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Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
Inside the Fleet Admiral's office, Sengoku, wearing his signature seagull cap, stared at the report in disbelief."Crocodile... was killed by Logan?!"
He'd already been shocked to hear that Crocodile had tried to seize control of Alabasta—but learning he'd been taken out by a rookie pirate? That was on a whole other level.
Sure, every year, a few upstarts made waves across the seas.But most of them were flashes in the pan—few survived long enough to make a name for themselves,let alone shake the Grand Line.
And now, Logan had just entered the Grand Line… and already taken down a Warlord of the Sea?!
"This is… unbelievable," Vice Admiral Tsuru muttered beside him, equally stunned.
Unheard of wasn't even the word for it.
"It seems we've underestimated Logan," Sengoku said quietly, his gaze drifting to the wanted poster beside him.
[Logan – Captain of the Logan Pirates. Suspected Cloud-Cloud Fruit user.Bounty: 30,000,000 Berries.]
Sengoku recalled a phone call he'd received a few days earlier from Garp in Loguetown.Garp's tone had been unusually grim.
"Logan's swordsmanship… looks like Golden Lion's style."
"Could he actually be Shiki's disciple?!" Sengoku frowned.The more he thought about it, the more it made sense.
Garp and Shiki had been rivals in their prime—they'd fought dozens of times, if not hundreds.If Garp said Logan's swordsmanship matched Shiki's, then there was no mistake.
Ever since the Golden Lion escaped Impel Down years ago, he'd vanished without a trace,as if he'd evaporated from the world.
Sengoku had assumed the old lion had died somewhere in hiding—but now, it looked like he might've retired to train a successor.
"Great… just great." Sengoku rubbed his temples, frustration creasing his face.
Not only was Logan a growing threat,but the whole Crocodile mess was a nightmare to handle.
A government-recognized pirate had tried to overthrow a World Government nation,only to be stopped and exposed by a rookie pirate—who'd ended up saving Alabasta?!
If the public ever learned the truth, the Marines would become a laughingstock.
Sure, technically, Logan had done them a favor…but they couldn't let him take the credit.
The moment Sengoku got the report, he sent a team to Alabasta with two objectives:first, assess the current situation on the ground;second, and most importantly,make sure the Marines got all the glory.
A few carefully staged photos,a few "official" reports from the accompanying journalists—and the world would soon read a very different story.
As for the people of Alabasta who knew what really happened?They were too busy rebuilding their ruined kingdom to worry about spreading the truth.And even if they did talk—who would believe them?
Across all six seas—from East Blue to the New World—people took Marine reports as gospel.
Once the papers printed it,black became white,and lies became fact.
The "truth" everyone would soon believe was simple:a rogue pirate tried to seize Alabasta,but a brave Marine officer saw through his plot,defeated the criminal,and saved the country.
Add a few heroic photos,and once again, the Marines' reputation would soar.
"Tsuru, has Hina arrived in Alabasta yet?" Sengoku asked.
Tsuru set down the wanted poster and nodded slightly. "She has."
They'd already agreed on the official story:all credit for saving Alabasta would go to Captain Hina.
Hina wasn't thrilled about it,but she wasn't about to argue—she wasn't Smoker, after all.
"This means Logan's bounty will have to rise—by a lot," Tsuru said, frowning at the photo in the paper.
Sengoku nodded in agreement.Taking down Crocodile was no small feat.That kind of power deserved at least a nine-digit bounty.
"Set it at five hundred million," Sengoku said.
"Five hundred—? Isn't that a bit—"
Tsuru started to protest,but then she remembered who'd died: Crocodile.
Twenty years ago, Crocodile's bounty had been 81 million.If he weren't a Warlord now,he'd easily be worth over 300 million today.(He didn't even have Haki back then.)
So five hundred million for Logan?Yeah, that sounded about right.
And if anyone asked why his bounty had jumped so high—they could always claim it was because of his "connection" to the Golden Lion.
"Keep a close eye on Logan," Tsuru added,handing Sengoku another stack of files."But don't forget about these other troublemakers either. Their strength is nothing to scoff at."
Sengoku sighed as he looked over the photos inside—a lineup of dangerous new pirates emerging across the seas:
Trafalgar Law, the "Surgeon of Death."
Basil Hawkins, the "Magician."
Capone Bege, the "Gangster."
Eustass Kid, the "Captain."
And, of course, the "Straw Hat Pirates" led by Monkey D. Luffy.
"Usually we get one or two promising brats a year… What the hell's going on this time?!"
