As Bill turned around, he heard a chair move and the air smelled strongly of ozone. In an instant, he blocked the manifestation of Chaos in the room.
Turning around, he saw that Onigumo was halfway towards him, looking extremely annoyed.
- You! ... Impudent! ...
Bill was stunned by the situation. It was clear that this man was not fit to command, let alone be a leader to others.
Realizing this, Bill decided he should be detained, but he knew he had no authority to do so. He needed Onigumo to attack first, which, oddly enough, seemed likely.
"Vice Admiral, you should return to your chair. I will ensure that your ship leaves the port unhindered as a token of my gratitude," Bill said clearly and confidently.
He stood there in his regular Marine uniform. Bill had one suit that he only wore on special occasions along with the Cloak of Justice, but now he looked just like a regular recruit.
He wasn't sure, but he suspected that the vice-admiral, with bloodshot eyes, saw him only as a new recruit when he muttered, "Shave!"
Flashing in front of Bill, the Vice Admiral lowered his saber diagonally, but found his blow being thrown back.
The blade cut through the air and the wood, but Onigumo wasted no time in muttering again, "Finger strike!"
At such close range, Bill couldn't dodge, and the Vice Admiral's finger pierced his chest.
However, no blood came out - the wound was too small to cause serious harm. Before the vice admiral could strike again, Bill grabbed him by the left wrist.
In one movement he pulled the vice admiral towards himself with his left hand and hit him with his right.
Even without preparing his body for battle, the blow was so strong that the ship shook and the windows in the room shattered.
Without letting go of the Vice Admiral's wrist, Bill felt him instantly drop his saber and fall to the floor, unconscious.
Bill easily read the state of his body and, after making sure that the vice admiral was no longer conscious, threw him over his shoulder and walked out of the office carrying him.
As he emerged, he was met by eighty Marines with rifles at the ready, and as he saw more reinforcements joining them, Bill loudly declared for all to hear:
"The Vice Admiral is under arrest for attempted murder. You will lay down your arms and remain aboard this ship until Marineford has been notified of this incident. Anyone who disobeys this order will be considered an accessory to the crime."
Whether it was the fear of being found complicit in a crime they had not committed, or the fact that Bill stood in the sun, his figure shrouded in shadow, or perhaps because he was holding Onigumo over his shoulder, one by one the Marines lowered their weapons and raised their hands.
"You made the right decision," Bill said, noticing the sad faces of the soldiers, and was about to leave, when he suddenly turned around and asked loudly:
"I want to mention! Hey you," he pointed to one of the Marines wearing a junior officer's stripes. "How many Marines are there on this ship?"
?: - Uh... sir... 148 people. 42 special operators, 12 cu...
"Thank you, that's enough," Bill interrupted.
It turned out that the Scientific Department's Purchasing Department was expanding its staff, and we needed exactly 148 people. The sooner I get the necessary documents for the transfer, the better.
Turning again, Bill took a few more steps toward the gangway before he remembered something important:
"Oh, yes, midshipman!" he called to the man he had spoken to last. "Come to my office, I forgot I had a box of unfilled forms to deliver. It seems the vice admiral hasn't been keeping a close eye on his affairs here."
As Bill said this, he turned to leave and heard several Marines drop to the floor. He heard heavy breathing and words of disbelief.
The truth was that in order to transfer these people, he either needed Onigumo's signature or Marineford's approval.
Bill had no idea what had happened today, but he remembered one of his earliest memories in this world: when Aramakki attacked Rear Admiral Lacroix for scaring him, even though Lacroix had come to apologize for something he hadn't done.
Bill hoped that, like his father, who was more expensive than Lacroix, he would be more expensive than Onigumo.
Bill looked worried as he put down his snail pipe.
He was told by Commodore Kibin to release Onigumo immediately, and although he did not have to surrender at that time, Bill was informed that a court martial would take place later.
Bill had no doubt that he could fight off any charges, because Onigumo had attacked him first. He wasn't even that upset that the vice admiral had been released. No, he was worried about something else.
The thing is that, while looking through the documents given to him, he discovered 82 transfer applications.
Bill tried to object, but Kibin would hear nothing about sanctioning these statements and only said that Bill was lucky that he was not fired immediately.
He knew he couldn't let those people go back to that ship, and he regretted the confidence with which he had made the offer.