Even Sengoku was left stunned by Crocodile's announcement.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, war is now unavoidable. This is Chairman Cyrus's will, and you understand his strength better than most. If the Marines become involved, they will suffer catastrophic losses, which would only harm the world that comes afterward."
Crocodile's voice came through the Den Den Mushi.
"It's time for you to make your decision."
"So soon…"
Sengoku frowned deeply, his mind racing as he considered what the Marines should do.
"You have yourself to thank for that," Crocodile reminded him. "If you hadn't asked the chairman to intervene, things probably wouldn't have escalated this quickly."
"So our suspicions were right. It was a trap."
Sengoku recalled what he had witnessed through the broadcast—the enormous beam aimed at Sky Island and Cyrus's counterattack.
Something else had clearly happened behind the scenes.
He could make a reasonable guess, but he had no way to confirm it.
"I understand, but I need time."
Sengoku thought for a moment before continuing.
"I need to consolidate the Marine forces and keep as many of them away from the conflict as possible."
"You don't have time."
Crocodile rejected the request immediately.
"The declaration of war is about to be issued."
"Understood."
Sengoku ended the call with a grave expression and immediately ordered every high-ranking Marine currently present to assemble.
As he had said before, many within the Marines remained loyal to the World Government.
There were far too many for him to control completely.
But everyone else needed to be brought together now.
This was also an ideal location.
Pluton was here, and the colossal warship—large enough to resemble an island—could potentially serve as a new Marine Headquarters.
It did not take long for everyone to gather.
The meeting included a large number of senior officers. Some looked confused, while others seemed to have guessed that something serious had happened.
"The Hunter Guild has declared war on the World Government."
Sengoku's opening sentence immediately shattered the room's composure.
"What? They actually dare?"
Sakazuki's eyes widened in genuine shock.
"So the earlier incident wasn't a coincidence after all."
Borsalino stopped trimming his nails and looked up with a quiet murmur.
"That attack came from the World Government and was aimed at Sky Island," Kuzan explained seriously.
"If it had succeeded, the Hunter Guild would have suffered devastating losses. Cyrus was never going to ignore that."
"Bwahahaha! So the World Government started the war?"
Garp suddenly burst into laughter, drawing every eye in the room.
No one else found the situation remotely amusing.
"Garp, shut up!"
Sengoku slammed a fist onto the table and roared.
"Ahem."
Garp coughed twice and gestured that he would remain quiet.
"Kuzan is right," Tsuru said. "That attack was an open act of aggression against the Hunter Guild, though launching it was remarkably reckless."
Her eyes moved toward Sengoku.
When he gave the slightest nod, she sighed inwardly.
So that was how things stood.
"If war has begun, then give the order, Fleet Admiral Sengoku."
Sakazuki rose to his feet, his expression severe.
"We've allowed the Hunter Guild to expand far too quickly. We can't continue ignoring them. We should use this opportunity to suppress them and destroy the organization completely!"
The hardline officers behind him nodded in firm agreement.
Everyone else remained silent.
Borsalino, Kuzan, their subordinate officers, Tsuru's strategists, and the other Vice Admirals offered no support.
"You people…"
Sakazuki immediately sensed something was wrong.
He looked around the chamber, his voice growing heavy.
"Sakazuki."
Before Sengoku could speak, Kuzan raised his head and calmly met Sakazuki's gaze.
"Do you remember what we saw when we first arrived here?"
Sakazuki paused.
He thought back to their arrival, then frowned and waited for Kuzan to continue.
"The Marines exist to uphold justice. We are not blades for certain people to wield."
That statement immediately changed the expressions of numerous officers.
It was practically an open declaration of rebellion.
"What exactly are you saying?"
Sakazuki stared at Kuzan, enunciating every word as the temperature around him began rising rapidly.
Frost spread across Kuzan's body as he met his gaze without retreating.
"The Marines should be independent. We should act according to the justice we believe in, not because a group of Celestial Dragons gives us an order."
"Kuzan, do you understand what you're saying?"
Sakazuki roared, shock and fury twisting his face.
