Chapter 104

Garp's gaze, along with the other Marines, made Akainu very displeased. He snorted disdainfully. He was confident that what he did was necessary sacrifices for not letting any evil escape. It was worth it.

If he had to regret something, it would be not killing the woman who is in the QnA back then.

The bombing of the refugee ship became a stain on his record. If that woman had been on the refugee ship back then, everything would have been perfect.

But in the end, he did so much and still let one slip away.

Sengoku looked helplessly at Akainu. He shouldn't have let Akainu carry out that order back then, which resulted in this situation.

Even he bore great guilt because the five Vice Admirals who participated in the Buster Call were personally selected by him.

Now the Marines had been exposed because of this, losing reputation and suffering the consequences of their actions.

However, as he watched Luke on the broadcast, he wondered, is this Luke revenge against the Marines' bounty?

If that's the case, he has certainly succeeded.

However, Sengoku also understood one thing: this revenge was just beginning, and when it would end depended on Luke himself.

What made Sengoku even more helpless was that the secret Luke had exposed were indeed true and damaging to the Marines. Sengoku couldn't even refute them. All he could do was to try his best to salvage the Marines' reputation afterwards.

It made him feel overwhelmed and exhausted. Was this the justice he had maintained as a Fleet Admiral for so many years?

Why did it look so ugly and disgraceful when exposed to the public... Sengoku's face revealed a bitter smile and sorrow.

...

Mariejois, Pangea Castle.

The Five Elder breathed a sigh of relief when they heard Robin's words.

So what if these things were revealed?

It was inconsequential and couldn't shake the World Government's rule.

Robin's self-confession also made them realize that this woman, besides her ability to read the poneglyph, didn't know much else.

Since she didn't know much, there would be fewer truths about the Void Century that could be exposed in the broadcast.

At first, they thought Robin knew too much about things she shouldn't know from those scholars from Ohara and would expose them all in this broadcast.

But now it seemed that there was no need to worry too much about Robin. They needed to worry more about Luke.

This guy wouldn't say something he shouldn't in the live broadcast again, right?

In the QnA room, Luke nodded when he heard Robin's answer. "Correct, I don't have anything else to add. Everything you said is true. As for the details, let everyone watch them in the video later."

Robin breathed a sigh of relief. She answered correctly, which meant that she would at least get a reward this time and not go home empty-handed.

Her appearance in this place so openly would bring her a lot of trouble after the live broadcast ended. Leaving aside the situation with Crocodile for now, the Marines and the World Government would probably not let her go.

This live QnA was both an opportunity and a challenge for her. If she could get the appropriate reward during this live broadcast, then she wouldn't have to live under the scrutiny of others in the future.

Now, she was under the control of Crocodile. While on the surface, she was doing things for him, in reality, she was being held captive and used by him. Perhaps she could seize this opportunity to gain her freedom.

As for this person, Luke, she didn't know much about him. But from what she had seen so far, Luke seemed to be going against the World Government, revealing their black secrets in every QnA.

So when she heard the first question, she understood what she should say. Smart people don't need much explanation.

In that case, all she needed to do was cooperate with Luke. It just so happened that she also wanted to use this opportunity to expose what the World Government had done to Ohara and reveal the true face of the World Government and the Marines to everyone.

She sought justice for the people of Ohara.

"Now, let's move on to the 2nd question. The question is: Before the Buster Call began, the people of Ohara heard that Ordinary Civilian and Those who Unrelated with the Scholars is could take refuge. So, they boarded the refugee ship. Who gave the order to sink the ship and kill all of them?"

This question once again ignited the anger of those who were already furious about the actions of the Marine, which spared no one.

What did this mean?

They arranged for people to take refuge first and then sank the refugee ship?

Were they afraid of leaving any loose ends, so they gathered them together for the Marines to take them away?

Such a vicious act, and it was done by the Marines and the World Government?

They couldn't imagine it.

During the Summit War, the Marines used hostages to force Whitebeard's crew to take the bait and even had Whitebeard's adopted son betray him...

They could ignore these methods because they were used to deal with pirates. No matter how cunning the means were, the ultimate goal was to eliminate pirates. What did it matter if the methods were a bit more sinister?

However, when the target changed to civilians, they suddenly realized that these sinister methods of the Marines weren't limited to pirates. They were applied to ordinary people without hesitation.

Once they put themselves in that position, everyone felt a chill down their spines, feeling like livestock lined up to be slaughtered.

Terrifying!!!

This was the Marines they had always believed to be protectors?

Or were they sheepdogs in a sheep pen?

Many people couldn't bear to think further. If they did, they would probably lose faith in this world.

The high-ranking officers at Marineford had their faces turn pale when they heard Luke's question.

Sengoku gritted his teeth and said, "Luke, are you really going to do this? If you do this, how will people view the Marines in the future?! "

Even Akainu's face darkened. Even though he couldn't afford to disregard his reputation, Luke's question was like putting him on the grill.

