Marineford Harbor.
"Ahahaha! What a long vacation!"
A hearty burst of laughter rang out from the deck of a warship.
A moment later, a strange old man wearing a dog-head mask and a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral's coat leaped down from the deck.
Monkey D. Garp was a legendary Vice Admiral of Marine Headquarters. He had cornered Pirate King Roger several times and had become a hero to countless Marines after crushing the Rocks Pirates during the God Valley Incident, which had once shocked the World Government.
As soon as he landed, Garp took off his dog-head mask and casually pulled a box of rice crackers from his bag, savoring them as he ate.
"Lord Garp, you're finally back!"
A Marine soldier waiting at the harbor hurried over, visibly excited. "Lord Sengoku knew you were coming back today, so he specifically sent me here to wait for you."
"Huh?"
Garp blinked, baffled. "How did Sengoku know I was coming back today? That's impossible. I ended my vacation early and came back, so there's no way he could've known I'd be back today! Wait, who are you? Where are my soldiers?"
"Lord Garp." The soldier blinked, looking aggrieved. "I'm one of your subordinates!"
"Really?"
Garp laughed awkwardly. "I guess I really am getting old if I can't remember you youngsters. Go on and get back to work. I'll find Sengoku myself!"
As he spoke, Garp tossed the dog-head mask to the soldier and strode toward the Headquarters Building.
The soldier watched Garp head toward the Headquarters Building but didn't leave right away. As soon as Garp was out of sight, he picked up a Den Den Mushi. The smile vanished from his face, replaced by a grave expression. "Vice Admiral Garp is about to enter the Headquarters Building!"
"Roger!"
On the first floor of the Headquarters Building, a Marine soldier who had received the Den Den Mushi report immediately picked up another one.
Before he could pass the message along, the elevator doors across from him suddenly opened.
Akira and Gion stepped out, one after the other.
At the sight of them, all the soldiers in the lobby rose to their feet and saluted in unison. "Loyalty!"
Akira kept walking and strode out the door.
As soon as he stepped outside, Garp came into view.
"Ahahaha! Akira, you little brat, I'm back!"
Spotting Akira emerge from the building, Garp hurried over, beaming with excitement. "Surprised? Didn't expect me back, did you?"
Gion spoke first when Garp reached them. "Mr. Garp."
"Gion, what's been going on with you these past two years?" Garp looked her over and teased her shamelessly. "You've already got that crazy suitor, Kaki. Leave the other young female officers at Headquarters a chance, will you? Someone like Hina, for instance... Speaking of which, where is Hina? I can never get through to her on the Den Den Mushi!"
Gion smiled and shook her head, looking a little helpless. "Mr. Garp, have you really not noticed anything different about Headquarters since before your vacation?"
"Nothing's different." Garp blinked, then quickly glanced around, as if something had just occurred to him. He nodded repeatedly. "There's a person-shaped crater in the plaza now! I saw it when I passed through."
Gion let out a quiet sigh of relief and glanced toward Akira without drawing attention to herself.
Akira couldn't be bothered to beat around the bush with Garp. "I thought you'd be back a few days later. I didn't expect you to return early. Since you're here, there's no point hiding it. I'm in charge of Marine Headquarters now. To put it simply, I staged a coup and seized the position of Marshal. Every Headquarters officer, including the Three Admirals, has made the sensible choice."
"?????"
Garp, chewing a rice cracker, was covered in question marks. He stared at Akira for a while, then burst out laughing. "A coup? Pfft—ahahaha! You're getting more and more of a comedian, kid! But you can't just joke about something like that. If anyone hears you, those guys who've never gotten along with you—Onigumo and the others—might report you!"
Akira didn't laugh. He delivered the shocking news without hesitation. "Onigumo is dead. So are Doberman, Menard, and the others. They were obstacles to my taking the position of Marshal. They all had to die."
As soon as Akira finished speaking, dozens of officers suddenly rushed out of the Headquarters Building. Before Garp could believe his eyes, they swiftly surrounded him.
