Three more days passed.
Marine Headquarters—Pirate Bounty Management Department
The green-haired Vice Admiral was still presiding over the meeting from the podium.
However, his attitude was far more serious than usual, and he was much more mindful of proper etiquette when speaking.
That was because among those attending today's meeting was a special individual.
Dressed in a yellow suit, he sat back in a sofa chair with one leg crossed over the other. He looked utterly lazy as he clipped his nails while listening to the report.
The Vice Admiral was extremely nervous, because the man below appeared quite irritated, his face practically screaming displeasure.
"Admiral Kizaru? Did I say something wrong?"
Kizaru raised his head and clicked his tongue.
"No, I just don't like meetings."
The Vice Admiral immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Since his direct superior was Aokiji, he rarely interacted with Kizaru.
He had heard from others that Kizaru was not particularly enthusiastic about work.
Seeing it for himself today, it truly was not a rumor.
After gathering his thoughts, the green-haired Vice Admiral moved on to the next topic.
"Everyone, stay alert. We are about to begin the most important part of today's meeting."
At those words, everyone in the room sat up straight, including Kizaru.
The Vice Admiral immediately realized he had said something wrong.
"Admiral, please keep lying down."
Kizaru felt helpless. How did this kid become a Vice Admiral? He was even worse at speaking than I am.
"Go on. This matter is rather important, so I should be a little serious.
"If the final conclusion is too outrageous, the Fleet Admiral will scold us."
Hearing that, the green-haired Vice Admiral cleared his throat.
"Today's main topic concerns these two pirate crews.
"The first is the Straw Hat Pirates. Please review the documents on the conference table regarding their deeds.
"I will cover the important points. They have been at sea for less than a month, yet they have consecutively defeated the Buggy Pirates, the Krieg Pirates, and the Arlong Pirates.
"Our intelligence was recently updated. Our previous conclusion regarding how they defeated Buggy was wrong.
"According to information gathered by our agents, the Straw Hat Crew's White-haired Swordsman, Can Yue, defeated Buggy alone. Although Buggy had already been injured by Straw Hat Luffy at the time, this information is still extremely alarming."
At those words, every officer present sucked in a cold breath.
They knew very well that Buggy's original 30 million bounty had been deliberately suppressed by them. His true bounty should have been around 100 million.
So Can Yue had defeated an injured Buggy in a one-on-one fight? There were too many uncertain factors in that information.
"We do not know how badly Buggy was injured, so it is difficult to assess Can Yue's strength."
A Rear Admiral publicly raised this question.
The green-haired Vice Admiral waved for him not to rush, then continued.
"It is difficult to accurately assess the strength of each Straw Hat Pirate based on Buggy alone.
"Let us continue analyzing the other incidents.
"At the Sea Restaurant Baratie, the Straw Hat Pirates clashed with the Krieg Pirates.
"During that conflict, Pirate Hunter Zoro instantly defeated Iron Wall Bara, a Krieg Pirates officer with a 10 million bounty.
"The captain, Straw Hat Kid Luffy, completely overwhelmed Krieg, who had a 17 million bounty.
"Afterward, Pirate Hunter Zoro challenged Hawk Eyes, the World's Greatest Swordsman. He forced Hawk Eyes to draw his black blade through his own strength, but ultimately lost their clash.
"Most terrifying of all, the White-haired Swordsman Can Yue fought Hawk Eyes, and at the beginning, they were evenly matched.
"Five days ago, the Straw Hat Pirates wiped out the Arlong Pirates."
Every piece of information made the officers' hearts tremble.
Especially after hearing about Can Yue's battle with Hawk Eyes, everyone could no longer remain seated.
Even Kizaru stopped clipping his nails, his brow faintly furrowing.
Defeating Krieg and the Arlong Pirates meant little to the Marines.
But sparring with Hawk Eyes and surviving was no small matter.
The officers began discussing among themselves.
Finally, another Rear Admiral raised a question.
"What was the process and outcome of Can Yue's battle with Hawk Eyes?"
The green-haired Vice Admiral sighed softly before responding.
"Our undercover agent within the Krieg Pirates got too close in order to clearly observe their battle and was accidentally killed by the aftermath.
"However, afterward, we repeatedly tried to verify the matter with Hawk Eyes, but we could not reach him for several days.
"Not until yesterday did we manage to contact Mihawk."
Hearing this, every officer focused intently, afraid of missing even a single detail.
The Vice Admiral coughed and moistened his throat.
