Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 268 Borsalino: Sakazuki is coming too? And once he's here, he can't leave?

A new world, a new naval headquarters.

In Marshal Sakazuki's office, Chief of Staff Azuru was sitting, drinking tea, watching Sakazuki, who was in a state of utter disarray, dealing with Mary Geoise.

"We're already investigating, but the situation on the front lines in the New World is critical, and our navy simply doesn't have the extra resources."

"No, absolutely not. But revolutionary military affairs were originally the responsibility of the CP, and our navy doesn't have much intelligence or understanding in this area."

"Yes, I understand."

"It will be done as soon as possible."

After Sakazuki hung up the Den Den Mushi, rubbing his temples in annoyance, Chief of Staff Azuru said with a hint of schadenfreude, "The Grand Marshal must have had a tough time."

"Stop making sarcastic remarks," Sakazuki said, taking a sip of his coffee, which he didn't particularly like. "Hopefully, things will progress on Bane's side soon. I can't hold onto the pressure from Mary Geoise for much longer either. If this continues, they're planning to restructure the military budget for the next five years."

It's called a reform, but isn't it just a different pretext for cutting costs?

This is also one of the methods that the world's ruling governments have always used to control the Navy Headquarters.

However, as the Fleet Admiral, you still have to take care of the food, drink, lodging and transportation of your navy, right? Mary Geoise said that cutting military spending was just a matter of words, but when it actually happened, everyone's benefits would be reduced.

The officers at the top can hold out, but what about the soldiers at the bottom?

They fight on the front lines, risking their lives to come back, only to have their wages deducted or even delayed. How can they bear that?

Who will they curse then? Mary Geoise? No, they'll just curse the Navy's high command for being incompetent, unable to even guarantee them this small matter.

These pressures may not be immediately apparent, but they will accumulate over a long period of time on Admiral Sakazuki.

Therefore, the threat of cutting military spending has always been very effective.

After all, this would really shake the prestige of the Navy's top brass.

"Judging from the current situation, it shouldn't be long. This isn't a report from the front lines, but rather a judgment made by our intelligence staff based on a summary of various information," Chief of Staff A-He comforted Sakazuki.

"Of course I can see that too," Sakazuki nodded.

He deals with all sorts of intelligence from the front lines every day, and with Sakazuki's talent, he shouldn't be unable to see the situation clearly.

The Navy is constantly putting pressure on the front lines and has gradually moved past the initial stalemate of the war, accelerating the pace and rhythm of their offensive. Apart from the fact that the pirates were able to mount a strong counterattack at the beginning, in just over half a month, their front lines are already on the verge of collapse.

It was just one last kick away.

According to reports from the front lines yesterday, Bane has already used his authority as commander-in-chief to order Fujitora Issho, who is also a general, to launch a full-scale offensive against the central front.

Once Ikko breaks through the central front, he will completely destroy the pirate alliance's front-line defenses and create a vortex. According to the Navy's next strategic plan, the northern and southern offensives will rapidly approach the central front, continuously drawing the forces of the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates to a single point.

If this situation is to be avoided and if a breakthrough is to be achieved, the Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates must have sufficient strength to retake the collapsed central front.

With a Marine Admiral stationed in that area, achieving this goal would inevitably require the personal intervention of the two last Pirate Emperors!

If they remain still, they will only wait for the navy to turn the area into a meat grinder, completely crushing their forces; if they move, that will be the opportunity for a decisive battle!

"Ten days." Sakazuki glanced at the calendar on the table and then said, "Since the Chief of Staff also believes that Bane can complete this strategic objective on time, then it's about time for me to set off."

"While these words may not dissuade you, as Marshal, in this advantageous battlefield situation, is it really necessary for you to personally go to the front lines?" Chief of Staff A-He looked at Sakazuki and said in a deep voice, "Your presence at headquarters is the best support, isn't it?"

"Chief Strategist, you're right." Sakazuki nodded, then, a long-absent cold smile appeared on his face as he said, "But that's not my style!"

In this great battle, how could Sakazuki be absent from the final battlefield?

"What about headquarters?" Chief Advisor A-He didn't try to persuade her further; after all, she was just a staff officer, while Sakazuki was the marshal.

"I'll leave it to you. Also, I don't know what's wrong with that guy Aramaki, but he's just not liked by Bane. He's been stuck in the G-3 base and hasn't been transferred. I think it would be better to bring him back to headquarters, which would be a good guarantee." Sakazuki stroked the stubble on his chin and said.

After saying that, Sakazuki chuckled and said, "Perfect timing. It's good that I'm not at Marine Headquarters. I can finally escape the peace and quiet of Mary Geoise."

He's under so much pressure as a marshal, what's wrong with going to the front lines to kill a couple of pirates and relax a bit?

It's perfectly reasonable, isn't it?

Incidentally, it's been a long time since he's seen the former marshal Sengoku. He hadn't had much personal experience with him before, but now he really wants to go and learn from him.

Meanwhile, in Melvure.

In General Bane's office, he had just hung up a Den Den Mushi call from headquarters.

"I knew Sakazuki was coming to the front lines; he definitely wouldn't sit still," Bane muttered, somewhat exasperated.

"Heh, that's good. Now that he's here, he'll probably be like me, never to return. Apart from the Chief of Staff, the headquarters has been completely hollowed out by you." Borsalino sat on the sofa, manicuring his nails as he complained.

