Chapter 269
At roughly the same time, Marine Headquarters and the intervention force opened a secure command conference.
Sengoku and Zephyr were still aboard the lead intervention flagship, which had stopped short of Totto Land once confirmation arrived that Gion and Zaraki had escaped the inner waters.
Kuzan, Borsalino, and Sakazuki joined from Marineford through projection Den Den Mushi, while Garp appeared on a separate secure relay from his fast interception group.
Tsuru was not present. She was still at Mary Geoise, but an encrypted report from her lay open beside Sengoku.
The photograph on Morgans' front page had silenced the conference.
Zaraki had severed Charlotte Linlin's arm.
Sengoku rubbed his forehead.
"This has gone far beyond something we can call merely troublesome."
Zephyr stared at the photograph for several seconds before speaking.
"If Marine Headquarters had several fighters capable of operating at that level, the balance against the Emperors would change completely."
Sakazuki's eyes hardened.
"Then we should be strengthening that advantage, not treating it like a problem."
"That is not what I mean."
Zephyr looked toward the projection of the Admirals.
"Do any of you seriously believe Mary Geoise is comfortable with someone this difficult to control becoming more famous every day?"
The room went quiet.
Tsuru's encrypted report had already warned Sengoku that the Elders were discussing disciplinary measures connected to Zaraki's conduct, though she had not yet confirmed a formal order.
Zephyr's expression grew grave.
"That brat cannot continue being paraded around as though nothing happened."
Sengoku frowned.
"What are you proposing?"
"Get him out of public operations before the Government gets the chance to label him a rogue."
Zephyr's voice remained steady.
"Not a real resignation. Put him on indefinite medical leave. Keep his Marine affiliation intact, keep his records internal, and let the world think he has temporarily stepped away while we settle this with Mary Geoise."
Garp stopped chewing.
Sakazuki's expression darkened immediately.
Zephyr looked back toward Sengoku.
"If we do nothing, I doubt the choice will remain ours for long."
Zephyr's proposal left the secure command conference quiet for several seconds.
Sakazuki was the first to object.
"This is exactly when the Marines should stand behind him. He cut an Emperor and brought one of our Vice Admirals home. Hiding him now makes us look ashamed of our own strength."
Heat shimmered around his shoulders.
Borsalino pursed his lips.
"Ooh... putting the War Demon on medical leave the moment the whole world starts shouting his name? The newspapers would have fun with that."
Garp's face on the relay had gone unusually serious.
Zephyr ignored the objections.
"You are all still thinking about public reputation."
His gaze settled on Sengoku.
"Do you remember why Garp stayed a Vice Admiral his entire career?"
Sengoku's expression darkened.
"He refused the closer obligations that came with becoming an Admiral."
"Exactly."
Zephyr glanced toward Garp's relay.
"And that stubborn idiot still caused the Government enough headaches to last several lifetimes. Dragon became something far worse from their perspective."
The name changed the atmosphere.
Monkey D. Dragon.
The world's most wanted revolutionary.
Zephyr continued before anyone could misread his point.
"I am not saying Zaraki will become another Dragon. I am saying the people in Mary Geoise are capable of convincing themselves he might. They already used Kalles, Cipher Pol, and Emperor-level pressure to isolate him once."
Sengoku looked at Tsuru's encrypted report again.
The comparison was uncomfortable because the Elders did not need to be correct.
They only needed to believe Zaraki might eventually become impossible to command.
"If they decide to remove him from the chain of command first," Zephyr said, "they can frame every refusal afterward as insubordination. Push hard enough, and eventually they call him a traitor. Once that happens, every pirate who wants his head becomes useful to them."
Sengoku slowly sat back.
The photograph no longer looked like simple glory.
It looked like a problem the Government would try to solve.
"I understand."
He rubbed his brow.
"I'll consider the medical-leave option, but we need Zaraki and Gion safely accounted for before we decide anything."
His gaze shifted toward the communications officer.
"Any word from the Oni Slayer?"
"Yes, Fleet Admiral. They recovered the six reconnaissance Marines and made contact with the Kuja ship after it cleared the inner routes. The Kuja vessel was still afloat but badly damaged."
The officer checked the latest message.
"The Oni Slayer arranged a submerged rendezvous with Trafalgar Law's Polar Tang. Law had not gone far after leaving the Sabaody operation and answered the emergency request because of his existing debt to Zaraki. The most seriously injured passengers transferred to the submarine for treatment and concealment while the Kuja ship separated with the rest of its crew to draw pursuit away."
Sengoku's shoulders loosened slightly.
"Who transferred?"
"Zaraki. Vice Admiral Gion. Boa Hancock and her sisters. We also received word that Jinbe joined the rendezvous independently after hearing the public broadcast and moving toward the Totto Land routes from Fish-Man Island."
Garp grunted.
"So the brat finally found a hole to hide in."
"Temporarily," Sengoku said.
Everyone in the conference understood the qualifier.
...
Deep beneath the sea, the steady hum of the Polar Tang's engines filled the darkness.
Zaraki leaned against the cold metal wall and let out a long breath.
Now that the immediate chase was over, exhaustion from the battle had begun settling over him in earnest.
The cabin smelled faintly of seawater and disinfectant.
The hatch opened and Jinbe stepped inside.
"Zaraki, we are well below the surface now. Nothing has followed the submarine."
"Thanks."
Zaraki tugged faintly at the corner of his mouth.
"Looks like I owe you one."
"There is no need."
Jinbe sat cross-legged.
"I heard what happened to Gion and what the World Government had done at Kalles. Fish-Man Island still remembers what you did for us, so when I learned you were trying to leave Totto Land wounded, I came to see whether I could help."
His gaze shifted toward Law.
Trafalgar Law was leaning against the opposite wall with his eyes closed.
"And Law's submarine was certainly the safest place to disappear beneath the patrol routes."
Law opened one eye.
"Do not make it sound generous. Moving this many injured people around with ROOM during the transfer was exhausting enough."
He did not claim that the technique had shortened his lifespan. It had simply cost a great deal of stamina.
On the other side of the cabin, Sandersonia and Marigold stood close to Hancock while Gion rested nearby under the supervision of one of Law's medical crew.
Jinbe glanced toward the Pirate Empress.
"I did not expect to find you here as well."
"Hmph."
Hancock folded her arms.
"My reasons are none of your concern."
Jinbe gave an awkward laugh and wisely chose not to continue.
The submarine suddenly jolted as it adjusted depth around an undersea current.
Hancock, already injured from the pursuit, was caught off balance. She planted one hand against the wall to steady herself.
Riiip.
The back of her battle-damaged dress finally gave way.
Everyone nearest her froze.
At the center of Hancock's back was the mark she had spent years hiding.
The Hoof of the Soaring Dragon.
Jinbe's expression changed instantly.
Shock and recognition replaced every trace of his earlier awkwardness.
"You..."
"SISTER!"
Sandersonia and Marigold lunged forward at the same time, trying to cover Hancock before anyone could stare.
The atmosphere inside the submarine went rigid.