"Alright, enough, both of you."
Sengoku rubbed his forehead while looking at the two before him. Finally, his eyes fell on Ain's face, and he sighed.
"Alright, fine. We will only use one devil fruit. Binz, you keep yours. Ain, your choice will stand, but let me be clear, this is your own decision. Don't regret it later!"
"I absolutely won't regret it!"
"I'll contact Punk Hazard to see if Vegapunk is available. If he is, I will make the arrangements."
Sengoku waved his hand. "You're both dismissed."
"Understood!"
After they both left, Sengoku shook his head helplessly. He looked at the Devil Fruit on the table, then at the file beside it.
Finally, his eyes fell on the portrait in the file, and he gritted his teeth and said: "Hmph, a shit justice system?!"
…
In Dressrosa Kingdom, a kingdom known as the Land of Love and Passion.
At this moment, within Dressrosa's Royal Palace, an oppressive atmosphere permeated the entire palace.
"Behehehe… Young master, is it true that Vergo has really fallen?"
At his subordinate's words, Doflamingo's face, already dark, grew even gloomier.
His black Chelsea boots slowly touched the floor as he leaned forward, resting his crossed hands on his knees and beneath his chin. His whole posture exuded silence, sorrow, and grief.
No one knew how long it lasted, but just as the air grew suffocating…
"That's right, Trebol, Diamante, Pica."
Doflamingo's deep, grief-filled voice rang out. "We... have lost another family member!"
As the mournful words fell, the entire palace fell silent again. The three people seated on the thrones on either side of Doflamingo also fell silent, their pupils shrinking.
Although they had suspected something before the young master left, when the news of Vergo's death was confirmed, their faces darkened, and they even felt a sense of disbelief.
You know, when Doflamingo couldn't get a call from Vergo, he immediately rushed to the G-5 branch, yet he still couldn't make it?
Vergo was quite powerful!
How could he be defeated so quickly?
"Behehehe..."
Trebol let out his distinct laugh.
Though it was laughter, there was faint anger and sorrow hidden within.
"Young master."
Trebol said with a gloomy face: "Has the Marine Headquarters discovered our secret?"
"No, our secret hasn't been exposed yet."
Hearing Trebol's words, Doflamingo, his face equally grim, shook his head. "I don't know how Vergo was discovered. By the time I arrived, he had already fallen."
"Vergo wasn't weak. Didn't he say before that he was confident about being promoted to Vice-Admiral?"
Diamante, who was sitting on the diamond throne next to him and dressed like a native tribe, made an odd sound.
"Didn't the young master immediately rush to the G-5 branch? To think he'd die so soon?"
"Could it be that the Marine Headquarters has dispatched a large force, or perhaps an admiral has personally intervened?"
"Impossible! He's just a spy. Given the current situation in the New World, the Marine Headquarters wouldn't be able to deploy a large force."
Before Doflamingo, who was frowning, could say anything, Trebol shook his head and said with certainty: "And they wouldn't send out an admiral easily!"
"If it wasn't a large force or an admiral, then with Vergo's strength, he shouldn't have been defeated so easily."
"Even if he couldn't win, Vergo should've been able to escape, unless the enemy didn't even give him a chance to run!"
"I heard the inspection unit was led by Garp. Could it be that he discovered something and made a move himself?"
"It wasn't Garp."
Just as the two were arguing, Doflamingo, with his chin resting on his hands, shook his head and interrupted them.
"It was just three marines. No, more accurately, two newly promoted marine captains and a bartender who wasn't even a marine! That Fleet Admiral really took me for a fool!"
He remembered how, in anger, he had gone to the Marine Headquarters to negotiate, hoping to obtain information on those three Marines.
In the end, the Fleet Admiral dismissed him with: "That man isn't a marine. He might've just been a bartender passing by the G-5 branch. Out of a sense of justice, he couldn't stand the sight and killed the spy. The Marine Headquarters knows nothing about him."
What a load of nonsense, some bartender just passing by?
Who would believe such a ridiculous excuse?
"Hmph. Do they really think we can't dig up information about that attack on Marine Headquarters?"
"Have you already found out who it was, young master?"
Hearing Doflamingo's words, Trebol and Diamante both turned to look at Doflamingo, their eyes brimming with rage.
"It's not clear yet, but I've already placed a bounty on the black market. Anyone who can provide information on that individual will receive 100 million Belly."
Doflamingo replied while sitting up straight against the backrest of his throne. Then he spread his arms on the armrests like a king, a cold gleam flashed beneath his sunglasses as he gritted his teeth and said with a chilling tone: "No matter who it is, I will never let anyone who dares to harm my family go!"
West Blue?
He wanted to see who dared to provoke the Donquixote Family!
…
Looking at Garp, who had already gotten up, Ian declined the offer of a drink.
After agreeing on a training time, Ian didn't bother the two old men who were catching up. He simply stood up, patted his butt, and headed home.
The sun was already past noon, and after some thought, Ian decided to take the day off and go home to be with his wife.
"I think I can guess why you want this kid to go to Marine Headquarters."
Garp, who was sitting in Ian's old seat, said cheerfully while resting his hands on his head. "He's a really good kid. Hahaha, my justice is justice, justice that only I can uphold."
He laughed heartily.
"When I heard you say that, I was wondering who dared to be so arrogant. Turns out it's a kid as bold as me!"
Zephyr: "..."
This old guy really knows how to flatter himself!
Hearing Garp's smug words, Zephyr rolled his eyes helplessly and said unhappily: "Come on, but this kid... He is really brave."
As if remembering something, he smiled: "Even back when he was in the 315th Branch, this kid was already thinking about chopping Sakazuki to death with an axe."
"Chopping Sakazuki to death with a single slash?"
Garp's face froze for a moment, but then he burst into laughter as if he had heard something amusing.
He even sat up straight with laughter and slapped his thigh hard: "Hahaha, this is really funny, what a funny guy! No wonder he dared to say things like the justice system of the Marine Headquarters is shit."
If the work has brought you joy, please consider supporting me on Patreon. Your support really helps and means a lot to me right now.
Patreon/SweetestDeath