Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
It was supposed to be a ceremony organized by the World Government to celebrate the establishment of the new force, the [Shichibukai].
Yet at this moment, everyone was gathered tightly around a single person.
That man carried himself with effortless composure, a natural kingly aura radiating from him. Simply by standing there, he commanded the respect of every hero of the seas, forcing them to lower their heads.
That man, Orin, now sat at one end of the long rectangular conference table, with a seagull perched calmly on his arm.
When he sat down, Mihawk, Crocodile, Doflamingo, and the other Shichibukais finally followed suit, slowly taking their seats on either side of him.
The last to enter the reception hall, Admiral Sengoku, sat down at the opposite short end of the table, directly facing Orin.
Despite the weight of the occasion, with so many key figures gathered, to Orin it felt no more than a casual get-together.
In fact, the little seagull he had just encountered on his way here had caught more of his interest than this entire ceremony.
Orin gazed at the messenger seagull standing on his arm, perfectly poised and maintaining a rigid military stance, its sharp eyes glinting with discipline. He found the sight genuinely amusing.
With a casual flick of his fingers, he used the Warp-Warp Fruit to teleport a blueberry from a fruit platter on the table, feeding it directly to the little bird.
Perhaps because he rarely interacted with small animals, Orin suddenly found himself in high spirits.
"You wanna learn Haki?"
The little interlude didn't last long.
Sensing how overly quiet the conference room had become, Orin raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Don't mind me. Just carry on as usual. Follow the process."
Perhaps realizing that time shouldn't be wasted any longer, Sengoku cleared his throat and turned to look at the seven infamous pirates sitting at the table.
"Then I'll make this short."
"The World Government has established the [Shichibukai] with the intention of granting legal plundering rights to a select few great pirates, in exchange for bringing you into our fold, to use your strength against the rising tide of this era."
"In other words, if in the future the Marines engage in large-scale battles or major conflicts, you are required to intervene as allied forces when necessary."
"Do you all… agree?"
Faced with Sengoku's stern question, the expressions of the Shichibukai varied greatly.
Hanafuda, the only outsider here, seemed to want to speak up.
But upon noticing that no one else made a sound — even Moria, unusually, chose to stay silent — Hanafuda thought twice and kept his mouth shut as well.
Because they were all looking in the same direction.
"Hm?"
Orin followed their gazes, and when he realized they were silently passing the responsibility to him, he let out a helpless little laugh.
Fine, he'd just answer for them directly:
"Of course. These restless lot are the kind most excited by the idea of war, after all."
Hearing Orin speak on their behalf, Sengoku opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing.
After all, Orin's answer did, in essence, reflect the true stance of nearly all the Shichibukai.
With that, the brief discussion came to an end. And once the news was made official, it marked the Shichibukai' grand debut onto the world stage.
"Since there are no objections, today's meeting is concluded."
"From here on, do as you please."
Sengoku cast Orin a glance, and seeing that the man had no further opinions, the Admiral's announcement signaled the start of a simple banquet.
The meal was reasonably lavish, and the Shichibukai sampled the dishes casually.
But soon, the atmosphere shifted when a figure stood up from the table, briefly causing the feast to pause.
Orin gestured for them to relax, then slung the Seagull King over his shoulder and wandered off on his own.
He walked over to the balcony of the reception hall, where Sengoku stood gazing out over the vast sea.
Hands in his pockets, Orin approached him quietly.
Sengoku noticed the presence beside him, turned his head, and upon seeing Orin, opened his mouth to greet him.
"Orin-sama—"
But Orin cut him off before he could finish.
"When we're talking in private, there's no need for the formalities, Sengoku."
"…"
Sengoku fell silent for a moment, then turned his gaze back toward the distant horizon.
"Then… Orin, what brings you here?"
Orin shrugged casually, his eyes calm as he stared out at the waves.
"Nothing much. Just thought you were being surprisingly generous — letting Rosinante join Doflamingo's crew. Aren't you afraid he'll get himself killed?"
With just one sentence, Sengoku's eyes widened, blood vessels bursting red as his pupils trembled violently.
He turned sharply to stare at Orin, stunned, as though unable to comprehend how he could possibly know.
But Orin simply continued, unbothered:
"You do realize Doflamingo killed his own father as a kid, right? If he learns of Rosinante's betrayal, I doubt he'll show him any mercy~"
The weight of those words hit like a cannonball.
Yet Sengoku, after a brief pause, didn't question it.
But… impossible…
The fact that Rosinante was his foster son was known to only a handful within the entire Marine organization.
Only Sengoku himself acted as Rosinante's direct handler in his undercover role.
How on earth could Orin know this?!
And worse… if Orin already knew, then Rosinante's identity…
"Orin, this operation between the Marines and the World Government targeting Doflamingo is because he's gone too far. It has nothing to do with interfering in the underworld!"
Sengoku's tone was heavy, his entire demeanor tense.
Because right now, he knew Rosinante's life was in Orin's hands.
"Relax."
Seeing Sengoku's nervousness, Orin reached out and patted his shoulder, signaling for him to calm down.
"If I truly cared, do you think he'd still be alive right now?"
"Turning a blind eye isn't hard for me, Sengoku…"
"But," he added, glancing at the Seagull King on his shoulder, which at this moment was locked in an intense staring contest with Sengoku's own messenger seagull perched atop his head, "you'll owe me a favor for this one, Sengoku."
"A favor, huh…"
Sengoku's face first froze in exaggerated shock, then shifted into an expression of realization, as if saying, I knew it.
"Just as I thought."
"What?"
Sengoku's reaction sparked Orin's curiosity.
"You've got a nasty personality," Sengoku muttered, shaking his head. "No wonder Kuzan's always said so. Now that I've dealt with you in person today…"
"I see the kid wasn't wrong at all."
"Kuzan, huh?"
Orin's lips curved into a faint smirk. Old friends, indeed.
"Speaking of Kuzan, where'd that guy run off to?"
"Seems like after leaving the port plaza, he disappeared."
Orin had a good idea he was avoiding him, but he still couldn't help but ask anyway.
"Probably off drinking with Zephyr. Those two have always been against the formation of the Shichibukai."
"Still holding grudges, huh…"
Orin chuckled softly to himself.
Zephyr's hatred of pirates, sure, that made sense.
But Kuzan? No, his dissatisfaction probably had more to do with the fact that nearly every Shichibukai's inclusion was somehow connected to Orin himself.
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