Chapter 303: Questioning Sengoku! A Schism in the Marines?
Hearing Karasu's words, the other Revolutionary commanders exchanged bitter smiles and nodded. The gap between them was just too vast.
Dragon remained silent, a drop of cold sweat trickling down his forehead. But as he looked at the world map on the wall, he seemed to come to a realization, and a relieved smile appeared on his face.
"There's no need to sell ourselves short," he said to his officers, his voice deep and steady. "Our paths are the same; we just walk them differently."
"The Revolutionary Army is like the roots of a tree, silently cultivating the soil of rebellion in the darkness for twenty years. As for Lord Shane…" Dragon looked out the window at the churning dark clouds, his gaze piercing through the vast sea to the arrogant young man in the black coat, a sword on his back. "…he is more like a bolt of lightning that tears through the night, igniting hope in the most dazzling way. But this world needs both the dawn and the embers that keep the fire burning."
Their twenty years of hard work had, after all, made the world a less dark and desperate place, hadn't they? Dragon felt he had a clear conscience.
"That's right! To put it bluntly, we're all comrades with the same goal! There's no point in comparing!" Across the conference table, Sabo, who had become the Chief of Staff at the young age of seventeen, pushed up his top hat and smiled brightly. "At a time like this, what we should be doing is seizing the opportunity the Curtain Call has created, increasing our propaganda efforts, and expanding our gains, right?"
"The places the Curtain Call can't reach, the places that newspapers can't penetrate, the government agencies, the Marine bases, even the Holy Land, Mary Geoise… there are still so many places that need to know the truth! It's our turn to act!"
"Well said, Sabo!" Belo Betty raised her arm in support.
"Exactly!" A sharp glint in his eyes, Dragon looked around the room, his hands on the conference table. "Send out my orders! The East, West, South, and North Armies… and the Grand Line Army! All of you, move out immediately!"
"Everyone, since that lightning has already split the night, let's make this fire burn even brighter!"
Alabasta Royal Palace.
Princess Vivi sat on the steps of the throne, the latest World Economic Journal clutched in her hands, her breathing growing ragged. Beside her, her royal guards, Igaram and Pell, stood with grave expressions, while King Cobra stood at the window, silently looking out at the scorching desert.
"Father…" Vivi looked up, her teeth clenched, her eyes shining with angry tears. "They're not human! Not the Celestial Dragons, not the World Government, not the Marines! How could they… how could they treat living people as prey!"
Have the other nineteen families been this depraved for centuries? Queen Lily, your decision to leave the Holy Land was so wise…
Cobra turned, hiding the complex emotions in his eyes, and sighed deeply. "You're right, Vivi. This world is indeed darker than we imagined." He walked over to her and gently stroked her hair, a sad smile on his face. "But that is precisely why, as members of the Nefertari family, we cannot back down."
"Your Majesty!" Igaram stepped forward, his face urgent. "Please, reconsider! You mustn't act rashly…"
"There's nothing to reconsider!" Cobra's face hardened. "If I don't even have the courage to speak out against such atrocities, am I fit to be your king?! Am I worthy of your protection?!" Without waiting for another word, he waved a hand and said decisively, "Contact the Holy Land, Mary Geoise! I, in the name of the royal family of Alabasta, will publicly condemn the atrocities of the World Government!"
And it wasn't just Alabasta. From the Sakura Kingdom on the Grand Line to the Flevance Kingdom in the East Blue, from the Flower Country in the West Blue to the Briss Kingdom in the North Blue… more than half of the 170 member nations of the World Government either called Mary Geoise or sent strongly worded letters of protest! And the rest, though they did not make a public statement, were all abuzz with discussion, and panic spread like wildfire, their trust in the World Government plummeting.
And it wasn't just the royal families. Farmers, fishermen, merchants, doctors, nuns… even the low-ranking Marine soldiers and the World Government's own office workers! The voices of protest were like a prairie fire, the actions of outrage like a volcanic eruption. World Government offices around the world were stormed by angry mobs and forced to shut their doors. Many Marine bases in the four seas even saw large-scale mutinies, with hundreds, even thousands of soldiers defecting!
The great figures in the Holy Land, Mary Geoise, were overwhelmed, struggling to deal with the fallout. And Marine Headquarters, Marineford, which had just received the news, was destined to be just as chaotic…
CRACK!
Vice Admiral Momonga could no longer contain his anger. He slammed the newspaper on the table and stood up. His usually gentle, round face was now flushed with rage. "Fleet Admiral Sengoku! What is the meaning of this?! This hunting game the newspaper is talking about… the Celestial Dragons slaughtering civilians, the Marines providing a full escort, even helping to clear the field… is any of this true?!"
"…" Sengoku looked up wearily, his face pale, his lips moving, but no sound came out.
RUSTLE!
More and more officers read the newspaper, and soon, more and more of them were on their feet, a wave of shock and anger sweeping through the room.
"Speak! Don't you think you owe us an explanation?"
"I joined the Marines twenty years ago to get rid of the villains on the seas! But now? It turns out we're the most vicious, the ugliest villains of all?!"
"Answer us, Fleet Admiral!"
"That's right! You have to give us an answer!"
"What damn justice! I didn't put on this uniform to be an executioner for the Celestial Dragons! I'd rather be a pirate! At least pirates don't slaughter hundreds of thousands of civilians at once!"
"Silence!" Akainu finally slammed his hand on the table. His left arm, now made of magma, burned a large, black hole in the wood. He turned, his cold, sharp gaze sweeping over the room, and the powerful pressure he exuded instantly silenced the uproar.
"Look at yourselves!" Akainu's voice was icy. "What is this? A coup? A rebellion?! Have you no respect for the Fleet Admiral?! As soldiers, your first duty is to obey! Since when do you have the right to question your superiors?!"
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