Chapter 486: Sengoku's Decisiveness
After retiring, Sengoku thoroughly embraced a leisurely, god-like lifestyle.
Sporting a floral shirt, oversized shorts, and flip-flops, he strolled through the streets of Marineford with his signature goat in tow, becoming known to all as the "Marine Loiterer."
Today, the sunlight was perfect, and the breeze was gentle.
Humming a little tune, Sengoku sauntered leisurely toward the Fleet Admiral's office—
Claiming he was going to "visit his old colleagues," but in reality, he was just going to mooch a cup of good tea and dispense some "experienced guidance from a retired elder."
Pushing open the door, he was surprised to find everyone gathered.
Not only was Zephyr there, but even Sakazuki and Borsalino, who recently claimed they were "cultivating their minds and bodies," were present.
They were gathered in a circle, standing before a pot of—well, rather "abstract" floral art.
"Yo~ Everyone's here~" Sengoku greeted lazily, his tone as brisk as an old man walking his dog.
Upon seeing him, Zephyr's eyes lit up. He immediately waved him over: "You're just in time! Come, come, look at my pot of 'Blossoming Life'. Doesn't it have more presence than Sakazuki's 'Lava Flower'?"
Sengoku squinted. The branches of Zephyr's potted flower were slanted and chaotic, looking as if they had been ravaged by a hurricane.
His mouth twitched slightly. He turned his head to look at Sakazuki's work—a "hellish landscape" composed of dark red rocks and charred plants.
Sengoku muttered silently to himself: If you put these two pots side by side, you really couldn't tell which one is more tragic.
Borsalino held a teacup, a punchable smile on his face: "Hey, hey~ Instructor Zephyr, brother... your artistic accomplishments are truly... 'unique'~"
A vein popped on Sakazuki's forehead. He snorted coldly and said nothing more.
On the sofa in the corner, Enel was slumped over, chewing an apple and mumbling a complaint: "Hmph, a bunch of boring people who are just bored out of their minds."
Sengoku shook his head and plopped into a chair. Just as he was preparing to join this "art critique session," he heard—
"BAM—!!!"
The door to the Fleet Admiral's office was violently shoved open, and a gust of wind swept in.
The person who rushed in was none other than Vice Admiral Trafalgar Law!
At this moment, Law's face was deathly pale, his breathing rapid. He looked as if he had suffered a heavy blow, clutching a photograph so tightly his knuckles were white.
"This is bad—!!!"
This cry of alarm made everyone in the room tense up simultaneously.
Zephyr's pruning shears paused in mid-air. Sakazuki furrowed his brows deeply. Borsalino's smile gradually faded.
Even Enel sat up from the sofa, his expression turning slightly solemn.
What could make the usually calm and collected Law panic to this extent?
Sengoku stood up, looking at him in confusion: "What's wrong, Law? What's with this state you're in?"
Law didn't answer. He just quickly rushed over to them and slammed the photograph fiercely onto the table.
"Look at this—!"
The crowd gathered around. Sengoku picked up the photo, his brows instantly knitting together.
It was an aerial photograph.
In the center of the image was a massive, heart-stopping crater—dozens of kilometers in radius, its edges as smooth as a mirror, as if everything within had been instantly "erased" by some incomprehensible power.
The contours of the terrain were faintly visible, yet inexplicably familiar.
Sengoku frowned, staring at the photo for a long time, but still couldn't make heads or tails of it.
The massive crater in the photo was indeed shocking, but he still didn't understand why Law had lost his composure to such a degree.
"Law, is there... a problem with this photo?" His tone held a hint of confusion. "Did a meteor strike some deserted island?"
Sakazuki exhaled a plume of thick smoke, his voice deep: "It does look like a natural disaster."
Zephyr pushed up his sunglasses, frowning in deep thought: "It doesn't seem like it. The walls of the crater are too smooth, like they were vaporized by energy."
