"Mr. Sengoku! What the hell does this mean?!"
At Navy Headquarters, the door to the Marshal's most confidential office was violently kicked open.
Vice Admiral Chaton stormed inside, slamming both hands onto the Marshal's desk and shattering it to pieces.
"How could Gion possibly betray us?!"
The man's face twisted ferociously, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes nearly crushing flies. "She used to be close to Teacher Zephyr, yes, but that was in the past! The moment Teacher Zephyr betrayed us, she cut ties with him! How could she possibly have been swayed by that damned old man?!"
An order issued from the Marshal's office had just sent him into a fury.
Gion had betrayed them?
How could that be possible?!
That was absolutely impossible. There had to be some mistake!
"My trust in Gion is no less than yours."
Sengoku sighed. "But once, I trusted Kuzan and Sakazuki just as much as I trusted Gion."
"..."
Chaton was suddenly speechless.
That was right. Gion was loyal to the Navy, but Admiral Akainu and Admiral Aokiji had once been hailed as the strongest guardians of justice. Who could have been more loyal to the Navy than them?
Yet hadn't they betrayed it as well?
"I know this is hard for you to believe, but look at this, Kaki."
Sengoku sighed and placed a stack of photographs before Kaki.
Kaki picked up the photos and looked through them.
They showed ruins.
Nothing remained but broken walls and rubble. Only the shattered machinery scattered everywhere and the insignia of the Science Unit barely revealed what this place had once been.
"The Science Unit?"
Kaki asked hoarsely.
"Not long after Gion arrived there, Zephyr led people in a raid on the place."
Sengoku sighed. "They must have noticed the government's experiments.