Kapitel 24: 24. Teacher Zephyr With Full Firepower!
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"Kizaru, you unscrupulous monkey, are you really sitting here enjoying tea?"
"Teacher Zephyr, what, what's going on? I didn't do anything to bother you."
"Get out of here! Just looking at you makes me angry. From now on, stick with Akira and follow his orders."
"Huh? But Sengoku-san..."
"The Marine is at a critical point, and you're still playing around?"
Boom.
"Ow, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts so much."
Hearing the commotion downstairs, Gion felt ashamed.
I'm truly sorry for my kind and straightforward teacher.
I hope you'll forgive me when you calm down, after all, I'm just an accomplice, not the mastermind, and...
When Akira called and asked me to cooperate, I did hesitate, although it was only for three seconds.
In fact, a few days ago, when Gion and Rouge decided to return, they had already reported in advance.
This is the rule of the headquarters. After the Admirals complete their missions, they must notify headquarters before planning their return voyage.
After all, in this world of the sea, travel relies entirely on the waves.
If an Admiral was performing duties outside, and the headquarters still had nearby tasks to assign, but the Admiral returned quietly without reporting, it would be a waste of time to return to the previous location after receiving new orders.
That's why this rule was established.
When Akira learned they had returned, he called Gion personally.
He instructed her on what to do, what to say, and how to act in front of Zephyr when she returned.
To avoid Zephyr's suspicion, Akira deliberately pretended not to know about Gion's return, so he wouldn't be suspected of coordinating the information in advance.
'For justice, for the Marine, for the soldiers and their families, teacher, you should be able to understand!'
'And the department really needs to solve a large number of berries issues, I wasn't lying to you.'
After silently reflecting for a moment, Gion returned to normal.
"By the way, what order did you give that guy Tokikake to make him reject you so firmly?"
She was curious about the report Akira showed.
You must know that the stamp of the staff department isn't handed out randomly. Only about one-third of the staff will stamp it after verifying that things are true.
In other words, Tokikake really said, "All of Akira's orders are nothing to me" in front of everyone in the staff department.
Although Tokikake can be annoying, he's not that stupid.
Gion was puzzled.
Akira had already returned to his office chair and buried himself in reviewing documents.
Without lifting his head, he responded:
"Oh, it's nothing. I just had a 'friendly' conversation with him in private last night. I told him I wasn't satisfied with his apology letter and that his slander against me isn't over, unless..."
"Unless what?"
"Unless he goes to Fish-Man Island and helps me capture the most beautiful mermaid, then I'll forgive him."
"Uh... Then it's perfectly reasonable for Tokikake to reject you so firmly," Gion said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully.
Since she already knew this was a special plan set up by Akira, she didn't think too much about it.
"So the staff is also helping you deceive Teacher Zephyr?" Gion asked.
"Do you think I'm that foolish? Once a secret is known to a third person, it's basically public."
"If Mr. Zephyr asks directly, the truth could easily come out."
Akira looked up, clearly irritated: "Tokikake did reject me right away, but I gave him a night to think about it, and told him I'd ask again the next day."
"So, early in the morning, I called him in front of all the civil servants of the staff department, but it took a little bit of, um... persuasion."
Akira raised his eyebrows and gestured towards the garden.
But Gion looked puzzled, 'What the heck is he talking about?'
With her left hand, she suddenly grasped the hilt of her sword and partially drew it from its sheath: "Oh, I really understand now."
"Ahem..." Akira felt a shiver run down his spine. He coughed awkwardly and quickly explained.
"It's just a bit of linguistic manipulation. I asked him if he wanted to help me on a mission to Fish-Man Island, 10,000 meters deep."
"And then that guy, Tokikake, answered just like that."
Akira spread his hands helplessly: "Honestly, I planned to hang up after he said 'no' at first. Who knew he'd add so much drama himself."
"Hey, it's really not my fault."
Gion stared at Akira like he was a devil incarnate.
Feeling a bit embarrassed under her gaze, Akira touched his nose: "Don't look at me like that, it's making me feel awkward."
"The Shinma, Akira... looks like your title really suits you... Akira, can you promise me one thing?"
"What's that?"
"Don't plot against me in the future. If you're upset with me, just beat me up instead of tricking me."
"Of course not. You have nothing worth plotting."
"..."
Gion gritted her teeth, not sure whether to feel grateful or insulted.
'I'm a top officer in the Marine, you know, and you're acting like I have no appeal at all!'
Whoosh.
At that moment, a beam of light shot in like a bullet from the corridor.
In the dazzling light, Kizaru appeared before them with a bruised nose and a swollen face.
"Ah, ah, hello, junior Akira, junior sister Gion, Mr. Zephyr seems to have gone crazy, so I came here to hide."
Kizaru scratched his head.
"Senior, feel free to do whatever you want," Akira replied. "You're welcome."
Akira chuckled and waved his hands politely.
In fact, Kizaru is only in his thirties this year and still in his prime, but he's liked to call himself "Old Man" since he was young.
