Pirate: I was just slacking off, do you really think I'm bad?

Marineford, the Marine Headquarters held a grand ceremony for the triumphant return of the Marines. Raleigh and Sakazuki stood in the very center, receiving the praise of everyone watching. Sakazuki even tilted his head with interest and said:

"You know what, Raleigh? If this kind of scene could continue to happen in Marineford, then my dream would be realized."

Sakazuki's ideal is to wipe out all pirate forces in the world.

If the navy could achieve such large-scale victories every time it went on a campaign, then the pirate forces would surely be wiped out by the navy.

But Raleigh didn't say anything.

At this moment, it would be a real shame to be so eager to attack Sakazuki.

Sakazuki's idea was simple: if he eliminated all the pirates in the world, there would be no more pirates.

But he didn't understand why, despite the Navy's efforts to combat pirates for eight hundred years, they still existed.

Because the fundamental problem has not been solved, as long as the Celestial Dragons, the world's nobles, still exist in this world, and as long as the heavy Celestial Gold is still being collected...

The world will not change, even if the Navy wipes out all the pirates who now have a bounty of over 100 million.

Because Devil Fruits always offer pirates a glimmer of hope.

On the stage at the very center of the square, Sengoku, dressed in the uniform of a naval admiral symbolizing power, sat quietly.

His eyes were completely hidden behind his glasses, and no one knew what this strategist was thinking.

The lower-ranking naval soldiers could only see Sengoku's smiling face, but they didn't know that Sengoku had already developed resentment towards Raleigh and Sakazuki.

That's right, although the order to retreat was forced upon him by the Five Elders, why would Raleigh and Sakazuki defy the order?

He could have been notified after this was done, and this misunderstanding wouldn't have happened.

But Raleigh and Sakazuki did exactly that.

Both sides were filled with various calculations, and after a series of feigned sentiments, the grand celebration welcoming the navy's triumphant return finally came to an end.

At the bonfire party that evening, most of the naval soldiers were celebrating their survival; no one knew about the meeting being held in the marshal's office.

In the conference room of the Navy Headquarters' high-ranking officers, this was the most complete gathering of all the Navy's officers ever present.

Moreover, you can tell which faction these people belong to just by where they sit.

Sengoku sat in the very center, with Garp, Tsuru, Kuzan, and others on his left, and on his other side were the three admirals led by Raleigh, Sakazuki, and Borsalino, as well as some of the most outstanding vice admirals in the navy recently.

For example, characters like the Rat, Cleveland, and Enel.

Sengoku first offered a few insincere words of praise for Raleigh and Sakazuki's achievements, then abruptly changed the subject, his expression turning serious as he said:

"Rayle, Sakazuki. Why didn't you two obey headquarters' orders back then? Why did you insist on going to fight Kaido?"

Although the outcome was good, you two were ultimately risking the lives of naval soldiers.

We have clearly achieved significant results; there is absolutely no need to fight them to the death.

The atmosphere suddenly turned icy cold, and the generals on both sides of the Warring States period stood in stark contrast.

Gion and Kakei sat at the very back, feeling uneasy from the atmosphere.

They weren't stupid; they could tell something was wrong.

However, due to their status and their relationship with Raleigh, they didn't know what to say.

At that moment, Raleigh suddenly burst out laughing and clapped his hands.

The only sound in the entire conference room was his applause.

After a long silence, Raleigh finally spoke:

"I thought I could hold back my laughter, but I couldn't help it after hearing what Marshal Sengoku said."

"The Navy is not a game. Fighting pirates will definitely result in deaths. The important thing is what kind of results we achieve."

"If paying such a price can eliminate the ruler of a new world, then I think it's worth it."

Sengoku slammed his hand on the table, unleashing his Conqueror's Haki, which pressed down on Raleigh.

Raleigh smiled slightly; he was never afraid of anyone, even when it came to Conqueror's Haki.

boom!

The two streams of Conqueror's Haki collided in mid-air, but it was clear that Sengoku's Conqueror's Haki was suppressed by Raleigh.

At this moment, Sengoku's face was ashen.

