By now, molten lava was scattered across the open square, and raging flames had turned the surrounding area into an isolated battlefield.
Rowan panted as he looked at Sakazuki.
"You really are terrifyingly strong. So this... is the level of power the Marines' future greatest fighting force possesses?"
Sakazuki replied coldly,
"Surrender, Rowan."
"Momonga was right. You've become the source of chaos."
"Justice cannot allow that."
Rowan chuckled.
"So Vice Admiral Sakazuki's justice... allows legalized piracy?"
His voice carried through the curtain of flames and molten lava, reaching every Marine present.
Sakazuki frowned.
"Cheap tricks."
As his words fell, magma erupted from the ground, surging toward Rowan like a rabid hound determined to devour him.
Boom!
Rowan spun and drove a punch into it.
Armament Haki burst forth, blocking the magma.
But at that very moment, Sakazuki had already closed the distance.
"You've lost, Rowan..."
Crossing his arms in front of himself, Rowan blocked the incoming blow as overwhelming force and scorching heat crashed into him.
Compared to their clash several years ago...
Rowan could clearly feel it now.
When it came to raw physical strength alone...
Sakazuki could no longer keep up with him.
Still...
I have to go flying.
Otherwise, how am I supposed to lose?
Although he wasn't certain whether he could kill Sakazuki if both of them fought at full strength...
With nothing but his physical body and both forms of Haki, this identity was already capable of fighting him evenly.
Boom!
Rowan deliberately relaxed his guard and allowed himself to be blasted away.
He smashed through two trees before finally coming to a stop.
"...You're the real monster."
Seeing that Rowan made no attempt to stand back up, Sakazuki understood that he was admitting defeat.
He waved a hand toward the medical corps.
"Move in."
Looking at Rowan, he said,
"You abandoned your post and caused chaos at Marine Headquarters."
"The higher-ups will determine your punishment."
"Although you won't be sent to Impel Down you'll need some time to calm down."
Being lifted onto a stretcher, Rowan coughed lightly.
"Solitary confinement was inevitable anyway."
"But because of this the Marines now know that someone stood up in protest."
"That's the greatest reward."
Sakazuki said nothing further.
He simply turned and left.
He believed in Absolute Justice.
He himself disliked the Seven Warlords system.
But compared to that he also believed Rowan's methods were not justice.
At the window of the Fleet Admiral's office.
"It's over."
Tsuru narrowed her eyes.
"The strength behind Sakazuki's final attack was his full power."
"But Rowan hesitated for just a moment before being sent flying."
Sengoku froze.
"If that hesitation was intentional then Rowan's growth is becoming frightening."
"And he still hasn't eaten a Devil Fruit."
"He doesn't have to worry about Seastone or sinking into the sea."
Those few words were enough for Tsuru to understand what Sengoku was thinking.
After the first cooperation in Wano Rowan had, to a certain extent, earned the trust of the Marines.
Now, with the Seven Warlords system about to be implemented.
The Navy's three future greatest military powers had to be established as soon as possible.
Otherwise the Marines would gradually lose control over the seas.
The battle between Rowan and Sakazuki had lasted quite a while.
From the moment Rowan landed at Marineford until his objective was accomplished.
Time had passed from morning until well after three in the afternoon.
As the medical team carried Rowan away.
Smoker, who had only just retreated from the center of the battlefield, grew anxious after hearing Sakazuki's words.
He was about to rush forward and demand an explanation.
"Hm."
Black iron bars suddenly appeared around him.
Hina grabbed him and yanked him back.
"What are you trying to do?"
Smoker asked anxiously, "The boss lost, I've got to get him out of here! You go prepare the ship, we'll head back to G-5!"
The corner of Hina's eye twitched.
"Are you really this stupid, or are you pretending? Nothing's going to happen to the Vice Admiral."
Smoker thought about it for a moment before turning the lower half of his Smoke-Smoke Fruit body back into solid form.
"He came all the way back waving that banner and made such a huge scene. You really think he'll be fine? Vice Admiral Sakazuki was muttering something just now. The boss isn't going to get thrown into Impel Down, is he?"
"Not unless Fleet Admiral Sengoku wants to see the Marines descend into complete chaos."
As she spoke, Hina released her Iron Cage restraint and looked toward the Vice Admiral as he was carried away.
Meanwhile, the Marines who had watched the entire confrontation since morning were also discussing it among themselves.
"Vice Admiral Rowan won't be in trouble, will he?"