Back then, he left the Marine Headquarters without any precautions. Now, however, he can no longer return.

Now that Sakazuki is leaving the Marine Headquarters, it's unclear whether he'll join them. But given Bane's cunning and treacherous nature, he's unlikely to let such a good opportunity slip by. Regardless of Sakazuki's personal wishes, once he's in this den of wolves, even a tiger like him won't be able to leave.

As for the wolf in the den, Borsalino glanced at everyone in the office.

Bane, Zephyr, Sengoku Inspector General, Kuzan, Garp, and Issho on the front lines—who could stand that?

"You make it sound like I would murder him. I have no grudge against Sakazuki. As a marshal, he trusts me so much and supports my war plans with all his might. How could I be disrespectful to him?" Bane said, feigning righteousness.

"What will you do if he leaves?" Borsalino asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Of course, we should have Professor Zephyr, Inspector Sengoku, Senior Kuzan, and Mr. Garp persuade him together. With so many colleagues and old friends, it's not unreasonable to advise him to stay a few more days to rest, is it?" Bane said confidently.

Moreover, I heard that he has been scolded like a dog and tortured to death by the new Five Elders of Mary Geoise. He finally got out of the country, so why is he in such a hurry to go back and suffer?

Why don't you just talk things over with us, grit your teeth and do it together? Wouldn't it be better to go back and vent your anger? If that Green Gu dares to call you a Red Dog again, just beat him to death and tell him that from now on he'll call you Red Commander!

Huh? There's no future? Then it's alright.

Borsalino glanced instinctively at Kuzan's leg. Colleague and old friend? Although the leg was healed, their relationship hadn't been good, had it?

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

Although he wanted to complain, Borsalino suppressed his thoughts and didn't say anything more.

Bane and the others did not continue the topic of Sakazuki, and at the same time, what they were talking about at the moment was not the war with pirates at all.

At this point, it seemed that none of them cared about the war anymore; they were all very confident that victory was inevitable.

And that's pretty much the truth.

Zephyr looked at the nautical chart on the table, puffing on his cigar, and said, "I don't have time to talk to you about Sakazuki. As soon as Kaido and Charlotte Linlin show up, I'll immediately lead our new Navy's elite fleet away from Melvyu to Mary Geoise to make preliminary preparations. As soon as your battle is over, I'll bombard Mary Geoise!"

Zephyr hates pirates, that's true, but now that he has foreseen the end of pirates, he doesn't intend to do anything meaningless, like personally participating in killing a few pirates.

The culprit is now only Mary Geoise.

He was about to fire the first shot in this counterattack on Mary Geoise!

Kuzan raised his hand in acknowledgment and then said lazily, "Well, if Sakazuki comes, I really don't get along with him. Staying here would only be an obstacle, so I'll go to Mary Geoise with the teacher instead."

Bane's earlier comment about "persuading" Sakazuki was just a joke, and upon hearing this, he didn't object, nodding and saying, "Then I'll leave the preliminary matters concerning Mary Geoise to you."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Garp chimed in, "After some thought, I think I'll go with them too. According to what we've discussed before, we'll need to coordinate with the Revolutionary Army on the preliminary matters. It'll be easier if I'm there. Besides, my grandson is most likely in Mary Geoise now, which will cause a lot of trouble. I'll feel more at ease if I keep an eye on things myself."

His words were logical and well-founded, and Bane couldn't find any reason to refute them. So he quickly looked at Sengoku and said, "Grand Inspector, you're not going to find an excuse to run away too, are you?"

Sengoku paused for a moment, then said, "Speaking of which, it has indeed been quite a long time since I've seen Kotsuru. Actually, I..."

However, seeing that Bane's expression was becoming increasingly troubled, he changed his tone and said with a smile, "Don't worry, I'll stay here and keep watch. I can also offer some advice to Sakazuki."

"Haha, then I can rest assured," Bane said with a laugh.

Just then, Ain pushed open the door and entered, her tone a mixture of anticipation and nervousness as she said, "Young Master, the latest intelligence from the front lines is that Charlotte Katakuri has appeared on the southern front."

"So fast?" Bane exclaimed in surprise. "I thought it would take him at least six or seven days to arrive, but it's only been two and a half?"

Borsalino, upon hearing this, calmly replied, "The treatment enjoyed by the head of the Big Mom Pirates' Sweet Commanders is quite different from that of the other underlings. If the Homie battleship were to consume soul energy without regard to cost, its speed would indeed be astonishing."

"He really thinks Zoro and his crew are pushovers," Bane sneered, but out of confidence in Zoro and his crew, he didn't ask any further questions.

He quickly turned to Ain and asked, "The key isn't with them, Yixiao. How's it going? Haven't you found that Drought Jack yet?"

"We've almost breached the central front. Jack the Drought of the Beasts Pirates can't just sit idly by any longer. It should be over in the next day or two. As for the Beasts Pirates, King the Flame, the leader of the Three Disasters, has been out of our sighting reports for several days. He's probably heading to the central front. Shouldn't we continue to send troops there?" Ain asked.

"No need. Have the intelligence department keep a close eye on Kaido. I need to know as soon as Rear Admiral Drake has any news!" Bane said without hesitation.

(End of this chapter)