Hearing Orion declaration to personally join them in the New World, Kuzan hand holding the document trembled slightly.
"Go!"
Noticing Kuzan subtle reaction, Orion smiled.
"Remember to contact me once you arrive at G-1."
Kuzan nodded decisively and turned to leave. Just as he was about to walk out of the office, Orion voice suddenly called out from behind him.
"Kuzan—"
"The burning justice you upheld before the Ohara incident—is it still alive?"
At these words, Kuzan heart shook. He straightened his posture, turned to face Orion, and the laziness in his eyes faded, replaced by a renewed flame of justice. He raised his hand in a salute to Orion.
"It has never been extinguished!"
With that, Kuzan wasted no more time and quickly exited the office.
Kuzan was not lying. The fire of burning justice he had once upheld had never been extinguished—it had merely been buried deep within his heart, as the Ohara incident had left him questioning the justice the Navy stood for.
Exiting the office, Kuzan felt a sense of relief, his usual lazy demeanor completely gone, replaced by a long-lost vigor that made him feel as if he had returned to the passionate days of his youth.
At that moment, two officers approached him. Due to the change in Kuzan aura, the two officers didn't immediately recognize him. It wasn't until Kuzan was about to pass them that they suddenly snapped to attention, saluting in unison:
"Admiral Kuzan!"
"Loyalty!"
Kuzan returned the salute and even shouted the word "loyalty." Without waiting for the officers to react, he strode confidently into the elevator.
Upon reaching the first-floor lobby via the elevator, Kuzan didn't neglect the soldiers and officers who stood up to salute him, promptly raising his hand in return.
As he stepped out of the main entrance, a deep crimson unexpectedly filled his vision. Looking into the distance, he saw a red sun hanging on the horizon, its setting rays casting a blood-red hue over the sea and enveloping Marineford in a breathtakingly beautiful sunset.
Gazing at the red sun in the sky, Kuzan couldn't help but recall a scene he had long forgotten. It was an encounter two years ago.
While on vacation, he had been leisurely riding his bicycle on the sea when he unexpectedly crossed paths with Orion, who was on a mission.
The pirates Orion Marine was battling were a rising force at the peak of their power. Their captain was a supernova with a bounty of 180 million Berries, and he had several subordinates with bounties exceeding 30 million.
Perhaps emboldened by their strength, this pirate crew fought fiercely against Orion navy, with their captain and two officers launching a relentless assault on Orion.
Facing the combined attack of three pirates, Orion remained calm and composed, steadily gaining the upper hand with his formidable strength.
In less than thirty seconds, Orion had taken down one of them using the "Finger Pistol" technique from the Rokushiki, and without pause, he seamlessly executed the "Tempest Kick" to blow off another head.
After swiftly eliminating two of them, Orion momentum only increased. Catching the remaining pirate captain off guard, he drew his sword and unleashed a world-class slash, decapitating the captain on the spot.
With the pirate captain and his two officers defeated, the morale of the navy officers and soldiers under Orion command soared to its peak, and they launched a final, frenzied charge against the now-disorganized pirates.
In just a few minutes, every pirate on the ship was executed, leaving no survivors.
After the battle, the navy soldiers gathered around Orion in a frenzy.
Instead of joining the celebration, Orion grabbed the pirate captain head, jumped onto the ship bow, and raised it high, delivering a speech that ignited the passion of the officers and soldiers and moved him deeply.
—"There's no need to wait for a torch!"
—"If there is no torch in the future, we will be the sun in this turbulent age of the Great Pirate Era!"
—"Long live the Navy!"
—"Long live our brothers!"
"The sun, huh?"
Inadvertently recalling this scene from two years ago, Kuzan, who had already stepped out of the main gate, tilted his head slightly to look at the headquarters building.
The sun that belonged to the world was about to set. But the sun of the Navy, which had already risen, would eventually illuminate the world once more.
Suddenly, Kuzan decisively turned and strode out, his eyes ablaze with a long-lost fire of justice. He took out his Den Den Mushi and issued a firm command.
"Order all officers and soldiers of the Aokiji Army to assemble at the harbor in two hours!"
...
In the Fleet Admiral office, standing before the desk, Borsalino glanced at Orion, who had been silently flipping through documents after watching Kuzan leave. He stood there for nearly a minute before finally unable to hold back any longer, tentatively asking.
"Fleet Admiral Orion, what about me? Do I not have a mission?"
"No rush!"
Orion put down the document he had just finished reading and looked up with a smile.
"We've been in meetings for so long, I'm a bit hungry. Let's talk over a meal!"
Before Borsalino could react, a soldier rushed into the office carrying two bowls of miso ramen.
"Fleet Admiral, the noodles are ready!"
The soldier set down the bowls and cheerfully said.
"Please enjoy them with Admiral Kizaru. If it's not enough, there's more!"
"Thank you for your hard work!"
Orion casually took a stack of Berries from the drawer and tossed them to the soldier.
"Share these with the brothers in the cafeteria."
The soldier took the Berries, immediately straightened his posture, saluted, and shouted loudly.
"LOYALTY!"
Hearing Orion refer to the cafeteria soldiers as brothers, Borsalino frowned slightly and spoke bluntly.
"Marshal Orion, isn't it inappropriate for you to still be calling soldiers 'brothers'?"
"What, can't a marshal call them brothers? Besides, it's off-duty hours!"
Orion chuckled and pulled another stack of Berries from the drawer, tossing them to Borsalino.
"These were confiscated from those Warlords!"
"Although I kept them at headquarters, they can't just freeload!"
With that, Orion ignored Borsalino, walked over to the side table, picked up a bowl of ramen and began devouring it.
Seeing this, Borsalino looked at the Berries in his hand, his lips twitching slightly.
Truly Orion, even as a marshal, he hasn't forgotten his old ways! If Orion were still a vice admiral, he would never have accepted this money!
But—
Since it's from the marshal, why not take it?
Thinking this, Borsalino gladly accepted the Berries, quickly stashing them away. He then sat across from Orion, picked up a bowl of ramen, and started eating with gusto as if competing with Orion to see who had the bigger appetite.
"Go to the Revolutionary Army headquarters~"
Suddenly, Orion, who was still chewing noodles, spoke with a mouthful of food, making his words a bit unclear.
"Represent me and meet with Dragon. If he genuinely wants to build a new world of harmony, freedom, equality, and dreams—not just for the sake of the D. clan—then perhaps the Revolutionary Army and the Navy can cooperate."
At this point, Orion seemed to remember something. After swallowing his food, he casually pulled a piece of ginger from his bag and tossed it to Borsalino, then continued.
"The Revolutionary Army is too idealistic. Building a brand-new world isn't as simple as overthrowing the World Government!"
"Let's not even talk about whether they can overthrow the World Government."
"Even if they succeed, freedom and dreams might emerge or even flourish, but equality and harmony? Impossible!"
"Unless—"
"There are no Criminals in the world!"
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