Then more Marines rushed over with guns, surrounding Garp in several layers.
The sudden turn of events made Garp's smile slowly stiffen.
When he felt the oppressive atmosphere hanging in the air, Garp finally believed what Akira had told him.
After a brief silence, he put the box of rice crackers back in his bag. Then he looked up at Akira, his gaze intense, and asked in a deep voice, "Akira, what does this mean? Are you planning to take me out, too? If so, these people alone won't be enough to stop me!"
Akira waved his hand, signaling the officers and soldiers surrounding them to stand down.
At his gesture, the officers and soldiers who had rushed over immediately returned the way they had come.
Garp's expression shifted as he watched. Akira hadn't given an order; a mere gesture had been enough to make the soldiers and officers obey without question. He hadn't seen such discipline among Headquarters personnel in many years.
But that wasn't what mattered.
What mattered was that Akira hadn't been joking. Marine Headquarters was already completely under his control.
Even so, Garp still had countless questions.
He had always thought highly of Akira. From the moment Akira entered officer training, Garp had placed great hopes in him. Akira hadn't let him, Sengoku, or Zephyr down, either. In just six years, he had gone from a raw recruit to a Headquarters Vice Admiral capable of standing on his own.
What Garp hadn't expected was that the young Vice Admiral they had all pinned their hopes on would stage a coup while he was on vacation—and successfully take control of Marine Headquarters.
It was hard for him to make sense of it. There was no denying that Akira had a terrifying talent that surpassed anyone his age, but he couldn't possibly have beaten the Three Admirals. Garp knew Akira had won over quite a few officers and soldiers over the years, but those people alone could never have staged a successful coup and seized control of Headquarters.
And yet Akira had not only done it, but even gotten the Three Admirals to make the sensible choice?
Suppressing his confusion, Garp asked the question that mattered most to him right now. "What about Sengoku? He's still alive, right?"
Akira nodded. "He should be having afternoon tea with Teacher Zephyr right now."
Garp's eyes widened. "At a time like this, he still has the mood to drink tea?"
Realizing he'd lost his composure, Garp quickly cleared his throat twice and put on a stern expression. "So, what do you plan to do with me? Put me under house arrest? Strip me of my rank? Then send me over to keep Sengoku and Zephyr company for tea?"
Akira nodded again. "Garp, Marine Headquarters no longer has a place for people like you. You're all old. It's time to retire."
"I can't just leave like this, kid!"
Garp took a step forward and clenched his iron fist. "The Navy is a massive war machine, and not just anyone can control it. Let me see if you're really up to the task!"
Feeling the enormous fighting spirit that suddenly burst from Garp, Gion hurried forward. "Mr. Garp, please calm down! Lord Akira came to see you alone precisely because he doesn't want to be your enemy. The outcome is already decided. There's no point in fighting!"
"Step aside, Gion!"
Garp rolled up his sleeves and snapped, "It's one thing for Akira to act like a brat, but I didn't expect you, of all people, to go along with him. Don't you know that Sengoku, Zephyr, and I all had high hopes for him? If we step down, even if he doesn't become Marshal of Headquarters, he'll certainly be one of the Admirals! And yet he staged a coup. Don't tell me the outcome is already decided. As long as I'm alive, he won't get away with this!"
Before he had even finished speaking, Garp stepped forward sharply. A terrifying shockwave spread from beneath his feet.
The next moment, black-and-red Conqueror's Haki erupted around him, weaving through the air. The void shuddered with a low rumble as an invisible, overwhelming pressure surged out like a raging tide, instantly enveloping Akira.
But—
As the invisible pressure swept toward Akira, an even more formidable wave of pressure burst forth and collided with the surging Conqueror's Haki.
BOOM—
The collision rang out like an explosion across the sky. A destructive shockwave rolled outward from Akira and Garp, like a hurricane erupting across the land. The earth cracked wherever it passed, buildings trembled, and the scene looked as if the end of the world had arrived.
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