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After leaving the sea restaurant, Shin and his group departed the East Blue.
Shin's main goal had been to find Nami, but to his surprise, Nami had sought him out herself. After a satisfying meal at the Baratie, his purpose in the East Blue was fulfilled.
However, as they passed through Loguetown, Shin's ship was intercepted.
Looking at Smoker standing on the warship in front of him, Shin's face showed a playful smile. 'Wasn't the lesson he got before enough?'
Standing beside Smoker, Tashigi was trembling slightly.
Although she despised pirates and would arrest any she encountered, she knew this was different. Rushing headlong against an enemy you could not defeat wasn't bravery, it was foolishness.
Right now, Tashigi felt her commander was being incredibly foolish, but she had no choice but to follow his reckless lead.
"Shin Uzumaki, did you capture Hina? Release her!" Smoker shouted, his voice thick with anger.
Shin then understood why Smoker had the courage to stop him.
It was because of Hina...
"Hmph," Hancock scoffed. She drew her sword, a flash of steel preceding her single, decisive slash, and sheathed it in the same motion.
Smoker collapsed onto the deck. Even with a Logia Devil Fruit, he could not resist a strike imbued with Armament Haki.
"..." Tashigi stared at the unconscious Smoker, at a loss for words.
"Get out of the way," Hancock said calmly. Sparing them once was already mercy. If they blocked her path again, she wouldn't hesitate to send them to the bottom of the sea.
Tashigi ordered through gritted teeth. With Smoker unconscious, she was the highest-ranking officer.
Looking at the departing Pluton, Tashigi breathed a sigh of relief.
Soon after, Marine Headquarters received word that Smoker was unharmed. Relief spread quickly. At the same time, they received another piece of intelligence: Mihawk was in the East Blue and had been seriously injured.
"Fleet Admiral, I believe we should take this opportunity to arrest Mihawk," Akainu proposed to Sengoku.
Upon learning that Mihawk had been wounded after challenging Shin—Akainu saw a chance to eliminate a thorn in their side.
"Mihawk is still a Warlord. We cannot move against him," Sengoku said, casting a glance at Akainu.
"Still, his presence in the East Blue is suspicious. Was he targeting Shin Uzumaki, or was there another reason? We need to investigate."
"Aokiji, this investigation is yours," Sengoku commanded.
When Sengoku assigned the mission to Aokiji, Akainu's expression darkened. Lately, Sengoku had been favoring Aokiji, and voices within the Marines calling for him to be the next Fleet Admiral were growing louder...
"I'll take my leave." Akainu exited the office. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✦𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✦𝕟𝕖𝕥
Kizaru and Aokiji followed soon after.
Garp put down his rice cracker and said to Sengoku, "Akainu's getting more frustrated by the day. You thinking about what's gonna happen between him and Aokiji?"
Sengoku went quiet for a moment, then let out a heavy sigh. Of course he knew about it. The tension between those two had been building for years.
But if forced to choose, he'd back Aokiji—though losing Akainu would be catastrophic. Truth was, the Marines needed all three admirals to survive.
"If only they were all as easygoing as Kizaru," Sengoku lamented.
Garp's expression turned strange. All like Kizaru? That would be a disaster... Kizaru was lazy on another level. Aokiji might be relaxed, but he was nothing compared to Kizaru.
"If you had become the Fleet Admiral back then, I wouldn't have these worries," Sengoku couldn't help but say.
"Tch, easy for you to say. If I'd actually gone after that position back then, you might not have been so eager to hand it over," Garp shot back before walking out.
After leaving the office, Akainu returned to his ship and pulled out a Den Den Mushi to contact Crocodile.
When the call connected, Crocodile tensed up.
Have the Marines figured out his plan? He was still scheming to locate Pluton and use its devastating power to conquer the world.
Little did he know that the ancient weapon he desperately sought was actually Shin's own ship—a truth that would've sent him into a complete meltdown.
"Admiral Akainu," Crocodile's hoarse voice answered.
"Crocodile, I have a mission for you," Akainu said coldly, his tone making it clear this wasn't a request.
Crocodile's jaw tightened, but he kept his mouth shut. Pissing off Akainu and the Marines would bring heat he couldn't afford. His Warlord status was too valuable to throw away over pride.
"What mission does Admiral Akainu have for me?"
"Deal with Mihawk. Kill him."
Akainu's plan was straightforward: let one enemy take out another. He'd use Crocodile as his attack dog, then have a perfect excuse to arrest him afterward.
The cigar dropped from Crocodile's mouth.
Fight Mihawk? He knew damn well he'd get slaughtered. That bastard was in a completely different league.
"Mihawk's badly hurt. He picked a fight with Shin Uzumaki and barely survived. You can finish the job." Akainu laid out the situation.
If Mihawk were at full strength, he never would've sent Crocodile—that would be suicide. The Seven Warlords had a clear hierarchy, and Crocodile sat near the very bottom.
"Mihawk actually challenged Shin Uzumaki..." Crocodile said, surprised by the news.
"Fine, I'll go after Mihawk. But I can't promise I'll be able to kill him," Crocodile said after weighing his options. He knew he didn't have a choice in the matter.
Refusing Akainu would just give the bastard an excuse to hunt him down.
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