Chapter 272: Shaking Headquarters, Shocking the Admirals
The moment the words were spoken, the scarred Vice Admiral felt a series of strange looks land on his face.
What? Was I wrong? He scratched the back of his head, momentarily confused.
"Don't say such foolish things again," Akainu said coldly, taking a drag from his cigar. His opinion of this hawkish subordinate of his had just dropped considerably. "Before Headquarters can commit its full strength and launch an all-out offensive, recklessly sending fleets deep into the heart of the New World would only lead to their complete annihilation. Is there any other outcome?"
He had always been the most aggressive of the Admirals, but this subordinate… in Akainu's eyes, he was taking it too far. He'd lost his damn mind! There had always been a tacit understanding among the Four Emperors of the New World. They might be fighting amongst themselves now, but the moment the Marines crossed a certain line, the Yonko would undoubtedly turn their guns on the Marines first.
Not to mention, near the Red Line, a certain old man who treated the New World like his personal backyard was watching like a hawk. On the open sea, the destructive power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit… was no joke.
"Report!" Just then, a young staff officer put down a Den Den Mushi and announced solemnly, "Fleet Admiral! The latest report from Whole Cake Island! Three of the Big Mom Pirates' Four Sweet Commanders have been defeated! Only Katakuri is still fighting!"
The statement sent a ripple of shock through the high-ranking officers.
"Three of them?"
"So quickly? The battle hasn't even been going on for ten hours, has it?"
Amidst the murmurs, Sengoku's expression turned even grimmer. They all lost? The "Four Sweet Commanders" were infamous, their names feared across the seas for years. How could they be as fragile as clay soldiers in the face of the Curtain Call Adventurers?
"Smoothie was up against Kuina, right?" Tsuru put down her teacup, frowning. "And Cracker was fighting Kuma. It's not entirely surprising that those two lost. But who defeated Snack?"
The "Four Calamities" of the Curtain Call Adventurers all had their own opponents and couldn't break away. Among the remaining officers, she couldn't think of anyone capable of such a feat. Could it be one of the Supernovas who had just joined had a sudden burst of power?
"Well…" the young staff officer hesitated. "It… it was Smoker."
Who?! Smoker?!
The name was even more shocking than the last report. The conference room erupted in an uproar. Many of the officers, especially those who had known Smoker, spat out their tea, their faces etched with disbelief.
The "White Hunter" who had defected a year ago… when he was in the Marines, he was just a minor base commander in the East Blue. And now he could defeat a Sweet Commander? It was absurd!
"Even though it was the weakest of the Four Commanders, looking at our own ranks, besides the three Admirals, probably only Gion could confidently do the same," Vice Admiral Momonga murmured, sweat beading on his forehead. "Master Z always said he saw Smoker as a future leader of the new generation of Marines…"
They had never taken that statement seriously, always assuming Master Z was just joking. But now… could it be true? Did Smoker really have that kind of potential?
Compared to the pirate factions in the New World, the Marines' top-tier strength had always been comparable. They even had an advantage in the lower and middle ranks, able to summon tens of thousands of elite troops from bases around the world at a moment's notice. But in that second tier of power—the level of "Sweet Commanders," "All-Stars," and "Calamities," as well as the top commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates… at that level, Marine Headquarters had a huge gap. They couldn't even scrape together a handful of individuals of that caliber. That was precisely why the "Seven Warlords of the Sea" system was needed—to recruit powerful pirates to maintain the balance.
And now, a promising officer with that level of strength had finally emerged, and one with a pure Marine background at that. But he…
Momonga bit down harder on his cigar. What a damn shame…
"There's no need to feel sorry for a traitor," Tsuru said quietly. "I understand what you're all thinking, but don't forget, the moment he joined a pirate crew, he was no longer one of us. Put away those useless, complicated emotions. As for the staff officers, your job now is to re-evaluate his threat level and ensure his bounty matches his current strength."
"Yes, Vice Admiral Tsuru," Momonga sighed.
The murmuring subsided. The vast conference room fell silent, save for the sound of Garp's snoring. That sound… after an all-night vigil, many of the exhausted officers exchanged weary smiles, and some even leaned back in their chairs to doze off.
Unfortunately, the silence was broken once again…
Purupurupuru~
A staff officer casually answered a call, but after a few words, his face went pale. "What? Say that again! Are you serious?! Is this confirmed? Right, right, I understand! I'll report to the Fleet Admiral immediately!"
