Pirate: I'm about to do something big!

Chapter 68 Fame Achieved by the Sea

"Wow, what huge ivory tusks!"

On the shore, Luffy and his crew watched as Alyosha cut off the ivory from Jack the Drought.

The mirror-like surface reflected the surprised expressions of the little ones.

Having just witnessed a fierce battle between powerful seafarers up close, they could only marvel at the size and thickness of the ivory before them.

Little Luffy, refusing to believe it, opened his mouth wide and bit directly onto the surface of the ivory, only to have his mouth go numb from the impact of the ivory's hardness.

On the other side of the coast, Alyosha, Zephyr, and Rear Admiral Momonga stood together, watching the marines retrieve the Hanafuda cards that had sunk in the sea.

This guy isn't as resilient as Jack the Drought. He's not a fishman, and even though Jack the Drought blocked most of the damage for Hanafuda, Hanafuda was still blasted into the sea by Alyosha's two punches and is still lying there like a dead dog on the roadside.

But to be fair, Zoan-type Devil Fruit users are indeed tough; they didn't drown after being in the seawater for so long, they just got dizzy.

"Now, Fleet Admiral Sengoku can't vent his anger on me anymore. As one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea recruited by the World Government, he attacked the G-1 branch and the Navy's troop transport ship along with Kaido's Three Disasters. He's out of the Seven Warlords title now."

Alyosha looked at Hana, who was handcuffed with sea stone handcuffs, and spoke with a hint of schadenfreude.

Zefa, on the other hand, seemed rather worried.

He couldn't get involved in the battle between Alyosha and the Three Disasters. After years of being relegated to the sidelines and only teaching cadets at the Naval Academy, the blow of his wife and children being killed by pirates had already made his combat strength much weaker than before. Compared to Garp, who was still fighting pirates at the same time, Zephyr's combat strength had already declined to the level of a weak Shichibukai.

In the original timeline, if it weren't for the fact that the soldiers on the troop transport ship were all killed or wounded, and that he had lost an arm, Zephyr wouldn't have returned to the front line of fighting pirates and started training again.

Zephyr's strength has declined, but his mind is still very clear.

In contrast to Alyosha's gloating, Zefa was thinking about a different problem.

"Ran, I think things aren't as simple as you think."

As a student of Zephyr, just like Alyosha, Major General Squirrel also noticed Zephyr's worries and poured cold water on Alyosha's hopes.

"Mammoth-senpai, are you saying that the World Government currently has no intention of going to war with Kaido? Even if we have evidence that Hanafuda attacked the G-1 branch with the Three Disasters, there's a high chance that Hanafuda won't be sent to Impel Down, right?"

Major General Flying Squirrel was taken aback. "You seem to understand this perfectly well."

Alyosha simply smiled and kept the answer a secret.

"Zeff-sensei, Momonga-senpai, I will definitely send Hanafuda to Impel Down, but for now, let's celebrate."

Alyosha smiled as he walked toward Luffy and his gang of kids who were making a ruckus around Jack the Drought's ivory, and then looked up at the sky as if sensing something.

In the blue sky where he and Jhin had just exchanged their ultimate abilities to disperse the clouds, he could vaguely see an airship heading into the distance.

The day after the battle ended, an exclusive report from the World Economic News, the largest newspaper in the One Piece world, was delivered immediately to the World Government, major member states and non-member states, the Navy, pirates in the four seas and the Grand Line, and forces around the world, including the Revolutionary Army which was causing trouble somewhere.

There's only one headline: Alyosha! The Navy's New Future!

The newspaper featured Alyosha standing at the bow of a warship, unleashing a Kamehameha wave of life energy from his palms that clashed with the ultimate attack of King of the Wildfire in the sky.

The other image shows the backs of Jhin the Wildfire, wounded in the left shoulder, carrying the heavily injured and unconscious Jack the Drought, while Quinn the Plague flees in a disheveled state.

As for Hanafuda, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, he became an irrelevant figure, and a very small area was reserved for him.

Marineford, Naval Headquarters Building, Operations Room.

Snapped!

Zhan Guo slammed his hand on the table, placing a World Economic News newspaper beside him.

"Zeff! Ran! Why are you disobeying orders!"

In the conference room, Garp, Tsuru, and the three who had been promoted to admirals, Akagi, Ao, and Kimi, sat on either side, while at the end of the conference table were Zephyr and Alyosha, who had returned to headquarters to report for duty.

Sengoku learned about Alyosha's fight with the Three Disasters at the G-1 branch after the battle, but it was too late. Alyosha and Zephyr then cleaned up the mess at the G-1 branch near the entrance to the New World Sea.

Even if Sengoku wanted to punish them, he would have to wait for Alyosha and Zepha to return. As for why the World Economic News only reported the scene of Alyosha fighting with the Three Disasters, without mentioning the reason for the fight between Alyosha and the Three Disasters.

