"Sensei Zephyr?" Sakazuki's lips parted, but he couldn't utter another word.
Since his battle with Roa, he had always felt that Sensei Zephyr was his fellow traveler, both sharing the noble ideal of eradicating all evil in the world! But at this moment, the words spoken by his supposed comrade only left Sakazuki bewildered.
"Of course, I want to completely, utterly eliminate all pirates!" Sakazuki answered instinctively.
"If that's the case, then we cannot only target pirates!" Zephyr sat calmly on the railing of the ship.
"Then what should we do?" Sakazuki pressed.
"We must start from the very root!" Before Zephyr could answer, Dragon, with a hidden excitement, interjected, "If all nations can become stable and peaceful, and the people living at the bottom of the world are no longer tormented by incurable diseases, then the number of extremist individuals will naturally decrease significantly!"
"And the prerequisite for all of this is that we must completely change the current world order!"
Sakazuki's expression abruptly changed. He finally understood; Dragon was treating the World Government as an enemy!
No! It seemed it wasn't just Dragon! He suddenly turned to Zephyr. "Sensei Zephyr, are you also..."
"For eight hundred years, they've done a terrible job, haven't they?" Zephyr looked at his disciple and said, "I can't stand it anymore."
"Ignoring non-affiliated nations, allowing evil to continuously multiply and grow in those places."
"And ruthlessly exploiting affiliated nations, the Heavenly Tribute making countless common people live in hardship! There are also extreme incidents like Flevance!"
"How can we uphold justice with such vermin?"
Dragon's face had never shown such a brilliant smile in his life; he had never dreamed that something like this would happen.
"Mr. Zephyr is right! This world has fallen into a vicious cycle! The World Government is continuously creating all kinds of criminals! And these criminals will make the world even more chaotic!"
"So," Sakazuki looked at Dragon with difficulty, his gaze finally settling on the face of his most respected teacher, "Sensei Zephyr, have you and Dragon been in contact for a long time?!"
"What foolishness are you spouting!" Zephyr snorted coldly. "I'm not so idiotic as to believe that a bunch of small fry can overthrow the World Government."
Dragon smiled silently, not taking offense.
"But what this kid said isn't wrong!" Zephyr's remaining left hand gripped the ship's railing tightly, squeezing a hole directly into the sturdy wood. "Without overthrowing the World Government, this world will never know peace!"
Although that bastard Roa was an undeniable heinous criminal, his sins could not be atoned for even if he died ten thousand times. But one thing he said was very true.
"The best way to eliminate evil is to make it unnecessary for anyone to take desperate risks!"
Zephyr slowly let out a breath and looked at his beloved disciple. "Sakazuki, what is your decision?"
"Are you going to continue doing useless work, or are you going to join me in completely ending the history of pirates?"
"What is true justice? Is it mechanically upholding the legitimate World Government? Or is it truly preventing innocents from being harmed?"
Sakazuki's face showed a hint of hesitation. He was deeply conflicted and therefore didn't notice Zephyr's cold gaze.
"Sensei Zephyr..." Sakazuki's chest heaved. He had to admit that everything his most respected teacher said seemed to be correct. During his time traveling with Zephyr, visiting numerous countries, what he saw was indeed true. And now he was forced to ponder. To those countries, what exactly was the World Government?
Sakazuki thought of the children he had met in every non-affiliated country. Sensei Zephyr said that their future was either delinquents or pirates.
"This world has been like this for eight hundred years. For eight hundred years, countless brave Marines have fought tooth and nail, but the rampant piracy has never changed!" Dragon spoke in a deep voice. "In fact, strong pirates are becoming more and more numerous on the sea now. The situation has not improved, but worsened!"
"Because the root problem is never solved, Sakazuki. If no one stands up to change it, the rampant evil will continue!"
Sakazuki's body shuddered. The man's face turned somewhat pale, as if his worldview had been profoundly challenged. He looked helplessly at his most respected and trusted teacher. "Sensei Zephyr..."
"What are you still hesitating for, Sakazuki?" Zephyr extended his hand to his disciple. "Didn't we agree to eliminate all pirates in this world?"
"Are you satisfied with just eliminating the pirates on the sea right now? Come with me and completely wipe out future pirates as well!"
Future? To make this world free of pirates forever? Sakazuki's heart suddenly swelled with emotion. Yes, mere military deterrence isn't enough. As seen from those Flevance lunatics, they're not even afraid of death, so what else would they fear?
If that's the case!
Slap!
Sakazuki grabbed Zephyr's hand. "What should we do?" After all, he was still just a young man in his twenties; though somewhat extreme, he wasn't unchangeable.
Dragon let out a long sigh of relief, then, the joy rising from the depths of his heart made him grin from ear to ear. Could there be such an unexpected gain? He was starting to wonder if fate was smiling upon him!
