Vice Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates

Marineford,

Bang!

"Another of our vice admirals. How can Straw Hats get so much stronger in just a few months?" Sengoku slammed his fist on the table, almost breaking it while he screamed.

"It's not Haki. It's not Devil fruit. It's not their talent." Tsuru suddenly realized and continued.

"It's their opponent. If we simply swap Momonga with Onigumo, Straw Hats might not have been able to win. At least, not this easily. It would either be a draw or an extremely hard battle."

Hearing her words, Gion asked.

"Sister Tsuru, I don't understand how makes any difference. Both Roronoa Zoro and Blackfoot Sanji won because of their superior strength."

At this moment, Sengoku also realized something.

"That's it. They chose their opponents realizing this as well. But, how could they predict everything? If Onigumo's attitude towards swordsmanship was slightly better, Zoro wouldn't have won."

"If Momonga's attitude towards his sword was slightly worse, Sanji wouldn't have won. How did Liam predict this? How did he know about their personalities?"

"Now, I am completely lost." Tokikake shook his head, not understanding a word Sengoku said. He did understand those words but when they were combined into those sentences, he didn't understand anything.

"So, that's it. You are talking about exploiting their weakness." Gion also realized the meaning behind her predecessors' words and agreed.

"Now, can someone explain what's going on?" Tokikake felt the world was betraying him. How come these people are suddenly so smart?

What he forgot was that these people were always this smart.

Sengoku sighed. He also noticed other vice admirals hoping to get the answers. While marines might be strong, they aren't typically smart people.

"For a swordsman, it is important to keep their swords safe. And, for a swordsman, number of swords doesn't matter. What matters is how you use them."

"When Zoro and Onigumo fought, Onigumo had the advantage at the beginning. He was stronger than Zoro in all categories except for his swordsmanship."

"But even so, that wasn't enough to help Zoro win that battle. So, Zoro needed to win that battle and to win, he needed a breakthrough in his strength. He got that because of Onigumo's attitude."

"Instead of using sword skills, he was swinging a large number of swords in the hopes of landing one blow on Zoro. Unfortunately, Zoro realized the importance of Breath of All Things in the middle of a battle."

"Even after that, Onigumo didn't realize his mistake and kept using his devil fruit ability to attack Zoro. This gave Zoro a longer fight and a chance to improve his Haki."

"As for Sanji, it was exactly the opposite. He must have known about Momonga's swordsmanship attitude. So, he used his words to ignite that swordsman Will in Momonga."

"Originally, Momonga would've fought to win. But after that change, he fought for his swordsmanship or his sword. Because Sanji's red lightning didn't make him stronger or faster."

"It just made his attack hotter, like Akainu. If Momonga had fought to win, he would've replaced his sword constantly to win. Sanji's attack was damaging the sword."

"But, at the same time, it was also piercing his foot. But, Momonga wasn't going to abandon his sword and Sanji took advantage of that by making him continuously use his Haki."

"Haki isn't unlimited. It can be depleted very quickly if you use it constantly. Sanji used Haki to protect his foot while making Momonga burn his Haki faster."

At this moment, Tokikake finally understood the entire situation. His eyes widened.

"So, that's why he wasn't moving faster despite merging his flame with lightning. No wonder Momonga was able to perceive him so easily. He never got faster or stronger."

"But, how can this be? They can't predict the future, can they? What would have happened if Sanji's words hadn't impacted Momonga?"

Hearing his words, Sengoku shook his head.

"Even if that was the case, Straw Hats have other members who could help Sanji. Now, I am worried if the admirals can truly defeat Luffy and Liam."

At this moment, several vice admirals rose from their seats.

"Impossible! How can those kids defeat Admiral? Fleet Admiral, you should know the difference in strength between Vice Admiral and Admiral. Except for a few individuals, most of us can't even touch the admirals in a battle."

Tsuru spoke for Sengoku.

"You are looking at it one-dimensionally. Just because those two kids had a hard time defeating vice admirals doesn't mean Luffy and Liam will have a hard time as well."

