Grand Line.
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
"Sengoku, what happened? Why call an emergency meeting this late?"
Garp strolled carelessly into the meeting room. He was the last to arrive; Kizaru, Aokiji, and Tsuru, who were stationed at Headquarters, were already seated.
"Watch this recording first. Sean sent it over half an hour ago," Sengoku said, gesturing for Garp to sit down as he played the video footage.
On the screen, two sailing warships from the Donquixote Family were slowly approaching a Marine vessel. Once they closed the distance to about 300 meters, they suddenly launched an attack.
A barrage of cannonballs rained down on the warship. Fortunately, the ship was manned by Lucci and several others from CP9 who were proficient in the Six Powers, allowing them to intercept every single shell with ease.
The recording ended there.
"According to Sean's report, about an hour ago, they spotted two Donquixote Family warships attacking a civilian vessel. The incident occurred roughly two miles outside the 16th Branch fortress," Sengoku explained.
"What? That Doflamingo bastard went all the way to the East Blue to cause trouble? And right outside a Marine fortress? What the hell is he playing at?" Garp flared up instantly.
The East Blue was his home. For Doflamingo to dare pull such a stunt there was unacceptable. More importantly, attacking civilians just two miles from a Marine base was a blatant provocation. Even with the legal right to plunder granted to a Warlord, this wasn't how it was supposed to be used.
"And the result?" Tsuru asked calmly, ignoring the agitated Garp.
"The report states that upon discovering the situation, Sean immediately led his Marines to intervene, stopping the attack and escorting the civilian ship into the fortress," Sengoku replied. "The footage you just saw followed. Sean initially thought they were coming to negotiate, but they opened fire as soon as they got close."
"After the battle, all the pirates were wiped out, including one of Doflamingo's executives, Gladius."
If Akainu had been present, he would have been furious, likely shouting, "I've said it before—the Warlords cannot be trusted! I'll lead a force to Dressrosa and drag Doflamingo back myself!"
Unfortunately, he was currently stationed at the G1 Branch in the New World.
"Fleet Admiral, this could get troublesome. Doflamingo won't just let it slide after losing an executive," Aokiji remarked after a brief moment of contemplation.
This highlighted the difference between the Admirals. Faced with the same event, Akainu's first instinct was to take the offensive and bring Doflamingo to justice—especially since the pirates attacked the Marines, a severe violation of the Warlord agreement that the World Government would likely overlook.
Aokiji, however, thought about the fallout and how to handle the aftermath.
Meanwhile, Kizaru was over there trimming his nails, acting as if he hadn't heard a word. Aside from Akainu, the other two Admirals were truly beyond words.
"Sengoku, report this incident to the World Government along with the evidence," Tsuru advised, acting as the Chief of Staff for Marine Headquarters. "You know Doflamingo has... certain connections. At the same time, we need to tighten surveillance on the Donquixote Family to ensure Doflamingo doesn't fly into a rage and head to the East Blue to target Sean."
"As for the Headquarters' mobile force, Borsalino should remain on twenty-four-hour standby for the time being. If anything happens at the 16th Branch, he can provide immediate support."
Tsuru knew Sengoku wouldn't agree to an immediate arrest or the stripping of Doflamingo's Warlord status, so she didn't suggest it. Instead, she offered a pragmatic containment plan.
Kizaru, who had been acting indifferent while grooming his nails, suddenly stiffened.
'Wait, twenty-four-hour standby? Absolutely not!!'
'Unless... I get a raise!'
'Triple... no, I need five times my salary!'
"Right, let's do that," Sengoku concluded.
"Wait! I have something to say!"
"Borsalino, what is it?"
"Fleet Admiral, I don't mind the overtime, but we need to agree on the overtime pay first!"
"Same as before, triple pay. Satisfied?"
"No way! This is twenty-four-hour standby! I need more!"
"Shut up. It's decided. Meeting adjourned!"
Sengoku stormed out of the room. Every other Marine worked overtime daily without extra pay, yet this man—who usually clocked out exactly on time—demanded a premium just for one assignment. He already got triple pay, and now he was asking for five?
As Sengoku left, the other three followed, leaving Kizaru alone in the room, questioning his life choices.
"Twenty-four-hour standby for only triple pay... how terrifying..." Kizaru lamented. "I am a Marine Admiral! This is blatant exploitation!!"
'''
East Blue.
Outside the 16th Branch fortress.
"Commodore, the warship inspection is complete. No damage was found that would threaten navigation!"
"Very good. What about the pirates? Any survivors?"
"None. It seems we missed the optimal window for search and rescue while inspecting the ship."
"I see. That's a shame, though since they were pirates, it doesn't really matter. Return to the fortress!"
"Yes, Commodore!"
Listening to the conversation between Sean and Lucci, Kaku and Jabra looked completely bewildered. They noticed that Lucci's personality seemed to have changed significantly... he was actually exchanging banter and deadpan lies with Sean.
Ten minutes later, the warship returned to the fortress and docked at the military port on the central island.
"Where are the rescued people?" Sean asked a Lieutenant at the docks as he descended the gangplank.
"Reporting to the Commodore, they seemed to have been starving for several days, so they've been sent to the cafeteria."
"I see. Notify them that once they've had their fill, they are to meet me in the meeting room of the branch building!"
"Yes, Commodore!"
An hour later, Sean finally saw the rescued group in the meeting room. His eyes lit up instantly.
There were twenty-seven of them, but that wasn't the key. The key was that every single one of them was wearing a white lab coat, although the coats were now tattered and torn. Furthermore, they all had the frail appearance of intellectuals.
A suspicion formed in Sean's mind.
'Could it be... that these people are all researchers?'
"Commodore Sean, thank you so much for saving us. I am Retes."
'Retes...'
Sean searched his memory but found he had never heard of the man; he wasn't a character who had appeared in the original story.
"Who are you people, and why is the Donquixote Family hunting you down?"
"We were originally a research team from the Vinsmoke family. Although we managed to escape once, we were soon captured by Doflamingo, who forced us to develop weapons and equipment for him."
"So, you escaped again?"
"Yes. He is a pirate, after all. Furthermore, we discovered that Doflamingo is an underground arms dealer who sells weapons all over the world, causing countless tragedies. We pretended to obey him while secretly preparing for over a year, and eventually, we managed to break free."
Hearing this, Sean's interest was immediately piqued.
'A weapons research team, and from the Vinsmoke family to boot...'
In this world of pirates, there were very few places where technology far exceeded the global norm, and the Vinsmoke family was undoubtedly one of them.
The people on this ship were all goldmines of talent!
It also explained why the Donquixote Family had pursued them all the way to the East Blue—they were so desperate to recapture them that they were even willing to attack the Marines to do it.
"So, what are your plans now?"
"We can't trust anyone else... we don't know..."