Chapter Ninety-Four: Red Dog (First Update)

Pongeles had originally meant to say, This is Marine Headquarters. How could there possibly be such a person here?

But when he thought back to what had just happened, he swallowed the words.

Before becoming Rowan’s adjutant, he had never imagined that Vice Admiral Tuchi could be that kind of man. Even when people called him the cruelest of all the vice admirals, his cruelty had always been reserved for those utterly irredeemable pirates.

“Yes, Colonel Rowan. I will see to it at once.”

Though Pongeles was not much to boast of in terms of fighting strength, his ability to carry out orders was first-rate. Anything Rowan said, he would execute with meticulous care.

And so, on the deck that had already been cleaned, one body after another was carried out and covered with white cloth, laid there in silence.

Under the frantic rowing of the prisoners, the warship cut through the waves and sped toward the Gate of Justice, moving nearly twice as fast as before.

What had been planned as a journey to Impel Down the next day had brought them into view of their destination while the sun was only just beginning to sink.

The Gate of Justice, towering so high it seemed to vanish into the clouds, truly stunned Rowan.

It was a magnificence unlike that of a floating island. Even the people of his former world, who had once been hailed as masters of infrastructure, had never built anything like it. More importantly, on Blue Star, something like the Gate of Justice would simply have been impractical.

After Pongeles had spoken with the Marine stationed at the gate, a deafening mechanical roar echoed out, and the colossal Gate of Justice slowly began to open.

At that very moment, the instant a crack appeared in the gate, the formerly calm sea was thrown into violent turmoil, and the water became fiercely swift.

“The Gate of Justice is not only used to prevent others from taking advantage of the Triangle Current. It is also there to stabilize the waters beyond it.”

Standing beside Rowan, Pongeles offered the explanation.

Yet the person he seemed to be explaining it to was not Rowan, but Nami.

To lend a hand to outstanding younger officers had always been something marines with a heart for justice were willing to do.

Carried forward by the current, the warship swayed as it entered the channel, surging ahead at tremendous speed.

Feeling a velocity so different from what it had been moments ago, Nami could not help but click her tongue. Such speed was truly terrifying.

If this had not been a warship, but some other kind of sea vessel, it would probably have been torn apart by the raging current before it ever reached its destination.

About half an hour later, another open Gate of Justice appeared before them, and the warship sailed straight out of the Triangle Current, formally arriving in the Grand Line.

Looking toward the island in the distance, Rowan’s lips curved into a smile. Everything was proceeding according to plan.

What he was doing now was not merely to seek justice for those marines. More importantly, he was fighting for an opportunity of his own.

Before he had even joined the Navy, he had already wanted an excuse to leave the local post and establish a branch base.

Now, thanks to Tuchi, someone had kindly handed him a legitimate reason. He was certainly going to make full use of it.

The moment the warship entered the harbor, and the massive headquarters building came into view, Rowan had Pongeles raise the white sails and the mourning cloth together. Then they simply stopped in the middle of the harbor, motionless.

This strange behavior quickly drew the attention of the surrounding marines. At first, they had thought it some pirate scheme, but when they saw the marines on the deck, their minds were left a little blank.

If everyone here was a marine, and you had come back from battle, should you not immediately go down to rest and recover? Why were you just sitting there? Were you posing for a portrait?

Among those puzzled by this was not only the ordinary seamen, but also Admiral Sakazuki, who had just returned from a mission.

After mooring his warship beside Rowan’s, Sakazuki cast a glance at the sail and flagpole bearing no insignia, and his brow immediately furrowed.

Stepping from his own ship onto Rowan’s, Red Dog barked, “Who is in charge of this vessel? Why are you not flying the emblem of the World Government? Do you mean to mutiny?”

Looking at the giant of some three meters before him, Rowan lifted a brow. He had not expected to run into Admiral Sakazuki here of all places.

Still, this was good. He had only been wondering how to make a scene. Sakazuki’s appearance fit his purpose perfectly.

So Rowan put on the expression of someone who did not know Sakazuki at all, and looked to Pongeles at his side with feigned confusion.

“Major Pongeles, who is this?”

“One of the Headquarters’ three supreme fighting forces, Admiral Sakazuki.” After introducing Red Dog to Rowan, Pongeles immediately saluted and reported to Sakazuki as well. “Reporting to Admiral Sakazuki, this is Colonel Rowan, newly appointed at Headquarters half a month ago. We have just returned from the East Blue.”

“You are Rowan?” Sakazuki clearly knew of Rowan, the specially appointed colonel, and asked with a frown, “But what are you doing here? If you have returned from battle, you should be going below to rest. What is the meaning of this?”

“Reporting to Admiral Sakazuki, may I ask you a question?” Rowan tilted the brim of his cap and wore an innocent smile. “If a marine attacks a comrade and then tries to erase the evidence, how should such a person be dealt with?”

“If such a man truly exists, I would personally send him to hell. Anyone who betrays the name of justice should not be allowed to exist in this world,” Sakazuki replied.

“That makes things simple.” After having Tuchi’s corpse brought up, Rowan had Pongeles explain everything that had happened today from beginning to end.

After hearing Rowan’s account, Sakazuki’s expression darkened at once, and the look he cast at Tuchi’s body became filled with disgust.

As the leader of the hawks, Sakazuki had originally held this vice admiral in fairly high regard, since his views on pirates were the same as his own.

But he had never imagined that this man, even while at Headquarters, had already betrayed the very word justice, and that today he would dare to launch an unauthorized attack on marines from Headquarters. Truly reckless beyond measure.

If Tuchi had not already become a corpse, Sakazuki would have made him regret ever being born.

“I will report this matter to Fleet Admiral Sengoku,” Sakazuki said in a deep voice.

“No, no, Admiral Sakazuki.” Rowan shook his head. “It is not that I do not trust you. It is simply that with Vice Admiral Tuchi as the precedent, I now have doubts about your entire upper command.”

“If even someone like Tuchi, a vice admiral on the fringes, could commit an act of intercepting and slaughtering his comrades, then what of the others?”

“If some in the higher ranks choose to bury this affair in order to preserve the Navy’s face, would we not still be in danger here at Headquarters?”

“In any case, our strength is weak. If we were to die, would they not say whatever they pleased about us? Is that not so?”

The instant he finished speaking, Rowan could feel a terrifying aura bearing down on him.

He had not been ignorant of the world’s top powers, but even Golden Lion had never released such pressure upon him.

It was like a mountain crushing down, making it almost impossible to breathe.

If Rowan had not just pushed himself hard and gained a surge of levels in order to defeat Tuchi, he suspected that this force alone might have driven him flat to the ground.

“What did you say?”