"Zephyr?! How are you?"
Sengoku and Zephyr were fellow Marines from the same generation. They had fought side by side for years and were close comrades-in-arms.
Seeing the situation, Sengoku didn't even spare a glance for the ordinary soldiers lying on the ground. He went straight to Zephyr's side.
In Sengoku's subconscious, those regular soldiers had already been sentenced to death.
There were no bloodstains on the ground, but Zephyr had encountered Nereus. Using blood-draining methods in battle was something Nereus was famous for across the seas.
"I… I'm fine… Did any medics come with you? The soldiers under my command are still alive, but for some reason, none of them will wake up."
Only after hearing Zephyr say this did Sengoku pay attention to the soldiers. Compared to Zephyr, Sengoku was more prepared to accept the deaths of soldiers.
In the original timeline, even after T-Bone had risen to the rank of Vice Admiral and died in battle, Sengoku was still picking through different flavors of rice crackers.
It was precisely that kind of temperament that made him the successor to the position of Fleet Admiral. A commander who must lead all Marines cannot afford excessive compassion.
"Reporting to Admiral Sengoku, these soldiers have fallen into a deep sleep due to some unknown method. Their pulses are very slow, almost like hibernation…
However, their lives are not in danger. They should wake up in a few days."
"Was that Nereus' doing?"
Compared to all the soldiers being wiped out, having them all unconscious was even more puzzling to Sengoku. It was far too abnormal.
The number of soldiers who survived this time exceeded the total survivors from the past several years combined.
"Zephyr, what exactly happened?"
"I don't know. I was leading the soldiers to replenish fresh water on this island when we suddenly ran into him. But he seemed to have something else to do and didn't linger in battle. After using some kind of ability on us, he left."
Zephyr did not repeat what Nereus had said. Though he still suspected him, Nereus' words had planted a seed of doubt in his heart.
Investigate it. Uncover the truth. That was Zephyr's current resolve.
"That guy's a madman… But this works out. No casualties is better than anything."
Zephyr's safe return allowed Kong to breathe a sigh of relief. At least they didn't have to worry about headlines claiming that a newly appointed Marine Admiral had been killed by a pirate, causing Marine prestige to plummet.
Moreover, the current situation could even be used for internal Marine propaganda.
There were many newspapers across the seas. Besides Morgans' World Economy News Paper, which was distributed worldwide via News Coo, some nations had their own local papers, and the Marines had their own internal military paper as well.
The next day, the Marine military paper featured the story of the newly appointed Marine Headquarters Admiral, "Black Arm" Zephyr, leading his team into an encounter with Nereus and bravely engaging him in battle, with zero casualties among his subordinates.
If the fact that the Marines had merely managed to retreat unscathed from a pirate encounter weren't too unimpressive to publicize externally, this news would have appeared in the World Economy News Paper instead of remaining confined to the military paper.
Because of Nereus' style, many Marines harbored a certain fear of him. When missions related to him were assigned, dissenting voices would occasionally arise among the ranks.
Zephyr's incident had provided the Marine high command with an opportunity to boost morale.
Meanwhile, the person at the center of it all had already arrived at Garp's residence.
In the living room of Garp's house, on a table that had only recently been replaced, two cups of green tea were steaming.
In the slightly empty room, the only sound was the crunch, crunch of someone chewing senbei.
Rip—
"I didn't come here to watch you eat senbei."
"Want a pack?"
"I came to talk about something serious. You've seen this too, haven't you?"
Zephyr tossed the newly issued military paper in front of Garp. He had long heard that Garp often tore up newspapers, shouting that he was going to settle the score with Morgans.
Back then, he hadn't understood Garp's behavior. Now, he finally did.
The newspapers reporting on Garp were probably just as heavily fabricated.
"I saw it. You're pretty strong."
"That's enough! I didn't come here to joke around with you! What exactly happened during that operation in West Blue two years ago?!"
Seeing Garp still acting so flippant, Zephyr couldn't hold back anymore. He skipped the small talk and went straight to the point.
Strong?
Becoming a Marine Admiral meant he was certainly no weakling, but hearing that from Garp just felt wrong.
"West Blue? What could've happened? Didn't you read the report? It's just like it says. The Rocks Pirates were destroyed. Mm, Roger and I defeated Rocks."
Garp still maintained his joking demeanor. He felt there was no point in telling Zephyr the truth. Just as Kong had said, letting the matter spread wouldn't change anything. If anything, it would only implicate those who knew about it.
"You…Fine, then let me ask something else. Where did your son go? Come to think of it, I haven't seen him for a long time."
"Who knows? Once that brat grew up, he stopped listening to me altogether. When you raise a son in the future, be careful, Zephyr. Otherwise, when he grows up, he'll give you a real headache."
"Alright. I understand. So that massacre game… it really did exist."
Garp's evasive responses, claiming to know nothing, instead made Zephyr realize that what Nereus had said was probably true.
If it were false, Garp wouldn't need to respond like this.
"How did you find out about that?"
The moment Zephyr uttered the words "massacre game," Garp dropped his lazy demeanor. He straightened up, his expression turning serious.
"I remember both Tsuru and Sengoku told you: you simply don't know how to lie."
"That damn Nereus… He's the one who told you?"
Garp's mind wasn't slow.
Thinking back to Zephyr's earlier encounter—retreating unharmed, with not a single subordinate lost—it had all seemed unreasonable.
Combined with what Zephyr now knew, everything suddenly made sense.
"That guy's ambition… just how big is it…"
A pirate telling a Marine Admiral such things. Was he trying to shake the very foundations of the Marines?
Garp refused to believe Nereus had told Zephyr all that out of boredom. There was clearly another motive.
"Wait, where are you going?"
Garp hadn't yet figured out what Nereus was after when he saw Zephyr stand up to leave. He quickly called out to him.
"Don't worry. I'm not as impulsive as you. I just want to investigate what exactly happened.
Knowing Fleet Admiral Kong's personality, even if you were involved in this matter, he probably wouldn't explain the full story to you either."
"…Feels like you're insulting me."
"Don't misunderstand. That's not what I meant. Oh, and while you're at it, tear up that newspaper for me."
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