Marineford, Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral's Office.
Kong was buried in mountains of documents, the steel pen in his hand scratching against the paper.
Sengoku sat opposite him, also frowning deeply, reviewing the latest sea area reports.
The sunlight from outside the window streamed through the glass onto the desk, casting a golden glow, but it couldn't dispel the heavy atmosphere in the room.
Suddenly, the Den Den Mushi on the desk rang, breaking the silence.
Kong looked up and, seeing that it was a Den Den Mushi from the World Government, frowned slightly, hesitated for a moment, then reached out to answer it.
"This is Kong, Fleet Admiral's Office at Marine Headquarters."
"Fleet Admiral Kong." The Den Den Mushi's expression instantly turned serious, mimicking a CP0's cold face: "Urgent intelligence."
Kong's eyes narrowed, his fingers unconsciously tightening: "Speak."
"According to the latest intelligence gathered by the CP organization, the Roger Pirates officially disbanded three days after leaving Laugh Tale."
The Den Den Mushi's voice was cold and mechanical, "'Pirate King' Gol D. Roger himself has disappeared, his whereabouts unknown.
The remaining crew members are currently led by 'Dark King' Silvers Rayleigh, but their specific movements are still unclear."
"What?!" Kong stood up abruptly, his chair scraping loudly across the floor.
Sengoku's movements also froze instantly, the document in his hand falling onto the desk with a 'thud'.
"This intelligence..."
"The intelligence source is reliable." The Den Den Mushi continued: "The Roger Pirates disbanded on Baterilla Island in the South Sea, and Roger himself left alone, his destination unknown.
The World Government requests the Marine to immediately launch an investigation and ascertain Roger's true intentions."
"Disbanded?!" Kong's face was ashen, his fists clenching with a cracking sound.
"How could someone who just became 'Pirate King' suddenly abandon everything?!"
The Den Den Mushi was silent for a moment, then said: "The Gorosei suspect that Roger may have grasped some 'dangerous secret' that now poses a significant threat to the stability of the World Government, so..."
"The Marine must act quickly."
(Because Gern made Gringo Saint scream in pain back then, the CP agents are now particularly polite to the Marine.)
"Understood." Kong replied coldly, then hung up the Den Den Mushi.
A brief silence fell over the office, Sengoku's gaze fixed on Kong, "Fleet Admiral Kong, something is wrong with this."
"I know something is wrong..." Kong took a deep breath, slowly sat back in his chair, his fingers gently tapping the desk.
"Roger is not someone who gives up easily. There must be a deeper reason for him to disband his pirate crew after becoming 'Pirate King'."
Sengoku pushed up his glasses and said in a deep voice, "Perhaps he really discovered something..."
Kong's pupils constricted slightly, but quickly returned to normal: "No matter what he discovered, the Marine cannot stand idly by.
Sengoku, immediately summon all Vice Admirals and above who are still at Headquarters for an emergency meeting!"
Sengoku nodded and quickly picked up another Den Den Mushi to make calls.
Kong stood up and walked to the window, his gaze fixed on the distant horizon, as if trying to pierce through the clouds to see the truth.
"Roger... what exactly does he want to do?" He murmured in a low voice, with an unprecedented gravity.
A moment later, Sengoku put down the Den Den Mushi and walked to Kong's side: "I've already notified them, the meeting will start in half an hour.
However, almost all of our high-end combat power is currently deployed externally. Besides you and me, no one else is at Headquarters.
Garp is also on a patrol mission and cannot be reached at the moment."
Kong snorted coldly: "That guy, always nowhere to be found at critical moments!"
Sengoku gave a wry smile, then said seriously: "Fleet Admiral Kong, if Roger truly possesses some 'secret' as the World Government says, and is even willing to disband his pirate crew to hide his tracks, then his goal might be more dangerous than we imagine."
Kong was silent for a moment, then suddenly turned, his gaze like a torch: "Sengoku, do you think... he might be trying to 'open' something?"
Sengoku was startled, then immediately understood Kong's hint, his face changing drastically: "Are you saying, like Rocks?"
