With Sean's support, the Alabasta Kingdom Marine currently possessed two full fleets, with a third already under construction.
Each fleet followed a strict standard: one cruiser, twelve destroyers, and thirty-two frigates, with a standard complement of 18,000 soldiers.
While it couldn't compare to the fleets of the New World, this scale was enough to make even the Marines at Headquarters drool with envy.
After all, since Akainu and Gion had transferred to the New World Marine, the cruisers they commanded weren't provided by Headquarters; they had either requested them from Sean or purchased them independently. Consequently, when the two of them left for the New World, they took those two cruisers with them.
As a result, Headquarters was left with only two cruisers. As for the rest... the combined number of destroyers and frigates was fewer than twenty.
Of course, Headquarters still had about two hundred wooden sailing warships, but in an era where Ironclad Warships had emerged, those obsolete wooden vessels were practically meaningless.
'''
It was the third day of Vivi's vacation back in Alabasta.
The Alabasta Kingdom Marine's Second Fleet set sail.
A fleet composed of over forty Ironclad Warships was impossible to ignore; its movements immediately drew significant attention. Naturally, news of the Second Fleet's deployment landed right on Kizaru's desk.
To avoid having Vice Admiral Tsuru give him a hard time later, Kizaru—despite his love for slacking off—decided to give King Cobra a call to inquire about the situation.
According to past custom, Alabasta usually operated on a rotation where one fleet was deployed while the other rested. However, the First Fleet had only recently departed, yet the Second Fleet was already heading out.
"King Cobra, this is Fleet Admiral Kizaru!" Kizaru announced as soon as the call connected.
"Ah, Fleet Admiral Kizaru. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Nothing major. I just wanted to ask if something has happened that required your kingdom's Second Fleet to mobilize so suddenly?"
"About that..."
Cobra didn't hide anything and explained Vivi's situation. She wasn't doing anything malicious, nor was she breaking any rules, so there was no reason to keep it a secret.
"So, this is just Princess Vivi's personal initiative?"
"Yes, you could say that. Or, you could view it as an official action of the Alabasta Kingdom. I hope this doesn't cause any trouble for Headquarters."
"Of course not. I was simply asking as a matter of routine."
"That's good. But Fleet Admiral Kizaru, could you please keep this from Vice Admiral Garp? Otherwise, I worry that..."
"No problem!"
The moment Cobra made the request, Kizaru understood perfectly. Everyone knew that Luffy was Garp's grandson. If Vivi led the Alabasta Kingdom Marine to capture the Straw Hat Pirates, Garp would undoubtedly cause a scene.
If Garp actually interfered—or worse, accidentally injured the princess—Cobra, given how much he doted on his daughter, might actually come to Headquarters to start a fight with the Marines.
Furthermore, if this became public, what would the people think? The Alabasta Kingdom Marine sets out to exterminate pirates, only for the "Marine Hero" Garp to swoop in and obstruct justice? That was a PR nightmare no one could wash away.
Kizaru just wanted to keep living his quiet, lazy life.
But then, a thought occurred to him. Wait, that's not right!
If he didn't tell Garp, and his grandson was captured—or even killed—wouldn't Kizaru be the one unable to slack off? A furious Garp might just decide to wipe him out.
'Damn, this is a tough one!'
After hanging up the phone, Kizaru's previously good mood vanished, and his expression grew increasingly grim.
'''
Several days later.
The Alabasta Kingdom Marine's Second Fleet arrived at Water 7.
Shortly after, Vivi appeared in Iceburg's office, her expression cold. Before coming here, she had gone to see the pirate ship that Iceburg was building for Luffy. The moment she saw it, she was livid.
"Mr. Iceburg, can you explain the ship in Dock One?"
"About that..."
"If I remember correctly, Fleet Admiral Sean only authorized you to produce warships in Water 7 for the supply of Marine Headquarters, correct?"
"That is correct!"
"Then what is the meaning of this ship built for the Straw Hat Pirates?"
Iceburg fell silent.
He had indeed acted improperly, and there was no excuse for it. Since Sean had entered the New World, and Barry and Franky had gone with him, Sean had authorized the Galley-La company to produce Ironclad Warships to fulfill Headquarters' orders.
Yet, he had built an unauthorized Ironclad Warship for a pirate—Luffy. In Vivi's eyes, this was an unforgivable act of betrayal.
"Princess Vivi, Luffy and his crew are simply passionate about adventure. They aren't like other pirates..."
After a moment of hesitation, Iceburg tried to defend them. But before he could finish, Vivi cut him off ruthlessly.
