One piece: I,Akaino will not die easily

"Interesting idea. I understand your intentions now." Borsalino was a shrewd man. His eyeballs rolled around in their sockets like a mischievous monkey. "Are you planning to personally train and instruct subordinates like Onigumo and Doberman?"

Sakazuki took the small sugar tongs from Borsalino's hand. "Not just those rear admirals, Borsalino. Any officers with potential, whether captains or lieutenants, I am willing to nurture."

The slippery and smooth-talking Glint-Glint Fruit ability user raised his eyebrows. His naturally deep forehead wrinkles made him look even more aged. He stared at Sakazuki with a meaningful gaze. "It's a good idea. But as an old friend, I have to remind you—don't you ever wonder if this could be considered forming your own faction?"

Sakazuki picked up the teaspoon and gently stirred his black tea, allowing the originally amber-colored clear tea to blend closely with the milk.

He was indifferent. "We, as individuals, will not demand that our subordinates form factions. This is solely for the sake of strengthening the Navy."

"You may think that, but outsiders won't see it that way, Sakazuki!"

For once, Borsalino spoke with unusual seriousness as he looked at his old friend.

"The admirals won't see it that way, and the Fleet Admiral certainly won't either. Even if, as you intend, the overall strength of the Navy increases dramatically—so what? The stronger the military becomes, the bigger the accusations of factionalism against you will grow!"

Fixing his gaze on Sakazuki's eyes, he reprimanded him:

"Don't be too idealistic, Sakazuki! This kind of naïveté is no different from suicide!"

Sakazuki kept his head down, staring at his tea. The brim of his cap cast a shadow over his face, making his expression unreadable. After a long silence, he finally spoke in a deep voice:

"Borsalino, I acknowledge this kindness from you."

If their relationship hadn't reached a certain level of trust, Sakazuki wouldn't have shared his intentions. Likewise, only a true friend with deep bonds would offer such sincere warnings.

"Oi, oi~ Are you still going to stick with this approach?"

Seeing that he hadn't convinced Sakazuki, Borsalino's expression grew more troubled.

This stubborn bastard was exactly like their mutual teacher, Zephyr—once he set his mind on something, no one could pull him back.

"The matter with Zephyr-sensei was a wake-up call for me," Sakazuki said as he brought the well-stirred milk tea to his lips.

"?"

Instead of answering directly, Sakazuki asked another thought-provoking question.

"Do you think the World Government is happy to see the Navy completely united?"

"You suspect that there was government involvement behind Zephyr-sensei's family's murder?"

Borsalino's mind worked quickly. He tapped his fingers lightly on the table.

"There are some suspicious points about the incident. For example, how did the pirates know the exact location of Admiral Zephyr's family residence outside the military base? And why didn't the CP units have personnel monitoring that area?"

He suddenly changed his tone.

"But these are just our speculations. I didn't have much of a relationship with the old man, but still, we have no concrete evidence pointing to the World Government."

Sakazuki's expression was steady. "Yes, all of this is just our hypothesis. I have never been one to indulge in conspiracy theories."

"But let's be honest—under the World Government's control, the only military force of significant strength is us, the Navy."

Taking another sip of milk tea, Sakazuki continued his explanation:

"On one hand, the Navy holds immense authority. From recruiting soldiers to military deployment, we do not need to seek approval from any World Government departments. The Fleet Admiral and the Admirals can mobilize troops at will, even launching a Buster Call on any region."

"Moreover, within such a military force, the World Government has not embedded any of its own officials. If the Navy were to become completely united under a single ideology…"

Sakazuki's lips curled slightly as he uttered a piercing statement:

"If, one day, the Five Elders and a certain Admiral—or even the Fleet Admiral—had conflicting views, and the Navy directly rebelled, what then?"

"…."

Borsalino was silent.

After a moment, he dropped a second sugar cube into his teacup.

Then, he finally spoke, picking up where Sakazuki's speculation had left off.

"If the military were truly that united, even the resignation of a single admiral could take away a massive force. Let alone a Fleet Admiral with deep military support."

"I never expected you to be laying out a strategy so early, Sakazuki."

The Glint-Glint Fruit user wore a strange smile.

"Not only are you strengthening the upper ranks of the military, but you're also intentionally creating surface-level factional divides to put the government at ease. In reality, with your reputation…"

He scoffed.

"I'll just assume you're doing this out of self-preservation after becoming an Admiral."

"Don't make me sound as radical as that brat Dragon who left the Navy years ago, Borsalino."

Sakazuki downed his milk tea in one gulp—then stared, dumbfounded, as his comrade dropped a third sugar cube into his milk tea.

The ever-smooth-talking Vice Admiral poured another cup of black tea for Sakazuki.

"Hmm~ I can't be bothered arguing with you about this. By the way, let me take a guess—why are you dressed like that today?"

"….."

"I heard you've been seeing a certain female officer, Sakazuki."

Borsalino's grin turned downright lecherous.

"Could it be… you're hiding from Gion?"

…So Admirals really do have this kind of intuition?

I can't back down… It's just being cautious, not cowardice!

With a blank expression, Sakazuki muttered, "I've noticed your intelligence always arrives quickly. It was the same when I brought Robin over—you knew within half a day."

The lecherous Vice Admiral chuckled and lit a cigarette using his ability.

"Just an extra perk of the Glint-Glint Fruit. Don't mind it."

Glint-Glint Fruit's ability… Yeah, right.

Seeing the old pervert dodge the topic, the ever-serious Vice Admiral had no interest in pushing further. Instead, he picked up a Den Den Mushi and dialed a number.

"Captain Lindemann, could I trouble you to send a meal from the officers' mess hall to Vice Admiral Borsalino's quarters?"

Borsalino, who had just dropped his fourth sugar cube into his tea, was dumbfounded.

"…. You're seriously planning to hide out in my place to avoid your port repair duty?"

"…No."

"….Like hell I believe that."

Borsalino leaned half his body forward and stared straight into Sakazuki's face.

"You're actually afraid of women? I'm shocked! I've known you for so long, and I never noticed!"

"Shut up, bastard. When have I ever gone easy on female pirates?"

"Oh! So you're just afraid of Gion then."

Having successfully baited him, Borsalino's grin widened.

His cigarette ashes fell directly into Sakazuki's teacup.

And he casually dropped his fifth sugar cube into his own.

"Am I still supposed to drink this tea?!"

The iron-blooded admiral sighed helplessly.

Seeing Sakazuki flustered for once, the cunning Vice Admiral decided to push further.

"You could also drink 'little sister juice'—"

"….!"

Sakazuki finally realized—there was something even more indecent than Borsalino's perverted grin: his endless dirty jokes.

"It's just a woman, right? A man must face challenges head-on, Sakazuki!"

"….."

Sakazuki truly hated his own imagination at this moment.

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note:

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