In the East Blue, Loguetown.
The massive War Behemoth was docked at the cobblestone harbor, its towering figure awe-inspiring. Mast after mast and cannons densely adorned its surface, displaying the iron-blooded aura of the Marines to the fullest.
Pirates in Loguetown, the city known as both the “beginning and end,” who were preparing to set off for the Grand Line, trembled in fear, hiding in their hideouts.
After over two months of thorough investigation, the identities of the East Blue prosecutors had been confirmed.
Vice Admiral Momonga from the Marine Headquarters, along with Vice Admiral Soryu (Azure Dragon), who had only a few months ago defeated the “legendary pirate” Golden Lion Shiki, had arrived.
Their arrival instantly calmed the roiling tides of the East Blue, and pirates from all walks of life could only cower in hiding, waiting for the limelight to pass.
On the deck, Vice Admiral Momonga found Rowen, who was currently directing soldiers to assemble in formation, and said, “Fleet Admiral called just now. The first batch of officers has crossed the Calm Belt and arrived in the East Blue. They will start taking over the Dictate work of the East Blue branches from the 153rd branch and gradually proceed… Tsk tsk, the Fleet Admiral works fast. The list verification alone should take several months.”
Both of them understood the situation very well. Aside from expressing some admiration for Sengoku’s astuteness as Marine Fleet Admiral, there was no other ripple of emotion.
Rowen nodded in acknowledgment, looking down at the Loguetown Marines below who were trying their best to raise their heads in greeting. Suddenly, he smiled and asked, “By the way, Vice Admiral Momonga, how many branches do we have left to investigate?”
According to the original plan, they were supposed to start from the 173rd branch, sail in the opposite direction of the Upside Down Mountain, circle around the East Blue, and end the investigation in Loguetown.
However, due to the inability to use a Log Pose for navigation during the journey from the Calm Belt to the Four Seas, their course deviated, and their first destination was the 153rd branch. As a result, they missed several branches on the other side.
So even now, having arrived in Loguetown, there were still several branches in the East Blue that they hadn’t visited.
“Hmm? Why do you ask?” As a prosecutor, Rowen’s concern about this matter didn’t seem out of place and Vice Admiral Momonga was just curious about why he was asking at this moment, but he promptly answered, “Aside from the 173rd branch, there are still the 16th, 17th, and 18th branches… The 18th branch is where Commodore Pudding Pudding was stationed. He has already been severely reprimanded for serious dereliction of duty, and the 18th branch is currently under our management, so there’s no need to go there again.”
During the two-plus months of inspections, there were often cases where the senior officials at a branch, from Colonel to Corporal, were all thoroughly examined, leaving the branch leaderless.
In such cases, they certainly couldn’t just leave. They had to leave people behind to protect the safety of the branch and the surrounding residents.
The second reason for deploying ten full War Behemoths was to ensure that they had sufficient forces for subsequent deployment until the arrival of Headquarters personnel to take over.
At this point, the once massive fleet that had arrived had now been reduced to only five ships. Among them, the casualties caused by clearing out fierce beasts numbered less than a hundred, while the remaining three thousand people had been sent to the mountains and countryside.
If quality wasn’t enough, they would make up for it with quantity, striving to turn each branch into an impregnable fortress.
Considering the average level of Headquarters soldiers, the mere East Blue pirates wouldn’t be able to cause much trouble.
“So, there are still three branches left?”
Receiving the exact number, Rowen contemplated for a moment and smiled, “That should be enough!”
Vice Admiral Momonga: “…”
“What do you mean? What are you planning?”
“Calm down, it’s just a security measure… Forget about that, look down there, isn’t that Smoker?”
Rowen decisively changed the subject, causing Vice Admiral Momonga’s mouth to twitch. He shifted his gaze and saw the Marine Colonel, Smoker, who looked more like a hooligan than a military man with his unruly white hair, open chest, and two cigars in his mouth. A trace of dissatisfaction flashed across Vice Admiral Momonga’s face.
“This rascal!!”
Loguetown, the harbor.
“Salute!”
Bang!