"You saw what happened to Wano. Why do you think it ended that way?"
Kuzan surged to his feet.
His voice was not loud, but everyone could hear the emotion beneath it.
"And what about the Buster Calls? They were used to bury the truth about the past."
"A world without rules would be even worse."
Sakazuki forced down his anger and answered with a cold snort.
"Then we create rules that protect everyone—not rules designed solely to shelter the parasites living in the Holy Land."
The surrounding officers stared at the two Admirals in stunned silence, barely daring to breathe.
"You think you can create that world? Who do you think you are?"
Sakazuki scoffed.
"I can't do it alone. That doesn't mean no one can."
"You mean Cyrus?"
Sakazuki gritted his teeth.
"He may be powerful, but the Hunter Guild itself represents disorder. Do you honestly believe everything they do is right? An unrestricted Hunter Guild would only spread chaos."
"The Hunter Guild will not be responsible for maintaining order in the future."
Sengoku suddenly interrupted.
Sakazuki froze and snapped his head toward him.
The meaning behind those words immediately put him on guard.
"Sakazuki."
Tsuru raised one hand, slightly easing the tension.
"Sit down. Once everything has been explained, all of you can decide for yourselves."
Borsalino briefly lifted his eyelids and scanned the room before returning his attention to his hands.
"Cyrus came here before Wano was destroyed."
Sengoku pointed toward the location where Wano had once stood and where Pluton now rested.
"His conflict with the World Government can no longer be resolved peacefully. But the Marines remain necessary to the future of this world."
"So you surrendered to him, Fleet Admiral?"
Sakazuki had barely sat down before he nearly sprang up again.
"Sakazuki."
Sengoku looked directly at him.
"A Fleet Admiral must consider the lives of every Marine. If we enter this war, the Marines will suffer devastating losses."
"You mean because of the Hunter Guild?"
"No."
Sengoku shook his head.
"I mean because of Cyrus."
"The World Government has always controlled the Marines, but this conflict may finally give us an opportunity to change that."
"He could be deceiving you."
Sakazuki's breathing grew heavier, his eyes burning with anger.
"If he defeats the World Government, the Marines may be his next target. He could simply destroy us one at a time."
"There would be no need."
Tsuru shook her head.
"Even if the Marines intervened, the final outcome would remain unchanged."
"There are only two possible results. Either the World Government is destroyed, or the entire world is."
Her words left many officers staring in disbelief.
"Isn't it possible for the Hunter Guild to lose?"
Gion asked uncertainly.
"No."
Tsuru answered without hesitation.
"If the World Government were capable of defeating Cyrus, the Hunter Guild would never have been allowed to grow this far."
"Cyrus alone can accomplish everything he intends. It would simply take him more time."
"Vice Admiral Tsuru!"
Sakazuki turned toward her.
"If that's true, doesn't it make him even more dangerous? If he wins, he could become something far more brutal than the World Government."
"Oh?"
Borsalino, who had been pretending not to exist while focusing intently on his nails, suddenly looked up and pursed his lips.
"Admiral Sakazuki, are you admitting that the World Government is brutal?"
"Borsalino, I have no interest in playing word games with you."
"This isn't a word game."
Borsalino sat a little straighter.
"We're discussing the future of the Marines—survival or destruction. The choice is actually quite simple."
"As the Fleet Admiral said, the world will always require order. Unless the Hunter Guild changes, it truly isn't suited to becoming the organization that maintains it."
"If the future world still needs someone to uphold order, the Marines are the best choice."
"And without the World Government above us, the Marines could finally follow our own justice completely and eliminate injustice wherever we find it."
Borsalino's words stirred many of the assembled officers.
Although the Marines served beneath the World Government, plenty of officers despised its actions and found the Celestial Dragons revolting.
When Cyrus attacked Mary Geoise twice, many Marines had quietly celebrated.
Allowing the Celestial Dragons to commit atrocities was hardly different from participating in those crimes themselves.
But until now, the Marines had been unable to disobey the World Government's commands.
Presented with an opportunity to change that, many began reconsidering their loyalties.