"One after another, they keep popping up," Sengoku groaned, pressing a hand to his forehead."Looks like I won't be getting much rest anytime soon."
Being Fleet Admiral was anything but easy.
When his eyes landed on the grinning face of the last rookie—that straw-hatted brat with the wide smile—his blood pressure spiked.
He looked exactly like that old fool Garp when he was young.
"Where's Garp? Wasn't he supposed to discipline his grandson?!" Sengoku exploded."That kid's turning the entire East Blue upside down!"
Tsuru shrugged helplessly. "Who knows? That family was never meant to live quietly."
A grandfather who's a Marine hero.A father who leads the Revolutionary Army.And now a grandson who's a pirate.
Three generations—three different sides.
And to make things worse,both Dragon and Luffy stood directly against the Marines and the World Government.
"Where is Garp right now?" Sengoku growled, his patience wearing thin.If he didn't knock some sense into that man soon,his grandson would cause chaos on a global scale.
"I heard he brought two people back from East Blue," Tsuru said. "He's in the training yard."
Without another word, Sengoku stormed out of his office, fuming.His subordinate hurried after him.
Garp's grandson was running wild,and that old fool still had time to train other people?!
Under the Marines' swift and "efficient" operation, Logan's new bounty posters soon spread across the world.
They thought their cover-up was flawless—but they'd forgotten one man.
Morgans, the president of the World Economy News,whose network of reporters had eyes in every sea.
The journalist stationed in Alabasta got the real story firsthandand immediately sent it to Morgans.
Overjoyed, Morgans ordered the entire newsroom to work overtime.Printing presses roared day and night.
The next morning,countless News Coo birds soared into the sky,carrying freshly printed papers to every corner of the world.
Across the six seas,every major power learned the truth.
And the name "Logan"…spread like wildfire.
The seas erupted.
Grand Line — Somewhere in the Calm Belt.
A coffin-shaped boat, glowing faintly with ghostly blue fire, cut through the waves.
"Five hundred million, huh?" Dracule Mihawk muttered, glancing at Logan's new bounty poster.He gave a small, dismissive shake of his head.
"The Marines still have no idea how strong that man really is."
Even Mihawk himself hadn't been able to defeat Logan in their duel.Five hundred million barely scratched the surface.
Still, he couldn't help but smirk."Not bad. You've only just set sail, and you're already shaking the world."
He looked up at the endless sea."I wonder what kind of storm you'll cause once you've truly grown, Logan…"
With a low chuckle, Mihawk's coffin ship sailed onward.The wanted poster fluttered from his fingers,scattering into the wind like ash.
New World — Whitebeard's Territory.
On the deck of the Moby Dick,the sound of heavy footsteps echoed.
"Pops!!!" a voice shouted from above.
The division commanders looked up as a blue-flamed figure descended onto the deck.
"Marco, what's going on?" rumbled Diamond Jozu.
"Did Ace finally catch that bastard Teach?!"Vista asked eagerly, eyes lighting up.
Marco shook his head, landing beside Whitebeard and handing him a sheet of paper.
"Pops… Crocodile's been killed."
"Hm?"
The air suddenly grew heavy.
Whitebeard's massive frame tensed, his crescent mustache twitching as he frowned down at the paper.
The other commanders crowded closer, reading over his shoulder—and then burst out laughing.
"Gurararara! What a disgrace! Tried to take Alabasta and got himself killed instead!"
"Pops, Crocodile hasn't changed a bit in twenty years."
"Guess that's what you call poetic justice!"
"Ha! What a joke of a Warlord!"
The deck filled with raucous laughter,the crew roaring with amusement at the news.
ChatGPT said:
Years ago, Crocodile had been too full of himself and challenged their old man. The result? One quake from Pops, and Crocodile's eyes suddenly cleared right up.
Not long after that, the guy disappeared completely.
Now, years later, to hear his name again—only to find out someone killed him?Yeah. Guess we can play him a funeral tune.
"Who the hell is this Logan kid?!"
"Didn't expect rookies these days to be this crazy—he just set sail and already took down Crocodile."
"Right? Back when we were his age, we couldn't even dream of pulling that off."
"Hahahaha! Pops, how about making him your son?!"
"…."
After roasting Crocodile for a while, everyone's attention naturally shifted to Logan.
Sure, they kept an eye on what was going on in the seas, but new pirates popped up every single day.
One day, some East Blue pirate slaughters a whole village.The next, some West Blue mafia topples a government.News like that came and went all the time.
