The Navy's Crushing Defeat
That was right—the Navy had lost from the very beginning.
The moment the Navy failed to crush the Revolutionary Army beautifully, overwhelmingly, and virtually without taking any losses, they had already lost.
Even a draw would have counted as a victory for the Revolutionary Army.
That was the problem.
If one had to put it into words, it was the burden of their image, the burden of history—the Navy's concealed problem and weakness. As the World Government, they were actually very similar to the tyrannical Qin Dynasty. When two peasants like Chen Sheng and Wu Guang could stir up such enormous momentum, every ambitious figure in the world would begin to move at the news, and people like Liu Bang and Xiang Yu would emerge.
That was reality.
When the Navy's thirteen Vice Admirals had surrounded Sabo and Ace, only to be forced back instantly by exploiting the fact that they could not exert force in midair, they had already lost.
Although Akainu and Sengoku immediately followed up, sending Sabo and Ace flying with a punch each, that scene had already been deeply etched into everyone's minds. The Admiral and Fleet Admiral stepping in now merely elevated Ace and Sabo's status further.
It no longer mattered even if the two of them had been driven back.
"Mr. Leo?" Jinbe and Issho turned to look at Leo at the same time, as did Hancock. They were clearly eager to join the fight and help Sabo, Ace, and Enel.
"Tell them to come back. This war is already over." Leo did not intend to wipe out the Navy here. He did not even want the Navy to lose too much of its fighting strength, because what the Navy would face next would be far more than just his