HST: Chapter 244/245

Chapter 244: The Railing!

While Caelan was enjoying himself, Marine Headquarters was about to undergo a drastic change.

All because Whitebeard II, Edward Weevil, had been accepted as a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

This decision, long settled but repeatedly delayed by Sengoku, had finally been carried out.

Marine Headquarters didn't even notify Zephyr. He only learned of Weevil's induction through Morgans' newspaper.

Upon receiving the news, Zephyr immediately abandoned his mission of hunting Devil Fruit users and rushed back to headquarters without pause.

On the warship.

"Edward Weevil!"

Zephyr gripped the portrait of Weevil tightly, his eyes bloodshot.

The burly man with the vicious face in the portrait was his lifelong enemy.

After his family was slaughtered, Zephyr had thrown himself into training new blood for the Marines.

But the pirate in the portrait had attacked a Marine training vessel.

Zephyr's right arm was severed, and of the hundreds of cadets accompanying him, only two survived.

Just looking at the portrait filled him with searing hatred, making him want to kill that pirate immediately.

"Why would Sengoku let him join the Shichibukai?"

Zephyr slammed his mechanical arm against the railing in fury.

He could hardly believe it. The pirate who had cut off his arm, the same pirate who had massacred hundreds of cadets, had now become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

Not just that, but he had become someone the Marines were expected to cooperate with and even court.

What about his lost arm?

What about those dead cadets?

What about the justice he had upheld all these years?

Zephyr felt nothing but disgust. Being betrayed by the very institution he had spent his life protecting was beyond painful.

He wanted to return and confront Sengoku. He wanted to fight him if necessary.

He wanted Sengoku to understand that he was old, not dead!

"Sensei, please calm down. This is probably not Fleet Admiral Sengoku's decision," Ain said softly, patting his back to soothe him.

As one of the survivors, she understood better than anyone how devastating this was for Zephyr.

Anyone who found out that the man who had killed hundreds of their comrades and taken their arm had been recruited by the leader they trusted would feel uncontrollable rage.

It was as if their lives had been treated as worthless.

But even so, Ain still had to worry about his health.

At his age, he shouldn't let his anger consume him.

"I know this wasn't Sengoku's intention. But I still need to speak to him," Zephyr said, his tone slightly calmer.

He understood Sengoku well enough to know this likely came from above.

But that didn't mean he could forgive it.

For the Marines to recruit Weevil, someone with such a deep grudge against them, was utterly shameless.

This wasn't strengthening their power. It was digging their own grave.

He couldn't remain in such an organization any longer. But before leaving, he would give Sengoku a final warning.

"This time, I'll probably be leaving the Marines," Zephyr said, preparing Ain and Binz mentally.

"Sensei, we'll go with you!" the two responded firmly without hesitation.

"There's no need. You two should stay in the Marines and make good use of your time…" Zephyr started, but both immediately cut him off.

"Sensei, have you forgotten? We were there with you. Even if we hadn't been, we wouldn't stay in the Marines now."

Weevil wasn't just Zephyr's enemy. He was theirs too.

"Then follow me," Zephyr finally said, no longer objecting.

He had thought it best for them to remain, but he knew they were resolute.

If it had been anyone else, he might have let it pass. But why did it have to be Weevil?

Zephyr felt exhausted. Waving them off, he said, "Go rest. Leave me be."

Ain and Binz exchanged a look. They wanted to speak but, seeing his mental and physical exhaustion, they withdrew.

Perhaps it was best to leave him alone now.

They quietly retreated into the cabin, recalling the other Marines as well.

In an instant, only Zephyr remained on the deck, standing alone at the railing and staring at the sea.

"Edward Weevil."

"Whitebeard II."

Zephyr repeated the name over and over.

He stood at the bow of the warship, his mechanical arm pounding against the railing again and again.

The force of his strikes rattled the entire deck.

If the warship hadn't been reinforced to the highest standards, the railing would have already been reduced to scrap.

Even so, the finely forged steel bent and warped beneath Zephyr's suppressed rage.

Only Zephyr himself knew how deeply his heart ached.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 245: False Justice

Marine Headquarters, Marineford.

An enraged figure stormed through the base, heading straight for the Fleet Admiral's office.

Although it was one of the most solemn places at Headquarters, no one tried to stop him. Even many senior officers showed only pity and heartache on their faces.

Because this man was Zephyr, the former admiral and chief instructor of the Marines, the one who had trained countless elites for the organization.

Whether dove or hawk, regardless of their political stance, every Marine held the same respect for him.

Zephyr was the sensei of the entire Marines. Most of the major generals, vice admirals, and higher officers had once been his students.

"What a shame, Mr. Zephyr," Yamakaji muttered as he watched Zephyr barge into Sengoku's office.

He knew this could only be because of the news about Whitebeard II joining the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

Nothing else would make Zephyr, who had spent recent years devoted to hunting pirates with Devil Fruit abilities, return to Headquarters in such a rage.

"What a foolish decision, letting that man into the Shichibukai!" Doberman cursed bitterly.

A pirate who had killed hundreds of Marine cadets being recruited as a Warlord—there was nothing more absurd.

He even wanted to crack open the skulls of the Five Elders just to see what kind of paste filled them.

Did they really think the Marines were so worthless?