Maybe they'd seen Logan's bounty poster before—but just glanced at it, then forgot.
Still, anyone who could take down Crocodile deserved their attention.
"Gurararara! That sand-playing brat probably never imagined he'd end up being a stepping stone for some rookie."
Whitebeard let out a booming laugh and grabbed a bottle of rum from the table, downing it in big gulps.
This was what made the sea exciting.
No matter how famous you were, you never knew what would happen tomorrow.
Just look at Crocodile—after all that fame, he still died at a rookie's hands.
Thinking of that, Whitebeard suddenly lost his mood for drinking. He tossed the newspaper aside and rumbled,"Marco, any news about Ace?!"
The name alone froze the whole ship's cheerful atmosphere.
Marco's face darkened. "Not yet. But I've contacted all the allied captains. The moment anyone spots Ace, they'll let us know."
The huge, burly Jozu immediately chimed in, "Don't worry, Pops. Ace's strong—he'll be fine."
"Yeah. A coward like Teach wouldn't stand a chance against him!"
The other commanders nodded in agreement.
Whitebeard's frown slowly eased, though his eyes still carried a trace of worry. "Let's hope so."
—
Wano Country, Onigashima.
The great hall, built from skulls, echoed with booming laughter as Kaido stared at the newspaper, eyes wide like bronze bells.
"Worororororo! Logan, nicely done!!"
Seeing Logan kill Crocodile, Kaido guzzled down an entire barrel of rum in one go.
He didn't have any personal grudge against Crocodile—it just felt damn good to watch him fall.
"Kaido-sama," said a hulking man beside him with two massive tusks, his tone oily with flattery. "Since Logan could take down Crocodile, his strength must be impressive. How about I go bring him in—make him one of the Beasts Pirates?!"
It was Jack the Drought, one of Kaido's three All-Stars.
Every Yonko crew had its own way of doing things.
Kaido, governor of the Beasts Pirates, loved one thing above all—power.
If you were strong, you could climb to the top of his crew. Didn't matter who you were, or what you'd done before.
Just look at Ashura Doji—former enemy, now tolerated purely because of his strength.
"Oh?" Kaido gave Jack a sideways glance.
"Not a bad idea. But let's wait until he survives long enough to reach the New World."
He tossed the newspaper aside and grabbed another jug of rum, downing it in huge gulps.
Jack scratched his head awkwardly and shut up.
—
Totto Land, Whole Cake Island.
"Mama! Mama! Big news! Big news!!"
Perospero's hoarse voice echoed across the island as he rushed around looking for Big Mom.
"What's got you running around like a headless chicken?" Katakuri, one of the Three Sweet Commanders, appeared from the side, frowning.
"One of the Seven Warlords—Crocodile—he's been killed! I gotta tell Mama right now!" Perospero craned his neck, scanning the area.
At this hour, shouldn't Mama be enjoying her afternoon tea? Where the hell was she?
"Don't bother," Katakuri said flatly. "Mama picked up a new man today. She's… busy."
He didn't even want to say it out loud.
Perospero blinked, then looked back down at Logan's photo on the paper. His eyes gleamed mischievously.
—
Somewhere in the New World, on a deserted island—
"Hahahahahaha!!"
A loud laugh echoed through the forest.
"Crocodile's really useless, huh? Got taken out by a rookie!"
The fat man munching on a chicken leg was Lucky Roux, still laughing his head off.
Figures—aside from the Four Emperors, most pirates were just talk.
Crocodile, who'd roamed the seas for decades, was no exception.In the end, he still got beaten by a kid.
"Logan, huh? Another brat bursting onto the scene," said Yasopp, the sniper, grinning as he shook his head.
When he was Logan's age, he hadn't even made a name for himself yet.
"Killing Crocodile proves he's strong," Ben Beckman said calmly, blowing out a puff of smoke. "But that's not necessarily a good thing."
Everyone nodded.
He was right. Starting out with a five-hundred-million bounty? That kind of fame painted a target on your back.
Just like it had for them.
"Wait, this next one—Luffy's bounty poster?!"
They flipped the paper and froze.
"It really is Luffy!!"
"Hahahahaha! That brat's been recognized already—nice work, kid!"
"Shanks, looks like your pick paid off!"
"…"
The Red Hair crew burst into loud cheers.
The kid they'd watched grow up had finally made a name for himself.
Staring at Luffy's goofy grin in the photo, Shanks threw back his head and laughed.
"Alright, boys! Throw a party—let's celebrate for Luffy!!"
"Yeahhh!!!"
"....."