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Upon hearing this, Borsolino raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, "How come? You are a man approved by Sakazuki."
"Why does this sound so wrong…" Darren muttered, dusting off his hands.
Borsolino looked at him closely and suddenly grinned, "So the government is getting suspicious?"
Darren couldn't help but think that Borsolino was as shrewd as a monkey to notice so quickly.
As a time traveler, Darren had a certain understanding of the original plot, but Borsolino remained an enigma. Even when Darren had worked under him in the North Blue, he couldn't completely grasp Borsolino's stance. Was "ambiguous justice" actually just? Clearly, Borsolino was deeply hidden and never seemed to find himself in trouble.
Despite the flurry of thoughts, Darren kept a smile on his face, "I'm just following orders."
Borsolino's mouth opened wide in an exaggerated gesture, and he scratched his head, saying, "This is really strange…"
He looked at Darren with a knowing glance, "But it's understandable, considering you're the least suspicious…"
Darren felt annoyed by Borsolino's attitude, which seemed to downplay the seriousness of the situation.
"I'm sure you might have guessed something," Darren thought as he maintained a faint smile. "I won't make it easy for you."
"It's just that I remembered something else about the attack on the Celestial Dragons," Darren continued.
"Oh?" Borsolino replied, feigning surprise, "What is it then?"
He looked at Darren, clearly teasing.
"I thought it was an attack by Sea Kings, like you did, didn't you?" Darren said with a shrug.
"Who knows? People change their minds," Borsolino tilted his head, "So what are you thinking now?"
Darren raised a finger, smiling, "First, during the attack on the Celestial Dragons, the assailants had powerful attack capability, enough to destroy an official ship instantly."
Borsolino nodded and smiled without a word, prompting Darren to raise a second finger, "Second, considering the timing of the crime, the attacker must have been in the North Blue when it happened."
With a third finger raised, Darren concluded, "Lastly, I've had the warships and ships in the North Blue checked, with nothing unusual found. This suggests the attacker could fly at high speed. So, Rear Admiral Borsolino, there's only one person who meets these three criteria."
"Oh? Who might that be?" Borsolino asked, the smile on his face challenging, but he found Darren staring directly at him.
His smile momentarily froze.
Darren suddenly burst into laughter, "Just kidding…"
Somehow, the sight of Borsolino's deflated expression gave Darren a sense of indescribable relief, "Of course, I'm on your side, Rear Admiral Borsolino."
With these words, Darren turned and entered the private mansion, signaling a graceful goodbye, "Rest well, Rear Admiral Borsolino. Tomorrow, you and Admiral Sengoku set sail again, and I will see you off."
At sunset, Borsolino stood still, his exaggerated sunglasses reflecting the image of Darren walking away as the breeze ruffled his cloak.
"It's just getting more interesting, Darren…" he murmured, with a slow, intrigued smile forming on his face.
The next day at Bhatia Island's port, Darren's North Blue Marine team had cordoned off the area and organized a grand send-off for the Headquarters Admiral. Flowers lined the streets, Marines were arrayed in formation, and the air was filled with the sound of salutes.
"These festivities are unnecessary," Sengoku grumbled at Darren, though he couldn't hide his smile, finding Darren increasingly agreeable. The young man was competent, understanding, and held a sincere attitude. Sengoku glanced at his own aide, who was already sunbathing and sipping watermelon juice on the warship. The contrast made Sengoku sigh and contemplate his choice of adjutant.
Just then, Sengoku's phone bug rang.
"Sengoku…" came a hoarse voice after he answered.
Sengoku's expression turned grave as he responded, "Lord Damocles, regarding the attack on the Celestial Dragons…" He braced himself, anticipating pressure from the Five Elders for answers.
"No, that matter has been settled," Damocles Saint said over the phone bug, clearly in a good mood, which was rare for him. "North Blue Admiral Darren has filed a closing statement, and we are all satisfied with his findings."
