Fire and ice.
Those two words alone sounded like natural opposites.
Ever since Yemu's name had spread across the seas, Kuzan had been carrying pressure he should never have had to bear.
Against Yemu's Mera Mera no Mi ability, Kuzan's Hie Hie no Mi was naturally seen as the best possible counter.
But they had faced each other twice.
If their first clash in Loguetown had only left Kuzan at a slight disadvantage, then the second encounter on the Sabaody Archipelago had been a complete defeat.
That had placed a great deal of pressure on Kuzan within the Marines.
And when Borsalino returned from Impel Down and told Kuzan that Yemu had somehow developed his Mera Mera no Mi to produce abilities like the Hie Hie no Mi, Kuzan had been utterly dumbfounded. He had even felt a little discouraged.
He had always thought the problem was that he had not developed his own fruit ability well enough. Only now did he realize the truth.
So you were cheating all along, weren't you?
After Kuzan finished speaking, everyone seemed to understand how he felt and gave him a sympathetic look.
Sengoku said as well, "That may be true, but that guy admitted himself that his Mera Mera no Mi has awakened, so the three of you need to work harder too!"
Everyone naturally understood who Sengoku meant by "the three of you."
"Marine Headquarters can't rely on Zephyr as its only Admiral. So the three of you, and everyone else as well, must put in the effort. I hope that one day, I'll be able to personally confer those ranks on you!"
At that moment, even Borsalino, who had always seemed lazy and detached, showed a flicker of interest in the position of Admiral, to say nothing of the hot-tempered Sakazuki.
With the matters concerning the Sky Pirates settled for the moment, there were still two other issues to discuss.
"As for the Sky Pirates, we'll have to wait for updates from our intelligence personnel. But we can begin work on the other two matters right away. First is the World Military Draft. There are more and more pirates on the seas now, and our current Marine forces alone are definitely not enough. On top of that, too many of our elites are stationed at Headquarters, which has weakened our control over the Four Seas. So I have an idea. We'll disperse some of Headquarters' elites across the Four Seas and have them strengthen the combat power of those Marine branches. We'll strike at the source, suppressing those pirates before they set out to sea and preventing them from growing into a larger threat. At the same time, Headquarters will begin recruiting along the Grand Line to replace the elite manpower we've lost. What do you think?"
"I have no objection. If we can deal with pirates at the source, that would naturally be best."
Of course, there was one thing Tsuru did not say.
By the time pirates reached the Sabaody Archipelago, ordinary Marines were of little use against them, even elite ones.
After some discussion, the vast majority had no objections, so the proposal naturally passed.
"Then I'll leave the specific arrangements to you, Tsuru. Follow the principle of voluntary sign-ups as much as possible. As for the recruitment plan, I'll leave that to you, Zephyr. You're the most suitable person for training newcomers, and you're also capable of keeping those with ulterior motives in line."
"No problem. Leave it to me!"
Zephyr nodded. With his personality and temperament, he was indeed the best fit for the job.
"Now, the final matter: the Reverie plan. We cannot rely on the Marines alone to eliminate pirates. We must gain the support of all World Government Member Nations. In fact, not long after Roger's execution, Fleet Admiral Kong sensed that the situation was wrong and once proposed to the World Government that the Reverie be held early. But because the matter was too significant, the proposal failed. This time, however, the Five Elders have already agreed. The exact date is still under discussion, since holding it early requires confirmation from all Member Nations. But once the date is set, the duty of protecting them can only fall to us Marines, and the Marines will have to take part as well."
Everyone nodded, and Tsuru asked, "Do we have a rough date?"
"If all goes smoothly, it will be held three months from now."
"I understand. Three months should be enough."
"Good. Then these four matters will be the Marines' main tasks going forward. I hope everyone will work together and restore stability to these seas!"
"Yes, sir!"
In an instant, the Fleet Admiral's office rang with their voices in unison. Then everyone took their leave and got busy.
Looking at the office that had once again fallen empty, Sengoku sighed inwardly.
"I hope this works. Otherwise..."
At that thought, he lowered his gaze to the locked drawer in his desk.
"I hope it doesn't come to that."
Then he took out a golden Den Den Mushi.
...
Holy Land, Mary Geoise, Pangaea Castle.
In the Chamber of Power, the seat of the world's highest authority.
The five members of the Five Elders, who represented the world's supreme ruling power, hung up the Den Den Mushi.
Their expressions differed as they glanced at one another.
"It seems Sengoku doesn't agree much with the Shichibukai plan."
"Whether he agrees or not is unimportant. What we need is stability across these seas."
"We have already begun selecting candidates for the Shichibukai. The names currently on the list are Crocodile, Dracule Mihawk, and Gecko Moria. These three are supernovas among the new generation of pirates, and there is no issue with their strength. Crocodile and Gecko Moria, as failures who challenged the New World, can become tools for us to use against other pirates. As for Dracule Mihawk, we have already begun preliminary contact. So the Marines' opinion is not important to us."
"Once the Reverie is over, prepare to launch the Shichibukai plan."
"Mm."
"Speaking of the Reverie, Fish-Man Island has suddenly submitted a request to participate in this one."
"Fish-Men? Although Fish-Man Island is one of the World Government Member Nations and is qualified to attend the Reverie, how many years has it been since any Fish-Men participated? Are we sure there won't be a problem?"
"According to CP intelligence, the Sun Army on Fish-Man Island, the one that has broken away from King Neptune's jurisdiction, is expanding very quickly. Fish-Men possess physical abilities far beyond humans. More importantly, intelligence suggests that this army is backed by the Sky Pirates. It is an extremely unstable factor and must be erased as soon as possible."
"That is also our view. If Fish-Man Island wants to participate in this Reverie, the dissolution of the Sun Army will be a necessary condition. It will depend on what those Fish-Men choose."
"What a chaotic era. One Roger was already troublesome enough, and now there is a second Locks. Worse still, compared with Roger, this pirate named Yemu is far harder to deal with."
"What exactly is CP doing? The Sky Pirates have been at sea for nearly a year, yet they still cannot confirm their origins? From the moment they set out until now, both the Marines and the World Government have been led around by the nose and forced into a passive position. Useless, all of them. If this plan fails again, perhaps CP itself is due for a major purge."
"By the way, has Nicholas Saint said anything?"
"No. Because of his status as a Celestial Dragon, neither the Marines nor CP can touch him."
"..."
In an instant, the entire Chamber of Power fell into dead silence.
A group of foolish pigs with unlimited privilege was not frightening. All they could think about were vulgar desires. But when those foolish pigs were no longer foolish, when they stopped using their privileges to satisfy base urges and began pursuing other aims, that was when they became truly troublesome.
Especially when those privileges had been granted by their own hands, and could no longer be taken back.