"The Marines? A New World Marine?"
Everyone was stunned. Even Sean was caught off guard for a moment. However, he quickly realized what the Five Elders were planning.
In truth, the fundamental purpose of the Paramount War had always been to restore balance. As previously established, the World Government never actually intended to wipe out every single pirate. To the Five Elders, pirates were the very foundation upon which their global dominion rested.
The strategy was simple: allow pirates to pose a massive threat to various kingdoms, then establish the Marines to suppress those pirates. This forced the kingdoms to join the World Government to secure protection, paying an annual protection fee known as the Heavenly Tribute.
However, when Roger ushered in the Great Pirate Era, the balance between the Marines and the pirate factions was completely shattered. This forced the government to introduce the Warlord system as a desperate measure. By creating a new coalition of the Marines and the Warlords, they sought to regain a semblance of stability.
In the original timeline, the Five Elders explicitly stated that the balance between these three great powers was the foundation of the world's stability. That was the core of their philosophy.
The Paramount War had been conceived because, even with the Warlords, the pirates had become too powerful. It was only natural; if the Four Emperors' crews moved in unison, they could flatten the Marines and Warlords combined. Thus, the Paramount War was essentially another phase of the "re-balancing" project. In the Five Elders' vision, sacrificing a few pieces to eliminate one of the Four Emperors would bring the balance back to a stable state.
But in the original story, the Paramount War ended in a series of accidents. A massive number of dangerous criminals escaped Impel Down, and Blackbeard rose to power. Instead of restoring balance, the pirate faction grew even stronger. To compensate for this failure, the Five Elders had to bolster the Marines, granting Akainu permission to launch the World Military Draft.
The current situation, however, was different.
Whitebeard was dead, no one had escaped Impel Down, and Blackbeard's crew had been completely annihilated. The Marines had suffered minimal casualties. The situation was the polar opposite of the original timeline; the balance was still broken, but this time, it was because the Marines had become too dominant.
Consequently, the Five Elders' strategy shifted from strengthening the Marines to weakening them. This proposal to split the Marine was the implementation of that plan—a way to dilute the Marines' power to restore the global balance.
For Sean, however, this wasn't a problem. In fact, it aligned perfectly with his own desires.
A New World Marine, completely independent from Headquarters?
'That... actually sounds great!'
Still, he wondered if the split would only involve his 16th Branch.
"Fleet Admiral, does the document state that only our 16th Branch is to go to the New World?"
"No," Sengoku replied. "The Five Elders intend for Akainu to accompany you. Additionally, you may select a group of flag officers below the rank of Admiral from Headquarters. Finally, the thirty thousand permanent marines of the G1 Branch will all be transferred into the New World Marine's order of battle."
"I see. Understood..." Sean nodded.
Akainu was coming with him? Now this was interesting. Originally, Sean had planned to push Akainu into the role of Fleet Admiral while he himself headed to the New World to establish a G-series branch. Now, the roles were reversed: Sean was the Fleet Admiral of the New World Marine, and Akainu was his subordinate.
Thinking of this, Sean stole a glance at Akainu. To his surprise, Akainu didn't look dissatisfied; if anything, he seemed excited.
It made sense. Based on his few interactions with Akainu, Sean had realized that Akainu viewed the position of Fleet Admiral differently than most. In one sense, he was obsessed with the role because he despised Sengoku's methods and wanted to climb the ranks to change the Marines from the top. But in another sense, he didn't care about the title at all.
If the person in charge was compatible with his vision, Akainu was perfectly happy remaining an Admiral. Compared to sitting in an office processing paperwork or issuing orders from the rear, he preferred being on the front lines.
Therefore, the creation of a New World Marine independent of Headquarters—with Sean as the leader—was something he not only accepted but fully supported. He was already fantasizing about the carnage he would unleash upon the remaining three Emperors in the New World.
Furthermore, with Sean as the Fleet Admiral of the New World Marine, there would be no shortage of those powerful Steel Warships. The thought of commanding a massive fleet of steel behemoths across the New World filled Akainu with anticipation. Massive ships and heavy cannons were the ultimate dream for any man, especially for a pure, iron-blooded soldier like Akainu.
'''
Three days later, Sean submitted a list to Sengoku.
The list contained several familiar names.
Admiral Candidate Gion.
Former Admiral Zephyr.
Vice Admirals Onigumo, Doberman, and Momonga.
Captains Hina and Smoker.
Among the Vice Admirals, Sean had only requested three. He chose them based on both strength and political faction. Onigumo and Doberman were the most resolute of the Hawks, while Momonga was a neutral party. As for the other Vice Admirals, Sean had no respect for the Doves.
They were amateurs in actual warfare but experts in internal politics, spending their days playing games within Headquarters.
Zephyr went without saying. As the chief instructor of the Marines, though his strength was not what it once was, his teaching ability remained among the best in the world. Moreover, he was Sean's teacher.
