Fleet Admiral Kong was someone Diermude hadn't met very often.
They had only crossed paths a few times during important meetings.
Kong looked fierce, but in reality he was actually quite amiable.
As for the Marine bases in the New World, ever since the Navy had "destroyed" Shiki's grand fleet two years ago, the Marines' prestige had risen greatly.
During this period, they had been steadily expanding their influence in the New World.
And it had to be said—they had achieved considerable results.
Just as Borsalino once told him, the Navy's current objective was to regain its voice and influence in the New World.
Admiral Sengoku and the others had been working toward this goal all along.
Now they were finally seeing some progress.
But Diermude knew something the others didn't.
The era was about to change.
Two years later, Gol D. Roger, the Pirate King, would be captured.
The Navy originally intended to publicly execute Roger in order to intimidate the ambitious pirates across the seas.
But instead, Roger would play a trick on the entire world.
His final words would ignite the Great Age of Pirates.
The relatively stable situation on the seas would be completely shattered.
Countless adventurers would flood into the ocean, stirring chaos everywhere.
As a result, the Navy's plans in the New World would collapse completely.
Their focus would shift away from the New World and toward stabilizing the Four Seas and the first half of the Grand Line.
Because of this, for the next twenty years, the New World would remain largely the pirates' domain, where the Marines could accomplish very little.
For now, however, the Marines still maintained several bases in the New World.
Among them, G-1 Marine Base was the most important.
If Diermude remembered correctly, after the Paramount War, Sakazuki would even move Marine Headquarters to G-1.
As for Fleet Admiral Kong inspecting G-1…
Diermude didn't recall that from the original story.
For a moment, he wondered if he had forgotten something important.
But soon he dismissed the thought.
It was probably nothing unusual.
"This is just a routine inspection. Don't overthink it," Sengoku said.
"But since the Fleet Admiral is going to the New World, proper security is necessary."
"As an Admiral, I must remain at Marineford."
"So which of you will go?"
It was obvious Sengoku didn't include Diermude or Gion in this question.
After all, they were still Commodores.
You couldn't assign a Commodore to guard the Fleet Admiral.
Would Diermude protect the Fleet Admiral—or would the Fleet Admiral end up protecting him?
Sakazuki clearly didn't want such a boring assignment.
In his view, escorting the Fleet Admiral was far less meaningful than going out to sea and killing more pirates.
So he sat there silently, showing no intention of volunteering.
After spacing out for a moment, Borsalino suddenly spoke.
"I'm afraid I can't either, Admiral Sengoku."
"You know I've been taking over the Scientific Forces recently. I'm extremely busy."
Sengoku nodded.
That was a reasonable excuse.
Even though Borsalino usually behaved like a lazy veteran, he had indeed been very busy lately.
And soon he would officially assume command of the scientific troops.
At that point, Sengoku would also lose his aide.
Chief Staff Officer Tsuru then spoke.
"I can't either. I'm currently restructuring the Navy's intelligence department."
"There have also been many developments in the underworld recently."
"I don't have the time."
Tsuru rarely dealt with frontline combat matters.
Recently, she had begun reorganizing the Navy's intelligence system.
In her view, the current system was outdated and bloated.
She intended to restructure it and establish several special units.
Her workload was enormous.
Furthermore, the underworld had recently become very turbulent.
A mysterious figure using the codename "Joker" had begun stirring chaos there.
As the head of Marine intelligence, Tsuru naturally needed to infiltrate the underworld.
Many kinds of information were difficult to obtain openly.
But in the dark world, it was much easier.
In short—
She was extremely busy.
Seeing this, Gion quickly spoke up.
"I'm not qualified either."
"Diermude and I are only Commodores."
Sengoku nodded naturally.
Then he looked toward Sakazuki and Kuzan.
After a moment of silence, he focused on Kuzan.
"Kuzan. I'll leave this task to you."
Kuzan sighed helplessly.
"Wouldn't Sakazuki be more suitable? I'm only a Rear Admiral."
Sakazuki replied coldly:
"I have more important matters to handle."
He gave no explanation.
Kuzan didn't like Sakazuki, and Sakazuki didn't like him either.
So Kuzan didn't bother arguing further.
Suddenly, Sengoku spoke again.
"If you handle this mission well, it'll be about time for you to become a Vice Admiral."
Kuzan froze.
His expression turned complicated.
Did he want the promotion?
Yes… but not desperately.
He had a laid-back personality and didn't care much about authority.
But at the same time—
Borsalino and Sakazuki had already been Vice Admirals for quite a while.
Among the three so-called "Marine Monsters," he was the only one still stuck at Rear Admiral.
Even worse—
Rumor had it that Diermude might soon be released from Sengoku's "training protection."
Before long, he might also rise to Rear Admiral.
At that point, Kuzan would really be getting caught up to.
Even if he was lazy, Kuzan still had some pride.