"Different from other pirates? Then how do you explain the Enies Lobby incident? Nearly ten thousand Marines died in that event, and wasn't it all triggered by the Straw Hat crew?"
"Regardless of the reason, they caused the deaths of nearly ten thousand Marines. That is a fact!"
Though she was only a sixteen-year-old girl, she spoke with an authority that left Iceburg speechless.
At this moment, Iceburg's heart was a mess of conflict. On one side was Luffy, who had helped him; on the other was Sean, a man whose slightest whim could make even the three Emperors of the Sea nervous.
If it were up to him, he wouldn't have wanted to betray his promise to Sean. However, the Enies Lobby incident wasn't just triggered by Sanji's eccentric confession; Iceburg himself was involved.
Iceburg let out a heavy sigh.
'''
At the same time, in a hotel room somewhere in Water 7...
"Once we get the new ship, we head to the Sabaody Archipelago, then take the route through Fish-man Island to enter the New World?"
"You idiot! Do you have any idea how dangerous the New World is right now?! Are you trying to get us killed?!"
Buggy was absolutely livid.
'I only stuck with you because you're Garp's grandson!'
And the result? First, because of some bizarre reason, they triggered the Enies Lobby incident. For goodness sake, that was one of the three major Marine institutions, and it was just... gone.
Buggy's heart was still pounding in terror.
Buggy was shaking uncontrollably.
'And you're still not satisfied? You're actually preparing to march into the New World?'
Did they have any idea who was dominating the New World right now?
It was Sean. The man who was mercilessly brutal to pirates and possessed strength that defied all logic.
Heading into the New World now was practically a suicide mission.
'Wouldn't it be better to just keep playing around in Paradise and wait until the situation in the New World becomes a bit clearer?'
The mere mention of the New World sent Buggy into a state of sheer panic.
Sean had soloed and defeated Whitebeard, and not long ago, he had completely overwhelmed the crews of the three Emperors.
This was no joke.
And what about their own strength?
Never mind Sean—any single Admiral under his command could easily wipe them all out in one go!
"Sigh, but if we don't go to the New World, we can't reach the final island, and we'll never find the One Piece," Luffy lamented.
'The One Piece? The final island?'
Buggy cursed internally.
Others might be in the dark, but he knew the truth!
Back then, he had sailed to the final island with Shanks and Roger.
Treasures my foot! The wealth of the Pirate King my ass...
That thing had absolutely nothing to do with any of that!
'Wake up, kid!'
Just as Buggy was about to speak again, the door was suddenly thrown open with great force.
Carina rushed in, her face etched with anxiety.
"This is bad! The Alabasta Kingdom's naval fleet has arrived!"
"The Alabasta Kingdom's Marine? What does their arrival have to do with us?" Buggy blinked, momentarily confused.
They weren't the Marines, so why be afraid?
Although the Straw Hats had caused the Enies Lobby incident, if someone were coming to arrest them for that, it should be the Marines, not some kingdom's local marine.
Buggy felt completely unfazed.
However...
"The fleet is led by Princess Vivi of Alabasta, who is also a Rear Admiral of the New World Marine," Carina explained.
"Although regulations state that the New World Marine is not permitted to enter or exercise jurisdiction over the first half of the Grand Line, Vivi is an exception. Furthermore, she's leading the Alabasta Kingdom's fleet this time."
"In other words, she is currently representing Alabasta and isn't subject to the restrictions Sean has to follow."
"So, why do you think she's here?"
Buggy stiffened.
Hearing it put that way, the panic returned.
'She couldn't be coming for us, could she?'
"Duh! Do you think any pirate caught by Sean has managed to escape—aside from Luffy—and continue living a carefree life?"
"To Sean, Luffy is practically the only blemish on his record!"
"If I'm guessing correctly, the reason Princess Vivi brought the Alabasta royal fleet instead of a Marine fleet is specifically to bypass the restrictions and deal with Luffy!"
It had to be said that Carina was quite sharp.
However, she had guessed one thing wrong.
Sean didn't actually care about Luffy, nor did he feel the need to jump through so many hoops to deal with him.
He could simply wait in the New World for Luffy to deliver himself to his doorstep.
After all, Sean knew very well that a guy like Luffy would never give up on entering the New World.
As for Vivi...
That was purely her own will.
She simply refused to allow anyone to leave a blemish on her Brother Sean's record.
At that moment, the door was violently thrown open once more as another person rushed in.
"This is bad! The hotel is surrounded by the Marine! We're trapped!" Sanji shouted urgently.