The decision discussed at the conference—Fleet Admiral Sengoku stepping down and Ortoren taking the Fleet Admiral's seat—spread across Mary Geoise in less than half a day.
At the time, Ortoren still had no idea. He was down at the Mary Geoise port, talking things over with Dragon-san.
"You should head to the South Blue right away and do your work properly," Ortoren said, patting Dragon-san's shoulder with earnest gravity. "I think there's real hope there. Once the Seven Seas Alliance and the New Government are established, they'll definitely pick the first Prime Minister from one of the Four Blues. Put in the effort. You might even end up taking that seat."
Dragon-san looked genuinely surprised.
"The first Prime Minister won't come from the New World?"
"How would that even work? Who would they pick?" Ortoren shot him an exasperated look.
His own family, aside from himself—the justice-bearer and Admiral—were all pirates by background. The entire Charlotte family was completely unfit to be part of the New Government's leadership at a time like this.
They needed time to settle down, to let things cool and sink in.
And beyond the Charlotte family, the new Marines couldn't be too deeply entangled in politics either. They needed to keep a certain distance, separating military and political power.
That was exactly why Ortoren, Sakazuki, and even people like Isshō and Momonga were not suitable candidates for Prime Minister.
With that, the strongest group of contenders was already off the table.
As for the New World, there simply wasn't anyone particularly appropriate. The New World was too fierce. For centuries it had been nonstop conflict. If you wanted fighters, you could grab a whole pile of them. But if you wanted real politicians? That was a different story.
"Then what about the North Blue?" Dragon-san asked.
"Judge has already gone back to run," Ortoren said seriously. "With Doflamingo staying out, Judge does have an advantage and should be able to pull it off. But I don't think Judge can beat you. The East Blue and West Blue still need to be cleaned up, and the first half of the Grand Line is the same. His Majesty Cobra is preparing to run too, but honestly… for this first term, I'm guessing it'll still be you. You have the biggest edge."
Dragon-san did have political ambition, and he had his own convictions. After so many days of discussion, and so many years of knowing each other…
Even if Ortoren always seemed to drag him into traps and disasters, there was no denying it: Ortoren acknowledged Dragon-san's ability and his aspirations.
The New Government also needed a new face. Dragon-san could bring that.
"Then I'll give it my best," Dragon-san said simply.
He didn't say much else. He turned and prepared to board.
Members of the Revolutionary Army crowded in with him—Ivankov, lightning, and… Bartholomew Kuma and Ginny.
Ginny had survived in the end. Saint Saturn hadn't gotten his hands on her, and she hadn't been tormented into developing any kind of Blue Jade Phosphorus condition. The only slightly awkward thing was that her belly was faintly rounded. She was clearly already pregnant.
But Bartholomew Kuma didn't seem to mind at all. If anything, he looked quietly happy, so Ortoren wasn't about to be the kind of person who made tasteless remarks.
Now that the world had finally settled, maybe one day Bartholomew Kuma would put aside his worries about identity and bloodline and build a happy family with Ginny.
As Ortoren was thinking that, Vice Admiral Doberman came rushing over.
The moment he reached Ortoren, he snapped to attention and saluted.
"Loyalty!"
It was obvious the "loyalty" craze had already swept through the entire Marines.
Before Ortoren could even respond, Doberman hurried on. "Admiral Benn, the Fleet Admiral has decided to resign, and he's arranged for you to succeed him as the next Fleet Admiral."
"Huh?" Ortoren blinked, stunned. "Why all of a sudden?"
"It was decided at today's conference," Doberman explained quickly. "We senior officers voted, and the Fleet Admiral's proposal passed unanimously."
"How could you do something like this?" Ortoren scolded, righteous and stern. "The war has only just settled down, and the Fleet Admiral has barely returned after being trapped. At a time like this, you pull a stunt like that. Where does that leave me?"
"We didn't bring it up," Doberman said, momentarily thrown. "It was the Fleet Admiral himself!"
"He brought it up, and you just approved it?!" Ortoren snapped.
Doberman: ???
Who in their right mind would dare not approve it?
If everyone raised their hands in agreement, you might not remember exactly who voted yes. But if even one person voted no, how could you possibly forget that?
And once you took the seat, with how petty you could be, would you really let them off?
Before the still-bewildered Doberman could react, Ortoren waved him off.
"I'm not doing it. Whoever wants to be Fleet Admiral can go be Fleet Admiral!"
Then he turned around and spoke to Hina. "Hurry, Hina. Get me the fastest warship you can. I need to get back to Headquarters and lay low for a while…"
"Admiral, isn't this a good thing?" Hina asked, puzzled, even as she moved quickly to arrange the ship. "Why hide?"
