"Bulu bulu bulu!"
Just as he flew back into familiar waters, the den den mushi in Taro's arms began to ring.
"It's me, Taro!"
"Vice Admiral!"
"Mike?" Taro's expression froze, and then he frowned.
"What's going on? Why is it so chaotic on your end?"
"It's nothing, Vice Admiral! We're currently chasing pirates!" Although it was noisy on Mike's end, he didn't seem to care much and spoke rapidly.
"Vice Admiral, Rear Admiral Hina called two days ago and requested that you return to G4 Base as soon as possible!"
"Hina?" Taro was taken aback for a moment.
Immediately after, there was a sharp 'pew' sound, followed by the rumbling sound of an explosion.
"Mike, was that a pacifist's laser just now? Which pirate are you chasing?"
Mike hesitated for a moment.
"Uh, don't worry, Vice Admiral. It's just a newly emerged pirate. Sentomaru is leading the pacifist unit to assist in the pursuit!"
Taro was thinking about Akainu wanting to see him and didn't pay it too much mind.
"Alright, tell Hina I'll be back as soon as possible! Also, tell Sentomaru not to wreck my Sabaody Archipelago, otherwise, I'll give him a piece of my mind when I get back!"
Mike immediately became nervous.
"Understood!"
After the den den mushi was hung up, Mike glanced at the Cockscomb Head in the distance who was propping up a Barrier, and then ran to Sentomaru's side with a conflicted expression.
"Cough, Vice Admiral Sentomaru, my Vice Admiral asked me to tell you... if you wreck Sabaody Archipelago, he, he..."
Sentomaru looked at the mess all around him, and his expression became unnatural.
This... it's already wrecked!
Then, he became quite troubled. The Barrier propped up by that green-haired Cockscomb Head ignored all means of attack and could even reflect attacks, making it very tricky.
"Uh, Mike, do you think, given the friendship between me and your Vice Admiral, he wouldn't... he wouldn't do anything to me, right?"
Sentomaru rubbed his round belly, feeling uneasy in his heart.
Mike had a look of utter disbelief on his face, as if to say, "What do you think?"
Sentomaru's face tightened, and he leaned his large axe on the ground.
"This guy burned the World Government flag and even your Vice Admiral's security emblem. I'm standing up for Taro; these losses can't be blamed entirely on me!"
Mike's mouth twitched, feeling even more of a headache.
"Vice Admiral Sentomaru, so you're saying you have no way to deal with this pirate right now?"
Sentomaru smiled sheepishly, "It's not like I've let him escape!"
"Then why didn't you let me tell my Vice Admiral the truth just now!" Mike was extremely indignant, pointing at Sentomaru with an agitated expression.
"You're going to be the death of me!"
Sentomaru felt even more embarrassed and patted his chest.
"Just rest assured. When Taro returns, I'll cover for you!"
Mike wasn't reassured at all. You can't even save yourself, and you're going to cover for me?
You'll probably be beaten to death by my Vice Admiral!
"We can't let him run around anymore; we must trap him here, otherwise we...!"
Mike stared at the Cockscomb Head pirate, feeling a massive headache. Thinking of Taro's words just now, he felt even more uneasy.
If I had known, I shouldn't have believed Sentomaru's big mouth. This guy brags to the Sabaody Garrison every day about how close he is with Vice Admiral Taro, so what do we do now?
If any more districts are destroyed, Vice Admiral Taro will definitely kill me!
Sentomaru didn't know what he was relying on, but in any case, he was full of confidence.
"Don't worry about that, I won't let him escape!"
...Marineford, New Marineford.
Vice Admiral Tsuru appeared very surprised to receive a call from Momousagi, and after listening to her younger sister's report, she was even more confused.
What on earth made Sakazuki leave Marijoa in such a hurry?
She glanced at Sengoku, who was munching on senbei on the sofa nearby, and frowned.
"senbei old man, don't you have anything to say?"
Sengoku seemed to choke for a moment and coughed twice.
"Huh?"
Seeing Vice Admiral Tsuru's displeased expression, he became a bit more serious.
"Is there anything in Marineford that can escape your eyes and ears? If you just wait to see who else comes to Marineford later, won't you know why Sakazuki came back?"
Taro!
Vice Admiral Tsuru's eyes drifted. Other than Taro, no one could have such a large influence on Sakazuki!
Thinking of this, a trace of distress flashed in the Old Lady's eyes, and she sighed.
"That brat, he just can't let me have any peace of mind!"
Sengoku's mouth twitched, and he lowered his gaze, thinking to himself,
From the day that kid ignored your orders and crossed the Red Line, didn't you already know he was definitely going to cause trouble again!
"What are you muttering about me in your head?" Vice Admiral Tsuru glared at Sengoku.
Sengoku's gaze became even more disdainful, and then he looked up.
"Nothing. I'm just a retired old man, how could I badmouth the Marine vice chief of staff!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru's face stiffened, and just as she was about to scold him, there was a knock on the office door. One of the female officers under her, a quite sturdy woman with grass-colored hair, pushed the door open and entered.
"Vice Admiral Tsuru, Fleet Admiral Sakazuki is back!"
Only then did Vice Admiral Tsuru let Sengoku go, standing up to go see Sakazuki, when she heard the female officer speak again.
"The Fleet Admiral ordered that he will see no one until the Great Staff Officer returns!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru froze for a moment and sat back down, her tone calm.
"Oh, I see!"
The female officer gave a salute and withdrew. Vice Admiral Tsuru's expression instantly turned gloomy as she stared at Sengoku.
Sengoku felt completely uncomfortable under her gaze. He hesitated for a moment and stood up.
"Then, I'll leave?"
"Sit down!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru rolled her eyes, "When something happens, you old man just want to hide?"
Sengoku's entire face turned as bitter as a squash.
"Grandma Tsuru, we have to be reasonable. We don't know anything right now, so what can we possibly analyze?"
Vice Admiral Tsuru's brow furrowed, and she slapped the pen in her hand onto the desk.
"Did I tell you to stay here to listen to your reasoning?"
Sengoku's expression became even more miserable.
There's no justice anymore. This Old Lady is getting more and more out of hand.
Sigh, I should have learned from Garp and hidden outside earlier!
The two were at a stalemate for a good while before Sengoku finally spoke up.
"Ahem, didn't we previously judge that Taro had found Blackbeard's whereabouts?"
"Since Taro's trip out to sea this time is related to Blackbeard, as long as Sakazuki knows it's because of this, he won't make things difficult for the kid!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru raised an eyebrow and pondered for a long while. First, she nodded, then she glared at Sengoku again.
"See? Can't you analyze a few things? You old man just wanted to hide just now!"
Sengoku was speechless, even pulling out a strand of his braided beard. He felt that Vice Admiral Tsuru's concern had clouded her judgment lately, causing her to lose her composure somewhat!
Otherwise, with her usual wisdom, how could she not have figured out the crux of the matter?
After a moment of silence, Sengoku said in a deep voice,
"Grandma Tsuru, you still haven't given up on the idea of having Taro marry Hina?"
Vice Admiral Tsuru was startled, her eyes dimming slightly as she let out a sigh.
"That brat, why won't he just follow our plans!"
Sengoku's lips moved a few times, but in the end, he didn't dare to speak again. He lowered his head and complained in his heart,
Grandma Tsuru, it's not 'our' plans anymore, it's only yours now!
Garp and I don't think that way at all!
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