The natural system started off strong, but the navy finally reached its peak!

"Lieutenant General Garp, senbei aren't sold in the cafeteria."

You used to like other snacks, but now you only like rice crackers~

"So chewy! (￣～￣)"

Chapter 178 Ancient Eight Trigrams

In the corridors of Marineford, sunlight streamed through the tall French windows, casting long shadows of the two people.

With his hands in his pockets and his black sword, Eight Desolations, tucked into his waistband, Gren walked side by side with Garp toward the conference room, their military boots making a crisp sound on the floor.

“Lieutenant General Garp.” Gern suddenly lowered his voice, his eyes gleaming with gossip.

"You mean Roger, that guy, he wouldn't happen to be the kind of guy who likes older men dating younger women, would he?"

Gern's idea is correct, after all, Roger and Rouge are two people whose lineage has not been broken!

"An old cow eating young grass?!" Garp laughed loudly upon hearing this, his voice echoing down the corridor, causing a passing naval clerk to nearly drop the documents he was holding.

"Haha, that's a great word you used!"

"But you little rascal! You've been so gossipy lately!" Karp patted Gern on the back hard, so hard that Gern stumbled.

"But speaking of this, I'm reminded of something interesting."

Garp leaned closer mysteriously and lowered his voice, "Do you know Groliosa of the Kuja Pirates?"

“Of course!” Gern raised an eyebrow: “Back in the Rocks era, they were an idol-level pirate crew!”

After recalling for a moment, Gern continued, "But with the fall of Locus, hasn't Gloria Osa returned to Kuja to become the Empress?"

Hmm, no, I'm almost retired anyway.

It should be Xia Qi, the more famous second-in-command, who is preparing to succeed as Empress.

"That's exactly what I wanted to say!" Karp suddenly grabbed Gern's shoulder, his grip so tight he almost pulled him into his arms.

"Let me tell you something that others don't know..."

Actually, Gloria likes Roger, Roger likes Shakky, and Shakky likes Rayleigh!

"Wow!" Gern's eyes lit up. This ancient gossip was much more exciting than the news in the newspapers.

"So complicated? Does that mean Rayleigh likes Gloria again?"

“No, not at all!” Karp smugly touched his nose. “They actually had contact back then.”

I remember it was a clash between the Kuja Pirates and the Roger Pirates, and afterwards they were planning to hold a "social gathering."

As a result, I descended from the sky and punched the couple apart! Hahaha.

"How wonderful! Why doesn't the Empress like me? I can be the 'Naval King' too!"

"Haha, Guern, maybe someone in Amazon Lily really likes you?"

After all, you have quite a reputation within the Navy!

Garp always smiles broadly when he thinks about the past.

“So…” Gern said thoughtfully, “Roger went to the South China Sea to find that girl because he was heartbroken? How wicked!”

"Roger went to the South China Sea? How come I didn't know about it?" Garp's laughter stopped abruptly, and he stroked his chin thoughtfully.

Just as Gern, who had let slip the secret, was about to explain, Karp continued, "You're probably referring to what happened before, right?"

"However, now that you say it... it really might be true!"

After all, Roger was quite depressed for a while after being rejected by Shakky back then.

The two were chatting animatedly when the door to the conference room suddenly opened, and Sengoku appeared in the doorway with a grim face. He grabbed both of them, one in each hand.

"Hey, you two! The meeting has been going on for ten minutes already! You bastards."

Looking at Sengoku, Garp immediately put on an innocent expression: "Huh? Isn't it still half an hour before it starts?"

"Then you've got the time wrong!" Sengoku's temples bulged with veins as he turned his gaze to Gern.

"And you, Gern! You're a lieutenant general, yet you're just messing around with Garp!"

"Hehe!" Gern scratched his head sheepishly.

……

The top naval officers had already gathered in the conference room.

Kong remained seated in the first position, his expression serious.

"You two idiots with no sense of time!" Sengoku strode back to his seat, and Tsuru smiled at him.

Although Zephyr has stepped down as a general, he still attends as the head of the elite training camp, but he basically does not intend to speak.

On the other side, Lieutenant Generals Sakazuki, Kuzan, and Borsalino sat with different expressions.

"What are we going to talk about today?" Garp swaggered to his seat and casually pulled out a bag of senbei from his pocket.

Gern nodded to everyone and took his seat in the empty seat next to Sakazuki.

"Sigh, now that everyone's here..." Steel Bone Kong tapped the table and said in a deep voice, "Let's begin today's topic!"

As the words were spoken, the conference room lights dimmed, and a large nautical chart was projected onto the wall by a Den Den Mushi (snail phone), displaying the latest developments in various sea areas.

Steel Bone Kong stood in the main seat, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, his voice deep and powerful.

According to the latest intelligence, after Roger became the Pirate King...

The World Government suspects he possesses some kind of 'dangerous secret' and has ordered us to conduct a full-scale manhunt!

"A dangerous secret?" Kuzan raised an eyebrow and asked lazily.

"Sending us to mess with the Roger Pirates for no concrete reason...tsk tsk tsk, that's not something to be taken lightly!?"

"Whatever it is," Sakazuki sneered, "the title of Pirate King will definitely embolden pirates!"

He must be apprehended and brought to justice as soon as possible!

Borsalino didn't speak, but tilted his head, his face framed by dark glasses, feigning a condescending air.

Actually, his mother had already fallen asleep!

