One Piece: Ulquiorra Template

Chapter 26: Headquarters Meeting

At the same time, Ian was awestruck by the sheer scale of the structure before him. This was Marineford, the site of the Paramount War, capable of hosting 100,000 elite Marines and the 43 allied crews of the Whitebeard Pirates, a total of over 150,000 combatants. It was a sight to behold.

Even the Fourth Great Ninja War in the Naruto universe, with the combined forces of the Five Great Nations, had only mustered around 80,000 shinobi to face off against the 100,000 White Zetsu of the Akatsuki.

Seeing it in person was a completely different experience.

Gion led a somewhat bewildered Ian through Marine Headquarters. Along the way, they encountered curious glances from passing Marines, who nodded in acknowledgment of Gion's presence before moving on without paying much attention to Ian.

It was common for Marines to return with individuals from their missions. As for Ian's unusual appearance – pale skin, green eyes with distinct tear marks, a partial horned skull helmet – it didn't raise any eyebrows.

The Grand Line was a vast and diverse place, home to fish-men, minks, giants, long-armed tribes, long-leg tribes, and various other races with unique physical characteristics.

Perhaps he belonged to a newly discovered race. Moreover, some individuals preferred to maintain their Devil Fruit transformations, and the sword at his waist... Was that a Meito? He seemed to be a swordsman.

"Well, well, if it isn't Vice Admiral Gion. Welcome back. Is this the swordsman with the Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, the powerful rookie that Sengoku mentioned?"

A group of large, burly men approached them. One had multiple arms, while another resembled a Dalmatian with mink-like features.

Onigumo, Doberman, Yamakaji, Dalmatian... Familiar faces. They were particularly interested in Ian because, within the Marines...

Most of their abilities revolved around Haki, Rokushiki, swordsmanship, and relatively Devil Fruits. Ian, however, possessed not only a rare Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit...

But also a Great Grade sword, one of the 21 O Wazamono, the renowned Wano treasure, Shusui. His future achievements were bound to surpass theirs. For these Vice Admirals, information about Ian was readily available.

"Welcome back. Let's go together. Sengoku is holding a meeting, and it's actually about you two. Right on time, as a matter of fact."

Gion was about to inquire about their destination when she received this unexpected answer.

"I can't believe you caused such a stir so soon after arriving. But at least it's not a bad thing..." The Dalmatian, Doberman, remarked, leaning down towards Ian.

"Us?" Both Gion and Ian were taken aback.

It wasn't difficult to deduce the reason. It was likely about Ian's fate and the vacant Warlord position left by Moria. As for Crocodile and his "meeting of the kings" with Whitebeard...

They were uncertain about the outcome. After all, Ian had been engaged in battle with Moria at the time. Crocodile had likely retreated upon encountering the Marines. As for Crocodile's plans to overthrow the Alabasta Kingdom and acquire the ancient weapon, Pluton, while he hadn't obtained any concrete answers...

The timing aligned with the current events in the story. A meeting of two powerful pirates was no small matter.

It usually involved a conspiracy of some sort. The original story didn't mention any connection between Crocodile and Moria, but as individuals who had failed in their bids for power in the previous era, Crocodile had clearly...