"What's the point of staying in the Marines anymore?" Yamakaji said in confusion, then muttered, "I want to leave, with Sensei Zephyr."

He knew this visit must be the prelude to Zephyr's resignation.

Zephyr would never remain in a Navy that tolerated Whitebeard II.

Having been educated by him, Yamakaji himself did not want to stay in such a force either.

"Let's wait and see. Maybe there's still a chance," Doberman whispered.

Maybe Fleet Admiral Sengoku could persuade Zephyr, or perhaps Zephyr could persuade Sengoku.

He didn't want to abandon the Navy. He had served for so many years and had deep attachment to it.

And if he left, where would he even go?

"Let's see how it turns out. But I don't have much hope," Yamakaji said with a sigh.

Many Marines around them were thinking the same thing, waiting to see if something unexpected would happen.

All eyes turned toward Sengoku's office, where Zephyr had just entered.

…

Bang!

Sengoku looked helplessly at Zephyr, who had slammed the door open and stormed inside.

He had known Zephyr would come. He had known exactly what Zephyr wanted. But no matter how he thought about it, there was no way to keep him.

"Sengoku, why did you let Whitebeard II join the Shichibukai?" Zephyr demanded angrily, slamming his fist into the table.

"Calm down first. I didn't want that scum to join the Seven Warlords. It was the will of the Five Elders," Sengoku said, standing and trying to guide him to sit.

Zephyr shoved his hand away and roared, "How can you tell me to calm down? That man cut off my arm and slaughtered hundreds of my students!"

"Give me an answer. Kill him, or I leave!" Zephyr stared straight into Sengoku's eyes, speaking each word with icy clarity.

It was his final chance. If Sengoku killed Weevil, they could still remain comrades.

"This…" Sengoku sighed weakly. "No. It's the order of the Five Elders. To kill him would be to openly defy them."

He wanted to meet Zephyr's demand. He truly did.

But he couldn't.

The Five Elders' orders were absolute, and the World Government was already displeased with the Marines.

They would never tolerate the killing of a Warlord they had chosen.

"In that case, I have no reason to remain in the Marines."

Zephyr let out a bitter smile of inevitability, placing a resignation letter on the desk.

He had expected this answer, but hearing it in person still left him disappointed.

His old comrade could no longer stand with him.

"Zephyr, don't be hasty," Sengoku pressed down on the resignation letter, lowering his voice. "We can't kill him openly. But in secret, I agree. I'll get rid of him."

He really didn't want to lose Zephyr. That pirate was nothing. As long as the Five Elders never found out, killing him would be fine.

"No need. If the Marines have to kill a pirate in secret, then what's the point of being Marines?" Zephyr rejected flatly, without hesitation.

"I'm already like this, can't you understand me?"

Sengoku grew angry. He had already promised to eliminate Weevil. What more did Zephyr want?

If the Five Elders ever caught wind of this, he'd lose his Fleet Admiral's chair overnight, and the Marines would fall into chaos.

He thought he had already offered more than enough.

"Sengoku, since it's the World Government's will to let Whitebeard II join the Shichibukai, then even if you kill him, it changes nothing."

"If you kill one, they'll recruit a second, then a third vicious pirate as an ally."

"A Navy like that is unworthy of justice, and I don't want to be part of it." Zephyr shook his head, his voice steady.

His hatred for Weevil was boundless, but that didn't mean he would accept other pirates either.

He had always been dissatisfied with the Shichibukai system.

If it were about reforming pirates, perhaps he could have accepted it.

But instead, the system gave pirates legal rights to plunder and allowed them to work alongside Marines.

Weevil's appointment only magnified his disgust.

"Unworthy of justice…"

Sengoku froze.

He had no rebuttal. This was the essence of the Navy's hypocritical justice.

"Sengoku, I'm leaving. I will no longer be a Marine."

Zephyr ignored him, turned, and walked away.

Before leaving, he paused. "The Marines are no longer the righteous force they once were. Or maybe they never were, and I'm only seeing clearly now."

"A Navy under the World Government is nothing but pirates wearing the mask of justice. Even if some inside hold good intentions, under such leadership it can only be false justice."

Those words carried the weight of decades of experience.

On the surface, the Navy protected people from pirates. In reality, it served the Celestial Dragons, exploiting nations in their name.

The Buster Calls were rarely used against pirates. More often, they were deployed against nations that refused to pay the Heavenly Tribute.

It was such a Navy that had broken his heart.

Having spoken his truth, Zephyr left the office without a backward glance.

"The Navy is false justice?"

Sengoku muttered, his brow furrowing deeply.

He didn't stop him. He couldn't.

He wanted to refute the words, but he had no argument. Zephyr was right.

His gaze drifted to the calligraphy on the wall behind him, the words "Absolute Justice" now nothing but mockery.

"What am I supposed to do? I'm powerless too…" Sengoku sighed.

Trapped between the World Government and the Marines, he had no freedom in his choices.

He wanted the Navy to embody true justice, but its chains were too deep to break.

He had tried, but his time was too short. Real change would take generations.

"When Aokiji becomes Fleet Admiral, things will be better."

Sengoku whispered to himself, clinging to that faint hope.

For now, he could only endure, waiting for future generations to carry the weight of justice forward.

(To be continued.)