"Are you sure you want someone else to tell you, rather than confirm the answer yourself?"
Sanji's eyes widened. Why had he chosen a shortcut instead of heading out to sea himself for his dream?
Was ALL BLUE nothing more than something he could take a shortcut to?
"Listen carefully. Whatever you want, fight for it yourself. The only thing that can truly rob you of your dream is your own heart giving up."
Waves splashed as the warship set sail.
Standing at the railing, Sanji shouted toward that retreating figure bearing the word Justice:
"I'll definitely head out to sea and find ALL BLUE!"
This was the romance of the pirate world, perhaps. People's dreams never ended.
"That kid will definitely amount to something someday."
Smoker grinned. The reason this stern-faced but kindhearted man had become a Marine...
Was to crush the pirates who dressed their ambitions up as dreams and destroyed ordinary people's happiness.
Allowing these ordinary people to pursue their dreams was a symbol of his honor.
After taking Smoker and his companion back to Loguetown, Lofan returned to the Grand Line.
It was now the second half of 1515, and the Marines were also preparing for the Reverie early next year.
There were still seven years until the original story began, and the Paramount War would take place roughly half a year after its beginning.
"Ain, what does justice mean to you?"
"Wiping out every last one of those worthless pirates! Giving ordinary people peaceful, happy lives."
"Is that so?"
Lofan looked at the resolute Ain. These were the people he currently had in mind for the Espada:
Ain, user of the Rewind-Rewind Fruit.
Kaido, the World's Strongest Creature.
Sugar, user of the Hobby-Hobby Fruit.
Nico Robin, user of the Flower-Flower Fruit.
Fujitora, user of the Press-Press Fruit.
These four were currently Lofan's first choices, each with their own strengths and particular uses.
It was not that there were no other candidates, but loyalty was his first consideration.
Only then came abilities and other qualifications. Getting people to follow him was not something that could happen overnight.
He also believed there were many outstanding talents who had yet to appear.
And right now, the most important thing was waiting for Caesar to complete his research into artificial Soul-Type Devil Fruits.
First, he would try to see whether Hollows could be created artificially.
This would ensure that powerful Hollows could emerge through devouring one another, thereby completing their transformation into Arrancars.
Each of the Espada had a purpose, but more importantly, they needed thoughts of their own. Those would be the source of their absolute power.
"I need your strength, Ain. Will you use your ability for me? Even if it sometimes goes against your justice?"
Ain's long, sea-blue hair shone against the waves, shimmering with flecks of light.
For a moment, she did not know how to answer.
"Let that question rest in your heart for now. The fact that you didn't reject me outright already makes me very happy."
Lofan turned back and smiled. His warmth bewitched Ain, making her mistake it for sunlight.
But touching ice could leave one's fingers with a burning sensation, too.
A News Coo flew over wearing a red scarf. That was the notification signal Lofan had previously given Morgans.
He raised a hand to signal that he wanted a newspaper.
The News Coo specifically selected a prepared newspaper, collected the Beli, and flew away from the warship.
"Queen Mama Chanter sets sail in pursuit of King of the All-Stars. Where exactly is Kaido?"
Lofan did not even need to read it to know that Kaido's objective was to rescue his daughter.
He quickly skimmed through it. Neither the photographs nor the text mentioned Yamato, so whether he had succeeded remained unknown for now.
But Big Mom's reason for setting out was simple: to eliminate the threat completely and kill Kaido while he was weakened.
They had already made enemies of each other. How could she possibly wait for Kaido to recover and come after her for revenge?
She had to extinguish this spark completely.
Finally, it mentioned that the remnants of the Beasts Pirates led by King had been struck directly by a Knock Up Stream.
The Queen Mama Chanter had also been caught in it. The fate of the Beasts Pirates' remnants was unknown, while the Queen Mama Chanter had turned back.
Lofan narrowed his eyes. It seemed Kaido's destination was Sky Island.
There was no way they had run straight into a Knock Up Stream by such a coincidence. They must have planned it.
He glanced at the sky. Ten thousand meters above, countless secrets still lay hidden.
There was also a rather good fruit there. But most importantly, there was an island whose research into weather science was the most advanced in the world.
Weapons harnessing nature might not merely be a wild fantasy.
Tucked inside the newspaper was a message handwritten by Morgans.
"Spotted in the Baku Islands in the first half of the Grand Line. No signs of leaving for the time being."
Putting the note away, Lofan sent Ain to the chart room to find a map of the first half of the Grand Line.
The first half should put her somewhere near the Alabasta Kingdom.
Lofan was not certain whether Robin had already joined Crocodile's criminal organization.
But it should happen within this year or the next.
That was why, when he had asked Morgans to search for information, he had told him to prioritize the area around Alabasta.
He had not expected results so soon.
Robin's movements always revolved around the Poneglyphs. As a historian, it was her instinct.
"Then what reason should I use to go there? Crocodile?"
Crocodile was indeed a very good excuse.
Moreover, Alabasta held something he had to obtain: the location of the Ancient Weapon Pluton.
It was a terrifying weapon capable of destroying an island with a single shot.
As for the other weapon's blueprints, supposedly created by all the shipwrights of Water Seven to counter Pluton...
They were in Franky's hands.
Lofan was indeed interested in seeing for himself whether those blueprints were genuine.
Presumably, his actual work schedule would already be ready by the time he returned to headquarters.
He simply did not know whether there would be any secret assignments.
Those below Marine Vice Admiral were the ones who did the actual work.
Most Vice Admirals guarded the various branches across the Grand Line, maintaining security in the important surrounding waters and keeping sea routes clear.
Routine patrols and escort duties, meanwhile, required Rear Admirals, Commodores, and the like to take charge.
It was work that required little exertion but involved making appearances everywhere.
Most of their contacts were important national figures or enormously wealthy powers.
Unless ordered otherwise, they could not leave the vicinity of the waters under their jurisdiction.
Below Commodores were Colonels.
They led Marines around to strike at pirates guilty of all manner of evil, with considerable freedom of movement.
But they spent all day drifting at sea, taxing both mind and body.
The various branches were divided among the three Admirals to administer, handling matters such as troop assignments and funding allocations.
They possessed the enormous authority to change Vice Admirals' postings and mobilize every soldier within their branches' jurisdictions.
The power structure had already stabilized, but now someone was coming to claim a share.
This already affected the stability of the entire Marine organization. Presumably, the Five Elders were unwilling to make such sweeping changes.
Yet having an Admiral without duties of his own was impossible to justify.
He simply did not know what agreement the various internal factions would reach.
"Admiral, Colonel Ain asked me to inform you that the map is ready."
"All right."
Lofan set his thoughts aside for now. His template progress had now reached 53%.
He could only hope that the Hōgyoku would unlock at the 60% threshold.
Otherwise, all his plans would be delayed indefinitely as a result.
Before you continue