The golden sun dipped low across the waters of the Grand Line. Its sun rays hit a small, uncharted island. The sound of seagulls could be heard in the distance. On the beach, Jewelry Bonney lounged beneath a canopy. She wore a bold yellow bikini top and bottom. There was a lot of cleavage on display.
“Enter,” came the voice from within.
The door creaked open, and the officer stepped inside the strategic chamber. Sitting at a long table scattered with files, battle maps, and steaming cups of coffee were Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Garp.
“Fleet Admiral Sengoku,” the officer saluted sharply. “The prisoner is currently en route to Impel Down under high-security escort. No delays have been reported,” he added.
Sengoku looked up. He had adjusted his glasses. “That’s one less thing to worry about… Good,” he replied.
Garp said nothing at first. He sat with his arms crossed. He had a stern face. He thought of Ace. He thought back to Ace, Luffy and Sabo. He thought of Roger. He clenched his fist and raised his eyebrow.
“Double the security,” Sengoku added firmly. “I want no mishaps this time,” he added.
“Yes, sir,” the Marine nodded.
“Do we have any reports on the Whitebeard Pirates?” Sengoku asked.
Nothing at the moment Sir,” the Marine responded. “We are out looking for any movements,” he added.
“He’ll come the moment we go public,” Sengoku said quietly.
“He always does,” Garp muttered. Then under his breath, “Blackbeard.” He thought that man was under Whitebeard’s banner. He thought someone part of Whitebeard's crew was capable of doing this.
“There is one more news we just heard,” the Marine added hesitantly.
Sengoku turned his full attention to him.
“There was another prisoner transport. It was intercepted and destroyed. We received a distress signal, but by the time reinforcements arrived… there were no survivors,” he responded.
Sengoku’s eyes widened. “What?! Do we have any confirmation of the attackers?”
“Instructor Zephyr was on a patrol nearby. He reported signs of the Blackbeard Pirates,” the Marine responded.
Garp straightened in his chair. “What was Zephyr doing on field patrol?”
“He said he needed to ‘check the integrity of the sea routes,’ sir,” the Marine explained.
Sengoku exchanged a look with Garp. They thought something was not right.
“Keep this quiet,” the Fleet Admiral said at last. “Suppress the report. No leaks to the press. The seas are already too loud with rumors and panic,” he added.
“There’s turmoil everywhere,” Garp added as he chuckled dryly. “Enough to break a few hulls,” he laughed out loud.
Sengoku snapped. “And your grandson and his friend are part of that storm,” he shouted back.
Garp shrugged with exaggerated innocence.
“They’ve both turned into a wildfire. The Love Pirates.” Sengoku threw a dossier across the table. “Alabasta. Nanatsu Island. Enies Lobby. And now Mecha Island. They have caused problems everywhere they have been,” he added.
“They almost seized an entire island,” Sengoku shouted as he pounded the table. “They injured thousands of Marines,” he added.
“And then just vanished,” the Marine officer added. “The island is strange and we lost the Turtle Pose,” he said.
Sengoku exhaled through clenched teeth. “Issue updated bounties,” he said. “We will deal with these rookies later, there are a few of them right now causing trouble,” he said.
“Yes, sir,” the Marine responded. The Marine saluted and turned to leave.