One Piece: I am the Fleet Admiral?

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The next day, the sky was just starting to brighten.

Akira quietly took Olvia and Dr. Clover and left the headquarters without attracting anyone's attention.

On the Sabaody Archipelago, the trio came face to face with Dragon.

"Dragon, these are the scholars who will be traveling to Raftel with you." Akira gestured to the two people beside him as he introduced them.

"Hi, nice to meet you both."

Dragon knew that in order to overthrow the rule of the World Government, scholars who could interpret the Poneglyphs were crucial.

So, he didn't seem too indifferent; in fact, he tried to smile, despite his usually fierce appearance.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Clover. Nice to meet you as well."

"My name is Olvia, and I'm grateful to you for guiding us on the rest of this journey."

Seeing that Dragon wasn't hard to get along with, both Olvia and Dr. Clover breathed a sigh of relief and quickly introduced themselves.

Even if they didn't doubt Akira's trust in him, just by looking at Dragon, they could sense how powerful he was.

Olvia and Dr. Clover understood their position.

Until they reached Raftel and were needed to interpret the Poneglyphs, the two of them were essentially powerless and would be a burden. Everything now depended on the Dragon in front of them.

Naturally, they dared not act arrogantly.

Once the three of them had become somewhat acquainted, Akira took out a small piece of paper from his pocket and tossed it to Dragon.

"This is the Vivre Card for Zou Island. It's your first destination."

"There's a Road Poneglyph hidden in a secret location there."

Before Dragon could ask, Akira explained. The location of Zou Island is hard for most people to find. Even if you wanted to locate it, you'd need some luck—it sits on the back of Zunesha.

Zunesha is constantly moving, so the island's location is never fixed.

If you're relying on an ordinary Log Pose or even an Eternal Pose, finding it is as difficult as reaching the sky.

After all, Zou Island is a small island without any magnetic properties.

Therefore, if you want to find it, aside from relying on luck, the only other option is using the vivre card as a guide.

Even "Drought" Jack of the Beasts Pirates managed to locate it. For the Marines, the dominant force at sea, the location of Zou Island isn't exactly a secret.

The World Government, aware of the existence of this unique moving elephant and the island on its back, has assigned personnel to track Zunesha's real-time location.

However, since the island holds no immediate value to the Five Elders and the Road Poneglyph there hasn't been exposed, the Vivre card was just gathering dust in storage.

As Fleet Admiral, Akira had easy access to it and casually retrieved it when needed.

Dragon took the Vivre card and carefully placed it in his pocket.

"But what about the other three Road Poneglyphs?"

Dragon's face grew serious as he asked in a deep voice, "Whether it's Beasts, Big Mom, or even the Elbaf Giants, none of those places are easy to infiltrate."

Akira had already explained to them the requirements for reaching Raftel, so they knew they had to collect all four Road Poneglyphs.

Of course, they didn't question how Akira had this secret information.

After all, as Fleet Admiral of the Marines, he surely had access to intel that most people could never obtain.

Knowing the path to Raftel wasn't too hard for them to believe.

But they overlooked one critical point.

If the Fleet Admiral knew about this, the World Government must know it too.

Given that the Five Elders are aware of the Road Poneglyphs' locations and the ultimate historical text, why haven't they sent forces to capture those Poneglyphs and destroy Raftel before anyone else could reach it?

However, Dragon, Olvia, and Dr. Clover were so engrossed in their dreams of discovering the Poneglyphs and the hidden history that they overlooked this.

"Don't worry," Akira assured. "After you find the Road Poneglyph on Zou Island, I will arrange for the other three when the time comes."

Akira narrowed his eyes slightly, pursing his lips as he spoke.

Whether it's Elbaf, Kaido of the Beasts, or Big Mom Linlin, getting the Road Poneglyphs from these places won't be easy.

Even the seemingly simpler task of obtaining it from Elbaf requires a careful strategy.

But for now, neither he nor the Marines have the bandwidth.

The Five Elders have their eyes on the Marines, waiting for a full transfer of power.

If the Marines make any major moves, the CP agents will hear about it immediately and launch an investigation.

Akira knew he needed time to deal with this situation.

