After returning to Marine Headquarters, Admiral Borsalino wasted no time. He instructed the vice admirals to handle the troops and immediately made his way to the central meeting hall. By the time he arrived, nearly all the senior officers were already there.
The atmosphere was tense and suffocating. Officers spoke in hushed tones, their words heavy with disbelief and anger. Every few seconds, a heated argument would erupt. At the head of the long table sat Fleet Admiral Sengoku, his eyes closed as if deep in thought. But when Borsalino entered, the room fell silent. Every gaze turned toward him.
Even the normally lazy, half-smiling admiral didn't carry his usual air of indifference. His expression was grim as he walked to his seat.
"Borsalino," Sengoku's deep voice broke the silence, "is it true…? Has Sakazuki really fallen?"
Although the admiral had already reported the situation over the transponder snail, Sengoku still found it impossible to accept. Sakazuki the unyielding Red Dog, the embodiment of absolute justice was dead.
"It's true," Borsalino replied solemnly. "We completely underestimated Eli Winters and his crew. At the very start, Butaris and the elite CP0 unit were wiped out instantly by Eli's spatial powers. His crew members are no ordinary pirates either each one of them fights on par with our top vice admirals. That man Big Pan… his strength was equal to mine. Once he pinned me down, Sakazuki was forced to face Eli alone. You might find this hard to believe, but Eli Winters' power… it's beyond what we've classified before. He's reached a realm I can only call the 'King's Domain.'"
The room erupted.
"What? Impossible!" someone shouted.
"But if he's not that strong, how could he have killed Akainu so easily?" another argued.
"Even a top-tier powerhouse couldn't crush Sakazuki without giving him a chance to fight back," a vice admiral muttered, disbelief still written across his face.
Kuzan Admiral Aokiji remained silent, his expression unreadable. Though he had never gotten along with Sakazuki, the man's sudden death still struck a heavy chord in his heart.
Sengoku slammed his palm on the table, silencing the noise. "Enough! This is not the time to argue. No matter how powerful our enemy is, we need a strategy." His voice cut through the tension like a blade.
Vice Admiral Tsuru leaned forward. "Fleet Admiral Sengoku, I suggest we consider rallying certain pirate forces to cooperate with us. In the face of an enemy like Eli Winters, the Navy alone may not have enough power."
The proposal left the room in uneasy silence. Cooperation with pirates? It was unthinkable.
"That's too dangerous," one general objected. "Pirates are fickle. What happens if they betray us mid-battle?"
"Still," Borsalino said, unusually serious, "with our current strength, direct confrontation may be suicide."
"Working with pirates will only make things worse," Garp said suddenly.
The legendary hero of the Marines, who was usually half-asleep or munching on snacks during meetings, now spoke with uncharacteristic gravity. All eyes turned to him.
Garp's tone was calm but firm. "That kid Eli… he hates pirates more than anyone. But he doesn't harbor real malice toward the Navy. Every time he's fought us, he's held back. Even this time, he could've wiped out Borsalino and the rest but he didn't. If he killed Sakazuki, there must've been another reason."
His gaze shifted toward Borsalino.
After a brief silence, the yellow-clad admiral said quietly, "It was because of the Ohara evacuation incident."
The words froze the room. Even the air felt heavier. Everyone present knew the story the day Sakazuki ordered the destruction of the refugee ship carrying survivors from Ohara. Though he had justified it as "eliminating potential threats," that order had earned him countless enemies, even within the Navy itself.
Garp sighed deeply. "Then it makes sense. Eli Winters has always shown mercy toward the weak. If he learned about what Sakazuki did… well, that's reason enough. But if we turn to pirates for help now, he won't show us mercy next time. And with his strength, how many of our soldiers do you think could survive if he decided to go all out?"
The room went silent again. Everyone knew Garp was right. The only reason the Navy hadn't been annihilated yet was because Eli had chosen restraint.
Sengoku rubbed his temples and said wearily, "We'll table that idea for now. For the moment, we focus on rebuilding and reinforcing defenses. Keep eyes on Eli's movements. After this meeting, everyone return to your posts and prepare your units."
The officers stood, saluted, and quietly exited, leaving only Sengoku, Garp, Tsuru, Borsalino, and Aokiji behind.
Then Sengoku turned toward Borsalino. "Go find Wing. Tell him the Navy needs his power."
The others stiffened. Garp frowned. "Sengoku, are we really at that point?"
Wing the son of the legendary Commander Kong was a prodigy even stronger than the current admirals. But unlike his father, Wing detested fighting. Years ago, he had left active duty and opened an arcade in Marineford, spending his days playing games instead of enforcing justice.
Sengoku nodded gravely. "The situation is more serious than we thought. If the balance of the New World collapses, every ambitious pirate will make their move. The loss of a Marine Admiral will make them think we've grown weak and they won't hesitate to strike."
The room grew heavy again.
Sengoku forced a small smile. "Don't look so grim. The World Government won't just stand by. They'll have to support us to keep the seas stable. I'm heading to Mary Geoise to speak with the Five Elders myself. You all know what to do."
The others nodded and departed. Only Borsalino lingered, shoulders slumped. The thought of convincing Wing made his head throb. That guy hated responsibility more than anyone in the Navy. "Ugh… I better get a raise after this," he muttered, dragging himself toward the arcade.
As Sengoku left for the Holy Land, he couldn't shake the weight in his chest. The death of an Admiral would shake the world and soon, it did.
Because far away, at the headquarters of the World Economic Journal, Morgans was already flapping his wings in excitement. His reporters had caught everything on film the fight, the destruction, even Akainu's death. Last time, the Government had silenced his story about Eli killing a Celestial Dragon. This time, he wasn't backing down.
"This is it!" he squawked gleefully, holding up the photos. "The biggest headline of the century! No one not even the Five Elders can stop me now!"
He handed sealed copies of the article to his most trusted staff. "Split up! Deliver the story to every corner of the world. We publish tomorrow at six sharp! And be careful the CP agents will be hunting us."
His reporters, however, were far too excited to listen.
"Boss, your writing's too stiff! You're not capturing how intense the fight was!"
"Yeah, yeah this line should say 'thunder split the heavens' or something! You're losing the flair!"
"What's with this weak phrasing, boss? You're underselling Eli's dominance!"
Morgans' feathers puffed in fury. "You ungrateful brats! This is my masterpiece! Get moving before the CP0 dogs find you! And don't you dare die before sunrise!"
"Yeah, yeah, old bird. You're too cautious!" one journalist said with a grin as they strutted out with the papers.
"Right, Morgans has lost his edge. The man's all bark, no bite!" another added, laughing.
By the time the office emptied, Morgans was trembling with rage.
Then an old editor in glasses approached him with a smirk. "You know… you could tweak the ending a bit."
"Get out!" Morgans snapped.
The old man huffed, waving a hand dismissively. "Fine! As the saying goes, a bird without guts is just poultry."
Left alone, Morgans pressed a wing to his chest and took a deep breath. "Don't get mad, don't get mad… but those idiots are gonna be the death of me…"
Outside, the night was calm but by dawn, the entire world would tremble at the headline splashed across every front page:
"Admiral Akainu Slain by Eli Winters!"
_________________________________________________
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