"It's too rushed," Ortoren said with a helpless sigh. "I understand the Fleet Admiral means well, but the war has only just ended. We haven't even sorted out the rules and structures yet. For him to suddenly hand the position to me now… what will it look like when word gets out? People will think I, Ortoren, couldn't even wait this little bit of time, like I couldn't hold myself back."
Power—across the seas, no one had more power or influence than him now. Those new nobles on Mary Geoise still called him "Admiral" in public with respect, but behind the scenes, they already referred to him as the "King of the World."
Status came hand in hand with power, and he had never lacked for it.
Strength, wealth, women—he had everything.
The only thing he still had to be careful about now was reputation.
Ortoren was vain like that. Even when he wanted something, he wanted it done perfectly, not snatched in haste.
What he didn't expect was that Fleet Admiral Sengoku, and the Marines underneath who were eager to "advance," were all even more impatient than he was.
How was anyone supposed to endure that?
Before long, the warship arrived. Ortoren took Hina with him and bolted without hesitation. If nothing else, he was going to Marine Headquarters first to lie low.
Doberman obviously couldn't stop him. All he could do was stand there and watch Ortoren run.
By the time the next Marine Vice Admiral, Yamakaji, came over to press the matter, Doberman still looked like he hadn't fully processed what had just happened.
"Where's the Admiral?" Yamakaji asked, baffled.
The Admiral wasn't here, and you were just standing around in the sea breeze spacing out?
"He left…" Doberman said, his face twitching.
"Huh? Left for where?! There's a mountain of business in Mary Geoise that needs him to make the call!" Yamakaji demanded urgently.
"He said he went to Headquarters to lie low," Doberman sighed. "The Admiral doesn't want to take the Fleet Admiral position at a time this sensitive…"
Yamakaji's brow immediately knotted. After a moment, he said, "How can he treat this like a joke…? Fine. It's not like I can handle this myself. I'll report to Momonga and Isshō-san and see if they have any way to deal with it…"
Soon enough, the news that Ortoren had run off to Headquarters spread through Mary Geoise like the wind.
Everyone on Mary Geoise was stunned. They were making you the supreme commander of the world's forces, and you ran?
When Fleet Admiral Sengoku heard, he couldn't help but laugh despite himself. The Marine leadership all gathered around him, waiting for him to decide what to do next.
Sengoku sat back on the sofa in the middle of it all, calmly sipping tea and shaking his head.
"I've already said what I said. How can I take it back now? If I go back on my word, how am I supposed to face anyone after that?"
"That brat running back to Headquarters might actually be for the best," Zephyr said with a chuckle.
This time, Zephyr had come to Mary Geoise in one push and finally got to the bottom of what had happened to his family back then.
There really had been someone pulling strings.
Back when the God's Knights held a human hunting tournament in the West Blue, Zephyr—who was an Admiral at the time—couldn't stomach it and ended up clashing with them.
At first it hadn't even been that huge of a conflict, but the Celestial Dragons were vicious and petty. In their eyes, Zephyr wasn't the kind of loyal dog they wanted. They didn't want him to have any chance of climbing higher, and they didn't even want him to remain an Admiral.
After that, they started making moves in the open and in the shadows, until they finally orchestrated the tragedy at Mary Geoise.
That was why, after Sakazuki defeated Figarland Garling, he handed him over to Zephyr. And in the end, it was Zephyr who beat Garling into a bloody pulp with punch after punch, finally repaying that old, deep hatred in full.
So many years had passed. After revenge was taken, Zephyr spent several days alone. Only recently had he managed to steady his mindset again. Naturally, no one else was insensitive enough to drag up the past, so the matter was left there.
Garp thought it over for a moment, then his eyes brightened.
"Right. Him running back to Headquarters might be a good thing. This is a Marines matter, after all. If that brat's at Headquarters, he can take office there. That's a lot more proper than doing it in Mary Geoise!"
Sakazuki and the others had no objections either. At this point, what could they even say?
Seeing that the top brass had all come to the same conclusion, Fleet Admiral Sengoku set down his teacup and looked at Momonga.
"Momonga, you're close with Ortoren. I'm leaving the next part to you. Headquarters is close enough that you can be there within the day. Tomorrow, we're holding the Fleet Admiral promotion ceremony at Headquarters. I don't care what you have to do, but you will settle Ortoren before tomorrow. This is my final order as Fleet Admiral!"
Momonga froze for a beat, but there was no room to refuse. He could only step forward with a bitter smile.
"Yes, sir. I guarantee the mission will be accomplished!"