"Act with us!" Dragon quickly said, "Mr. Zephyr, Sakazuki, our combined strength, even the World Government cannot underestimate!"
"What foolishness are you talking about?" Zephyr, however, scoffed without hesitation. "Don't you know what kind of power the World Government wields? Do you expect to build a force capable of opposing them from nothing in a short time?"
Dragon's expression shifted slightly. Indeed. What kind of power did the World Government wield? The Marines, CP, the Holy Land Guards, and the God's Knights. Combined, these forces were enough to make one despair.
"Mr. Zephyr, then what do you plan to do?" Dragon humbly asked for guidance. Even now, although he had formed a self-defense force, he actually had no concrete plans, acting purely on a surge of passion.
"We will still remain in the Marines." Zephyr said, "Although there are many scum and many fools loyal to the World Government, the Marines' dedication to justice is beyond doubt!"
"It's time for the Marines to wake up from their false sense of justice!"
"Are you saying we're going to change the Marines?" Sakazuki's eyes lit up. The Marines had always been his dream. Although his path had now changed, if he could continue to stay in the Marines, that would of course be even better!
"It's hard for the old guys to change, but young people are different!" Zephyr said seriously, "I will continue to serve as the Marine Head Instructor. This time, I will cultivate true heroes! At the same time, staying at Headquarters also makes it convenient for me to contact other high-ranking officers."
"As for you, Sakazuki, I will leave the Marine Guerrilla Unit to you. You must raise your strength and accumulate military achievements in the shortest possible time to become a high-ranking officer capable of influencing the Marines!"
Sakazuki, you made the right decision. Because I'm not ready to leave the Marines yet, this news must not get out.
"Leave it to me! Sensei Zephyr!" Sakazuki patted his chest, guaranteeing it. He wasn't good at other things, but leading a guerrilla unit was something he was truly familiar with! Wasn't it just killing pirates? Simple!
"And you, Dragon," Zephyr looked at Dragon and ordered without hesitation, "Since you're already involved with the Flevance people, continue with that!" He then looked deeply at Doctor Trafalgar. "At least when it comes to being professional in confronting the World Government, they are beyond doubt."
Doctor Trafalgar felt a surge of passion. "Of course!!" Who would have thought that the former Marine Headquarters Admiral, bringing another future Marine star, would also join them!
"No problem!" Dragon nodded seriously.
"Not enough," Zephyr continued, "The World Government's foundation is the affiliated nations. Our foundation is the people who live a life worse than death in this chaotic era! They are the ones who most hope to change all of this!"
"Instead of letting them take desperate risks to become pirates, why can't we let them change this world?"
"Exactly!" Dragon nodded repeatedly. "So, there are so many people who are our potential comrades!"
"Finally," Zephyr looked at Dragon, "that bastard old man of yours! Garp, that guy has been disappointed with the World Government ever since the God Valley incident. You need to grasp this point, Dragon."
Dragon paused slightly, then nodded heavily. "I'll try, Mr. Zephyr."
"Then," Zephyr nodded with satisfaction, "the alliance is hereby formed!"
"Our goal is to cleanse all evil in the world! To establish a new order, so that this world is no longer a breeding ground for evil!"
"Yes!" Sakazuki nodded forcefully. Dragon didn't hesitate either; being still young, he indeed needed a guide.
"Oh, and one more thing!" Zephyr's eyes sharpened. "We must figure out who is behind all this! And what their purpose is!"
New World, Ginny Island.
This island also hosted a nation not affiliated with the World Government. But unlike other non-affiliated nations, the country on this island was quite prosperous. The main reason was that this country possessed a formidable army, and many of its generals were well-known pirates. And the reason it could have such an army was because—
"Pops, we're here! This is Fielder's nest!" A large ship resembling a whale charged onto the island's coast. On the bow, a young man with a pineapple-like hairstyle turned back and shouted, "That guy's usury company headquarters is right here!"
Thump!
Thump!
Amidst heavy footsteps, a tall figure slowly walked to the bow. "Finally here?" Whitebeard, currently forty-three years old and in his prime, wore a captain's hat, his smooth, golden hair cascading over his shoulders.
"Hmm?" Whitebeard's brows furrowed. He saw a man hastily approaching the shore.
"Been waiting for you, Captain Whitebeard!" It was a slightly corpulent man in a purple suit, waddling over with a big belly, several guards following behind him.
"Pops, that's Fielder!" Beside him, Pineapple Head, Marco, spoke with a hint of confusion. "What's that guy doing?"
"They really look down on me!" Whitebeard sneered. If they didn't know he was coming, fine, but now that they did, not only did they not flee, but they dared to proactively meet him? Were they confident they could handle this?
