"Rear Admiral, how are you feeling?" I asked.
"...Black Cat. And the Admirals, too," he grunted.
Headquarters Rear Admiral Saluki.
He was the commander of the reinforcement fleet from headquarters. A pirate named Shiki attacked them and wiped them out, but Daz's group rescued him.
"Is your leg better now?"
"Ah. As long as I have my cane, I can manage to go to the bathroom by myself... I'm sorry, Black Cat. You've all done so much for me."
Good, good. His opinion of us seems to have really improved.
When we first rescued him, he was the kind of person who said, "Damn it... to be rescued by pirates, even if we have a truce...!"
It looks like the former Marines in the Guards and the civilian medical teams worked really hard to take care of him.
"Today, I came to ask you for more details."
"Details about...?" he asked.
"About what the inside of headquarters thinks of us... our reputation."
This tough Marine, who was glaring at us so fiercely until just a while ago, now looks a little awkward.
"Huh?" Kuzan interjected. "I thought your reputation at headquarters was pretty good."
"I've also heard people say it's a shame that 'Black Cat' is a pirate..." Kizaru added.
Yep, it has to be that way.
I've been trying to act that way as much as possible, to lower our danger level in everything except fighting strength.
That's why I've been deliberately making a name for myself in politics, even though I really don't want to do that kind of work.
"That's why..." Saluki continued, "maybe there were quiet rumors spreading? Like... that we, the 'Black Cat' crew, were getting close to the Admirals... and... doing whatever we want to the non-allied nations?"
"...That's right."
If that's the case, I figured there would be some pushback. And I was right.
"Was your reason for sailing to Mopuchi Country, our base, a kind of surprise inspection?" I asked. "To see the truth about us with your own eyes?"
The Rear Admiral nods a little on the bed. Kuzan mutters, "So that's what was going on..."
They distrust the government because it can't control the Celestial Dragons. And they misjudged us because they only had five headquarters ships...
"...That's right," Saluki admitted. "Thinking about it now... I am sorry."
"No, we are pirates, without a doubt. We are beings who will never see eye-to-eye with the World Government. When you think about it that way, I can understand why you would be suspicious of us for having a good relationship with the Marines. Or suspicious of the Admirals for having ties to pirates. Please, don't worry about it."
Kuzan and Borsalino look a little surprised, but that's just how it is.
When you make a big deal about something being good, you always get people who push back...
And those types are always the ones who aren't in the majority, so they get more worked up and are harder to handle.
It's an emotional problem, so trying to control it by talking usually just makes things worse.
"But... because of that, I lost so many of my men..." Saluki said, his voice thick with pain. "And even the supplies that were meant to save the people of this West Blue...!"
"But if that attack hadn't happened," I countered gently, "we would still be desperately searching for the enemy's base, relying only on patrol sightings and reading the ocean currents. We wouldn't have found their base, and many more people would have been kidnapped and made slaves."
It's true.
I feel bad for the Marines who died, but because of that attack, we got information on the enemy and were able to take over their base.
I never thought he could not only fly himself, but make other things fly...
And not just one or two ships, but an island.
We probably won't have them ready by the time we enter the Grand Line, but I see now that it won't hurt to prepare some anti-air weapons.
I can't believe that was possible... Come to think of it, the original Admiral 'Fujitora' can control gravity, so he can do that too.
...First, let's start with a prototype Gatling gun.
There are more guys who fly in weird ways than you'd think. And remembering the original story, there are also guys with submarines, like Wapol or Law, not just threats from the sky.
I need to think of a plan for them, too.
"Your actions were not a waste. Because of what you did, many people were saved."
"...Honestly, when I heard you all took the enemy base, I was truly relieved," Saluki said. "I also heard from Rear Admiral Munchkin that your actions were sincere."
Oh my.
I thought he was the type to always be digging for information on us...
Does that mean he assigned Hina to me during that battle out of pure kindness? Or did he really think I was a good teaching subject for Hina?
It's... surprising.
"What I'm curious about is the reason you tried a surprise inspection," I pressed. "Was it your idea, Rear Admiral Saluki?"
"It was."
"What was the reason you thought of... no, decided on that?"
Even if he was the one who made the decision, he must have had information that led him to it.
"...There were many things. But... the main reason was the limit on Marines entering Mopuchi Country.
...No, I'm sorry. Now I understand why. People from non-allied nations have no rights."
"Yes," I confirmed. "We are short on supplies and manpower for emergencies in the allied nations. It was very possible that the powers above the Marines could use that as a reason to order a forced entry. Either by the Marines, or by the government's own forces. That's why we had no choice but to set limits. ...I am sorry for making you suspicious."
"...Yes. But we were far away, and only knew about your character through rumors. We assumed that even in this emergency, you were just being selfish... that you were, after all, just pirates."
No, that's fine, really...
It's not that wrong to say we're using this situation to get an advantage.
"Do you know where the rumors were coming from?"
"...I had heard that some of the non-commissioned officers were saying things... but I don't know the details."
Tch, so they won't let me catch them.
I thought that even if I can't do it as a pirate, Mr. Sengoku could use it as a good card against the government...
"By the way, who decided to make the fleet five ships?"
"...There was talk that if we had to fight Black Cat, we would need a strong force from headquarters."
"So you reported that, and asked for five ships."
"Yes. I told the Fleet Admiral we needed more supplies... I'm sorry. It was very foolish of me."
I see.
