"I'm getting aboard this ship, damn it!"
An afterimage flashed past, appearing before Carina and Nami in an instant and sweeping into a gentlemanly bow.
But before Sanji could introduce himself, Zeff's wooden leg had already come flying at him.
Watching the two descend into another brawl, Bai Yu helplessly headed toward the seafaring restaurant.
Meanwhile, in the assembly hall at Marine Headquarters.
A stack of documents lay scattered across the table. On top, besides the file on the treasure hunter Treasure, was a brand-new wanted poster.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, haven't you been calling meetings a little too often lately? You're making us come running every two or three days!"
"Good thing I'm fast, or I wouldn't even have made it back in time!"
Kizaru spoke with his mouth crooked in a sleazy expression.
The other Marine officers said nothing, but they were just as curious about Sengoku's intentions.
After all, the meetings really had been a little too frequent this past month, a far cry from the usual once every several months.
"Enough, Kizaru. Shut your mouth. If there weren't anything important, I certainly wouldn't have called you here!"
"If even you couldn't make it in time, who could be faster than you?"
Sengoku barked in a deep voice.
"I called you here this time mainly for two matters."
"A rookie pirate has emerged in the East Blue recently. This is the bounty request submitted by the 186th Branch. Take a look first."
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to it.
The instant they saw the bounty, quite a few of their expressions froze.
"A bounty of fifty million Beli? The captain of the Spade Pirates?"
Akainu folded his arms and spoke in a low voice, his brows furrowing.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, judging by this photograph, this brat is only seventeen or eighteen. Giving him an initial bounty of fifty million Beli, the ceiling for the Four Blues, seems like making a mountain out of a molehill."
"If word gets out, people will think our Marine Headquarters really is afraid of some rookie brat!"
"I agree with Sakazuki!"
Not minding stirring up more trouble, Kizaru raised his hand in agreement.
The other Marine officers said nothing, but they nodded silently as well.
Having anticipated this, Sengoku swept his gaze around the room and said,
"I knew you would react this way. If he were merely a rookie from the Four Blues, he naturally wouldn't be worth that price."
"But if I told you this rookie possessed the power of the Logia Flame-Flame Fruit, would you think the price was justified?"
The Flame-Flame Fruit?
The Marine officers' expressions changed at once.
Quite a few instinctively looked toward the Three Admirals.
No one understood the power of Logia Devil Fruits better than those at Marine Headquarters.
The current lineup of Admirals could be called the strongest entirely because all three possessed fruit powers capable of destroying heaven and earth.
Now that a rookie pirate had suddenly acquired a Devil Fruit that was also a Logia, how could they remain calm?
"So he's a Logia Devil Fruit user. No wonder he's been given a fifty-million-Beli bounty."
Aokiji exhaled a breath of icy air.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, did you summon us so urgently because you intend to hunt down this Fire Fist Ace and strangle him in the cradle?"
Everyone's nerves immediately tightened.
Logia Devil Fruit users were all catastrophic opponents.
Even an ordinary Vice Admiral might not be certain of victory against one. To snuff out this rookie pirate, they would probably need the Three Admirals to act!
"No. I've already tasked Garp with keeping an eye on this. If he really can't manage it, we'll catch Fire Fist Ace in one net when he reaches the Sabaody Archipelago on the Grand Line."
Sengoku spoke in a deep voice.
"The Beasts Pirates have been stirring lately, and that fellow Red-Haired only recently became an Emperor. The two have fought quite a few major battles over territory. Kizaru, you still need to watch them at all times. Don't let them poke a hole in the sky."
"As for Aokiji, keep an eye on the selection of the final member of the Shichibukai. The Five Elders keep putting pressure on us. This Shichibukai matter has dragged on too long."
"Although they've also proposed a candidate, I think anyone who would make that fellow one of the Shichibukai must be blind."
"Akainu, you should also stay alert. The Celestial Dragons have been leaving the Holy Land Mary Geoise frequently lately. You all know what their character is like. We absolutely cannot have anything go wrong at a critical juncture like this."
Several issues came spilling out like a barrage of cannon fire, leaving the Marine officers exchanging glances.
But all they could do was listen.
These assignments carried far too much weight. Aside from the Admirals, they truly weren't qualified to handle them.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, you've certainly arranged our assignments nice and neatly. We'll probably be stretched too thin to be in two places at once now. Unless there's something important, we should have fewer meetings like this, shouldn't we?"
Kizaru brushed the dust off himself and stood up, his mouth crooked.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, if there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."
"Stop!"
Sengoku barked in a deep voice.
"What I just said was only the preamble. What comes next is the truly important matter for which this meeting was called."
"As you just said, storms have been gathering in the New World lately. Relying solely on the Three Admirals to keep the situation under control has already become somewhat inadequate."
"So the main purpose of this meeting is to add another Admiral Candidate!"
An Admiral Candidate?
A chorus of sharp gasps rang out through the room.
An Admiral Candidate stood between Vice Admiral and Admiral, a top fighting force second only to the Admirals.
In all of Marine Headquarters, there were only two.
Moreover, each bore the heavy responsibility of monitoring the Four Emperors.
Now, the moment Sengoku opened his mouth, he intended to break the combat hierarchy that had remained unchanged for years. This undoubtedly went beyond anything they had imagined.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, for you to raise this matter so suddenly, you probably already have a candidate in mind."
Akainu spoke in a deep voice.
"Is it Yamakaji, Doberman, or Onigumo?"
The nerves of every Marine officer present tightened.
Yamakaji gave a dry laugh. "Admiral Sakazuki, you think too highly of me. I'd say Vice Admiral Onigumo has the best chance. He's completed quite a few missions lately."
Compared with a hawk like Onigumo, Yamakaji clearly belonged to the steady, cautious camp.
Thus, his military achievements and renown were undoubtedly far less than Onigumo's.
"Heh, I agree with Yamakaji." Doberman echoed him, his scar-covered face twitching.
An Admiral Candidate was the closest existence to the Marine Admirals, the highest fighting force.
Many people wanted that honor.
However, saying so in public would be rather unbecoming.
"Sorry, but the person recommended this time is none of you here."
Sengoku spoke in a deep voice.
He casually took out a stack of documents, set them on the table, and said,
"The person recommended for Admiral Candidate this time is Bai Yu!"