Seeing the excited Sakazuki, Sengoku directly tapped the table on behalf of Kong, interrupting everyone's discussion.

Sengoku stood in front of the projected Den Den Mushi, the screen displaying data on the surge in pirate activity around the world.

“Sakazuki is right. After Roger became the ‘Pirate King,’ the morale of the pirates soared to unprecedented heights.” Sengoku adjusted his glasses, his tone heavy.

"The number of pirates in the first half of the Grand Line has increased by 40%, and the four seas are in complete chaos."

Of course, all of this is currently under control; all that's needed is to develop a comprehensive response plan.

Currently, what's even more troublesome is...

He switched the screen, and several photos of the riots appeared on the screen.

Civilians stormed the palace, revolutionary flags flew in the streets, and the royal army was defeated...

"The army of the Dorag?" Sakassky said coldly.

“That’s right.” Sengoku nodded. “The Dragon army is instigating rebellions around the world, and revolutions have already broken out in three member states.”

The World Government is pressuring the Navy to immediately suppress the unrest!

Steel Bone Kong crossed his arms, his gaze sharp: "Their actions are more dangerous and secretive than those of pirates. We've been ordered to deal with them as soon as possible!"

"Deal with it immediately?" Garp's previously nonchalant expression froze instantly, and he slammed his hand on the table.

"Hey, Sora! You're not thinking of sending the Navy to suppress those civilians, are you?!"

Steel Bone gave him a cold look: "Garp, don't play dumb."

Your son, Dragon, is now the World Government's most wanted criminal, and his army is overthrowing the legitimate government!

Karp's face darkened: "You know perfectly well what kind of people those 'legitimate regimes' are!"

Those who exploit the common people deserve to be overthrown!

"Garp!" Sengoku stood up abruptly and shouted to stop him.

"Mind your stance!"

Chapter 179 Obtaining the Supreme Great Shoe Board

In an instant, the atmosphere in the conference room plummeted to freezing point.

"Garp." Sengoku gave him a wink after reprimanding him.

"Heh!" Garp snorted coldly, sat down again, and didn't care much.

Anyway, Dragon has always been in charge of things on his own, and Kong is probably just putting on a show of support...

Seeing Garp's expression, Kong frowned slightly, tapped his knuckles lightly on the table twice, and suddenly turned his gaze to the other corner of the conference table.

Gern was leisurely tearing up the meeting minutes and folding them into balls, then flicking them at Borsalino, who was dozing off opposite him, under Sengoku's murderous gaze.

The crumpled paper traced a perfect parabola and precisely slipped into Kizaru's flaring nostrils.

"Achoo!" As Kizaru rubbed his nose and looked up, Kong's voice boomed like a muffled thunder: "Gern!"

“Yes!” Gern responded instinctively.

"I'm leaving this matter to you."

With a second crumpled piece of paper still between his fingers, Guern flipped his wrist and the evidence silently slipped into his sleeve.

Then he blinked, feigning confusion as he pointed to himself: "Me?"

“That’s right,” Kong said in a deep voice. “The Revolutionary Army’s actions must be contained, but going to war directly will only make the situation more chaotic.”

Investigate Dragon's movements; if necessary... take strong measures; it would be even better if you could bring him back.

"Air Marshal! What do you mean?" Garp suddenly stood up again: "Let Gern deal with Dragon?!"

He's my son, haven't I been responsible for him all along?!

Steel Bone coldly replied, "Garp, it's precisely because he's your son that I'm not letting you go! Because you'll definitely protect him!"

Garp's fists clenched so tightly they cracked, but in the end, he slumped back into his chair, gritting his teeth, and said, "Whatever!"

(As if Degen wasn't my student)

Gern looked at Garp, then at Cyborg Kong, and suddenly understood.

Steel Bone was preparing to deal with what was coming from above, since Garp had indeed been somewhat slacking off.

So he smiled and said, "Okay, I'll take this task."

With that, Gern stood up, put his hands in his pockets, and said in a relaxed tone, "However, I have a condition."

"What are the conditions?" Steelbone asked.

“I want to handle this entirely, without any interference from CP.” Gern narrowed his eyes. “If those idiots in the World Government interfere, I can’t guarantee the outcome.”

Steel Bone Kong was silent for a moment, then finally nodded: "Okay."

"Alright! In that case, the next step is to deal with the pirate craze caused by Roger!" After confirming one thing, Kong Kong pondered for a moment and then made the final decision.

"Sakazuki is in charge of the New World, Kuzan is stationed in the first half of the Grand Line, and Borsalino is monitoring the movements of the four seas."

"Sengoku will stay at headquarters to keep an eye on the resurgent Shiki, while Garp will patrol and keep a close eye on Whitebeard."

As for the Roger Pirates... Roger's whereabouts became unknown after becoming the 'Pirate King,' and the World Government will have CP handle the intelligence."

..........

The meeting didn't end until evening, after most of the others had left.

Karp walked out of his office and stood alone in the corridor, gazing at the sea outside the window without saying a word.

“Lieutenant General Garp!” Gern walked up to him and handed him a bag of senbei. “Don’t worry! I won’t kill Dragon.”

"You're really going to do it? You bastard!" Garp took the senbei, took a big bite, and muttered.

"That kid... he's always been a worry since he was little. It would be best if you could persuade him to come back!"

“This is even harder than arresting Roger, Lieutenant General Garp!” Gern smiled. “Perhaps he simply chose his own path to justice.”