Boom!!
Mary Geoise - Chamber of Authority.
The sound of a scepter striking the ground echoed violently.
...
"Outrageous!!"
"He harmed Luo live in the West Sea broadcast, then killed Jalmack in the Goa Kingdom! This madman keeps trampling on the rules!"
"In the 800 years since the twenty kings established the World Government, no one has ever dared to offend the 'World' like this! Offend the supreme Celestial Dragons!!"
Saint Saturn's gaze swept over the blood-stained report on the table - the blood belonged to the officer who delivered it.
His voice was cold as iron: "This isn't offense, Saint Peter. This is a declaration of war."
"That Lunarian who luckily escaped the hunt is trying to declare war on us with his fragile wings."
...
Saint Nusjuro pressed his hand against the long sword at his waist, the sound of his fingers rubbing against the scabbard grating: "I'll make a trip down."
"I read Borsalino's report. That guy seems to have obtained some kind of 'immortality' ability."
"I'll show him how fragile his inferior 'immortality' really is."
...
"Unnecessary."
Saint Warcury's white mustache twitched as he spoke in a low voice: "If we need to move because of some brat, then what's the point of us creating the World Government."
"It would only make those so-called Sea Emperors and the Revolutionary Army think we're weak."
"Since he's from the Lunarian Tribe, he's not the prophesied race. Ultimately, he can't cause any real waves."
...
"Then we just let him be? It hasn't been long, and he's already killed two Celestial Dragons!"
Saint Shepherd Ju Peter showed the most emotional fluctuation. The first victim, Saint Luo, was a relatively close descendant by bloodline.
That's why the Holy Land had even assigned a rare Buccaneer Tribe member as Luo's guard.
Saint Warcury shook his head, pressing one hand on the armrest of the sofa as he spoke slowly: "That's not what I mean."
"Fisher Tiger's unauthorized intrusion into the Holy Land happened recently, Dragon's Revolutionary Army is growing stronger, Charlotte Linlin and Kaido's coveting of the final island is obvious..."
"Over a decade ago, the Marines' power was about to exceed our control, and we had to restrain them."
The five exchanged glances, recalling the measures taken against the Marines many years ago.
Back then, the Marines had Garp, Sengoku, and Zephyr. The Marine Fleet Admiral Kong hadn't aged yet, and the new generation including Sakazuki were showing their sharp edges.
The Marines' power made them feel a huge threat, leading them to take certain actions against the Marines.
"The plan to use powerful Pirates to form the Seven Warlords of the Sea to balance the seas hasn't shown clear results yet. I think..."
"It's necessary to loosen some of the restrictions on the Marines."
"Regarding that Lunarian remnant, I think we can fully entrust it to Sengoku to handle. He'll make an excellent Fleet Admiral."
"He handled the Roger incident very well back then. Compared to that time, this is just a minor matter."
"What do you all think."
Saint Warcury looked at the others. Their eyes met, reaching a consensus.
"Then... so be it."
——
——
——
Marine Headquarters - Marineford.
Sengoku hung up the Den Den Mushi, his eyebrows furrowed tightly together.
"A madman, isn't he..."
He had witnessed Celestial Dragons being killed before—the number of Celestial Dragons who died at God Valley back then could form an entire company.
But no matter what, assassinating Celestial Dragons should be done in secret, right?
At the very least, it shouldn't be livestreamed.
Even if it was livestreamed...
Now, before hundreds of thousands of eyes, it had become a public execution.
That guy...
What exactly does he think of the lives of Celestial Dragons...
...
Sengoku remained loyal to the World Government because, like Garp, he believed its existence was necessary for the seas—the benefits far outweighed the drawbacks.
Yet, deep down, he held grievances against some of the Celestial Dragons' actions and history. Otherwise, he wouldn't have spoken to the younger generation about the killing games that took place at God Valley after his retirement.
If that guy named Kari had assassinated a Celestial Dragon in secret, Sengoku would have been more inclined to cover up the truth rather than pursue him with great fanfare.
...
The Five Elders had just contacted him, granting him full authority to handle this matter. If he could capture that guy, the World Government would increase the Marines' funding by twenty percent.
Twenty percent...
What did that mean? How many bases could be built? How many soldiers could be recruited? How many islands could be protected?
"Sigh... Being the Fleet Admiral is far more difficult than being an Admiral. No wonder Fleet Admiral Kong was so eager to retire."
Though Kong was nominally promoted to Commander-in-Chief, everyone knew it was a hollow title.
The Marines were the World Government's largest armed force, and the Marine Fleet Admiral held the most significant position of real power.
Sengoku had been in the role of Fleet Admiral for some time now and had come to understand some of the Five Elders' maneuvers.
Balance.
To the Five Elders, balance was paramount—perhaps it was the most critical aspect for any organization.
What was Sengoku's justice?
The Justice of the Supreme Ruler!
One of the rare possessors of Conqueror's Haki in the Marines, he had pursued the Sea Emperor Whitebeard for decades and was once hailed as the Marines' top combatant, on par with Garp!
Before assuming the position of Fleet Admiral, he was undeniably a hardliner, ruthless and decisive in dealing with Pirates, preferring to kill by mistake rather than let any escape.
After all, Sakazuki had been under his command since graduating from the Officer Training Camp—a true protégé.
It was hard to say that Sakazuki's personality hadn't been influenced by Sengoku.
...
But after becoming Fleet Admiral, some of Sengoku's actions and decisions became more conservative.
He quickly realized that the Marines couldn't be dominated by an extremely powerful faction—it would steer the great ship of the Marines into uncharted waters.
Most importantly...
One doesn't know the cost of firewood, rice, oil, and salt until running a household.
As construction bills, warship reports, and compensation for the fallen crossed his desk...
He began considering how to achieve the greatest results at the smallest cost.
His heavy promotion of Griffin back then was also based on this reasoning. In fact, it was a brilliant move—just a single expense on publicity attracted a large number of female Marines.
Those female Marines, in turn, drew in male Marines pursuing beauties. Perfect!
Sengoku didn't expect everyone who joined the Marines to do so for justice—that was unrealistic.
...
...
At his desk.
Even Sengoku, reputed to possess the wisdom of a Buddha, pondered for a long time before gradually easing his furrowed brow.
His gaze shifted to another document at the edge of his desk, and his recently relaxed brow wrinkled once more.
"What timing... coming down to stir up trouble now..."
"Shalria... from that family, no wonder..."
Sengoku picked up the document and muttered under his breath, "Even among the Celestial Dragons, those guys are exceptionally foolish..."
BAM!!
The sudden loud noise made Sengoku's fingers twitch.
"Yo! Sengoku! I'm here for some Senbei!"
Watching Garp kick the door open, Sengoku casually fed the document to the goat and said impatiently, "If you don't knock next time, I'll..."
After hesitating for a while, Sengoku couldn't think of anything to threaten Garp with, so he just shook his head helplessly.
Garp, who had come to rummage through the desk for snacks, glanced at the document on the table.
"Confirmation of Shalria's Palace Lower World Guard—Colonel of the Branch..."
Garp picked up the document with his snack-crumb-covered hands. Without reading the text carefully, he stared at the handsome young man smiling in the file.
After pondering for two seconds...
"Roger!"
The name suddenly blurted out by Garp made Sengoku's pupils contract sharply.
--Enjoying the story? Want more chapters? Check out my Patreon and support me for 40+ advance chapters.
Just search for "LegendaryTL" on Patreon!"
Thanks!