He answered immediately.
Before he could speak, the Den Den Mushi shifted into a familiar face: a flat cap, a wild mane of white curls, and a thick white beard. The snail screamed at him. "Where are you now? Why wasn't your office Den Den Mushi picking up? Do you have any idea what's happening? Seems you've given up on being Fleet Admiral!"
What?
Had the East Blue incident already gotten out?
The dressing-down stoked Sengoku's own fury, but he swallowed it. He was staring at the face of Saint Jaygarcia Saturn of the Gorosei, transposed onto his Den Den Mushi.
Because in the end, the fault lay with Marine HQ.
Sengoku drew a deep breath. His voice went heavy. "My apologies. The East Blue Branch incident is a failure of Marine oversight. We will resolve it swiftly. It will not interfere with Celestial Dragons descent."
"The East Blue? Celestial Dragons descending? Which idiot is heading down there this time? Don't they realize how dangerous things are down below right now?"
It wasn't about the East Blue?
Before Sengoku could react, the face on Saint Jaygarcia Saturn's Den Den Mushi went blank. Then he seemed to remember he had far more pressing matters. His voice went hard.
"It seems you, the Fleet Admiral of the Marines, know absolutely nothing! This is unacceptable Sengoku! Forget about the East Blue. As for Celestial Dragons, I'll make sure they stay put in Mary Geoise. Right now, you-"
He was screaming now, shouting at the top of his lungs. "Get the screen on and see what Mock is saying! The New World is already in chaos! Capture that bastard, now! Don't let him keep going like this!"
*Click-clack-click.*
The Den Den Mushi cut off.
Sengoku stood there, utterly bewildered.
But recalling what Saint Jaygarcia Saturn had said, he began to piece something together.
Had Mock stirred up trouble again? Sengoku's expression hardened. "Get the screen on, now!"
At his command, Vice Admiral Tsuru activated the massive screen in the meeting room. The image flickered.
A familiar figure appeared.
Bald. Clad in golden armor. Arms crossed, his face carried weight, authority. He was in the middle of saying something.
Everyone in the room listened.
Then everyone tensed.
Sengoku slammed his hands on the table and shot to his feet, glaring at a dumbfounded Garp. He jabbed a finger at Mock on the screen and shouted, "And you still claim this punk isn't the Pirate King's son? If he's not, then how the hell does he know these secrets?"
Garp just stared blankly. 'Don't ask me. I've got no idea either.'
After the Year-End Banquet ended, Mock was shoved off to the New World. He sailed his ship into open waters and, in front of everyone, facing the entire sea, roared his dream aloud once more.
That's right, the very same dream the World Government had strictly forbidden. Once again, he drew their attention, along with the Marines.
And then.
He unexpectedly ran into the Whitebeard Pirates, who were out adventuring, and received another invitation to join their crew.
Especially since he had declared war on the World Government not long before, the Whitebeard Pirates cheered for him and held a grand banquet in his honor.
Even his brother from a different mother, Portgas D. Ace, didn't find him as annoying as last time.
He still didn't approve of him, but he was stunned by Mock's sheer nerve. That kind of guts was just too damn unbelievable!
But Mock didn't stay long. The Whitebeard Pirates were extremely welcoming, but Mock chose to leave anyway.
After all, he'd shown his face, his job for the month was done, and if he found the time later, maybe he could even take leave and head back to the East Blue to unwind. Besides, the Whitebeard Pirates were just too enthusiastic, they even invited him to soak his feet together with them. Marco the Phoenix, their second-in-command, very eagerly gave up his spot near Pops Whitebeard, wanting him to feel the warmth of family too.
That privilege was only for this one time, though. Tomorrow it would go right back to him. Unless Mock joined them and became one of their brothers, Marco was not giving up that precious spot!
The earnest, reluctant, and ultimately resolute look in his eyes, the silent, confused expressions all around, Whitebeard's shocked and stunned face, all those pairs of eyes, the enthusiasm was just too much.
