Chapter 229: The Break Between Kizaru and Zephyr
The Marine Headquarters' order to retreat was a wise decision.
Deploying two Marine Admirals to pursue Ian's Dragon Hunter Pirates showed that the World Government and the Marines placed great importance on Ian. They had initially believed that such a tough stance from the Marines would pressure the Four Emperors into staying out of the matter, and indeed, without Ace, the Whitebeard Pirates would likely have hesitated and not intervened.
However, what they hadn't anticipated was that, at this very moment, Fire Fist Ace had joined the Whitebeard Pirates!
Whitebeard valued his adopted son Ace greatly. When Ace made his first request after joining, Whitebeard unhesitatingly decided to stand up for his son.
Before Kizaru and Zephyr led the Marines to Salamis Island, Marine Headquarters had already received word of the Whitebeard Pirates' mobilization. They hesitated, considering whether to recall Kizaru and Zephyr.
But then, a twist occurred. Due to Doflamingo's covert interference, the Beast Pirates also appeared and clashed with the Whitebeard Pirates, the two sides facing off in the outer seas.
Upon learning of this, the Marines tacitly allowed Kizaru and Zephyr to proceed, aiming to exploit the time gap and capture the Dragon Hunter Pirates and Ian.
However, everyone underestimated the Dragon Hunter Pirates. During the battle, Fujitora held off Zephyr, while Ian unleashed his full power. Not only was he not completely overwhelmed by Kizaru, but he also used Seastone bullets to unexpectedly wound Kizaru!
At this point, including Aokiji, two Marine Admirals had been injured by Ian's hand...
Being injured didn't mean defeat. In truth, Ian still lacked the ability to completely defeat a Marine Admiral. But battles often hinge on unexpected events that alter the outcome. Ian used his combat intelligence to gain a slight upper hand in his fight with Kizaru, tipping the scales of victory in their favor.
Since the only report came from a trainee journalist's live coverage, Marine Headquarters didn't know the exact extent of Kizaru's injuries. While they knew a Marine Admiral was hard to kill even when wounded, the problem was that the Whitebeard Pirates had already disengaged from the Beast Pirates and were nearing Salamis Island.
Salamis Island was under Whitebeard's protection. The Marines' attempt to capture the Dragon Hunter Pirates had caused severe damage to the island. Under these circumstances, no one could guarantee that an enraged Whitebeard wouldn't attack the already injured Kizaru. If Whitebeard went so far as to kill a Marine Admiral, the entire world would be shaken!
The consequences were too severe. The plan to exploit the time gap to capture the Dragon Hunter Pirates had failed. Ian and his crew had held out and persevered, so it was the Marines who had to take a step back.
With the Marine Headquarters' retreat order, the Marines on the island began an orderly withdrawal to the port. The Salamis Duchy's guards pursued them but wisely kept their distance.
As the retreating Marines reached the port, they naturally saw the members of the Dragon Hunter Pirates. Though they gritted their teeth in frustration, they could do nothing. Many had witnessed Ian's aerial battle with Kizaru, instilling fear in the Marines. They knew this wasn't an ordinary pirate crew, and under the retreat order, they dared not provoke another conflict with them.
Watching the Marines retreat, Ian instructed his crew not to attack them.
After such a fierce battle, the Dragon Hunter Pirates were also battered. The Marines had an overwhelming numerical advantage, and while the Dragon Hunter Pirates were formidable, injuries were inevitable. Sardine's shield had been blown apart by Marine mortars; he had blocked dozens of shells for his comrades and now stood panting, covered in wounds.
Dorry and the others were in similar shape. Almost every able-bodied member of the crew was injured. Even without Ian's orders, they wouldn't have sought out the Marines.
However, the retreating Marines still encountered trouble at the port—trouble in the form of Fire Fist Ace!
Ian had previously told Ace to seize a warship, and Ace had agreed without hesitation. But the Marines weren't about to let him take a ship easily.
After jumping onto a warship, Ace had been constantly fighting off waves of Marines. He had come alone to help Ian and didn't know Whitebeard was on his way. He guarded the ship, believing it was the key to Ian and his crew's escape, and felt he had to hold it.
