Chapter 66: Ransom
"Still, we have to handle this with caution," Sengoku stated, his gaze hardening. "It's the Celestial Dragons we're talking about—we can't have them dying under our watch."
Aokiji maintained his relaxed, almost disinterested demeanor, his eyes half-closed. "Focus, Aokiji," Sengoku called out, his patience waning.
Aokiji shrugged nonchalantly, "I'm not much for planning, you know. Just handle the strategy; I'll do the fighting if it comes to that."
Sengoku frowned but didn't press further. Instead, he turned to Tsuru. "What do we know about him?"
Tsuru took a moment, recalling, "There was talk of a group known as the 'Hell Prince Pirates' in East Blue. Smoker mentioned them briefly, but then they vanished without a trace—until now."
"Smoker from East Blue?" Sengoku raised an eyebrow. "What did he tell us about them?"
"He reported they were forced into piracy due to a particular Marine officer, who's now in Impel Down. Smoker went to apprehend those marines after hearing about their actions."
Sengoku shook his head. "Still, I doubt they'd target the Celestial Dragons for something as trivial as that."
"Permission to speak," a voice interjected. It was Vice Admiral Rhodes, a recent addition to Marine HQ.
Sengoku glanced at him. "Do you know them?"
"Yes, not the captain directly, but one of his crew members, Tony. He introduced me to them," Rhodes replied, looking contemplative.