One Piece: Shanks' Little Jasmine

Chapter 75 Observation

Moko had already told Garp that she would be back for the meeting, so Garp arranged for a change of fleet to wait for her at Sabaody Archipelago. Garp never inquired about Moko's whereabouts. The reason he brought Moko to the Navy was so that she could travel and have fun at sea. Besides, Garp knew that Moko's business was Moko's business. With Moko's business developing so rapidly, Moko naturally needed to be busy managing her business. Garp was more worried that Moko might overwork herself.

Boarding the waiting warship, Moko returned to Marineford in no time. After changing into her naval uniform, she went to the conference room without much rest. There were already quite a few people in the conference room, including Zephyr, whom Moko knew quite well. Garp and Tsuru were likely to come with Sengoku. After thinking for a moment, Moko found a seat in the back row of the admiral's seat area.

As soon as Moko entered, many eyes fell on her, scrutinizing this assistant to the general personally appointed by the Warring States Marshal.

Generally speaking, newcomers like Moko, who haven't even received a rank yet, wouldn't be qualified to participate in meetings of this level. However, Moko's position is quite special. As the assistant to three prospective admirals and the granddaughter of Vice Admiral Garp, no one dares to say anything bad about her. Of course, the main reason is that Vice Admiral Garp is a granddaughter-obsessed person, and the three prospective admirals seem to be quite friendly towards this assistant. Given this relationship, who would bother to cause trouble for Moko and make themselves miserable? Even if they were bored, they wouldn't be out of their minds.

Moko tried to ignore the gazes around her. When Zefa looked over, she nodded, and Zefa nodded slightly in response. This immediately intensified the gazes around her. If even General Zefa was so familiar with her, then she was definitely not to be underestimated.

Just when Moko was about to give up under all those stares, the door opened again, and three preliminary generals walked in. Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to them, and Moko couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Borsalino, who had been looking tired, brightened up when he saw Moko sitting in front of him. He took a few big steps to Moko's side, and instead of sitting in his usual seat, he sat down in the chair next to Moko.

One person was fine, but the problem was when did Kuzan, who was yawning on the other side, sit down? Now, even more eyes were drawn to him. Moko felt a twitch in her forehead; she didn't really want to attract attention.

"My lovely little lady, it's been so long!"

"Long time no see, Lieutenant General Borsalino, and Lieutenant General Kuzan too, long time no see."

"Long time no see, Miss Moko has become even more beautiful."

"Thank you for the compliment, Lieutenant General Kuzan."

Moko was quite formally polite. Other Marines would probably be thrilled to receive praise for being a candidate for Admiral, but Moko had heard it so many times. After all, Kuzan was Garp's unofficial disciple. Moko saw Kuzan almost every day during her time at Marine Headquarters. Moko had never seen Kuzan handle any work. He really treated work as nothing. No wonder Fleet Admiral Sengoku got a headache whenever he talked about the two of them.

Sakazuki didn't say anything, just glanced at Moko before sitting down in his assigned seat and closing his eyes to rest. He didn't give Moko much attention, but Moko didn't mind. After all, Sakazuki didn't talk much usually, and in her memory, he was the only one who looked like a general, and his work was completely worry-free.

Not long after, Sengoku arrived with Garp and Tsuru. The two vice admirals, who had been chattering away in Moko's ear, finally sat back down in their original seats. Moko sighed almost imperceptibly. These two were so noisy, it was giving her a headache. She should have brought some snacks to shut them up.

Once everyone had arrived, Sengoku began the meeting. The main purpose of this meeting was to discuss the Whitebeard Pirates and Fishman Island. Whitebeard's influence at sea was considerable, and compared to the other two Sea Emperors who rarely ventured out, Whitebeard's actions were far more conspicuous.

"So, what are your opinions?"

Sengoku's sharp eyes swept over the various naval personnel seated below him.

Garp sat next to Moko, secretly slipping her senbei (rice crackers), completely ignoring what Sengoku was saying. Moko felt that agreeing to join the Navy with Garp was a huge mistake. What kind of subordinate eats during a meeting?! Hey!!

