Chapter 325: I, an Elder, Have a Bounty?!
So I have a bounty too?
Akainu's face was terrifyingly grim. His left arm instantly transformed into magma, and the temperature in the office skyrocketed, the very air twisting with heat.
Hiss!
The wanted poster, with its 3.5 billion Berry bounty, was instantly reduced to ash. The remaining molten rock dripped onto the floor, burning black holes in it.
"You bastards!" Akainu gritted out the words. How dare they, the Curtain Call! I am a Marine Admiral! For centuries, it had always been the Marines putting bounties on pirates! Since when could it be the other way around?! And not only a bounty, but they also dared…
He didn't really care about them bringing up Ohara. He had never felt he had done anything wrong. After all, a soldier's duty is to obey. And besides, those scholars had been the ones to recklessly study the forbidden history in the first place!
But the two labels they had given him were too insulting! "A loyal dog of the World Government"? "A loyal slave of the Celestial Dragons"?
A vein pulsed on Akainu's forehead. He stared at the ashes on the floor, and in them, he saw that arrogant, smug face from the New World, the one that had defeated him time and time again. SHANE!!!!
A mere pirate who has thrown the world into chaos! By what right do you get to judge my justice?!
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He finally couldn't take it anymore and slammed his fist on the desk.
BOOM!
Half of the desk was instantly engulfed in magma, collapsing and bursting into a raging fire.
"Sakazuki, calm down! Control your emotions!" Kong's sharp reprimand cut through the air. He had also seen his wanted poster, and his own expression wasn't much better. 5.5 billion Berries? The Commander-in-Chief who had been feared for decades, and he had a bounty on his head. It was absurd. He was filled with a rage that had nowhere to go. But what was the point of venting? A commander should learn to be like him, to remain calm and composed in the face of any situation. And he certainly shouldn't be burning his own desk!
"Calm down?" Akainu suddenly looked up, his voice grim. "Fleet Admiral! How many times have these pirates walked all over us?! Now they're not only putting a bounty on us, but they're also convicting us in front of the whole world!"
"This is a complete trampling of the Marines' 800 years of authority! Can you really still tolerate this?! We should adopt my proposal and mobilize all available forces for an all-out attack on the New World!"
"You're losing your composure, Sakazuki," Kong said after a moment's silence. "This is not something to be rushed. We must be fully prepared. But there is one thing I agree with you on."
"The Marine Headquarters' attitude towards the New World must change!"
"Now that the Curtain Call is the sole dominant power, the balance between the Four Emperors has been completely broken. Under no circumstances should we allow them to continue to expand."
"So?" Akainu's eyebrow twitched.
"So I will go to the Holy Land tomorrow and discuss this with the lords. If they agree, I will inform you immediately, Sakazuki."
The Holy Land, always the Holy Land! Akainu laughed in anger. This old man had been a Marine his whole life, but after just a short time in the Holy Land, he had completely sided with them? However, this was at least a concession. Akainu didn't push him any further and just said coldly, "Then I hope you will be able to bring back a satisfactory result, Fleet Admiral."
He turned and strode towards the door. Before he left, he paused and added, without turning back, "Also, Fleet Admiral, if Kuzan has really joined the Curtain Call, then when the time comes, on the battlefield, please leave him to me to deal with personally."
The one thing he could not tolerate was a traitor!
"…" Kong frowned at the retreating one-armed figure. After a moment, he sighed and waved the staff officer away, sinking wearily back into his chair. After the footsteps faded, he slammed his fist on the remaining half of the desk.
CRACK!
The desk was instantly pulverized into sawdust. Kong closed his eyes and, after several deep breaths, opened them again. He rubbed his temples and his gaze fell back on the stack of wanted posters. He flipped through them. Besides him and the three Admirals, there were also some other high-ranking officers. For example, "Great Staff Officer" Tsuru also had a high bounty of 2 billion Berries. Veteran Vice Admirals who had not yet left the Marines, like Strawberry, Dalmatian, and Mozambia, were all given a bounty of 500 million Berries. Less experienced and weaker Vice Admirals were given a bounty of 300 million Berries.
