East Blue Marine Branch Fortress.
Inside the office, Vice Admiral Rost sat down heavily, his heart still pounding from what he had witnessed.
Even now, the image of that small boy standing amid hundreds of marines, worshipped as if he were a war god, lingered in his mind.
Suppressing his turmoil, Rost reached out and picked up the Den Den Mushi on his desk.
He dialed.
Buru buru… buru buru…
At last, the line connected.
"Rost? This is Kong. Did something happen in the East Blue?"
The deep, commanding voice buzzed in his ears.
Rost stiffened.
This was Steel Bone Kong, the Fleet Admiral of the Marines—the supreme commander of the entire Navy.
"Fleet Admiral, I… I have something of utmost importance to report."
Rost took a deep breath, though his pulse refused to calm.
"What is it?" Kong asked, voice level.
"Earlier today, Vice Admiral Garp brought in a pirate ship and a batch of prisoners to our fortress. A crew worth over twenty million Berries in total bounties."
"That's it?" Kong's tone was faintly impatient.
"Such a trivial matter doesn't warrant you disturbing me personally. A twenty-million crew in the East Blue—of course Garp can swat that aside."
He knew Garp was in his homeland.
And a small-time crew like that was nothing to someone called the Hero of the Marines.
But then—
"No, sir…"
Rost's voice trembled. "That crew wasn't defeated by Vice Admiral Garp."
"…It was his grandson."
"A four-year-old child!"
"He annihilated the entire White Ostrich Pirates alone!"
The line fell silent.
Rost could almost feel Kong's breathing falter through the Den Den Mushi.
"…What did you say?!"
Kong's voice boomed like thunder.
"Garp's grandson?"
"A four-year-old boy wiped out a crew worth over twenty million?!"
"Are you certain?!"
His disbelief was palpable.
"Absolutely, Fleet Admiral!" Rost insisted.
"I interrogated the surviving pirates myself. Every word, every detail—they all testified to the same thing. Garp's grandson, Kai, destroyed them. Alone."
Rost's voice shook even as he spoke. The truth was too outrageous even for him.
On the other side of the line, Kong drew in a sharp breath.
"…When the hell did Garp get a grandson?"
"And at four years old… to wipe out such a crew…"
"This talent is monstrous!"
"Even more terrifying than Garp himself!"
Kong's voice trembled with shock, disbelief, and a dawning realization.
This was beyond prodigy—this was a monstrous genius.
At last, Kong growled, "I need to think. I'll call you back."
And he slammed the line shut.
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
In the Fleet Admiral's office, Kong paced to the window, staring down at the parade grounds filled with recruits in training.
His hands clenched around the Den Den Mushi.
He hesitated only a moment before dialing again.
Buru buru…
The line clicked open.
"Kong? This is Sengoku."
"Sengoku." Kong's voice was grave. "Tell me… did you know Garp has a grandson?"
There was a pause.
"…I know," Sengoku admitted at last. "He contacted me last month, told me about the boy—Kai."
Kong's eyes narrowed. "Then tell me, did you also know… this child is a terrifying genius?"
"…I did," Sengoku said slowly.
"What do you mean?"
Sengoku's voice lowered. "One month ago, in the middle of the night, Garp told me about himself. His grandson… awakened the Conqueror's Haki."
"At the age of three."
Den Den Mushi nearly slipped from Kong's hand.
He shook so violently he almost hurled it out the window.
"What did you just say?!"
His roar shook the office.
"A three-year-old… awakened Conqueror's Haki?! Are you certain?!"
Kong's heart was hammered.
He had thought a four-year-old who destroyed a pirate crew was shocking enough.
But this—this was unprecedented.
A three-year-old Conqueror?
It was something the seas had never seen in a hundred years!
On the other side, Sengoku sighed. "I assumed you already knew. I thought that was why you called me."
"Of course I didn't know!" Kong bellowed.
"You and that idiot Garp—what are you two trying to pull? Hiding something like this from me?!"
"Do you fools understand what this means?!"
"A child like this—this is a once-in-a-century talent! The perfect seedling for a future admiral! And you kept it quiet?!"
Kong's furious tirade poured out like cannon fire.
"You know Garp's teaching ability is garbage! You've seen what his son became! And you'd leave this child in his hands?!"
Sengoku was silent, enduring the storm.
Kong slammed his fist on the desk.
"I'll say it plain: this boy Kai is the most gifted prodigy I've ever heard of!"
"If we don't bring him to Headquarters and train him properly, I guarantee you—"
"One day, that child could become the Navy's greatest enemy."
"An enemy worse than Dragon!"
The words echoed like a death knell.
On the other end, Sengoku could almost feel Kong's spit spraying through the Den Den Mushi.
"Relax, Fleet Admiral," Sengoku finally said.
"Garp already promised. After his grandson meets his father, he'll personally bring him to Marineford."
"…What?!" Kong's voice cracked.
"You mean to tell me—Garp wants that brat to meet his father first?"
"Absolutely not!"
"If Dragon gets his hands on this boy, if the Revolutionaries take him… the Navy will have lost the greatest talent in a century!"
"I will never allow that!"
Steel Bone Kong's voice carried a killing edge.
"Listen, Sengoku. Spread my orders immediately—"
"Mobilize our forces. Destroy every Revolutionary base we know of!"
"Do not let Dragon return to the East Blue."
"Prevent that meeting at all costs!"
"…Understood," Sengoku said gravely.
Thus, without a single cannon fired yet, a hidden war began.
All because of one child.
The seas trembled with undercurrents.
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