Chapter 29: The Appointment of the Alternate Admiral
Chiba sat down without hesitation, observing Sakazuki's expression—a mix of suppressed anger and resentment—which brought a certain satisfaction. Smirking, Chiba couldn't resist poking a little fun.
"Sakazuki, you're not upset about me taking your seat, are you?" he asked, feigning innocence.
Sakazuki's face grew even darker as he clenched his fists, his breaths short and tense. He grumbled internally, Just wait until I get my hands on your research, and I'm the Marine Marshal. Then we'll see how smug you are.
Though he seethed with anger, he forced a dismissive snort. "It's just a chair, Vice Admiral Chiba. If you like it, you're welcome to it."
At that moment, Sengoku smiled and spoke up, dropping a bombshell.
"Sakazuki, you won't need to call Chiba 'Vice Admiral' from now on," he announced. "Starting today, Chiba is the Alternate Admiral of Naval Headquarters."
A stunned silence fell over the room.
The Vice Admirals exchanged shocked glances. Chiba had only recently been promoted to Vice Admiral, and now he was already moving up to Alternate Admiral? The rapid rise was unprecedented.
Even Admiral Aokiji, who had always supported Chiba, was visibly surprised. He'd expected Chiba's next promotion to take at least a year or two. This was… incredible.
Garp and Tsuru Vice Admiral, both usually unflappable, showed clear signs of surprise. This news had even caught them off guard.
"I object," Sakazuki thundered, slamming his hand on the table. "Marshal Sengoku, the position of Alternate Admiral holds significant power, second only to the Marine Admiral and Marshal."
"An Alternate Admiral can directly replace an Admiral if one leaves office. Such an important role requires both exemplary strength and the recognition of the entire Marine force," he argued.
"This position must be endorsed by all three Admirals and approved by the World Government itself. Not even you, Marshal, have the authority to appoint an Alternate Admiral on your own."
Even Chiba was taken aback. Despite his disdain for Sakazuki, he had to admit that he was right. The position of Alternate Admiral was no trivial matter. In the case of an Admiral's death, he could be appointed directly to the position. Such a powerful role couldn't be left to one person's decision, not even Sengoku's.
All eyes turned to Sengoku, waiting to see how he would respond.
Sengoku met their gazes with a calm but commanding expression. "This appointment was not my decision alone. It comes as a direct order from the World Government. There is no need for the usual process in this case," he explained.
Everyone in the room was stunned once more. The World Government rarely involved itself in Marine personnel matters, much less directly promoted a Vice Admiral to Alternate Admiral.
Sengoku produced an official letter, extending it to Chiba. "Here's the appointment letter from the World Government, Chiba. It's official."
Chiba took the letter and opened it, feeling the weight of every eye in the room on him.
Order of Appointment:
By the order of Kong, Commander-in-Chief of the World Government:
Monkey D. Chiba is hereby granted the rank of Alternate Admiral.
The others gasped audibly as Chiba read the document. An eighteen-year-old Alternate Admiral—this was a first in Marine history. Although his accomplishments justified it, the pace of his promotions was difficult for them to process.
Sakazuki scowled, his tone heavy with anger. "This is absurd. The position of Marine Admiral represents our highest combat power and is the face of the Marines. To make an eighteen-year-old the Alternate Admiral is reckless and damages the dignity of the Marines."
"If pirates worldwide learn of this, our reputation will suffer," he argued.
Sengoku's expression remained calm as he replied, "This appointment came from the World Government. If you have objections, Sakazuki, I suggest you address them directly to Commander-in-Chief Kong."
Sakazuki clenched his fists, rage burning in his eyes. Though he was an Admiral, a Marine Marshal, he lacked the authority to question the head of the World Government's army. He glanced at Sengoku with barely concealed resentment, suspecting the old man had orchestrated this behind the scenes.
With a final scowl, he muttered to himself, Old fool… I'll be taking your position soon enough.
"The order has been made," Sengoku said firmly. "Everyone here should support Chiba moving forward. Dismissed."
Sakazuki rose and stormed out, clearly fuming, while the others left in smaller groups, leaving Sengoku, Tsuru, Garp, and Chiba alone in the office.
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𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙢𝙮 𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙮. 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚!
𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 𝘁𝗼:
• 𝘽𝙤𝙜𝙙𝙖𝙣 𝙋𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙪
• 𝙅𝙘𝟭𝟮𝟬𝟮
• 𝘼𝙝𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙟𝙖𝙝
• 𝗝𝗮𝗰𝗼𝗯 𝗠𝗼𝗲𝗲
𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸:
• 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝙂𝙚𝙩 𝟴𝟱+ 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚.
• 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁-𝗢𝘂𝘁: 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙖 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩!
𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗳𝘂𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗺𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝗺𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗲𝘁, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀!
👉 𝙅𝙤𝙞𝙣 𝙣𝙤𝙬: 𝙋𝙖𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙤𝙣.𝙘𝙤𝙢/𝙂𝙤𝙙𝙊𝙛𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