After glancing at Diermude, Sakazuki, and Borsalino, he sighed.
"Fine. I'll do it."
Sengoku nodded.
"Once Garp finishes what he's doing, I'll arrange for him to join you."
"This was actually supposed to be his job."
"But somehow he heard about it in advance and ran away."
"That damn bastard!"
Yes.
A few days earlier, Garp had apparently learned about this assignment.
Since he didn't want to stay near the Fleet Admiral, he immediately found an excuse and disappeared.
Sengoku had been trying to drag him back ever since.
Tsuru chuckled softly.
"Well, every time the Fleet Admiral sees him, he keeps trying to force him to become an Admiral."
"It's only natural that Garp avoids him."
"What a luxurious problem…" Diermude laughed.
At that moment, Kuzan suddenly looked at Diermude.
"Admiral Sengoku, how about letting Diermude come with me?"
"He hasn't been on any missions for a long time."
"I heard you're planning to release him from Headquarters soon."
"This mission is simple."
"I can take him along so he can get used to the field."
"And… he can show his face in front of the Fleet Admiral. That'll be good for him."
Diermude froze.
Looking at Kuzan's mischievous grin, he immediately understood.
This guy knew that once Diermude officially entered active duty, he might never again get the chance to show off by treating Diermude like a subordinate.
So before Diermude stepped onto the battlefield—
Kuzan wanted to fulfill his old dream.
Even if it was just once.
Damn… Marines can really hold grudges.
Sengoku didn't think that deeply about it.
After considering Kuzan's words, he felt they made sense.
Diermude was someone he was deliberately cultivating.
That was the reason he allowed him to attend meetings like this in the first place.
If Diermude could leave a good impression on the Fleet Admiral, it would only benefit his future.
And after suppressing him for two years, it was indeed time to let him gain real experience.
Going out with Kuzan first would be a good start.
"Alright," Sengoku said.
"Let's do it that way."
At this point, Diermude couldn't refuse the order.
After glaring at Kuzan, he said helplessly:
"Yes."
"Everything for Justice."
Once that matter was settled, Sengoku nodded.
"Alright. That's it for that topic."
"Next, we'll discuss personnel transfers."
He paused briefly.
"Soon, Borsalino will officially assume command of the Scientific Forces."
"Once that happens, he can no longer serve as my aide."
"As an Admiral, I need someone by my side to help handle various matters."
"So I intend to…"
Sengoku's gaze landed on Diermude.
Yes.
He intended to appoint Diermude as his aide.
Diermude's heart immediately surged with excitement.
Admiral's aide!
Right now, Sengoku's position in the Marines was essentially second only to Fleet Admiral Kong.
There were supposed to be three Admirals, but one seat was empty.
And the remaining Admiral, Zephyr, had already stepped back from frontline duty to focus on education.
So most of the Admirals' authority had effectively been concentrated in Sengoku's hands.
His influence was immense.
And everyone could see it clearly—
Sengoku had no real competition for the next Fleet Admiral position.
Zephyr had no intention of returning to command.
That meant the future Fleet Admiral could only be Sengoku.
If Diermude became his aide now…
That would practically be the classic "supporting the future emperor" opportunity.
In short—
It was an incredibly valuable position.
Diermude was more than willing.
But before Sengoku could finish speaking, Tsuru suddenly interrupted.
"If you plan to choose Diermude, I suggest you reconsider."
"I intend to recruit him into the intelligence department."
"He's still young."
"If he suddenly becomes an Admiral's aide, the outside rumors will be impossible to suppress."
"Let him work with me for a few years first."
"That would be better for everyone."
Sengoku froze.
Diermude froze too.
Since when did I become so popular?
The Admiral and the Chief Staff Officer are fighting over me?
After thinking about it, Diermude realized Tsuru had a point.
If he jumped directly into the position of Admiral's aide, he would become far too conspicuous.
Sengoku originally wanted to keep him nearby temporarily to teach him about political maneuvering before eventually sending him out.
After all, Sengoku believed strongly that to succeed in the Marines, one must not only be strong—
One must also understand politics.
And he saw much of his younger self in Diermude.
But since Tsuru had spoken, Sengoku didn't insist.
Working under Tsuru would also allow Diermude to gain valuable experience and wisdom.
"Alright," Sengoku decided.
"In that case—"
"Kuzan."
"Once you complete this mission and become a Vice Admiral, you'll come serve as my aide."
Kuzan had been watching the drama unfold like a spectator.
Suddenly he was dragged into it.
"What? I—"
"You're not allowed to slack off!" Sengoku said sharply.
Kuzan really didn't want the job.
Working under Garp was dangerous, but also quite relaxed.
The worst part was occasionally t
aking the blame.
But serving under Sengoku?
That meant actual hard work.
Seeing Sengoku's fierce expression, Kuzan realized he had no room to argue.
He sighed.
"…Yes."
"Everything for Justice."
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