One Piece: I'm not Roger

Ten days later.

Marineford, Marine Headquarters.

Marineford was still undergoing large-scale repairs. Construction crews and Marines moved across the island nonstop, reinforcing shattered structures with steel bars and pouring cement into massive cracks to stabilize the island.

Even after more than a month had passed, restoring Marineford still felt far away. The destruction caused by the Summit War had been far too severe.

Abandoning Marineford, however, was not an option the Marines could easily make. The headquarters possessed the massive Gate of Justice and one of the world's rare high-speed sea routes connected by special ocean currents. Rebuilding elsewhere would come at an unimaginable cost.

Inside the Fleet Admiral's office, three Marine veterans sat together in a rare gathering.

In just over a month, Sengoku appeared noticeably older. Nearly a third of his hair had turned white, proof of how deeply the war had affected him.

"Let's settle this already," Sengoku said tiredly. "Both the Gorosei and I support Kuzan becoming the next Fleet Admiral. If everything goes smoothly, the inauguration ceremony will be held next month. But Sakazuki still refuses to give up the position. If we ignore it, I'm afraid she might do something reckless."

Silence filled the office.

The Marines already had more than enough problems to deal with. Aside from the conflict over the Fleet Admiral position, the shocking news of Gol D. Roger, Silvers Rayleigh, and Shiki joining forces had shaken the entire world.

Three legendary pirates standing together was enough to terrify anyone.

When intelligence first reported it, Sengoku refused to believe it. Shiki never seemed like the type to willingly cooperate with others.

But after photographs surfaced showing a rejuvenated Shiki aboard the Aether Pirates, along with confirmed reports from multiple spies, both the Marines and the World Government were forced to accept reality.

A pirate crew containing Roger, Rayleigh, and Shiki already possessed enough power to threaten the World Government itself. To many, it resembled the rebirth of the Rocks Pirates.

Originally, the World Government had always viewed itself as the referee watching pirates and Marines fight from above. Now, they were being forced onto the battlefield themselves, and the Gorosei were far from pleased about it.

Still, with the current state of the world, neither the Marines nor the World Government could afford to make a move against the Aether Pirates yet. At the very least, they needed the Fleet Admiral succession completed and the World Military Draft finalized first.

Garp suddenly broke the silence.

"If we're forcing Kuzan into the position, plenty of Marines won't accept it," he said casually while eating snacks. "Why not let them settle it the way everyone expects? Whoever wins becomes Fleet Admiral. If Kuzan can't beat Sakazuki, even after she turned into a woman, then how is he supposed to lead the Marines afterward?"

Tsuru nodded slowly.

"That would be the cleanest solution," she agreed. "I support it."

Sengoku sighed deeply before nodding in resignation.

He did not have a better option.

Still, a bad feeling lingered in his chest.

"There's another matter," Sengoku continued. "Saint Marcus Luke of the Marcus Family plans to visit Gran Tesoro. I intend to have Gion accompany him as his guard. The New World is too unstable right now, and there may be pirates targeting Celestial Dragons."

Tsuru frowned immediately, more wrinkles forming on her aged face.

Why would protecting a Celestial Dragon require an Admiral Candidate like Gion? CP0 should have been more than enough.

Besides, if she remembered correctly, Tokikake was also currently vacationing in Gran Tesoro.

Both Gion and Tokikake were official Admiral Candidates now. Once the Fleet Admiral transition was complete, an Admiral position would become vacant. If the World Military Draft failed to find suitable replacements, one of them would likely be promoted.

The Marines could not afford to leave an Admiral seat empty in this era.

Marine Admirals represented the World Government's greatest military power. If a position remained vacant for too long, it would damage the Marines' authority and encourage pirates across the seas.

Even if Gion and Tokikake had not fully reached Admiral level yet, they were still close enough.

And together, the two possessed combat power greater than a single Admiral.

After a moment of thought, Tsuru narrowed her eyes.

"Sengoku..." she said slowly. "Are you planning to move against Gild Tesoro?"

Sengoku neither confirmed nor denied it.

"Gild Tesoro has been operating heavily in the New World lately," Sengoku replied calmly. "Roger's movements are becoming more dangerous as well. Sending Gion there as protection isn't unreasonable."

Unlike Sengoku and Tsuru, Garp remained completely uninterested in the discussion.

He had never liked Tesoro in the first place, viewing him as another Doflamingo, just richer.

Since Sengoku did not deny it directly, Tsuru began seriously considering the possibility.

Tesoro's wealth was estimated to exceed 500 billion Berries. If the Marines obtained even a portion of it, they could recover much faster from the losses suffered during the Summit War.

After all, the annual military budget allocated to the Marines by the World Government was less than 200 billion Berries, though the Marines did possess additional independent sources of income.

The problem was Tesoro's connection to the World Government.

Every year, he paid an enormous amount in Heavenly Tribute, enough for the World Government to officially recognize Gran Tesoro as an independent legal nation under their protection.

That relationship allowed Tesoro to operate freely in both the underworld and the legal world.

Just as Sengoku and Tsuru were about to continue the discussion, a Marine Rear Admiral suddenly entered the office after knocking hurriedly.

The moment he spoke, the atmosphere changed completely.

"Reporting to Fleet Admiral Sengoku," the Rear Admiral said seriously. "Former Admiral Zephyr has departed Marineford alongside several Marine units. They are now operating independently under the name Neo Marines."

The expressions of the three veterans immediately changed.

Sengoku looked even older than before.

"Zephyr..." he muttered with a bitter sigh. "Why did it come to this? Couldn't you have spoken with us first? We would've helped you."

Meanwhile, at the edge of Totto Land's territory in the New World, an enormous golden ship cut through the sea.

The vessel resembled a luxurious floating city illuminated by endless gold. It was Gran Tesoro, the domain of the Gold Emperor, Gild Tesoro.

Far away from the golden city, a small, worn-out boat drifted across the sea.

Standing atop the broken mast was Aether.

The ocean wind blew through his hair as he stared at Gran Tesoro with a faint smile.

"The Gold Emperor really is disgustingly rich," Aether said lazily. "Looks like this trip won't be boring."

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