Chapter 39: The Rising Threat
"Devil's child, Nico Robin?"
In the Marine Headquarters, within the Admiral's office, Sengoku sat behind a desk stacked with paperwork. With Sora preparing to step down and pass on the title of Fleet Admiral, he had begun delegating his responsibilities to Sengoku so that the latter could get a full taste of what the job entailed.
Sengoku had just finished handling diplomatic matters related to several Grand Line nations and was reaching for some rice crackers to take a breather when an unexpected report came in—from the North Blue—regarding the Devil's child, Nico Robin.
Of course, Sengoku was familiar with Robin.
After all, she was the one Aokiji had allowed to escape. Even if Aokiji hadn't said a word about it, Sengoku had figured it out long ago. No matter how talented a little girl might be, escaping from a Buster Call was near impossible unless someone had deliberately let her go.
Aokiji's involvement was the only explanation.
Sengoku frowned slightly.
Nico Robin herself wasn't particularly important. What mattered was where she came from—O'Hara, a land that had dabbled in knowledge forbidden by the World Government. What kind of person would risk everything for a girl like that?
Foolish pirates?
Unlikely.
No ignorant pirate would knowingly antagonize the Navy over a child, especially not in a place like Strait Town. Sengoku had a firm grasp of the general categories of pirates sailing the seas.