Marine Headquarters, Marine Ford.
The Chief of Staff's Office.
Tsuru was leisurely enjoying her afternoon tea, while reviewing some documents on her desk.
On the sofa beside her sat a purple-haired man wearing glasses.
That man was none other than the former Marine Admiral, now a Marine recruit instructor, "Black Arm" Zephyr!
He was a man worthy of being respectfully called "teacher" by the vast majority of Marines.
Despite possessing combat power at the Marine Admiral level, he consistently adhered to the principle of "non-killing."
After his family was murdered by pirates, Zephyr, fearing that he would be unable to control his inner rage, chose to resign as Marine Admiral and instead devote all his energy and effort to training the next generation of Marines.
He was truly a remarkable man.
At that moment, Zephyr was eating the snacks on the table in front of him, silently reading the day's newspaper.
Tsuru glanced at Zephyr's serious expression and shook her head helplessly.
"Relax a little, Zephyr. Today is your day off, isn't it?"
"Yes, day off..."
Zephyr thought for a moment, then scratched his head with a wry smile. "Haha, I almost forgot. After all, it's been a long time since I had a day off!"
Tsuru's expression became even more helpless.
Since the death of his family, those new generation Marines had become Zephyr's everything.
Therefore, as far as Zephyr himself was concerned, these Marine students were like his own family.
Wasn't spending time with family exactly what a "day off" meant?
But today, Zephyr had taken advantage of his day off to find Tsuru with a newspaper.
Zephyr was well aware of his "weakness."
When it came to commanding battles, Zephyr had absolute confidence, but he was very clear that he couldn't see through the political situation on a world level.
Tsuru could.
So, Zephyr sought out Tsuru, hoping she could answer the questions in his heart.
Tsuru raised her eyebrows and asked:
"Speaking of which, are you here for your precious student?"
"You mean Baro?"
Zephyr recalled his somewhat simple-minded student and waved his hand.
"To be honest, he's the one I'm least worried about."
Tsuru asked with a smile, "Why?"
"His eyes are always fixed on what's 'ahead' of him."
Zephyr took a sip of tea and slowly replied, "As long as you have a firm goal, there will be 'hope' no matter how difficult the situation."
"What's more..."
Zephyr pushed up his glasses. "That Four Seas Alliance can't be a living hell of despair!"
As he spoke, he placed the newspaper in his hand on the table.
The headline on the front page was: The fish-man nicknamed "Ranger" Hocka, joins the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea!
Tsuru smiled. "Aren't you still worried about your student? Otherwise, why would you care so much about the Four Seas Alliance's actions?"
"I can never argue with you, Tsuru-chan."
Zephyr leaned back on the sofa and sighed deeply. "In that case, tell this blockhead the reason behind the Four Seas Alliance's actions!"
His words were straightforward, and even a little self-deprecating.
After all, given Zephyr and Tsuru's relationship, it was useless to beat around the bush. It was best to be simple and direct.
Zephyr had come to ask about the Four Seas Alliance's motives!
"You really know how to make people work."
Tsuru clicked her tongue.
If she were younger, she wouldn't bother with Zephyr, the blockhead!
However, now that she was older, it was a luxury to be able to speak openly about many things.
Tsuru threw a report to Zephyr.
"Take a look. Sengoku just gave it to me this morning."
Zephyr took the report and saw that it was actually a "letter of protest" from the Holy Land of Mary Geoise.
The content was very simple:
A group of World Nobles expressed their strong dissatisfaction and protest over "a fish-man slave being appointed as a Royal Seven Warlord of the Sea."
"This..."
Zephyr grimaced. He had always been bothered by the Celestial Dragons' troubles.
"What does the Celestial Dragons' dissatisfaction have to do with us?"
"When some people are dissatisfied, others will be satisfied."
Tsuru replied, "Who do you think would be satisfied with a fish-man slave joining the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea?"
Zephyr was stunned for a moment, then guessed, "The fish-man race?"
"Not just the fish-man 'race'."
Tsuru shook her head. "In fact, the World Government—that is, the Five Elders—had already begun planning to give one of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea positions to a fish-man."
"Hm?"
Hearing this, Zephyr was even more puzzled. "You mean the World Government also wanted a fish-man among the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea? Why?"
"Because they want Fish-Man Island to become a member of the World Government again."
As soon as Tsuru said this, Zephyr's expression became serious.
"You've heard about it, right? The matter of Princess Otohime of Fish-Man Island going to the Holy Land of Mary Geoise for negotiations not long ago."
Tsuru paused, then couldn't help but sigh, "I've met her a few times. She's truly a courageous princess!"
"With her efforts, plus a seat among the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea, Fish-Man Island is bound to become a member of the World Government again."
"In this way, Fish-Man Island will nominally belong to the World Government again."
"—That's what the World Government 'originally' intended."
Tsuru's gaze shifted and fell on Zephyr.
The latter had also figured out a few things at this point, and added:
"But now, that fish-man Warlord of the Sea is a member of the Four Seas Alliance, so the World Government's control over Fish-Man Island will naturally... weaken?"
"Correct."
Tsuru nodded. "At the same time, an undeniable bond has been established between the Four Seas Alliance and Fish-Man Island."
"Drum Island, Skypiea, North Blue..."
"The Four Seas Alliance's sphere of influence is expanding."
Tsuru drank a sip of tea and turned to look at the distant sea outside the window.
"Ryan Rowan claims to be a chess player, so where will his next piece fall?"
Zephyr instantly understood, staring intently at the newspaper on the table, and slowly uttered three words—
"Fish-Man Island..."
...
Alabasta.
Fish-Man Village Pier.
After several months of development, the newly established village pier had already taken shape.
Coupled with the fish-men's natural advantages, the construction of many underwater infrastructures didn't even require the use of large machinery, so the construction progress was naturally rapid.
Also, because fish-men were stationed in Fish-Man Village, no pirates dared to appear in the surrounding waters. As a result, it naturally became a very popular port, and many merchant groups established their trading locations there.
...
On this day, "Ranger" Hocka, who had just received his appointment as a Royal Seven Warlord of the Sea and still didn't know what he was supposed to do, was exercising with his comrades at the pier.
Having more strength was never a bad thing.
Just then, an alarm sounded, signaling the appearance of a pirate ship.
Hocka and his companions rushed to the pier and saw a pirate ship approaching the Fish-Man Village pier.
A Fish-Man Village resident beside him quickly said, "Prepare to fight!"
"Wait!"
Hocka reached out, stopping the others who were about to engage in battle, then narrowed his eyes and saw the pirate flag on the ship clearly—
A red blazing sun.
"The Sun Pirates?"
A big smile suddenly appeared on Hocka's face.
After he said the words "Sun Pirates," the fish-men around him were silent for a few seconds, then burst into unimaginable cheers.
"No need to worry, put your weapons away!"
"Bring out the alcohol!"
A group of fish-men shouted excitedly:
"It's Boss Fisher Tiger!"
You can read 50+ more chapter on patreon com/JYouyi