Phoenix Reborn In One Piece

*Knock knock knock!*

Just as Akainu finished speaking, someone knocked on the Fleet Admiral's office door.

Everyone at Marine Headquarters knew that today was Akainu's first high-level meeting since becoming Fleet Admiral. Normally, no one would interrupt.

Unless something major had happened and needed to be reported immediately.

Brannew quickly opened the door.

A Marine outside the door saw Brannew, didn't say a word, simply saluted, handed over the documents, and then quickly left.

Brannew didn't look at the papers right away. He walked up to Akainu. "Fleet Admiral Akainu, top-secret intel from Marine Intelligence."

Akainu calmly took the folder and opened it.

"Giant Elephant Pirates?"

Akainu frowned slightly, a flicker of surprise in his eyes. He stared hard at the document, which had detailed info about this pirate crew.

"What kind of pirate crew is this? Why haven't I heard of them?" His voice was low and serious, clearly confused. He turned to the others beside him.

What shocked him wasn't that the pirate crew suddenly showed up, but that their captain, even though already old, was still incredibly strong—strong enough to go toe-to-toe with Teuchi, the number two of the Dream Exploration Team.

"What?!"

Right after Akainu spoke, Sengoku, Garp, and Vice Admiral Tsuru all looked stunned and shouted at the same time.

"Sakazuki, did you say the Giant Elephant Pirates?" Sengoku's eyes went wide, staring at Akainu in disbelief, as if he knew that name well.

"That can't be…" Garp's face grew serious, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.

Tsuru looked just as shocked. She furrowed her brows, trying hard to remember anything about the Giant Elephant Pirates.

Aokiji and Kizaru exchanged glances, both showing deep confusion.

Clearly, not only was Akainu unfamiliar with the Giant Elephant Pirates, but they had also never even heard the name before.

Akainu handed the folder to Sengoku.

Sengoku quickly flipped through it. After finishing, he passed it along to the others so they could all read it too.

…

"It makes sense you haven't heard of them. The Giant Elephant Pirates were around back when Commander Kong was in charge. Back then, they made quite a stir once they set out to sea."

"Their captain, Giant Elephant Osmond, has the Zoan-type Ancient Devil Fruit—specifically the Embedded-Tusk Elephant form."

"Even though it's just an Ancient Zoan, based on the data we've gathered from his battles, we Marines discovered that this fruit gives him incredible stamina and toughness."

"But after the Giant Elephant Pirates entered the New World, they vanished on Red Adventure Island," Vice Admiral Tsuru explained, sharing everything she knew.

"So the rumor about treasure on Red Adventure Island... that came from this Osmond guy," Aokiji muttered to himself, a surprised and puzzled look in his eyes.

The Marines had heard those rumors too, but they never took them seriously.

After all, with so many stories about treasure across the sea, they couldn't chase down every single one.

Whether the stories were true or not wasn't the point. As Marines, their job was to keep order and protect people—they couldn't just hop from island to island like treasure hunters.

But now, it looked like the Dream Exploration Team had actually found the legendary treasure on Red Adventure Island.

And Osmond clearly wanted to take it from them. Based on the intel, it seemed like he had stayed on the island for years, waiting for someone to find the treasure—just so he could snatch it away.

What did all this mean? What kind of secret could be behind this treasure? Aokiji couldn't stop thinking about it.

"Knowing that Ryuen kid, he's not going to let Osmond off easy. Sakazuki, what are you planning to do?" Vice Admiral Garp asked, turning to Akainu.

Akainu frowned a little and replied in a deep voice, "According to the intel, the fight between Osmond and Kuina should be over soon. So even if I wanted to do something now… it's already too late."

There was a trace of regret in his voice.

If Osmond, the captain of the Giant Elephant Pirates, had been captured alive by the Marines and then publicly executed, it would've been a major victory.

It would show the world the strength of the Marines—an old pirate legend taken down and brought to justice. That kind of message would boost confidence in Marine power.

But if Ryuen ended up killing him, they wouldn't get that kind of impact.

Thinking about that, Akainu felt a little regret—but he was also growing more wary of Ryuen.

This young man wasn't just powerful. He was smart too. His presence was becoming a serious threat to the Marines.

…

"Put out a bounty," Akainu finally said coldly after thinking for a while. "I have a feeling the Dream Exploration Team will become a major problem for the World Government in the future."

"Yes, Fleet Admiral Akainu!" Brannew answered right away.

...

After Akainu finalized how he would make his mark as the new Fleet Admiral, his first Fleet Admiral meeting came to an end.

Once it was over—

The top Marine officers all returned to their offices.

"The three Marine Admirals... Borsalino won't care much about anything, so it looks like we really need to be careful choosing the other Admiral..." Aokiji muttered as he sat down in his chair after getting back to his office.

He tapped the floor with his foot, and if someone had been there, they would've seen that his left leg was actually made of ice.

Fleet Admiral's Office.

Right after the meeting ended, Brannew got to work, sending out the orders that had just been decided.

Akainu sat alone in his office.

He gently touched the lower right part of his chest. A terrifying scar stretched from his neck all the way down to his belly.

And there was also a wound that went clean through his abdomen.

"Dream Exploration Team..." Akainu muttered. A few seconds later, a look of deep resolve appeared in his eyes.

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