Jack the Drought had learned his lesson.
No more headlong charges, no more reckless pride.
This time, he struck only at naval bases farthest from Admiral Akainu's patrol routes.
Each time Akainu arrived, he found nothing but corpses and burning ruins.
The Admiral's teeth ground audibly. His hatred for Jack had already sunk deep into his bones.
When he finally prepared to mobilize all Marine forces in the New World to trap Jack,
the mammoth had already slipped away—vanishing back to Wano.
By the time the news reached Akainu, he was seething but helpless.
He had no choice but to abandon his pursuit and return straight to Marineford.
He burst into the Fleet Admiral's office.
Marine Headquarters – Fleet Admiral's Office
"You're telling me," Sengoku said, rising from his chair in shock,
"that Kaido's son-in-law—this Luo Xing—has created a medicine called Senzu Beans… capable of restoring limbs and healing any wound instantly?!"
Akainu's jaw tightened.
"It's true. The report came from a surviving Marine officer—he saw it happen with his own eyes."
For a long moment, Sengoku was silent.
Then he exhaled and gave a bitter smile.
"I thought those so-called Monster Cells were already terrifying enough… and now he's gone and made something like this."
"If only that man were on our side. What a waste—Kaido's luck is ridiculous."
The strategist of the Marines had actually said something that absurd.
That was how deeply Luo Xing's inventions unsettled him.
Across the room, Garp let out a wheezing laugh, tossing another rice cracker into his mouth.
"You should've had a daughter, Sengoku. Maybe you'd have won him over too!"
"Then again, we've got plenty of beauties in the Navy—what about Gion or Hina? Send one to reel the guy in with a little charm! Hahaha!"
Sengoku's moustache bristled.
"Garp! If you'd stop cracking jokes for once—remember, the world's most wanted man, the Revolutionary Dragon, is your son!"
Garp just grinned wider.
"Bah, I'm just an old man. They can't pin that on me forever!"
Sengoku sighed. There was simply no arguing with him.
Fortunately, Garp wasn't as carefree as he looked. His grin faded.
"Jokes aside, Sengoku… if these Senzu Beans really work the way Sakazuki described—this could change the balance of the entire world."
The room fell quiet.
Sengoku's brows furrowed. He was already thinking the same thing.
The Unthinkable Advantage
In war, what would happen if one side could heal instantly, while the other could not?
An army with Senzu Beans would fight without fear—every wound repaired, every soldier returning to battle moments later.
The other side, no matter how numerous or well-trained, would simply be bled dry.
But that wasn't even the worst of it.
The real terror was what it meant for top-tier battles.
Everyone knew that fights between the strongest—Admirals, Yonko, and legends—could last days, even weeks.
Their clashes often ended with both sides crippled, their victories pyrrhic.
But imagine this:
Two exhausted titans collapse from fatigue.
Then one of them pops a Senzu Bean… and stands up fresh as ever.
The fight would be over instantly.
Now imagine Kaido, carrying a few hundred Senzu Beans, storming Marineford.
Even if Sengoku, Garp, and all three Admirals fought together, they'd never wear him down.
Unless they could kill him in a single strike—which was impossible—he'd simply recover again and again, until the Navy fell.
Just the thought made Sengoku's skin crawl.
Even Garp's laughter had faded completely.
At last, Sengoku spoke heavily.
"There's only one thing we can do. Hand this to Dr. Vegapunk. If anyone can create a countermeasure, it's him."
Akainu nodded grimly.
Meanwhile, Across the Seas…
Word of the Senzu Bean's miraculous power spread like wildfire.
The entire world was buzzing—some in awe, others in greed.
Onboard the Moby Dick
"Senzu Beans, huh?" Whitebeard rumbled, the sea breeze rippling through his massive frame.
He let out a low, rumbling laugh.
"That Kaido brat really found himself a remarkable son-in-law."
Marco, standing nearby, wasn't laughing. His eyes burned with hope.
"Old man, this could cure you! It can heal anything—maybe even undo all the damage your body's taken!"
Whitebeard's health had been declining for years—his once-mighty strength, his reflexes, even his endurance, all waning.
The Gura Gura no Mi's backlash and countless battle wounds had eroded him inside and out.
Marco had watched it happen every day, powerless.
Now, finally, there might be a cure.
But the old man's response was thunderous.
"You want me to beg Kaido?! I'm Whitebeard!"
"That brat used to be a cabin boy on Rocks' ship! When he saw me, he bowed and called me senpai! And now you want me to go crawling to him?"
Marco flinched under the roar.
He lowered his head, silent—but in his heart, a different thought took root.
Maybe not Kaido… but Luo Xing himself.
If I ever meet that man, I'd kneel to him if it meant saving Pops.
Somewhere on the Grand Line
Dracule Mihawk, wandering the seas toward East Blue, had also heard the news.
The world's greatest swordsman sat alone on his small black ship, gazing at the endless horizon.
"A medicine that can restore anything…" he murmured.
"Interesting."
He thought of one man: Red-Haired Shanks.
"If he took one of these… he might regrow his left arm."
Mihawk's golden eyes gleamed.
Since the day Shanks lost that arm in East Blue, they'd never crossed blades again.
The swordsman in him longed for that rematch.
"When I find him, maybe I'll bring him one."
A faint smile curved his lips.
"And if fate allows… I'll take one for myself, too."
The World Stirs
Across the Grand Line, in the New World, and even among the hidden shadows of the Government, one truth was dawning—
Luo Xing's invention had shattered the balance of power.
Monster Cells had made the Beasts Pirates stronger.
But the Senzu Bean had made them immortal.
And as the ripples spread across the seas, even the World Government could no longer ignore the man behind it all.
The man whose creations now threatened to reshape the world itself.
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