In Marineford's plaza and family residential area, many people sensed the momentum of two waves of Conqueror's Haki clashing.
Inside the military academy, Zephyr had just finished dinner with his son and was preparing to work for a while longer.
Suddenly, he shouted, "Not good!"
"Something happened!"
Then he rushed toward the conference room.
At Headquarters, the Navy soldiers who had originally been drinking and singing around the bonfires felt the two astonishing auras and the killing intent hidden within them.
The drunkenness on their faces vanished instantly.
"What happened?"
"Isn't that the Fleet Admiral's office?"
"That aura… it's Admiral Raleigh's Conqueror's Haki!"
"No way, no way. They couldn't have started fighting, right?"
The officers under Raleigh and Sakazuki all placed their hands on the hilts at their waists, ready to fight at any moment.
It seemed that as long as Raleigh gave the order, battle would immediately begin.
Borsalino slowly stood up and stared at Kuzan, who had also risen across from him.
In a faint voice, he said, "Kuzan, you'd better not interfere in this matter."
"Otherwise, I'll have a terrible headache. After all, your strength is terrifying~"
Raleigh stared tightly at Sengoku and said, "You stand here now, speaking arrogantly about the casualties among Navy soldiers. Then let me ask you this: who exactly canceled the supplies being sent to the New World?"
"As Fleet Admiral, did you do what you were supposed to do?"
"The front line was fighting fiercely against the pirates, yet weapons, ammunition, and supplies were cut off by you. If we had not ended the battle quickly, then after the pirate forces gathered together, do you know what kind of consequences would have fallen upon us?!"
"Since we have already reached this point, I might as well talk about something else too."
"Back then, when the Revolutionary Army repeatedly managed to avoid my attacks on the Grand Line, it was you who leaked my route to them, wasn't it?"
"At that time, within the Navy, only you could know my sailing route. And only you had the opportunity to leak my information to the outside."
"Did you ever think about it back then? Because of your betrayal, many Navy soldiers died inexplicably at the hands of the Revolutionary Army."
"It was precisely because I suspected you that, later on, I stopped revealing my movements to anyone."
"What I never expected was that when I was about to attack the Four Seas, you recalled me to headquarters with a single order."
"At the time, I was already extremely suspicious. Later, when Kuzan replaced me, I finally understood."
"So you and the Revolutionary Army were on the same side all along."
After Raleigh finished speaking, everyone in the office was stunned.
With doubtful eyes, they all looked toward Sengoku.
This included officers like Gion and Tokikake, who had not been involved in this matter.
They very much hoped Sengoku would refute Raleigh's words.
But judging from Sengoku's expression, it was obvious that what Raleigh said was not wrong.
"I'm not feeling well. I'll leave first."
Gion could not accept this truth.
She could not face the complete fallout between Sengoku and Raleigh at the same time.
So she could only leave.
Garp's expression struggled violently, and he tried to explain.
"Ra—"
But Sakazuki interrupted him directly.
"There is no place for you to speak here, old man who is not even a vice admiral anymore."
Sengoku closed his eyes tightly.
Then he slowly opened his mouth and said,
"What do you want, Raleigh? To cause division and confrontation within the Navy?"
Raleigh's brows moved slightly.
Even at a time like this, Sengoku still had not forgotten to set a trap for him.
"Cut the nonsense. I do not want the matter between us to involve anyone else."
"Let us fight in the sky."
Boom!
Raleigh directly made his move, smashing through half the roof and flying into the sky.
A golden light flashed in Sengoku's eyes. He transformed into a massive golden Buddha and also flew into the sky.
Sakazuki sneered.
"Old thing, I've disliked you for a long time. This time, let's settle everything at once."
Sakazuki and Garp rushed into the sky at the same time, entangling each other as they flew toward the rear mountain.
Rumbling sounds continued to echo.
Borsalino looked at Kuzan with an expression of fear and said,
"Kuzan, you'd better not move."
The laser on his fingertip had already lit up, ready to launch an attack at Kuzan at any moment.
Kuzan had just been about to act, but Tsuru beside him stopped him.
"Don't move."
Tsuru shook her head.
It was not that she did not want to help Sengoku.
Rather, in the current situation, allowing Sengoku to fight one-on-one was already considered very fair.
Among the Navy's vice admirals, more than half of those who could truly fight were under Raleigh and Sakazuki.
As for the vice admirals on Sengoku's side, many were giant vice admirals.
They had strength and rank, but if they fought the vice admirals who had experienced bloody battles, they would only be brutally beaten.
Deep down, Tsuru absolutely did not want the Navy to split.
Even though both sides' opinions had completely broken apart, she still hoped this would remain a matter between two people.
Momonga and Enel stood at the front, staring at Tsuru, Tokikake, and the others as they said.
"Vice Admiral Tsuru, please calm these people down. We are all colleagues. There is no need to draw swords against one another."
From the very beginning, Raleigh had already instructed them.
If the vice admirals could avoid fighting, then they should avoid it.
It would be best if the battlefield ended only between him and Sengoku.
As for Sakazuki wanting to fight Garp, there was no need to stop that either.
Raleigh still had uses for the other officers.
Even those from Sengoku's faction could still be sent out to fight pirates.
In any case, they still had value.
...
In the sky, it was as if a golden sun had appeared in the middle of the night.
Sengoku looked at Raleigh across from him with a solemn expression and said,
"Raleigh, I never expected things to become like this. In my heart, you have always been the person most suited to become Fleet Admiral."
"Even now, I still believe you are the best choice for Fleet Admiral. Even Kuzan is far inferior to you."
"Unfortunately, this time, I am not doing this for myself. I am doing this because the Navy cannot allow such a precedent to be set."
Raleigh split his mouth into a grin and mocked him freely.
"Sengoku, this is why I say you have grown old. You have even mistaken the logic of this world."
"No wonder the Navy's glory nearly disappeared while you were in office."
"Remember this: in this world, the one with the bigger fist is always the one whose words make sense."
"Not some damned human sentiment. Only people without enough strength use personal feelings to make up for it!"
Back when Raleigh was in the North Blue, if his strength had not been insufficient, he would not have borrowed Borsalino's name to act.
But after his strength became powerful enough, no one ever mentioned again that he was Borsalino's younger brother.
Boom!
The wall was suddenly smashed open.
Everyone present instinctively drew their swords and weapons to face the newcomer.
"Hah… good, I made it in time."
Zephyr panted heavily as he looked at everyone present.
With just one sweep of his gaze, he could tell how many people were in the room.
"Zephyr, you're here."
Tsuru's expression relaxed.
Although she was stronger in strategy, in terms of combat ability, she was ultimately still inferior to an admiral.
If the people here accidentally started fighting, she would have no way to stop them.
"What are you all standing around for?!"
"Put your weapons away! Get out there and organize people to calm the soldiers down!"
"I do not want to involve myself in the matter between Sengoku, Garp, Raleigh, and Sakazuki."
"But the Navy cannot split apart because of this."
After all, Zephyr had served as an admiral and instructor for many years.
His prestige and orders were still extremely effective among these vice admirals.
Even Kuzan and Borsalino had to call him teacher.
Out of respect for Zephyr, the vice admirals from both sides all left to calm down the Navy soldiers outside, preventing certain drunken soldiers from doing something foolish.