High above the skies outside Wano Country, beyond the clouds.
A small ten-meter-long ark sped swiftly through the air.
Enel lay lazily on his side, tossing an apple in one hand while watching the scenery below.
Law sat beside him, his brows furrowed.
"So this mission... Admiral Sakazuki is supposed to cooperate with one of the Four Emperors, Kaido?"
"Is that even possible? Since when does the Navy work with pirates?"
Enel chuckled softly, took a bite of his apple, and said,
"Young man, you have to learn to be flexible."
"This cooperation between the two sides isn't exactly a conflict, is it?"
"We need them to stir up chaos in the New World. They need the benefits that come with it, and they'll stand in front of us to take the hits."
"Fair deal, don't you think?"
"The only one who loses is the unlucky fool caught in between."
"But... what's that got to do with us? Just another pirate, isn't it?"
Law's lips twitched slightly. It sounded... logical, yet still so wrong somehow...
Buru buru~ buru buru~
The sound of a Den Den Mushi rang out.
Enel pulled it out, glanced at it, and raised an eyebrow.
"Hmm?"
"Rosinante, huh."
Law's attention was immediately drawn to the name.
Enel smiled faintly and picked up the call.
"What's up, Rosinante?"
Rosinante's somewhat awkward voice came through,
"Uh... how should I say this..."
"Admiral Sakazuki and my father..."
Enel interrupted him.
"Don't worry, it's fine."
"The conflicts of the older generation have nothing to do with us."
"Don't overthink it."
Rosinante's voice came back,
"That's good. I was worried things might get awkward."
Enel chuckled.
"What nonsense are you imagining every day?"
"Oh, right—Law's here with me too."
He tossed the Den Den Mushi toward Law.
Law quickly caught it.
"Hey!"
...
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
Inside the central hospital.
In a private ward, Garp sat propped up on the bed, his body wrapped in bandages.
He was snacking on fruit and small treats.
Vice Admiral Tsuru sat on a chair beside him, arms crossed and eyes closed in quiet contemplation.
Sengoku stood by the window, watching the busy soldiers and workers outside.
After a long silence, Sengoku sighed softly.
He turned to Garp.
"How are your injuries?"
Vice Admiral Tsuru opened her eyes and looked over as well.
Garp suddenly burst into hearty laughter.
"Hahahahaha! It's nothing serious!"
"That brat Bullet is still too green!"
Thanks to the Marine doctors' timely stitching and Garp's monstrous physique, even the shattered bones on the left side of his face had been roughly set back into place. It only hurt badly when he tried to eat.
But such pain was nothing Garp couldn't handle.
Sengoku moved to the bedside and sat down.
"In the end, this was our mistake."
Garp's laughter faded. He sighed.
"Yeah..."
"Sengoku, are you planning to resign?"
Sengoku gave a bitter smile.
"That's right. You think I still have the qualification to remain Fleet Admiral?"
"But how did you know?"
A trace of guilt flashed across Garp's face.
"Because I don't have the qualification to stay either... I resigned to Kong this morning."
"He told me himself."
Sengoku sighed.
"And what did he say?"
Garp looked up at the ceiling.
"What else could he say..."
"Same as you—resigning's fine, but our ranks must remain."
"He's transferring me to train new recruits as the Chief Instructor."
Sengoku's expression softened slightly.
"Chief Instructor for the recruits, huh... That's not so bad."
Vice Admiral Tsuru shook her head.
"You two..."
Garp kept his eyes on the ceiling.
"You're disappointed in us, aren't you, Tsuru..."
"To think we'd do something like this..."
Vice Admiral Tsuru said quietly,
"Who in the entire headquarters isn't disappointed in you two right now?"
"There's nothing colder than betrayal from the people above you."
"But no one dares to say it aloud."
"Tell Dragon to be careful. If you two face each other again..."
"It'll be a fight to the death."
...
Marine Headquarters – Marine Academy.