"When the World Government announced the Seven Warlords system, all we could do was remain silent. Yet Vice Admiral Rowan, the man everyone thought was the World Government's most loyal follower, unexpectedly stood up."
"Because... some things ultimately require someone to stand up. If no one objects, then it becomes the Marines' silent approval. It becomes the Marines' disgrace, doesn't it?"
"He abandoned his post at G-5 and, despite standing completely alone, still dared to voice his opposition here at Marine Headquarters."
"He... did it for the honor of the entire Marine Corps."
"From today onward, I won't call him the Marine disgrace anymore. A Marine's duty is to eliminate pirates and eradicate evil. Vice Admiral Rowan has never wavered in his attitude toward pirates!"
At that moment, Diluda walked to the center of the battlefield, raised one fist into the air, and shouted,
"We are Marines! We have never been cowards in the face of pirates!"
"And today, Vice Admiral Rowan proved through his actions that the Marines are not weak. We do not need the Seven Warlords system, using pirates to fight pirates!"
"We're all dissatisfied with the World Government's orders, but none of us had the courage to oppose them. Now that someone has stepped forward... I want to stand behind him!"
"My fellow Marines, if we continue to stay silent, then endless silence is all that awaits us in the future... I refuse to remain silent any longer!"
With those words, Diluda was the first to head toward the Fleet Admiral's office.
Behind him, the surrounding Marines looked at one another.
"So... are we going?"
"That depends on you. Do you want there to be someone willing to stand up the next time something like this happens?"
"Let's go! We're going to see Fleet Admiral Sengoku!"
"No matter what, we can't let Vice Admiral Rowan be punished!"
"If there's really no place left to reason, then I don't want to stay in these damn Marines anymore!"
"Count me in! A Marine force that allies itself with pirates... that's not the justice I believe in, nor is it true justice!"
The crowd surged forward as Marines from every direction headed toward Headquarters.
Seeing this, Smoker turned to Hina.
"So you already knew? I was wondering why you weren't panicking at all after the boss lost. Normally, you'd have been the first person running to Vice Admiral Tsuru."
Hina glanced at him.
"Whether the Vice Admiral actually lost... is another matter entirely."
Clearly, the two of them weren't talking about the same thing.
But Hina understood very well.
During that final exchange with Vice Admiral Sakazuki.
The Vice Admiral had deliberately held back.
Over the past two years, she'd watched him toy with Smoker like that countless times.
Back at G-5, he teased Smoker so that he would keep getting back up.
This time, he had deliberately lost to Vice Admiral Sakazuki.
Because the objective of making his position known had already been achieved.
At that moment, Smoker also remembered all those times he had been toyed with, always feeling as though he had been just a tiny bit short.
"So what was the boss trying to accomplish?"
"He came back with such fanfare, and now he deliberately loses. So that's it?"
"Was there really any point to all of this?"
Hina sighed.
"If Vice Admiral Sakazuki hadn't been able to defeat the Vice Admiral, then after returning from G-5 carrying that banner... what would our next step have been?"
What next?
Obviously, they would have.
That was impossible.
The Seven Warlords system hadn't been created by the Marines, nor did the Marines have the authority to abolish it.
A decision made by the World Government could only be carried out by the Marines. They had no power to change it.
So if the boss had won, they would have had no choice but to march straight to Fleet Admiral Sengoku's office.
Which meant he really would have had to face Fleet Admiral Sengoku himself.
"Hiss... cough, cough, cough!"
Smoker choked on the cigar in his mouth, coughing repeatedly before throwing the stub onto the ground and crushing it under his foot.
"So... our whole reason for coming back ends just like this?"
Hina slightly raised her head, her eyes meeting Vice Admiral Tsuru's from the building above.
What had happened today at Marine Headquarters would spread throughout the entire Marine Corps in the shortest possible time. Through Marine branches across the world, it would eventually become known to everyone.
Because even Fleet Admiral Sengoku wanted the entire world to know.
The Marines opposed the Seven Warlords system.
The World Government could take the blame.
The Marines wanted no part of it.
The establishment of the Seven Warlords.
The legalization of plunder.
The innocent civilians who would one day be legally robbed.
The helpless Marines forced to stand by while pirates looted.
In the future, the Marines would grow even more dissatisfied with the World Government, rather than believing the Marines themselves were no different from the pirates.
That was why Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Tsuru had watched everything unfold without intervening.
It was also why Tsuru had allowed Hina to return to Headquarters with the Vice Admiral and take part in causing this commotion.