He put down the receiver, his face ashen, and turned to Sengoku. "Fleet Admiral, an urgent, top-level report from the front! Big Mom… Charlotte Linlin… is dead!"
"What!" Sengoku's face contorted. He shot to his feet. "Dead? That woman wasn't just defeated, she was killed?"
Defeated versus killed… the significance, the sheer weight of it, was on a completely different level! Before Red-Hair even made a name for himself, the three veteran Emperors had ruled the seas for decades! No one had ever been able to touch them! But now, just because she had crossed that man, Shane, she had fallen in a matter of days?!
For a moment, the conference room was plunged into a dead silence. Nearly everyone wore an expression of utter shock, too stunned by the news to speak. "..." Even Akainu narrowed his eyes, his face hidden in shadow, not uttering a word.
Just then, Garp, who had been sleeping soundly, blearily opened his eyes and yawned. "Ah, is it morning? Is the meeting over?"
Everyone: "..."
A vein pulsed on Sengoku's forehead. "Garp! You old bastard! This is no time for sleeping! Big Mom is dead! The war in the New World is over!"
"Huh?" Garp looked surprised. "That old hag is dead? Who did it?" Wait, he didn't even need to ask. Realization dawned, and a look of delight spread across his face as he burst out laughing. "BWAHAHAHA! He actually did it?! Incredible! To kill a pirate with a bounty over four billion Berries all by himself! That's something even I couldn't do back in the day! That kid… he really didn't disappoint!"
"Garp!" Sengoku gritted his teeth, about to reprimand him.
"Watch your words and your position, Garp," Tsuru said coldly.
"Oh." Garp immediately straightened up and fell silent. The room returned to its quiet state.
Outside, the sun had risen, casting a golden glow over Marineford. But in the hearts of every high-ranking officer present, a dark, lingering shadow remained. Amidst the clouds of smoke, no one spoke, but everyone understood one thing: the outcome of this war was the worst-case scenario for Marine Headquarters. If the Curtain Call Adventurers had suffered heavy losses in a pyrrhic victory, it would have been acceptable. But to end the war in less than a day, with their top officers virtually unscathed, and to have conquered Whole Cake Island! The situation was beyond dire!
The balance of the New World, the very sky above it, hadn't just changed—it had been completely overturned! After this battle, the Curtain Call Adventurers would undoubtedly grow even stronger! And as for that man… there was no question that his fame, and the threat he posed, would rise to a whole new level!!!
"Shane…" Sengoku stood at the window, staring at the distant horizon. "Have you truly grown to become the most dangerous villain since Rocks? Why… why did you have to be born in this era…?"
The outskirts of the Galaxy Sea, as dawn broke.
The fierce battle between Greenbull and Fujitora raged on. The entire sea was covered by an awakened forest. Vines coiled like giant pythons, while Fujitora, standing on a floating meteor, worked in concert with Nami's flames to burn away the encroaching vegetation.
"Haha, it's useless, useless!" Greenbull laughed wildly, his savage face emerging from a tree trunk. "Your attacks are a pain in the ass, I'll admit! But in this forest, as long as there is a single tree, a single blade of grass left, I'm immortal! You're just wasting your time! Hahahaha!!"
His words sounded supremely arrogant, as if he were revealing his own weakness. But in reality, it was a complete lie. As a user of the Forest-Forest Fruit, his true trump card was his ability to photosynthesize in sunlight and draw nourishment from it. In other words, as long as there was light, he had an endless supply of energy. He could go for years, even decades, without eating!
This Issho was about as strong as he was, and with that annoying little fire-user, they had managed to put him on the back foot in the short term. But what would happen if the fight dragged on? They would eventually run out of steam. That little fire-user's stamina already looked like it was at its limit. Soon, it would be his turn to seize control and sound the charge for a counterattack…
BOOM!!!
Just then, a wave of Conqueror's Haki, vast and deep as the abyss, swept over them from the distance!
CRACK!
Black-and-red lightning tore across the sky, cleaving the heavens in two. The very air over the sea seemed to freeze, and even the churning waves were stilled in that instant.
"Ha…"
Greenbull's laughter died in his throat. His pupils shrank as he looked up towards the horizon. For the first time, a look of pure terror appeared on the face that was fused with the tree trunk.
"Hey, are you kidding me… What is this level of pressure? Could it be…"
My body… I can't move my body!
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