Marineford War: I Will Stand in the Sky

However, in Yann's view, the Navy Admiral is required to bear an obligation that Yann himself finds difficult to accept—"to unconditionally protect the Celestial Dragons!"

This point will be clearly stated in the inaugural address of a general.

If a Celestial Dragon is offended or harmed, the Admirals are obligated to immediately dispatch and eliminate the disrespectful person. Furthermore, the Celestial Dragons themselves nominally possess the authority to mobilize and command the Navy Admirals.

As for this rule, Yann naturally understood it very well.

It's simply a rule established by the World Government to further ensure the supreme status of the Celestial Dragons.

And this has inadvertently created a closed loop logic whereby the Celestial Dragons bestow upon the Admirals the highest level of power, status, and honor, while the Navy Admirals are required to maintain the Celestial Dragons' authority.

This is precisely why Vice Admiral Garp is so unwilling to be promoted to the rank of Marine Admiral, in order to avoid the obligation of "unconditionally protecting the Celestial Dragons".

Yann was also very clear that he could not do the disgusting thing of keeping watch for the Celestial Dragons, allowing them to abduct women in the streets, shoot husbands, and prevent them from resisting.

'My power can be used to uphold justice in the Navy, deter pirates, and maintain peace on the seas, but it should never be used to embolden the Celestial Dragons to trample on civilians.'

This is one of Arn's bottom lines.

Therefore, Yann, who did not want to be a general, had already thought of an excuse in advance.

"Alright then, old man, I'll prepare to return to Marineford now, but what if Kong accidentally dies halfway there..."

"Shut up!"

Before Aon could finish speaking, Marshal Sengoku immediately interrupted him.

"One year? I'll give you a maximum of one year..."

“Five years!” Yann retorted.

"impossible."

“Four years…” Yann continued.

"At most two years. After two years, I must see Sora and Hikari, uh, and you in Marineford no matter what," said Marshal Sengoku.

“Deal!” Yann agreed without hesitation.

Let's delay for two years. After Kong's illness is cured, won't it be Ying's turn to suddenly fall ill?

Therefore, there was no opportunity to use the excuse of attending a funeral for the time being; otherwise, Yann would have thought that "three years of mourning" would have been a good excuse as well.

In short, it's best to stay away from Marineford for now and avoid any opportunities or reasons for promotion. (To be continued)

[Chapter 418 Three Years After Three Years]

Three years after three years...

Marineford Naval Base, Naval Headquarters.

The usually bustling naval port was now unusually quiet, with all the sailors acting cautiously, their eyes constantly glancing furtively in a certain direction.

The "Justice" cloak fluttered slightly in the sea breeze, and his tall, mountain-like figure inspired awe—Fleet Admiral Sengoku the Buddha!

"Marshal Zhan Guo, what brings you to the naval port today?"

"Not only Marshal Sengoku, but also Vice Admiral Tsuru, Vice Admiral Momousagi, and Vice Admiral Chaton, among other important figures, are here as well."

"Hiss, is some important person arriving in Marineford? It's as if Marshal Sengoku and so many lieutenant generals have come all the way to greet him at the port."

"Could it be... that they're waiting for the Seven Warlords of the Sea? Wasn't there a rumor that the first meeting of the Seven Warlords of the Sea would be held in Marineford?"

Immediately, many eyes turned towards the navy officer who had uttered those words, as if he were an idiot.

"Are you an idiot? Even if each of the Seven Warlords of the Sea is a great pirate with special privileges, what right do they have to be greeted by Fleet Admiral Sengoku in person?"

"That's right. Even the Seven Warlords of the Sea are just pirates. They don't have a status equal to that of the Fleet Admiral at all."

"Besides, this is Marineford, the Marine Headquarters. Those Seven Warlords of the Sea don't even have the right to cause trouble!"

……

Amidst the scornful voices, the navy officer who had misspoke looked somewhat embarrassed. While continuing to move supplies, he said with some resentment.

"Who else could it be besides the Seven Warlords of the Sea? It can't be the Five Elders who have arrived at Marine Headquarters, can it?"

Another navy officer standing nearby instinctively retorted, "That's impossible. The Five Elders have never heard of him leaving the Holy Land of Mary Geoise."

Just then, a naval captain suddenly thought of something and spoke up.

“I remember now, wasn’t there a rumor that that man was about to return to Marineford? That naval hero who intimidated countless pirates.”

"You mean that one who, according to rumors, left Marineford and went on a secret mission for six years..."

"Look, there's a ship!"

As a cry of surprise rang out, the busy naval personnel on the port turned their attention to the naval warship that stood out conspicuously on the sea.

Its distinctive appearance made it instantly recognizable to all the navy personnel, and also caused a large number of them to show expressions of excitement and anticipation.

That legendary naval hero is about to appear...

"Hahaha……"

As the naval warship docked, a hearty laugh echoed from the ship.

"I've finally returned."

The next moment, Vice Admiral Garp leaped off the warship and landed in front of Fleet Admiral Sengoku and the others, saying joyfully.

"Long time no see, Sengoku, Kotsuru, oh? Gion and Kake are here too, as if to welcome this old man..."