Hmm? What's this guy doing here? Kong suddenly noticed a familiar-looking man with green hair. He seemed to have seen him in a strategy meeting, but he couldn't remember his name. "Brannew, bounty 20 million Berries…" Kong read aloud, looking at the Captain's rank on the photo, confused. He couldn't for the life of him figure out how a minor staff officer of this level had been remembered by the Curtain Call.
Purupurupuru~ The Den Den Mushi, which had been cowering on Kong's shoulder since the desk was destroyed, suddenly rang.
"Hello?" Kong snatched the receiver.
"Fleet Admiral, it's me!" The panicked voice of the new hospital director came from the other end. "It's terrible! Mr. Sengoku just collapsed in his hospital room, coughing up blood! He's unconscious and has been rushed to the intensive care unit!"
"What?" Kong's face changed. He shot to his feet. "What happened? Why so suddenly?" After Sengoku had voluntarily resigned, he had been recuperating in the hospital for over twenty days. He didn't know if it was physical or mental exhaustion, but he had just heard a few days ago that Sengoku was almost recovered and was about to be discharged. But today… Wait!
Before the person on the other end could answer, Kong immediately realized the reason. He began to rummage through the stack of wanted posters. And sure enough, at the bottom, he found Sengoku's—
[FORMER FLEET ADMIRAL OF MARINE HEADQUARTERS, 'THE BUDDHA' SENGOKU!]
[CLAIMS TO POSSESS A JUSTICE THAT RULES THE WORLD, BUT IS IN FACT A GOOD DOG WHO WAGS HIS TAIL FOR THE CELESTIAL DRAGONS, MASTERMINDED THE OHARA BUSTER CALL, PARTICIPATED IN NUMEROUS MASSACRES OF NON-AFFILIATED NATIONS.]
[THE GREATEST HYPOCRITE, THE GREATEST EXECUTIONER, A MOUNTAIN OF BLOODY DEBTS AND CRIMES!]
[BOUNTY: 5,000,000,000 BERRIES! DEAD OR ALIVE!]
Kong's face turned cold. He and Sengoku were actually quite close. Not long after he became Fleet Admiral, he had promoted Sengoku to Admiral, and Sengoku's later promotion to Fleet Admiral was also largely due to his strong recommendation to the Holy Land. And his old subordinate, who had already resigned and retired, the Curtain Call still wouldn't let him go?
"We found the latest newspaper by his pillow," the director's trembling voice came from the other end. "There were a lot of wanted posters inside… Anyway, the nurse said that after Mr. Sengoku saw them, his face turned pale, and he just sat there for two whole hours without moving. When the nurse went to bring him his dinner, she was a little scared. The moment she touched him, Mr. Sengoku suddenly let out a loud laugh, and then he coughed up a huge amount of blood, staining the entire bed, and collapsed on the spot…"
The director was terrified. "Fleet Admiral, the situation is not optimistic. Mr. Sengoku's vital signs are dropping rapidly. We suspect that it was a combination of long-term depression and this huge mental blow that his heart couldn't take…"
"What's the use of saying all that?! Just save him!" Kong's face grew even darker. "I'll be there shortly. In my name, get all the best doctors in Headquarters! Spare no expense to save him! Do you understand me!"
"Yes, Fleet Admiral!"
After hanging up, Kong's gaze was heavy. He looked at the mess in his office, at the scattered wanted posters, and his fists cracked. "Shane…"
His most trusted subordinate, his old friend, was on his deathbed. He, who had not had much direct contact with the Curtain Call before, could now finally understand Akainu's anger towards that man. The urge to kill him with his own hands!
But Sengoku too… he was almost eighty years old, but he was still a little thin-skinned. He cared too much about his reputation. Retirement was a form of release. Why did he have to take it so hard?