Except in the end, Mock still refused! I mean, one bucket of water for seventeen pairs of feet to soak in... as a Romance Dawn Super VIP, that was simply unbearable. Especially when Blackbeard Teach submerged his own feet, the water... it left Mock utterly speechless.
No way! Absolutely no way he could soak in that!
If being brothers meant sharing that one bucket of water, then being brothers could go to hell!
Refusing like that might hurt their feelings, but Mock refused without hesitation.
And considering the sheer force of their hospitality, he figured that if he stuck around, he'd end up soaking in that bucket one day no matter what. He thought it over... and decided he'd better leave, fast.
But as he was taking his leave, the Whitebeard Pirates all carried a strange air. Their crooked smiles, their reflective nods, that air of recognition mixed with a sense that this had been perfectly expected, Mock couldn't make heads or tails of it.
Mock was baffled, but since he couldn't figure it out, he stopped dwelling on it.
One thing though, when he left, two more people came along. Blackbeard Teach and his brother from a different mother, Ace.
Mock refused at first.
He knew his own situation well enough. Mock had a clear-eyed view of himself, his bounty was all hot air. If they stuck too close, what would happen when the bluff got exposed? And he was planning to head back to the East Blue later for a proper foot soak. How was he supposed to slip away with those two tagging along?
But no matter how many times Mock refused, it was useless.
Those guys kept going on about brothers getting closer and building bonds. When Teach and Ace jumped straight onto his ship, Mock figured refusing would only lead to a fight, so he went with it.
That's how he wound up with those two and his own two underlings, off on a so-called adventure.
Of course, Mock was also thinking about stirring up more trouble to grab the World Government's attention while Whitebeard Pirates crewmen were still on his ship. Maybe even pad his numbers for the month,
Then Boss called.
When Mock hung up the Den Den Mushi, he walked out with a dead serious face and looked across everyone gathered on deck.
Seeing him appear, Ace and Teach stopped drilling Mock's only two crewmen, Mohji and Cabaji.
Those two were way too weak. With strength like that, they had no business setting foot in the New World.
Though they also knew that Mock's former crew had been brutally killed by a Marine Admiral, and that these two were Mock's new recruits. So, on Teach's suggestion, the two of them planned to use this time to help Mock whip them into shape.
"Something happen, Mock?" Teach studied Mock's grim expression, then broke into a cheerful grin. "Need a hand? If you do, just say it, we're buddies brothers, after all!"
"Right, Mock!" Beside him, Ace looked at Mock with complicated eyes, tugged his hat down, and nodded. "I still haven't accepted you or that man, but if you need help, you can say so."
Ace's feelings toward Mock were tangled. He didn't want to admit that he was that man's son, but Mock hadn't done anything wrong either, and no matter what anyone said... they were brothers.
Ace figured, if you could just set that man aside, they could've been pretty damn good brothers.
Even Mohji and Cabaji, whose whole bodies trembled after getting put through the wringer, forced themselves upright. Their sagging faces twisted into lousy smiles as they looked at Mock. "Captain Mock, we can help too."
Sure, they'd come looking for Captain Buggy, but after all this time, there was still no sign of him.
Maybe Buggy was already...
So sure, Mock was hiding some huge secret, but the way things looked, Captain Mock had real prospects! Barely into the New World and already rubbing shoulders with an Emperor of the Sea.
Which said it all, maybe this wasn't such a bad choice after all.
Mohji and Cabaji leaned on each other, faces full of conviction despite the trembling. "Our strength might not be much, but no matter what comes at us, we'll follow the captain!"
Only, Mock stared at them all, thrown. He hadn't expected any of that. But he thought of Boss's orders. He put the serious face back on, shook his head, and said, "I'm not in any trouble."
He looked at their startled faces. Looked like they wanted to say something, but he didn't give them the chance. He crossed his arms, fixed them with a glare, and said flatly, "It's just that this sea is a little too quiet."
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