"Zephyr-san."
Yukino stood before him, bowing slightly.
"On behalf of the Revolutionary Army, I invite you to join us."
Zephyr looked at this middle-aged woman with black hair, black eyes, and a determined gaze. He was silent for a moment.
"What do you want to do?"
"Overthrow the World Government."
Yukino's voice was very calm.
"Establish a new world without discrimination, without oppression, without the Celestial Dragons."
She explained the Revolutionary Army's ideals to Zephyr… equality, freedom, liberation.
After hearing her out, Zephyr was silent for a long time.
Then he slowly spoke.
"That's something the Marine wouldn't even dare to dream of."
He paused.
"Give me some time. I'll think about it."
Yukino nodded, pulled a slip of paper from her pocket, and handed it to Zephyr.
"This is my Den Den Mushi's number. Contact me anytime."
Zephyr took the slip, glanced at it, and put it in his pocket.
Yukino turned and walked away.
Koala followed behind Yukino, her eyes filled with admiration.
"Yukino-nee, you're amazing! Now our Revolutionary Army will become even stronger!"
"It's not certain whether they'll agree yet," Yukino said calmly.
Just then, her Den Den Mushi began to ring.
Puru puru puru—
Yukino pulled out the Den Den Mushi and pressed the answer button.
"Hello?"
"Army Commander Yukinoshita, it's me," The low, steady voice of Issho came from the Den Den Mushi.
"Issho-san?" Yukino was slightly taken aback. "Is there something wrong?"
Issho was silent for a moment, then said something that made Yukino's expression change dramatically.
"Our Revolutionary Army may be going to war with Marine Headquarters."
Yukino's pupils contracted sharply.
"What?!"
Her voice rose an octave.
"Why the sudden war?"
Although the Revolutionary Army was now very strong, was it too early to formally strike at the Marine?
"Come back first, and we'll discuss the specifics," Issho said, then hung up.
Yukino stood there holding the Den Den Mushi, her brow deeply furrowed.
"Yukino-nee, what's wrong?" Koala asked curiously.
Yukino didn't answer.
Only one thought ran through her mind:
'What on earth had happened?'
Yukino and her Revolutionary Army West Army quickly returned to their headquarters at Baltigo.
Along the way, Yukino grew more and more convinced that something was terribly wrong.
'Could it be that Sabo, that boy, had gone off on his own?'
But regardless, she absolutely refused to consent to an all-out war with the Marine at this time, not to mention the World Government backing the Marine.
The ship docked, and Yukino, along with Haruno, Koala, and the others, hurried into the base.
The door to the meeting room was pushed open.
The top brass were already seated around the long table, the atmosphere heavy.
Sabo sat to Dragon's right, a hint of stubbornness planted on his face.
Issho sat with his eyes closed, hands folded on the table.
Smoker chewed on a cigar, smoke swirling around him.
Belo Betty stood with her arms crossed, brow furrowed.
Yukino did not sit down.
She walked to the long table and slapped her hands down on it with a loud 'smack', the sound echoing through the meeting room.
"I oppose going to war."
Everyone looked at her.
Sabo opened his mouth to say something, but Yukino didn't give him the chance.
"Let alone the combat strength of Marine Headquarters, with Admirals, Vice Admirals, hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers… they also have the Seven Warlords of the Sea under their command."
Yukino's voice was calm and rapid.
"If you also factor in the God's Knights and the Five Elders, the strength of the two sides isn't even on the same order of magnitude."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over everyone present.
"Moreover, I've heard from Four Gay Bros and others about the power of Imu. To fight Imu, we would need at least three, or even more, Admiral-class combatants."
"With our current strength, our chance of victory is only thirty percent, even less."
Silence fell over the meeting room.
Everyone knew that what Yukino said was true.
"But—" Sabo stood up, leaning on the table with both hands. "Luffy is Dragon-san's son and my little brother. I can't stand by and watch him be executed!"
"I know," Yukino said coldly. "But so what?"
Sabo was stunned.
"He chose to become a pirate. Now that he's been captured, he's reaping what he sowed." Yukino's voice held no trace of emotion. "To save your own son and send the entire Revolutionary Army's soldiers to their deaths… what is that besides abusing power for personal gain?"
Sabo's face flushed red, his lips trembling. "But..."
"No buts." Yukino cut him off and turned to look at Dragon, seated at the head of the table. "Commander, I oppose going to war."
Dragon was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke.
"Yukishita, I understand everything you're saying." His voice was low and steady. "But the Marine's actions are a direct provocation to the Revolutionary Army. If we don't respond, the world will view us as cowards, which will harm the development of our revolutionary cause."
Yukino laughed outright.
She remembered a woman… Ginny.
That woman who had been captured by the Celestial Dragons and died in agony.
Back then, Dragon hadn't gone to save her, saying, "The Revolutionary Army's strength is still insufficient."
Now, for his own son, he said, "If we don't respond, they'll think us cowards."
"Cowards?" Yukino's lips curled into a sarcastic smile. "When Ginny was captured and you didn't go to save her, weren't you afraid people would call the Revolutionary Army cowards?"
Dragon's expression flickered.
The atmosphere in the meeting room instantly dropped to freezing point.
Dragon was silent for a long time. Then he said, "The situation with Ginny was different from this."
"How is it different?" Yukino pressed. "Because this time it's your son who was captured?"
Dragon did not answer.
The meeting reached an impasse.
Both sides held their ground, the debate growing more heated.
Dragon and Sabo, along with some others, believed they should fight.
Yukino, Haruno, Smoker, and others believed they should not.
Issho remained silent throughout. Belo Betty also did not voice her opinion.
Within the Revolutionary Army, no one was willing to concede to anyone else.
…
A few days later.
The meeting was still inconclusive.
Yukino sat in her office, looking out at the gray sky, feeling utterly agitated.
Haruno pushed the door open and walked in, carrying a cup of hot tea.
"Still angry?"
"No." Yukino took the teacup and took a sip. "After all these years here, I feel like I've never truly seen through our commander."
Haruno sighed. "Because that's his son."
Yukino set down the teacup. "But precisely because it's his son, he should be the one to recuse himself."
Haruno didn't answer.
Just then, hurried footsteps sounded outside the door.
Koala burst in, panting heavily.
"Yukino-nee! Haruno-nee! Something huge has happened!"
"What is it?"
"A visitor has arrived! He calls himself Rockstar and says he's a crew member of the Red Hair Pirates!"
Yukino's pupils contracted sharply.
Haruno's expression also changed.
'The Red Hair Pirates? An Emperor crew?'
'What were they doing here?'