Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
Over a thousand personnel were working in full swing, restoring the headquarters building.
After several nights of rushing repairs, within just a week, over fifty to sixty percent of the damage had already been fixed—efficiency so high, it probably required the power of money itself to make possible.
"Hahaha, Sengoku, stop making that sour face! It's just a few hundred million Berries in repair costs. If the military budget falls short this year, you can always dip into your retirement fund," Garp laughed, picking his nose as he patted Sengoku on the shoulder.
"Shut it!" Sengoku snapped, turning to glare at him. "You have the nerve to bring up my retirement fund? Do you even realize how much you've borrowed from me over the years? It's practically all gone thanks to you. If someone's going to pay, it should be you first."
"You're all the same. The past few days, my eyelid's been twitching non-stop. It's giving me a bad feeling. Not even back when I beat up Golden Lion did I feel like this," Sengoku muttered, rubbing his throbbing temples and glancing around, still unable to shake the unease.
"Haha, Garp! No wonder you've been trying to cozy up to me lately. Turns out Sengoku cut off your credit. Good thing I didn't lend you anything," Zephyr chuckled as he approached from afar.
As senior officers of the Navy and old comrades who had gone through life and death together, the three had long stopped caring about personal wealth.
But both Sengoku and Zephyr often used their own salaries to support headquarters and the training academy, living rather modestly themselves.
So, Garp borrowing money wasn't a surprise—and they didn't take it too seriously.
"If you're really that short on cash, why don't you take a trip through the New World?" Zephyr joked. "Find some fool without a clue, rough him up, and that should cover your expenses."
Garp rolled his eyes. "Forget that. If those old geezers in the World Government hear about it, they'll think I'm extorting pirates. What if they send me a damn 'thank you banner' as a reward instead?"
"That brat Luoyu said it himself—do the job you're paid for. Freeloading off others is honorable; being freeloaded is shameful."
"I'll just go borrow money from Tsuru instead!"
Zephyr and Sengoku's faces went dark.
Freeloading is honorable? Being freeloaded is shameful?Do the job you're paid for?
What kind of ridiculous motto was that?
Looking at the once laid-back Garp now spouting Luoyu's nonsense, they couldn't help but feel that salted fish mindset had rubbed off on him too.
"Enough," Sengoku sighed. "Don't even mention that brat to me. What was supposed to be a short-term escort mission has somehow turned into a long-term one. I'm not even sure he's met up with the actual escort team yet."
Before Luoyu came along, Sengoku already had to deal with the headache that was Kizaru the slacker and Aokiji the chronic napper. Now a salted fish Admiral had joined the mix.
His white hair seemed to multiply just thinking about it.
"Haha! Sengoku, stop overthinking it. That's just how strong people are," Garp laughed.
"Don't forget, they used to call you 'Sheep Grandpa' back in the day. Just because you're Fleet Admiral now doesn't mean people forgot!"
"Besides, for all his laziness, that brat Luoyu is a Navy Admiral. As long as the bonuses are in place, the job always gets done!"
"You bastard! You really don't know when to stop!" Sengoku snapped, clearly not wanting to dwell on that point. "Forget it. I'll give him a call later and check in. Just talking about him is making my eyelid twitch harder."
"Sengoku, relax," Zephyr said with a warm smile. "Even if you don't trust that brat, can't you trust the student I trained?"
"Ain was the best among her peers. Ever since that incident, she's become more stable and mature. With her around, I'm sure the escort mission will go smoothly."
"See? My Den Den Mushi is ringing already—must be Ain giving me a regular update. How reliable."
As he spoke, Zephyr retrieved the Den Den Mushi and smiled.
Sengoku's eyes lit up immediately, leaning in curiously.
But when the fax printout began spitting out from the device, both his expression and Zephyr's froze.
"This… this is a repair estimate? Two battleships destroyed?! Repairs will cost six hundred million Berries?!"
"Did that brat get into a fight with the Yonko or something? How the hell do you end up destroying two ships?!"
"Those pirates are getting too bold!"
Sengoku's expression darkened, fury blazing in his eyes.
He often criticized Luoyu's laid-back attitude, but the boy was still a full Navy Admiral—one who possessed all three types of Haki, no less. Unless he'd run into a Yonko crew, very few people on the seas could pose a threat to him.
"Don't jump to conclusions yet, Sengoku," Zephyr said with a frown, gripping the Den Den Mushi tightly. "There's more. Let's see the rest before we assume the worst."
"If someone really dared to go that far, I don't care about my 'No Kill Admiral' title—I'll hunt them down to the last man."
Zephyr, known across the seas as the Navy's "No Kill Admiral," had once stood tall as a symbol of justice.
But after his family was murdered and his students slaughtered, even the title "No Kill" seemed almost laughable.
Only his lingering hope in the Navy's ideals kept that restraint in place.
Luoyu was someone he had personally recommended as the Navy's fourth Admiral—almost like a disciple.
If anything were to happen to him on his first solo mission, Zephyr wouldn't rest until vengeance was served.
Garp's face was equally grim. He yanked out the second page from the Den Den Mushi's fax and growled, "I want to see which damn Emperor had the balls to go after one of my successors. Think I'm too old to fight?"
His voice was like thunder, laced with murderous intent.
Sengoku growled, "Well? Is it Whitebeard? Kaido? Or that brat Red-Hair? He's the youngest of the Yonko but bold enough to pull something like this!"
"If they've really targeted our newest Admiral, then they must be planning to topple the very foundations of justice."
"It seems we've let things slide for too long. Time to remind the world what we old-timers can still do!"
Murderous energy filled the air. Zephyr's face was just as cold.
But before they could launch into a war declaration, Garp cleared his throat.
With a forced smile, he said, "Well, if that brat saw how much you guys care about him, I think he'd be really touched."
"Anyway, I've got some good news—our rice bowl wasn't smashed by a Yonko."
"…Can I just say the one who broke it… was the brat himself?"