Akainu's heart ached at the thought of today's meeting agenda, and seeing Taro's current state only fueled his anger further.
Vice Admiral Tsuru also knew that Akainu was very uncomfortable with Taro taking over as the Great Staff Officer. She gave Taro a reproachful glare,
"Behave yourself!"
Taro put on a smiling face and responded, "Alright!"
Then, with his eyelids drooping, he began to let his mind wander far away.
After an unknown amount of time, Taro was startled awake by the sound of someone pounding on the desk.
He looked up blankly, only to see that Akainu's fist had already turned into magma, and his entire face was as black as the bottom of a pot.
"Hmm? What's wrong?"
Akainu's chest heaved violently, and it took him a while to calm down.
"I'm asking you, do you have any candidates to recommend as a successor for the Warlord of the Sea?"
"Oh, that! No!"
Taro shook his head nonchalantly. Hadn't Vice Admiral Tsuru already asked this?
But seeing thick smoke rolling off Akainu's fist, he added,
"When I was out this time, I happened to hear about a bird-man named 'Mad Monk' Urouge, who defeated Snack, one of the 'Sweet Commanders' under Big Mom's command. He might have some strength. If there really are no other candidates, then let it be him!"
Anyway, they are all grasshoppers after the autumn, not many days left to jump around. It doesn't matter who takes the position.
As he spoke, he waved his hand again,
"If you ask me, whether it's the Warlord of the Sea or the Rokubukai, they are all pirates in the end. To maintain the peace of the sea, our Marine is the fundamental force. Why invest so much energy into the Warlord of the Sea?"
Some people in the meeting room knew the inside story. Hearing the disdain for the Warlord of the Sea in Taro's tone, they assumed it was because of Donquixote Doflamingo, and their expressions instantly became strange.
However, Taro's words struck a chord with Akainu, causing his anger to subside significantly.
"The Marine is the fundamental force; that is very well said!"
Then he gave a dissatisfied snort,
"Next time you have something to say, just say it directly. Why hide it?"
Didn't you tell me not to talk nonsense?
Taro's mouth twitched, and he didn't bother to respond to him.
Vice Admiral Tsuru coughed lightly, gathering everyone's attention, and said softly:
"Let's stop the discussion about the Warlord of the Sea here and continue!"
Pausing for a moment, Vice Admiral Tsuru scanned the crowd,
"Starting today, the Marineford will add the position of vice chief of staff, which I will hold. Vice Admiral Taro will take over as the Marine Great Staff Officer!"
The high-ranking Marine officers had heard rumors of this, and now that it was confirmed, they all turned their gazes toward Taro.
Taro really had no interest in this position and felt even more resentful toward the traitors among his subordinates who had backstabbed him.
However, until the meeting ended, he still couldn't figure out who would backstab him like that.
"Little guy, the meeting is over, are you still daydreaming?"
Vice Admiral Tsuru's pen tip tapped lightly on the desk.
"Ah? The meeting is over already?" Taro was a bit dazed after waking up.
At this point, only Vice Admiral Tsuru and Kizaru remained in the meeting room. Taro's gaze swept over them,
"Why wasn't the World Conscription mentioned? And Teacher Zephyr..."
Kizaru had no intention of speaking, so Vice Admiral Tsuru glanced at him helplessly,
"Some things need to be handled quietly; they can't be brought to the table!"
Taro thought for a moment and understood the reason. The World Government still wanted to save face, so they had to let them take it slow.
"I see!"
Taro stood up. "Then if there's nothing else, I'll head out too!"
Just as he turned around, Kizaru's voice sounded from behind,
"Oh, Vice Admiral Taro, Sentomaru is waiting for you at the pier!"
Taro turned back in confusion, frowning. "Oh? Does he have something for me?"
Kizaru didn't say anything more, just leisurely clipping his fingernails.
Taro's brow twitched wildly. He gave Kizaru another look and then turned to leave.
On the warship at the pier, Sentomaru was still wearing his festive red bib and carrying his huge battle-axe, just as before. The only change was that he was now draped in a Marine Justice cloak.
