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In the blink of an eye, a whole day had passed since the Battle of Satra.
That one day was like a match thrown into dry tinder; the entire world didn't just boil; it exploded with chaos and shock!
"What?! The Marines were defeated, and Qin's Nation has already unified half of the Grand Line?"
"You're joking! How in the world could the Marines lose?"
"That has to be a lie, right? What about the three Admirals? What about Hero Garp? There's no way they could have been beaten!"
"I heard this time the Marines even summoned the Shichibukai! With the combined might of the Marines and the Warlords, they still couldn't stop Qin's Nation's army?"
"Impossible! I don't believe it!"
All across the globe, people wore expressions of sheer disbelief and horror. Even the local Marine branches stationed around the world were thrown into utter turmoil.
"Something this huge happened at Headquarters? Qin's Nation has actually unified the entire first half of the Grand Line!"
"If they hold such a strategic position, this is catastrophic!"
"What about the World Government? Have they done anything yet?"
The Marines were paralyzed by panic and doubt, unsure whether to hold their ground or just flee.
The crushing defeat of Marine Headquarters had violently shifted the balance of the entire world. With absolutely no news coming from Headquarters, Marines everywhere were left anxious and utterly leaderless.
Sengoku and the others were missing, leaving the organization like a headless dragon, incapable of making any effective decisions in the short term.
…
In the New World, before a Marine-controlled fortress...
A crimson pirate ship slowly approached. It stopped when it was about a hundred meters away from the fortress walls.
"V–Vice Admiral, look! That's--"
From the watchtower above the fortress gate, the Marines spotted the flag flying on the ship, and their faces instantly drained of color.
"The Red-Haired Pirates!!"
The Vice Admiral, who had been patrolling the bridge between the towers, froze solid when he heard the report.
Striding forward, he grabbed a telescope. He could already make out the ship's silhouette from his vantage point, but he needed to confirm his fears.
Through the lens, he saw the Jolly Roger clearly, a three-scarred skull, and his face darkened like a stormy sea.
"Red Hair…"
His expression grew grave, his heart heavy with dread.
One of the Four Emperors of the New World, why was he here?
He shifted the telescope, focusing on the figures aboard the ship.
The flag was confirmed; now he just had to confirm who was on the deck. If his suspicion was right… this could spell monumental trouble.
And then, he saw him, a man with scarlet hair, a Western sword at his waist, and a weathered, solemn expression.
The Vice Admiral's entire body stiffened.
"Red-Haired Shanks… it really is them!"
His muscles tensed, and after only a moment's hesitation, he raised his hand to issue an alert, but then a majestic voice boomed out from the red-haired ship, cutting through the silence.
"Open the gates, Vice Admiral Shudece!"
Vice Admiral Shudece froze. That voice… it sounded so familiar.
He quickly looked toward the ship's bow, and what he saw made his eyes go wide.
"F–Fleet Admiral Sengoku!!!" He shouted in disbelief.
Rubbing his eyes, he looked again and saw Garp, Tsuru, and the three Admirals, along with numerous Vice Admirals, standing behind Sengoku.
"You're… alive!"
He couldn't help but gasp, utterly shocked.
It was impossible to believe. After the disastrous Battle of Satra, Marine Headquarters had fallen, and Sengoku's group had vanished without a trace. The entire world thought they were dead.
Yet here they were, alive, and appearing in the New World!
"Open the gates, Shudece!" Sengoku's commanding voice roared again.
Shudece no longer hesitated. He didn't know why Sengoku and the others were traveling with the Red-Haired Pirates, but there was no time to question the Fleet Admiral.
He immediately descended from the fortress himself, boarded a Marine warship, and sailed out to meet Sengoku's group.
Soon after, the two sides met, and Shanks and his crew quietly departed, sailing back toward the turbulent waters of the New World.
After entering the fortress, Sengoku and the others didn't even have time to tidy up their battle-worn, dusty appearance before striding straight toward the conference room.
"Shudece, send orders immediately to all Marine branches across the world! Tell them the Marines still stand! There is no need to panic!" Sengoku's voice was a deep, gravelly bark.
"Also, gather all the scattered Marines from the Battle of Satra, have them regroup here in the New World!"
"We need to choose a new location and re-establish Marine Headquarters!"
He slammed a fist onto the table, making the water glasses jump. "Marineford has fallen. We've completely lost control of the first half of the Grand Line… but we're still here!"
"As long as we live, there is still hope!"
"That ambitious man, we must resist him to the very end!"
After finishing his series of rapid, non-stop commands, Sengoku took the cup of water handed to him by a nearby Marine and drank it all in one searing gulp.
The officers who had survived the Battle of Satra sat silently around the table. Each of them quickly set down their cups, drinking just as fiercely, a small, desperate gesture that showed the immense pressure and exhaustion they had been enduring.
"Now, Shudece, don't just stand there, carry out my orders at once!"
Sengoku's eyes swept over the grim faces of his surviving leadership.
"From this moment on, both we and the entire world…"
"...must enter full wartime readiness!"
Sengoku's voice was heavy, weighted with grim certainty. Through the Battle of Satra, he had gained a clear, and terrifying, understanding of Qin's Nation.
What they were about to face was not merely a single nation… but a power drawn from a world far greater and stronger than their own.
Whether they would win or lose the battles to come, Sengoku could not say. Not even he had confidence in the answer.
Vice Admiral Shudece froze for only a moment before nodding sharply.
"Understood!"
Meanwhile, at Marineford, the former Marine Headquarters, Qin Yi, followed by his elite retainers, strode through the empty harbor and into the abandoned stronghold. The ground still smelled faintly of smoke and seawater.
"Sengoku really is a man of bold resolve," Qin Yi said with a faint smile.
"Burning the ships behind him, huh? Succeed or perish, he's emptied the entire Headquarters!"
Before him stretched rows of deserted buildings, not a single Marine, not a single logistics officer, not even a fresh recruit remained. The entire base had long since been evacuated by Sengoku, either sent to war or relocated elsewhere.
"Your Majesty," said Qin Lin quietly, "Our forces have already advanced. Within five days at most, the entire first half of the Grand Line will be under our control."
"What should we do next?"
"The Four Seas will be easy," Qin Yi replied calmly, dismissively. "There are no formidable opponents there."
"Our true target now… is the New World."
His gaze grew distant, as though it pierced through the ruins of Marineford, across the Red Line, and into that dangerous, pirate-dominated sea where the Four Emperors reigned.
"However," he continued, eyes glinting, "in that new world, we'll have to change our strategy."
Qin Lin and the others exchanged puzzled looks, but Qin Yi didn't elaborate. Instead, he turned toward the man beside him, the fearsome veteran of a world long past.
"Madara-san," Qin Yi said. "I've heard that beneath the sea lies a Marine prison, a place that holds the most vicious and powerful pirates of this world."
"Would you be interested in paying them a visit? Perhaps… bringing them into Qin's Nation."
Madara's eyes narrowed, a predatory focus returning to his ancient face.
"Understood."
Qin Yi smiled faintly.
"Then I'll leave it to you, Madara-san. Reform them well, kill who must be killed, fight who must be fought."
"And above all, help them establish the correct values."
(End of Chapter)