How Can Anyone Risk Their Life for You If You Won't Even Pay Them Properly?
When Ortolan followed Gion to the Fleet Admiral's Office, he saw that Garp, Zephyr, Sengoku, and Chief Staff Officer Tsuru were all there.
Seeing this, Ortolan thought to himself that everyone seemed to be quite free lately, with nothing particularly noteworthy happening.
"You're here? Come in and have a seat, no need to be so formal." Fleet Admiral Kong greeted him with a smile before Ortolan could even speak.
"Then I'll have to bother you. I won't stand on ceremony." Ortolan walked in with a smile and sat down between Teacher Zephyr and Garp.
They didn't directly mention Ortolan; the bigwigs were still discussing the topics they had previously discussed.
"We've received the latest eyewitness intelligence, and it's confirmed that the Roger Pirates, who left the New World earlier, have returned. Let's hope they don't cause any trouble," Chief Staff Officer Tsuru said softly, holding a teacup in his hand.
"Where did you witness it? Is it too late for me to come?" Garp asked.
"It was too late. You had just returned when we received the eyewitness report," Chief Staff Officer Tsuru said, shaking his head.
Ortolan listened to this and calculated the time.
It is now the end of 1496, and in another month or so it will be 1497. This year will be a major turning point that will affect the next twenty years: the Roger Pirates found the legendary Laugh Tale, and thus became the world's recognized 'Pirate King'.
If we look at the timeline more closely, Roger was executed in 1498, which ushered in the Great Pirate Era. If we include his return to the South Blue to Rouge, get married, and have children, if things go quickly, it's very likely that he will create Big News Morgans about Laugh Tale at the beginning of the year, which is only a month or two later!
Roger's topic didn't last long; after the bigwigs talked about it for a while, it was over.
Then they talked about the Marines's Science Unit. This was initiated by the Fleet Admiral, and the official approval had been granted. Dr. Vegapunk had now obtained it.
As a newly established department, it was still constructive in its early stages and therefore did not need any bigwigs to oversee it. The Admiral Sengoku directly recommended Borsalino Yango to serve as the commander of the Science Unit.
No one had any objections to this. Borsalino was still trustworthy. Once he had built up the Science Unit, it would be time for him to be promoted to Vice Admiral. He could then continue to lead the Science Unit, ensuring a seamless transition and saving everyone the trouble of choosing someone else later.
"The end of the year is approaching, and it's time to talk about the upcoming year. According to this year's military expenditure report, we still have a considerable surplus. As for the upcoming year, I think we should build two more escort-type Marine Base bases in the gateway sea area of New World, forming a pincer movement with G-1?" Admiral Sengoku asked.
"It's not that it's impossible, but once the base starts construction, it will be an expense from then on. We can't take too big a step just because there is a surplus in the military budget in a certain year..." Fleet Admiral Kong instructed.
If you have money this year and build a few Marine Base, you'll definitely need to increase manpower, right? And you'll need to maintain the bases later on, right? And the supporting facilities will need to keep up, right?
These are all expenditures going forward. If a smooth transition in military spending cannot be guaranteed, these newly built bases may become a burden.
Therefore, the more Marines bases you have, the better. As long as you can establish a foothold in key sea areas and ensure navigational safety, that's sufficient.
These things obviously cannot be figured out in a few words. The Admiral Sengoku's suggestion was just to let everyone know and have time to think about it. When it comes time to actually do it, he will provide a relevant plan.
"There's another matter, a task assigned from above." Fleet Admiral Kong suddenly seemed to remember something, took out a document from the drawer of his desk, and handed it to Sengoku, saying, "I think it's more appropriate to give this to you, and the others should assist as much as possible."
"What's wrong?" Sengoku opened the folder with some confusion, looked at it for a while, then handed it to Zephyr to read. He then said, "Can't you find a single clue? Is CP just sitting around doing nothing?"
"These scholars are very cautious. Although the CP has managed to track them down a few times, they are surprisingly principled. They even chose to commit suicide rather than be arrested. There are absolutely no clues on the research vessel to trace their origins. It's clear that they had made ample preparations long ago," Fleet Admiral Kong said, shaking his head.
Although the document had not yet reached Ortolan's hands, Ortolan had already gleaned some ideas from the information elements such as "scholars" and "research vessels".
History is unfolding, a century of emptiness, and the scholars of Ohara!
"It might not just be researching Ancient Weapon, right?" After reading the document, Teacher Zephyr handed it to Ortolan and said casually.
Ortolan quickly glanced at it and then passed it on to Garp.