Inside the headquarters building, Sengoku withdrew his gaze and returned to his desk.
After thinking for a moment, he took off his glasses, opened a drawer, pulled out a bottle of eye drops, and quickly squeezed several drops into both eyes.
After exchanging one last glance with Hina, Tsuru also stepped away from the window. Seeing Sengoku's actions, she remarked,
"So once you've been in a high position long enough, you just naturally learn these things."
Sengoku blinked several times.
"Look, look! Are my eyes red enough?"
Tsuru sighed.
"Rub them a little more."
Taking the advice seriously, Sengoku vigorously rubbed his eyelids.
"So that brat's the only one allowed to put on an act? If Sakazuki hadn't stepped in, I'd like to see how he planned to end all this."
Tsuru replied,
"It was precisely because he already knew Sakazuki was at Headquarters that he came up with this plan. It's obvious he understands Sakazuki's personality very well, and he was equally certain that his own strength was enough to withstand the magma attacks."
The redness in Sengoku's eyes suddenly carried a trace of solemnity.
"That means the kid's prestige within the Marines is going to soar. And we're the ones who ended up helping push it even higher."
From Tsuru's brief explanation, the strategist known as Sengoku instantly understood both Rowan's intentions and Tsuru's meaning.
What had seemed like nothing more than a farcical disturbance had forced him to follow along with Rowan's script.
He was thoroughly displeased by that.
"What else could we have done?"
Tsuru took the bottle of eye drops from Sengoku and, after a few quick motions, completed the "red eyes" effect herself.
"The first person to stand up becomes a hero. The second person never has the same influence."
"The moment he walked out of the harbor carrying that banner and drew everyone's attention, we were already backed into a corner."
"At the same time, he's still considered one of the World Government's own people. Since Sakazuki defeated him, the incident only reached the level of a Vice Admiral candidate. It never escalated to your level, much less to Mary Geoise."
"A loyal watchdog who had previously displayed nothing but absolute obedience has now gained enormous prestige within the Marines. Do you really think Mary Geoise would abandon someone like that over something as minor as this, something that doesn't actually interfere with the implementation of the Seven Warlords system?"
Sengoku slowly shook his head.
It was obvious that the World Government would never do something so foolish.
Even that old bastard Garp had remained untouchable for so many years because of his influence within the Marines, let alone Rowan, whom they regarded as their loyal hound.
"The cooperation in Wano allowed us to see that working with him is possible. That's one of the reasons we helped him. From our perspective... he isn't a loyal hound."
Hearing that, Sengoku looked at Tsuru.
"Then where do you think his true allegiance lies?"
"I don't know."
Tsuru rubbed her forehead.
"Judging from Bartholomew's past, the changes in G-5 over the past two years, and Hina's trust in him, I don't believe he's on the World Government's side."
"But considering the South Blue incident, the Ohara incident, and everything that's widely known about him..."
She stopped mid-sentence.
Widely known?
What exactly counted as "widely known"?
Sometimes, the things that became widely known were precisely the things someone deliberately allowed others to see.
Lustful.
A heavy drinker.
Lazy.
Arresting beautiful women on fabricated charges whenever he passed by.
Were all of those stories actually true?
And then there was that female scholar before the Ohara Incident...
"Perhaps..."
Sengoku's voice interrupted Tsuru's train of thought.
"Perhaps all he wants is to eliminate every pirate."
Tsuru's thoughts scattered.
It felt as though she had almost grasped something... only for it to slip away again.
Sengoku continued,
"His background determines his attitude toward pirates. His entire village was slaughtered by pirates, leaving him as the sole survivor crawling out from beneath a pile of corpses. It's only natural that he's spent all these years executing pirates on sight."
"And he also understands perfectly well who holds greater authority, the World Government or the Marines. His promotions over the years have been exceptionally smooth—far faster than anyone else's."
"After today, now that he's demonstrated his strength by fighting Sakazuki, promoting him to Admiral Candidate and granting him a codename will soon be on the agenda... provided he can continue convincing the World Government."
Sengoku's reasoning pulled Tsuru's thoughts back onto the same track.
After considering it, she nodded.
"To us, Rowan's existence is beneficial. Once we're certain of where he truly stands, we can make the best possible use of him..."
At that moment, both of them fell silent.
Almost simultaneously, they rubbed their reddened eyes once more.
A moment later the office door, which Tsuru had just closed, was knocked on.
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