Michael was left speechless by Garp's counter-question.
After a long silence, he could only let out a helpless laugh:
"How should I know? I merely gave him a little push from behind, and who would've thought Kozuki Oden would go all out like that!"
"I honestly thought the best he could do was protect Kuri and then sail away with his people, leaving Wano."
"To tell you the truth, I was already preparing to receive and resettle Wano's refugees directly at Sabaody Archipelago!"
If he had known Kozuki Oden was this ruthless, he should've just dragged the old man Garp with him to Wano back then. Maybe they could've settled everything in one go!
Just take Kaido out completely!
That way he wouldn't be left wreaking havoc across the seas as an unkillable, indestructible pain in the ass!
"I have a fairly good idea about Kaido. He's a monstrously talented guy. Even under Rocks, he managed to stand out..."
"As for that Moria guy—he's clearly no pushover either. Being able to go head-to-head with Kaido's pirate crew means he's got to be a real handful."
Though Garp only added a few comments, it triggered another thought in Michael's mind.
Moria hadn't suffered total defeat like in the original timeline.
Did that mean he wouldn't become so disillusioned that he'd go and build that cursed monstrosity—the Thriller Bark?
And if he didn't build that ship, Ryuma's corpse wouldn't get stolen, and Brook in the Florian Triangle wouldn't lose his shadow.
Which meant... that Wano national treasure—the black blade Shusui—would never end up in the hands of that directionally-challenged green-haired idiot.
If that's the case... did this mean the timeline had truly begun to change thanks to his intervention?
Michael couldn't be sure whether the timeline would try to forcibly correct itself.
But for now, the results were promising.
This major win with Kozuki Oden meant that the rest of his plans, the entire chain reaction, had a solid chance of succeeding!
Thinking of this, Michael shook his head.
No point in getting carried away right now.
Better pop open a bottle of champagne and celebrate first~
Michael stayed silent, but Garp's chatter only grew more frequent.
People tend to get a bit long-winded with age.
Especially someone like Garp, who'd just become a grandfather not too long ago.
"Michael, come to think of it, you haven't been back to Sabaody Archipelago for a year and a half. That brat Gion hasn't complained at all? She's that easygoing now?"
Hearing Garp's words, Michael understood.
So this was the trap waiting for him.
He cleared his throat and replied righteously:
"Do me a favor and don't go annoying Gion, alright?"
"Because of what Roger said at his execution, Sabaody Archipelago is basically a pirate convention now! Throw a rock and you'll hit ten people—eight of them are pirates!"
"During our last Den Den Mushi call, she even said she'd rather swap sectors with Sakazuki and take over G1 Branch, right on the New World's frontlines!"
"Hahahaha! Looks like Gion's luck is pretty rotten! Just after she transferred, this kind of mess breaks out!" Garp laughed so hard he nearly fell over, completely unfazed.
After all, not everyone could be like him—just toss G-3 Branch into Bogard's hands and be done with it!
After flipping Garp off with his middle finger in protest, Michael resumed reviewing the mountain of reports.
At that moment, from the stack labeled "Latest Orders," Michael spotted a brand new document right on top.
With just one glance, his face darkened completely.
"...Garp. Take a look at this."
Michael's voice was significantly deeper than before.
He didn't even call him "old man."
Garp could tell—this brat was really pissed.
"What happened?"
"See for yourself!"
Michael slapped the file down in front of Garp.
One glance was all it took. Even someone as thick-skinned as Garp couldn't help but frown deeply.
"The authority to launch a Buster Call was handed to CP9's Spandine? That famously incompetent fool!?"
"And it was launched on Ohara in the West Blue!?"
"Has Sengoku lost his damn mind? What the hell did those old scholars ever do to anyone!?"
"Bogard!"
Bogard stepped forward immediately.
"Vice Admiral!"
"When exactly did the Buster Call on Ohara begin?"
"Reporting, Vice Admiral! The document was transmitted about thirty minutes before I found you!"
Garp didn't hesitate. He pulled out a Den Den Mushi from his pocket.
It was a private line to Sengoku.
He dialed. A few seconds later, with a "babu" sound, the call connected.
"Garp? What's got you calling out of the blue today?" Sengoku's voice sounded a little weary, and the Den Den Mushi mimicked his expression—brows furrowed tightly.
"Don't tell me you've finally decided to bring Michael and Stella back?"
"Sengoku, you senile old bastard—have you completely lost your mind!?"
Garp exploded, gritting his teeth.
"Giving Buster Call authority to CP9 is bad enough! But launching it on a bunch of peaceful scholars in Ohara!? They're just civilians, dammit! That's a whole island of innocent lives!"
"A Buster Call, once issued, cannot be revoked! That's the Navy's authority!" Sengoku's voice turned cold and hard under Garp's fury.
"I'll evacuate the civilians, but the scholars..."
He didn't finish.
But the message was loud and clear—
The scholars must die.
Veins bulged on Garp's forehead, his anger boiling over at Sengoku's merciless stance.
And yet... he couldn't refute the first part of that statement.
A Buster Call was a nation-level annihilation order.
It mobilized ten of the Navy's largest and most advanced battleships.
Each ship commanded by a Rear Admiral.
Five elite Vice Admirals would also accompany the fleet, ensuring overwhelming individual combat strength.
Each ship carried over a thousand elite soldiers. Ten ships meant more than ten thousand men.
A military operation of this scale couldn't just be called off on a whim.
Even if Sengoku wanted to retract it, the World Government would never allow it.
After all, the ones most eager to see the scholars dead—were the World Government.
As the sole Admiral and the Navy's highest authority at the moment, all Sengoku could do was dispatch a single evacuation ship.
Michael took a deep breath, then snatched the receiver from Garp's hands.
"Hey, old man. It's me."
"...Michael. So you were listening."
Michael closed his eyes, inhaled deeply, then said:
"Old man, Garp and I are currently in 'Paradise,' very close to the Calm Belt."
"From our current position, we can probably arrive a day earlier than the Buster Call fleet."
"Garp and I can use that time to evacuate the residents!"
"Once we've cleared them out, you give the direct order to the Vice Admirals leading the Buster Call—launch a full saturation bombardment on Ohara! No chance for CP agents to recover anything!"
"If we do it this way, even the Five Elders up top won't have anything to say, right?"
Michael's tone was terrifyingly calm.
---
(For each review +1 additional chapter)
read +100 chapters on Patreon tambeerg