This was naturally orchestrated by world governments.

Alyosha didn't even look up when Zhan Guo questioned him; he just stared at the picture the World Economic News Agency had captured of him in the newspaper, and it had to be said, it was quite imposing.

"dye!"

Seeing Alyosha's perfunctory attitude, Sengoku's forehead veins bulged, and only then did Alyosha put down the newspaper and stand up.

"Fleet Admiral, Hanafuda, that guy, teamed up with the Three Disasters to attack the Navy's G-1 branch. I fought back against the Three Disasters to uphold the Navy's honor and justice. Was I wrong?"

"I'm asking you why you're disobeying orders!"

"I'm explaining why I disobeyed orders, Marshal!"

"You know that's not what I'm asking!"

Alyosha's voice echoed in the conference room. Sengoku was even more furious when he saw Alyosha pretending not to understand his voice-over.

He knew perfectly well that Alyosha's actions were correct. Everyone knew that Hanafuda, as a Shichibukai, had a close relationship with Kaido. As long as Hanafuda didn't openly contact Kaido's forces, the Navy would pretend they didn't see it.

Even if they were just rescued by the Three Disasters, this matter could be suppressed.

But if they attacked the Navy's only branch near the entrance to the New World Sea along with the Three Disasters, then there's nothing more to say.

The World Government, which oversees the Navy, doesn't care about this at all. All they know is that Alyosha's fight with the Three Disasters might trigger a conflict between the Navy and Kaido, the Emperor of the Sea, which is something the World Government doesn't want to see.

Therefore, the pressure was put on the Warring States period.

All he wanted was for Alyosha to give him a plausible reason so he could fool the World Government.

Otherwise, Sengoku could use Alyosha's disobedience as an excuse to give the World Government an explanation.

The atmosphere in the meeting room suddenly froze.

Only Garp, oblivious to the atmosphere, was still munching on his senbei, the crunching sound echoing in the conference room, which only fueled Sengoku's anger.

"Garp! Be quiet!"

"Haha, Sengoku, that's good enough. Ran, you did a great job. Remember to teach my three grandsons the move you used to defeat King the Wildfire, haha."

Garp ignored his old buddy's roar and gave Alyosha a thumbs up.

"That depends on whether Luffy and his crew want to learn, Mr. Garp."

Alyosha and Garp were interacting amicably, Sengoku was furious, Akashi, Ao, and Kyo remained silent, Vice Admiral Tsuru closed his eyes to rest, and Zephyr looked at his student Alyosha, then at his old buddy Sengoku caught between the World Government and the Navy, thought for a moment, and prepared to get up as well.

"Warring States period was the order I gave Ran. Punish me if you must."

"Zeffa, sit down! I haven't even said anything to you yet!"

Seeing his old comrades causing him trouble one by one, Sengoku was furious. Looking at the three newly promoted generals, Aka, Ao, and Ko, who seemed indifferent to the situation, Sengoku felt his face rapidly heating up.

No, it wasn't that they were all indifferent. Akainu, Ao, and Kyo were all staring at the newspaper in front of them. To be precise, they were staring at the photo of Alyosha exchanging Kamehameha waves with King, and at the headline on the front page that called Alyosha the new future of the Navy. Their brows were furrowed.

Sengoku took a few deep breaths to calm his anger, then reluctantly gestured for Alyosha to sit down before taking his own seat and speaking his mind.

"The World Government wants me to punish you, Ran. At least give me an excuse to refuse the World Government."

"I don't think I did anything wrong. If the World Government wants to punish me, I will accept the punishment and obey your orders, Marshal."

"you··!"

Seeing Alyosha's unyielding attitude, Sengoku's anger, which had just subsided, surged up again. At this moment, Vice Admiral Tsuru, who had been resting with his eyes closed, also spoke up.

"Calm down, Sengoku, your blood pressure is about to rise."

"crane!"

"Alright, this is an internal meeting. Just tell me how the World Government plans to punish Ran."

"Demoted, or sent to a branch as a base leader."

"Wow, I thought I was going to Mary Geoise to be a watchdog for the Celestial Dragons."

As soon as Alyosha finished speaking, Garp couldn't help but burst into laughter, tears streaming down his face. He only managed to stop when Sengoku glared at him angrily.

"Marshal Sengoku, I can accept the punishment, but I want to know how Hanafuda is going to be dealt with. Many people saw him and the Three Disasters attack the G-1 branch, including Major General Momonga."

"Ran, the navy does not yet have the capability to completely disrupt the balance of power at sea, even with you in the mix."

Sengoku said irritably, with the voice-over saying that the World Government planned to let the matter of Hanafuda and the Three Disasters attacking the G-1 branch go by, or rather, they wanted to use it as leverage to make Hanafuda, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, obedient.

This can be seen from the report published by the World Economic News Agency, which made no mention of why Alyosha and the Three Disasters fought each other at the G-1 branch.