Kuzan conjured a spear in his hand, Sakazuki's right hand had turned into magma, and Borsalino narrowed his eyes, staring at Garp opposite him. "This is utter nonsense! How can a Marine Admiral disregard the lives of Marine soldiers like this? I think you should temporarily relinquish your position as Marine Admiral and calm down."

Raleigh clapped his hands again and said:

"As expected of you, Sengoku."

Raleigh stood up, his tall stature creating an extremely imposing presence.

"Unfortunately, it's not up to you."

He pointed to the sky with his right hand and said:

"Those people have the final say."

"They felt that the admiral had been in office for so long and hadn't even been able to deal with the revolutionary army, so he was really useless!"

Therefore, they decided to appoint a military commander who was more effective against the revolutionary army.

Garp suddenly opened his eyes wide and roared;

"You dare?!"

Raleigh slammed his hand on the table, and the large conference table shattered instantly.

"What wouldn't I dare to do!"

"I am a naval admiral, and the revolutionary army is our enemy, so they should be eliminated."

"And from what stand are you saying these things to me, Navy or Revolutionary Army?!"

Raleigh's loud questioning made the atmosphere in the conference room even more frightening.

Sengoku stared intently into Raleigh's eyes, seemingly trying to discern Raleigh's true thoughts.

"Kuzan is on the Revolutionary Army's side, so you and Sakazuki don't need to go out."

Sakazuki sneered:

"Who? This piece of trash who spent months trying to conquer even the four seas?"

Kuzan's expression grew increasingly grim.

It wasn't that he lacked the ability to infiltrate the world, but rather that he understood the relationship between the Revolutionary Army and Garp, which is why he didn't go all out.

Given Kuzan's strength, there are only a handful of people in the entire Revolutionary Army who could rival him.

In Marineford's plaza and family quarters, many people sensed the clash of two powerful Conqueror's Haki auras. Zephyr, a student at the military academy, had just finished dinner with his son and was preparing to work a little longer.

Suddenly he shouted:

"not good!"

"Something's happened!"

He flew to the conference room.

Back at headquarters, the naval soldiers who were drinking and singing around the campfire vanished instantly upon sensing the two astonishing auras and the murderous intent they contained.

"What happened?"

"Isn't that the marshal's office?"

"That aura... it's Admiral Raleigh's Conqueror's Haki!"

"No way, no way. They're not going to fight, are they?"

The generals under Raleigh and Sakazuki all placed their hands on the hilts of their swords, ready to fight at any moment.

It seemed as if a single word from Raleigh would trigger an immediate battle.

Borsalino slowly rose to his feet, staring at Kuzan, who had also stood up opposite him, and said in a low voice:

"Kuzan, don't get involved in this."

"Otherwise, I'll have a real headache, since your strength is like a monster's."

Raleigh held Sengoku tightly and said:

"You stand here now, strutting around talking about the losses of naval soldiers, then I'd like to ask you, who exactly canceled the supply shipments to the New World?"

As the Navy's Grand Admiral, have you done what you were supposed to do?

The front lines are locked in fierce combat with the pirates, but you've cut off our weapons, ammunition, and supplies. Do you know what the consequences will be if we don't end this quickly and wait for the pirate forces to regroup?!

"Since we've come this far, let me talk about something else."

Back then, the Revolutionary Army was able to evade my attacks multiple times on the Grand Line because you revealed my routes to them, right?

Within the navy at that time, only you knew my sailing route, and only you had the opportunity to leak my information to outsiders.

Did you ever think that because of your betrayal, many naval soldiers died inexplicably at the hands of the Revolutionary Army? It was because I suspected you that I didn't reveal my whereabouts to anyone later on.

To my utter surprise, just as I was about to conquer the four seas, you issued an order to transfer me back to headquarters. At the time, I was highly suspicious, but it wasn't until Kuzan took over that I realized you were in league with the Revolutionary Army.

After Luo Li finished speaking, everyone in the office was stunned, and they looked at Zhan Zhanguo with puzzled eyes.

This included generals like Gion and Kakei, who were not involved in the matter.

They desperately wanted Sengoku to refute Raleigh's words, but judging from Sengoku's expression, it was clear that Raleigh was right.

I'm not feeling well, so I'll leave now.

Gion could not accept this fact; she could not simultaneously face the falling out between Sengoku and Raleigh.