"Vice Admiral Taro, long time no see!"
Sentomaru jumped down from the bow to greet Taro.
"Vice Admiral Sentomaru, hello to you too!"
Taro greeted him. "I heard you were looking for me?"
Sentomaru looked around, and after confirming no one was there, he leaned in and said in a low voice:
"Taro, the Doctor has something for me to give to you!"
Taro was instantly startled. "Vegapunk? What is it?"
"Follow me!" Sentomaru turned and gestured for Taro to board the ship.
The two entered the captain's quarters, and Sentomaru pulled a small wooden box out of a cabinet and handed it to Taro.
"What's inside here?"
Taro felt puzzled, with a slight sense of foreboding.
"I don't know!" Sentomaru shook his head.
"Have you told anyone else about this?" Taro's expression was uncertain.
Sentomaru shook his head even more rapidly,
"No, I definitely won't tell you that the Old Man knows the Doctor has something for you!"
Taro's mouth twitched. No wonder that old actor looked at me with such a strange expression!
He reached for the wooden box's latch, then realized Sentomaru was still beside him and immediately gave up the idea of opening it in front of this guy.
"Cough, cough, Sentomaru, I'm heading back to Sabaody Archipelago first. Thanks!"
Taro tucked the small wooden box under his arm and turned to leave.
"Hey, hey, Taro, aren't you going to open it and look?" Sentomaru reached out to stop him, his tone somewhat urgent. It seemed he was also very curious.
"Aren't you curious? Open it and see. Don't worry, I'm the man with the tightest lips in the world; I'll never tell anyone what's inside!"
If I let you see it, the whole damn world will know within half a day!
Taro complained in his heart, his pace quickening.
By the time Sentomaru chased him to the deck, Taro had already transformed into a Falcon and soared into the sky.
"Sigh, what's wrong with taking a look? So stingy!"
Sentomaru complained disappointedly.
After Taro burst through the clouds, he began gliding on the air currents.
He was also very curious about the contents of the box!
He gently flicked the latch, opened the wooden box a crack, took a peek, and then opened it fully.
Inside the wooden box was another box, made of stone!
When he opened the stone box, there was actually another box inside,
This time it was metal!
Damn! Vegapunk, are you playing Russian nesting dolls here?
Taro was speechless, find it impossible to even complain about Vegapunk's wicked sense of humor.
As his hand touched the metal box, Taro was suddenly startled, and his expression changed drastically.
This familiar feeling!
Holy crap! Isn't this my Internal Energy?
Taro's hand trembled in shock, pulling back as if he'd been electrocuted.
He initially thought it was just an illusion caused by his Internal Energy dissipating when he transformed, but after trying several times, he confirmed the feeling was real!
This metal box was actually emitting his own Internal Energy!
Taro's mouth suddenly felt dry, and his mind was shaken.
Vegapunk, that scientific giant, really used my blood to create something incredible!
After a brief pause, Taro dove down and landed on top of the Red Line.
After observing more closely, he took out the metal box that was emitting his Internal Energy.
This cube-shaped box was a single piece; from the outside, there were no traces of assembly at all, making it impossible to open normally.
But Taro clearly perceived that there was indeed something inside.
After pondering for a long time with furrowed brows, Taro channeled his Internal Energy into the metal box.
"Click!"
With a crisp sound, the metal box seemed to be activated. Like a Transformer, it suddenly split into four pieces.
After a series of twists and transformations, it became a small square display stand.
This is shape memory alloy! Wapolmetal!
Taro was dumbstruck!
However, he wasn't shocked by the Wapolmetal, but by a transparent glass cover standing on the display stand.
Inside lay a letter quietly!
And, a Devil Fruit!
---------------------------------
I hope you're enjoying the fanfiction so far! If the story has you hooked and you can't wait to see what happens next, you can unlock 30 chapters in advance over on my Patreon: patreon.com/TLHimejima1
Every bit of support means the world to me so if you're loving the ride, don't forget to drop a Power Stone and let me know.