"What kind of technique is this?"
At this moment, Smoker could clearly feel the moisture in his body rapidly evaporating—and that was definitely not a good sign.
Because his body relied on becoming smoke to attack, if he lost all his internal moisture, then there would be no way for him to elementalize himself!
Cold sweat began to drip down from his forehead.
"Alright, I'm done wasting time with you. Game over."
Crocodile let out a cold smirk and then once again charged forward, swinging his venomous hook.
Meanwhile, some distance away on the deck of a large Navy battleship approaching Loguetown, Admiral Sakazuki clenched his flame-covered fist tightly.
After receiving Smoker's report, he immediately realized he had been played by a bunch of kids.
He had stationed himself for days at the entrance of the Grand Line—completely in vain.
Even if they now sailed at full speed toward Loguetown, it would still take them a whole day to arrive.
Sakazuki knew Smoker's strength well. After all, it was precisely because Smoker always defied and challenged his authority that he had consistently suppressed him over the years.
Now that Smoker was facing the Renji Kai Pirate Crew alone, there was no chance he could hold out for an entire day.
So Sakazuki could only hope that Renji and the others would linger in Loguetown for a while after taking out Smoker.
Just then, Vice Admiral Mouse Rat (Itomushi) came rushing out from below deck.
"Admiral Sakazuki! Urgent telegram from Navy Headquarters!"
He handed over the message as he spoke.
The moment Sakazuki glanced at the contents of the telegram, his face darkened instantly.
A few vice admirals nearby noticed his expression and looked confused.
"What is it? Something happened at Headquarters?"
Vice Admiral Onigumo asked.
Sakazuki's voice was grim.
"Headquarters just sent word—an order straight from the top of the World Government. They're appointing Renji Kai and his crew… as the newest Warlords of the Sea."
"What?! We've already issued a global bounty declaration to hunt down the Renji Kai Pirate Crew. Now they want us to just stop halfway? Are they kidding us?!"
Vice Admiral Doberman couldn't hold back his anger.
"How do they expect the Navy to maintain any dignity after this?!"
Vice Admiral Onigumo chimed in, though more calmly, "Still… let's think this through. With Crocodile defeated, there's now an empty Warlord position. If Renji Kai is genuinely willing to take the role and stop his pirate activities, then this could work in our favor."
But Sakazuki wasn't buying it.
"Hmph. I didn't come all this way just to turn back halfway. I haven't even faced them in combat yet. They can afford to back down—I can't!"
"Then what's your decision, Admiral Sakazuki?"
Onigumo asked carefully, clearly sensing Sakazuki's mood.
Instead of answering, Sakazuki simply clenched his right hand.
In the next moment, red flames ignited in his palm—and the urgent telegram from Headquarters instantly turned to ash.
"Admiral Sakazuki! You can't destroy that! We still need to respond to Headquarters!"
Mouse Rat was horrified. Telegrams were the Navy's primary communication method.
Whenever Headquarters or a regional branch sent a message, the recipient was supposed to sign it and send a reply confirming receipt.
This particular telegram even had Fleet Admiral Sengoku's personal signature and official stamp.
By destroying it, they now had nothing to send back.
"No need to respond. Just say the telegraph machine malfunctioned. Also, cut off the Transponder Snails. If Renji Kai and his crew are still in Loguetown by sunrise tomorrow, everything will end there."
Sakazuki's eyes burned with fury as he stared toward Loguetown.
"But Admiral Sakazuki, doing this would mean directly disobeying orders!"
Onigumo's tone was filled with concern.
Sakazuki, as an admiral, ranked just below Fleet Admiral Sengoku. Disobeying orders wouldn't get him into too much trouble.
But the rest of the vice admirals weren't so fortunate.
There were dozens of vice admirals in the entire Navy, and if they too were found to be defying orders, it could trigger serious consequences from the World Government.
At best, they'd be reassigned to some hellish New World branch. At worst, their careers would be over.
That's why Onigumo hesitated to go along with Sakazuki's rebellion.
"You all came out here under my command. If anything goes wrong, I'll take full responsibility."
Sakazuki declared, his voice cold and determined.
"In fact, if we defeat Renji Kai and his crew before they flee, do you really think the World Government will punish us? No—they'll probably thank us instead."
"And what if we can't find them?"
Doberman asked.
**"There's no way Smoker can hold them off alone for a full day."
"If they escape again, so be it. I'll contact Sengoku personally and explain. I'll just say the telegram got lost. What's he going to do—punish me over a missing sheet of paper?"
After hearing Sakazuki's words, everyone fell silent.
Clearly, none of them dared to openly oppose his orders. In the Navy Headquarters, defying Sakazuki would be a one-way ticket to misery.