This meant that even when he saw Ian fighting Kizaru, Ace wanted to help but chose to protect the ship after seeing Ian hold his own.
When the Marines began retreating, even more soldiers flooded in. Unaware of the situation, Ace gritted his teeth and unleashed his full power, beating back the Marines.
The injured Kizaru, supported by Sentomaru, saw this as he reached the port.
"Fire Fist Ace..." Kizaru naturally knew Ace's reputation. Watching Marines being blasted off the ship by massive flames, he considered intervening personally.
But at that moment, he spotted the Whitebeard Pirates' fleet on the horizon.
In the sky, a large bird engulfed in flames, trailing three fiery tail feathers, flew toward them. Kizaru knew it was Marco the Phoenix...
Time was running out. If they didn't set sail soon, the Marine warships would be trapped in the port by the Whitebeard Pirates. After a moment's thought, Kizaru ordered the Marines to abandon the seized warship.
If they had simply retreated, the Marines could have escaped the port in time. But then, Zephyr discovered that two of his students were missing!
"Where are Ain and Binz!?" Zephyr anxiously asked his Marine Science Unit members.
When he learned that Ain and Binz had been taken by Fire Fist Ace and a strange maid-dressed woman from the Dragon Hunter Pirates onto that warship, Zephyr refused to back down!
He immediately prepared to lead his Marine Science Unit to charge the ship Ace was on, intending to rescue his students.
To Kizaru, this was almost irrational. The Marine Science Unit had only recently been formed. Though Ain and Binz were Zephyr's right-hand people, their ranks were at most lieutenants. For two lieutenants, Zephyr was willing to risk all the Marines being trapped and surrounded by the Whitebeard Pirates!?
Not only that, but the pain from his wound reminded Kizaru of how he had been injured by the Seastone bullets Zephyr had left behind. Old grievances and new resentments surged within him.
"Zephyr-sensei, if you want to continue fighting Fire Fist Ace, I won't stop you!" Kizaru said coldly. "But I'll lead the remaining Marines to evacuate first!"
"Borsalino! You..." Zephyr was furious. He never expected Kizaru to say something so heartless at this moment.
The conflict between Zephyr and Kizaru had a long history. Though they maintained a facade of civility, it had finally erupted!
"They are my students!" Zephyr roared at Kizaru. "I brought them here, and I will take them back!"
"So, sensei, you mean to keep all the Marines here for the sake of two people, letting the Whitebeard Pirates capture them all!?" Kizaru argued back without restraint. "Your students are Marines too. Even if they fall into the Dragon Hunter Pirates' hands, as long as we issue a formal request, the Dragon Hunter Pirates might not harm them. They're just two people. Compared to letting so many Marines be captured by the Whitebeard Pirates, which is more disgraceful!?"
"Is this just about disgrace!?" Zephyr shouted. "Is the Marines' face more important than my students' lives!?"
Their argument left the surrounding Marines silent, too afraid to speak.
After glaring at each other for a long moment, Zephyr finally spoke: "Borsalino, I've never liked you as a student. You're too unpredictable. If you want to leave, then leave!"
He stepped back and declared: "My men and I will always stand together!"
Hearing this, the Marine Science Unit members felt a surge of emotion and shouted in unison: "Stand together!"
Kizaru watched this scene without any sense of inspiration. He shook his head internally. His philosophy had always differed from Zephyr's. He preferred to observe from the sidelines and position himself advantageously, so he couldn't understand Zephyr's character or thoughts.
"Very well, then I wish you luck, Zephyr-sensei," Kizaru said.
Since Ace had seized one warship, Kizaru ultimately led six warships' worth of Marines away. Zephyr and his three warships of Marine Science Unit soldiers stayed behind, continuing to attack the ship Ace was guarding, trying to board it and find Ain and Binz.
Ace, the fool, hadn't thought much when he brought Binz back. He just found the ninja interesting and wanted to show him to Whitebeard as a trophy. If possible, he even hoped to recruit the ninja into the Whitebeard Pirates.
It felt like a son showing off to his father. Ace himself hadn't realized this, but it was human nature. By now, Ace had fully accepted Whitebeard as his father and was trying every way to help him.
Perhaps his desire to make Whitebeard the Pirate King began at this moment...