"No, Roger and Rocks are different."
Kong shook his head. His many years as Fleet Admiral had given him a longer-term perspective.
"Rocks pursued pure destruction and domination.
But Roger... his actions always have a certain purpose.
If he truly discovered something on the so-called 'Laugh Tale', then his next move could completely change this world."
Sengoku's breathing quickened slightly, countless possibilities flashing through his mind: "We must find him before he acts!"
Kong nodded, a hint of determination flashing in his eyes: "Notify the CP organization to fully cooperate with the Marine's intelligence network and pinpoint Roger's whereabouts as soon as possible.
Additionally, strengthen monitoring of all sea areas, especially the Oro Jackson."
"Understood." Sengoku quickly jotted down the instructions, then hesitated and asked: "Fleet Admiral Kong, do we need to notify Gern?
He just finished Dragoon's mission in the first half of the Grand Line; we can have him return to Headquarters quickly to serve as combat power."
The Roger Pirates disbanded, Roger himself disappeared, and all other combat forces were dispatched. Currently, only the retired Zephyr, Sengoku, and himself are at Headquarters.
If Gern returns, he can indeed serve as emergency combat power.
Thinking of this, Kong pondered for a moment, then nodded: "No problem.
Gern's mission report hasn't been submitted yet; let him return to report first.
As for Roger's matter... we'll decide after the meeting."
Sengoku's eyes flickered slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he just nodded: "Yes."
The sky outside the window gradually darkened, and dark clouds began to gather, as if foretelling an approaching storm.
Kong stood by the window, his back appearing particularly heavy.
"Sengoku, I have a premonition..." His voice was deep and hoarse, "This world might be about to change."
Sengoku stood silently behind him, the grim sky outside reflected in his glasses.
"Indeed! After all, no one has ever reached the pinnacle and then decisively given it all up. What exactly does Roger want to do?!"
.......
On the merchant ship, the sea breeze carried a salty, damp scent across the deck. Tesoro's Den Den Mushi slowly closed its eyes.
"Vice Admiral Gern." Tesoro turned around, his voice very low, "Admiral Sengoku has ordered us to return to Headquarters immediately.
The Marine has just confirmed the news of the Roger Pirates' disbandment.
The Fleet Admiral now needs you to be on standby at Headquarters for any emergencies."
Listening to Tesoro's words, Gern leaned against the ship's rail without turning back, merely giving a soft "Mhm."
The sea breeze lifted the hem of his black coat, revealing the black blade eight desolations wrapped in greyish-white bandages at his waist.
"It's October, Tesoro." Gern suddenly spoke, his voice carrying a strange sense of emotion.
Tesoro was startled, subconsciously looking towards the distant horizon: "Yes, 1497 is about to pass in the blink of an eye."
"But..." He smiled wryly and shook his head, "It's truly ironic, the Roger Pirates, who disbanded at the beginning of the year, were only discovered at the end of the year."
"Indeed! sea circle calendar 1498 is approaching, the era where everything begins, it's here..."
The atmosphere on the deck suddenly solidified.
"So, we..." Tesoro was about to ask about the return arrangements when he heard Gern's cold voice:
"At the next Marine branch, you and Libo will borrow a Marine ship to go back.
And..." He turned around, his black eyes unfathomably deep, "Announce to the outside that I am also on board."
"Vice Admiral Gern, you..." Tesoro's voice cut off abruptly upon hearing this unexpected command.
"Tesoro." Gern raised his hand to interrupt him, a long-unseen smile slowly spreading across his lips.
This smile made Tesoro feel as if he had been transported back to the West Blue many years ago, to that fateful night when this man had smiled just like this, inviting him to kill the Celestial Dragons and join the Marine.
The smile in his memory overlapped with the one before him, making Tesoro's breathing hitch.
The cries of the seagulls seemed to be pulled far, far away.
Tesoro felt his throat tighten; he was all too familiar with that expression.
Every time Gern showed such a smile, it meant that some insane plan was about to be put into action.
"I've been waiting for this day for a long time."