Kevin is dead.
But the impact Kevin brought has not disappeared.
The fear the sea held for the World Government and the Celestial Dragons, the World Nobles, has significantly diminished compared to before.
Eliminating the impact.
Two methods:
One is to cover up the truth, the method the World Government adopted for Rocks, which requires time.
One is to demonize, the method adopted for Pirate King Roger; ordinary people have a very poor impression of Roger, believing him to be a heinous criminal, the instigator of the chaotic Pirate Era.
Now, Sengoku chooses to demonize Kevin.
Today is the best time.
The impact brought by a few words is much better than continuously demonizing him with newspapers later.
First, demonize him to reduce the impact, then cover up everything about Kevin. Several years later, ten years later, Sengoku believes that not many people on the sea will still remember Kevin.
Even if they remember.
The impression will also be very bad.
In front of the whole world, Sengoku slowly spoke of Kevin's past origins: "Kevin, once a citizen of Bergland."
"Bergland?"
"It seems to be a small country in the first half of the Grand Line."
"Wasn't Bergland destroyed by pirates long ago? It's already history."
"His homeland was destroyed by pirates, so why did Kevin become a pirate?"
"Shouldn't he hate pirates?"
Pointing out his origin.
This caused a stir of discussion on the sea.
Just as Sengoku expected, he continued: "The Navy saved Kevin when he was only eight years old, brought him back to Navy Headquarters, and made him a member of the Navy New Recruit Camp. I used to think that Kevin, whose homeland was destroyed by pirates, would become the bane of pirates and firmly uphold justice, but I never expected…"
His tone carried regret.
"I really didn't expect that Mr. Kevin, whom I admire, was saved by the Navy, but ultimately betrayed the Navy and even joined pirates. I misjudged him."
"The Navy was Kevin's lifesaver and cultivated him. Without the Navy, an eight-year-old Kevin would never have been able to survive on the Grand Line."
"I thought Kevin was forced to become a pirate, so that's how it is."
"But what Kevin did doesn't seem like a pirate."
"Don't jump to conclusions yet, let's listen and see what happens next."
The sea was in an uproar.
Some people who admired Kevin began to doubt.
This is what Sengoku wanted.
He didn't need to say much; he could let others fill in the blanks themselves.
Just guide them.
"Tina, is this true?" Smoker looked at Tina; he didn't know these things either.
Although he was Kevin's classmate before.
But they had little interaction.
He didn't understand much.
By the time Kevin became famous on the sea, the Navy had already sealed off all information about Kevin.
Smoker asked Tina, who was once Kevin's friend.
Tina frowned slightly.
She knew.
It wasn't like that.
"Smoker, don't forget, Kevin and Gion were childhood companions. When Kevin was eight, Gion was already eighteen. At that time, some Rear Admirals weren't her match. Gion entered the Navy with her strength."
Tina glanced at Smoker.
Do you understand now?
At that time, with Gion's strength, she was enough to protect Kevin. The two of them didn't lack strength. When they entered the Navy, Kevin casually took out hundreds of millions of Berries. They didn't lack money or power.
Did they need Navy help?
The Navy wasn't even a cherry on top.
Nor did the Navy seek out Kevin.
Smoker suddenly understood.
But others didn't know.
They only thought Kevin was ungrateful.
Sengoku spoke again, and everyone pricked up their ears. Next, it wouldn't be about why Kevin betrayed the Navy.
"Kevin performed well in the Navy Recruit Camp, and I valued him greatly, wanting to cultivate him into a future Admiral." Sengoku, the strategist, controlled his expressions and emotions with ease.
He dared not speak the truth, that Kevin was expelled from the Navy Recruit Camp.
Such a fact, no one would believe.
Kevin's strength was obvious to all. If outsiders knew that the Navy expelled Kevin, they wouldn't believe Kevin was weak in the Navy Recruit Camp; they would only suspect Sengoku was lying.
Not only would Kevin's reputation remain untarnished, but the Marines would also be seen as having been blind.
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Before Kevin died, he already possessed Admiral-level strength. It was logical to focus on cultivating such talent.
"Before cultivating him, I observed Kevin for a long time. More than combat power, I valued character. If one cannot firmly uphold justice and bear the burden of justice, the stronger they are, the more dangerous they become. They would not only fail to protect the sea but also endanger it."
...
The citizens nodded again.
That was only right.
If someone with a bad character became an Admiral, the harm would be far greater than that caused by a great Pirate.
"It was during my observation that I discovered... discovered... Alas, but I did not give up. I decided to let Kevin train at the bottom for two years to temper his character, but I never expected that even then, something would happen."
Sengoku sighed repeatedly, not elaborating.
It was as if he was saving face for Kevin. The less he explained, the more everyone speculated.
What did he discover?
What kind of character did Kevin have, or what did he do, to disappoint Fleet Admiral Sengoku so much? Was it indiscriminate killing? Was it slacking off? Or was it a lack of justice?
...
The most terrifying thing about a statement is the blank space left.
Without clarification, people will assume the worst and then believe their own conjectures.
Sengoku's method was more sophisticated than directly slandering him.
"Turn it off," Smoker said in a deep voice.
He felt the Colonel's uniform he had just received was incredibly heavy, so heavy he could barely bear it.
"No, Tina wants to keep watching," Tina shook her head.
....
I wanted to change Kevin, but I never expected that my good intentions would lead to a mistake, causing Kevin to resent me and the Marines. As a result, in retaliation against the Marines, he colluded with Gion to do this.
Sengoku was heartbroken and filled with self-blame.
He sealed Kevin's fate, defining everything Kevin had done before.
It was not glorious and great for the sake of slaves or others; it was merely narrow-minded revenge, an act of ingratitude.
With a different motive, Kevin's past actions naturally became less great.
Instead, they were blemishes.
"Well done," the Gorosei were in a good mood upon seeing this scene.
Especially after hearing the reactions from various kingdoms, the vilification plan was a success.
"Although Kevin wasn't branded as a heinous criminal, the impact has been greatly reduced. In a few years, with continuous guidance from newspapers, he will eventually become a despised person. Then, everything about him will be covered up. Ten years from now, Rookies will only know that Kevin was an ungrateful and most undeserving Marine traitor."
"Boss?"
Yasopp and the others looked at Red-Haired Shanks.
Was everything Sengoku said true?
But the Kevin we met was nothing like the Kevin Sengoku described.
He didn't seem like an ungrateful person.
"Nine parts false, one part true. Sengoku is very clever," Benn Beckman stated with certainty. "Because Kevin is dead, everything is decided by the victor. If one day, we are also wiped out by the Marines, the outcome will be the same. Of course, our significance is probably not worth the Fleet Admiral personally taking action."
"Alas."
They all sighed.
"Good or bad, I don't care. He's already dead anyway," Kaido of the Beasts said disdainfully, looking at the screen.
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 40 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[email protected]/DaoistRoeoNQ
Thank you so much for your support!!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"