Eight o'clock in the morning, Commodore's Office.
"Roya took more than two hundred new recruits and sailed away with the warship?"
Hearing the adjutant's report, Murak didn't even have the energy to get angry. Compared to his previous outrageous behavior, taking the warship without permission was a minor matter.
Let that kid mess around; I just hope he doesn't come crawling back!
Murak cursed inwardly, soon flashing a smile. In a few days, whether he wanted to or not, that kid would have to leave Logue Town!
"The Headquarters Inspector should be arriving soon, right?"
"According to the information from the communications soldiers, they should arrive in Logue Town before noon."
"Let's go welcome them now!"
Roya was a rising star in the East Blue these past two years, so Headquarters had to take it seriously, and specifically dispatched an inspector.
If the accusations from the Logue Town Branch were true, Headquarters would naturally handle the matter impartially. Transferring him from the Branch was the most basic punishment, with the greatest possibility being a return to the 153rd Branch.
----
10:00 AM, Headquarters warship docked.
After confirming each other's identities, the Headquarters Inspector introduced himself with a smile: "Commodore Murak, I am Lieutenant Colonel Gordon from Headquarters, ordered to investigate Major Roya's disruption of military discipline."
"Hello, Lieutenant Colonel Gordon!"
Murak shook his hand enthusiastically. Although the other party was only a Lieutenant Colonel, in the Marine's hierarchy, a Headquarters Lieutenant Colonel's status was in no way lower than his, a Branch Commodore.
"Lieutenant Colonel Gordon, you must be tired from your journey. I have prepared a banquet. Please, Lieutenant Colonel Gordon, relax."
"Sounds good."
Lieutenant Colonel Gordon didn't refuse, lowering his voice and saying, "Commodore Murak, no need to be so polite. I am good friends with Colonel Gorilla."
"Big Brother?"
Murak's eyes lit up.
This is in the bag!
Ohohoho, little Roya, what can you use to fight me!
----
Meanwhile, Cocoyasi Village.
After waiting for almost half a month, Nami finally returned to the Village.
"Nojiko, sis... huh?"
Returning home, Nami saw two strange men and cautiously pulled out her staff, but she quickly recognized them.
"You are the Black Hair Major Roya's subordinates?"
"That's right."
Fullbody and Jango nodded.
"Miss Nami, we are here on Major Roya's orders to find you and discuss the matter of defeating the Arlong Pirates. We need your assistance!"
"..."
Nami was stunned.
[One year, I will eliminate the Arlong Pirates within one year!]
The promise from half a year ago was still vivid in her mind.
She originally thought that the Major was just stringing her along, making excuses for his own cowardice. She hadn't expected him to actually come.
And only half a year had passed.
Nami didn't lose her composure; instead, her face turned cold: "Do you have the confidence to defeat the Arlong Pirates?"
"Honestly, no."
Fullbody shook his head.
Just recently, there was a village that couldn't pay the "tribute," and all the houses in the entire village were overturned.
They specifically went to that village and witnessed the terrifying power of the Fish-Man Race. Even they found it difficult to overturn houses weighing several tons, let alone ordinary Marine soldiers.
And there were nearly a hundred such powerful Fish-Man warriors!
Major Roya had specifically instructed them to treat Nami honestly, so they didn't intend to deceive her.
"We went to Goza Village. The Fish-Man's strength far exceeded our expectations. If the Marine wants to defeat the Fish-Man Pirates, it will inevitably pay a heavy price!"
"Since you know how strong the Fish-Man are, why do you still want to defeat them?"
Nami couldn't understand.
As the Arlong Pirates' only human "surveyor," she actually knew better than anyone how powerful the Arlong Pirates were.
Even just the executives could easily destroy a warship!
She had long despaired.
Not to mention, behind the Arlong Pirates was the famous Seven Warlords of the Sea, Jinbe. Even the Marine was unwilling to take action against the Arlong Pirates.
Raising one hundred million Belly to redeem the Village was her only remaining hope, even if deep down she knew that Arlong was likely deceiving her, she had no other choice.
"Because we trust the Major!"
Fullbody said in a deep voice, "The Major never easily agrees to other people's requests, but as long as the Major makes a promise, he will definitely do it!"
"No matter how great the sacrifice, even if everyone dies in battle, we will definitely defeat the Arlong Pirates!"
"Also, we firmly believe that the Major will definitely be able to defeat Arlong!"
Only trust!
Nami was silent for a long time, then asked sharply: "If your Major ordered you to die, would you do it without hesitation?"
"We don't want to die!"
The two shook their heads at the same time, their eyes blazing.
"The Major said that sacrifices need meaning!"
"If the Major orders us to die, if our death can bring victory, then we will definitely not take half a step back!"
"We are the Marine!"
"Our Justice forbids us from retreating in the face of evil!"
Almost everyone fears death, but on the day they joined the Marine, all Marine soldiers faced death head-on.
Nami pursed her lips.
The two people in front of her were true Marine soldiers worthy of trust.
"What should I do?"
"We need detailed information about the Arlong Pirates, as well as their usual range of activities and methods of operation!"
The most powerful aspect of the Fish-Man wasn't their strength, which was ten times that of Humans, but their nearly invincible combat ability in the Sea.
There was no chance of victory in a naval battle.
Only by placing the battlefield on land could the Marine have a chance of victory.
----
A few days later, Chacha Village, one of the twenty towns ruled by the Arlong Pirates.
Every month, the Arlong Pirates collected tribute. If even one person in the Village didn't pay, the entire Village would be violently destroyed.
Goza Village had disappeared in this way.
"The Fish-Man are here!"
"It's the executive Kuroobi!"
The time for paying tribute every month was the most frightening time for the villagers. When the Arlong Pirates arrived, too many villagers who couldn't pay were killed.
Even though paying tribute later eliminated the threat of death, the Fish-Man's brutality still made them shudder.
Kuroobi, with four subordinates, stood at the entrance of the Village, with an open bag in front of him. Silently, the villagers lined up to pay tribute.
Soon, all the villagers had paid.
Kuroobi nodded slightly, shouldered the money bag, and turned to leave. Unlike Chew, who was also an executive, he didn't have a hobby of torturing Humans.
He'd rather use that time to hone his Fish-Man Karate.
However, as they left the Village, far from the Coast, they were stopped by the suddenly emerging Marine.
"The Marine?!"
Dense ranks of Marine soldiers surged out from all directions, surrounding them. Even with their formidable strength, they couldn't help but panic in the face of so many Marine soldiers.
"Big Brother Kuroobi!"
"Calm down!"
Kuroobi's eyes were cold.
With so many Marine soldiers ambushing outside the Village, the Humans in the Village couldn't possibly not know. He had to destroy this Village when he got back!
Kuroobi stepped forward and calmly asked, "Where did you Marine come from? Colonel Rat of the 16th Branch is good friends with our captain Arlong. Is there some kind of misunderstanding here?"
"Colonel Rat, a very good confession."
Roya slowly drew his sword and ordered in a cold voice.
"Don't hold back, kill all these Fish-Man!"
"Yes!"