Marine Headquarters — Marineford
The massive kanji for Justice loomed across the fortress wall.
Seagull flags snapped sharply in the sea wind.
Walking the corridor toward the Fleet Admiral's office, KING felt as if his legs were filled with molten lead. If his hands weren't buried in his pockets, pinching his thighs to stay conscious, he might have collapsed on the spot.
"Hahahaha! Don't look so stiff, KING!"
Garp walked beside him, digging lazily in his nose before slapping KING on the back hard enough to rattle his bones.
"That old goat Sengoku may look serious, but he'll be thrilled to see talent like you!"
KING's face remained expressionless.
If you knew I'm a shut-in who hasn't even killed a chicken, you'd spit blood… Why is that passing Vice Admiral so huge?! Is he even human?!
"We're here!"
BANG!
Garp kicked the office door open.
Behind a mountain of paperwork, a man with round glasses and a braided beard snapped his head up. Beside him stood a white goat chewing an official document.
A vein bulged on his forehead.
"GARP! How many times must I tell you?! KNOCK before entering!"
Fleet Admiral Sengoku's roar rattled the windows.
"Ah, sorry, sorry. Forgot."
Garp dug at his ear carelessly.
"Anyway, Sengoku, this is the one I mentioned over the Den Den Mushi — KING."
Sengoku pushed up his glasses. A cold glint flashed across the lenses.
His gaze moved past Garp and settled on the man standing in the doorway's shadow.
For a moment, the air froze.
KING stood motionless.
His rugged face looked carved from stone. Three claw-like scars slashed across his left cheek.
But most striking were his eyes.
His pupils were narrowed to needlepoints. There was no trace of awe toward the Fleet Admiral of the Marines.
In truth, KING was severely nearsighted without his glasses. He couldn't see Sengoku clearly and was straining to focus. Extreme tension had also constricted his pupils.
But to Sengoku—
this was scrutiny.
No.
Evaluation.
"This is the talent you mentioned?" Sengoku set down his pen and slowly rose.
An invisible pressure spread from the strategist who stood at the summit of the seas.
BOOM.
A crushing spiritual force pressed toward KING like a collapsing mountain.
KING's mind went blank.
Can't move…
His muscles locked. His body stiffened like stone.
He could only maintain his entrance posture:
hands in pockets, chin slightly raised…
staring at the goat eating documents on Sengoku's desk.
It was the only thing he could see clearly.
Help. That goat is eating classified files, right? If I point it out, will that reduce the awkwardness? Or is that his pet? If I stare too long, will I get executed?
Just before KING fainted from oxygen deprivation—
[Ding!]
[Detected high-level spiritual pressure!]
[AFK judgment in progress… SUCCESS]
[Host state: Extreme rigidity (interpreted as "calm before Mount Tai collapses")]
[AFK efficiency increased to 1000%]
[Attribute +1]
[Attribute +1]
...
Under Sengoku's full pressure, the man named KING did not blink.
Instead, his narrowed gaze deepened…
still fixed on the goat.
Cold. Detached.
As if he had seen through some hidden decay within Marine Headquarters itself.
He was ignoring Sengoku entirely.
A drop of cold sweat formed on Sengoku's temple.
Impossible… Even Sakazuki was not this calm the first time he stood before me.
This man stood within his aura as if strolling through his own garden.
And why…
was he staring at the goat?
Is he hinting at something?
The goat devouring documents… concealed truths… corruption hidden beneath paperwork…
Was he silently pointing out flaws within the institution?
What terrifying insight.
Is this the monster Garp mentioned?
Did he see through my exhaustion at a glance?
Sengoku slowly withdrew his pressure and sat down again. Removing his glasses, he wiped them with deliberate calm.
"Garp was not exaggerating," he said gravely.
"You are… a very special individual."
BOOM.
A dull, thunderous rhythm suddenly echoed through the office.
The tea in Sengoku's cup rippled.
His eyes sharpened.
"This is…?"
Garp stuffed a rice cracker into his mouth and grinned proudly.
"That's the kid's signature move — the Emperor Engine! When he enters combat readiness, his blood circulation accelerates to the extreme, preparing to unleash a decisive strike. Impressive, right?"
Sengoku's pupils contracted.
Because I tested him… he is already prepared to destroy Marineford if necessary?
This was more than physical readiness.
From that heartbeat, Sengoku heard the rhythm of war drums.
A warning.
If justice faltered, this man could turn his power against the world itself.
How fierce.
How uncompromising.
"KING."
Sengoku steepled his fingers.
The mind known as the Navy's greatest strategist raced at full speed.
"I do not care who you were before."
"Now that you stand within the Marines, I must ask you one question."
"What justice do you carry?"
"Is it Sakazuki's Absolute Justice, willing to sacrifice innocents to eliminate evil?"
"Or Kuzan's Lazy Justice, which allows space for human judgment?"
"Tell me… your answer."
Is this a job interview?
KING panicked internally.
If I answer wrong, will I be arrested as a spy?
If I say I just want to live quietly, I'll be executed…
He opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Ten seconds of silence passed.
His eyes unfocused as he desperately searched for words.
To Sengoku, it looked like disdain for the question itself.
Finally, KING could only release a strained sigh born from suffocating tension.
"…Huh…"
The sigh was deep and heavy.
Combined with the thunderous heartbeat, it carried a weight that seemed to mourn the chaos of the era.
Sengoku froze.
Garp stopped chewing.
Even the goat paused and bleated, a scrap of paper falling from its mouth.
"I see…" Sengoku leaned back slowly, revelation dawning.
KING panicked.
I just sighed! Don't faint! Do I have bad breath?!
Sengoku closed his eyes.
"In this era of pirates, everyone shouts their justice."
"But true justice… like mountains and oceans… needs no proclamation."
"You are telling me that justice itself requires no words."
"Action defines justice."
"If justice must constantly be explained, it has already lost its purity."
Sengoku opened his eyes, staring intensely.
"What you practice… is Silent Justice."
"Excellent!"
"I acknowledge you."
"In an age full of loud righteousness and hidden corruption, your silence and strength may be exactly what stabilizes the seas."
KING blinked.
…Huh?
Sengoku pulled a document from his drawer and signed it.
"With strength like yours, assigning you as an ordinary soldier would be a waste."
"But promoting you directly to Vice Admiral would violate protocol and provoke unrest."
He slammed the appointment paper onto the desk.
"Marine Headquarters Special Logistics Inspector."