Chapter 158

Navy Headquarters

"Whitebeard was defeated… by that man!"

As Sengoku stared at the headline in the latest issue of the World Economic News, his pupils contracted sharply. Shock washed over his face.

Even though Whitebeard had aged, and time had steadily chipped away at his strength, he was still an Emperor of the Sea. A man whose dying breath could release combat power nearing his prime. Even Sengoku himself—alongside Garp—wouldn't have dared to face Whitebeard alone and expect certain victory.

But according to the newspaper, the fight had lasted less than fifteen minutes.

There were even high-definition photographs: shots of Whitebeard being knocked down repeatedly—captured from near-perfect angles. It was professional, surgical. Whoever took them, clearly knew what they were doing.

"That bastard…"

"He's getting more and more terrifying."

Garp sat across from Sengoku, munching on senbei and sipping tea. His expression was casual, but his heart was far from calm. These days had been hard on him—and only he knew the depth of that pressure.

His grandson, Ace D. Stuart, had been captured. Worse, he was to be executed.

Any man would be furious… and devastated.

But as a hero of the navy, Garp carried responsibilities larger than his own heart. On one side was justice—decades of service and principle. On the other side was the boy he had raised with his own hands.

For Garp, the weight of that choice was unbearable.

"That man's only around twenty years old," Sengoku muttered as he studied the newspaper again, eyes fixed on the photograph of Kairos Flint. "And yet, he already possesses this level of power…"

"Give him ten more years… I can't even imagine what kind of monster he'll become."

Already, Kairos had the upper hand against Garp himself.

And now, he had defeated Whitebeard—the world's strongest man.

It was a record so unreal, so legendary, no one would have believed it if not for the photographic proof. Without it, people would've just thought it was baseless bragging.

But the facts were in plain sight.

Kairos Flint's strength had already reached that level.

"He's not even a pirate anymore," Garp said offhandedly. "Why do you still care?"

Though Garp personally hated Kairos Flint—after all, this guy had taken action right under his nose and killed several high-ranking naval officers—he had to admit...

It had been during a war.

And in war, death is inevitable.

More importantly, the conflict between them had ended the moment the World Government revoked Kairos Flint's bounty.

He was no longer a wanted man.

He was a bounty hunter, and they were the navy. No longer enemies.

Even though many in the navy harbored resentment toward Kairos—for the comrades and leaders they lost at his hands—there was no reason to provoke him now.

And to offend a man of his power?

That would be foolish. Dangerous.

The bounty on Kairos and what he did during that period had already proven he was not someone they could afford to treat like a normal criminal.

Even the World Government had been forced to back down.

So what justification did the navy have to go after him?

It would be outright stupid.

Meanwhile, inside the World Government...

"Damn it! That bastard was so brutal to us—but when it came to Whitebeard, he actually spared him!"

Saint Saturn seethed with rage.

Thanks to Kairos Flint, they had lost most of the G-1 base's forces, and the G-2 base's island had been nearly obliterated. Manpower was running thin, and the bases couldn't even be fully staffed anymore.

Now, they were struggling to reinforce their presence in the New World.

To reassert control over the Four Emperors' domains, they needed to move fast. But intervening in Yonko territory was no easy task.

So when they saw Kairos Flint attacking Whitebeard, they'd felt a flicker of hope. Maybe this would work to their advantage.

But then…

They saw that Whitebeard had survived the battle.

That same Kairos, who had shown no mercy to the Celestial Dragons or the navy, had gone easy on Whitebeard?

It was infuriating.

If only Kairos had killed Whitebeard, the power vacuum would have thrown Whitebeard's territory into chaos. The Red-Haired Shanks might've stayed back out of principle...

But Kaido and Big Mom?

They would've pounced instantly.

In the ensuing mess, the World Government could've stepped in under the guise of "stabilization." Their forces—especially the navy—could've seized territory piece by piece.

But no.

Kairos let Whitebeard live.

The opportunity was gone.

"He really doesn't treat everyone the same... when it's us, it's a bloodbath. But when it's Whitebeard, he suddenly develops restraint…"

They had nothing else to say.

But another one of the Five Elders, Saint Wuquli, spoke calmly:

"Even if he didn't kill Whitebeard, that old man is definitely gravely injured. Just as we're about to launch the war we've been planning…"

"Whitebeard won't have time to fully recover. In a way, Kairos has unintentionally helped us."

His words quickly won the approval of the other Elders.

Sure, it was disappointing that Whitebeard hadn't been killed on the spot...

But even a slightly weakened Whitebeard was a net gain for their plans.

They would take what they could get.