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Moreover, that "companion" is extremely dangerous. It would pose a significant threat if they disregard Byakuya-sama and choose to attack.
As the strongest among them, Lucci knew he had to ensure he was in peak condition to protect everyone.
Whether it was the dangers they might encounter on the road or the possibility of being attacked by that "companion," he needed to be prepared.
He didn't have the luxury of time to recover slowly—he had to restore his combat strength quickly to ensure everyone's safety.
At that moment, Byakuya was hovering in the air, quietly watching the struggling Lucci below, who occasionally let out beast-like roars of pain.
It was only then that Byakuya truly acknowledged Lucci in his heart.
After the potion's effects wore off and Lucci's injuries were fully healed, Byakuya finally left Zeto Island.
Lucci looked up at the now-empty sky with a strange smile.
Their leader was sometimes unreliable, yet he was surprisingly dependable at other times. It was really hard to figure him out.
Recently, the topic that had sparked widespread discussion across the seas wasn't Kaido of the Beasts attacking the transport ship carrying Jack, resulting in a Marine Vice Admiral being killed and another severely injured.
Nor was it the intense three-day, three-night battle between Marine Admiral Akainu and Kaido, which only ended when the island they fought on could no longer withstand the destruction.
Instead, it was a previously unheard-of "Yoru" organization.
(T/N: Yoru=Night)
With Morgans' influence, newspapers detailing the Alabasta incident and a recording of Crocodile's confession spread across the sea like wildfire.
Particularly, at the end of the recording, the mysterious figure in a pitch-black mask, identifying himself as Yoru, posed a soul-piercing question:
What is the true purpose of the Seven Warlords of the Sea? Is it acceptable for the Marines to allow pirates to uphold justice on the seas?
This question stirred up a massive wave of public opinion.
Countless allied nations began demanding the abolition of the Seven Warlords system, fearing they might become the next Alabasta Kingdom.
This situation forced the Five Elders to manage the concerns of allied nations constantly, and the Marines themselves were under intense scrutiny, with many questioning whether they could still uphold justice on the seas.
Even within Marine Headquarters, there were voices of doubt, leaving Sengoku overwhelmed.
However, the World Government and Marine higher-ups weren't overly concerned about these discussions.
They focused on two main questions: What does the Yoru organization want? And who exactly is this mysterious figure claiming to be Yoru?
After all, while there are quite a few powerful individuals on the sea capable of defeating Crocodiles, they are not numerous.
If a strong figure like this continues to operate in the shadows, causing trouble, the World Government would have to constantly deal with the negative effects of the "Yoru" organization.
Moreover, a recent event solidified the World Government's decision to eliminate "Yoru."
Not long ago, Reisun and the entire CP8 unit, who were dispatched to investigate the disappearance of CP9 chief Spandam, lost contact overnight.
After an investigation, their bodies were found on a small island not far from Water 7.
The most notable discovery was the death message left by CP8 chief Theodore—a blood-written character for "Yoru," proving that this was also the work of the "Yoru" organization.
Additionally, with the disappearance of the entire CP9 unit and Reisun dying from Marine Rokushiki techniques, the World Government began to suspect that CP9 had defected to the "Yoru" organization.
The defection of an intelligence agency was undoubtedly the most alarming issue for the World Government, as they possessed too much sensitive information.
If any of this information were to leak, it would be devastating to the World Government.
After all, many of the dirty deeds executed on the orders of the World Government were carried out by intelligence agencies and then blamed on pirates.
If these secrets were exposed, many allied nations might withdraw their support.
Consequently, the World Government quickly issued bounties for the entire CP9 unit and ordered other intelligence agencies worldwide to search for any information on CP9.
Meanwhile, in Windmill Village in the East Blue, Shanks was holding the latest newspaper, staring deep in thought at the large headline about the "Yoru" organization.
Of everyone on the seas, Shanks was undoubtedly the first to come into contact with information about the "Yoru" organization.