Borsalino was still lazily holding his tea, his tone dismissive: "Kowai ne~ (How scary~) But it's nothing to be surprised about~"
Even Enel took a bite of his apple and glanced at it casually: "Tch~ It's just an extra hole in the ground, what's all the fuss about."
However, Law's breathing grew increasingly ragged, his chest heaving violently, the bloodshot veins in his eyes clearly visible.
He clenched his fists tightly, his entire body practically trembling.
"Hah—hah—"
He took several deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down, yet still unable to suppress the tremor in his voice.
It was a voice mixed with shock, terror, and rage—
"This place is..."
He abruptly raised his head, his voice so hoarse it was almost a roar:
"Mary Geoise—!!!"
"..."
As his words fell, the air instantly solidified.
Sengoku froze entirely in place. The smile on his face seemed frozen; the corners of his mouth twitched, and his pupils contracted violently.
He stared at the photo, his throat tightening, his fingertips trembling uncontrollably.
Zephyr's sunglasses slowly slipped down, revealing a shocked expression;
The cigar in Sakazuki's mouth dropped to the floor with a smack, splattering ash over his foot without him even noticing;
Borsalino's smile stiffened completely, even his usual cynical tone vanishing without a trace;
Enel's apple paused in mid-air, his entire face screaming, "This makes no sense."
Five seconds... six seconds...
In the dead silent air, only Sengoku's heavy breathing remained.
And then—
"NANI—?!!!"
Sengoku roared out in shock! That heaven-shaking voice seemed to carry the shockwave of Conqueror's Haki, instantly shattering the glass windows of the Fleet Admiral's office!
The entirety of Marineford trembled at that moment, falling into dead silence.
Sengoku's thoughts raced rapidly amidst the shock and chaos:
That deep crater, that surface as smooth as if it had been "erased"...
Mary Geoise, the symbol of the World Government, the Holy Land of the Celestial Dragons—now reduced to a stretch of nothingness.
His gaze suddenly hardened as countless possibilities flashed through his mind—
But in the next moment, a thought struck his mind like a thunderbolt.
The Reverie... that aura... that decisiveness... that魄力 to tear heaven and earth apart...
He abruptly raised his head, his expression changing drastically, practically roaring out:
"Garp?!!!"
The moment those name dropped, everyone in the Fleet Admiral's office felt a jolt in their hearts!
Before Sengoku and Law could react, Sakazuki grabbed Borsalino's shoulder.
Simultaneously, Zephyr grabbed Enel's arm. Both men let out a low growl at the exact same time:
"Move—!!!"
Before their words even faded—
SWOOSH—!!!
Golden light and lightning exploded almost simultaneously, transforming into two blinding streaks of light that tore across the sky.
Instantly piercing through the high altitude of Marineford, they sped off toward the Holy Land of Mary Geoise at extreme speeds!
The teacup on the table was knocked over by the residual shockwave, spilling boiling tea all over the floor.
Law's face was pale. He immediately took a step forward, asking anxiously:
"Grandpa Sengoku! Let's hurry and set out as well! Luffy, Ace... they're over there too!!"
Sengoku took a deep breath, that long-lost steadiness and decisiveness returning to his eyes.
He waved his hand, his voice deep: "Calm down, Law."
"Don't worry—Roy is over there too."
"What we need to do right now is secure the rear. We cannot allow the entire world to fall into even greater chaos!"
With that said, he abruptly stood up. With a flick of his cape, his entire person radiated the imposing majesty of a Marine Fleet Admiral once again.
"Vice Admiral Law!"
"Notify Tsuru, Gion, and Tokikake immediately! General Assembly! Initiate the emergency joint defense directive at once—"
"Since a fight has really broken out, we will secure the rear!"
Law's expression hardened, and he nodded heavily.
"Understood!!"
In the next moment, he raised his hand, and an azure ring of light abruptly illuminated his palm.
"ROOM—!!!"
With the humming sound of spatial vibration, Law's figure instantly vanished from the office, leaving only Sengoku's low murmur echoing endlessly in the wind—
"Garp... you old geezer, just what have you done—"
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