Somewhere in the New World—
A Marine warship with a dog-headed figurehead was docked along the island's shore.
Not far from it, out at sea, a pirate ship had been battered beyond recognition and was now slowly sinking.
Along the coast, Marines were escorting captured pirates onto the warship.
Meanwhile, on a distant stretch of beach, the unlucky Kaido—his face bruised and swollen—was reaching out, trying to stop the violence in front of him.
"Wait a second, we're kind of old acquaintances, right? Garp? Back at God Valley—"
Before he could finish, Garp's fist locked onto his head and smashed him straight into the sand.
"Old acquaintances, huh!?"
Kaido let out a pained cry and hurriedly said, "What the hell is wrong with you? Are you the Mythical Zoan, or am I!?"
"Mythical Zoan, huh!?" Garp answered with another punch, slamming Kaido back down just as he tried to get up.
"You bastard, I'm Kai—"
"Kaido, huh!?" Another punch landed squarely on Kaido's nose.
This time, Kaido gave up.
He lay sprawled on the beach in a starfish position, eyes filled with confusion about life.
About three months ago, he had escaped Marine custody yet again and returned to the sea, intending to form his own pirate crew.
True to his nature, Kaido acted immediately, gathering a group of subordinates.
And then—bad luck.
Not long after, he ran into Garp in the New World.
A clash broke out… and now here he was.
Seeing Kaido had lost all will to resist, Garp didn't waste words. He stepped forward, slapped Seastone cuffs onto Kaido's wrists, then grabbed him by the ankle and dragged him across the sand like a dead dog toward the warship.
Nearby Marines, seeing Vice Admiral Garp had finished up, hurried over to help.
Just then, the Den Den Mushi on Garp rang.
Dragging Kaido with one hand, Garp fished the snail out with the other, glanced at it, and raised a brow before answering, "Sengoku? What is it?"
"I just heard from your ship's comms officer that you ran into Kaido. How did it go?" Sengoku's voice came through.
"Handled," Garp said casually. "The brat's tough, I'll give him that. Actually tried to clash head-on with me. What, does he think he's Roger?"
Even as he said that, Garp couldn't help but recall Valthior—who had clashed head-on with him not long ago on Linderland Island.
That thought made something click in his mind.
Back at God Valley, Kaido had at least been able to step onto that grand stage, even if only as a minor player. Meanwhile, Valthior back then hadn't even qualified as background scenery.
And now?
Less than five years later, judging purely from the feel of their clashes, Garp felt that Valthior had already surpassed Kaido.
Sure, Kaido's growth might have been hindered by constant capture and escape over the years—but even so, Valthior's rate of growth was terrifying.
"Is that so?" Sengoku wasn't surprised. Anyone in this sea could capsize upon encountering Garp—let alone Kaido.
If Kaido had actually beaten Garp, that would've been shocking.
Without wasting time, Sengoku continued, "Recently, Mary Geoise allocated new operational funds to us. Saint Saturn, the Warrior God of Science and Defense, has ordered Marine Headquarters to establish a new division—the Science Unit. The Government has split off part of its research teams and reassigned several research islands directly under Marine control."
"…Why are you telling me this?" Garp asked, confused. "What does any of that have to do with me?"
Science Unit? Research islands?
He didn't understand a word of it.
"I'm just informing you of recent changes within the Marines," Sengoku said. "For reference, I'm currently in charge of this Science Unit. I've already spoken with some of the scientists assigned to us. Right now, their main focus is research on genetics and lineage factors. I don't fully understand it myself, but they say Kaido would make an excellent test subject…"
Now Garp got it.
"So you want me to hand Kaido over to you, right?" he said bluntly.
"Exactly."
Garp didn't care either way. "Got it. Send me the location of that research island—I'll deliver him myself."
"Much appreciated," Sengoku replied. Then he added, "By the way, we've received confirmed intel from Mary Geoise. The Roger Pirates are expected to arrive at Whole Cake Island soon. A conflict with the Big Mom Pirates is highly likely."
"What!?" Garp froze, then quickly calculated distances. His expression turned annoyed. "Why didn't you tell me earlier!? At this point, it's too late—I'd need at least a month to get there!"
"I'm just informing you," Sengoku said. "It doesn't seem like the higher-ups intend for the Marines to intervene."
"Then who's handling it? Don't tell me it's CP? What are they gonna do?" Garp scoffed.
"From what I've heard, it'll be the Holy Knights, along with—" Sengoku began, only to be cut off.
"The Holy Knights!? Hahahahaha! Those clowns—" Garp burst out laughing, full of disdain.
Sengoku thought, You really never learn to watch your mouth…
"—along with the Giant King, Harald," Sengoku finished calmly. "Because Harald is being reassigned, it disrupted some of our Marine operations—that's how I found out about this."
At the mention of Harald, Garp's expression turned serious.
"Now that makes sense. Harald's the real deal…" he said. "Looks like Roger and the others are in trouble."
In recent years, Harald had been working closely with the Marines. Unlike the deception he faced in Mary Geoise, the Marines treated him fairly well, and their relationship was solid.
Garp had sparred with Harald many times—and more often than not, Garp lost.
Sure, they never went all out, but Garp acknowledged it himself:
Harald was stronger than him.
"In any case, this situation could present a valuable opportunity for the Marines," Sengoku said in a low voice. "Harald, the Holy Knights, and the Roger Pirates are very likely to clash violently on Whole Cake Island. Meanwhile, Roger's primary target is Charlotte Linlin. There's no way she'll abandon her home turf, so she'll fight fiercely as well. Under these circumstances, it's hard to say whether Roger's crew will be eliminated—but no matter what, the Big Mom Pirates will definitely take heavy damage…"
Garp hadn't considered that angle before. His eyes lit up.
"You're saying we use this chance to take down the Big Mom Pirates!?"
"Exactly. Zephyr has already mobilized—bringing a Buster Call-level force with five Vice Admirals. We might not make it in time, but we have to try. After you hand Kaido over, regroup with Zephyr and head to Whole Cake Island."
After ending the call, Sengoku couldn't shake a lingering doubt.
If Mary Geoise had coordinated with the Marines from the start, they wouldn't be reacting this late.
Instead, Harald and the others had already been at sea for half a month before he—an Admiral—learned about the operation.
It put him in a very passive position.
Of course, since the plan came from the Five Elders, Sengoku couldn't openly complain.
Still…
Why hadn't they factored Marine forces into the plan?
Even without deploying a full fleet, sending a few elite Vice Admirals—or even himself and Zephyr—would have significantly increased the operation's effectiveness.
At times, Sengoku couldn't help but suspect something else.
That recent assignment from Saint Saturn—putting him in charge of the Science Unit…
Was it meant to distract him?
To keep him from learning about the Whole Cake Island plan too early?
…No way.
There's no reason Saturn would do something like that.
Right?
He must be overthinking it.
...
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