Back then, he had received a crucial piece of information from a man who claimed to be named Harry: Portgas D. Ace, the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, was the biological son of Shanks' former captain, the Pirate King Gol D. Roger.
Shanks sought Ace to confirm this and found that the "Yoru" organization had not lied to him.
Shanks didn't interfere much with Ace's decision to acknowledge Whitebeard as his foster father.
Just as Captain Roger had, when he fell ill and decided to surrender to the Marines, dispersed his crew, asking them not to meddle in his affairs.
Everyone has their reasons for doing things, and imposing one's own ideas on others is unnecessary. Of course, Luffy was an exception for Shanks.
While the entire sea was in turmoil, Byakuya arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago aboard the Nikko.
A private ship like Byakuya's flying the Marine flag was rare.
A large crowd had gathered at the dock, curious to see who would disembark from the ship.
But as soon as they saw Byakuya stepping off the ship in his Marine Rear Admiral uniform, they all fled in panic, not daring to look back for fear of catching Byakuya's attention.
Before Byakuya even reached the Marine branch base, the news of the "Butcher's" return had spread throughout the Sabaody Archipelago.
Suddenly, everyone was on edge, and the streets were deserted, as people feared that the Butcher might want to make an example of a few disobedient ones to set the tone.
They didn't want to be the chickens waiting to be slaughtered.
When Byakuya arrived at the Marine branch base, Quack and his group hadn't arrived yet.
After a brief chat with Smoker, during which nothing happened in the Sabaody Archipelago, everyone behaved according to the rules, and the ones who owed money paid up without needing to be reminded.
During the nearly three months Byakuya had been away, he had amassed nearly 700 million Berries, even after handing a portion to Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
This spoke volumes about the lucrative opportunities in the Sabaody Archipelago.
However, reaping such vast profits also meant paying a certain price.
During the days when the rules were enforced in the Sabaody Archipelago, countless nobles from allied nations and high-ranking officials of the World Government expressed their dissatisfaction with Byakuya, the highest-ranking Marine officer stationed there.
Although Sengoku had shielded Byakuya from most of these complaints, many still resent him.
Some were willing to offer a bounty of 300 million Berries on the black market for Byakuya's head.
Byakuya had heard whispers of this but didn't pay much attention. If they were unhappy, let them be unhappy.
If they didn't like it, they could bite him. After finishing his conversation with Smoker, Byakuya headed for Marine Headquarters.
He hadn't forgotten that Fleet Admiral Sengoku had mentioned in a call that he was promoted to Marine Vice Admiral.
Once he officially received the promotion, he would gain access to the World Power again. For Byakuya, this was a top priority.
When Byakuya arrived at Marine Headquarters, he noticed that the number of ships docked there was several times greater than usual.
Additionally, the atmosphere at Marine Headquarters was much more serious than usual, as if something significant had happened.
Curious, Byakuya went to Fleet Admiral Sengoku's office, only to find that Sengoku wasn't there.
Just as he was about to leave, he encountered one of Sengoku's guards and asked, "Is Fleet Admiral Sengoku not here?"
The guard explained, "Fleet Admiral Sengoku has called a high-level Marine meeting today, summoning most of the top Marine officers back."
"It seems they're discussing dealing with the newly emerged 'Yoru' organization."
The guard knew that Sengoku favored Byakuya, so he explained.
Had it been any other Rear Admiral, the guard would have said that Sengoku was in a meeting without further explanation.
Hearing the guard's words, Byakuya muttered, "No wonder there are so many ships docked—there's a high-level meeting."
And it's a meeting about how to deal with me. I'm really curious about what they're discussing inside.
It would be great if I could attend the meeting and listen in. What a pity.
Byakuya thanked the guard and was about to leave when the guard suddenly said,
"Oh, Rear Admiral Byakuya, aren't you about to be promoted to Marine Vice Admiral?"
