"What are you looking at?" Garp said, sitting down directly next to Zephyr. He plopped down on the veranda, raised his hand, and snatched the book from Zephyr's grasp.
Zephyr was clearly used to this scoundrel's behavior and wasn't angry at all. Instead, he looked at Diarmuid and said, "You've improved again. I heard you fought Whitebeard and didn't get hurt in the end?"
Diarmuid and Gion first greeted Zephyr. Afterward, Diarmuid chuckled and said, "I suppose I've improved, but it's nothing to boast about. He shocked me with an attack right from the start, though I wasn't injured during the fight. But I think that's because he wasn't really serious…"
"That's good enough. In this world, there aren't many people who can walk away from a fight with that guy unscathed," Zephyr said with a smile, motioning to Diarmuid and Gion.
Diarmuid and Gion casually walked over and sat on the veranda.
Garp shoved the book into Diarmuid's hands and asked Zephyr, "Any good prospects lately? Like Diarmuid here. My ship is missing a few newcomers. I can help you train them."
"Do you think prospects like Diarmuid are as common as cabbages? Still, there are a few good ones…" Zephyr and Garp began chatting idly.
Diarmuid took the book out of his hand, glanced at it, and a look of surprise crossed his face. "Isn't this a forbidden book?"
Gion, curious, leaned her head over Diarmuid's shoulder to look at the book in his hands.
Its title was The Spark.
"Dragon's book!?" Gion exclaimed in surprise.
Garp, who was mid-conversation with Zephyr, suddenly froze. He spun around and asked, "What? Dragon's book? That rascal writes books now?"
"He's written more than one," Diarmuid said, rolling his eyes at Garp.
"Garp-san, you're Dragon's father, for goodness sake. Didn't you know anything about this?" Gion teased with a smile.
"I specifically ignore any information about him. It just makes me mad to hear about him," Garp grumbled.
"Possessing and spreading this book is a capital offense, Zephyr-sensei, hahaha," Diarmuid said, lifting The Spark in his hand and teasing Zephyr.
Zephyr didn't mind at all and waved a hand dismissively. "It's just a book, expressing a person's thoughts. What's so criminal about that? If you ask me, the World Government is just being overly paranoid…"
"I don't think that's entirely true…" Diarmuid murmured softly.
Diarmuid knew all too well the terrifying change that the power of a book and an idea could bring. After all, he had lived in a modern world in his previous life.
"Zephyr-sensei, why are you suddenly reading this book?" Gion asked, a little curious.
Zephyr was silent for a moment, then said, "I wanted to see just how shameless the World Government is through Dragon's eyes."
"Huh?" Diarmuid looked up at Zephyr, a glimmer of confusion in his eyes. He felt as if there was a hidden meaning in his teacher's words.
"Oh? Do you think they're shameless, too? Hahahaha," Garp asked, not catching on and laughing loudly.
Zephyr glanced at Garp, then looked at Gion and Diarmuid. "Speaking of which, you two probably don't know what happened, do you?"
"That's what I was wondering, Sensei. Suddenly calling all of us back to headquarters, something big must have happened, right?" Diarmuid nodded, asking softly.
Gion, on the other hand, asked excitedly, "Is it time for a war with the Whitebeard Pirates?"
However, the seasoned Garp finally caught on, his expression slowly growing serious. He said in a low voice, "It can't be that the higher-ups are meddling in our Marine affairs again, is it?"
Zephyr shook his head. He said, "This time, it's not that the higher-ups are meddling with us. It's that we, the Marines, are going to meddle with them."
Garp was taken aback. This was something he had never encountered before.
A glint flashed in Diarmuid's eyes, as if he had just realized something.
"Have you heard of the Warlord System Draft?" Zephyr asked in a soft voice.
But it was clear that beneath his calm expression, anger was simmering.
As an old hand who had returned from the New World two days prior, he found it strange that Sengoku and Kong had suddenly called him back, an Admiral who had already stepped down to the second line. What had happened?
Kong and Sengoku hadn't hidden anything from Zephyr. They told him everything that had transpired at Mariejois.
After hearing the story, a fire of fury had been burning in Zephyr's heart ever since!
Garp and Gion were completely baffled. Warlord? What was that? They had never heard of it.
Diarmuid murmured softly, "I'm on decent terms with CP agent Stussy. I heard her mention it once... I think she said it was a law related to pirates?"
Zephyr looked at Diarmuid and then said with a hint of surprise, "Stussy? That woman is very cunning. She's nothing like Gion. You need to be careful when you're around her."
Gion, who had been listening in, blushed and secretly glanced at Diarmuid, remaining silent.
Diarmuid smiled and nodded. "Yes, Sensei."
Zephyr glanced at Gion again, smiled, and said no more. He then adopted a serious expression. "That's right. It is indeed a law related to pirates, and for now, it's just a draft plan. And the Gorosei have already decided to implement it."
"What does that even mean? I don't understand any of this!" Garp frowned.