"Marco, grab him!" Whitebeard ordered.
"Yes, Pops!" Marco, not yet fifteen years old this year, leaped without hesitation. In mid-air, his hands had already transformed into wings wreathed in blue flames, and his legs into sharp bird talons. His wings flapped, scattering specks of starlight-like blue flames, and Marco soared forth.
"Whoa! It's Marco the Phoenix!" The plump Fielder wiped sweat from his forehead, looking up in surprise. "The Mythical Zoan Phoenix, finally seen with my own eyes! What a beautiful ability!"
"I don't need your praise!" Marco sped like the wind, his talons directly seizing Fielder's shoulders, carrying the man skyward. He spun in the air, immediately returning towards the Moby Dick. Without holding back, as he neared the deck, Marco directly flung Fielder down, sending him tumbling like a gourd, groaning in pain.
"Too, too rough, Mr. Marco!" Fielder sat up, grimacing and holding his belly. "I specifically came to welcome you!" Looking up, he saw the cadres of the Whitebeard Pirates. Flower Sword Vista, Diamond Jozu, Ice Witch Whitey Bay... each a renowned formidable character.
Without exception, everyone looked at him with fierce eyes. This made Fielder's forehead sweat. "Calm down, gentlemen, I truly came to welcome you. The Boss said to treat you well before he arrives."
"You said, Boss?"
Thump!
The naginata Murakumogiri, one of the Twelve Supreme Grade Swords, heavily stomped on the deck. When the man stopped before Fielder, Fielder felt like a mountain stood before him! No, not even the highest peak was as imposing as him.
Fielder's face held an ingratiating smile. "Captain Whitebeard! Yes, my Boss and you are old acquaintances! He's on his way. Please wait a moment!"
"In other words," Whitebeard looked down at him, his gaze cold, "it was indeed you who were causing trouble, right?"
"Causing trouble?" Fielder cautiously observed Whitebeard's expression and said, "What do you mean by that?"
"Still playing dumb!" Marco, indignant, kicked the man. "Didn't you instigate the Sphinx unrest?"
"Misunderstanding, a huge misunderstanding!" Fielder, who had once again turned into a tumbling gourd, scrambled up and quickly argued, "We're just honest businessmen, earning hard-earned money. We definitely went there because there was a market!"
"Are you taking me for a fool?" Whitebeard's mustache suddenly fluttered slightly. "Who is your so-called Boss?"
Rumble!
The man's rage instantly caused the heavens and earth to tremble. The ground shook, the sea boiled.
"Whoa!" Fielder trembled all over in fright. After all, this so-called underworld giant was no different from a weak lamb before a true monster.
But.
"Boss will be here soon, please wait a little longer!" No matter how much fear he felt, it couldn't compare to the fear of the Boss. Fielder stammered with difficulty.
"..." Whitebeard reined in his power, slightly frowning. This guy, who looked so weak, was surprisingly principled at this moment? But, his acquaintance? Who could it be? Someone running such a massive weapons business, and even the King of Usury in the New World was his subordinate.
Golden Lion? Or Wang Zhi? It felt like only they had such a mind.
The Whitebeard Pirates' cadres exchanged glances, then Marco spoke. "Pops, should we wait?"
Whitebeard slowly exhaled. "Let's wait." Could they just leave now? Not resolving the culprit would only be in vain.
Fortunately, they didn't have to wait too long. Soon, a shadow appeared on the distant sea.
"Pops! There's something on the sea!" Marco descended from the sky, kicking Fielder, who was cowering in a corner. "Is that your boss?"
Terrified, Fielder shakily stood up, looked up at the distance, and then instantly broke into a joyous smile. "He's here! The Boss is here!"
"Finally here?" Whitebeard stood up from his large chair, sweeping his Observation Haki across the distant sea. Then, his expression abruptly changed.
"Pops?" Marco keenly noticed his father's change. "What's wrong? Is it really someone you know?"
Whitebeard didn't answer, his face merely gloomy. Soon, the Whitebeard Pirates also clearly saw that what was approaching on the sea were giant snails! Then, they understood everything!
"Is it that guy?" Marco could barely believe it. How did he do it? Where did he find the time?!
Just then, a Pteranodon flew from the distant snail fleet. As it approached the Moby Dick, everyone clearly saw the young man on the Pteranodon's back.
"Fielder! My dearest subordinate, are you alright!"
"Boss!" Fielder shrieked, crying uncontrollably. He had truly been scared to death by the Whitebeard Pirates.
Hmm? Roa, on the Pteranodon's back, suddenly paused. Such a familiar scene, such familiar lines. Was Uncle Whitebeard going to publicly execute Fielder?
"Roa!!"