"Sengoku, you've done a great job. That boy, Darren, whom you pointed out in the investigation, wouldn't have been able to uncover the truth behind this incident without your guidance."
Sengoku was stunned and listened in confusion. The investigation results had come out? He wondered when that had happened. It had been less than a day! Darren had been on Bhatia Island the entire time.
Unable to comprehend, Sengoku turned his gaze to Darren, who simply bowed modestly in his direction and smiled, not saying a word.
"Sengoku, did you hear that?" Damocles' voice came through the phone bug, obviously displeased at the lack of response.
"I heard it, I heard it!" Sengoku quickly replied, snapping back to reality.
"Well, this time the government is very satisfied with your performance," Saint Damocles said with an appreciative tone. "You are indeed worthy of the title 'The Resourceful General.'"
Sengoku was confused but couldn't resist smiling proudly at the Five Elders' praise. "Your Excellency is too kind."
"Let's stop here... By the way, Darren is doing very well," Damocles continued. "With his talent, the rank of colonel at the headquarters seems somewhat insufficient."
Sengoku immediately understood the implication and said with a commanding voice, "Colonel Darren has passed the review of the officer training camp. He will go to Marineford headquarters for training after fulfilling his current duties. His excellent performance has been recognized by the senior Marine management, and we definitely will not let talent like his go to waste!"
"That's good," Damocles responded, and then the conversation ended.
Staring at the silent phone bug, Sengoku took a moment before suddenly turning to Darren and asking through gritted teeth, "When did you uncover the truth, you sneaky kid?"
Darren replied with a smile, "Yes, thanks to Admiral Sengoku's guidance."
Sengoku rolled his eyes, feeling indebted to the young man.
"Who is the murderer?" Sengoku asked.
Without hesitation, Darren answered, "'World Destroyer' Byrnndi Waldo."
Sengoku was shocked. "What? Byrnndi Waldo couldn't have had the time to commit the crime. He was being chased by the old man at the time—"
His words trailed off as if a realization had struck him. Darren casually lit a cigarette, smiled enigmatically, and said, "Who cares about the truth?"
Sengoku felt the weight of those words. Indeed, who did care about the truth? There were no witnesses, and the Marines had kept the incident secret. This meant that aside from a few high-ranking officials, most people were unaware that a Celestial Dragon had died.
The government needed a plausible conclusion to satisfy the Celestial Dragons at Mariejois. They didn't require the truth, especially not one as preposterous as "attacked by Sea Kings."
Darren's investigation results conveniently pinned the blame on the infamous pirate Byrnndi Waldo, relieving pressure from the Holy Land's Sanctuary family. This outcome suited everyone involved – except for Byrnndi Waldo, of course. But if he knew he was being blamed for the death of a Celestial Dragon, he might even be content.
Sengoku chuckled to himself, thinking that it was a happy ending all around. It was now his duty to bring Byrnndi Waldo to justice for the crime of killing a Celestial Dragon, which was something he was meant to do anyway.
The more Sengoku pondered, the brighter his eyes shone. Darren was a genius.
"Hahahaha! You've done an excellent job!" he laughed heartily and patted Darren on the shoulder, relieved.
"I knew I chose the right person for the investigation of this case!" he exclaimed.
Gion and Kake, standing nearby, looked on, bewildered. They knew it was the World Government's order, not Sengoku's. Still, they dared not say anything.
"Now it seems that the rank of colonel is indeed somewhat lacking," Sengoku mused, looking at Darren with a satisfied smile. "When I return to headquarters, I'll talk to Fleet Admiral Kong," he hinted to Darren.
"Congratulations, Commodore Rogers Darren."
Gion and Kake were stunned, their faces a mix of disbelief and confusion. Darren had managed to turn the bizarre circumstances into a promotion to Commodore.
This was certainly unexpected, especially for Kake, who looked as though his eyes might pop out of their sockets. A general officer promotion from such a case? Darren had gotten promoted after being implicated in the death of a Celestial Dragon.