"Let me share my thoughts."
Vice Admiral Tsuru rested her chin on her hands, her eyes gleaming with wisdom.
She was clearly a sharp and intelligent elder.
As soon as she spoke, both the hawkish and dovish factions in the room turned to look at her.
They all deeply respected her.
And admired her intellect.
"Tsuru, got any brilliant ideas? Let's hear them!"
Garp laughed heartily, still chomping on a donut.
Tsuru ignored him and calmly began:
"Boa Hancock is an extremely proud woman."
"At this point, her fame is more than sufficient—there's no need to prove herself anymore."
"So she's not hunting pirates to gain more recognition."
"And she's certainly not doing this to help the Navy by taking down wanted criminals."
Tsuru crossed her arms in front of her chest, tone resolute:
"That leaves only one possibility—she wants to grow stronger."
"She'll enter the New World, find powerful opponents, and fight them."
"After all, the women of Amazon Lily are natural-born warriors. They don't like to be idle."
"Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant!"
Garp slapped the table, laughing even louder.
"Tsuru, you're still as sharp as ever! Too clever!"
Sengoku ignored the ridiculous Garp and nodded in agreement.
"Vice Admiral Tsuru makes a strong point. It seems Boa Hancock already has her own goals."
"She's eager to improve her strength, to become more powerful."
"As for what her ultimate goal is… we'll need to keep monitoring her movements."
Kizaru leaned back, legs crossed, speaking in his usual sarcastic tone:
"Women these days… really scary~ yo~~"
Sakazuki's expression was firm, voice unwavering:
"If that's the case, then we absolutely cannot sit back and watch."
"In the name of absolute justice, I propose we punish her!"
The hawkish officers all nodded in support, quickly voicing their agreement.
Meanwhile, the doves remained silent as usual.
Their leader was asleep, so what could they say? They didn't dare oppose the hawks directly.
"This is what a Marine meeting looks like—just a bunch of yelling."
Vice Admiral Momousagi (Tsuru's apprentice) looked at the senior officers with growing distaste.
Especially Sakazuki.
That guy always shouted about "justice," but his actions… were more like a bandit than a Marine.
And honestly, Baccarat's Luck-Luck Fruit was really having an effect.
It continued influencing Momousagi, gradually swaying her completely over to Chris's side.
Now, she stood in total opposition to the Marines.
Aboard the Chris, on the deck.
Caw caw!
A News Coo soared through the skies, chirping as if asking whether anyone wanted a paper.
"One copy, please."
Laffitte looked up, twirling his cane and smiling.
With a whoosh, the white-feathered bird landed gracefully on the railing.
Its feathers were spotless, and it wore a little black hat. Around its neck was a reddish-brown pouch—for collecting payment.
"Still 100 Beli?"
Laffitte asked politely.
The bird nodded without speaking.
Laffitte took the paper and slipped 100 Beli into the pouch like a true gentleman.
"Farewell, and safe travels."
"Caw caw~~!"
The bird chirped cheerfully, flapped its wings, and flew off to continue its deliveries.
"Vice-captain is always so polite… what a good man."
The crew below looked up at Laffitte, their admiration growing.
"Any big news?"
Burgess was training his Armament Haki, laughing as he spoke.
Hawkins remained silent, also practicing Haki.
Just a few days ago, Chris had taken the time to explain Haki cultivation to him in detail.
It blew his mind.
He had no idea there was such a mysterious power in this world.
His respect for Chris skyrocketed after that—he now wholeheartedly saw himself as a member of the Chris Pirates.
"Hm?"
Laffitte opened the paper, glanced at the front page, and froze for a second.
The world's most beautiful woman—Boa Hancock—had made the front page.
Chris had already told them: the Shichibukai alliance had added a new member.
None other than the queen of Amazon Lily—the very woman now featured in the newspaper.
"Just like Captain said… the world's number one beauty really made the news."
Laffitte nodded to himself, even more in awe of Chris's foresight.
"Shichibukai, Boa Hancock—she's on the front page."
Law walked over, glanced at the image, and commented coldly.
Hawkins spoke in a deep voice:
"This is the partner the captain mentioned. Looks like we need to pick up the pace."
Doc Q was busy mixing poison and coughing.
"Can't rush these things… Captain said we need to travel the seas, gather enough crew, then enter the Grand Line…"
"Ugh, all the spotlight's being stolen by others… it's so damn annoying!"
Burgess shrugged, clearly frustrated.
"We started from the South Blue, passed through the West Blue, and now we're in the North Blue."
"And not one damn Marine on the way—so freaking lame!"
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T/N:
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