Grand Line, Marine Headquarters—Marineford.
"I've urgently summoned everyone for this meeting, and I believe you all know its purpose. So, who among you can tell me, who exactly is this Victor?"
In a brightly lit, pristine white office, a robust old man with a mohawk-like spikey haircut sat behind a desk, arms crossed, gazing sternly at the people in the room.
"Allow me to provide a brief written report, Fleet Admiral Kong."
Marine Admiral 'Fleet Admiral' Sengoku, wearing round spectacles, picked up a stack of reports and read in a booming voice:
"Victor, 17 years old, son of a fisherman from Corie Village in West Blue. Two years ago, he joined the West Blue gang 'Coral,' during which he displayed no noteworthy combat prowess. This individual truly began to emerge a month ago in Algaro Town, where he defeated three gang leaders of considerable renown and means in West Blue, one of whom was his nominal boss at the time. Please note, this individual single-handedly defeated these three within 10 minutes of consuming the Zip-Zip Fruit..."
"Excuse me, Admiral Sengoku, if I may briefly interrupt." A tall, slender man with ramen hair raised his hand and waved it slightly.
Admiral Sengoku nodded, kindly saying: "Please speak, Vice Admiral Kuzan."
Vice Admiral Kuzan, known as one of the 'Monsters' by pirates, scratched his head: "I just wanted to ask, is the Zip-Zip Fruit Admiral Sengoku mentioned the same one Captain Marvin ate a few years ago... the Devil Fruit?"
At this moment, an old man nearby, crunching on rice crackers, laughed heartily:
"You're not wrong, Kuzan. It's that so-called 'Marine's Disgrace' Waste Fruit that those brats secretly call it."
"Oh my, thank you, Garp-san. I have no more questions. Please continue, Admiral Sengoku." Vice Admiral Kuzan, having received his answer, shrank back into his spacious chair.
Sengoku cleared his throat and continued reading: "Relevant information on the Zip-Zip Fruit is detailed on page 4 of the report I just distributed. Feel free to peruse it if you're interested. So, I shall continue...
Victor seized the leadership of 'Coral' with an iron fist in Algaro Town a month ago.
Captain Krone, the new commander of Marine Branch 91 in Algaro Town, promptly reported this matter. Zephyr showed interest in this individual, hoping to bring him back to headquarters for training. Before departing to serve as the chief instructor for the apprentice ship, he submitted a travel permit for West Blue, a matter both Garp and I were aware of."
In fact, Captain Krone did not only report to Admiral Zephyr through personal connections; he first reported to Marine Headquarters, but Headquarters paid little attention to the matter, reasoning it was "just a skirmish between West Blue hooligans."
Only then did Captain Krone contact Admiral Zephyr. After the 'Clock Tower Island War,' Sengoku immediately sought out relevant Marine personnel to understand these circumstances, but for his own reasons, he did not mention the dereliction of duty by Headquarters personnel in front of everyone at this time.
"Afterwards, Victor set sail for Kano Country, where he concluded a massive arms deal with the Kano Country. There, in a dispute over a woman, he engaged in battle with 'Charcoal Eyebrows' Umrich, who had a bounty of 87 million Berries. After easily defeating him, Victor returned to Algaro Town. After lying low for just over ten days, he traveled to Clock Tower Island and clashed with 'Warlord of the Sea' Gecko Moria. There is no detailed intelligence on the specific battle, but it is an undeniable fact that Clock Tower Island, with its 700-year history, was destroyed due to their fight. That concludes the relevant intelligence on Victor."
"Alright, Sengoku has finished. Now, you all, discuss your thoughts on this individual."
Fleet Admiral Kong frowned, leaning back in his chair, indicating that everyone was free to speak.
An old woman with her hair in a ponytail flipped through the intelligence report for a while, then sighed and looked up: "A formidable young man... He acquired Observation Haki at 17, and judging by his ability to fight Gecko Moria back and forth, he certainly possesses Armament Haki as well. The question now is, where did he learn Observation Haki and Armament Haki from? Could the Happo Navy be colluding with him?"
Garp took a bite of a rice cracker, his mouth full, and mumbled: "Tsuru, you always like to overthink things. What if this kid is a peerless genius who awakened Armament Haki and Observation Haki on his own, without a teacher?"
