Balanced Peace

Balanced Peace (平和の均衡, Heiwa no Kinkō) is the belief held by Fleet Admiral Kurama, of which he promotes through the marines, that a peaceful world can only be sustained through an absolute balance governed by those who hold power; replacing that of the that his predecessor,, boasted. According to Kurama, the power of the world has changed hands all throughout history, and it is because of this flow of power that the world has always been unbalanced. Only when the marines arose to power did the opportunity for true balance present itself, and it is Kurama's belief that he is the one that can lead the marines toward that ideal world.

Kurama states that human nature cannot be eradicated. One may try to kill off all pirates to achieve "absolute justice" by removing the evil in the world, but that evil will just be replaced by another one. Such is the way of the world. Therefore, to truly create a peaceful world, one must not destroy evil, but control that evil; allowing it to do as it pleases under the thumb of a higher power, assuring that all the evil in the world will not be succeeded by a greater evil that could threaten to destroy the world. That is what Kurama believes to be true balance, one that guarantees an eternal peace in the world.

Though the two principles do sound similar, even to the point that most believe Kurama is indeed a devout follower of Absolute Justice, the concept of Balanced Justice allows for the existence of pirates to do as they please, so long as it is in service to the marines. While those of justice are often willing to sacrifice themselves for the sake of killing that which they consider evil, Kurama's balanced peace is a belief that execution is used as a teaching tool to keep people in line. If the death of one person, at the right time, can be used to avoid the deaths of several others, then it is the best outcome.