Ward Morris exhaled deeply as he sorted through the lists of elite candidates reported from various branch bases.
"Same as always."
Zephyr, who had been gazing out the window, turned and asked,
"What, another disappointing batch?"
Ward Morris rubbed his temples.
"Yeah. Ever since Drake's year, we haven't had any real talent. A few decent ones—there's that Logia-type with the Smoke-Smoke Fruit... but how should I put it... He just doesn't have the presence to hold the stage."
"Right, it's been two years since Drake graduated, hasn't it?"
"Where's he now?"
Zephyr chuckled softly.
"Working with Skarn, that kid. Nothing to worry about there."
Ward Morris shook his head and smiled.
"That's good..."
He stood up and stretched a bit.
"Anyway, let's not dwell on it."
"We're not on the same path as Sengoku and Garp anymore."
"Focus on preparing for what's coming."
"After the new year, Sakazuki takes office."
"And when that happens, the so-called Great Pirate Era will begin its fall."
"Let's train as many strong Marines as we can while there's still time."
Zephyr took a deep breath.
"Yeah..."
"We really aren't on the same path anymore..."
...
The Grand Line – Calm Belt.
A massive fleet was crossing the windless sea.
According to intelligence from the Kuja Pirates, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, a shipment of weapons bound for the Revolutionary Army was being escorted across the Grand Line toward the Four Seas by the Steam Pirates' fleet.
Since all the top fighters of Amazon Lily had died at Sakazuki's hands...
The Kuja Pirates no longer had any overwhelming strength—just a group of well-trained warriors who knew Armament Haki.
But against a Yonko-level fleet like the Steam Pirates, they could only avoid confrontation and report the intel to the Marines.
...
Above the Calm Belt.
Beyond the clouds, another enormous fleet loomed faintly—this time, they were Marine warships.
Skarn floated in the air, gazing down at the barely visible black dots below, calculating silently.
"Prepare."
"Drop them!"
Dozens of warships began their bombing run, unleashing a rain of specially-designed bombs.
They fell like raindrops—thick, fast, and countless—and even when they hit the sea, they released violent bursts of high-voltage electricity.
At the same time, a group of soldiers wearing specialized combat gear and cloaks, led by Drake, stood ready to deploy.
Moments later, once all the bombs had been released, the fleet began to dive downward.
Drake pulled down his goggles.
"SWORD—move out!"
He jumped first, the thrusters on his boots igniting as he dove faster.
The soldiers behind him followed suit.
Those specialized suits had been developed years ago, after Enel plundered the Vinsmoke family's research archives...
And with Vegapunk's improvements, they were even more powerful than the originals.
Skarn smiled faintly and activated his ability.
Behind him, a swarm of missiles floated into formation and descended faster than Drake's covert unit, reaching the battlefield first—kicking off the annihilation operation.
...
South Blue, Kingdom of Sorbel.
Inside a once-crowded conference room, only Dragon, Kuma, and the South Blue commander, the mink Lindbergh, remained.
Everyone else—including Sabo and the other officers—had already departed secretly for the other three seas.
After the Revolutionary Army's retreat to the Four Seas, the situation had just begun to stabilize.
Then came the Marine scandal—the split within their own ranks.
Dragon seized the opportunity to call for a grand conference, summoning all base leaders across the seas.
Each meeting was to be led by the regional commander, and every base head had to attend.
No one suspected a thing; they all began moving toward their respective gathering points.
Only the top brass at headquarters knew the truth—this was to be a blood-soaked purge.
It had been more than half a day since Dragon gave the order.
Kuma and Lindbergh had been silently following reports about the great Marine battle displayed on the table.
Eventually, Lindbergh couldn't hold back anymore and asked,
"What's wrong, Supreme Commander?"
"The Navy splitting apart should be good news for us. How could this possibly be bad?"
-----------
The fanfic is Finished on p@treon/tambeerg. 414 chapters in total