Far away on Borsalino's warship, his adjutant — a navy rear admiral — immediately realized trouble was brewing the moment he learned that Rosinante had been spotted on Sabaody Archipelago.
As soon as Borsalino left to intercept, the rear admiral reported the situation straight to Admiral Sengoku at Marineford.
After all, the World Government had just officially appointed Kong as Commander-in-Chief of the entire military. Once Kong left the Marines, Sengoku — the sole remaining admiral — was set to ascend to the title of Fleet Admiral without any dispute.
At this point, most of Marine Headquarters' operations were already being handled by Sengoku, with Kong just waiting to complete the final handover before stepping up to his new post.
But Sengoku was swamped — endless stacks of paperwork, coordination meetings, preparations for the transition — and he barely had time to breathe.
He had just managed to sit down for tea and a few senbei when the call came through from the rear admiral.
The moment he heard that Rosinante was on Sabaody Archipelago — and that he was fighting with Borsalino — Sengoku spat his tea clear across the room.
"Honestly! None of you ever give me a moment's peace! Immediately stop Borsalino and Rosinante's fight! In this critical moment of transition, we cannot risk war breaking out!" Sengoku ordered sharply.
"Yes, sir!"
Receiving the command, the rear admiral grabbed the Den Den Mushi and rushed straight to the battlefield.
When they heard the major's voice shouting the order, both Borsalino and Rosinante stopped their attacks.
"Aww, looks like this fight's not going to finish after all," Borsalino said with mock disappointment.
"Why bother listening to an admiral? Soon enough you'll be promoted to admiral yourself — just ignore the order and keep fighting!" Rosinante said teasingly, a mischievous grin on his face.
"Spare me! I still have to work under him when he becomes fleet admiral! If he decides to make my life hell, I'll blame you for everything!" Borsalino replied, his trademark lazy tone back in place.
Both of them knew full well that neither the Marines nor the Gray Kingdom were ready for another war.
Despite how fierce Borsalino had just seemed — like he was ready to fight Rosinante to the death to avenge that slash from two years ago — it was all just posturing, a probe.
A duel to the death? That wasn't Borsalino's style at all.
If his opponent were a weakling he could crush with ease, he'd be delighted to toy with them — that was just Borsalino's twisted sense of fun.
But someone like Rosinante? Someone he might not even beat even if he risked his life?
No thanks.
That wasn't bravery — that was stupidity.
If he was in a bad mood, he'd rather just go torment some rookies until he felt better.
At this point, the rear admiral approached Rosinante and handed him the Den Den Mushi.
"Rosinante! What exactly do you think you're doing?" Sengoku's voice boomed out of the receiver the moment it connected.
Rosinante chuckled softly. "Well, well — Admiral Sengoku himself. I hear you're about to become Fleet Admiral, and already you're throwing your weight around. But you've got it backward — it's not about what I'm doing. It's about what your Marines are doing! The moment I set foot on Sabaody, your forces surrounded me. Then your Borsalino attacked without a word. Are you saying Marine Headquarters is ready to start a second war with the Gray Kingdom?"
Rosinante shot Borsalino a playful wink as he spoke.
"Hey, hey, don't drag me into this! I tried to persuade you to let Bratt go and leave quietly — you make it sound like I was the one picking a fight," Borsalino said, lips curling in his usual crooked grin.
"Bratt is my spoils of war. Since when does a pirate abandon his prize? Just admit you were picking a fight," Rosinante replied with a laugh.
"Rosinante, watch your words carefully. Marine Headquarters doesn't fear the Gray Kingdom. Bratt must be handed over to us!" Sengoku's voice was sharp and cold.
"That won't do. I'm the one who beat Bratt. If I just hand him over because you asked nicely, where does that leave my pride? Sengoku, out here in the world, life and death might be small things — but a man's pride is bigger than both. So no, that's impossible!" Rosinante said calmly but firmly.
"Rosinante! I'm not joking with you! You know how dangerous that madman is. If you let him stay on Sabaody, he'll cause chaos of the highest order. The island is full of Celestial Dragons right now. If anything happens to them, the World Government will hold you personally responsible!" Sengoku's voice thundered.
"Ha! I'm not carrying that blame. But — since you're about to become Fleet Admiral, I'll give you a little face. I'll have Bins take that lunatic back to Skypiea and keep him under strict watch. That way, he won't be stirring up trouble here." Rosinante said casually.
Sengoku was silent for a long moment.
"Fine. You can take Bratt back — but you must guarantee he never sets foot on Sabaody again!" Sengoku finally said.
"No problem." Rosinante nodded.
"Then tell me — what are you really doing on Sabaody?" Sengoku pressed, his voice lowering.
Bratt might be a mad dog who caused trouble wherever he went, but at worst he was a headache for the Marines.
Rosinante, on the other hand, was a walking storm.
If he was here, there had to be a reason — and Sengoku suspected it was nothing good.
"What, do I need to report my travel plans to you Marines now?" Rosinante's tone turned cold.
"Sabaody is practically on Marine Headquarters' doorstep. A dangerous man like you showing up here? As a Marine admiral, am I not allowed to be concerned?" Sengoku shot back, his voice even but pointed.
"What else would I be doing? I brought my maids and butlers — obviously I came here to have some fun. I'm a man of peace, after all." Rosinante said with mock innocence.
"Hah! A man of peace? You're the pirate captain who's conquered five countries in a single day! If that's what you call a peace lover, then your face is even thicker than I thought!" Sengoku snapped.