On the vast ocean.
While the pirates were on the move, the Navy was not idle either.
A battleship set sail from the Drum Kingdom, carrying Admiral Aokiji, Colonel Smoker, and Lieutenant Akihara Kagura, heading straight for Alabasta;
Another battleship departed from the Marine Headquarters Marineford, with Admiral Sengoku the Buddha and Vice Admiral Tsuru aboard, equipped with an Eternal Pose leading to Alabasta, rushing towards that desert kingdom.
Admiral Kizaru, who remained stationed at the Marine Headquarters, did not choose to take a battleship. Instead, he utilized the speed of his Flash-Flash Fruit ability to fly over. He needed to arrive in Alabasta ahead of time, at least to hold the opponents back.
As for the last Navy Headquarters Admiral Akainu…
This admiral was still on his way from the New World G1 Branch to Marineford. During the time the Navy Admiral was away from Marineford, Admiral Akainu would take over as the commanding presence there.
It couldn't be helped…
Because the situation had arisen too urgently…
If they were to wait for Akainu all the time, the Navy might really miss the heat of action. By the time major events were over, Akainu might still be on his way back to Marineford…
The Five Elders were pushing anxiously.
Sengoku could only choose this approach to deploy the forces.
In this way, Admirals Aokiji and Kizaru would definitely be the first to arrive. These two admirals were enough to hold back the Konoha Pirates;
Even against the Four Emperors' Pirates, the two admirals might not be able to achieve a victory, but at least they could thwart the opponents' plans…
As long as the two admirals held them back, by the time Admiral Sengoku arrived, they would be able to contend with the Konoha Pirates!
However…
There's still one issue…
There is too little intelligence on the Konoha Pirates.
To avoid a situation where, upon arrival, the scene might spiral out of control, Admiral Sengoku boarded the battleship and issued an urgent order for Vice Admiral Garp, who was patrolling the East Sea, to immediately head to Alabasta, claiming that a major event that could change the world was about to occur.
"Hahahahaha, isn't that a good thing?"
Garp, still at the East Sea 153rd Branch Base, ignored Sengoku's command. He recruited two support soldiers at the 153rd Base, intending to bring them back for proper training.
"Garp, don't mess around!"
Sengoku sternly scolded his old friend and reminded him again: "Currently, Alabasta is like a powder keg that could explode at any time… The Konoha Pirates want to overturn the world; they've already headed there to ignite the gunpowder!"
"Oh…"
Garp munched on a doughnut, indifferent to the tension in Sengoku's voice on the Radio Snail, and even thought such matters were not a big deal: "Aren't you already rushing there with Kuzan and Borsalino?"
"This amount of combat power…"
As Garp spoke, he could clearly feel the level of power that these top marine officials could suppress: "Even that old guy Whitebeard wouldn't gain anything from this, right?"
"The intelligence is still lacking…"
Sengoku's voice turned cold immediately. He knew exactly how troublesome the opponents were and continued in a cold tone: "Our goal is not just to contend with them, but at the very least, to suppress them, so you'd better hurry up…"
"You guys are already enough."
Garp stubbornly kept munching on his doughnut.
"If you insist on thinking that way…"
Sengoku's image in the Radio Snail immediately turned calm, mentioning another issue smoothly: "Supposedly, a pirate named Monkey D. Luffy is also heading to Alabasta. As an old guy, I am more than capable of capturing that little pirate…"
"Gulp…"
The sound of Garp chewing on the doughnut stopped, and he swallowed it down his throat, casually returning to the previous topic: "Speaking of which, is that group that never shows up really as troublesome as you say?"
"Possibly more troublesome than I mentioned…"
Sengoku's voice grew even calmer, talking to himself as if discussing something unrelated to him: "I heard that Portgas D. Ace, the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates' second division, might also be in Alabasta. If we can't stop the Konoha Pirates, capturing a Fire Fist Ace would at least give me something to report to the Five Elders…"
"I'll head over immediately…"
Garp felt unusually troubled, sighed, and said: "You are, after all, the Navy Admiral, so take Kuzan and Borsalino, these young people, to handle the troublesome guys. I, this old man, will go teach Ace and Luffy, those two bratty kids, a lesson to loosen them up…"
"Your speed better pick up…"
Sengoku knew his old friend very well; he was a Navy Admiral with a sense of the bigger picture and wouldn't fuss over a trivial matter with his old friend at such a critical moment.
"If you're too late…"
Sengoku had to remind his old friend, hoping he'd grasp the seriousness of the matter: "You'll either help collect the bodies for Tsuru and me, or you'll be heading to Impel Down to watch over Straw Hat Luffy and Fire Fist Ace, those two little pirates!"
"Turn back to the Grand Line, head to Alabasta immediately!"
Garp hurriedly ordered his Dog Head Battleship to return to the Grand Line, not even returning to his hometown, immediately rushing through the Windless Zone to Alabasta.
After giving the order, a smile once again appeared on Garp's face: "Hey, Sengoku, come to think of it, the three of us haven't fought together in quite some time, right?"