So she had no choice but to leave.

Garp struggled to explain, but Sakazuki interrupted him, saying, "You have no right to speak here, you old man who isn't even a vice admiral."

Sengoku closed his eyes tightly, then slowly spoke;

"What do you want, Raleigh? To incite division and conflict within the Navy?"

Raleigh's brow furrowed; even at this moment, Sengoku hadn't forgotten to dig a pit for him.

"Enough with the nonsense. We don't want to involve anyone else in our business. Let's fight in the sky."

boom!

Raleigh made a direct move, smashing half of the roof and flying into the sky. A golden light flashed in Sengoku's eyes, and he transformed into a giant golden Buddha, also flying into the sky.

Sakazuki sneered.

"Old man, I've had my eye on you for a long time. Let's settle this once and for all this time."

Sakazuki and Kapu both soared into the sky, entangled as they flew towards the back mountain.

A series of booming sounds rang out, and Borsalino looked at Kuzan with a frightened expression.

"Kuzan, you'd better not move."

The laser lights on his fingers were already lit, ready to launch an attack on Kuzan at any moment.

Kuzan was about to make a move when he was stopped by Tsuru.

"Don't move."

The crane shook its head.

It wasn't that she didn't want to help Sengoku, but rather that the current situation was already quite fair for Sengoku, with only one player facing off against him.

Most of the capable vice admirals in the navy are in the hands of Raleigh and Sakazuki.

Many of the lieutenants on the Sengoku side were giants, possessing only strength and rank. If they were to fight lieutenants who had experienced bloody battles, they would only be brutally defeated.

Tsuru desperately didn't want the navy to split up. Even though the two sides had completely broken their opinions, she only hoped it was a matter between the two of them.

Rat and Enel stood at the forefront, staring at Tsuru and Kakei, and said:

"Lieutenant General Tsuru, please try to calm these people down. They're all colleagues; there's no need for violence."

Raleigh had already explained this to them from the very beginning.

A battle between vice admirals should be avoided if possible; ideally, the battlefield should end only between him and Sengoku.

As for Sakazuki wanting to fight Garp, there's no need to stop him. Other generals like Raleigh are still useful, and even those from Sengoku's lineage can be sent out to fight pirates!

Anyway, it still has some use.

In the sky, it was as if a golden sun had appeared in the darkness of night.

Sengoku looked solemnly at Raleigh opposite him and said:

"Rayle, I never expected things to turn out this way. In my heart, you've always been the most suitable candidate to be Fleet Admiral."

"Even now, I still believe you are the only choice for the Navy's Grand Admiral; even Kuzan is far inferior to you."

"Unfortunately, this time I'm not doing it for myself, but because the Navy cannot set such a precedent."

Raleigh grinned, mocking him mercilessly:

"Warring States period, so you're getting old, and you've even got the logic of this world wrong."

"No wonder the Navy's honor almost disappeared during your tenure. Remember this: in this world, might makes right."

"Instead of some bullshit favor, only those who lack ability try to make up for it with favors."

Back in the North Sea, if Raleigh hadn't been lacking in strength, he wouldn't have needed to use Borsalino's name to do things.

But once he became powerful enough, no one ever mentioned that he was Borsalino's brother again.

boom!

The wall was suddenly smashed through, and everyone present instinctively drew their swords and knives to face the intruder.

"Phew, thankfully I made it in time."

Zefa, panting, glanced at everyone present; a single scan was enough to tell how many people were there. "Zefa, you're here."

Crane's expression relaxed. Although she was more intelligent, she was still no match for the general in terms of combat ability.

If the people here accidentally start fighting, she won't be able to stop it.

"What are you all standing there for?!"

"Put away the knives, go in and organize the men, and calm the soldiers down!"

"I don't want to get involved in the affairs between Sengoku, Garp, Raleigh, and Sakazuki, but the Navy cannot be divided because of this."

Zefa had served as a general and instructor for many years, and his prestige and orders were still very effective with these lieutenant generals.

Even Kuzan and Borsalino have to call him teacher.

Out of respect for Zephyr, all the vice admirals from both sides went out to appease the naval soldiers to prevent any drunken sailors from causing trouble.