Inside the Marine Headquarters.
As the incident spread and after seeing today's news, Marine Headquarters once again convened an emergency meeting.
All marine officers wore extremely grim expressions, and in their eyes, faint traces of disbelief could also be seen.
Admiral… Kizaru was actually defeated?
This was simply unbelievable!
Everyone knew that Admiral Kizaru was one of Marine Headquarters' top combat forces, the user of the strongest Logia Devil Fruit, the Glint-Glint Fruit, an apex powerhouse standing at the summit of the seas!
And yet he was defeated by a retired Lieutenant from the West Blue?
Even though they had already known that this guy was not simple, after all, anyone who could defeat a Warlord of the Sea and even make the Tyrant of the South Blue follow him, and gain the recognition of Instructor Zephyr… Or rather, the rebel Zephyr, could never be simple.
But they never expected that this guy's strength… had already reached the point where he could defeat an Admiral!
The marine officers all looked at each other in dismay. Even after getting confirmation from the involved party, they still found it hard to believe.
Some even speculated internally that perhaps Borsalino had been in bad condition that day, maybe he had diarrhea, or maybe he simply didn't take the kid seriously, and that's why he lost.
At this moment, a suffocating atmosphere hung over the entire conference room.
Everyone looked at Sengoku's gloomy expression and did not dare to speak easily, only sitting quietly yet uneasily.
No one knew how long had passed before Sengoku finally raised his head and said to Tsuru beside him with an icy tone: "Tell the military court that if anyone dares to whitewash those scumbags, I'll throw them into Impel Down as well!"
He slammed the table heavily. "Do those bastards know what they've done? They actually pushed out a powerhouse like this, and they still have the face to appeal?!"
"I understand, Sengoku."
Upon hearing his words, Tsuru's expression also turned grave, and she nodded. "I'll keep a close watch. I definitely won't let those people get out. And I'll thoroughly review the lists of those recommended by the branches to train at headquarters."
The impact this time was simply too great!
It wasn't that the Marine Headquarters was arrogant, thinking that admirals were unbeatable. It was because in this incident… the one who defeated an Admiral was someone who had once been a marine, and who even applied to train at Marine Headquarters.
This news had already spread. Now the entire sea was laughing at the Marine Headquarters.
Combined with Zephyr's defection, these two events were practically the shame of Marine Headquarters!
How could they not be furious at those corrupt officials?
"Alright, let's end this topic here for now."
Although Sengoku felt great regret inside, at this point, talking more was pointless. He glanced at the others before him and said. "Let's discuss how to deal with those people now!"
As soon as his words fell, the marine officers exchanged confused looks.
For the moment, they didn't even know what to do.
"Although many unexpected things happened this time, in the end, we did manage to stop the last Endpoint from being destroyed."
Seeing that no one spoke, Tsuru pondered for a moment and then said directly: "We can let the news agencies spread that Marine Headquarters saved the New World, and push all the blame onto the other side, declare them vicious criminals. That will help us recover some reputation. I believe just the act of destroying the New World should be enough for the others at sea to understand."
"As for the rest..."
Tsuru paused and sighed. "Now we'll have to see what they choose. Will they go out to sea and become pirates? Once they enter the New World… The balance of the seas will change again."
Sengoku: "..."
Hearing Tsuru's words, Sengoku also sank into silence.
He understood what she meant. If they entered the New World, then the Four Emperors might become Five Emperors, and the fragile stability they barely managed to maintain would be disrupted again.
"In that case, let's follow your suggestion."
Sengoku sighed deeply. "Minimize the impact of this incident and have West Blue investigate those people's information."
"I understand. As for the Five Elders..."
"Don't worry. It's just that kid's Devil Fruit is a little special."
Although Tsuru did not speak clearly, Sengoku understood her meaning.
To command the power of the sun… Once this news spread, the factions who knew certain things would probably stir up chaos again.
But unfortunately, although the Light-Light Fruit had been developed in a rather special way in that kid's hands, he was not that individual.
Sengoku shook his head while speaking helplessly. "The Five Elders only told us to handle the situation ourselves. Strictly speaking, this incident was caused by internal issues within the marine. But still, have the newspapers avoid using that title."
Thinking of that, he got angry again, internally cursing those greedy officers all over again.
If they had allowed that kid to train at Marine Headquarters back then, maybe none of these disasters would have happened.
"Alright, everyone may leave now."
Sengoku waved his hand.
After everyone left, he slumped into his chair, removed his glasses, and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
He hadn't slept since the day before yesterday, leaving him exhausted and with a headache.
But with events like these happening one after another, how could he sleep?
After he felt a little better, he put his glasses back on and looked at the newspaper on the table.
After a moment of silence, he let out a long sigh.
He would see whether Zephyr's choice was right or wrong.
And in the end… would he regret the choices he had made?
His gaze fell on Ian's bounty poster as he muttered, "So, what will you choose? Will you reveal your ambition and go out to sea as a pirate?"
…
Meanwhile, on the Island of Ohara, they were also having a meeting, their expressions equally serious.
"I'll go first, I'll go first!"
At this moment, Ace seemed to have thought of something and raised his hand. When he saw everyone looking at him, he grinned and said, "I heard about Mr. Kuma's situation, and Lady Robin's situation, and considering my identity and what happened with the Zephyr, I think our organization should be called..."
He paused slightly and continued confidently: "The Avengers Pirates! How is it? It's an amazing name, right?"