The natural system started off strong, but the navy finally reached its peak!

It was Garp who came in.

He, who is usually carefree and has a loud laugh, was unusually silent at this moment.

He didn't grab the rice crackers as usual, nor did he ask any questions; he simply walked silently to the sofa.

He sat down like a stone statue, his back not even fully resting on the sofa.

Zhan Guo didn't turn around; he remained leaning back in his wide chair, his gaze fixed on the ceiling.

After a long silence, a voice filled with deep weariness broke the silence.

“Karp........”

Almost simultaneously, Garp's deep, hoarse voice rang out.

"I'm sorry, Sengoku period."

"What are you apologizing for?" Sengoku turned his head, his gaze piercing as he looked at his old friend on the sofa, his voice laced with suppressed anger.

You shouldn't apologize to me.

He stood up and walked step by step to Garp, looking down at the naval hero, who at this moment appeared to be just an old man who looked frail and powerless.

"You should apologize to yourself!" Sengoku's voice trembled.

"Why...why didn't you hide him?! Why didn't you let him grow up at the naval academy?"

Why not keep him right under our noses?!

That way, at least... at least he won't go down that path!

We won't let things get to this point!

"Warring States?!" Garp suddenly looked up, his eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

He looked at the Warring States, his lips moved, but no sound came out.

"What?" A bitter, self-deprecating smile appeared on Sengoku's face. "Do you think I don't know anything?"

Do you think I'm a rigid person? Roger's child? In the end, I'm just a child.

Do you really think your collaboration with Gern back then was flawless?!

Don't forget, Garp! You are a naval hero, you're just a vice admiral! You have fame, but you have no power!!

But why did things turn out so easily back then?

"Because of me!" He pointed to the document on the table: "If it weren't for me! If it weren't for me, the Fleet Admiral!"

Will that child's internal records list him as "Garp's adopted grandson"?

They've probably already been dug up by those mad dogs from the world government back then!

"You... self-righteous bastard!!"

Finally, his pent-up emotions exploded. Sengoku suddenly leaned down, grabbed Garp by the collar, and pulled him up from the sofa!

His eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently at Garp's eyes, which were also filled with pain and struggle.

"You clearly had a better choice! I've been waiting for you to make a decision! But you... you actually had your own ideas!"

Okay! You have your principles! Then hide it well!!! Hide it somewhere no one can find it!

Let him live his entire life as an ordinary person, and never let anyone discover his true identity!

"But what about now?!" Sengoku's voice was almost a roar, filled with accusation.

"Garp!! The World Government is pressuring me! They're putting me in a difficult position!!"

They're going to expose his identity! They're going to use the navy's swords to cut off Roger's son's head!

Do you know what this means?! Do you know what an all-out war against Whitebeard means?!

His hand, gripping Karp's collar, trembled violently with force, and every word seemed to be forced out of his throat.

"That would be hell!! How many soldiers, how many families... would be torn apart by this war, how many lives would be lost?!"

"Tell me, Garp!!!"

..........

(Sengoku's personality was greatly altered by the butterfly, Gern.)

Because a person who holds great power will naturally change their attitude towards certain things.

In other words, it's the difference between a puppet emperor and an emperor with real power...

Chapter 444 Boomerang

"Feel sorry……"

"Heh...heh heh heh!"

"Garp, I'm so tired!"

Sengoku released his grip, as if he had exhausted all his strength, and shoved Garp back onto the sofa.

He staggered back half a step and barely managed to stand up by grabbing the edge of the desk.

He was really tired during this time.

Karp slumped on the sofa, head down, hands clenched tightly around his knees, knuckles white, his usual dog-head hat askew.

He did not refute it, nor could he refute it.

Every word Zhan Guo had just spoken was like a dull knife, cutting into his already riddled heart.

Just like his sense of justice, it wavers.

Sengoku stopped looking at Garp and instead stared out the window at Marineford, the port that symbolized naval justice and order.

He finally understood firsthand the words that General Steelbone Sky Marshal had spoken to him earnestly when he first took over.

The position of Admiral of the Navy is far more burdensome than you can imagine.

It was not a throne, but a stake bound by countless chains.

Now, this flame is scorching his reason and soul.

Domestically, he has to dance on a tightrope.

He had to carefully maintain the delicate balance between G-10, which was practically an independent kingdom, and the Naval Headquarters.

They must both use its sharp claws to intimidate the new world and prevent this behemoth from completely slipping out of their control.

At headquarters, he had to painstakingly reconcile Akainu's increasingly radical "absolute justice" faction with Aokiji's conservative tendencies.

The sharp conflicts between factions that question the existing order must be prevented from creating irreparable rifts within the Navy.

He walks on thin ice when dealing with outsiders.

The five shadowy figures of the World Government (the Five Elders) have never ceased their covetousness and attempts to incorporate naval power.