So, everyone in Marineford has long been familiar with his habitual self-proclaimed title.
Kizaru chuckled, made his way straight to the sofa, sat down, crossed his legs, and looked at the two curiously.
When an outsider joined, Akira stopped talking immediately. "Is there anything else?"
Gion also knew it was time to leave. "No, do you need me to do anything else?"
"Well, if everything goes smoothly, you should be able to set sail with the ship tomorrow."
"You've been busy for a month, so you deserve a break."
"But in these difficult times, I can only rely on you, the only one willing to follow my orders."
Akira smiled at her, his tone full of deep apology.
Seeing this, Gion felt a pang of sympathy.
The man in front of her was clearly working tirelessly for justice, yet the other Admirals in the headquarters didn't appreciate it and continued to target him.
It made her angry, but it also made her feel bad.
But there was nothing she could do. After all, she was just an ordinary Vice Admiral and couldn't influence the others.
Gion quickly said, "It's okay, you don't have to feel guilty. Even if you gave me time to rest, I wouldn't be able to sit still."
"I'll go back and take a shower first. Let me know if you need anything."
With that, she disappeared into the corridor.
Akira returned to his papers, buried in the mountain of documents.
Kizaru didn't dare leave either. Mr. Zephyr's sandbag fists were still waiting for him downstairs, so he closed his eyes and tried to sleep.
Time passed quickly.
The sun outside the window gradually began to set toward the horizon.
Late at night.
After finally approving the last document, Akira stretched out.
On the other side of the sofa, Kizaru, the master of fishing, had slipped away at some point.
"Soldier, come in."
Akira shook his head helplessly, and when the soldier entered, he ordered:
"Take these documents to the staff and make sure they follow this plan tomorrow."
"And remember to replace the broken windows."
With that, he picked up the cloak beside him, got up, and walked toward the door.
Tread, tread.
As he passed the Admiral's office, Zephyr's thick and angry voice reached his ears.
"You damn brat, are you getting bold? Even if Akira is just the acting Fleet Admiral, he's still the Fleet Admiral."
"You dare to openly disobey his orders? Are you looking to rebel, huh?"
"Do you want me to go to the G-3 base and clean house? What kind of excuse is that? I don't want to hear it."
"I'm leaving this to you today. Whatever orders Akira gives, you follow them without question."
"As for Sengoku's explanation, I'll handle it. That's final."
Pere~Pere~Pere~Pere~
"Is that Sakazuki? From today onwards, fully cooperate with Akira's orders."
"What? You're carrying out his mission? Well, you really are a good student of the old man. That's all."
Pere~Pere~Pere~Pere~
"Hi, is that Kuzan?..."
"Hey, is that Tsuru? There's something I need to discuss with you..."
"Hey, is that Yamakaji?..."
"Hello…"
Akira listened quietly outside the door for a while before finally leaving.
He made his way past many soldiers and returned to his mansion.
Standing at the door, he looked back at the still-lit Admiral's office, pursing his lips.
Zephyr, the "Don't Kill" Admiral, is a truly good person.
Even though his family was destroyed by pirates when he was young, his nature didn't change.
On the contrary, to avoid violating his principle of not killing, he became the chief instructor of the academy, silently training batch after batch of elite Marines.
If nothing else, the rest of his life will be dedicated to justice.
Akira held great respect for such a teacher.
He would never want to deceive Zephyr if he had any other choice.
But there's no way around it—the current state of the Marine is really dangerous.
The deficit of a trillion berries isn't just a number—it's a harsh reality.
The era of the Great Pirate has shattered all order, and business lines have been abandoned, making survival difficult for everyone.
Civilians are jobless, and their savings are continuously plundered by pirates.
The kingdoms can't pay their protection fees, and the World Government still has a massive number of people to support. Compared to other organizations, the Marine receives a significant share of funds, but even that is spread too thin for such a large force.
Marines have been making sacrifices out of love for months, but this cannot continue.
If it drags on any longer, it could push them toward the pirate camp.
Even if Sengoku were still in charge, as in the original timeline, he wouldn't have been able to do much more.
Sengoku could only capture a few powerful pirates like Bullet or Byrnndi World, allowing the era of the Great Pirate to continue its devastation.
As a result, the second half of the Grand Line spiraled out of control, with the Four Emperors staking their claims, turning it into a "New World" dominated by pirates.
This was also the period when the Shichibukai, with their legal right to plunder, emerged, further diminishing Marine's authority.
If this era is to be contained as quickly as possible, every member of the Marine needs to be united in purpose.
But to ensure those generals comply and follow his orders without hesitation, Zephyr, the chief instructor, must take the lead and make significant efforts.
Over the past month, a few Commodores and Rear Admirals have specifically called to express their willingness to follow Akira's orders, but...
It's not enough!
It's far from enough!
Therefore, Akira had no other choice.
"Teacher Zephyr, I will not betray your trust."
"Maybe my motives aren't entirely pure, but everything I do is for one reason…"
"To make the Marine better and the world a better place!"
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein