The first half of the Grand Line.
Marine Headquarters.
Marineford.
"Sengoku, what happened?"
Tsuru entered the Fleet Admiral's office and couldn't help but ask after seeing Sengoku with his brows knit tightly together in a frown.
"It's that fool, Garp!"
"Hmm? Did Garp do something again?"
Tsuru was all too familiar with Garp's natural talent for causing trouble; the question came to her quite naturally.
"On his way back, he rescued a child who had been stranded on a deserted island for three years due to a shipwreck. He claims the boy is highly talented and possesses a heart for justice, so he brought him back to headquarters."
"Isn't that a good thing? A talented child with a sense of justice is exactly what the Marine lacks, isn't it?"
Tsuru was somewhat puzzled. She didn't understand why Sengoku was so troubled by this.
Currently, the Marine was facing a gap in its succession. The three Admirals were no longer young, yet there was no one in the next generation capable of shouldering the burden of leadership. While Gion and Tokikake were skilled, there was still a vast gap between them and the level of an Admiral. Therefore, the Marine was desperate for a new generation with sufficient talent.
"The problem is... the boy's name is Sean Campbell!"
Sean Campbell. Campbell?
"Sengoku, you don't mean the Campbell from three years ago?"
Tsuru was stunned. As the Great Staff Officer of Marine Headquarters and the manager of the Marine's intelligence department, there was no way she wouldn't know about that incident.
However, the Sean Campbell she had heard of was an arrogant, overbearing brat who was almost on par with the Celestial Dragons in terms of entitlement. No matter how she looked at it, that image didn't fit with the "justice-minded youth" Garp had described.
"Yes, it's the same Campbell from three years ago. According to Garp, Sean has no memories of that time. He only knows he washed up on that deserted island with several severe sword and gunshot wounds. Furthermore, Bogard recognized that one bullet Sean had kept—it was a Marine bullet!"
"Do you understand what that implies?"
"It means the incident with the Campbell Family wasn't as simple as it seemed. It might even involve our own Marine!"
Indeed, this was a grave issue. If it were ever confirmed that the people who attacked the Campbell Family were Marines, it would be a disaster. Just thinking about it gave Sengoku a massive headache.
"So, what do you plan to do? Refuse Sean's entry into the Marine?"
"No, that won't work. If we do that, aren't we just telling everyone that the Marine has a guilty conscience?" Sengoku shook his head in disagreement.
"Then we'll let Sean enter the recruit training camp first. In the meantime, we'll investigate the incident in secret. If there really are maggots within the Marine, we can purge the ranks without alerting the outside world."
After a moment of contemplation, Sengoku nodded. This was the most prudent approach.
By sending Sean into the elite training camp, the closed-off management would ensure he couldn't contact the outside world for at least three years. During that time, they could arrange for a covert investigation to root out and eliminate the traitors. This would both prevent a Marine scandal from leaking and provide Sean with a proper explanation.
'''
Sean was completely unaware of the discussions happening at Marine Headquarters. At this moment, he was busy testing the nerves of everyone on the warship.
"Soru!"
'Whoosh!'
"Hmm, seven steps. Not bad! I've cut down another step!"
Not only was the number of steps decreasing, but Sean's control over Soru was becoming far more proficient.
Speaking of which, when Sean first performed Soru, Garp had asked him about the mechanics. He wanted to know how Sean could trigger Soru with only nine steps and achieve such incredible speed.
To this, Sean had replied with a single sentence:
"Mechanics? What are those?"
He had thrown Garp's own logic right back at him. It was a case of settling scores immediately, which had left Garp gnashing his teeth in frustration.
Of course, Sean had enjoyed the moment, but what happened afterward?
A black fist had come flying toward him, blasting him straight into the ocean. Shortly after, a certain someone had stood on the deck, laughing shamelessly.
Because of this, Sean swore that once his strength improved, he would eventually pin the old man down and give him a proper beating.
'''
Ten more days passed quickly. After a long voyage, the warship finally arrived at Marineford, the island where Marine Headquarters was located.
From the perspective of a modern person, the architecture of the pirate world looked a bit dated, but Sean had to admit... Marine Headquarters was quite magnificent.
"Vice Admiral Garp, Fleet Admiral Sengoku has requested that you take Sean Campbell to his office immediately after disembarking!"
"Yeah, yeah, I got it!"
As soon as they stepped off the ship, a messenger who had been waiting at the docks ran up to them.
"Kid, come with me."
"Sure thing, Old Man Garp!"
"You should call me Vice Admiral Garp!"
"Got it, Old Man Garp!"
Seeing this reaction, Garp shook his head. While he felt a bit helpless, he didn't actually mind. Garp had never been someone who cared for titles.
The only reason he wanted Sean to call him Vice Admiral was that once they reached headquarters, it would invite gossip if the boy called him "Old Man" in public. Some Marines who were obsessed with rank and hierarchy might even attack him for it—verbally, of course. But often, words held significant power.
Still, since Sean refused, so be it. With Garp around, there wouldn't be any real problems. Besides, no matter how fallen he was, the boy still held the status of a high noble; that was an unchanging fact.
Ten minutes later, led by Garp, Sean finally arrived outside the Fleet Admiral's office. He had to admit, Marine Headquarters was truly massive.
And in the next instant, Sean confirmed another fact.
Garp never knocked on Sengoku's door, nor did he ever use his hands to open it.
'BANG!!!'
Sean couldn't help but think that the door to the Fleet Admiral's office must be made of incredible quality, as it hadn't been kicked off its hinges.
"Garp! How many times have I told you? Use your hands to open the door! YOUR HANDS!!!"
Garp had long since grown accustomed to Sengoku's roaring and ignored him completely. He simply plopped down on a nearby sofa, fished out a bag of senbei from underneath it, and began munching away with a loud 'crunch, crunch, crunch'.
"You bastard, Garp! Those are my rice crackers!"
"Who told you to hide them in the same place every time?"
"If it weren't for the fact that you bastard do this every single time you come over, do you think I'd even need to hide...?"
'Zzzzz...'
However...
Someone had already fallen fast asleep, a snot bubble inflating and deflating from his nose.
Seeing this, Sengoku sat down, feeling utterly powerless.
Dealing with an old bastard like this—he was certain he was going to lose years of his life!
"Hm? You are Sean?"
'Finally noticed me, huh?' Sean couldn't help but complain inwardly upon hearing Sengoku's question.
"Yes, Fleet Admiral Sengoku!"
"Right. I've heard about you from Garp. And you wish to join the Marine?"
"Yes!"
"Then, let me ask you one thing: what is your 'Justice'?"
'Is there something wrong with you Marine people?' Sean wondered. 'Why is every single one of you like this? Why is this the first thing you always ask? Can't you come up with something fresh?'
"My Justice, huh..."
He looked up at the plaque hanging in the office...
'Absolute Justice!!'
As expected, at this point in time, Sengoku had already replaced the original plaque.
'However, I seem to remember that in the original story, Sengoku didn't change it until just before the Paramount War, right?'
'Well, never mind that for now.'
"My Justice," Sean declared, "is a justice that reigns over the world!"
Inside the office, Sengoku's eyes widened in shock.