"Your wine's selling quite well, isn't it? A dignified Hero of the Marines, a Vice-Admiral, and you're out selling wine now? And your grandson seems to be getting along quite nicely with that guy, huh?"
"Eh? Sengoku, how did you know that?"
"Hmph, that's none of your concern."
Sengoku snorted coldly, turning his glare toward the visibly annoyed Kuzan.
"And you, don't pretend to be at a loss in front of me. Haven't been to the Sibia River Archipelago, huh? Did you forget that I sent you to bring Zephyr back last time? Don't tell me you also forgot that you yourself mentioned the Devil Child's marriage and child before!"
"So my guess was right after all!"
Sengoku: "..."
These two idiots!!!
Seeing the pair still pretending to be clueless even now, Sengoku was so infuriated that he actually started laughing.
Slumping back into his chair, he rubbed his forehead, pointed toward the door, took a deep breath, and bellowed: "Get out! Both of you, get the hell out of here! I want to see if you two can keep up this act for the rest of your lives!"
"Ahahaha! Sengoku, I'll be going then."
"I'll take my leave too."
At his words, the two immediately stood up without hesitation. Before Sengoku could say another word, they had already vanished toward the door, using Soru, no less.
"Those two damn bastards!"
Sengoku's blood pressure spiked instantly. Taking off his glasses and rubbing the bridge of his nose, he growled angrily: "They only get sharp in situations like this! And Kuzan, acting like that, yet he wants to compete for the Fleet Admiral's position? If he keeps following Garp's example, the next wanted criminal by the World Government will be the two of them!"
"It's not that serious."
Tsuru, who had been quietly watching Sengoku scold Garp and Kuzan, finally spoke while smiling slightly. "Besides, how could either of them possibly admit to something like that?"
"They can refuse to admit it, but that just leaves me with a headache."
Sengoku sighed helplessly, a bitter smile spreading on his face. "Forget the Five Elders, these past few days, even Sakazuki will probably be cursing me to my face."
"It really is unexpected. Who would've thought that the Devil Child would marry and have children? And she married a retired Marine at that."
Thinking of recent events, Tsuru couldn't help but let out a wry smile. "As the last survivor of Ohara, I thought she'd become a pirate, seeking the lost history and carrying on Ohara's will."
"Hmph, I didn't expect it either."
Sengoku's eyebrow twitched as he said sarcastically, "No wonder that kid dared to say the Marines' justice is bullshit! His moral compass is completely skewed; he even dared to marry the Devil Child!"
"To give the Devil Child a peaceful life, one where she no longer seeks history, perhaps that's not so bad."
"A peaceful life? As the sole survivor of Ohara, a peaceful life was never in her fate."
Sengoku looked at Tsuru, his tone heavy and meaningful. "Those ambitious people across the seas are always searching for history. How could they ever allow her to live quietly? And the World Government won't let someone who can read the historical text roam free either!"
"You're right. The World Government indeed won't turn a blind eye."
Hearing his words, Tsuru sighed deeply, then looked back at Sengoku with a weary expression.
"But you still shouldn't have issued a bounty on Zephyr. And besides..."
Her tone hardened, and her gaze grew serious. "You shouldn't have allowed that kind of person to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
"You should know this isn't about whether I should or shouldn't. The bounty on Zephyr and the new Warlord appointment were both direct orders from the World Government. Zephyr went too far this time, almost cutting ties with the Marines completely. And besides..."
Sengoku fell silent mid-sentence.
After a moment, he sighed bitterly. "Losing two warlords in such a short time, you know how badly that shakes the balance of the seas. To maintain order, the World Government had to appoint a replacement quickly."
Tsuru: "..."
Thinking about the current situation, Tsuru also fell silent for a while, then gave a wry smile and shook her head. "Maybe so. But I'm sure no one in the Marines really wanted to see the Chief Instructor to be treated like this."
Saying this, she stood up and looked at Sengoku. "I think you should talk to Zephyr, try to reason with him. Things might not be as bad as they seem. Zephyr dedicated most of his life to the Marines; he wouldn't betray it so easily. It's getting late, so I'll stop bothering you. Make sure you get some rest, you haven't even had time to sleep these past few days."
With that, she turned and left without looking back, leaving behind only Sengoku's bitter smile as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"Sleep? How could I possibly sleep?"
As he spoke, Sengoku lowered his head while staring at the Den Den Mushi on his desk in silence.
Finally, after a long sigh, he picked it up and dialed a number, speaking in a tone full of weary resignation.
"Zephyr, have you made enough trouble yet?"
Then, the Den Den Mushi that had transformed into Zephyr's appearance glared angrily at Sengoku. "You bastard still has the nerve to call me?"
"Why wouldn't I have the nerve?"
Hearing Zephyr say that, Sengoku's temper immediately flared. "Do you have any idea what kind of disaster you've caused? That was the Devil Child! Have you already forgotten about the Ohara incident?"
Zephyr: "..."
Facing Sengoku's words, Zephyr, who had been furious just moments ago, fell silent. A complicated expression appeared on his face.
Seeing Zephyr like this, Sengoku's anger subsided slightly, though his tone was still mocking as he sneered: "That kid you care so much about isn't anything great. Do you even realize what you're doing? A righteous marine? Don't make me laugh. That kid actually dared to marry the Devil Child. Does he want to continue the Ohara's bloodline? You misjudged him; he's just another scheming, ambitious bastard!"
"They're... All good kids!"
"Good kids? Those are wanted criminals by the World Government."
"I'm also a wanted criminal by the World Government now."
Zephyr's words left Sengoku speechless. He rubbed his forehead wearily, speaking helplessly: "Forget it, let's not talk about that anymore. Right now..."
His tone grew serious. "As long as you disband your self-formed fleet or merge it back into Marine Headquarters, and at the same time sever ties with that kid, if you bring your students and subordinates back, I'll submit a request to have your bounty canceled!"