"Native Purge Competition..."
"To think so many Celestial Dragons died..."
"But it's good they're dead! These scumbags!"
"Only, did the Rocks Pirates really just happen to encounter them by chance..."
Garp quickly finished reading the newspaper, his brow furrowing deeper as he muttered subconsciously.
But the next moment, he quickly looked around alertly.
He was a bit worried that his badmouthing of the Celestial Dragons would be heard by other Marines.
Then, he, a Marine Rear Admiral, might be stripped of his rank entirely.
After all, the current Garp didn't have the confidence to go head-to-head with the Celestial Dragons yet.
At 28 years old this year, Monkey D. Garp had successfully been promoted to Marine Rear Admiral, which was already considered young and promising.
You should know that Black Arm Zephyr was only promoted to Petty Officer Third Class at 28 and learned the Six Powers.
[Marine Ranks:]
[Admiral Level: Admiral, Vice Admiral, Marine Rear Admiral, Commodore]
[Captain Level: Navy Colonel, Commander, Lieutenant Commander]
[Lieutenant Level: Lieutenant, Lieutenant Junior Grade, Ensign, Warrant Officer]
[Non-Commissioned Officer Level: Master Chief Petty Officer, Chief Petty Officer, Petty Officer Third Class]
[Enlisted Level: Seaman First Class, Seaman Apprentice, Seaman Recruit, Chore Boy]
---
However, Zephyr's growth curve was extremely exaggerated.
He only became a Petty Officer Third Class at 28, but in just a few short years, he became a Haki master.
At 34, he became a powerful elite Vice Admiral and earned the title "Black Arm Zephyr."
In those six years, he rose from Petty Officer Third Class to Vice Admiral, jumping twelve ranks; his promotion speed was no less than that of the King of Hard Work, Koby.
And the King of Hard Work, Koby, rose twelve ranks from a Chore Boy in two years to become a Navy Colonel.
This four-year time difference doesn't really mean much.
After all, promotions at the Admiral level are much more difficult.
Most importantly, Black Arm Zephyr became an Admiral at 38, making him almost the youngest Admiral in Marine history.
---
You should know that Borsalino Kizaru only joined the Marines at 26 and was still a Vice Admiral at 46; twelve years before the original plot, he was still carrying out trash missions like capturing the Fishman Arlong.
During the God Valley Incident, Buddha Sengoku was still a Vice Admiral at 41. The time of his promotion to Admiral is unknown, but it might have been two years after the God Valley Incident, promoted alongside Black Arm Zephyr, who was five years younger.
But what is clear is that when Corazon died 13 years before the original plot, Sengoku was still an Admiral at 66 and had not yet been promoted to Fleet Admiral.
Furthermore, regarding the disastrous failure of the important mission for the Ope-Ope no Mi, the Gorosei might have even reprimanded Admiral Sengoku, who had "only lost an adopted son," making it unlikely for him to be promoted to Fleet Admiral in a short time.
The timing of Sengoku's promotion to Fleet Admiral and the rise of the three Logia type Admirals should be roughly around 10 years before the original plot.
After all, that was the year Gekko Moriah, Jinbe, and Doflamingo all became Shichibukai in the same year.
This somewhat feels like Buddha Sengoku making a strong start as a new official.
After all, even the Pirate Empress, who possesses Conqueror's Haki, was personally "recommended" to the World Government by Buddha Sengoku.
However, Doflamingo was among them because he saw Gekko Moriah and Jinbe becoming Shichibukai, and the power of the Shichibukai was greatly increasing.
Added to the previous four—Crocodile, Dracule Mihawk, the Pirate Empress, and the Lizard King Hanafuda—the Shichibukai positions were nearly full.
Doflamingo himself went to seize the heavenly tribute and secured the final position by blackmailing the Celestial Dragons.
Having just become Fleet Admiral, Buddha Sengoku, out of various considerations and pressure from the Gorosei and Celestial Dragons...
...could only watch helplessly as Doflamingo, the "killer of his son," successfully became a legal Shichibukai.
This was more or less frustrating!
---
Just as Garp finished reading the explosive news about Red Soil Island.
Sengoku hurried over, also holding several newspapers, his face looking incredibly anxious.
This "Tactician" saw even more serious consequences than Garp did.
If these newspapers spread throughout the world...
...the prestige of the World Government would suffer an unprecedented blow.
Those Affiliated Kingdoms would feel endless dread toward the Celestial Dragons who held these "Native Purge Competitions."
They would worry if their own kingdom would become the next target.
This would ignite a crisis of trust between the World Government and the Affiliated Kingdoms.
After all, Red Soil Island was an island belonging to an Earl under a powerful Affiliated Kingdom in the West Blue.
And because the Celestial Dragons were slaughtered en masse by the Rocks Pirates...
...the "Descendants of God" halo that the Celestial Dragons held high would be completely shattered by the Rocks Pirates.
Celestial Dragons were never Descendants of Gods.
If they are killed, they die!
"Don't worry, even if the sky falls, Admiral Kong is still standing in front."
This time, it was actually Garp, the brute, who was comforting the somewhat panicked Tactician, Sengoku.
"How can I not worry? If the World Government collapses, the whole world will be plunged into war."
"The Marines might also fall apart!"
In truth, Sengoku was also cursing those scumbags among the Celestial Dragons in his heart.
In his eyes, the Marines were indeed more important than the Celestial Dragons.
His Conqueror's belief was to have the Marines reign supreme over the world!
He had heard rumors before about certain Marine generals disappearing after executing a particular mission.
There were even some Marines who, after executing certain missions, would act erratically or quit the Marines.
However, the Marine high command strictly forbade the spreading of such news.
After all, one could easily end up in a military court or even be "disappeared" by accident.
As a Marine Rear Admiral, Sengoku had always been secretive about these mysterious reports.
He always wanted to investigate thoroughly but was also worried about being "disappeared."
He knew his power wasn't strong enough, and his position wasn't high enough.
He didn't have the strength to change everything yet.
He could only keep a low profile and develop.
But now, these newspapers had exposed the Celestial Dragons' "Study Tour Competition" to the world.
What "Study Tour Competition"? This was fundamentally a "Native Purge Competition."
Those World Nobles, the Celestial Dragons, actually shot humans as if they were prey.
They truly deserve to die!
This had already seriously violated Sengoku's current belief in justice!
He still wanted the Marines to reign supreme and suppress all the pirates in the world.
But now he discovered that the World Government, which paid the Marines' salaries, was the most cruel thug of all.
The Celestial Dragons slaughtered every living thing on an island every three years; this was even more tyrannical than those Great Pirates.
"Then what can you, a lowly Marine Rear Admiral, do?"
"Make the Celestial Dragons repent and apologize?"
"Or have Admiral Kong lead us and our other Marine colleagues to purge those damn Celestial Dragons?"
Garp was also angry inside, but right now they were insignificant; they weren't even Vice Admirals, so they couldn't do anything at all.
The Celestial Dragons deserved to die, and those pirates deserved to die too.
He really wanted to take out both the Celestial Dragons and the pirates.
They were all trash and scumbags anyway, not worth mourning!
---
Just then, the piercing sound of a broadcast rang throughout the entire G1 Marine Branch.
"Warning! Warning!!"
"Everyone, do not be deceived or misled by this fake news. All officers at the Captain and Lieutenant levels are to immediately collect all newspapers and hand them over to the Marine Crime Investigation Department office."
"Do not spread rumors! Do not discuss this privately!"
"This is a supreme order!"
"Finally, all flag officers, please report to the Branch office for a meeting immediately!!"