Chapter 58: The Admiral Arrives
Feeling Jack's breathing and heartbeat cease completely, Ian couldn't help but raise the corner of his mouth.
You're a step too late... Admiral Kizaru.
One of the Three Disasters of the Beasts Pirates, Jack the Drought, was dead.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for successfully defeating "Jack the Drought," one of the Three Disasters of the Beasts Pirates, user of the Zoan-type, Elephant-Elephant Fruit, Ancient Model: Mammoth Form!]
[Enhancement Points Obtained: 3000 points!]
[Current Accumulated Enhancement Points: 4865 points!]
[Notice: You can enhance once for every 1000 points...]
The number of points obtained in a single transaction had once again reached a new high. A pirate with a one-billion-berry bounty was indeed worth the effort. A single kill could directly fund three enhancements!
"Major General Jock Ian..." a slow, drawling voice cut through the silence. "I think you should tell me what happened here? Or do you need me to introduce myself? Admiral of Headquarters, Borsalino."
The man who had approached and asked the questions was one of the three Admirals of Marine Headquarters. Kizaru, Borsalino! The user of the Logia-type Pika Pika no Mi, the Glint-Glint Fruit!
From the moment Kizaru had stepped into the range of Ian's superhuman senses to the moment he appeared on the scene, only a few brief seconds had passed. This was the power of the Glint-Glint Fruit—a terrifying speed almost equal to light itself! If Ian had acted just a little slower, Kizaru would have arrived first, and whether Jack could have been killed would have been uncertain.
Not far from the battle circle, Ian's officers saw the yellow flash descend and rushed over at high speed.
Peacock, T-Bone, and Skylark quickly saluted. "Admiral Kizaru!"
Nami, a beat later, followed suit. "Admiral Kizaru?"
After the battle, Ian reverted to his "good soldier" persona. He walked over to Kizaru and said, "Thank you for your support, Admiral Borsalino. The situation isn't actually that complicated. The New World pirate Jack came to the island to cause trouble and was executed by me personally."
Borsalino glanced sideways, his usually languid eyes widening slightly. "!!!"
New World pirate Jack? Already executed by your own hands?
Killing one of the top executives of a Yonko's crew was a monumental event, and Ian had made it sound as trivial as taking out the trash!
Five Minutes Later
After Kizaru's repeated questioning, he and Ian had reached a "friendly understanding," and Kizaru had a basic grasp of the situation. He took out a Den Den Mushi and reported the situation on the island to Fleet Admiral Sengoku at Headquarters.
The Den Den Mushi connected quickly, mimicking Sengoku's anxious expression. "Kizaru! What's the situation? Have you provided support yet?"
Borsalino scratched his cheek, organizing his thoughts. "I'm sorry, Fleet Admiral Sengoku. To be precise... I was a step too late."
A noisy commotion came from the other end of the Den Den Mushi. Immediately after, the snail's expression changed, morphing into the visage of a grumpy old man.
"Kizaru! You bastard! What did you promise me? Didn't you say if you rushed over, you'd be faster than this old man? Now you tell me you're a step too late? What were you doing before?! How is Ian now? Where is he? Did they get him medical attention immediately? Is he still alive—"
Seeing that Admiral Kizaru had no chance to get a word in, Ian immediately stepped forward. "Mr. Garp! Mr. Garp! It's me, Jock Ian! I'm all right, nothing's happened to me. I can trot, I can even jump!"
Just by listening to Garp's tone, Ian knew he had to speak up. Otherwise, who knew what kind of colorful language the old man would unleash on Kizaru.
"Ian? You're okay, kid?" Garp's voice shifted from frantic rage to relief. "As long as you're okay, that's what matters. Kizaru, you bastard, you did make it in time! Were you deliberately creating tension to mess with us old guys?"
Garp breathed a sigh of relief but still couldn't resist complaining about Kizaru's report. Ian shrugged and pointed at the Den Den Mushi, indicating that the reporting duties should be handed back to Kizaru.
"Mr. Garp, don't be so excited," Kizaru drawled. "Everyone, please listen to my report first... I was indeed a step too late. Jack the Drought of the Beasts Pirates... is already dead."
A chorus of shocked exclamations, louder than before, erupted from the Den Den Mushi.
"What?!"
"What?!"
"Dead? Killed... by Ian?"
"This kid... actually killed that Drought Mammoth?!"
"..."
Kizaru listened as the Den Den Mushi conveyed the voices of more than one person. Only after the chaotic, shocked exclamations died down did he continue. "Yes. He was killed by our young Major General Ian."
Sengoku's voice, firm and commanding, came through the snail again. "Kizaru, now! Immediately! Bring Ian back to Headquarters for a briefing! Immediately! There is to be no delay!"
The tone of Sengoku's order brooked no argument. The task of cleaning up the battlefield had to be handed over to Ian's subordinates and the other Marines.
Ian knew that killing Jack would inevitably cause waves, and he had anticipated this. He also wanted to see what the stance of the top brass at Headquarters would be. How would they navigate the storm he had just unleashed?
Two Hours Later – Inside a Top-Secret Briefing Room, Marine Headquarters
Ian recounted the entire incident in detail. Aside from a few minor omissions concerning his specific abilities, he hid almost nothing.
This meeting was attended by an impressive assembly of power:
Fleet Admiral Sengoku
Chief of Staff Tsuru
Vice Admiral Garp
In addition, the three Marine Admirals—Akainu, Kizaru, and Aokiji—were also present, a rare occurrence. Because the meeting was held under the highest level of confidentiality, not even elite Vice Admirals were in attendance.
After listening to Ian's report, everyone in the room was visibly shocked.
Everyone, that is, except for Garp, who sat with his arms crossed, his back ramrod straight, a grin stretching from ear to ear.