So they wanted to bring forces almost equal to a Buster Call, just in case they had to fight us.
Well, with Mihawk around, it makes sense they'd think that way.
If they had gone to Mopuchi Country and started trouble, they might have gotten sliced to pieces by the 'Dark King' who was relaxing on that island.
Still, I wanted to find out who was pulling the strings, but I have no proof. It's always like this for me.
In the end, we haven't really solved any of the big problems we've been involved in.
We're just barely dodging their moves. Whether it's the Marine slaves, the pirate alliance, or the World Government scheming in the background, we haven't landed a real blow.
Well, it's not like we have power in the Grand Line. We're still just in one corner of the West Blue.
"...The government doesn't seem to be trying to contact any of our 'Black Cat' crew members right now. In that case..."
"Hey, Kuro," Kuzan suddenly said.
Admiral Aokiji, you should really... think about our positions as pirate and Marine in front of other Marines... Ah, no, maybe calling me by name is more like him.
"What is it?"
"We know what the reinforcement fleet was doing and why. So..."
"Yes."
"What did Mr. Sengoku mean by 'forcing their way'?"
"...Basically, it's a provocation in a gray area."
Mr. Sengoku, I really think you need to train your people better in things other than fighting.
"Right now, there's something the World Government wants so badly they can taste it."
"That's Nico Robin's head, right?" Kuzan sighed.
"And they probably want your head too, since you're protecting her," Kizaru added.
"...Well, yes. From the government's point of view, they want to sink us no matter what. But the situation won't let them."
I see. Looking at it this way, the start of the pirate alliance was actually good for us in a way.
"The pirate alliance, and the food crisis that comes with it. Even without that, there's the growing pirate problem and the revolutionary movement that just started up. The Marines' power is needed to deal with them, but there's a gap between the government and the Marines because of the Marine slave incident."
I'm not sure, but if the person behind the pirate alliance is trying to... maybe not overthrow the government, but weaken it... then their first step would have been to quietly spread the news about the slave incident.
It probably won't be as bad as here in the West Blue, which was the scene of the crime, but the Marines' morale will definitely drop.
The situation gets worse every day, so the government is clearly unhappy with the Marines. But they don't have enough reason to use force against them.
"In other words, the government desperately wants to strengthen its control over the Marines. The emergency promotions that you two and Mr. Sengoku suddenly got were probably part of that."
"Our promotions?" Kuzan asked.
"It makes sense in terms of fighting power, but it's causing you trouble in managing the organization, right?"
Garp, who people rally around, isn't the type to want a promotion. And I don't know the details, but based on her rank in the original story, Tsuru is the same type.
It's probably also because Mr. Sengoku was much more skilled than they expected, so it didn't work out...
"They wanted to take back their political advantage over Fleet Admiral Sengoku, the three powerful Admirals, and their people. They probably wanted to use that power to solve the pirate problem and our 'Black Cat' problem... But Fleet Admiral Sengoku played his cards well and kept the government's meddling to a minimum."
He secretly wrote about that in a letter.
No, I found something in his regular letter that could be read as a secret message. So, I replied by copying that, and then the next letter I got secretly had that story in it.
"But the government won't give up. The Marines are like the public face of the government. If they start to distrust the government and pull away, it will be hard for the government to rule like it used to."
"Then... the thing the government wants so badly...?" Kuzan prompted.
"Yes. A major failure by the Marines."
I've never seen Borsalino make such a sour face, though Kuzan looks normal.
I always thought he was a guy who just made shady faces.
"To be exact, they want to make a big public show that it's 'bad' for the Marines to ignore the government's wishes. They'll use that as an excuse to take real control of the Marines."
"...So, the gray area is...?"
"I can think of a few ways..."
If they want to follow the World Government's laws but still push the Marines to their limit, their options are few.
"They'll probably use the non-allied nations and their people."
"...Non-allied nations are not protected," Kuzan said darkly.
"Yes. It's a place where it's hard for the Marines to act, in many ways."
If I were the World Government, the best way to control the Marines would be to make them partners in crime.
This truce was just like that.
I was making plans to support the Marines' justice, but for the government, it was a chance to mix in something darker.
"Well, about that—"
"Captain!" Hancock's voice suddenly called out. "They're here!"
"Kuro! Admiral Aokiji!" Hina's voice followed, panicked.
Whoops.
"Hancock... Hina, too? Did Daz and the others arrive?"
"That, and the government is here!"
"Kuro! Suddenly, Cipher Pol just...!"
"They said that to deal with the crisis in the allied nations, they're drafting the non-allied citizens we're protecting here as a labor force...!"
Hahaa, I see...
That makes sense. It's a reasonable move, but...
"Hancock, tell Daz. We'll use all our forces on this island to protect the non-allied citizens. But we will not attack first. Defense is the top priority. If Daz doesn't say anything, just hold a stare-down with Cipher Pol. I'm on my way."
"Yes, I understand."
The World Government... No, I can pretty much read their plan, and I understand it.
But even if that's their goal, they should have thought more about the risks of doing something on stage that should have been done backstage.
No, even before that—
Did they think that no matter how different we are, a pirate is just a pirate? Did they think if they pushed things through with politics, we pirates would only have violence as an answer?
Fools.
They really underestimate me.
"Kuro, this is—" Kuzan started.
"It's fine," I cut him off. "This is well within my expectations."
"Admiral Aokiji, Kizaru. And Hina, too... Let's go. We're going to reset the situation right here."
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