-Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral's Office.
Sengoku, Garp, Tsuru... and Zephyr.
The atmosphere in the office was so oppressive that even Sengoku's little goat, which served as his paper shredder, barely dared to chew.
The crux of the matter was the newspaper on Sengoku's desk.
An ugly, enormous face dominated the front page.
The gist of the headline was: Whitebeard II invited to join the Shichibukai-June 4.
Even the sunlight streaming through the windows failed to warm the room.
Zephyr stood by the window, the metal joints of his mechanical arm scraping faintly as he clenched his fist.
"You made that butcher a Shichibukai?"
Zephyr's voice was low and ominous, like the moments before a storm.
For once, Garp wasn't laughing, eating rice crackers, or picking his nose.
"Orders from the World Government... I think it's outrageous too."
Garp, normally the quickest to crack a joke, could only offer that dry remark.
"Outrageous?"
Zephyr spun around, his distorted reflection appearing in the filing cabinet's glass.
"He slaughtered my students! And now you're making him a Shichibukai?!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru tapped the desk lightly and let out a deep sigh. There really was little the Marines could do about this.
"Zephyr, we're down two Shichibukai. The World Government wanted to..."
Sengoku adjusted his glasses, his expression grim, but gritted his teeth and offered an explanation he knew would accomplish little.
"-Maintain the balance?!"
His mechanical arm slammed into Sengoku's desk, overturning a teacup.
After a long silence, Zephyr left the meeting room without looking back, slamming the door with a crash like muffled thunder.
The door swayed a few times, then fell to the floor along with its cracked frame.
-Babylon.
With matters in Alabasta settled for the time being, Sephiroth brought Robin to Sky Island.
Naturally, he knew about Whitebeard II