licked his lips and walked into the room. Raijin left the two of them alone, not wanting to intervene as long as they didn’t cause any serious trouble. If something fatal happened, it would be Raijin’s loss.

Raijin then took Sasori into another room, filled with countless books. These were all materials from the airborne fortress of the Sky Ninja Village they had captured. They had also brought back metals unavailable in the seas, allowing them to start production. However, there were very few people in Dressrosa who understood machinery, which was why Sasori was now under Raijin’s command.

"This is my domain?" Sasori asked coldly as he walked in and opened a book filled with information about airborne fortresses. Immediately, his interest was piqued, and he decided to study it thoroughly.

"From now on, you’ll be the Minister of the Mechanical and Artificial Intelligence Division. Sasori, you’ll need to carry the flag for Dressrosa!" Raijin said with a grin as he held back an eager Deidara.

"Artificial intelligence? Can you explain that in detail? I’m intrigued by the term," Sasori asked, looking up at Raijin.

Raijin explained his vision to Sasori, which involved Sasori’s core being abandoned or placed in a safe location, while his consciousness could continue to control ships, robots, and more. However, the research would be up to Sasori.

Sasori found Raijin's idea intriguing and saw the potential for a new pinnacle of his puppetry art. Raijin, satisfied, left Sasori to his thoughts.

"Boss, what kind of minister am I going to be?" Deidara couldn’t contain his excitement. Seeing the others given ministerial roles and exciting research opportunities, he felt he had found the right place. In the Shinobi world, he would never have received such treatment.

"Uh, your office isn’t here!" Raijin said, leading Deidara out of the underground facility to the palace gates, where someone was already waiting.

"Take me to Base 3!" Raijin instructed Shiranui Genma, who promptly opened a dimensional door. Deidara, wide-eyed, marveled at the strange ability as they stepped through the door and arrived at an island in the East Blue. Raijin had been quietly setting up operations here ever since he arrived.

"This will be your office. You’re now the Minister of Physics and the Thermonuclear Division. Because of the dangerous nature of your research, your lab is located on this deserted island, so you won’t harm anyone. Feel free to experiment, but don’t lose your life."

Deidara, bewildered, asked, "Wait, Boss, what exactly is 'thermonuclear'?"

Raijin laughed and asked, "Deidara, what’s your most powerful technique?"

"My C3 No. 18. Its power can destroy an entire village. Even a Kage would have a hard time stopping it. It’s my greatest masterpiece," Deidara said proudly.

"Too small!" Raijin shook his head in disappointment.

"Deidara, relying solely on your Kekkei Genkai is too weak. You need to learn more. Go study in Dressrosa for a while," Raijin said, clearly disappointed.

"Wait, Boss! My art is the strongest! You can’t underestimate me like that," Deidara protested, his eyes full of defiance. His pride in his art was unwavering.

Raijin activated his Sharingan, and Deidara found himself in a genjutsu world, watching a plane fly by, followed by an intense flash of light. A massive mushroom cloud rose into the sky. Deidara, once dismissive, was now stunned, his expression filled with shock, fascination, and fervor.

"Boss, I want to learn this! Nothing else!" Deidara shouted excitedly, realizing this was the pinnacle of explosive art.

**"Ahem! So, you'll head to Dressrosa to study first. By then, I'll have someone send over the books you'll need."

"Whether or not we can create this thing in Dressrosa in the future, well, that will depend on you."

"I believe in your talent, and I believe in your pursuit of art."

"So! Whatever you do, don't give up."

Raijin said to Deidara with a sense of satisfaction.

It's good for this kid to broaden his horizons.

After all, he's still young.

Unlike Orochimaru and Sasori, who have their own pursuits.

This kid, on the other hand, has always chased after this so-called art that doesn’t really matter.

This misguided thinking, Raijin figured, should be corrected by him.

"No problem, boss!"

Deidara's heart was filled with excitement.

He was indeed curious about this thing.

What exactly is it that can produce such a massive impact?

An impact far greater than his own explosions, many times over.

Even his strongest art couldn't come close to this.

This thing was practically like...

The sun!

So scorching.

"By the way, boss, what's this thing called?"

Deidara looked at Raijin expectantly, hoping to get a name from him.

"You don’t need to worry about what it’s called. You can just call it 'Little Boy' from now on."

Raijin smiled and had Shiranui Genma escort them back to Dressrosa.

Next up was Nagato and his group. Soon, they’d be dropped into the East Blue to fend for themselves."**