"Then he will definitely become a major threat to peace!" A man in a baseball cap said loudly, his voice like fire: "We must nip such a threat in the bud! Let me go to West Blue, Fleet Admiral Kong!"
Vice Admiral Kuzan scratched his head: "Oh my, oh my... Sakazuki, this young Victor hasn't become a pirate yet. We can't use fabricated charges to forcibly eliminate a talented youth. I think Teacher Zephyr's idea is excellent: bring this young man, who hasn't gone astray yet, back to the Marines and train him. He will surely become a pillar of peace in the future..."
"Kuzan! You are too soft! This gang hooligan defeated a 'Warlord of the Sea' authorized by the World Government! He made the World Government lose face! For such a hidden, potentially dangerous threat, he should be completely eliminated to prevent future trouble!"
"Don't forget your standing, Sakazuki! We are Marines! Not executioners!"
"Executioners? You dare to..."
"Enough!! All of you sit down!! Do you think my office is a gladiatorial arena!?"
Seeing the two men, who were usually at loggerheads, stand up and start a heated argument, Fleet Admiral Kong slammed the table and roared, forcing them to suppress their anger and sit down.
Vice Admiral Tsuru cleared her throat and said softly: "Although we don't know how this Victor defeated Gecko Moria, one thing is certain—he has an irreconcilable major conflict with Gecko Moria. Either they were fighting over something very important, or they have a deep-seated grudge.
Considering Victor's background and his experiences over the years, the latter is unlikely, so it must be a conflict of interest.
What exactly were they fighting over that would make this little thug dare to attack 'Warlord of the Sea' Gecko Moria, who had an original bounty of 320 million Berries?"
Sengoku looked up and pondered: "Could it be for the 'Warlord of the Sea' position?"
Garp stopped eating his rice crackers, stroking his chin, which was covered with short, stiff stubble, and asked curiously:
"Could it be for a woman? After all, this kid has a precedent, fighting other pirates in Wano Country for a beautiful girl."
Upon hearing Garp's speculation, Vice Admiral Kuzan suddenly thought of someone and pulled down his round sunglasses to obscure his somewhat gloomy gaze.
West Blue... it couldn't be such a coincidence, could it?
Fleet Admiral Kong shook his head and made the final decision: "No matter the reason, the fact that he defeated a 'Warlord of the Sea' is undeniable. Since he has provoked the World Government, he should be prepared to be annihilated. Notify the subordinates to prepare to issue a bounty. The bounty will be set at..."
Doo-doo, doo-doo, doo-doo...
At this moment, a white-shelled Dan-Dan-Mushi on Fleet Admiral Kong's desk suddenly rang. He frowned, pondered for a moment, then answered the Dan-Dan-Mushi: "...Speak, Five Elders."
A dignified voice came from the other end of the Dan-Dan-Mushi: "We are already aware of the matter concerning Victor. The Marines are not to intervene for now. We will send someone to make contact with him. That is all."
Click.
After giving a couple of instructions, the Dan-Dan-Mushi was decisively hung up.
The room was silent.
Vice Admiral Tsuru chuckled: "It seems the World Government has taken an interest in this young Victor's 'power' and 'potential.' Fleet Admiral Kong, does this meeting need to continue?"
Garp happily took a bite of a rice cracker, then stood up and stretched: "I'm going back for my nap anyway, so let's adjourn..."
Suddenly, a knock came from outside the office door.
Admiral Sengoku's heart tightened. With so many high-ranking Marine officials holding a meeting here, unless it was an urgent matter, no one below would interrupt the meeting at this time.
After receiving permission, a panicked Marine soldier pushed the door open, saluted, and then quickly said: "Re-report, Fleet Admiral, news just received... The apprentice ship was attacked by pirates, the apprentice officers were almost completely annihilated, and Admiral Zephyr, he..."
"Don't stammer! Speak quickly, what happened to Zephyr!?" Fleet Admiral Kong immediately became anxious upon hearing the news, suddenly stood up, and loudly demanded.
"Admiral Zephyr, he... he is severely wounded and has had his right arm severed.
He is currently being transported to the nearest Marine base in the affected sea area."
The world, was in turmoil.
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