209 Marines Choice

Akainu was very surprised when he heard about the encounter between Whitebeard and Red Hair Pirates.

Soon after, there was a Marine meeting where Akainu suggested eliminating both Whitebeard and the Red Hair Pirates.

"We can't let those two pirate groups join forces; otherwise they would be a bigger threat." 

Akainu emphasized

But Garp inquired, "So what's your plan? Dealing with one Whitebeard is already a challenge, not to mention facing two Four Emperors pirate groups."

Kizaru also agreed, saying, "Indeed, I'm the only Admiral at the moment, and it's too much for me to handle alone."

Having battled Aokiji for the position, Akainu now holds the title of Marine Fleet Admiral. Despite his relatively short time in office, his authority is firmly established.

After losing the competition for Fleet Admiral to Akainu, Aokiji left the Marines, and his current whereabouts are unknown.

As a result, Kizaru is currently the sole Admiral in the Marine Headquarter.

"Preparations for the world conscription have already begun, and we should have a new Admiral candidate soon."

Sengoku, the former Fleet Admiral known as 'The Buddha,' spoke from the new Chief Instructor Department.

Even though it's a global conscription, Sengoku doesn't believe the new Admirals recruited can match up to the earlier Admiral in quality or philosophy

Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru—the three former Admirals—were the pinnacle of Marine combat power. Sengoku finds it difficult to assemble such a formidable lineup again.

"Even if you're the only Admiral, coordinate with your subordinate. If the Four Emperors pirate groups join forces, the threat to the Marines will double," 

Akainu insisted firmly on wipe out the two pirates group

As the Fleet Admiral of the Marines, even though the others are some marines veteran, they find it hard to challenge his authority.

Moreover, Akainu's perspective aligns perfectly with the Marine headquarters. Whether or not Whitebeard and the Red Hair Pirates are collaborating, their threats are undeniable.

"And I have already asked Five Elders, and they are also in favor of preventing the red hair from joining Whitebeard."

Akainu finally brought the Five Elders, which left no room for objection.

The meeting ultimately concluded in favor of taking action against Whitebeard and the Red Hair Pirates.

This time, Garp and Kizaru led the charge, supported by Momousagi and five Vice Admirals from headquarters. Along with 10 Marine warships, nearly 3,000 individuals set out to attack Whitebeard and the Red Hair Pirates.

While the lineup is strong, dealing with two Four Emperors-level pirate groups, especially with the formidable Whitebeard among them, is an impossible task.

Their chances of winning are slim, but their plan isn't to wipe out Whitebeard and the Red Hair Pirates.

The goal was simply to prevent their alliance and issue a warning as needed.

Hence, during the warship planning, Garp proposed assigning Kizaru and Momousagi to handle Whitebeard while he took on the Red Hair Pirates himself.

Given Kizaru's abilities, he can effectively restrain Whitebeard for a period of time as long as Whitebeard doesn't intent to kill him

As long as Whitebeard is occupied, his pirate group can be dealt with appropriately.

"Be cautious during that time; Whitebeard's current power is very terrifying!"

"Especially you, Momousagi, don't act on impulse. don't have the idea of engaging in a real fight with Whitebeard. Your role is to restrain him and ensure your own safety"

On the warship, Garp reminded Momousagi repeatedly. After all, there are already few high-ranking female officials in the Marine government, and Momousagi's exceptional combat prowess is a rarity.

He's aware that even though Momousagi holds the title of Marines Headquarters Vice Admiral, she is, in fact, the top contender for the position of Admiral, representing the highest combat power in the Marine.

Furthermore, it's worth noting that Momousagi shares a very good relationship with Vice Admiral Tsuru, Marine's Chief Staff Officer—they're like sisters.

Before his departure, Vice Admiral Tsuru requested Garp to look out for Momousagi, so Garp was especially cautious.

"I understand, but given Whitebeard's strength, why doesn't Vice Admiral Garp handle it personally? Wouldn't that be more certain?"

Momousagi couldn't help but wonder, because according to normal thinking, wouldn't it make sense for the top combat power to face off against the other top combat power?

"But there's still the matter of the Red Hair Pirates to deal with, and maybe that guy is better suited for me" 

Garp remarked with strange look in his face, remembering that Shanks is the one who make Luffy wanting to be a Pirates

"Alright."

Momousagi nodded, acknowledging Garp's plan. Despite having her own thoughts, she didn't oppose Garp's strategy.

"That Whitebeard is quite scary. If it's not absolutely necessary, I'd prefer not to face him"

Kizaru sighed with a sense of helplessness.

"Bwaahahaha, count your blessings. If you were fighting for the position of Fleet Admiral in the Marines, maybe you'd be the one giving orders now."

Garp said with a casual smile.

Garp speak carelessly, but the listener was intrigued.

Kizaru quickly shook his head and replied: "Hey, how could I defeat Akainu? That guy, even Aokiji can't match up to him."

"Come on, you haven't changed a bit, just give it your all. I believe you're the strongest among the three Admirals."

Garp seemed to understand this quite well.

Kizaru didn't respond to the question. Garp glanced at him and didn't press further on the matter.

"Hey, I don't know why the Red Hair Pirates are looking out for Whitebeard. Ever since Whitebeard reappeared, the whole world has inexplicably become tense"

 Garp sighed to himself.

"Is Whitebeard really as formidable as you make him out to be?"

Momousagi was also a bit curious, even though she had heard a lot about Whitebeard.

The entire world talks about how powerfull Whitebeard's strength is, but Momousagi believes that as long as two Admiral-level Marines work together, they should be able to handle him.

However, from the words of Garp and Kizaru, it seemed they weren't planning on directly confronting Whitebeard but rather aiming to restrain him.

This shakes Momousagi's understanding. After all, Garp has legendary feats like dismantling the Rocks Pirates and putting Roger on the desperate encounter several times , becoming a living legend in the Marine.

Even if Whitebeard were to fight Garp, Momousagi believed it wouldn't be an overwhelmingly powerful situation. 

After all, Garp represents the pinnacle of Marine's combat strength.

But when confronted with the prospect of facing someone known as the Pirate King, Momousagi felt a sense of unease deep within.

But then she shook her head, dismissing all her scattered thoughts.

As a Marine officer, her duty is to uphold her convictions. Regardless of Whitebeard's strength, she must give it her all and remain steadfast.

….

Meanwhile, Whitebeard and the Red Hair Pirates remained unaware that the Marines had deployed a significant force to deal with their gathering.

They were still in the process of assembling, and all of Whitebeard's current division commanders had gathered, except for the 3rd Division Commander, 'Diamond' Jozu.

Marco took over for Whitebeard and restructured the organization of all the Commanders. Currently, there are 18 divisions.

In other words, out of the eighteen Commanders, excluding Jozu and the vacant second division, sixteen Commanders are currently present.

While the number is a lot, there appear to be only a few Commanders truly capable of handling the responsibility. With the newest addition, 18th division commander, Edward Weevil hasn't have a crew member yet

Marco, Jozu, Vista, the newly added Edward Weevil, and the previous Charles Vane—these five are the most important combat powers among Whitebeard's commanders.

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TO BE CONTINUE

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