Grandpa Garp, please look at Fleet Admiral Sengoku's eyes! Don't be so arrogant! If there weren't too many people in the meeting room, Moko felt that Sengoku would have punched Garp right there.

(Warring States Period: (▼皿▼) )

He sat to the side watching with great interest, making no attempt to dissuade them. However, seeing the three of them so unhurried, He even seemed to enjoy watching the spectacle. Moko had a pretty good idea of ​​what was going on.

For such important matters, the decision had already been made privately during the Warring States period. The meeting was most likely just a formality to inform others.

Aside from Garp's unreliability, Borsalino and Kuzan weren't much better off. Their half-open eyes made them look like they were about to fall asleep. Zephyr was completely uninvolved and didn't express any opinion. Sakazuki seemed to be seriously thinking, but the aura of wanting to fight emanating from him was just too strong.

The discussion among the others was even more heated, with opinions polarized between those who wanted to send troops to seize the territory and those who wanted to continue observing. As the argument grew increasingly heated, Zhan Guo suddenly slammed his hand on the table, and the meeting room instantly fell silent.

Sengoku cleared his throat and began to share his insights. "Fishman Island is located on the seabed. Whitebeard hasn't made any other moves yet. If we rashly send troops, our casualties will be extremely heavy. Until Whitebeard makes any further moves, the Marine Headquarters should continue its reconnaissance and refrain from sending troops without authorization. Understand?"

"Yes!"

Rather than fearing heavy casualties, the main reason was the orders from above. Neither the World Government nor the Celestial Dragons intended to fall out with a Sea Emperor, especially given the disparity in strength and the unfavorable situation for them.

With Sengoku having spoken, no one else had any objections. The next step was to discuss how to deal with Fishman Island in the future, since Fishman Island was one of the only two routes to the New World, and its strategic location was quite important.

The meeting lasted for nearly six hours in total, and the final solution was in line with Moko's expectations. With unclear intelligence, unknown numbers, opposition from superiors, and little geographical advantage, the area that the navy could control was too small. The best approach was for the enemy not to move and for us not to move, maintaining the current peaceful coexistence.

After figuring out the Navy and the World Government's attitude towards Fishman Island, Moko finally felt relieved. Next, she could notify Yubi to continue cooperating with those who had partnerships with Fishman Island. After all, Yubi was an expert at negotiating business.

Seeing Moko's exhaustion, Garp didn't make her continue attending the remaining miscellaneous meetings. He urged her to go back and rest. After being busy for more than half a month, the moment the matter was finally settled, exhaustion quickly overwhelmed her. Moko did not refuse Garp's suggestion. After saying goodbye to the several generals and vice admirals she knew, she left.

Back at the villa, Moko went straight to bed and slept soundly for a whole day until she woke up hungry at noon the next day. It turned out that Moko hadn't eaten anything since having a little snack with Uta the day before, and she was starving.

Moko couldn't even imagine the look Shanks would give her if he found out. Shanks couldn't bear to scold Moko, so when Moko threw a tantrum, Shanks would look at her with an extremely pitiful, abandoned look. Every time, Moko would reflect on whether she shouldn't have been so harsh on Shanks.

"Gurgle~"

Her stomach was already protesting, so Moko stopped overthinking and quickly washed up before heading to the kitchen. When Moko was alone, she would eat very simply, and she was just thinking of making a bowl of noodles when the doorbell rang.

As soon as she opened the door, she saw Tina holding a basket in her hand, smiling happily at Moko. Behind her was Smoker leaning against the door frame, as usual, with an unlit cigar in his mouth. Moko seemed to have never seen Smoker light a cigarette in front of her before.

"Tina bought some delicious snacks and wants to eat them with Moko-chan!"

"Gurgle~"

Before Moko could even respond, Tina's stomach growled. Tina's face instantly turned bright red with embarrassment. Yesterday, Zephyr had told her after his meeting that Moko wasn't in a good mood and looked very tired. Hearing that Moko was unhappy was unacceptable. This morning, she dragged Smoker out of bed and went to Moko in the Sabaody Archipelago to buy some delicious snacks. After all, when you're tired, a sweet treat is all you need to feel better, and that's exactly how she is.

