Where was this?
The waters between the East Blue and the Grand Line, specifically the side of the Calm Belt closest to the East Blue.
It was an extrely unusual occurrence for one of the Four Emperors to appear in such a place.
"Judging by their heading, they aren't coming straight for us. Maintain our course and avoid conflict!" Gion commanded after confirming the direction of the Red-Haired Pirates' ship.
Beside her, the Commodore nodded in agreent.
In the Marines, even an Admiral would not recklessly provoke a conflict with one of the Four Emperors; the subsequent fallout would be too massive and uncontrollable. Just as history had shown, the Marines had spent a vast amount of ti preparing, drawing elites from branches across the entire world, before they finally clashed with Whitebeard.
In a chance encounter like this—especially against the main force of the Red-Haired Pirates—fighting was absolutely out of the question. For Gion alone, engaging them would be little more than a suicide mission.
Though it felt stifling, it was the best choice.
After a long while, the two ships passed each other, separated by several hundred ters, both sides maintaining a tacit understanding.
However...
'''
On the Red Force.
At the bow of the deck.
"Shanks, that Marine warship isn't simple..."
"I don't see any masts, nor any furled sails. They don't even have the auxiliary rotors used for the Calm Belt, yet they're still that fast."
"I suspect this is a new type of Marine warship. If these are deployed on a large scale, then..."
"Hm? Shanks, what's wrong?"
Beckman stopped mid-sentence, suddenly noticing sothing off about Shanks.
Shanks had grown unusually serious. His eyes narrowed, staring intently at the strange Marine warship several hundred ters away.
"Luffy... is on that ship!"
"What?"
Shocked, Beckman imdiately activated his Observation Haki, casting his awareness over the vessel.
Sure enough...
"What do we do now?"
"Turn around and chase them imdiately!"
"Shanks, that ship is at least three tis faster than we are..." Beckman replied, sounding conflicted.
Turning a ship of their size was a ti-consuming process. Furthermore, he estimated the enemy was moving at 12 or 13 knots, while the Red Force, relying on auxiliary rotors in the Calm Belt, could only manage 4 knots.
The gap was too wide. By the ti they completed the turn, the Marines would be long gone.
"Leave it to !"
The mont the words left his lips, Shanks leaped from the ship, hurtling through the air toward the warship hundreds of ters away.
Techniques like Moonwalk weren't exactly rare; many pirates in the New World possessed it or sothing similar.
"Captain's orders! Turn around and pursue! Switch the port auxiliary rotors to reverse!" Beckman shouted, taking command as vice-captain. "Prepare for battle!"
"Awoo!!!"
'''
Inside the warship's bridge.
Watching the Red Force pass them by, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
A Four Emperor was an existence that even Marine Headquarters wouldn't dare provoke lightly, let alone the soldiers on a single warship.
But...
"Vice Admiral! Red-Haired has left his ship and is heading our way! The Red Force is also turning around!!"
The relief was short-lived. At the Commodore's shout, the crew instantly plunged back into tension.
What was Shanks doing? Was he trying to break the tacit agreent between the Marines and the Four Emperors?
"Sound the alarm! All main and secondary batteries, load ammunition imdiately and lock onto the Red Force! All other combat personnel, assemble on deck and prepare for battle!"
"Accelerate! Maximum speed!"
"And contact Headquarters. Report the situation!"
Unlike the panicked marines, Gion remained composed, barking out orders instantly.
"Yes, Vice Admiral!"
After organizing the crew, Gion led several officers out of the bridge and onto the deck.
Just as she stepped outside, a terrifying slash tore through the air. It carved a diagonal chasm into the sea directly in front of the warship, at least five or six ters wide. Seawater crashed violently into the rift, yet it remained open, unable to be filled.
If the warship continued forward, it would sail straight into that horrific abyss.
"Hard turn! Starboard thirty degrees, now!"
"Yes, Vice Admiral!"
The helmsman yanked the wheel. The entire ship tilted sharply, sending several slow-reacting sailors crashing to the deck.
Fortunately, about a hundred ters before reaching the rift, the ship finally turned, bringing them parallel to the chasm.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief again. They had nearly stepped through the gates of hell.
But was it over?
Of course not.
In the next second, Shanks unleashed another slash, forcing the warship to turn to starboard once again.
After repeating this three tis, Gion realized that her ship... was now sailing directly toward the Red Force, which had originally been behind them.
Damn it!!
What on earth is this guy trying to do?
"Vice Admiral, we can't let them board us! If they do, our forces will be crushed in an instant!" the Commodore cried out in desperation.