Every decision he makes, every mobilization he undertakes, must be carefully considered, demonstrating both the strength and value of the navy.

They also need to ensure that the relatively independent military decision-making power they had finally gained after the "Holy Land Incident" is not easily taken back.

"Balance..."

This word, like destiny, clung to him.

Just as when Kong and the World Government chose him to succeed as Fleet Admiral, they valued his exceptional balancing skills and strategic vision.

Throughout his term, he was indeed walking on a taut tightrope, struggling to maintain a fragile balance between various forces.

But at this moment, Ace's identity is revealed, and Whitebeard's all-out war...

This thunderclap shattered the carefully maintained illusion of balance he had painstakingly constructed.

“This position…has been held by three generations…” A clear line of events emerged in Sengoku’s mind.

The Steel-Bodied Era – Toughness.

With absolute force and an iron fist, they forcefully upheld the backbone of the Navy during the chaotic end of Roger's era and the beginning of the Great Pirate Era.

Then, Gern emerged, gradually breaking the World Government's shackles on the Navy and laying the foundation.

The Warring States Period – Balance.

Amidst a complex internal and external situation, the navy has skillfully maintained its course with exceptional political acumen, even managing to carve out more space for itself in challenging circumstances.

“And the next one…” Sengoku’s eyes deepened.

Facing an impending all-out war that could overturn the existing order

Faced with increasingly blatant manipulation by world governments, and with deep-seated internal contradictions...

"The next era will no longer need balance... but... destruction and creation!"

We need a sharp and decisive knife to cut through this tangled mess and break the old framework!

Looking around, one sees Aokiji, who upholds "burning justice" yet often falls into confusion and wavering.

He still believes in "absolute justice," and his methods are ruthless and ruthless...

"None of them... are the best candidates to lead the Navy in this 'destruction and reconstruction' process."

Aokiji lacks the decisiveness to break everything, while Akainu could lead the Navy to an extreme of utter ruin.

Therefore, that knife only belongs to that man...

Kong's words back then, like a boomerang, hit the Warring States period right now!

........

New World, G-10

Under the combined effects of Ribo's Healing Fruit and Law's Op-Op Fruit...

The ship's wheel, the symbol of shame that had plagued Shiki the Golden Lion for over a decade, was removed intact without leaving any aftereffects.

Feeling an unprecedented sense of ease and mental clarity, the golden lion stretched its neck and let out a sigh of relief.

He didn't say much in thanks, but just gave Gern a complicated look and said, "I need to get used to this long-lost feeling."

He then strode away from G-10 and began to wander around New World.

Gern watched him leave with a meaningful smile on his face, but did not stop him.

"Go, take a good look, feel it... You need to adapt to more than just a newborn body."

He needs the Golden Lion to get familiar with this place, and he also needs the Golden Lion's restless heart to give rise to some different ideas here.

Then, Gern turned his gaze to Hawkeye, who was standing to the side with his arms crossed, intending to spar with Shiki's dual-wielding style, and raised an eyebrow.

"I heard that the green-haired swordsman from the Straw Hat crew who wields three swords got slapped away by Kuma and ended up in that... old place in the Grand Line that's full of memories for you?"

Faced with Gern's question that seemed to rub salt in the wound, Hawkeye's eyebrows furrowed almost imperceptibly, and he casually deflected the blame: "That was a trip decided on its own by Bartholomew Bear."

Gern, however, acted as if he hadn't heard his explanation and continued to ask with great interest.

"So, you really don't plan to... give him a little 'guidance'?"

After all, there aren't many swordsmen whose names you can remember.

Hawkeye maintained his aloof swordsman persona, his tone completely calm: "The art of swordsmanship, though ever-changing, remains true to its principles."

All advanced techniques originate from the most basic slashing, cutting, thrusting, and parrying.

If the foundation is not solid, no matter how much is taught, it will be a castle in the air.

Hearing this sophisticated, textbook-like statement about kendo, Gern couldn't help but chuckle softly, mercilessly exposing it: "After all that, you've gone around in circles..."

Actually, you've never seen this kind of unorthodox style like 'Three-Sword Style,' so you don't know how to teach it, right?

Hawkeye: "..." (The world's greatest swordsman fell into a brief silence.)

After a moment, Hawkeye snorted coldly, as if tacitly agreeing, and said, "In short, until he completely conquers (crushes) those baboons on the island who imitate my swordsmanship with his own strength, everything else is out of the question."

At that time... I might, considering that he didn't give up on the way of the sword even in dire straits, offer him just one piece of advice..."

"On the true meaning of 'dominance' for a swordsman."

"Oh? Just one word about being domineering..." Gern stroked his chin, his smile deepening. "I see..."

He said no more, but the meaning in his eyes was clear...