Moko blinked, looking at the Jasmine logo on the basket, and guessed that Tina and Smoker must have gotten up early in the morning. Thinking of this, Moko couldn't help but smile. The warm sun shone down on Moko's forehead, and her soft, wispy hair danced gently in the wind. Her eyes were like clear autumn water. Even Tina was stunned by this scene.

"I was just about to make lunch, Tina, would you like to eat with me?"

"Hehe, okay, after we finish eating, we'll eat the snacks Tina brought."

"Smoker, come along too. Eating alone is no fun."

Moko looked at Smoker and cut off his excuse for refusing, giving him no chance to argue. Smoker pursed his lips and nodded. He was indeed hungry now, having been dragged to the Sabaody Archipelago by Tina early in the morning.

Back in the kitchen, Moko took out a lot of vegetables from the refrigerator. She hadn't been back for half a month, and all that was left in the refrigerator were some easy-to-store vegetables like potatoes and carrots. After looking at the remaining ingredients, Moko finally decided to make curry and go buy some more ingredients later.

Cut the chicken and various vegetables into pieces, stir-fry them in oil in a pot until cooked, and when they look almost done, add water and simmer. You can also add curry cubes and seaweed powder. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low heat and simmer until the meat is tender.

The pot was bubbling with a delicious aroma. Tina peeked longingly from the kitchen door, her eyes practically glued to the stew pot. Moko chuckled and ladled out a small dish for Tina to try.

The curry was very flavorful, not too spicy or too bland. Tina gave a thumbs up, her eyes shining. Without Moko saying anything, she set out the bowls and chopsticks and waited for the meal to begin. Smoker also stood up from his chair and helped put the stew pot on the table.

Before the three of them could even start eating, there was another knock at the door. Moko raised an eyebrow in confusion. Was it all happening today?

Upon opening the door, Garp arrived with Borsalino and Kuzan, followed by a pile of fresh fruits and vegetables and chilled seafood.

Moko blinked. They even brought their own ingredients to freeload, showing they knew their own tastes quite well. Seeing the three of them looking mischievous, Moko smiled and opened the door a little wider.

"Curry is all we have today."

"Hehe, Grandpa loves all the food Xiao Mo makes. By the way, the melons are so sweet this season. Grandpa went out and got a lot of them. Xiao Mo has to try some later."

"Okay, come in and eat first. You won't have the strength to move things if you don't eat your fill."

Moko chuckled and returned to the kitchen. It was fortunate that the Navy had the financial support of various noble families and world noble families behind it, otherwise they probably wouldn't be able to support so many big eaters.

They stewed a lot of curry and rice, and without Moko even having to ask, someone came to help serve it to the table. The meat was stewed until tender and flavorful, and the whole group ate with happy faces. Tina's cheeks were bulging from eating, making her look especially cute.

The midday sun was shining brightly, warming them. Moko and Tina sat on the sofa eating snacks and melons, watching the several grown men busy at work. If anyone else saw this, their jaws would probably drop to the floor. After all, who would dare to order Vice Admiral Garp and the two pre-selected admirals around? But Moko was probably the only one who could get Vice Admiral Garp and the two pre-selected admirals to work voluntarily.

"Speaking of which, with this early recall, the missions of the three lieutenant generals have also been interrupted, so it seems that the higher-ups are planning to reassign them new missions."

Tina was eating melon and whispering to Moko. Moko glanced at Borsalino and Kuzan, who were sitting opposite her eating snacks after moving their things, and showed no surprise.

Although they are called prospective admirals, the three are already officially recognized as naval admirals. The mission is just a pretext. If nothing unexpected happens, we will likely hear accurate news by the end of this year.

Admiral, it seems she'll have more opportunities to get close to the World Government from now on. The road ahead is still long if the World Government truly acknowledges equality on Fish-Man Island…

"Moko-chan, the weather is so nice today, let's go for a walk."

Moko followed Tina's gaze to the bright, cloudless sky, where the sun hung high, dazzling and radiant.

"Yes, the weather is really nice."