He had no idea what the people in the World Government were thinking.

"I see. Is the World Government worried that Kaido will use my fight with the Three Disasters as an excuse to start a war with the Navy? What a cowardly move."

Upon hearing this, Sengoku gave Alyosha a look, letting him figure it out for himself.

At this moment, Akainu, who had been silently reading the newspaper, suddenly spoke up.

"Since you're so keen on upholding the Navy's justice, if Kaido were to use this as a pretext to wage war against the Navy, you'd be at the forefront, right?"

"Of course, Mr. Sakazuki, it is my duty as a Marine, but I will never accept that Hanafuda will continue to serve as a Shichibukai."

"Very good, very impressive, Marshal of the Warring States, I have a suggestion."

Upon realizing that Alyosha had taken the bait, Sakazuki immediately offered a compromise for the deadlocked internal meeting.

Alyosha retains his rank of Brigadier General, replacing Rear Admiral Momonga as the commander of the G-1 branch of the Navy, located near the entrance to the New World Sea. He is fully responsible for matters related to the entrance to the New World Sea and has the highest command authority over the G-1 branch.

However, without orders from Marineford headquarters, one must not return to headquarters without authorization.

In exchange, Hanafuda will be stripped of his Shichibukai title and immediately imprisoned in Impel Down's sixth underground level prison for life.

It is clear that Akainu has come to see Alyosha as a potential rival for his promotion to Fleet Admiral.

Younger than him, and without eating a Devil Fruit, he single-handedly fought the Three Disasters at the G-1 branch. Although the Three Disasters eventually escaped, such a feat is enough to prove that if Alyosha were allowed to continue developing at the Marine Headquarters, and given a few more years, or if the Marine Headquarters found him a good Logia-type Devil Fruit to eat, it would be hard to say whether he or Aokiji would be the next Fleet Admiral after Sengoku retires.

Perhaps Aokiji would even be willing to help Alyosha get promoted to Fleet Admiral.

Thinking of this possibility, Akainu seized the opportunity to launch an attack, wanting to kick Alyosha out of the Marine Headquarters. If he wanted to become Fleet Admiral, he'd better wait until Akainu stepped down.

"Sakazuki!"

Sengoku and Zephyr both sensed the sinister intentions behind Akainu's compromise, and their gazes toward Akainu were filled with hostility. Zephyr, in particular, seemed to barely recognize the student he had personally mentored.

"Yes, as long as Hanafuda, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, can be sent to Impel Down, I accept Mr. Sakazuki's proposal. Thank you."

Huh? Akainu didn't expect Alyosha to agree so readily.

He didn't believe Alyosha couldn't see the problem with this compromise. Now, as a newly promoted admiral in the Navy, he had a million ways to keep Alyosha in the G-1 branch until Akainu became Fleet Admiral before he returned.

But he couldn't detect any dissatisfaction in Alyosha's gentle smile, and he even thanked him.

Something's not right. Something's a million points off out of a hundred, but Akainu can't quite put his finger on what's wrong.

Even though he had won the first round in the competition for the future admiral of the navy, why did he feel like he was the one who was being taken advantage of?

"Ran, think it over carefully before you answer."

Sengoku and Zephyr were getting anxious. They both thought that Aokiji and Alyosha would be Sengoku's successors after he stepped down as marshal, or rather, they favored Alyosha a little more because Aokiji was a bit of a show-off.

"No need to consider, that's my answer, Marshal of the Warring States."

"You! Hmph, meeting adjourned!"

Seeing that Alyosha completely accepted the arrangement, Sengoku could only slam his fist on the table and leave in a huff.

With the marshal gone, there was no need to continue the internal meeting, and everyone in the meeting room left.

Alyosha put away the newspaper, looked at Akainu who was unsure whether he had gained or lost, and said with a gentle smile, "Mr. Sakazuki, besides taking over as the G-1 branch base commander from Major General Momonga, I am also the teacher of those kids and three senior cadets. I need to bring my students to the G-1 branch as well. This request is reasonable, isn't it?"

"Whatever."

Having learned his lesson, Akainu was afraid of being tricked by Alyosha, so he left the meeting room after saying a few words.

Soon, besides Zephyr sighing to the side, the only other people in the conference room were Aokiji, who had been sleeping with an eye mask on from the start to the end of the meeting, Garp, who was eating senbei, and Alyosha, who had accomplished his plan.

While Alyosha was receiving Sengoku's punishment, a storm was brewing in the Paradise Sea (the first half of the Grand Line) and the New World (the second half) because of news that one of Kaido's three calamities had encountered Marine Rear Admiral Alyosha at sea and was unable to defeat him despite their best efforts.

Those who knew Alyosha and those who didn't all clearly realized one thing:

A new recruit named Alyosha Ran has emerged in the Marine Headquarters, and he has defeated the Three Disasters!

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