Navy G-2 Branch – Present Time
The naval base, which should have housed at least a thousand stationed personnel, now had only a few dozen people present. However, none of them were ordinary.
Ronzi, Laculova, Mozambia, Stierres, Vergo—these were all Vice Admirals from Navy Headquarters. Alongside them stood over a dozen Rear Admirals, all from the same central command. This kind of lineup was already formidable enough that even the great pirate crews of the New World would stand an 80% chance of being annihilated if they crossed paths.
And yet, that wasn't the most terrifying part—because alongside these top-ranking admirals stood three men who eclipsed even them:
Akainu. Kizaru. Aokiji.
All three Navy Admirals were present.
They sat atop the high command platform of the G-2 branch, their presence radiating the gravity of a looming war.
On both flanks, Vice Admirals and Rear Admirals formed a semi-circular encirclement—ready to trap the target once he entered their net and take him down in one decisive strike.
But not everyone seemed so tense.
A single man munched idly on a packet of senbei rice crackers, utterly unconcerned. Judging by the four empty bags at his feet, it was already his fifth pack.
Vice Admiral Garp—the man once hailed as a Hero of the Navy.
With a reputation like his, he could afford to look unbothered.
Meanwhile, the World Government had done more than mobilize the navy.
They had summoned members of the Seven Warlords of the Sea (Shichibukai) as well.
Aside from Crocodile, who had been eliminated, and Jinbei, who outright refused the summons, only Donquixote Doflamingo was missing—having recently been expelled from the World Government for illegally taking over a kingdom.
The remaining five had all arrived:
Dracule "Hawkeye" Mihawk, Bartholomew Kuma, Boa Hancock, Gecko Moria, and the newly appointed Edward Weevil.
Currently, the Shichibukai were five strong.
They had been waiting for some time.
Still, no one doubted the intelligence gathered by the World Government—especially the reports from the CP (Cipher Pol) agencies. Their intel was highly accurate.
If they said he would come today, then he would.
Sure enough, in the distance, a ship began to approach across the horizon.
There was no pirate flag flying above it. But to anyone familiar with the man known as Kairos Flint, they would instantly recognize this vessel as his.
"...He's coming?"
Hawkeye opened his eyes, previously resting.
He had recently visited the red-haired pirate and learned something shocking—Shanks had an adopted daughter, and the reason he'd returned to the first half of the Grand Line was because of his son-in-law.
From Shanks, he also learned that Kairos Flint wasn't just strong—he was as strong as Shanks himself, and also a master swordsman.
That alone had piqued Hawkeye's interest.
Since then, the red-haired son-in-law had caused incident after incident, shaking the seas. The current summoning by the World Government was because of him. Hawkeye had agreed to participate just to meet him.
"Damn you, Kairos Flint. I swear I'll kill you!"
Moria glared hatefully at the approaching ship.
Kairos had not only taken his adopted daughter—whom he saw as his own flesh and blood—but also killed his comrades. Of all those gathered here, no one held more hatred toward Kairos than Moria, save perhaps Vergo.
Kuma, as always, remained expressionless.
Boa Hancock, on the other hand, brightened the moment she saw Kairos's ship approaching. Her eager, almost adoring expression was impossible to miss.
As for Edward Weevil—he simply looked like an idiot. There was nothing more to say there.
"The criminal has arrived."
"After killing so many of our navy soldiers… I'll send him to hell today," Akainu declared with icy malice.
"Ara ara... He actually showed up. How confident," Aokiji muttered, still looking laid-back, but now paying close attention.
He had been monitoring Kairos for a while.
After all, Nico Robin, whom he had followed for years, had joined Kairos's crew. And yet, in less than a month, Robin's arrival aboard his ship had been followed by a chain of major upheavals.
Even the intelligence report from Kizaru concluded that Kairos was an Emperor-level combatant.
That alone made most shudder.
To test him now? What kind of joke was that? You'd be walking into death.
Still, with today's military presence, even someone like Kairos Flint should find it impossible to survive.
Even if he tried to run—too many elite officers were present. He wouldn't make it far.
"This guy really showed up... Tch, I really don't want to fight him."
Kizaru's voice was low, almost to himself.
Having once clashed with Kairos, he knew full well—this man was no less than Emperor level. With only two such figures on the Navy's side (counting Garp), their odds of winning were just about 50/50.
If Kairos chose to flee, there was little chance of stopping him.
Kizaru's eyes turned to the nearby live broadcast Den Den Mushi.
The World Government had arranged this broadcast to showcase its might and suppress rebellious elements around the world.
Today's operation was meant to crush Kairos publicly—to send a message through the screen.
On the Mythical Sky, Kairos Flint's ship entered the naval port.
As the ship neared, the full scope of the enemy force came into view—an entire battalion of general-level officers.
But Kairos wasn't fazed in the slightest.
These were only numbers, and even their aura—the sheer pressure of so many strong individuals—meant nothing to him.
Overwhelming aura? He had something far stronger: Conqueror's Haki.
Suddenly—
Aokiji moved.
Transforming into his elemental form, he leapt down to the port.
Then, plunging his hand into the sea, he unleashed:
"Ice Age!!"
The freezing energy instantly froze the sea solid.
Kairos's ship was now stuck in place, the surrounding ocean turned to ice in mere seconds.
"So this is the welcoming party?"
Kairos raised a brow, unimpressed.
He didn't bother breaking the ice. Instead, he calmly jumped off the ship and stepped onto the frozen surface.
Nami and the others followed behind him.
"Baby-5, stay and guard the ship," Kairos ordered.
Though she had wanted to follow, Baby-5 nodded and obeyed without question.
The group advanced steadily, Kairos in the lead, Nami and the others behind him.
Their pace was calm and deliberate—not rushed, not sluggish.
From the platform above, Kizaru stroked his chin.
"Kuzan already made a move… I guess I can't just sit here."
With that, he turned into a beam of light and flew high into the sky.
Then—
FLASH!
A bright glow pulsed between his fingers before a storm of light bullets rained down toward Kairos.
From the precision of the attack, Kairos could tell: this wasn't a friendly warning.
These were lethal shots.
The light bullets fell fast.
But before Kairos needed to respond—
Uta stepped forward.
She drew her jet-black blade, Shusui, and coated it in Armament Haki.
With one mighty swing, she unleashed a tremendous sword wave into the sky.
BOOM!!!
The sword energy collided with the incoming light bullets, shattering them all midair in a dazzling explosion of light.
"Is… is that the level of a Supreme Swordsman?!"
From the high platform, Hawkeye's golden eagle eyes narrowed.
He had seen enough in that single strike to gauge Uta's strength.
That girl—she was under twenty, and if memory served, she was Shanks's daughter.
So that means… Shanks raised a Supreme Swordsman?
That red-haired bastard never mentioned it!
But Hawkeye wasn't the only one in shock.
The Red-Haired Pirates, watching the live broadcast, were dumbfounded by Uta's swordsmanship.
"Shanks, have you been secretly training her all these years?"
Beckman's cigarette fell from his mouth as he gaped at the screen.
The red-haired captain stared blankly.
He didn't know either.
He had no idea that Uta had become so terrifying with a sword.
"Captain, that's amazing! You never even told us! I thought you were sneaking back to the East Blue to see Miss Maginot, but all this time you were training Uta?!"
"You sly dog!"
"You're too much, Captain!"
The rest of the crew playfully punched Shanks on the shoulder.
Meanwhile—
Shanks: …Who am I? What am I doing here? What the hell is going on?!