Chapter 87: Naval Headquarters in Turmoil Amid Public Opinion [Seeking First Subscriptions]

A few days later.

Marine Headquarters, Marineford.

The towering fortress stood silently, facing the magnificent and vast plaza ahead, and the huge harbor shaped like a crescent moon.

And to the right of the fortress, within a Japanese-style building resembling a keep.

In a certain meeting room laid with tatami mats, more than ten figures draped in cloaks of Justice sat in two rows, with sake and grilled fish placed on the low tables before them.

Yet no one touched them; the atmosphere throughout the entire meeting room was exceedingly oppressive and gloomy.

Amidst the swirling smoke, only the sound of cigars being puffed—pat-a-pat—could be heard.

"It seems everyone has already heard the rumors."

Senior Staff Officer Brannew stepped into the meeting room, approached the whiteboard, and scratched his messy, grass-green, bird's-nest hair.

"That's right; over in the East Blue, a nest of vicious and ruthless pirates suddenly emerged a while ago, proving very troublesome."

"Vicious and ruthless?"

A major general with a head full of white hair sneered, "Do you really have the nerve to use that term? Even I feel ashamed and blush hearing it; the internal investigation report states clearly: wasn't this caused by that fellow Onigumo losing his mind and firing cannons at Loguetown?"

"Watch your words."

Another young commodore stated indifferently, "This has nothing to do with Mr. Onigumo; the order came from Altair, who possesses Celestial Dragon bloodline. For a soldier, obeying orders is one's sacred duty; what else could he have done?"

"He isn't a pure-blooded Celestial Dragon; if he truly didn't want to comply, there are countless ways to obey in word but defy in deed. Could that Altair possibly do anything to him, a full-fledged Headquarters Vice Admiral?"

The major general with the head full of white hair flew into a rage, his voice suddenly rising an octave.

"What excuses! It is plainly that fellow's old trouble flaring up again! Seeing pirates gather, he wants to go over and slaughter them for fun, disregarding the safety of civilians, only to end up hitting an iron wall! Just thinking that I serve alongside such a person fills me with deep shame!!!"

"Don't get agitated, Mr. Fawn."

Brannew rubbed his brow temples with some headache, persuading helplessly:

"I will refrain from judging Vice Admiral Onigumo's conduct for now; this is not the theme of our meeting today. Let's set it aside for the moment; can you all argue privately after the adjournment?"

Hmph!

Major General Fawn turned his head away, snorting a coarse breath through his nostrils as a reluctant response.

Brannew shook his head; as one of the most senior staff officers at Headquarters, he had long grown accustomed to this.

Vice Admiral Onigumo, being a Headquarters Vice Admiral, counted as the most extreme among all the hawks in the entire Marine Headquarters, and had always been disliked by the doves.

After this "Loguetown Great Incident" occurred, various departments within Headquarters had already engaged in numerous arguments regarding the role Onigumo played in it.

Today's scene within the staff meeting was merely a microcosm of it all.

"In short, Headquarters Vice Admiral Onigumo was publicly 'executed'; I do not wish to use that word, but it indeed best depicts the scene at that time."

Brannew continued, "And King Altair of the Peas Kingdom, whom he was responsible for protecting, also met his end aboard the warship."

"The royal family of the Peas Kingdom has already sent multiple letters urging an investigation and punishment, using fierce language, even threatening to take the matter to the Holy Land; the impact brought by this incident can be described as extremely adverse."

"Therefore, just as I said earlier, no matter what stance or view everyone holds regarding Mr. Onigumo, it is unimportant; regarding the Loguetown Incident itself, the attitude from above is clear: we must focus attention on this group and nip them in the bud as soon as possible."

Saying this, he took out a large stack of bounty posters and pasted them one by one onto the whiteboard.

"First is this one!"

Snap, the slender cane in Brannew's hand pointed to the old man with a braided beard in the bounty poster on the right.

"Red Leg Zeff! Former captain of the Cook Pirates, with a bounty of 50 million Berries; several years ago, after roaming the Grand Line for a year with his crew, he returned to the East Blue and vanished without a trace."

"The Staff Department originally kept continuous surveillance on him for a period, later generally believing he had retired due to old age, but no one expected he would lower his status, join another's ship, and return to sea as an ordinary cook."

"It is worth noting that for some reason, his right leg has been replaced by a prosthesis cast from an unknown metal, demonstrating the ability to manipulate flames and Lei Ting, and even fly directly in mid-air."

"At the same time, this person has also mastered several styles of Six Powers martial arts; his strength has greatly improved compared to the past, and during the Loguetown Great Incident, he was even able to fight the outstanding Major General Hound to a standstill."

"Major General Hound?"

Everyone's expressions turned Solemn; some of them had graduated from the Headquarters Elite Training Camp in the same term as Hound and knew his background, knowing he was outstanding even among the Headquarters major generals.

Barring any accidents, he was destined to be a priority candidate for promotion to become a new generation Headquarters Vice Admiral.

Yet such a powerful old man, in this newly emerged pirate crew, holds the position of merely a cook?

"Based on this intelligence, after discussion among the staff officers, the final assessed new bounty is 80 million Berries! Alias: Steel Red Leg!"

After finishing his statement in a deep voice, Brannew moved the cane one position to the left, "Let's look at this one next!"

In the photo, a young girl with black hair in a high ponytail faced sideways toward the lens, gazing quietly ahead in the heavy rain, her attire as plain and unadorned as the Wado Ichimonji at her waist.

"Sister Sister Guyina, a young girl of mysterious origin; several years ago, she once won the local swordsmanship tournament on Light Cherry Island in the East Blue, then similarly vanished without a trace for several years. Now that she has set sail, at such a young age she has already demonstrated powerful strength at the level of a Sword Master!"

"And this time, it is also her first bounty, with a reward of 75 million Berries! Alias: Rain-Cutting Sword Master!"

A first-time bounty reaching 75 million Berries.

For a pirate hailing from the East Blue, this is an inconceivable amount.

But the people present did not feel particularly surprised; the Sword Master realm is rarely seen even in the first half of the Grand Line, making it worthy of this bounty tier.

"The next two, 'Iron Fist' Nojiko and 'Orange Hair' Nami, according to investigations, are both younger sisters of that man named Siano."

Brannew pointed to the two sisters on the whiteboard, whose styles were completely different:

"Among them, Nojiko possesses considerable combat power, is proficient in several Fist Styles and the Six Powers martial arts; although she fell slightly behind in her battle with Major General Yaki, she successfully thwarted Major General Yaki's reinforcement intentions all by herself."

"Therefore, her bounty is set at 40 million Berries!"

"As for this underage girl named Nami..." Brannew slightly furrowed his brows, "During the Loguetown Great Incident, she did not participate in frontal combat; after research and judgment, it is believed she was merely brought aboard the ship by virtue of her bloodline relationship with the captain, possessing basically no combat power, but since she also participated in this incident, a bounty is unavoidable."

"Provisional bounty: 8,000 Berries!"

(End of Chapter)