Even Sakazuki lowered his head in thought after understanding Borsalino's point.
"I will not force any of you to surrender your weapons," Sengoku said solemnly. "The same will apply to every Marine."
"But before making your decision, I want all of you to remember why you joined the Marines."
"For justice, obviously." Borsalino answered lazily.
"Borsalino!"
Sengoku glared at him.
Borsalino immediately raised both hands to show he would stop interrupting.
"My order will soon be delivered to every Marine unit. All of you must make your own choice."
Sengoku waved his hand.
The assembled officers exchanged uncertain looks before leaving one after another.
Sakazuki surveyed the room and noticed that Garp and several others had remained behind.
After a moment's thought, he stayed as well.
Sengoku glanced at him but said nothing, instead rising and walking away from the table.
"This is the moment when the World Government has the least influence over the Marines. We can temporarily ignore their orders, but they have planted a large number of loyalists throughout our ranks."
Sengoku's expression was grave.
"Those people will drag other Marines into a war that can only end in destruction."
"That cannot be completely avoided, Sengoku."
Tsuru shook her head.
The World Government's agents within the Marines would not be ordinary soldiers.
Many base commanders and senior officers were likely among them.
If those people ordered entire Marine bases into battle, the result would be obvious.
"The Hunter Guild isn't as powerful as you make it sound."
Sakazuki had calmed considerably and spent the discussion considering the situation.
He had always paid close attention to intelligence regarding the Hunter Guild and had investigated it thoroughly.
The organization had expanded too quickly.
Such rapid growth inevitably resulted in inconsistent quality among its members.
How much military strength could it truly mobilize?
Sakazuki remained unconvinced.
"Why did the Hunter Guild expand so quickly?"
Tsuru looked toward him and asked.
Sakazuki paused.
But Tsuru did not wait for an answer.
"Because of Cyrus's influence and his two attacks on the Holy Land."
"Do you believe every nation in the world is content to be exploited by the World Government forever? Even the member nations resent it."
"Before now, no one dared resist. Rebellion meant certain death."
"But the world finally has another possibility."
"Not everyone inside the Hunter Guild joined of their own accord," Garp suddenly added. "Many were sent by nations or powerful factions."
"And those people want to see the World Government fall more than anyone."
The others turned toward him.
"What are you all staring at? You didn't actually think I was stupid, did you?"
"I never expected you to understand the situation so clearly, Vice Admiral Garp."
Borsalino smiled.
"Ahem. Someone explained it to me."
Garp scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"Compared with the independent Hunters who joined for personal reasons, the people sent by those nations and factions will form the true backbone of the war."
"Now they can act without holding back, because someone else is bearing the World Government's pressure."
"As long as Cyrus remains standing, that pressure will never fall on the others."
"So everything comes back to that man."
Sakazuki slowly exhaled.
"If you can defeat him, Admiral Sakazuki, then perhaps the world can operate according to your version of justice."
Kuzan looked at him calmly.
"Don't try to provoke me."
Sakazuki shot him an irritated glare.
"It seems Admiral Sakazuki has made his choice."
Borsalino joined in.
"I haven't."
Sakazuki shook his head.
"I'll judge this with my own eyes."
He suddenly rose to his feet.
"I'll take my fleet and leave. I intend to witness the beginning of this war personally."
"While you're out there…"
Kuzan spoke again.
Sakazuki stopped without turning around.
"If the opportunity arises, eliminate the demons that escaped. They've already begun spreading into other regions."
"I understand."
Sakazuki resumed walking and left the room.
"That comment…"
Tsuru looked toward Kuzan.
"I think it's very likely."
Kuzan nodded gravely.
"That would be disastrous."
Tsuru sighed.
"Those creatures are already difficult to kill. If the person was powerful before becoming one, they'll turn into a walking engine of slaughter."
"I'll go stretch my legs."
Garp stood and rolled his shoulders.
"They're the same kind of creature Rocks became," Sengoku warned.
"I know."
Garp grinned.
"But there aren't many people left who were anywhere near Rocks's level."
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