Meanwhile, in Pangaea Castle in the Holy Land of Mary Geoise, five familiar figures stood in a circle.
The eyes of the World Government's supreme rulers, the Five Elders,
were likewise focused on the all-out war about to erupt at Marineford.
The significance of this overt scheme they had set in motion went far beyond eliminating the threat of Whitebeard alone.
"Everything is proceeding according to plan."
Dressed in a dark kimono and holding the First Generation Kitetsu, Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro spoke slowly.
"Sengoku's era must end," Saint Shepherd Ju Peter added coldly.
"Regardless of whether this battle ends in victory or defeat, he, as Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, must bear full responsibility for the enormous casualties, especially the deaths of senior officers.
This is the ideal moment for him to resign in disgrace, and the outcome we must ensure."
Just as Zephyr had previously deduced, the Five Elders had already chosen the next Fleet Admiral.
"Sakazuki..." Saint Topman Warcury, who had a birthmark on his forehead, mused.
"His belief in 'absolute justice' is clear, and his methods are forceful and... predictable.
He is a blade sharp enough to serve our purposes, and obedient enough to wield.
Having him take over best suits our current needs.
Above all, a man like him will never allow someone like Gern to continue existing in the New World.
The arrangement of one body, two systems will inevitably collapse. Infighting will begin within the Navy, and everything will return to the way it was."
After weighing their options, they had decided that putting Akainu in power was both the best choice and the easiest to control.
But having held the reins of the world for eight hundred years, they were naturally no shortsighted fools.
"Of course," Jaygarcia Saturn Saint calmly outlined their backup