A squad made up of just three soldiers… and now…
Even the East Blue branch offices couldn't hold up and have started calling for reinforcements?
Isn't that a bit exaggerated?
Sengoku was dumbfounded.
As the Fleet Admiral of the Marines, his usual focus was on matters within the Grand Line.
The Four Blues…
Especially the East Blue—if it hadn't been for that incident last time, he wouldn't have paid it any attention for years.
Naturally, the base commanders of the East Blue branches—aside from Smoker and Luo Lan, who had been demoted there—were not directly appointed by him, but rather by a Vice Admiral under his command.
That was Vice Admiral Val… who had already been taken out of the picture.
Yes, one of the Five Elders' people.
Sengoku knew the East Blue branches were rotten to the core.
But he didn't expect it to be this bad.
Three people!
And not even officers—just three regular soldiers!
That's all Jun Lin sent to each base.
And yet they managed to suppress everything?
What a joke. A Marine Colonel commanding a base in East Blue can't even handle a single grunt from Jun Lin's forces?
How ridiculous is that...
"What about casualties?"
"No reports so far, but from the intel we've received, Jun Lin appears to only be suppressing and arresting—no killings."
Phew…
Sengoku let out a sigh of relief.
This was different from the fighting in the Calm Belt. Back then, Luo Lan had stopped the Navy from committing a massacre in East Blue.
And those who were taken out had mostly been CP agents of the World Government or shady Marine officers with ties to the Five Elders or high officials.
But the East Blue branches were different.
Though some corrupt officers had caused serious damage, Sengoku believed that the rank-and-file Marines were still mostly loyal to justice.
Good thing Luo Lan hadn't gone on a killing spree.
Just arrests.
But…
What was Luo Lan planning?
Could it be… that he intended to take control of all East Blue?
Sengoku frowned deeply.
"Fleet Admiral, what should we do now?"
"Yeah, we can't just sit here and watch, doing nothing!"
"If we continue to stall like this, the Navy's reputation will be in tatters!"
"If we can't get past the Calm Belt, then why not flip the strategy and blockade East Blue instead? If Junylin is using the Calm Belt as a natural barrier, so can we!"
The room suddenly erupted in noise.
But Sengoku caught that last comment.
"Onigumo, what did you just say?"
"Fleet Admiral, I said if Jun Lin is using the Calm Belt as a natural shield, then we can too!"
"Blockade the East Blue?"
"Yes. The reason we're at such a disadvantage is because, inside the Calm Belt, aside from a few steel warships, the rest of our fleet can only move at about three knots. But if we shift operations to the Grand Line…"
Onigumo trailed off, but everyone understood what he meant.
Indeed, most ships in the Allied Fleet were old-fashioned sail warships. Once they entered the Calm Belt, they couldn't use wind power and had to rely on auxiliary paddle propulsion.
That speed—barely three knots—might as well be standing still compared to Jun Lin's fleet.
But in the Grand Line, the situation would be different.
Moreover, production of the replica steel warships had already begun. If they could pin Jun Lin down in East Blue for six months, and the Navy managed to refit most of its fleet with new warships, their biggest current weakness might be solved.
At first glance, it sounded like a solid plan.
But Sengoku knew—it was practically useless.
Even Vegapunk had said it was impossible to perfectly replicate Jun Lin's technology with current manufacturing capabilities.
The compromised designs could only reach about 12 knots.
Not even half the speed of Jun Lin's ships.
In that case, Jun Lin could still run circles around them with ease.
So, despite how good it sounded, it was a plan destined to fail.
However...
"Onigumo, that's an excellent proposal."
"Spandine, since you're the representative of the Five Elders, what do you think?"
Sengoku didn't reject Onigumo's plan. Instead, he turned to ask Spandine.
Spandine was caught off guard—but also pleased.
He had always felt Sengoku looked down on him, so to be asked for his opinion now was a surprise.
But also…
A chance!
Yes, at critical moments like these, it was his time to shine.
Ahem "Vice Admiral Onigumo's suggestion is very sound. I believe if we can hold out for a few months—half a year at most—the situation will quickly shift in our favor!"
"After all, we've got Vegapunk on our side. Who knows? He might soon develop even stronger warships based on Jun Lin's designs!"
"I'll personally report this plan to the Five Elders. How about that?"
Sengoku nodded.
No objections.
Spandine was overjoyed.
Sure, it wasn't his idea originally—but who cared?
Once he reported it to the Five Elders, Onigumo's part would be forgotten. This brilliant strategy…
Would be credited to him, Spandine.
Yes—while the rest of the Navy was floundering, unable to come up with a solution—
He had stepped up and proposed a perfect plan!
At this rate, a promotion was all but guaranteed.
At his current rank, if he got promoted again… his authority might even rival Commander-in-Chief Kong's.
What Spandine didn't notice, however—
Was the mocking glint in Sengoku's eyes.
As expected… greedy, power-hungry fools are the easiest to manipulate.
Why do you think I let you take the credit?
Because I know this plan won't work. It's destined to fail.
And in the meantime, I've bought Luo Lan at least half a year.
When the plan collapses, all the blame goes to you, the one who proposed it.
Has nothing to do with me…
Or the Navy.
For now, what matters most…
Is letting the "esteemed overseer" shine.
Soon after, Spandine hurried out of the meeting room, eager to report to the Five Elders and claim his reward.
The other Vice Admirals and CP agents followed, leaving only Sengoku, Akainu, Kizaru, and Tsuru behind.
"Fleet Admiral… what was that all about?" Akainu asked, visibly angry.
He knew better than anyone how flawed the plan was.
Jun Lin hadn't even used that railgun-like weapon yet.
Compared to cannon fire, that was the real killer.
If Jun Lin started deploying it repeatedly...
What could the Allied Fleet possibly do?
"Akainu, if I didn't do that, what do you think the World Government would've ordered next?"
"Probably… to send in reinforcements and form an even larger fleet to launch a second operation into East Blue…"
"Exactly. And do you think that would help?"
Akainu shook his head.
Clearly, this wasn't a problem numbers could solve.
"That's why I went along with Spandine. Even if the Five Elders blame someone later, it won't be us."
"It was his idea. He's the one reporting it."
"And besides, he's their appointed overseer, watching over the fleet on their behalf. What could we possibly say? Or dare to say?"
"Isn't that right?"
Akainu was stunned.
Wait... that was an option?
But Sengoku's logic did make sense.
This…
Might actually be the best play they had right now.
And in the meantime—
Sengoku had secured them half a year to come up with a real plan.
---
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