With a long whistle, all the soldiers raised their palms to their foreheads in perfect unison, saluting the two Vice Admirals from Headquarters.
As they descended the stairs, before Rowen could say anything, Vice Admiral Momonga decisively took a step forward, drew his sword, and slashed horizontally!
Chk!
The surrounding soldiers felt a terrifying sharpness magnifying in their sight. When the sword light dissipated, they found their senior official, Smoker, who was known for his toughness and hailed as the “White Hunter,” standing stiffly in place, sweat pouring down his forehead.
The cigar in his mouth, now emitting smoke, was cut cleanly in half. The severed end of the cigar fell to the ground and rolled a couple of times. Then, a leather shoe “thudded” down on it.
“Smoker, is this your sense of duty as a Marine?! What do you take Marine’s discipline for?!!”
Clang!
Vice Admiral Momonga’s expression darkened as he sheathed his sword. His stature, already half a head taller than Smoker’s, stood towering over him, making Smoker look like a scolded child.
In fact, it wasn’t far from the truth. As widely known, Smoker was originally a graduate of the Headquarters’ recruit camp, and he had been active in the Grand Line during the early stages of his career. Gradually accumulating achievements, he rose through the ranks to become a Colonel.
During this period, he had been learning alongside Vice Admiral Momonga, much like how Aokiji had followed Garp in the past. Therefore, Vice Admiral Momonga could be considered his second sensei after Zephyr, the person who had guided him to his current position.
He had even recommended Smoker for important positions in the G-Series branches.
However, Smoker’s stubborn style and somewhat old-fashioned thinking were destined to clash with Vice Admiral Momonga. In a mission to clear out pirates, faced with strict orders to capture the criminals alive, he defied orders and killed them instead. While this act was cheered by many, it also constituted a serious offense of insubordination.
The biggest difference between Marines and pirates was that pirates had organization without discipline, while Marines had both organization and discipline. Disobeying orders and disregarding discipline were severe crimes that must be harshly punished in the military!
Furthermore, when questioned by senior officials afterward, he even physically reprimanded the one who gave the order, saying that scum like him didn’t deserve to live in the world, and if he killed him, so be it.
As a result, Smoker was sent to East Blue to temper his character…
If it weren’t for Vice Admiral Momonga’s vigorous efforts to plead with Fleet Admiral, Smoker would have spent at least a few years in a maximum-security prison for that incident. This event also earned Smoker a notorious reputation in the Marine.
Cold-hearted and passionate towards those below, but refusing to yield to anyone above. However, in front of Vice Admiral Momonga, Smoker would never show the slightest hint of disrespect!
After withdrawing his sword from the flash, facing Vice Admiral Momonga’s intense gaze, Smoker awkwardly took the completely extinguished cigar from his mouth and put it into his pocket. He raised his hand in a military salute.
“Vice Admiral Momonga, sir!”
Vice Admiral Momonga silently looked at him, making Smoker’s scalp tingle. In the end, he didn’t say anything, just letting out a sigh.
“This is Vice Admiral Soryu (Azure Dragon)!”
Slightly leaning to the side, Rowen’s figure became visible, and Vice Admiral Momonga gave a brief introduction.
“Rowen, this is Smoker… Don’t let his Logia abilities fool you, he’s actually an utterly incompetent fool!”
Smoker: “…”
That’s going a bit too far!
Can’t you criticize without exposing someone’s flaws? It’s too much! Noticing the faint twitch in Smoker’s eye, Rowen found it somewhat amusing.
Marines don’t have strict requirements for uniforms. It’s not surprising to see all sorts of odd get-ups, and even dressing like a ruffian wouldn’t raise too many eyebrows. However, it was a bit too much to be smoking a cigar while welcoming Headquarters’ prosecutors on such a solemn occasion. Smoker deserved the scolding he received.
Rowen couldn’t help but suspect that it was precisely because Vice Admiral Momonga was known for being old-fashioned and traditional that Sengoku had handed Smoker over to him along with the ship.
Just imagine, if Smoker had been learning on Garp’s ship…
Rowen seriously doubted whether Sengoku could hold out until the year 1520 before retiring!
……
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