[V3] - Chapter 47. The Marine's Response
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The Yuto Group.
Originally, they thought it was merely a commercial organization with some strength in the Grand Line.
Even though its Boss possessed the power to defeat one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea—Crocodile—that wasn't anything the Marine considered a big deal.
However.
No one had anticipated…
That this so-called commercial organization would actually possess the power to wipe out the Beasts Pirates!
Even the Captain of the Beasts Pirates—the fearsome Kaido, who troubled the entire world—died at their hands.
It was obvious.
This Yuto Group was absolutely not just an ordinary business organization!
At present.
The Marine faced three pressing issues.
First: One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea was now missing. To maintain stability on the seas, they needed to quickly fill the vacant position among the Seven Warlords.
Originally, Garp's grandson—Ace—would have been quite a suitable candidate. Though he was a pirate, Garp would never allow his own grandson to commit atrocities!
But alas… various things had happened in the meantime… Forget it, better not to talk about it.
Anyway, Sengoku figured that under the Yuto Group's current management, Ace's chances of ever returning to piracy were practically zero.
Second: After years of chaos, the balance of power across the seas had finally stabilized, but the fall of the Beasts Pirates was bound to plunge things back into turmoil.
After all, with one of the Four Emperors gone, countless ambitious figures across the seas would surely start vying for that vacant throne.
Even though every pirate was well aware that the position practically belonged to the Yuto Group now…
One could even say it already belonged to them.
Yet as long as the Yuto Group didn't officially declare itself one of the Four Emperors, that vacant spot would continue to lure pirates to compete for it!
For pirates…
The sea belonged to pirates, not to some commercial group. No matter how powerful a business might be, it could never gain the true recognition of all pirates.
The Yuto Group could certainly exist as a superpower outside the Four Emperors—but as long as it didn't formally become a pirate organization, it could never be one of the Four Emperors!
And third…
It was the matter of the Celestial Dragon being killed!
Those two terrifying monsters… Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama!
Although their bounties were "only" 500 million each, there was no question that their strength was already at a level sufficient to claim an emperor's throne upon the sea.
For individuals of that caliber, the Marine's bounty amounts were basically meaningless. Just look at the Four Emperors… who still remembered the precise bounties of the Four Emperors? Even the Marine didn't bother bringing them up anymore.
Unless… those two ended up as unlucky as Kaido—who got wiped out just for provoking someone's daughter—no one would rashly make a move against such terrifying forces!
As for why the bounty was set at 500 million…
That came down to the World Government's face.
Unless absolutely forced, how could they slap a 5-billion bounty on someone right from the start? Wouldn't that just prove they were terrified?
And besides…
Uchiha Yuto and Uchiha Madara…
No matter how you look at it, the relationship between those two was clearly not ordinary!
Remembering the intelligence about that colossal giant, Sengoku felt deeply uneasy—more worried even than over the incident of the slain Celestial Dragon.
While Sengoku wouldn't go around yelling "a bunch of idiots!" like Garp, he had to admit… a few dead Celestial Dragons didn't really change the balance of power at sea. At most, it was merely a slap in the World Government's face.
But.
Top-tier powerhouses…
Each time one emerged…
It would inevitably bring frightening shifts in the balance of power across the seas!
Especially this Uchiha… According to information, it seemed that giant's power wasn't unique. Over in Wano, there were already reports of other giants in different colors, each of terrifying strength—and even bigger than Sengoku's own Buddha form!
If their suspicions were true… and the so-called "Uchiha" wasn't merely one or two individuals, but an entire clan… then the World Government would have to completely rethink its approach.
After all, such abilities… were potentially even more fearsome than the so-called Will of D!
At least the Will of D remained within the World Government's understanding—for those individuals, even if they possessed strange powers, it was usually because they'd eaten a Devil Fruit.
But the abilities of the Uchiha Clan and that Senju Hashirama seemed completely unfazed by Seastone!
The only problem was…
To this day… the World Government still hadn't figured out where exactly these people had come from!
Sengoku furrowed his brow, his face shifting between helplessness and deep worry. Finally, after a long sigh, he looked at the Marine's three Admirals, pondering for a moment before saying: "You three have already fought them. Based on your encounters, what's your assessment of their strength?"
When his words fell—
The three Admirals exchanged glances, all wearing grim expressions.
Even Kizaru and Aokiji, who usually lounged lazily through meetings or fussed over their fingernails, were deadly serious at this moment.
"They're extremely strong!" Kuzan turned toward Fleet Admiral Sengoku, nodded, and said with a frown, "To the point where even the three of us still haven't pushed them to reveal their true power!"
"Ooh~ so scary~ Scary like a bunch of monsters!"
"Hmph!"
The three of them recalled that battle…
They had actually been forced into a disadvantage!
Though it was embarrassing to admit, the truth was that the three Admirals had been overwhelmed and suppressed by those two terrifying monsters.
Especially that raging Haki… Both Madara and Hashirama possessed terrifying mastery over all three forms of Haki. Partway through the fight, Uchiha Madara had even begun coating his giant with Haki, laughing wildly while bellowing, "Do you want to dance too?!" as if the three Admirals were beneath his notice.
