Vice Admiral Tsuru gradually understood Taro's past experiences, and the doubts in her heart grew fewer and fewer. Finally, she asked, "Is your family noble?"
You're kidding; in my grand Celestial Empire, how could there be a privileged class like the nobility?
"No, just ordinary folk, at most a middle-class family. You can't just say things like that!"
Taro hurriedly denied it.
Vice Admiral Tsuru's eyes were unreadable, feeling that Taro was hiding something.
"You're from the East Blue, and Garp first met you in Foosha Village. Are you from the Goa Kingdom?"
Taro was stunned. Was this mother-in-law's background check a bit too detailed?
"Uh, I suppose so."
Seeing the strange look on Taro's face, Vice Admiral Tsuru became even more convinced of her judgment and nodded, asking no further.
"Alright, that's all. Go back and rest!"
What's next? That's it?
By the time Taro came out from Vice Admiral Tsuru's office and the sea breeze hit his face, he still looked dazed.
"Hina, Taro is likely a descendant of the Goa Kingdom's nobility."
Vice Admiral Tsuru looked at her favorite subordinate and spoke softly.
Hina nodded. "Mm, but Taro doesn't seem to want to mention those things much."
"I've heard of that kingdom's nobility; they're nothing but a bunch of parasites. Living there, someone like Taro must have been in a lot of pain!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru's gaze was distant. "Hina, do you really like Taro? I must remind you, you need to know how much filth the nobles hide in private."
Hina broke into a smile. "Taro is different from them; he wouldn't."
"Sigh."
Vice Admiral Tsuru looked at Hina's smiling face, remained silent for a long time, and sighed. "No matter how different he is, he still comes from the nobility. Having been influenced by what he saw and heard, he will inevitably have come into contact with some bad things."
"Hmm? Vice Admiral Tsuru, what exactly are you trying to say? Hina is very confused!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru rubbed her forehead. "No, it's nothing. You go on with your business; I want some peace and quiet!"
Walking out of the office with a puzzled look, the sea breeze brushed her face and blew her long pink hair. Hina lit a cigarette and took a puff.
7:00 AM.
After a night of searching, the Blue Gorilla jailers failed to find Ace's body.
The results of the Marineford War were then quickly transmitted to all parts of the world via News Coos.
The newspaper headline was prominently the news of "Whitebeard Edward Newgate and Roger's son Fire Fist Ace killed in battle."
This was both to boost Marine morale and to give confidence to the civilians.
Soon, the entire world was plunged into an ocean of joy. Civilians sang and danced, celebrating this great Marine victory!
One cannot blame the civilians for their ignorance and lack of knowledge. After all, in this world, pirates like Whitebeard, who protected many islands, or Luffy, who possessed a pure heart, were few and far between.
The vast majority of pirates were those who burned, killed, looted, and committed all sorts of evil, leaving behind a trail of notoriety.
"Damn it. Whitebeard's final words have instead made those restless scumbags even more insolent."
Sengoku slammed the desk in anger, his face grim. "Notify all departments to complete their recovery as soon as possible. It's only been one morning, and the various branches have already received dozens of reports of pirate attacks!"
"Also, all Vice Admirals from Headquarters are to be deployed to various locations for reinforcements. Any pirate ship encountered by the army is to be sunk immediately; there is no need to take them alive."
"We must suppress this momentum!"
Once Sengoku finished, Akainu said with a dark expression, "This should have been done long ago. When dealing with pirates, they should be completely exterminated!"
Aokiji's eyes drifted, seemingly a bit disdainful, but in the end, he didn't say much.
Kizaru put away his nail clippers, blew the nail clippings off his fingertips, and then spoke slowly.
"Say, hasn't Taro returned? Reassign him to guard the Sabaody Archipelago!"
Kizaru's sudden proposal stunned the other three. Akainu said in a deep voice:
"You should know that the Celestial Dragons are very wary of Taro. Won't doing this scare them so much they can't sleep? Right above the Sabaody Archipelago is Marijoa!"
Sengoku thought for a moment and instead nodded. "Borsalino's proposal is good."
"The Sabaody Archipelago is a mandatory stop for pirates entering the New World. With Taro stationed there, it will be enough to deter most pirates and block them outside the New World."
"Furthermore, because it's close, the Celestial Dragons will actually feel more at ease. It shows that the World Government can more easily monitor Taro's movements, and CP0 will find it more convenient to utilize their expertise in 'intelligence' work, won't they?"
When Sengoku mentioned intelligence, his tone was a bit strange, which all Three Admirals noticed.
Since Sengoku decided to resign, it seemed his mindset had also changed. The former Fleet Admiral wouldn't have spoken in such a tone.
Just then, Vice Admiral Tsuru pushed the door open and walked in.
"I also agree with this plan."
"You're here? You heard everything?" Sengoku raised an eyebrow.
Vice Admiral Tsuru nodded.
"And there's a third point. For some reason, 'Tyrant' Bartholomew Kuma is guarding the Straw Hat Pirates crew's pirate ship. Let's just have Taro handle that matter."
As soon as the meeting of the Marine top brass ended, the Marines swung back into action.
When Taro received the order, he felt like he was about to cough up blood.
"My internal injuries are still serious. Go back and ask the Fleet Admiral if I can skip this."
Taro looked at the messenger outside the door with a constipated expression.
The messenger was a bit nervous and also a bit conflicted. "Vice Admiral Taro, this was decided after a joint discussion by the Fleet Admiral, the Great Staff Officer, and the Three Admirals. I'm afraid..."
Taro: "..."
Holy crap, there really isn't a single day of rest.
"Got it, I'll set out immediately." In the end, Taro accepted the order and waved for the messenger to return and report.
The messenger breathed a sigh of relief, saluted Taro, and quickly left.
Sabaody Archipelago, Grove 60, Marine Base.
"Vice Admiral, aren't we getting off the ship?"
Mike carefully approached Taro and asked softly.
"Yeah, Taro, don't we still have a mission? The Sabaody Garrison is already waiting at the pier, we..."
Sherman chirped and shouted.
Taro lay on the lounge chair, sipping wine, and pulled the brim of his hat down to cover his eyes, not wanting to deal with them.
"Have the Sabaody Garrison dismiss on the spot. We'll rest today and fight another day!"
Taro's mouth twitched. "Also, Sherman, why are you on my ship?"
Sherman circled to the front of Taro and crouched down, speaking very fast.
"Headquarters ordered a return to duty the day after tomorrow. The G5 Base is in the New World, and to go back, I have to pass through the Sabaody Archipelago, then have the ship raised from Marijoa to cross the Red Line. So, I just tagged along to take a look."
"Vice Admiral, that's not the point. Let's go fight Kuma first!"
Taro really wanted to kick this guy. I'm seriously injured right now; can I even win?
"Fighting Kuma is our mission." Taro pointed his finger back and forth between himself and Mike.
"This 'our' does not include you!"
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