Sigh. Kong was about to clean up and go to the hospital when the corner of a wanted poster caught his eye. He stared in disbelief. Am I seeing things? These are… A cold sweat broke out on his forehead. It's not just the Marines! The lords of the Holy Land have bounties on their heads too!
Holy Land, Mary Geoise, Chamber of Authority.
CRASH!
An exquisite teacup was sent flying, shattering against the wall. "How insolent! How offensive! How… foolish!" Saint Nusjuro roared, his face twisted in a demonic rage as he glared at the prostrated CP0 chief. "It's one thing to put a bounty on the Marines, but that Shane! He even dared to include the four of us?!"
The CP0 chief, a man of great power and authority, was now trembling, his forehead pressed against the floor, not daring to look up.—Because on the wanted poster that had been thrown in front of him was the grim face of the kimono-clad old man!
[SUPREME RULER OF THE WORLD GOVERNMENT, ONE OF THE FIVE ELDERS, 'WARRIOR GOD OF FINANCE' ETHANBARON V. NUSJURO!]
[AN ELITE CHOSEN FROM AMONG THE CELESTIAL DRAGONS, HAS RULED THE WORLD FOR OVER TWO HUNDRED YEARS, HIS CRIMES ARE HEINOUS AND COUNTLESS!]
[USER OF THE MYTHICAL ZOAN, THE BAKOTSU, POSSESSES EXTREMELY POWERFUL REGENERATIVE ABILITIES. CERTAIN FRUIT ABILITIES AND AN OVERWHELMING AMOUNT OF CONQUEROR'S HAKI CAN SUPPRESS THIS ABILITY.]
[BOUNTY: 6,000,000,000 BERRIES! ONLY ALIVE!]
Besides this one, there were three others on the coffee table. Shepherd Ju Peter, Topman Warcury, and… the newly appointed, and now the core of their power, Figarland Garling! A total of four wanted posters, not only revealing the origins and abilities of the Five Elders, but also providing a way to counter their powers!
The Five Elders, the supreme rulers of the world! They were supposed to be high and mighty, mysterious and majestic! But now, that bastard Shane had stripped them bare and thrown them into the streets for the commoners to point and laugh at! And for the ambitious powerhouses of the sea to see them as prey!
"Bastard! Bastard! Bastard!!!" Nusjuro paced back and forth, his fury growing. The other three Elders' faces were also as dark as iron.
"My fellow Stars, we have not yet settled the score with him for the North Blue," Saint Warcury's eyes glinted with a cold light. "And now he comes to us with this insult! Can you really swallow this?!"
"No! Of course not! We can never swallow this!" Saint Peter said with a hateful rage.
"It seems that on this point, we have finally put aside our differences and reached a consensus," Garling also said coldly. "So, you will no longer object to my previous proposal, will you? Have Kong come to the Holy Land. Marine Headquarters must speed up their war preparations. We can't delay any longer."
"Agreed! Public opinion has only just stabilized, and now this! If the Curtain Call is not destroyed, if the New World is not brought under our control, we will never be able to rest easy!"
"In that case, let this war…"
"—begin in earnest!"
The four Elders exchanged a look, a shared resolve in their eyes. In the past, they had always been on the defensive, their forces too scattered. But now, they could no longer tolerate it! It was time to cast aside all other concerns, all other duties… It was time for Marine Headquarters, the CP agencies, and the Holy Knights to unite for an unprecedented, final, great war on the New World!
"…" Garling hesitated for a moment but decided not to mention the matter of Elbaf. That giant prince, Loki, was too stubborn. He would rather remain in the "underworld" than submit to them. Even after Garling had offered him the generous condition of becoming a Celestial Dragon, he had remained unmoved and had even mocked the Holy Knights he had sent. Before the final battle with Shane, I will make a trip to Elbaf myself. That Loki was worth it. After all, he had killed his own father, the previous giant king, Harald. He was, without a doubt, an Admiral-level fighter.
And before that—"We must first deal with the obstacle that is Whitebeard!" Garling and Nusjuro said in unison, their voices firm
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