Chapter 88: The Mobilizing Navy! Consulting Roger
Nighttime.
Marine Headquarters.
Steel Bone Kong was, as usual, busy at his desk.
The only slight difference from usual was that the white hair on his head had increased a little more.
Just as he was about to take a short break, a sudden piece of news completely disrupted his original plans.
"Traces of the Azure Emperor Lotte have been discovered?"
"According to the report Garp personally submitted, Lotte's strength is probably even greater than we imagined."
"In their brief clash, they fought to a draw."
Steel Bone Kong scanned the contents of the report, and his expression immediately darkened.
Everyone knew Garp's strength was obvious to all in Marine Headquarters—very few could claim a guaranteed victory over him in pure combat power.
Yet in just half a year,
Lotte had elevated his strength to this level.
The boy's talent was clearly even more terrifying than Steel Bone Kong had anticipated. If the Azure Emperor was given a few more years to grow, he might even stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Rocks!
Such an outcome
Was absolutely something Marine Headquarters could not afford.
One Rocks alone had already caused them endless trouble. If another Azure Emperor Lotte was added to the mix,
The pressure on Marine Headquarters would reach unprecedented levels.
To prevent this, the Rocks Pirates had to be annihilated as soon as possible.
As long as Lotte and Rocks could both be eliminated,
For Marine Headquarters,
The remaining cadres—while still troublesome—would not be impossible to handle.
"Hm… the Azure Emperor Lotte's strength has exceeded expectations."
"It seems we must urge the World Government to act quickly. Rocks should already know God Valley's location by now."
"The final battle won't be far off."
Steel Bone Kong murmured in a low voice.
For Marine Headquarters, the outcome of this operation was absolutely crucial.
Although Steel Bone Kong had only recently learned God Valley's location from the World Government, knowing what Rocks wanted gave him the perfect opportunity to plan.
After all, knowing the target Rocks desired
Made it the ideal trigger for the decisive battle.
BANG!
Just as Steel Bone Kong was deep in thought,
The door was suddenly pushed open. Garp walked in with a grave expression.
"Fleet Admiral, you should have received the report by now. Lotte's strength in every aspect has improved dramatically."
"His Armament Haki, which used to be so fragile, has now advanced tremendously."
"Give him a bit more time and he might even catch up to me."
"We have to send that guy to Impel Down as soon as possible!"
Though Garp held no personal killing intent toward Lotte, allowing a pirate with such terrifying talent to roam free was an enormous threat to the world!
Rocks was living proof of that.
Following behind Garp were Sengoku and Tsuru, both wearing helpless expressions.
Sengoku looked at Steel Bone Kong and gave a wry smile.
"Sorry to disturb your rest, Fleet Admiral, but Garp insisted we come."
"Still, the Azure Emperor Lotte's return was extremely sudden."
"Even CP0 couldn't find any trace of him. That shows just how good Lotte is at hiding."
"We need to take action soon."
Sengoku's tone carried a heavy weight.
As one of the Marine "Iron Triangle" who grew up alongside Garp,
No one understood Garp's growth speed and strength better than he did. Even among the three of them, Garp was the strongest.
Even he, with his Mythical Zoan Buddha form, was slightly inferior.
Yet even such a Garp
Could only fight Lotte to a draw upon his return. No matter how you looked at it, that guy's growth rate was simply too bizarre.
If he was allowed to keep growing,
He might become an even more terrifying pirate than Rocks!
Steel Bone Kong fell silent for a moment.
He unleashed an extremely powerful wave of Observation Haki that enveloped the entire Marine Headquarters.
After confirming no one was eavesdropping, he raised his head and looked at the three.
"To be honest, Marine Headquarters has already begun operations. The three current Admirals have all been recalled. You don't need to worry too much about Rocks and Lotte."
"No matter what, we will not allow those guys to keep growing."
As his words fell,
All three of them showed shocked expressions.
Both Garp and Sengoku were elite Vice Admirals.
As positions second only to Admirals, they hadn't even been informed of this.
When exactly had Marine Headquarters started moving in secret?
While they were still confused,
Steel Bone Kong took a deep breath and began explaining the upcoming situation in detail.
He also revealed some specifics about the God Valley operation, causing all three of their expressions to freeze.
Marine Headquarters and the World Government joining forces to annihilate the Rocks Pirates.
No wonder CP0 had been visiting Headquarters so frequently lately—it was all for this.
Though Sengoku and Tsuru didn't know exactly what made God Valley so attractive, since it could draw the Rocks Pirates,
It was almost certainly something extremely important.
Garp's eyes became complicated.
This was the place Roger had mentioned to him—the thing hidden there must never fall into Rocks' hands.
He had originally thought Roger was just messing with him, but now it seemed there really was something to it.
For the next while, he'd better stop chasing Roger.
He needed to prepare for this great battle.
If Rocks really obtained God Valley,
The consequences would be unimaginable!
...
As night fell.
The grand banquet held on the Roger Pirates' ship was brightly lit.
Amid the clinking of cups and flowing wine, Roger looked at Lotte and laughed heartily.
"So you went to the West Blue, huh? No wonder we didn't see you in the New World for so long. Why'd you go to such a remote place?"
"Were you afraid the Marines would ambush you again?"
"No way—that's impossible. For the past half year, the Marines haven't made a move against the Rocks Pirates. Instead, Garp's been chasing us nonstop."
"What a persistent guy."
Lotte shot Roger an annoyed glance.
"Come on, as if I'd be afraid of those Marines."
"I just went to handle some things in the West Blue. Now that I'm done, I'm heading back."
"I was on my way to rejoin the crew when I ran into you being chased."
"What a coincidence, right?"
Lotte raised an eyebrow and laughed.
Though he was rushing back to the crew, running into Roger was perfect timing.
He actually had something he wanted to ask this future Pirate King. As a fellow member of the D clan,
Roger might know more about God Valley.
Roger waved his hand casually.
"Ask away. As long as I know, I'll tell you."
His tone was full of confidence.
Lotte revealed a playful smile.
"You said it yourself."
"I want to ask you, Roger—how much do you know about God Valley?"
"You're not completely clueless about it, are you?"
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