Garp nodded slightly.
His gaze carried a cold indifference as he met Sengoku’s shocked eyes directly.
The sheer force of his presence caused Sengoku to unconsciously take half a step backward.
His face was filled with disbelief.
This—
No one knew Garp better than Sengoku.
He had only seen this expression once before.
It was the expression Garp wore when entering battle.
Even now, recalling it sent chills down his spine.
Whenever Garp fought, he became like a War God.
The man never once seemed to consider the possibility of defeat.
Yet something felt terribly wrong.
The Garp standing before him seemed like an entirely different person.
His temperament was completely different from before.
But Sengoku couldn’t figure out why.
At the same time, an ominous feeling rose in his heart.
A very bad feeling.
Taking a deep breath, Sengoku frowned and said,
“Take a seat.
As the Marine Hero, you’re qualified to attend any meeting.”
Since Garp had chosen to come, Sengoku had no authority to refuse him.
Others could be denied.
Garp could not.
Because more than half the people present were his admirers.
Rejecting him would immediately spark dissatisfaction throughout the room.
As expected—
Cheers erupted almost instantly.
“That’s great!
Vice Admiral Garp is joining the war as well?
Then we have nothing to fear!
As long as the Hero Garp is with us, victory is guaranteed!”
“Seriously!
This is unbelievable!
I never thought I’d live long enough to see Vice Admiral Garp fight again!”
“This is incredible!
What Whitebeard Pirates?
Vice Admiral Garp can smash them all with a single punch!”
“Exactly!”
Many Vice Admirals and Rear Admirals voiced their excitement.
The admiration in their eyes grew even stronger.
At that moment, the Admirals led by Akainu merely shook their heads.
There was one crucial thing these people didn’t know.
Ace was Garp’s grandson.
His adopted grandson.
If they knew the truth, they probably wouldn’t be cheering.
Garp swept his gaze across the elite Marines gathered in the room.
The warmth and kindness he usually displayed were nowhere to be found.
Taking several steps forward, he headed toward an empty seat reserved specifically for him.
Beside it sat Vice Admiral Tsuru.
Reaching the chair, Garp calmly sat down and closed his eyes.
“Garp, you shouldn’t have come.”
Tsuru clasped her hands beneath her chin.
Though her eyes were fixed on Sengoku at the front of the room, her thoughts seemed elsewhere.
For some reason, Garp’s presence today gave her an invisible sense of pressure.
Her instincts told her that he hadn’t come simply to attend a meeting.
No.
He had come with a purpose.
A major one.
Perhaps even something the Marines themselves would be unable to bear.
The more she thought about it, the more terrifying the possibility became.
“That’s a joke.”
“You’re planning to execute my grandson, and I’m not even qualified to come listen?”
“Tsuru, keep your advice to yourself.
Don’t use the same lectures you give to juniors on me.”
Garp slowly opened his eyes.
He didn’t even glance at Tsuru.
Instead, he looked directly toward Sengoku at the front of the room.
Should he really stand on the side of their so-called justice?
Was their justice truly justice?
All injustice would eventually be cleansed.
…
The Marines?
At the end of the day, they were merely the Celestial Dragons’ hounds.
Countless people across the world couldn’t even afford food, yet they were still forced to pay the Heavenly Tribute.
Did the Marines not know about this?
Of course they did.
They simply turned a blind eye.
Why?
Because they couldn’t afford to oppose the World Government.
This dark world had existed long enough.
It was time for liberation.
A great cleansing would eventually arrive.
“The war is upon us.”
Sengoku’s voice echoed through the conference room.
“The son of the Pirate King, Gol D.
Roger, captured by Blackbeard.”
“The Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates—Fire Fist Ace.”
“He is currently imprisoned in Impel Down.”
“The World Government and Marine Headquarters have jointly decided…”
“To execute Fire Fist Ace!”
The room instantly fell silent.
Some already knew.
Many did not.
The moment they heard the announcement, countless Marines were stunned.
What?
Execute Fire Fist Ace?
Would Whitebeard, known for fiercely protecting his family, simply let that happen?
This meant war.
A war unlike anything they had ever seen.
Wait…
Fire Fist Ace was Roger’s son?
But wasn’t he also—
Vice Admiral Garp’s grandson?
For a moment, everyone’s eyes shifted toward Garp.
Their expressions were filled with shock.
Only now did they understand why Garp had come.
Why his expression had remained cold and serious from the very beginning.
Why he had openly challenged Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
Because the person being executed was Ace.
And Ace was Garp’s grandson.
At the very least, his adopted grandson.
No one dared speak.
This was far beyond anything they could involve themselves in.
The atmosphere had become completely wrong.
A murderous pressure instantly spread throughout the conference room.
Several weaker Rear Admirals turned pale and nearly vomited under the suffocating tension.
“What do the Admirals think?”
Ignoring everyone’s reactions, Sengoku turned toward Akainu and Aokiji.
Kizaru was currently absent.
In the coming war, those three would be the core of the Marine forces.
Their opinions mattered greatly.
Fortunately, Sengoku wasn’t worried.
They had known about this matter long ago.
Bringing it up now was simply a way to suppress Garp’s influence.
If left unchecked, the Vice Admirals and Rear Admirals might lose confidence.
At the same time, this was also a chance for everyone to choose their side.
“Ahh…”
Aokiji stretched lazily and yawned.
“I don’t have any objections.”
After speaking, he lowered his head again as if ready to continue napping.
Yet his gaze secretly drifted toward Garp.
Something about Garp today felt strange.
He couldn’t quite describe it.
But it made his skin crawl.
It was as though…
The man had become someone else entirely.
“Proceed with the execution.”
Akainu spoke without hesitation.
“Justice must not be insulted.”
“Since Fire Fist Ace is a pirate, he must die.”
“I approve.”
With his arms crossed and head lowered, Akainu spoke indifferently.
Nothing seemed capable of shaking his conviction.
As a believer in Absolute Justice, all he wanted was to personally eradicate the child of the Pirate King.
After receiving the approval of two Admirals, many of those who had been uncertain immediately regained their confidence.
Yet quite a few people still trembled.
They felt that something enormous was about to happen.
“Garp…”
Sengoku slowly turned his head.
His gaze settled on Garp, who sat silently to his right.
His expression remained solemn.
At this point, even he no longer dared make assumptions.
In the past, he would have confidently believed that Garp would stand alongside the Marines.
But today…
The very fact that Garp had appeared here suggested something terrifying.
His position might have changed.
In an instant, the temperature inside the conference room seemed to plummet.
Everyone held their breath.
Every eye focused on Garp.
Waiting for his answer.
Because that answer would determine whether today remained peaceful—
Or descended into chaos.