Mutiny Begins, Those Who Block Die!

"What?"

The sudden report caught Marshal Sengoku completely off guard. His eyes widened as he swiftly rose to his feet and snatched up the Den Den Mushi.

Bastille, meanwhile, reacted calmly, a barely perceptible hint of cunning flashing across his lips. "Marshal Sengoku, it seems the Holy Land's concerns have become reality!"

Meanwhile.

Marineford Plaza.

Headquarters Officers and more than ten thousand soldiers, who had immediately begun taking action after Akira was imprisoned, stood in neat formation across the plaza. Every soldier and officer wore a red scarf tied around their shoulder.

Standing before the soldiers were more than a dozen Headquarters Rear Admirals and over thirty Commodores.

Facing those Rear Admirals, Commodores, and soldiers were three Headquarters Vice Admirals: Vice Admiral Momonga, Vice Admiral Strawberry, and Vice Admiral Bastille.

"Vice Admiral Momonga? Great! I never thought Lord Momonga was one of us too!"

"Vice Admiral Strawberry? The hero who chased down the Sun Pirates back then! Why is he here too?"

"Lord Bastille! Are you going to fight for Lord Akira too? Wonderful!"

Hearing the constant voices rising from the ranks, the three Headquarters Vice Admirals showed little reaction. After sweeping their gazes over the crowd, Vice Admiral Momonga slightly raised his head and looked up at the night sky.

He was a veteran Vice Admiral at Headquarters. Back when Akira was still a Second Lieutenant, he had already been a Headquarters Vice Admiral. He had taken part in numerous major incidents and enjoyed immense prestige within Headquarters.

But because of his rigid nature, even after becoming a Vice Admiral, he had few colleagues at Headquarters he could speak with. He had even been ostracized by the other Vice Admirals for being overly stern and inflexible in his dealings.

Of course, he considered such exclusion among colleagues insignificant. He had not joined the Marines for social niceties; all he wanted was for more people to receive justice's protection.

Thus, he threw all his energy into his work, participating in every major event, including the Battle of Aethelred.

However, during one mission away from home, his elderly father fell gravely ill and wished to see him one last time before passing. But after his younger brother called Headquarters, Headquarters did not immediately inform him of the matter.

Left with no other choice, his younger brother learned that there was an officer at Headquarters who would answer any request. Neither he nor his brother had expected that, upon learning of his father's dying wish to see his eldest son one last time, Akira—then already a Rear Admiral—would immediately sail a warship to his hometown and bring his father to him.

When he saw Akira carrying his father off the warship on his back and standing before him, he thought he was hallucinating. What surprised him even more was that Akira had not only brought his father to him, but had also brought along a medical team to ensure his father could speak with him for a few last words.

Though his father ultimately still passed away, he and Akira forged a deep friendship from then on. Whenever they had free time, they would discuss the future of the Marines and examine the flaws and corruption within the World Government and the Marines.

"Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing?"

Suddenly, a familiar voice came from behind the three of them.

They turned toward the sound and saw the drunken Vice Admirals Onigumo and Doberman. The two had clearly drunk quite a bit; before they even approached, the smell of alcohol drifted over on the wind, making Momonga frown.

"Isn't this Vice Admiral Momonga? Ahahaha, Strawberry and Bastille are here too? Come on, come on, let's have a drink!"

Onigumo, who had arrived with his arm around Doberman's shoulders, glanced at the soldiers standing in neat formation on the plaza. He then shoved Doberman aside, staggered over to Momonga, grabbed him, and prepared to turn away.

Momonga did not move. Instead, he turned his head and glanced toward the Headquarters prison.

At that moment, lights suddenly came on in the direction of the Headquarters prison. Immediately afterward, a line of officers with red scarves tied around their shoulders filed out and formed two rows.

Seeing this, Momonga did not hesitate in the slightest. He decisively broke free from Onigumo's grip, turned to face the more than ten thousand soldiers gathered in the plaza, and said in a deep voice, "All personnel, target: prison gates. Double-time, march!"

Whoosh—

More than ten thousand soldiers turned in unison, then broke into a run toward the prison gates.

"Hm?"

The sudden development caused Onigumo and Doberman's expressions to change slightly. They spoke in unison, "Momonga, what are you doing?"

"You two, the times have changed!"

Before Momonga could speak, Bastille, carrying a massive cleaver over his shoulder, suddenly turned around and declared with shocking bluntness, "The Marines need a better Fleet Admiral, and that person can only be Vice Admiral Akira!"

"What?"

Onigumo and Doberman spoke in unison again.

After a brief moment of stunned silence, the two snapped back to their senses one after another. Onigumo immediately took a step back as if facing a formidable enemy, fixing Bastille with a burning stare as he said gravely, "Bastille, how dare you utter such treasonous words!"

"Damn it!" Doberman also sobered up completely at that moment, crying out, "Onigumo, stop them! They're breaking Akira out of prison!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Before Onigumo could react, a rapid series of sharp gunshots rang out without warning. The whistling bullets instantly tore through Onigumo's body and Doberman's body just as he pulled out his Den Den Mushi.

Immediately afterward, a group of soldiers swarmed over, closing in on the two without hesitation and emptying their magazines into them.

However, the two were Headquarters Vice Admirals after all.

Even with their bodies riddled with holes, neither died on the spot.

"Damn it, who told you to fire?!"

Seeing Onigumo and Doberman lying in pools of blood, Momonga hurried forward and rebuked them. "Don't waste time here. Hurry and welcome Vice Admiral Akira!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The moment Momonga finished speaking, sharp gunshots rang out again.

Two officers had somehow appeared before Onigumo and Doberman. With their gun barrels aimed at the two men's heads, they unhesitatingly emptied their magazines.

"Vice Admiral Momonga, this is war."

After executing Onigumo and Doberman, one of the officers, wearing Rear Admiral epaulets, immediately looked up at Momonga with fanatical eyes. "Anyone who stands in Lord Akira's way, no matter who they are, is our enemy."

After saying that, the officer wasted no more time. He turned and ran into the main force, racing toward the prison at full speed.

Momonga's heart sank. Looking at the two vice admirals lying in pools of blood, already devoid of breath, his expression was complicated.

Of course, he supported Vice Admiral Akira, but he did not want this incident to result in the bloodshed and sacrifice of a large number of Headquarters Officers.

What shocked him most was that two powerful vice admirals, Doberman and Onigumo, had met their ends in such a manner.

Just then, crisp gunshots rang out incessantly from the major dormitory buildings and residential districts throughout Marine Headquarters.

Clearly, officers and soldiers loyal to Akira were purging dissidents, taking action to help Akira successfully seize the position of Marshal.

As the gunfire suddenly echoed across the skies of Marineford, piercing alarms were triggered as well.

In an instant, the gunshots and alarms intertwined into the trumpet call of death, and a mutiny planned for six long years officially began.