"Hawk Eyes definitely won."
"Whew..." Everyone in the room let out a breath.
Before they could fully relax, the Vice Admiral immediately added.
"But Hawk Eyes said that killing Can Yue would have been somewhat difficult!
"Then that man hung up the Den Den Mushi."
The officers all frowned. Though the information Hawk Eyes had provided was limited, it at least proved one thing.
The Straw Hat Pirates' White-haired Swordsman, Can Yue, had earned the recognition of Hawk Eyes, the World's Greatest Swordsman.
There were not many people who could earn his recognition, even in the New World.
Then there was the fact that Can Yue had defeated an injured Buggy.
From that, they could roughly draw a conclusion.
Can Yue's strength should be close to that of a Shichibukai.
Although Straw Hat Luffy had lost to Buggy, he had still managed to injure him, so his strength could not be weak either.
Admiral Borsalino was rarely serious for a moment, though it lasted only a moment.
In his view, regardless of whether the Marines' current intelligence had been exaggerated, the Straw Hat Pirates could at most contend with the forces of a single Shichibukai, and they might not even win.
As far as an Admiral like him was concerned, they were worth noting, but not worth excessive attention.
The only ones capable of making an Admiral nervous were the Four Emperors!
Recently, however, Four Emperors Whitebeard, Four Emperors Kaido, and Four Emperors Red-Hair all seemed somewhat restless.
Thus, after Kizaru spoke with the green-haired Vice Admiral, the green-haired Vice Admiral made the decision.
"Since the Straw Hat Pirates have not yet committed any major atrocities, their provisional bounties are as follows:
Pirate Hunter Zoro: 30 million
Captain, Straw Hat Kid Luffy: 50 million
White-haired Swordsman Can Yue: 65 million
That long-nosed one currently has no reference data. Aside from being a pirate, no criminal record has been discovered, so he will be ignored for now.
There is also a woman named Nami. We only know that she exploited villagers, stole money, and robbed food. Her provisional bounty is 3 million.
It is unclear whether there are other crew members. Additional bounties may be issued later depending on the circumstances."
The matter was settled directly, with no objections permitted.
Considering that the Admiral was eager to get off work, the green-haired Vice Admiral immediately raised the final topic.
"Some time ago, Clown Buggy awakened his ability and decided to return to the Grand Line.
"What should his new bounty be? Begin the discussion."
Meanwhile, in Cocoyasi Village in the East Blue.
Village doctor Nago was chatting beneath a tree with village policeman Gen.
"Gen, what exactly did you tell the Marines?"
Gen smiled.
"I told them that the Straw Hat Pirates only consisted of Can Yue, Luffy, Zoro, Nami, and Usopp.
"According to the information those two Pirate Hunters gave me,
"the existence of those five had long been known, so it could not be concealed.
"Chef Sanji made his first public appearance here, so he could be hidden.
"Then I slightly altered the battle scenes."
Interest appeared on Nago's aged face.
"You are quite crafty. What exactly did you say?"
Gen looked confident.
"Luffy fought Arlong for over a dozen exchanges before Captain Luffy finally won.
"Of the remaining three officers, Zoro took care of one, while Can Yue dealt with two.
"In the end, everyone worked together to eliminate the rest of the Arlong Pirates."
Nago nodded after hearing that.
Though neither of them understood how the Marines precisely judged a pirate's threat level,
the weaker they appeared, the less threatening they would surely seem to the Marines.
So they had made Can Yue and the others sound weaker, while also concealing one crew member.
Of course, they could not make it sound too fake.
That way, the Straw Hat Pirates would not draw too much attention from the Marines.
Then Nami would face a little less danger while sailing with them.
Since they lacked the strength to protect Nami, they could only use a kind lie to give the Straw Hat Pirates time to grow.
That was the only thing they could do for Nami.
On a small island in the Grand Line.
Hawk Eyes, the World's Greatest Swordsman, was enjoying freshly roasted wild boar meat.
As the roasted meat entered his stomach, Hawk Eyes recalled his conversation with Marine Headquarters yesterday.
Then, thinking of the consequences this matter might bring, he revealed a faintly meaningful smile.
"Can Yue, so that I may see you and Roronoa again in the future, I did not reveal your true strength.
"But one way or another, you will encounter a little trouble."
Unconsciously, Hawk Eyes felt a little pleased by their misfortune.
"Who told you to embarrass me at that restaurant?"
Before you continue