Just as he guessed, it was about a mysterious team of scholars investigating historical events around the world!
"The purpose of these scholars is still unknown, but their actions have already violated relevant laws. Our World Government has explicitly prohibited any research on historical matters. Regardless of their true purpose, historical matters are like Pandora's box of disasters. Once their findings fall into the hands of those with ulterior motives, they could potentially cause global harm. No one can deny that, can they?" Fleet Admiral Kong said in a deep voice.
Hearing this, Zephyr nodded. There are too many mysterious powers in this world, like the Red Count Patrick Riddles, whom they had just captured not long ago. This guy has the ability to listen to people's hearts.
If scholars do indeed possess information about the progress of Ancient Weapon and it falls into his hands, even if they remain silent, with a little prompting, Riddles could obtain relevant information, potentially leading to the revival of Ancient Weapon and posing a threat to the entire world.
This is just Riddles; he's all alone. What if he falls into the hands of someone more ambitious? Like Shiki, Charlotte Linlin, or Kaido?
They may not have the means to listen to people's hearts, but they still have many ways to get information from scholars: hypnosis, specific Devil Fruit abilities, or even specific racial abilities. With their power, obtaining these methods is not a difficult thing!
"Therefore, we must not allow these scholars to engage in such dangerous research. For various reasons, the higher-ups require our Marines to fully cooperate with the CP Agency in this matter, and strive to eliminate them before they cause a major disaster," Fleet Admiral Kong said coldly.
When faced with scholars, he used the word "annihilate," which shows the extent to which this matter was to be addressed.
"I'll try my best," the Admiral Sengoku shrugged.
He didn't actually want to get involved in such matters because no matter what decision was made in the end, once he got involved with these people from the underworld, he would definitely not leave behind any good reputation.
If you don't deal with them, they really can do something crazy. Just like the Fleet Admiral said, one day they might not be able to hold on any longer and be controlled by ambitious people, and they might revive the Ancient Weapon. Who knows how many people will have to die before they can finally rest.
If you want to deal with them, then using violence against the people of the Netherworld would be seen as bullying the weak. The Fleet Admiral has already used the word "annihilate," so it must be a matter of cutting off the roots. Moreover, even if the Fleet Admiral doesn't use this word, Sengoku is actually clear that if this matter is to be done, it must be done thoroughly, otherwise it's as if nothing was done.
When the time comes, something will definitely happen that will greatly damage his reputation. He will attack unarmed scholars and he will inevitably be labeled as an executioner or butcher.
At the same time, Sengoku also realized that since this matter was assigned from above, it must have involved the political leadership of Mary Geoise. The fact that he was given the position of Fleet Admiral was probably also an instruction from above, which was to conduct a certain political test on Sengoku.
As a Marines Admiral, and currently the only one who can be considered a 'candidate for Fleet Admiral,' whether the higher-ups will ultimately approve him as Marines Fleet Admiral depends on whether he can make political compromises at such a crucial moment.
To put it simply, you are unwilling to obey orders, unwilling to take the blame, unwilling to solve our problems, and you put your personal reputation first. How can we trust you to be our loyal Fleet Admiral?
Although Ortolan was just a newcomer about to become Rear Admiral, he could see the intricacies of the situation and couldn't help but feel a little sentimental. If he followed the path of the Admiral Sengoku, he might become the fleet Fleet Admiral of the Marines in the future, and he too would have a rein from Mary Geoise around his neck.
But he, Bane Ortolan, did not want to put a noose around his own neck, so he was destined not to follow the same path of advancement as Sengoku.
While thinking about these things, Ortolan glanced at Teacher Zephyr and thought to himself... Teacher Zephyr, if something really happens in the future, your idea of a 'Neo Marines' might not be entirely without merit.
It's not impossible to start anew and establish your own faction, but you need sufficient prestige. Ortolan doesn't have enough, even if he becomes Marine Admiral in the future. But Zephyr, as the Marines's mentor, has just that much prestige!
At the same time, it's necessary to shake the faith of the Marines's lower ranks. Otherwise, even if you have enough prestige to start a faction, people won't have any reason to support you. This is something that needs to be addressed. Once the cover is lifted, the Marines will inevitably be thrown into turmoil. There will definitely be die-hards who uphold the position of the World Government, and there will certainly be no shortage of people who follow true justice. However, after that, there must be enough funds to support them. If you can't even provide the money, it's hard for people to be willing to risk their lives for you.
Of course, this isn't something he should be thinking about right now. Why should a Rear Admiral like him worry about such things? He should wait until he becomes Vice Admiral before considering these matters.