Marineford.
Sengoku and the others read the paper too.
The room fell into heavy silence.
They knew some things.
Not much—
but enough.
"D"…
The ancient "enemy of the gods."
A bloodline hidden in the sea, waiting for a certain moment.
Even Sengoku didn't know whether those people had infiltrated Marineford itself.
Because they were too good at hiding.
Even CP agencies struggled to trace them.
Back when White Ghost rose too fast, Sengoku had suspected the man was a "D."
He'd ordered a full investigation—ancestry, records, everything.
Result?
A normal merchant family. Nothing special.
So White Ghost wasn't a "D"—
but he caused trouble worse than one.
He made friends with Celestial Dragons.
His ties with Fish-Man Island were strong.
And Fish-Man Island wasn't easy to touch anymore.
Those trained fish-men couldn't beat you on land?
Fine.
They'd intercept you in the deep sea.
One hit, one kill.
Human traffickers were getting slaughtered underwater.
And according to informants, Princess Shirahoshi kept talking about White Ghost every day.
Sengoku's vein twitched.
"That damn bastard…"
"You're supposed to be traveling."
"Why are you stirring up mess after mess?!"
He could already see it:
Pirates rampaging everywhere, Admirals constantly deployed, Marine branches attacked overnight.
Modern pirates weren't scared of death.
They robbed civilians, sure—
but now they also attacked Marines just to raise their bounties faster.
Because if your bounty skyrocketed, you entered the New World with more "fame."
Sengoku was furious enough to send Akainu out.
And when Akainu moved…
the sea went quiet.
At first, some idiots tried to "test" an Admiral.
Then Akainu unleashed one magma blast—
and an entire pirate ship ceased to exist.
These days, Akainu was always at sea.
Most of the hardliners were deployed.
It worked.
Now pirates saw a Marine sail and ran without hesitation.
Then there was the Revolutionary Army.
Spreading "equality" ideology, fanning flames everywhere.
Coups and uprisings were breaking out across the four seas.
And the worst part?
That "ideology" was something White Ghost had discussed with Dragon.
White Ghost had even joked that true equality only existed in dreams.
Sengoku felt exhausted to the bone.
Am I going to die of stress before we even choose the next Fleet Admiral?
He glanced around the office.
Same old lineup.
Akainu: cigar in mouth, looking like a crime boss.
Aokiji: slumped in a chair, half-asleep.
Kizaru: filing his nails like the world wasn't burning, and always asking whether overtime pay existed.
Crunch crunch—Garp finished the paper, tossed it aside, and kept eating donuts like none of this concerned him.
Tsuru was thinking deeply.
And Zephyr?
After White Ghost's last "talk," the old bastard had basically retired.
Call him and he'd show up.
Don't call him and he'd happily fish all day.
Sengoku was jealous. Furious. Bitter.
He wanted that life.
Then—
"Beri beri beri…"
A Den Den Mushi rang.
The entire room looked at it.
Everyone knew where that line connected.
That snail was a dedicated channel.
"Click."
Sengoku answered, forcing his voice steady.
"Moshi moshi. This is Sengoku."
A cold, authoritative voice replied.
"I am Topman Warcury."
"Sengoku, I have an order for the Marines."
Sengoku stiffened.
"Please issue your command, Saint Topman Warcury."
"Send Kizaru to the East Blue immediately."
"That person must be brought back—dead or alive."
"CP0 has already been dispatched."
"Yes, sir." Sengoku's tone was respectful to the point of stiffness. "We will deploy Borsalino at once. Please rest assured."
"Click."
The line cut.
Kizaru stood up, expression saying: of course it's me.
Because among the Admirals, he was the fastest.
Sengoku stared at him.
"You heard everything."
Kizaru sighed, putting away the nail file.
"Fine, I'll run over there."
"But Fleet Admiral…"
"Do I get a travel allowance?"
"White Ghost isn't easy to deal with, you know."
"If I have to snatch someone from his hands, that means a fight."
"And I really don't want to fight that monster…"
"So scary~"
Sengoku's face turned black.
"No. Not one berry."
"And why are you turning into a money-grubber like him?!"
He started to speak again—but Kizaru casually cut him off.
"Sengoku-san…"
"If White Ghost loses and I intervene, that's fine."
"But if White Ghost wins?"
Kizaru rubbed his chin.
"He'll feel like I stole his prey."
"That man will be… unhappy."
"And you know how Conqueror's Haki types are."
"Terrifying."
Sengoku froze.
…Right.
What if the kid won?
The intel said it was evenly matched, but White Ghost was weird.
Last time against Kaido, everyone expected mutual heavy injuries—
and then White Ghost just slammed Kaido into the ground.
Even Garp had reported back:
White Ghost's physique was ridiculous.
"A damn steel balloon."
Sengoku exhaled hard.
"Go first. The Five Elders should have prepared contingencies."
Kizaru pouted.
"Roger that, Sengoku-san~"
He looked like a man who'd lost all motivation without a travel allowance.
"Whoosh—"
He dissolved into particles of light and vanished.
Sengoku pinched the bridge of his nose—
then suddenly grabbed Garp's wrist, eyes locked on the rice cracker in his hand.
Garp froze mid-bite.
He smoothly put it back like a child caught stealing, whistling innocently.
Moments later, a roar echoed across Marineford:
"Buddha Shockwave!"
And then—
an old man went flying out of the office.
BOOM!
Garp landed headfirst in the plaza, legs twitching.
Marines walked past like nothing happened.
Everyone knew this was just another day of Vice Admiral Garp "flying out of Fleet Admiral Sengoku's office."
Zephyr strolled by with his hands behind his back, whistling.
He looked to be in a great mood.
Word had reached him—
Ain had reached the peak of swordsmanship, just one step from Great Swordmaster.
With White Ghost guiding her, that final step was only a matter of time.
Zephyr kept walking, cheerful as ever.
Sengoku stood by the window, veins bulging, face red.
That bastard Garp…
How old was he, and he still acted like this?!
Revolutionary Army Headquarters
Dragon read the paper in silence.
That group had approached him before—offering cooperation to overthrow the World Government.
Dragon refused.
Their roads were different.
White Ghost had also contacted him:
He had a batch of weapons—limited quantity, but far better than standard junk rifles.
He asked if Dragon was interested.
White Ghost wouldn't join the Revolutionaries—
but he could support them with arms.
Dragon's gaze stayed fixed on the front page.
He didn't speak.
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