Before Vice Admiral Garp could finish speaking, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, with his arms crossed, merely glanced at Vice Admiral Garp and then coldly said...

"Get out of the way, Garp, and move your ship too, don't get in the way."

"what?!"

Vice Admiral Garp, who had returned to Marineford after a long six-year leave, was stunned.

"You...you weren't here to welcome me?" Lieutenant General Garp asked blankly.

Upon seeing this, Vice Admiral Tsuru, who was standing next to Fleet Admiral Sengoku, immediately ordered Vice Admiral Garp's personal flagship to move aside and dock, while pulling Vice Admiral Garp aside to explain.

"Garp, well, I'm here to welcome you back, but the main character Sengoku is waiting for today isn't you."

The smile that had been on Vice Admiral Garp's face froze completely, and he realized that Vice Admiral Tsuru probably had completely forgotten that he had arrived in Marineford today.

The next moment, before Vice Admiral Garp could say anything, Vice Admiral Tsuru's eyes lit up slightly, and he looked towards the sea, muttering to himself.

"Yes, we've finally arrived."

As Vice Admiral Garp looked in the direction Vice Admiral Tsuru was looking, he saw two ships appearing at the horizon, approaching the Marine Headquarters side by side.

One of them was a standard-issue warship of the Navy Headquarters that Vice Admiral Garp knew all too well, and the other was...

"The Kuja Pirates? Hancock?"

After a pause, Vice Admiral Garp couldn't help but ask, "Did Sengoku really make such a big fuss all the way to the port just to welcome Hancock?"

“Of course, it’s not just Hancock…” Vice Admiral Tsuru explained quietly to Vice Admiral Garp.

As the naval warship and the Kuja Pirates approached, amidst the somewhat surprised gazes of many naval personnel on the naval port, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, who had remained motionless throughout, actually took the initiative to go forward to meet them.

"Huh? Wasn't Fleet Admiral Sengoku here to welcome Vice Admiral Garp?"

"Even if the other party is the Pirate Empress, it shouldn't be this bad, right?"

"Look, not only the Marshal, but the other lieutenant generals also went up."

……

In an instant, the excited and admiring gazes of the large number of marines who were originally focused on Vice Admiral Garp all turned to look at the two ships that were about to dock, following Fleet Admiral Sengoku.

Who is it?

The admiral and numerous vice admirals personally greeted them.

The next moment, as the naval warship came to a stop, a tall and slender figure appeared in everyone's sight.

"Who...is that?"

The eyes of the large number of naval soldiers, however, were filled with doubt.

Wearing a "Justice" cloak and holding the rank of Rear Admiral of the Navy Headquarters, his attire was extremely casual, consisting of an unremarkable beach outfit, with an unknown sword hanging at his waist and a brightly colored canary perched on his shoulder.

He had slightly messy, tousled hair, wore black-rimmed glasses, and had a bit of stubble on his chin.

Aside from the faint resemblance in his facial features to his former handsome appearance, judging solely from his looks, he appears to be a somewhat颓废 (颓废 is a difficult word to translate directly, but it implies a sense of decadence, listlessness, or apathy) middle-aged man who enjoys walking his bird.

He lacked the heroic spirit of Vice Admiral Garp, the imposing presence of Fleet Admiral Sengoku, and even the imposing aura of the Vice Admirals.

"and many more……"

Just then, one of the naval lieutenant commanders slowly widened his eyes, feeling that the seemingly ordinary, decadent middle-aged man in front of him gradually overlapped with the handsome young man in his memory, a man who could be both sweet and salty, both assertive and submissive.

"Then...then it can't be...it can't be Rear Admiral Sakura Ryu, can it???" the naval lieutenant commander said in disbelief.

what? !

As the naval lieutenant commander's voice rang out, the eyes of the surrounding sailors widened involuntarily.

"Major Admiral Sakura Ryu?! How is that possible?"

"Is it true that Rear Admiral Sakura Ryu is not critically injured and on the verge of death, but has become a vegetable and is receiving treatment somewhere in the ocean?"

"Huh? What I heard was that Major General Sakura Dragon was so infatuated with the Empress's beauty that he was conquering her day and night, unable to extricate himself, and so his body was gradually being drained, forcing him to retire." (To be continued)

[Chapter 419. Firefly]

Hearing the faint whispers, Yann's lips almost twitched uncontrollably.

Who exactly came up with this rumor? Even if I secretly instructed the organization to find a way to lower my reputation in the Navy, they can't just make up something out of nothing like this, can they?

What kind of critically injured, dying, vegetative state patient? What kind of person is obsessed with beauty?

The most outrageous thing is, what does it mean to be so engrossed in day and night battles that you can't help yourself and end up completely drained from your body?

Am I the kind of man who lacks self-control?

Moreover, I have clearly become stronger with each battle over the past six years, winning every single one and never suffering a defeat.

After all, Yann's current abilities are incomparable to those of six years ago when he was still immature.

"However... well, it seems that the rumors the organization has been spreading in secret have been quite effective so far, at least they've weakened its prestige considerably..."

Yaen stroked his slightly stubbled chin, muttered something, and then turned his gaze to Marshal Sengoku and the others.