"This meeting is for officers of Vice Admiral rank and above. Since you're already confirmed for promotion, you should be able to attend, right?"
Byakuya's eyes lit up, and he became eager to join. After all, he was extremely curious about how the Marines planned to deal with him.
Plus, the idea of attending a meeting where they discussed how to deal with him was too intriguing. It felt like infiltrating the enemy's top ranks.
Seeing Byakuya's interest in attending the meeting, the guard offered, "Rear Admiral Byakuya, how about I ask Fleet Admiral Sengoku for you? You can wait here, and if it's allowed, I'll call you in."
"That would be great, thank you so much!"
Byakuya followed the guard to the entrance of the conference room. The guard went in and returned within a minute, smiling as he said,
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku has agreed. Rear Admiral Byakuya, you may enter."
Watching the guard walk away, Byakuya couldn't help but think that there are good people in this world.
After straightening his uniform slightly, Byakuya pushed open the door and entered, instantly drawing the attention of everyone in the room.
Byakuya glanced around and was taken aback. Wow, quite the lineup.
In the room were Fleet Admiral Sengoku, Marine Hero Garp, Chief Staff Officer Tsuru, the three Marine Admirals, two Admiral candidates, and over a dozen Vice Admirals.
This lineup could easily take on three Yonko crews simultaneously, no exaggeration.
And with Byakuya added to the mix, they could practically sweep away all the pirates.
Sengoku gestured toward Byakuya and introduced him, "This is Rear Admiral Byakuya, whose promotion to Vice Admiral has already been confirmed."
"That's why he's been invited to this high-level meeting." Byakuya smiled and nodded at everyone in the room, greeting his colleagues.
None of the others were dissatisfied with Byakuya's presence at the meeting.
After all, they knew that the "Drought" Jack had been defeated by this 18-year-old standing before them.
With such a brilliant achievement under his belt, there was no room for objection.
The most familiar face to Byakuya, Aokiji, stood up and beckoned him to join him.
Akainu's expression remained unchanged, his face as stoic as ever, while Kizaru's gaze toward Byakuya was a bit strange, tinged with an inexplicable disdain.
There weren't many seats available, so the Vice Admirals and those below the two Admiral candidates mostly stood during the meeting.
Standing beside Aokiji, a familiar lyric suddenly popped into Byakuya's mind, perfectly fitting the current scene:
"At eighteen, standing like a lackey, I swore that next time, you'd see me. The next meeting, I'll make sure I'm sitting!"
Sengoku's voice boomed across the room, "As mentioned earlier, the newly emerged 'Yoru' organization has killed one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Crocodile."
"According to reliable intelligence from the World Government, the 'Yoru' organization subsequently eliminated CP0's Agent Reisun and all members of CP8."
"Almost certainly, the missing CP9 has joined the 'Yoru' organization."
"The emergence of the 'Yoru' organization has greatly destabilized the peace of the seas," Sengoku stated.
Most of the other Marine higher-ups, who hadn't had direct contact with the intelligence agencies, weren't overly concerned by this news.
However, Aokiji, who had worked on a mission with Agent Reisun alongside Byakuya, was visibly shocked to learn that The 'Yoru' organization had killed Reisun.
Byakuya, the real culprit, had to feign surprise at the news to avoid arousing suspicion.
Sengoku continued, "According to the orders from the Five Elders, the 'Yoru' organization must be eradicated as soon as possible."
"We need to determine the bounty for their members and devise a feasible plan to capture them, aiming to eliminate the 'Yoru' organization in the shortest time possible."
Listening to Sengoku, Byakuya had a reckless thought—he wanted to shout out, {"I am the founder of the 'Yoru' organization! If you take me out now, the 'Yoru' organization will be eradicated!"} and then single-handedly take on Marineford, shaking the entire world.
Unfortunately, such an exciting scenario could only play out in his imagination.
Until he fully harnessed the World Source's power, Byakuya had no intention of revealing his identity.
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