After Kizaru left, the rest of the Marine top brass were still in shock.
"Unbelievable. Ryuen actually went ahead and took out one of the Gorosei, Saturn, without caring about the consequences!" Admiral Aokiji looked stunned, like he had been struck by lightning. He still hadn't fully processed it.
"I said it long ago, Ryuen's a madman who doesn't play by the rules. He doesn't care about consequences." Sengoku's face was grim as he spoke.
"This has its pros and cons. With one less top-tier Celestial Dragon, our plans might have a better chance—but this probably enraged the other Gorosei, and that mysterious figure Im as well."
"That's why we have to plan ahead and prepare for anything. A member of the world government's top authority has been killed. There's going to be a huge storm across the seas..." said Vice Admiral Tsuru, her voice filled with deep concern.
Once people stop seeing the World Government as all-powerful and unbeatable, they'll stop fearing it.
Tsuru wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing for the world.
"I actually think it's a good thing. This world is already filthy. Only through bloody battle can it be reborn," Fujitora's voice echoed softly like a ghost through the air.
"Oh?"
"What do you mean, Admiral Issho?" Aokiji asked, very interested in Fujitora's opinion.
"In our plan with the Dream Exploration Group, there will be no more pirates and Marines in the world of the future. But think about it—how could all those ambitious pirates accept that kind of world?"
"So a little chaos right now might not be such a bad thing. It gives us the perfect chance to clean house and wipe out all those with evil intentions." Fujitora's tone carried a subtle but deadly edge.
To him, the world was already deeply sick. And if they wanted a bright future, they'd need to go through a storm of blood.
"I completely agree with Admiral Fujitora's view," Akainu said, smiling slyly.
Right now, he felt Fujitora was becoming more and more his kind of person. It was almost funny how Kuzan's guy had ended up being his most reliable ally.
"If things are quiet in East Blue, let's have Garp return. We'll need him for the next phase of the plan," Tsuru said after thinking it over.
"In that case—"
"Let's come up with a plan to stabilize the chaos that's coming."
"Have Marine Admirals take charge of the Paradise and New World. As for the four seas, send Vice Admirals from HQ directly. If anyone dares cause trouble now, wipe them out on the spot!"
"And in the New World, we can take this chance to weaken the pirates even more!" Sengoku reviewed the latest intel in his mind and then gave his suggestion.
Everyone looked at each other, then agreed with Sengoku's plan.
So, fleets led by Vice Admirals from Marine HQ set sail from New World Marine Headquarters and headed straight for the four seas!
Meanwhile, the Admirals in the New World and Paradise were also fully prepared for what was coming.
~~~~~~
Egghead Island.
The Vice Admirals that Saturn brought with him were no match for the rest of the Dream Team.
After Kuina and Hogg each chopped off the heads of Vice Admirals Bluegrass and Guillotine, the other three Vice Admirals and a few stubborn Marine officers were also taken down by Nojiko, Nami, Robin, and the others.
Once all that was handled, the island finally became quiet again.
The Marines who had surrendered early were now locked up—deliberately placed near Vegapunk and his group by the Dream Exploration Team.
Those Marines didn't expect that Vegapunk and the others had also been "captured" by the Dream Team.
Taking advantage of the setup, Vegapunk and Sentomaru began asking questions about what was happening outside. When they found out that Saturn had been taken out, they were shocked.
Then Vegapunk explained why they never asked the Marines or the World Government for help.
Because they were captured from the very beginning!
~~~~~~
"Ryuen, should we leave now? There's really nothing left for us to do here," Nami asked as she walked over to him.
Everyone else in the Dream Team also turned to look at Ryuen.
Their mission on Egghead Island was complete. The happiest one of all was Robin—she had gotten a bunch of Poneglyphs from Vegapunk.
She was surprised to learn that Vegapunk wasn't just secretly researching the missing 100 years of history—he was also close friends with Professor Clover. And Clover was actually part of the D clan!
Back when she was little, Professor Clover had never mentioned any of that.
"Hmm…"
"Yeah, it's time we left. Kizaru is already on his way here, and I'd rather not run into him. Otherwise, we'll have to fake another whole act," Ryuen said after thinking for a moment.
"So where are we going next?" Nojiko asked.
Ryuen didn't answer right away. Instead, he turned to Leina and said softly, "Of course, we're going to your hometown—Zou. Leina, you finally get to go home. Happy?"
"Eh!!!"
"Really? We're really going to Zou now?" Leina's face instantly lit up with shock and joy.
She hadn't seen her family in a long time.
So much time had passed. She missed her older sister on Zou Island and all her other loved ones deeply.
"That's right. We need to pick up the pace now. Especially since we just took out Saturn—there's no tolerance left from the World Government. And since Im hasn't shown up yet, we need to finish our plans before that happens," Ryuen said seriously.
"Then maybe Kuina should head back to East Blue for a bit. It's time to move the Kingdom of Oykot to the Sky Island. And Cocoyashi Village, too," Nojiko suggested.
Ryuen thought it over and slowly nodded.
Yeah, it was time.
"Kuina, go now. Once everything's settled with the Oykot Kingdom, meet us at Zou," Ryuen told her.
"Got it," Kuina nodded.
She stood up, shifted into full beast form, stepped onto a flame cloud, and with just a few bursts, disappeared into the sky.
Everyone watched until she was completely out of sight before turning their attention back to the moment.
"Alright, let's head out. I've always wanted to see the legendary Zou elephant. Leina, you can finally go home. Happy now?" Daisy leaned over to Leina, smiling.
"Yeah, I'm really happy!"
"But thinking about not being able to go on adventures with everyone anymore... I'm really going to miss you all…" Leina said, her heart tightening at the thought of parting.
She had been sold to slave traders and taken to the Sabaody Archipelago, then rescued by the Dream Team. Since then, they had gone on so many adventures together.
To her, everyone on the ship was already like family.
"Hehehe~"
"Then when you grow up, come find us out at sea!" Sugar laughed as she patted Leina's small shoulder.
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