After the meeting for Marineford Vice Admirals and above concluded, orders were issued to notify the other Seven Warlords of the Sea about the selection of the new Shichibukai.
That evening, on the route between Water Seven and Fish-Man Island, in the Florian Triangle.
"Tyrant" Bartholomew Kuma was speaking into a den den mushi held in his hand.
"Yeah, the news that Blackbeard Marshall D. Teach has taken over as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea has been conveyed to him."
"Stand by nearby. If he can take care of the Straw Hats, all the better. If he fails too, eliminate everyone on the island. We cannot allow the news of two Shichibukai being defeated by the same person to get out."
"Understood."
"Once it's over, bring him to Marineford."
Click.
The den den mushi hung up. Sitting on the roof, Kuma put the device away and leafed through the book in his hand by the moonlight... Under the bright moon, Taro wasn't sleepy at all. He stared blankly at the twinkling starry sky, lost in thought.
The sun rose again, and the warm morning light, accompanied by the sea breeze, shone on Taro. The tears that had flowed at some point had long since dried.
Heavy footsteps approached. Taro finally snapped out of it, rubbed his cheeks vigorously, and looked down at the deck.
Mike didn't expect to run into Taro on the ship and was visibly stunned. It seemed the Rear Admiral had stayed up in the crow's nest all night.
"Good morning, Rear Admiral!" Mike gave a salute. "The Marine Soldiers are all on leave. Are you heading out to sea? I'll go call them back immediately!"
"No need."
As the hoarse voice came out, Mike was startled, and Taro himself was also surprised. He swallowed a few times to moisten his throat.
"No need, let everyone have a good rest!"
After speaking, he jumped down from the crow's nest and asked curiously, "Since everyone's on leave, what are you doing back on the ship?"
Mike suddenly became excited. "Rear Admiral, didn't you give me a task before? It's almost finished, so I wanted to hurry up and get it done."
"A task?" Taro was taken aback. I don't remember giving you any task?
"The flag, Rear Admiral! Our ship's flag!" Mike looked even more excited.
Taro finally remembered that there was such a thing. "It's almost ready? Good, you've done well!"
"Don't you want to see it?" Mike asked.
Taro was in no mood for that. He waved his hand. "No, I trust you. Just hoist it up once it's finished!"
"Understood!" Mike was even more energized by Taro's trust... Knock, knock, knock.
There was a knock on the office door. Vice Admiral Tsuru straightened up from a pile of documents. "Come in."
Taro walked in. Without even greeting Vice Admiral Tsuru, he flopped onto the sofa and closed his eyes.
"You brat, sleeping first thing in the morning? If you want to sleep, go back to your room." Vice Admiral Tsuru scolded with a smile, seeing Taro's shameless behavior.
Taro adjusted his sleeping position to get more comfortable. "I'm sleeping right here!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru was amused by his roguish behavior. "Alright, tell me, what do you want, loitering here?"
Taro continued to pretend to sleep, not answering.
"If you don't speak, I'm going to throw you out!" Vice Admiral Tsuru threatened.
"I want to go to Impel Down!" Taro finally opened his eyes and looked at Vice Admiral Tsuru.
Vice Admiral Tsuru refused flatly. "No. No one is allowed to see Ace right now."
"I'm not going to see Ace. I want to see Magellan!"
"What do you want to see him for?" Vice Admiral Tsuru was surprised by his answer.
"I want to beat him up!"
"Nonsense!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru slammed her pen down and glared at Taro. After a while, her tone softened slightly. "Tell me the truth, and I might consider agreeing."
Seeing a glimmer of hope, Taro perked up.
"I've been worried that something might go wrong at Impel Down. I want to go check it out and have a chat with Warden Magellan."
Hearing this, Vice Admiral Tsuru still didn't believe him. However, on second thought, it wasn't a big deal, and it would stop him from acting like a child. She decided to let him go.
"You can go, but no causing trouble. Understood?"
"I promise, I definitely won't cause trouble. You can rest easy! Hehe!"
Hearing her agreement, a smile finally appeared on Taro's face. Vice Admiral Tsuru lowered her head and scribbled out an order.
"Take this. You'll go as a Headquarters Special Envoy to conduct an inspection!"
Taro rubbed his hands together and nodded repeatedly after taking it. "Grandma Tsuru, you're the best!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru kept a straight face and feigned anger. "Scram, you thick-skinned brat."
"Hehe"
...Marineford, the Great Underwater Prison—Impel Down, and Enies Lobby were arranged in a triangle. The quickest way to travel between the three locations was to open the Gate of Justice and ride the current straight through the Calm Belt.
However, for the flying Taro, distance was never an issue. He flew all the way and landed on the pier at the main entrance of Impel Down.
The guards at the entrance immediately became alert.
"Who goes there?"
Taro took out the order signed by Vice Admiral Tsuru and handed it to the guard. "I am Rear Admiral Taro of Marineford. I have been ordered to conduct an inspection!"
A guard stepped forward to check it and immediately saluted.
"Rear Admiral Taro, our apologies. We haven't received any notification. Please wait a moment; I need to report this!"
Taro nodded. "Of course, go ahead!"
After waiting for a while, Taro didn't see anyone from inside the prison, but a warship arrived instead.
A squad of Marine Soldiers disembarked from the ship, escorting a pirate. Taro was stunned when he saw the pirate.
He had blue hair tied back and wore ridiculous, clownish clothes. Most distinctive was his large red nose.
Known as the "Star Clown," the incredibly lucky user of the Chop-Chop Fruit ability: Buggy.
Taro stared at Buggy in disbelief. He never expected to run into this legend here.
The Marine Soldiers escorting Buggy were also surprised. They never expected a Marine general in a Rear Admiral's uniform to be waiting at the entrance of Impel Down.
A Navy Lieutenant Commander stepped out from among the Marine Soldiers and saluted Taro. "Reporting, Rear Admiral! The prisoner has been brought and is now being handed over to Impel Down!"
Taro's lip twitched. Can't they tell I'm not wearing a prison uniform? Is the Great Buggy's Intelligence-lowering aura taking effect?
Taro pointed to the prison guards nearby. "Lieutenant Commander, you need to talk to them to hand over the prisoner."
The Navy Lieutenant Commander finally realized his mistake and gave another awkward salute.
Taro returned the salute. "Lieutenant Commander, what's the story with this prisoner?"
"Reporting, Rear Admiral! This criminal was captured after he wandered into our camp on his own."
Taro was dumbfounded. What the hell?
Seeing Taro's surprise, the Navy Lieutenant Commander added:
"According to his statement, he has been treasure hunting everywhere. He broke into our camp because he mistakenly thought it was a treasure site, so..."
The Great Buggy's actions are truly incomprehensible!
Taro's lip twitched a couple of times, and he waved his hand, gesturing for the Lieutenant Commander to hurry up and finish the handover.
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