Among the two hundred marines on board, no one besides Gion had the strength to face an officer of a Four Emperor; even the Commodore was far beneath that level. As for the ordinary marines, they were no match for the elite crew of the Red-Haired Pirates.
If the ships touched, everyone except Gion would likely be unconscious in less than a minute. This was no joke.
"What does Headquarters say?"
"Headquarters says Admiral Kizaru is on his way, but even he will take at least an hour to arrive. There are no other reinforcents nearby that can reach us in ti."
"Dammit. Are all gun positions ready?"
"They are!"
"Order all batteries—fire at the Red Force!"
"Vice Admiral, this will trigger a war between the Marines and a Yonko!!!"
"We... are already in a war!"
The Commodore froze for a mont, then quickly realized the truth.
Indeed, they were already in a war. The enemy was practically breathing down their necks; as Marines, they couldn't just stand by and take it.
"Yes, Vice Admiral!"
Nodding, the Commodore hurried to carry out the order.
Ten seconds later.
'Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!'
Three triple-mounted 130mm...
'If you encounter an opponent you can't handle, contact imdiately. I have a way to deal with it.'
Suddenly, Gion rembered the words Sean had spoken when she left the 16th Branch.
Gritting her teeth, she pulled out her Den Den Mushi and dialed.
'''
Marine 16th Branch.
In the Rear Admiral's office.
"Rear Admiral, this is the official appointnt just sent over from Headquarters!"
The Governor of East Blue
Lucci entered Sean's office carrying a set of docunts and handed them over.
"Ho, besides the expected promotion to Vice Admiral, they actually gave the title of Governor of East Blue."
"The World Governnt is really spending a fortune to suppress the fallout from the Crocodile incident."
Sean wasn't surprised by the rank of Vice Admiral; there had been plenty of rumors about it. However, the position of Governor of East Blue caught him off guard. Such a position hadn't existed before.
Had the World Governnt actually created a brand-new official post just for this?
"Lucci, your appointnt is in here as well. You're a Commodore now!"
"I don't care about rank," Lucci replied flatly.
In truth, he ant it. Since following Sean less than a year ago, his Doriki had skyrocketed from 2,000 to 6,000. What in this world could be more rewarding than that?
At this point, even if the World Governnt ordered him to return to CP9—or even offered him the position of CP9 Chief—he would despise the idea.
It was a joke. Leaving the 16th Branch would be equivalent to blocking his own path to power. And preventing soone from growing stronger was practically a mortal sin.
Sean smiled and tossed the appointnt papers aside. Just then, the Den Den Mushi began to ring.
'Purupurupurupuru...'
"This is Sean!"
"Sean, I'm under attack by the Red-Haired Pirates in the Calm Belt! Aside from myself and Leonie, a Commodore under Gion's command, every single marine has been knocked unconscious by Shanks' Conqueror's Haki! Admiral Kizaru is at least an hour away!"
"Gion, give your exact coordinates!"
"Right, I am at..."
A mont later, Sean hung up the Den Den Mushi.
"Lucci, leave one squadron behind. All other official marines are to assemble at the training grounds imdiately!"
"Yes, Vice Admiral!"
Having overheard the entire conversation between Sean and Gion, Lucci understood the gravity of the situation. Upon receiving the order, he vanished from the office instantly using Soru.
Sean picked up the Den Den Mushi once more and dialed a number.
"Blueno, get over here imdiately. We have an ergency combat mission!"
"Understood!"
'''
The Calm Belt, near the border of the East Blue.
Gion stood on the deck of the warship, gazing coldly at Shanks.
"Are you trying to start an all-out war with the Marine, Red-Haired Shanks?"
"No, I have no desire to do that, nor do I intend to harm a single marine. I only hope Vice Admiral Gion can do a favor and hand Luffy over to ."
"Monkey D. Luffy?"
Gion frowned slightly. Why was this Shanks connected to Vice Admiral Garp's grandson?
"That's right. He isn't a wanted criminal; the Marine should have no reason to detain him, right?"
"So, I hope you can do this one favor and let take him with ."
Shanks continued to exert the influence of his Face-Saving Fruit. However, at that exact mont, a portal of energy tore open behind Gion, and from within that gate...
"Even without a bounty, he is still a pirate. The Marine captures pirates—why on earth should we do you a favor?"
"And by the way, you're a pirate too, aren't you?"
As the speaker stepped through the energy portal and revealed himself, Shanks' pupils constricted sharply.
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