Originally, Ortoren never intended to stir up anything this big. His plan was simply to see if he could find a discreet way to extract the Boa sisters and be done with it.
When Doflamingo proved useless, Ortoren decided to head for the Sabaody Archipelago to talk things over with Rayleigh, hoping they could come up with a workable plan and prepare together. Up to that point, Ortoren had never thought about escalating the situation.
That changed when he arrived at Marine Headquarters, Marineford, and had a casual chat with Admiral Sengoku. During their conversation, Sengoku mentioned some movement in Mary Geoise, hinting that the position of Commander-in-Chief of the entire military might soon change.
The current Commander-in-Chief was the former director of the CP Organization. Historically, the position alternated between people from CP and Marine Headquarters. This Commander-in-Chief had held the seat for a long time, but because of his CP background, his power to actually command the Marines was limited. His influence wasn't strong. Policy from above, countermeasures from below.
Regardless of how much real authority he had, his upcoming retirement meant that, following World Government convention, the next Commander-in-Chief would almost certainly be the current Fleet Admiral, Kong. Once Fleet Admiral Kong stepped into that role, Admiral Sengoku—being the Navy's only real Fleet Admiral candidate—would become the new Fleet Admiral without question.
And once he took over as Fleet Admiral, all three Admiral seats would immediately open up. One had already been vacant for years, and although Zephyr-sensei still held the rank of Admiral, he was basically retired. Once Sengoku took the helm, Zephyr would fully step down. At that point, he'd likely be rehired as a civilian, using his former Admiral status to serve as the head of the Naval Academy or something similar.
So what did three vacant Admiral positions mean? It meant Ortoren's chance to rise and get paid had arrived.
Among the current generation of Vice Admirals, only a handful were qualified to be promoted to Admiral. Ortoren was definitely one of them. The others were Sakazuki, stationed at G-1; Kuzan, who had returned to headquarters; and the head of the Science Division, Borsalino. All four had both power and experience. Even the youngest, Ortoren, had already served nearly a decade as a senior Marine officer and had plenty of field experience.
As for the other Vice Admirals—those with more seniority lacked their strength, and those with comparable strength and experience were already big shots in their own right, of a different generation. Someone like Chief of Staff Tsuru wouldn't compete for an Admiral seat.
Four candidates. Three positions. With Sengoku—the soon-to-be "new Fleet Admiral"—backing him fully, Ortoren couldn't think of a single reason he'd be passed over. One of those Admiral seats was as good as his.
And he knew Sengoku must have thought this through. If someone like Sakazuki missed out, the Navy wouldn't suffer. But if anyone tried to trip Ortoren up and cost him the promotion, Sengoku would be livid. After all, Ortoren could simply form a Neo Marine and crown himself Fleet Admiral. Everything Sengoku had carefully arranged would collapse. The Navy's shackles wouldn't be broken, and a full-blown split might even erupt. Sengoku couldn't afford that.
That was Ortoren's leverage. Unlike Sakazuki and the others, he was a warlord within the Navy—his own faction.
Since his promotion was almost guaranteed, and since the big shots in Mary Geoise were already mentally prepared for it, Ortoren spent his days at Marineford thinking about how to speed things up. According to Sengoku, it was just a rumor for now.
A decision this big wouldn't be made overnight. It could easily take two or three years, maybe longer. The Commander-in-Chief was considering retirement, not being dismissed or dropping dead.
That remark suddenly lit a spark in Ortoren's mind. In the original storyline, why did the situation in Mary Geoise change so abruptly after Fisher Tiger burned the place and got taken down by Borsalino? Why did Fleet Admiral Kong immediately rise to Commander-in-Chief?
Because when Mary Geoise was attacked, someone had to take the blame. And the perfect scapegoat was the unlucky man serving as Commander-in-Chief.
Most likely, this Commander-in-Chief didn't retire peacefully. Just as he wanted to step down, disaster hit—he was dismissed or forced to resign. He took responsibility for Mary Geoise burning, while the Marines conveniently eliminated the culprit. His resignation for failure, paired with Fleet Admiral Kong's promotion for merit—the transition made perfect sense.