"The so-called 'Warlords' is about legalizing piracy…" Zephyr said gravely.
As soon as he said that, Diarmuid's expression didn't change, but Garp and Gion were completely dumbfounded.
Soon, Garp reacted, slamming his fist on the wooden floor of the veranda. The floorboards instantly shattered. However, Zephyr paid no attention to Garp's destructive display.
"Damn it!" Garp cursed. He then stood up, furious. "What does legalizing piracy mean?!"
"It means recruiting seven great pirates and giving them the power to legally pillage. In return, their allegiance will shift to the World Government. To put it simply, they're being pardoned and brought in under the government's banner…" Zephyr said calmly.
At this point, Garp was gradually calming down. He sat cross-legged on the veranda again, took a deep breath, and said, "Don't tell me Sengoku and Kong just gritted their teeth and accepted this?"
Zephyr shot a glance at Garp. "What do you think?"
"No way!" Garp said without hesitation.
He refused to believe that Sengoku and the Fleet Admiral would swallow their pride on this matter.
Zephyr finally smiled. "Of course not. The Fleet Admiral told me that if he hadn't held him back, Sengoku would have raised hell in the Gorosei's office. Hehehe."
"That sounds more like him. Even if Sengoku usually acts so calm and collected…" Garp nodded.
Zephyr finished his sentence. "That's right. His usual calm and collected demeanor made me almost forget that when he was young, he had an even worse temper than you do."
Diarmuid, listening in, was surprised. After all, he had never seen Sengoku when he was young.
Up until now, Sengoku had always given him the impression of being calm, collected, and dignified.
If he had to describe him, the word "Strategist" fit him perfectly.
Combined with his elegant calligraphy, Diarmuid even thought of Sengoku as a scholar-general, both a master of intellect and war.
But today, listening to Garp and Zephyr, he learned the truth… Was Sengoku's temper really worse than Garp's in the past?
He never would have guessed!
Thinking this, Diarmuid glanced at Gion and saw that she, too, looked surprised. He felt a sense of relief, realizing he wasn't the only one who didn't know!
Admiral Sengoku really knows how to hide it…
"So, the Fleet Admiral and Sengoku called us all back to discuss how to deal with this damned Warlord plan, is that it?" Garp asked, his arms crossed over his chest, his voice rumbling.
"Exactly. We, the Marines, can't just stand by while they enact such an evil plan, can we?" Zephyr nodded.
Just then, Diarmuid spoke up, "I don't know much about the World Government, so Sensei, I have a question."
"Go ahead," Zephyr said, waving a hand.
"Is there any possibility of overturning this draft plan?" Diarmuid asked without hesitation.
This question went right to the heart of the matter.
Zephyr fell silent. Garp opened his mouth twice, but in the end, he said nothing.
Because Zephyr had already stated that the Gorosei were determined to implement this plan.
"Sigh…" Diarmuid sighed. "So, there's really no possibility, is there?"
Garp's face turned from pale to green. He was clearly suffocating from a sense of injustice.
After a long time, he sighed again. "It's not entirely impossible. If we were to completely break ties, the World Government would definitely choose to protect the Marines, but…"
"But we can't do that," Diarmuid said with a sense of understanding, stroking his chin.
"Violence is bound by a cage, wrapped in a shell of justice. It upholds order, yet also decay and depravity," Zephyr suddenly said.
Gion looked at Zephyr strangely. Zephyr smiled and said, "Those are Dragon's original words from The Spark. Looking at them now, don't they sound very reasonable?"
"Sensei, you can still find the humor in this…" Gion said, forcing a smile.
"In any case, we'll discuss it at the meeting tomorrow. Today, I just wanted to give you a heads-up," Zephyr said, waving his hand, completely calm.
"No matter what, we can't let this plan be so easily implemented. If worst comes to worst, we'll find a way to mess it up after it's been put in motion!" Garp grumbled.
"That's not a bad idea," Zephyr said with a laugh.
That's right. If worst comes to worst, let them push it through, and then the Marines will find a way to ruin it!
When the higher-ups have a policy, the lower ranks have a counter-policy!
Diarmuid suddenly spoke up, "If that's the case, I think we should seize the opportunity to leverage this situation to gain benefits for the Marines."
Garp and Gion were both taken aback.
Only Zephyr looked at Diarmuid with a gratified expression. "You've got the makings of an Admiral, kid."
"That's all thanks to your guidance, Sensei," Diarmuid said with a smile.
"No, in this regard, Sengoku is the one who guided you well," Zephyr said, patting Diarmuid's shoulder.
After a brief pause, Zephyr continued, "We'll talk about the specifics tomorrow. It's been a long time since we've all been together. I've been talking so much that I'm getting hungry. Come on, let me treat you all to a meal…"
Seeing this, Diarmuid and the others didn't say anything else. They would discuss it at the meeting. They all stood up and followed Zephyr toward the door.
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