"Old Sengoku, as of now, it's been a week since the battles against Whitebeard's Fifth Division Commander, 'Flower Blade' Vista, 'Thunder Lord' McGuy, and 'Ice Witch' Whitey Bay."
Wright was reporting the latest updates from G-5 Branch to Sengoku. "So far, there's no sign of retaliation from the Whitebeard Pirates."
"Good work!" The Den Den Mushi displayed a faint smile, but... something felt off.
"This deterrence should buy the headquarters a significant amount of development time!"
The odd feeling passed quickly, but Wright kept his gaze fixed on the Den Den Mushi—was it just his imagination, or was the communication device acting up? He couldn't shake the sense that Sengoku's expression wasn't quite right just now.
With Wright's advanced Observation Haki, even without actively using it, his senses were far sharper than the average person's.
"Old man Sengoku, you—"
"Ah, right. Recently, we received some news from Drake…"
"Drake? That kid sent a message?"
Temporarily setting aside his suspicion, Wright focused on the matter at hand.
"No… The headquarters received Drake's… record of achievements. Yes, it was made into a bounty poster!"
"..."
Although Wright had anticipated this day, he still found it amusing—his direct subordinate had earned himself a bounty…
"The G-5 Branch should receive a new batch of bounty posters in a few days, including Drake's."
Sengoku, Wright, Rosinante, and Smoker were the only ones aware of Drake's true identity. Without any support from the Navy headquarters, it was already a challenge for the honest man to sustain himself undercover.
Initially, even Smoker wasn't supposed to be informed, but since he often stood in for Wright at the base, an unspoken understanding was necessary for Drake's cover to hold up in the New World.
"Name: X. Drake. Identity: Captain of the 'Drake Pirates.' Bounty: 123 million berries!"
"Old man Sengoku, Drake was openly taken from the training camp under my command. What kind of identity did you arrange for him…"
Wright had considered having Drake pose as a "Navy defector," but...
"What's wrong? That's his real identity!"
Sengoku spoke with conviction. "The son of a pirate, whose father's crew was annihilated by the Navy. He disguised himself as a civilian and was rescued by the Navy."
"Drake joined the Navy as a victim seeking revenge for his father.
"Then, he was chosen by Vice Admiral Wright as a subordinate, only to discover that the officer who killed his father was Wright's subordinate. In retaliation, he plotted an assassination, escaped, and became a pirate!"
"Absolutely perfect!"
Sengoku gave himself a nod of approval for the arrangement.
"..."
Wright covered his face, exasperated. When Sengoku first revealed this plan, Wright had been equally shocked. Fine, the events didn't match perfectly, but at least Drake truly was the son of a pirate.
These tacticians truly had devious minds—except Vice Admiral Tsuru, of course!
"With a bounty exceeding 100 million, Kaido will soon take notice—Drake's combat strength has developed well under your training," Sengoku remarked, clearing his throat. "Alright, let's leave it at that for now… Keep an eye on Rosinante's side. You're the only one who can move freely in Wano Country."
"No problem."
Click!
After hanging up, Wright remained silent for a moment. The earlier sense of unease resurfaced in his mind.
"Something doesn't add up…"
"He didn't suspect anything, did he?"
In the Fleet Admiral's office, Garp uncharacteristically refrained from disrupting Sengoku's work. He only spoke after Sengoku ended the call.
"Maybe he sensed something, but I didn't give him a chance to press further."
Sengoku sighed. "Wright's instincts are too sharp. I doubt we can keep this from him for long."
Garp snorted, grabbing a rice cracker and taking a big bite. "It won't be easy fooling that kid. You'd better prepare for the fallout when he finds out!"
"Those idiots in the World Government must have lost their minds to come up with such a dumb idea!"
"Garp…" Sengoku knocked on the desk. "Since when has the World Government cared about the Navy's reputation?
"The Warlord system has been in discussion for over a decade, and yet we still haven't filled all seven seats!"
"Either they lack sufficient strength, refuse to be recruited, or demand exorbitant terms…"
"In the New World, Shanks has gained considerable renown. While he hasn't yet reached the level of an Emperor, he's clearly surpassed most other pirates."
"It seems the World Government is eager to complete the Seven Warlords, and that individual… fits their standards perfectly."
"Of course, as always, they don't care about the Navy's image."
Garp downed his tea in one go, exhaling heavily. "So, we need to ensure Wright doesn't clash with CP agents over this…
"With his temperament, he'll explode the moment he finds out."
"But what about Zephyr…"
"I'll handle it personally!"
Sengoku stood, clenching and unclenching his fists. "Fortunately, Wright intervened last time, and Zephyr himself wasn't severely injured. But he won't let go of what happened to his cadets so easily."
"All I can hope for is that Zephyr remains calm…"
Back at G-5 Branch, in Wright's office.
Wright was handling a pile of paperwork—documents selected by Ain that required his personal attention. Ain managed the majority of the workload on her own.
"Hah! I thought I could have Smoker oversee the base for me, but that smokehead acts like he's seen a ghost whenever paperwork is involved. Did he learn nothing about military strategy?"
"A guy with smoke for brains… Thank goodness for Ain. Her efficiency is worth a hundred Smokers!"
Wright downed a cup of tea and continued writing.
"Vice Admiral Wright!"
"Oh? Ain, what's up?"
Hearing Ain's voice, Wright looked up, immediately noticing something wrong.
"What happened?"
Ain bit her lip, looking deeply aggrieved.
"Did Smoker piss you off again? I'll deal with him!"
"Vice Admiral Wright! Binz just contacted me and shared some news…"
"Binz? Isn't he with Zephyr-sensei?"
Wright's heart sank as the odd feeling from his earlier call with Sengoku returned.
"Old man Sengoku is hiding something from me!"
"What happened to Zephyr-sensei?"
"Binz overheard Fleet Admiral Sengoku speaking with Zephyr-sensei. The World Government has decided to secretly recruit a pirate to complete the 'Seven Warlords of the Sea.'
"And that pirate… is Edward Weevil, the one who attacked Zephyr-sensei and our training ship during a field exercise!"
"Damn it… They've moved ahead with the plan!"
Wright crushed the pen in his hand, grinding his teeth. "Weevil?! That bastard… Are those World Government fools out of their minds?"
"CP1 has already been dispatched with the invitation to find Weevil…"
Ain choked back tears. "But… why? Why would the World Government do this? Zephyr-sensei almost lost his right arm! Our fallen classmates are watching us!"
"Hmph! When has the World Government ever cared about the Navy's honor?"
-------
Want to read ahead of schedule?
Join here: patreon.com / juanpiece
There are more than 100 advance chapters available for you!