Once Ortoren figured that out, everything clicked. If they could just disrupt the so-called "orderly retirement" of that damn Commander-in-Chief and get him dismissed outright, then everyone would get their promotions and benefits.
So we can't keep trying petty tricks to sneak the Boa sisters out. We'll use Rayleigh and the others as cover, then find a way to release Golden Lion Shiki to take the fall. He'll be the one planning the grand arson at Mary Geoise... Once Mary Geoise burns, the World Government will lose its mind. They'll rush to take Shiki down immediately to restore their shattered authority and prestige.
At that point, Ortoren can squeeze one last use out of Shiki by presenting his head to Admiral Sengoku. Wouldn't that wrap everything up nicely? Admiral Sengoku hands Shiki's head to Fleet Admiral Kong. Riding on the merit, Kong becomes Supreme Commander. Everyone else advances a step. Sengoku fulfills his dream of becoming Marshal, Ortoren realizes his dream of becoming an Admiral. A world where only the Supreme Commander, Shiki, and Mary Geoise suffer—that would be the perfect outcome.
"Admiral, you don't even know how much effort I've put in behind the scenes to help you become Fleet Admiral sooner. Having a subordinate as dedicated and thoughtful as me is truly your good fortune..." Ortoren thought to himself.
While turning these ideas over in his mind, Ortoren was still tirelessly explaining his reasoning to Rayleigh and Shakky.
"You see, we've already gone over it. That first plan is too difficult and not worth the trouble. As for using private connections to get the three sisters out, there's no path for that. I've checked already. If you two have a way, just say it and we can try that first..." Ortoren said.
What connections could Rayleigh and Shakky possibly have in Mary Geoise? They were just two pirates. At best, well-known Great Pirates of their era; at worst, nobodies in the eyes of high-ranking World Government officials like Ortoren. If they had better connections, would this matter even land on Ortoren's desk? In truth, Ortoren himself was the most valuable connection they had.
So Rayleigh and Shakky shook their heads, admitting they were powerless in this regard.
"Look, since a covert extraction isn't possible, we only have the two options I mentioned. Back to the first one for now. Even if we were capable of infiltrating Mary Geoise, slipping into the Gods' Residence, and rescuing the three sisters, what happens if the big shots up there are alerted? How do we clean up after that? You've been to that cursed place—the Gods' Residence. Do you think they'll just pretend you were never there? They'll investigate thoroughly. And the disappearance of the three sisters isn't something they can't trace. Once they follow the clues back, things are far more likely to end exactly as you said earlier: Amazon Lily exposed, and as retaliation, Kuja Island wiped out along with it..." Ortoren explained.
Rayleigh turned Ortoren's words over in his head and found them increasingly convincing. Especially since Ortoren wasn't someone to trust. He had no bottom line. Look at Shiki—locked in Impel Down for so many years, yet Ortoren suddenly remembered him just to drag him out and use him again.
If the situation ever called for it, it was entirely possible that this kid would use this matter to betray them in exchange for a greater benefit.
So how to prevent that?
Rayleigh knew the answer: turn Ortoren from a minor accessory into an accomplice with equal stakes. Create an incident so big that neither side would dare sell the other out. Something like burning Mary Geoise.
That way, both sides would feel safe.
As Rayleigh thought this through, Ortoren continued,
"To hide the goal of rescuing the Three Sisters, we have to muddy the waters. It won't be enough to save just them. We should free as many slaves in Mary Geoise as possible. Then, let the fire take care of the ledgers. With that level of confusion, the cover will be solid. After that, pin everything on Shiki and the whole thing can be swept aside. What do you think?"
Rayleigh and Shakky exchanged a look.
Rayleigh nodded seriously.
"If that's how it is, then Shiki will just have to suffer for it..."
...
If you'd like to support my work and unlock advanced chapters, you can follow me on P@treon.
[Upto 50 chapters ahead for now]
[email protected]/PinkSnake