In the end…
If Senju Hashirama hadn't restrained Madara, the entire Marine presence near Sabaody Archipelago might have been annihilated.
It was nothing less than disaster-level combat power!
At that moment.
Kuzan suddenly recalled the Senju Tobirama he'd encountered back in Alabasta…
Senju Hashirama, Senju Tobirama…
That Senju Tobirama seemed to have been looking for his older brother—could it be that this Senju Hashirama was Tobirama's brother?
Although he didn't know Hashirama's exact strength, it was clear that he was quite formidable!
And then there were those three guys in green skintight suits—the ones delivering takeout… Based on the intelligence they'd gathered so far, those were definitely monster-level powerhouses too.
So where exactly did this Yuto Group come from?
How could they have so many strong fighters?!
"So that's how it is~!" Upon hearing the three men's reports, Sengoku sighed heavily again, rubbing his temples with a headache. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "So… has there been any activity from the Yuto Group lately?"
As soon as he finished speaking—
He seemed to hear a strange sound.
He turned his head and saw Garp next to him, gulping down milk tea while fiddling with a cube-shaped object in his hands.
Today, that bastard… was actually daring to slack off during such an important meeting?
Didn't he realize how serious the situation was right now?!
And besides—
What the heck was he playing with?
The thing in Garp's hand… seemed to be glowing?
Its light was shining right onto his face.
From time to time, he even raised it high and waved it around, mumbling things like [Why's the signal so weak here?] as though searching for something!
Sengoku furrowed his brow and cleared his throat loudly. "Ahem, ahem!"
He was clearly trying to get Garp's attention!
However—
Garp still didn't respond. He just kept waving that device around, muttering nonstop, "Why's the signal so weak in here? Maybe I should just leave!"
"Garp!!!" Sengoku finally couldn't stand it anymore. His face darkened, and he slammed the table with a loud bang. "We're in the middle of a meeting! What the hell are you doing?!"
Garp waved his hand dismissively without even looking up. "Don't mind me! You guys keep going with your meeting!"
"You bastard! Put your ass down right now!"
"…Fine, fine!" Garp pouted in resignation when he saw Sengoku getting angry. But he finally tucked the device away, sat back down, and kept sipping his milk tea. As he noticed Sengoku glaring at him, he hurriedly waved his cup and protested, "Don't look at me like that! This time I paid for it myself! I'm not putting it on the expense report!"
"…"
Was that really the issue here?!
Sengoku stared at Garp, black lines running down his face. But deep inside, he was also a little curious.
What was that thing Garp was playing with, anyway, that it could fascinate him so much?
However—
They were still in the middle of a meeting, so it wasn't appropriate to ask.
So, after a moment's thought, Sengoku ignored that idiot for now and turned back to Kuzan. "And what's your assessment over there? Did they say anything about their relationship with those two individuals?"
"No." Kuzan shook his head and paused for a moment. "According to the Marines who returned from Wano, they didn't reveal much. Right now, they're busy rebuilding Wano. It's just that…" He hesitated briefly. "Those two individuals definitely have a very close relationship with the Yuto Group."
"I figured as much~" Sengoku shook his head helplessly. If possible… he honestly wished this was just an ordinary commercial organization.
And then—
He could simply let those guys exploit that troublesome brat of Garp's grandson. But from the looks of it now… as far as the Yuto Group was concerned… even the Marine needed to tread carefully.
However—
"The intelligence we have right now is still far too limited!" Sengoku fell into thought for a moment, then said, "Assign personnel to investigate every piece of information on the Yuto Group! Since that guy is pretending not to know them… as long as they don't interfere with the World Government, don't oppose it, and don't go to sea as pirates, we'll maintain our current relationship with them." He paused slightly. "For now, our top priority is to stabilize the seas!"
After speaking, he glanced around, seeing everyone nod in agreement, and then glared once more at Garp, who was secretly pulling out that strange device again, his face turning dark. "This meeting is adjourned! Everyone except Vice Admiral Garp, leave immediately and start working on your assignments!"
"Yes!"
As soon as the words fell—
Within moments, the entire conference room was empty except for two people!
Garp kept fiddling with his device while looking up at Sengoku. "Why'd you keep me behind? I've got other stuff to do, you know!"
"You… damn it…" Sengoku took a deep breath, but as he looked at the thing in Garp's hands, he frowned curiously. "What the hell is that, anyway? You've been playing with it nonstop since the meeting started!"
"Oh, you mean this thing~" Garp's face lit up with a grin as he noticed Sengoku's curious gaze. "This is a new product from the Yuto Group. Not only can it replace a Den Den Mushi, but it's super convenient for ordering takeout—and it's full of all kinds of games! It's incredibly handy! I'm planning to buy one for that brat Luffy when I get back."
"Den Den Mushi?" Sengoku looked at Garp with confusion, curiosity creeping into his voice. "So… what exactly is it?"
"It's not a Den Den Mushi! I think it's called… a smartphone!"
"Smartphone?"