After Sengoku finished speaking, Sakazuki didn't say anything more.
He stood quietly beside Sengoku, the two of them simply watching the view outside the window.
Before long, at the far edge of the sea, a dark mass of ships came into view, sailing straight toward them.
Sakazuki could already see the World Government flag flying from their sails. There was no doubt about it. The great fleet from Mary Geoise had arrived, and one of the Five Elders, Saint Saturn, was with them.
"Fleet Admiral…" Sakazuki seemed like he wanted to say something.
But before he could, Sengoku gently patted his shoulder and said with a smile, "Sakazuki, you've had it rough lately. Ever since you joined the Marines, you've always been the most unwavering one. But these past days, for the first time, I've seen hesitation in you. Confusion. Not knowing what to do… I'm sorry."
"I…" Sakazuki's lips moved.
Sengoku cut him off and continued, "From here on out, act according to your own will. Being able to carry out your own justice should be something to be proud of. So no matter what choice you make, I believe you are truly an outstanding and righteous Marine. And no matter what you choose, you don't need to feel guilty."
With that, Sengoku turned to leave the office, heading for the naval harbor to carry out his own justice.
Just as the Fleet Admiral was about to step out, Sakazuki finally couldn't hold it in anymore. He turned toward Sengoku's back and asked in a deep voice, "Even though I've long known what you want, Fleet Admiral… right now, I still want to ask one more time."
Sengoku's calm steps paused slightly. He didn't turn around, but his reply was easy and unrestrained. "Ask what?"
"What justice are you going to uphold?" Sakazuki asked without hesitation.
Sengoku still didn't turn back. Instead, he burst into loud laughter right where he stood. After laughing a few times, he finally tilted his head, glanced at Sakazuki, and grinned.
"Let the Marines, let justice…"
"Rule the world!!!"
The moment the words fell, Sengoku flung his coat of justice behind him and strode out, radiating an overwhelming presence.
Sakazuki remained where he was, unmoving for a long time.
How long, he couldn't say. But eventually, it was as if he came back to himself. On that rigid, icy face, a faint smile actually appeared. He turned to look at the wall of the Fleet Admiral's office, where Sengoku's own calligraphy hung.
Justice That Rules the World
"What a sly strategist," Sakazuki murmured. "You spell it out to this point, then tell me that no matter what I choose, I don't need to feel guilty… Let the Marines, let justice rule the world. As an Admiral, how could I possibly oppose that?"
With that, he also left the office.
Outside the Fortress of Justice, Garp was sitting on the front steps, happily munching on a senbei.
As if he'd heard footsteps behind him, Garp grinned and called out, "Oh my, oh my. Is the Fleet Admiral going to be hauled off to face justice? I told you back then, don't climb that high. You'll lose your freedom. Look at you now, stuck in the mud, huh?"
"Idiot. The one being hauled in is you," Sengoku shot back, glaring at him. "CP is coming to ask you to cooperate with an investigation into Revolutionary Army matters. As for me, I'm just going to Mary Geoise to talk to the Five Elders about changes to military funding."
"Tch." Garp clicked his tongue. "Still time to regret it. I hear those five are pretty tough, but this is Marine Headquarters. You're our Fleet Admiral. If you don't want to go, nobody can take you from here."
Garp wasn't wrong. Sengoku was the Fleet Admiral, and he was standing at Marine Headquarters. If he refused to leave, nobody could drag him out of the Marines' home base, not even the Five Elders.
Sengoku smiled at that and said, "We've charged through battlefields far crueler and far more dangerous together. After all that, why would I be afraid of Mary Geoise? What, do they really dare kill me?"
"Fair point…" Garp stuffed the rest of the senbei into his mouth, wiped the crumbs off his lips, then dusted off his backside and stood up. "Let's go. The tide of the times is rolling in. Let the young Marines do young things. Old relics like us… we'll find a way to give off one last bit of light and heat."
"Light the way forward?" Sengoku teased with a smile.
"Ahahahaha!" Garp laughed loudly, then said, "The road ahead is already bright enough. Why would it need half-muddy old men like us to light it?"
They didn't linger. Garp and Sengoku walked out of the Fortress of Justice together, heading for Marineford's naval harbor.
At the same time, in the residential area, Zephyr wore a pair of glasses and sat under the shade of a tree in the courtyard, reading a book with a cigar clenched between his teeth, looking completely at ease.
"What a shame…" Zephyr suddenly sighed.
This made Trafalgar Law, who was sitting beside him reading a medical book as well, look up in mild confusion.
"Grandpa Zephyr, what are you regretting?"
"Hero Z… retired too early," Zephyr said with a smile, setting his book aside and gently ruffling Law's hair. "Compared to that fellow Sengoku, it seems my vision really wasn't far-reaching enough."
Trafalgar Law didn't quite understand what he meant, but he didn't dwell on it. Instead, another question came to mind.
"Grandpa Zephyr, why haven't you gone to the school these past few days?"
"Oh…" Zephyr replied calmly. "There's been a small issue over there. The school needs to be shut down for a while."
"Huh?" Law was startled. "For how long?"
"Not very long," Zephyr said with a chuckle. "When that dark cloud on the horizon is torn apart, and the sun once again spreads over the sea… that'll be the time."
Trafalgar Law stood up and looked toward the horizon. He searched for quite a while but couldn't find any dark clouds at all. Wasn't the sky bright and clear today?
"Grandpa, the clouds are so high up. How could anyone tear them apart? What kind of person could even reach clouds that high?" Law asked, puzzled.
Zephyr couldn't help laughing.
"Hahahahaha! That's right, the clouds are that high… Only a man who stands in the heavens could tear them apart!"
The moment he heard that, Trafalgar Law's eyes lit up.
"Is it Benn Admiral? I've been hearing people say lately that Benn Admiral is a man who stands in the heavens! Is it him?"
"Yes, it's him," Zephyr said, an approving smile on his face.
Just then, a sea breeze swept through Zephyr-sensei's courtyard. The book he had just placed on the table seemed to catch the wind's attention, its pages flipping back two sheets.
'Dazzling lightning will eventually shatter the darkness hanging over the horizon, tear apart the thick, heavy clouds, and bring a torrential rain that washes the filth from this world. After the thunderstorm, the sky will clear.'
As if unable to understand those words, the wind quickly lost interest in the book and skipped lightly out of the courtyard.
At the same time, Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Garp boarded a ship from Mary Geoise.
The fleet that had arrived in such haste took the two of them aboard and departed just as swiftly, without lingering for even a moment.
...
This story has already been fully translated recently on P@treon, and I'm currently releasing 3 chapters per day. If you want to read ahead and see the ending sooner, feel free to follow me on Patreon: https://[email protected]/PinkSnake