Mu Chen walked out of the conference hall at Marine Headquarters into the blazing midday sunlight that poured over Marineford's plaza.
"Life's good today, oh, life's so good!"
He stretched as he headed toward his quarters, humming an off-key tune, completely unaware of the waves his proposed two-year break was about to stir across the seas.
Three days later, the Five Elders officially approved Mu Chen's request. Sengoku would remain Fleet Admiral, while Mu Chen would head to the New World to gain experience as a candidate for the position.
News of the two-year arrangement spread throughout the Four Blues with the Marines' official announcement. The moment it reached the New World, almost every pirate ship dropped anchor.
"What?"
"That Mu Chen guy became a Fleet Admiral candidate, and now he's coming to the New World?"
"He killed Whitebeard in front of all those people and sealed Blackbeard's whole crew away in space!"
"If he comes to the New World, how are we supposed to survive?"
"We're done for! Captain, how about we lie low for a while?"
"I heard his power can suck people straight into another dimension. Even the Four Emperors can't withstand it. With our strength, we wouldn't even be a snack for him!"
Similar conversations played out on islands and among pirate crews throughout the New World. Mu Chen's reputation among pirates now carried even more weight than that of the Four Emperors-and those Four Emperors had already become three.
Within a single week, pirates in the New World sailed out fifty percent less often. Once-bustling shipping lanes became deserted, and even crews that regularly plundered merchant ships hid on remote islands, afraid to show themselves.
Looking at the sudden drop in reports of pirate disturbances, the commanders of Marine bases in the New World couldn't