"A long time ago, Luffy was able to defeat a vice admiral, relying solely on newly awakened Observation and Armament Haki."

"The power gap isn't just related to Haki. Skills, body, technology, devil fruit, any one of them can counter Haki. Haki is a necessary force for the strong but it isn't the only force."

Sengoku nodded his head and showed some veins on his forehead.

"What I am worried about is their positioning. After watching these battles, I slowly realized how Straw Hats selected several of their crew mates to fight certain marines."

"They utilize the strength of their crew mates and exploit our marine soldiers' weaknesses. Admirals are strong. They are monsters. But, they are not without the weaknesses."

"And, I am afraid they are going to exploit those weaknesses to defeat the Admirals."

"Bwahahaha! Sengoku, you are praising my grandson's crew a bit too much." Garp burst into laughter as he walked.

"So, what did I miss?"

"You must be very excited about this battle. You shorten your bathroom break." Sengoku looked at Garp with a speechless expression and spoke.

"Of course, I am excited Sengoku. Bwahahaha!" Garp burst into laughter once again and sat on the sofa. The seat was preserved for him when he went for a toilet break.

"You guy!" Sengoku rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Although I shouldn't say this, I am glad that the captain is your grandson. Otherwise, we might lose several of our marines."

"Don't worry, Sengoku! My grandson might be carefree and an idiot. But, he knows how to pick his crew. They won't make marines suffer." Garp waved his hand and turned his attention to the screen.

......…

"So, you finally defeated your enemy, stinky cook? I thought I would've had to wait for all eternity." Zoro couldn't help but make fun of Sanji when he arrived at the place where Zoro was getting treatment.

"It's funny how you got injured in every single battle, Moss Head." Sanji lit up his cigarette and walked next to him.

"You are going to have a great opponent next time."

Hearing his words, Zoro couldn't help but smile. His hand clenched his swords but the next moment, he got a slap in the head.

"Zoro, stop moving! I am bandaging you."

"Damn it, Chopper! I don't need bandages. These wounds will heal on their own." Zoro shouted back but Chopper didn't care. He continued bandaging Zoro.

"Shut up, I am the crew's doctor. It's my responsibility to take care of your wounds."

"Tch!" Zoro clicked his tongue and turned his head toward Usopp.

"Usopp, how is their battle?"

Usopp was watching the battle using a binocular. He was able to see further with his Observation Haki but right now, he wanted a clear view.

More importantly, they forgot to add the Video Transponder to their resting place. So, he became the commentator for the Straw Hat Pirates.

"Uhh! Their battle is the same as before. Both sides are pressing each other hard. But, Luffy is constantly getting beaten by Kizaru's speed."

"He is only using his Future Sight and Gear Second. As for Liam, he is confronting Aokiji on equal terms."

Just when he was Sanji was about to ask something, he sensed a powerful aura coming towards them from a far away.

Because of his devil fruit, his area of Observation Haki had expanded by several kilometers allowing him to sense far distances.

"Guys, Liam was right. Someone is coming this way. I think I recognize him. It's him!"

At this moment, the lightning crackled at Sanji's hand.

"Who?" Vivi asked. She knew that a powerful marine would arrive here as a backup. Liam had already told them but she didn't know the person.

"It's Ryokogyu." As soon as he said that name, Nami, Zoro, and Usopp had that grim look on their faces.

"That bastard." Nami gritted her teeth and held the staff in her hand tightly.

"Do you have a grudge against him?" Robin also turned serious and asked.

Franky, Chopper, and Vivi were waiting for her answers. They didn't know the hatred between the East-Blue Straw Hats members and Aramaki.

"Grudge would be a light word. If it wasn't for the timely arrival of Luffy's father and grandfather, we would've been cold before even reaching the Grandline."

Sanji spoke. Although there was anger in his eyes, he still kept his cool, unlike Usopp, Zoro, and Nami who had anger and hatred in their expressions.

Four of them looked at each other and then turned toward the remaining crew members.

"Guys, this battle, please don't interfere!"