As for Hina and Smoker, although they were only Captains, they were undisputed assets with immense potential. In an era where the Marines lacked a strong middle generation, these two were standout talents.
Sengoku glanced at the list and immediately understood Sean's intentions. He didn't say much, simply nodding his agreement. Both men had recently ascended to their positions and needed time to establish their own authority.
It was obvious that the Hawks would not give Aokiji much face, and the Doves would certainly cause trouble for Sean.
'Let it be,' Sengoku thought. 'Perhaps using this opportunity to separate the Doves from the Hawks will be a good thing for both Aokiji and Sean.'
As for Zephyr, Sengoku had been reluctant to let him go. However, he recalled that the Five Elders had mentioned their intention to fill the vacant Warlord positions and had sent over a list of candidates.
Someone on that list... might cause Zephyr to lose control completely.
Because of that, he agreed.
"Old man Sengoku, there's something I've been wanting to ask you."
"Go ahead."
"Back when Doflamingo was causing trouble in the East Blue, I told you that Vergo of the G5 Branch was Doflamingo's mole in the Marines. It's been so long—why is that guy still untouched?"
"As for that... I did have Tsuru investigate, and we uncovered quite a bit. However, I believed that instead of taking him down immediately, it would be far more useful to keep him around to feed Doflamingo false intelligence from time to time."
Hearing this, Sean looked at him with a gaze of sheer contempt.
'Just for one Doflamingo, you're willing to pay the price of an entire Marine G-branch?'
'You always insist on showing off your strategic planning even when you have the power to simply crush them. I finally understand where your reputation as a "brilliant strategist" comes from!'
'It's absolutely delusional...'
"So, the G5 Branch should be part of the New World Marine's order now, right?"
"Correct!"
"Good. Then Vergo, Doflamingo, and the rest of the Donquixote Family shall be the first ones we execute to establish our authority once the New World Marine is formed!"
"Hold on, you brat! You can't just move against Doflamingo!"
"Why? Because he's a former Celestial Dragon?"
"You know that, and yet..."
"Old man, do you really think someone like me, who dared to strike a Celestial Dragon at the Sabaody Archipelago, cares about someone who's had his status stripped?"
Sean looked completely indifferent. Sengoku, however, frowned.
"Sean, the problem with Doflamingo isn't just his former status. If I'm not mistaken, he possesses some secret regarding the Celestial Dragons. That's why even the Five Elders don't dare act against him recklessly."
"I know."
"What? You know?"
"Of course. But what does that have to do with me?"
Hearing this, Sengoku felt a massive headache coming on. He had a feeling that the moment Sean took office, he would cause absolute chaos.
However, Sengoku was no longer in a position to order Sean not to touch Doflamingo. Not only was he stepping down after completing the handover with Aokiji, but Sean was now the Fleet Admiral of the New World Marine, operating completely independently from Headquarters. Sengoku simply had no authority to issue him orders.
Subsequently, the two of them discussed the establishment of the New World Marine, the timing of personnel deployment, and other logistics. Once they finished, Sean prepared to leave Headquarters and return to the East Blue.
'''
As Akainu and the others were seeing Sean off at the pier, a masked Robin suddenly ran over.
"Sean, urgent news has arrived from the G1 Branch."
"What happened?"
"A large number of New World pirate crews are attacking the G1 Branch. The situation is critical!"
"Is it led by the crews of the Three Emperors?"
"From what we can tell, no. Since the war ended, the Big Mom Pirates and the Beast Pirates have been frantically seizing the former territories of the Whitebeard Pirates; they don't have the time to trouble the G1 Branch."
"So other pirate crews are acting on their own?"
"Yes. According to reports, there are thirty-seven New World pirate crews. However, the G1 Branch has already deployed twenty thousand elites elsewhere, and with the high-level combatants gone, they likely won't be able to hold them off!"
"Get Blueno over here!"
"Understood!"
Robin nodded and immediately departed. Sean then looked toward Akainu.
"Admiral Sakazuki, I'm afraid your vacation is going to end early."
"The vacation doesn't matter, but even if we leave Headquarters immediately, it will still take five days to reach the G1 Branch. We probably won't make it in time..."
Before Akainu could finish his sentence, an energy portal suddenly opened nearby. Only then did Akainu remember.
Right—Sean had a Door-Door Fruit ability user under his command who could perform spatial teleportation, transporting troops to the G1 Branch in an instant. In that case, timing wasn't an issue.
"Admiral Sakazuki, Vice Admirals Onigumo, Doberman, and Momonga—sorry to trouble you, but shall we make a trip together?"
"Yes, Fleet Admiral!"
A moment later, the four of them stepped through the portal and vanished. Following them, Sean led Lucci and the others, along with ten squadrons, into the gateway.