Inside a modest dwelling, several young men and women gazed sadly at a sleeping little girl.
A woman with snow-white hair looked affectionately at young Robin, who was fast asleep in her bed.
A tall figure beside her wrapped his arm gently around her waist and spoke softly.
"My dear, are you really not going to wait until Robin wakes up?"
The woman shook her head, an incredibly apologetic expression crossing her face.
"I have already done everything I needed to do for her, and I have made arrangements with the professor. From now on, the scholars will take care of Robin."
"I am afraid that if I do not leave right now, I will not have the heart to go once she wakes up."
Tears streamed down the woman's face, and the man tenderly wiped them away.
"If that is the case, then let us go."
"Wait—"
The woman suddenly thought of something.
She quietly walked over to Robin's bedside, took the necklace from her own neck, and carefully placed it on Robin's pillow.
Then she leaned down, kissed Robin's little face and turned to leave.
This group of scholars, in their relentless pursuit of historical research, had already touched upon the Void Century—matters strictly deemed forbidden by the World Government.
Although these ancient texts were no different from a pile of miscellaneous storybooks in Raleigh's eyes, the scholars were completely unaware of his pragmatic worldview.
Their motivation for risking their lives to conduct this research stemmed entirely from a deep, unwavering sense of mission to uncover the true history of the world.
If Raleigh were to find out, he would likely just call them foolish.
For some reason, many people stubbornly cling to the truth, always believing that when the truth finally comes to light, everything will naturally be set right.
But reality is often the exact opposite.
The reason no one dares to touch the matters the World Government has designated as "forbidden" is simply because the Government holds the greatest, most absolute power in the world.
Whether they are pirates or Marines, no one truly disputes the World Government's absolute authority.
Even the most arrogant, bloodthirsty villains do not dare lay a single finger on even the weakest Celestial Dragon.
This is the terrifying majesty the World Government has built over eight hundred years.
Their dominance over these seas fundamentally relies on the formidable military power resting in their hands.
As long as they possess this overwhelming strength, the World Government does not need to concern itself with how the situation on the seas changes.
When you hold the biggest hammer, you simply smash down on any nail that sticks out.
....
Marineford: Fleet Admiral's Office.
As soon as Kong returned from his meeting at Pangaea Castle, he urgently convened a meeting of the Navy's highest-ranking officers.
Once everyone had gathered, Kong scanned the room.
He placed a thick, sealed document along with a recent newspaper on the table in front of him.
"Everyone, regarding the strict proposals for the Seven Warlords of the Sea that Sengoku recently drafted—I have discussed them with the Five Elders, and they have approved their implementation."
Kong tapped the newspaper. "Based on various comprehensive indicators, we believe a highly suitable candidate among the current rookie pirates is the recently notorious Sir Crocodile."
"According to our intelligence, this individual does not have the backing of any major pirate emperor. He is a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, possessing the powers of the Sand-Sand Fruit. On paper, he is a pirate with exceptionally high potential."
"However," Kong continued, his voice hardening, "recruiting for the Seven Warlords is not about planting landmines for ourselves. We still need to send someone to make direct contact with Crocodile to assess his true nature."
"If he proves to be someone with uncontrollable overwhelming ambition, then the officer responsible for contacting him has permission to execute him on the spot."
As he spoke these final words, both Kong and Sengoku's eyes flashed with a sharp killing intent.
They still had the better part of their lives ahead of them, and they naturally would not allow a mere pirate to climb above the Navy.
In their eyes, pirates who became Warlords were no different from hired mercenaries—useful, but completely undeserving of any real respect.
Sengoku adjusted his round glasses and added.
"This Crocodile is indeed a pirate with considerable potential. To be completely frank, if Crocodile were not a candidate for the Warlords, I would already be dispatching my adjutant to capture him."
Pirates who only knew how to kill and indulge their base desires were never a real threat in Sengoku's eyes.
But Sengoku assessed this Crocodile as a scheming, highly ambitious man.
When it came to intelligent pirates like that, Sengoku strongly preferred to suppress the danger while it was still in its infancy.
Listening to Sengoku's words, Tsuru opened her mouth to speak.
"We can recruit this Crocodile, but we still need to be absolutely clear—what exactly is the authority and status of these Warlords?"
Hearing his two best strategists, Kong patiently explained the Five Elders' final ruling.
"Regarding this matter, the Five Elders have issued a clear order: the fleets of the Seven Warlords of the Sea are permitted to plunder any vessels except those belonging to the World Government and the Marines, on the strict condition that no innocent civilians are slaughtered during the raids."
"If a Warlord attacks World Government ships or naval vessels during their tenure, they will immediately be stripped of their title and imprisoned in Impel Down for life."
"Additionally, naval bases near World Government affiliate nations must not arbitrarily attack the Warlords' fleets when they are conducting legal plundering. Similarly, the Warlords are strictly forbidden from conquering or controlling any World Government affiliate nations."
Kong sighed, clearly unhappy with the compromises. "Yes, Crocodile is the test subject for our experiment. If he can grow and follow the rules, we will use this exact model for the remaining six slots in the future."
"The Five Elders also stated that appropriate assistance can occasionally be given to help these promising pirates grow quickly, turning them into a major weapon for us to use against the pirate emperors of the New World."
Kong's words sounded incredibly awkward leaving his mouth.
But as a seasoned soldier, he persisted and finished reading the Government's mandate.
"Tsuru, do you have any opinions?"
Tsuru shook her head, her expression grim.
Her only real opinion was that this entire proposal should be burned to ashes to prevent pirates from flaunting their power over the Navy.
But she also knew this bill was a direct order from the top, so, like the others, she kept her true feelings to herself.
Kong then turned his gaze to the man beside him. "Sengoku, what are your thoughts?"
Sengoku shook his head slightly, adjusting his glasses again.
The lenses caught the light, hiding his eyes. No one present knew what he was truly thinking deep down.
As for Garp and the other Vice-Admirals in the room, their political opinions did not matter much to the Five Elders anyway.
Kong placed the documents back on the table and asked, "Who among you has the time? Someone needs to go and make contact with this pirate, Crocodile."
Since Sengoku needed to hold down the fort at Headquarters, and Sakazuki was busy rebuilding the heavily damaged G-5 Branch in the New World, the choice had to be made from the Vice-Admirals currently in the room.
"Garp, will you go?" Kong asked tentatively.
Garp immediately jumped up from his chair and headed straight for the door.
"Old man, although I would love to go, I have much more important matters to attend to right now! My informant just relayed a piece of fresh intelligence—the Roger Pirates have reappeared on a deserted island in the New World!"
"I am determined to capture Roger myself! So I am sorry, old man, but you will have to find someone else, Bwahahahaha!"
With a booming laugh, Garp slammed the door shut behind him.
Sighing, Kong turned his gaze toward Borsalino.
But before the Fleet Admiral could even speak, Borsalino proactively raised his hands.
"Oh my, Fleet Admiral Kong... Dr. Vegapunk just mentioned that his island's security has been rather lax recently. I really need to go reorganize his defense work. How scary..."
Borsalino's lazy excuse successfully made Kong swallow whatever order he was about to give!