Although he still didn't believe that what he did was wrong, he was well aware that this matter couldn't be brought out into the open. Otherwise, he would be infamous.

People around the world were furious at the brutality and disregard for human life displayed by the Marines.

Not only civilians, even the pirates were left dumbfounded by the actions of the Marines.

In terms of ruthlessness, they couldn't compare to the Marines.

At most, pirates would plunder a village and kill its residents one by one. But that couldn't match the efficiency of the Marines.

Gathering people together and eliminating them with a single blast, now that's a technique worth learning.

When it came to killing, the Marines were more professional.

These pirates were completely outmatched.

Countless pirates ridiculed and raged at the Marines for pretending to be righteous while engaging in such actions.

They had the audacity to present themselves as symbols of justice and use the banner of justice to capture them, all while committing such deeds.

They, at least, carried out their misdeeds openly and without shame, while these Marines committed heinous acts and went to great lengths to conceal them, fearing discovery as if their family graves had been desecrated.

Daring to commit but lacking the courage to take responsibility….what a disgrace!

They are all the same, none of them noble. Don't they feel any shame when they speak such words?

.

...

Upon hearing the question from Luke, Robin's mind was engulfed in flames. Her face turned pale and flushed with anger, her eyes burning with fury.

This was the very question that she had longed to expose all these years.

Now, the opportunity was right in front of her. She would reveal the true face of Admiral Akainu to the world.

"Answer: It was Akainu. I saw it with my own eyes. On that day, when my identity was exposed, I couldn't board the refugee ship. While I was being chased by the Marines, I witnessed Akainu's warship sinking the refugee ship. Everyone died on that ship, except for me. That's why I am the sole survivor. If I had boarded that ship, I would have died too."

Robin's eyes glowed with anger, and through the screen, everyone could feel the intensity of her fury and sorrow. Tears shimmered in her eyes.

Since that day, she had become a person without a homeland.

No one doubted the truth in Robin's words when they saw her in this state.

However, when they heard who had given the order, a single thought crossed their minds—Akainu, why is it him again?!

This guy had already appeared too frequently in the broadcast. He was the most active participant in the Summit War, and also the one who suffered the most.

People had prepared themselves for his cold-bloodedness and ruthlessness.

But no one could have anticipated that he had already been so ruthless twenty years ago.

What shocked them even more was that Akainu had not faced any consequences or punishment for his actions. In fact, he had risen to the rank of Admiral in the future!

This indicated that the Marines did not find fault with Akainu's indiscriminate killing. They not only overlooked it but even rewarded him with promotions.

Those who knew the truth were driven to the brink of madness. Is this what the Marines are? Using innocent lives as stepping stones for promotion?

What further enraged and terrified them was the realization that Akainu would become Fleet Admiral in the future.

Initially, they had only believed that Akainu lacked moral integrity and was unfit for the position of Fleet Admiral. Apart from that, many actually thought that his performance during the Summit War far surpassed that of other Marines. Besides the issue of morality, he seemed more suited to be Fleet Admiral than the other two Admirals.

But now, as this revelation came to light, people could no longer sit still.

How could such a person become Fleet Admiral?!

If Akainu became Fleet Admiral, then the sinking of the Refugee ship at Ohara would become their role example.

This person, who would rather kill a thousand innocents than let one escape, might very well raze an entire village to the ground if he believed that pirates were present.

With the pirates gone, the village would be gone, and so would the people.

They couldn't fathom the future, where the Marines would be in the hands of such a heartless man.

Opposition against Akainu's promotion as Fleet Admiral began to rise.

There were even people chanting slogans and protesting at Marine branches, demanding that Akainu step down. Such an individual was unworthy of being a Marine!

Wearing the uniform of the Marines but committing acts that only pirates were capable of!

Akainu, however, was still unaware that things would take an unexpected turn in this direction.

He was still seething with anger over the exposure of his dark history by Luke and Robin.

Other Marines also looked at Akainu with dissatisfaction and complaints in their eyes.

In reality, the original orders from Sengoku did not include the option to sink the evacuation ships.

Except for Akainu, the other four Vice Admirals, including Aokiji, received orders to carry out the Buster Call on Ohara and eliminate the scholars researching history. Ordinary civilians were not to be harmed.

However, in a situation that no one had anticipated, Akainu's warship bombed the refuge ships, resulting in the tragedy.

Although they were displeased with Akainu's ruthlessness, there were no survivors to hold him accountable for a group of dead people.

They simply sealed the news.

But now that the truth had been exposed, the Marines' sense of justice and reputation suffered an irreparable blow. As a result, many Marines harbored discontent towards Akainu.

Perhaps, compared to Akainu, Aokiji would have been a better candidate for Fleet Admiral.