Three months later, Gol D. Roger returned.
When he came back, the expression on his face appeared far calmer than before. The sharp and untamed edge he once carried seemed to have faded.
However, the very first thing he said after boarding the Oro Jackson was,
"Prepare all ships. We are attacking Marineford."
Those simple words shook the entire world.
As soon as the news reached the Navy, Marines Headquarters immediately entered a state of high alert.
Inside the conference room at Marineford, numerous high ranking Marine officers gathered. Compared with previous meetings, several unfamiliar faces had appeared among the Navy's upper ranks.
After Kong finished explaining that Roger intended to wage war against the Navy, Sakazuki slammed his fist heavily on the table.
"Ridiculous! A mere pirate dares to challenge the Navy!"
Beside him, Borsalino shrugged lazily.
"Pirate King… how frightening."
His lips curled slightly upward as he spoke in a soft, almost amused tone. Yet behind the brown lenses of his glasses, a sharp and chilling glint flashed like a hidden blade, releasing a cold killing intent.
Kuzan exhaled a puff of icy breath and spoke in a low voice.
"Pirate King? When he faces Senpai Lloyd, he will just be a stray dog."
Aramaki nodded, a rare display of agreement with Kuzan's words.
Across the table, Sengoku and Tsuru exchanged glances.
The five officers who had just spoken represented the Navy's new generation of leaders. Each possessed both immense strength and significant military achievements.
Normally, individuals of that caliber were extremely independent. Based on their own interpretations of justice, they tended to form factions within the Marines, often divided into hawks, doves, and neutral parties.
But at this moment, Sengoku and Tsuru felt something different.
All five of them gave off the unmistakable presence of hawks.
Subconsciously, both of them looked toward the empty seat positioned to the left of Kong. That seat belonged to Lloyd.
Akainu and the others were seated below that position in order.
Inside this conference room, seating arrangements were never random. Tsuru sat beneath Sengoku, while the older generation of Marine admirals sat below her.
Sengoku, seated at the front of that row, was effectively the leader of those officers.
And the leader of Akainu and the others was undoubtedly Lloyd.
As the Fleet Admiral, Kong naturally saw this more clearly than anyone else. In the current situation, the Navy needed the hawkish faction represented by Lloyd to step forward.
However, Lloyd had not appeared yet.
Kong turned his gaze toward Ginny, who was sitting beside Bartholomew Kuma.
"Ginny, do you know where Admiral Black Dragon Lloyd is right now?"
There was little choice but to ask her.
Over the past three months, Lloyd had barely appeared at Marine Headquarters. His Den Den Mushi was often unreachable. Otherwise, the Roger Pirates would not have expanded so smoothly.
Ginny gently shook her head.
"Fleet Admiral Kong, I do not know where Admiral Black Dragon Lloyd is at the moment, but I can try to contact him."
Just as she finished speaking, a dark vortex suddenly appeared above Lloyd's seat.
The swirling void twisted silently before Lloyd himself stepped out from it, dressed in a long black robe.
For a brief moment, the entire room fell silent.
Then Kong's face lit up.
"You are finally back!"
Lloyd nodded slightly.
"Apologies, Fleet Admiral Kong. I am late."
A trace of fatigue lingered in his voice. After speaking, he yawned quietly before sitting down with his arms crossed. He casually greeted Akainu beside him.
Seeing this, Kong frowned slightly.
"Lloyd, you look exhausted. Are you unwell?"
Lloyd smiled faintly.
"It is nothing. Just a little sleepy. Perhaps I have been working too much these past few years."
That statement was not entirely wrong.
In recent years, Lloyd had participated in nearly every major event across the seas. He had practically become the Navy's model officer.
Kong wanted Lloyd to rest properly, but Lloyd's abilities were simply too exceptional.
In truth, Lloyd had spoken casually.
His exhaustion had nothing to do with recent days.
During the past three months, he had simply stayed within the territory of the Family and slept endlessly.
Eventually, Saint Figarland Garling woke him using Haoshoku Haki and informed him of Roger's plan to attack Marineford.
Lloyd had been completely stunned.
The reason he had chosen to rest during this period was because he believed the Roger Pirates were about to disband. Roger should have traveled to Baterilla and remained there quietly for a year.
His plan had been simple.
Sleep for several months, recover his energy, then lead troops to Baterilla and wipe out Roger's family.
But what Garling described was completely different from Lloyd's expectations.
Not only had Roger refused to disband his pirate crew, he had actually expanded it.
Even more outrageous, he intended to attack Marineford itself.
After hearing Garling's explanation, Lloyd had not even bothered to change clothes. He immediately used his space ability to return to Marine Headquarters.
Once he arrived, Ginny informed him that Kong was holding a meeting. Without wasting a second, Lloyd opened another spatial vortex and entered the conference room directly.
Kong briefly repeated the details regarding Roger.
Now Lloyd finally confirmed everything.
His response was simple.
"Since Roger wishes to die, we should grant his request."
His tone remained calm and cold.
"There is no need to wait for him to come here. I will lead the army and attack. Marineford is not a place where pirates can appear whenever they please."
"Good!"
Before Kong could respond, Akainu shouted loudly.
Kizaru jumped slightly in surprise as the temperature beside him suddenly rose.
Akainu's reaction came from genuine agreement.
From the beginning, something about the situation had bothered him, but he could not identify what it was.
Now Lloyd had made it clear.
The entire purpose of Kong's meeting had been to discuss defensive deployments for Marineford in preparation for Roger's attack.
And that was the problem.
Since when had the Navy become the defensive side?
Just because someone called himself the Pirate King, the Marines were supposed to sit inside their headquarters and wait for pirates to attack?
Did the Roger Pirates deserve such status?
Allowing pirates to assault Marineford would be nothing short of an insult to justice.
It was absurd.
For the first time in his life, despite his deep respect for Kong, Akainu felt that the Fleet Admiral had grown old.
In his mind, the position of Fleet Admiral should belong to Lloyd.
No one else was suitable.
Kuzan was also staring at Lloyd with intense admiration.
Logia ability users often released traces of their powers when emotional.
As the user of an ice Logia, Kuzan emitted cold white mist even while burning with excitement.
This stood in stark contrast to the scorching heat and faint black smoke radiating from Akainu.
Kizaru sat between them, caught between freezing cold and blazing heat.
After enduring it for several seconds, he suddenly stood up.
"Admiral Black Dragon Lloyd is right."
He raised his hands casually.
"How about we leave right now?"
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