Once Dragon and the others reach Zou Island, if everything goes smoothly, the Marines would have entered the second half of the Grand Line. That would allow for more freedom in maneuvering.

"Alright."

Seeing this, Dragon didn't push further. He simply replied, "If there's nothing else, we'll be heading out."

"Go ahead. Have a safe journey. I'll be waiting for your good news at headquarters."

Akira stood at the port, watching Dragon, Olvia, and Dr. Clover board their coated sailboat, which slowly submerged into the water.

Even though they were capable, they decided against using the shortcut of crossing the Red Line directly.

After all, they were free people without bounties. But whether it was Akira, Dragon, Olvia, or Dr. Clover, they all silently agreed not to take that route.

There were too many risks.

The thought of an accident happening in Mariejois before they even set off was too dangerous.

There were also psychological reasons. After all, what they were attempting was a rebellion against the Celestial Dragons.

Passing right under their noses felt too bold.

In comparison, traveling through Fish-Man Island, 10,000 meters under the sea, seemed much safer.

[Ding, log updated.]

[Host has arranged for Monkey D. Dragon to escort the renowned archaeologists Dr. Clover and Olvia to Raftel in search of the historical truth covered up by the Five Elders. This action contributes to mission 2, rewarding the host with 500 experience points.]

Once their presence had faded beyond the range of his Observation Haki, a system notification echoed in Akira's mind.

"It's time to deal with the CP department," Akira muttered quietly, letting out a long breath.

Then, in an instant, he disappeared from sight.

Marineford

Akira quietly returned.

After enjoying breakfast with Rouge, Stella, and the others at the mansion, he casually strolled into his office, as if it were any other day.

He took out a rare, high-end cigar from his desk drawer, lit it, and savored it with a deep puff.

With a satisfied sigh, he picked up the latest current affairs newspaper, propped his legs up on the desk, and crossed his freshly polished leather shoes.

Another leisurely day of work had begun.

Since the end of the Great Pirate Era, recovery missions had slowed down across the seas, leaving most tasks in the hands of various Marine officers and soldiers. 

Even when pirates did appear, the outcome was typically a decisive victory for the Marines.

In the first half of the Grand Line and the Four Seas, pirates were no match for the Marine forces.

With the Marines' primary duty being the capture of pirates, there wasn't much urgent work to be done in this relatively calm period.

The only potential unrest was in the second half of the Grand Line.

But since the Marines hadn't yet moved into that territory, things were still under control.

Truth be told, with the sea in such a state, if Akira were willing to fully cooperate with the Celestial Dragons and become their obedient "guard dog," life would be quite comfortable.

A daily routine of fishing for work, clocking out at the end of the day, and living that way until retirement—a life many would envy.

"Huh? Gecko Moria was defeated by Kaido of the Beasts?"

Akira's attention was drawn to a headline in the newspaper.

But after a moment of mild interest, he shrugged it off.

As Marine Fleet Admiral, Moria was insignificant both in name and reality.

The Shadow-Shadow Fruit was a fascinating power, but not enough to warrant sending an Admiral after him at the moment.

Besides, the paper mentioned that after escaping Kaido's clutches, Moria had gone missing.

"If any news comes up about him, I'll send someone to capture him," Akira muttered to himself, turning to the next story.

"The 'Desert King' Crocodile made an appearance? Got into a fight with Whitebeard and survived? Interesting."

"Huh? Why is Hawkeye getting involved with that scoundrel, Doflamingo? Odd!"

Time passed as he skimmed the papers, the sunlight streaming through the window slowly shifting.

Suddenly—

Pere~Pere~Pere~Pere~

The den den mushi beside his desk rang.

Lying back in his chair, with a newspaper over his face, Akira lazily moved his eyelids. He stretched out a hand, feeling around for the phone bug for a while before finally picking it up.

"Moshi moshi, Akira here."

"It's Kong. Akira, come to the Holy Land. Saint Nusjuro wants to see you."

Kong's voice was low and firm on the other end. "You know why. You'd better think of an explanation for that incident with the Celestial Dragons."

Akira snapped awake instantly, the laziness vanishing from his demeanor.