East Blue Big Shot

East Blue Big Shot

"Oh, oh, oh, is that so? I understand. Don't worry, I'll handle it."

"You've already been promoted to commodore? Congratulations, Colonel Sean—no, I should call you Commodore Sean now. Will you be transferred to the New World next? Congratulations, congratulations. Perhaps we'll meet again in the New World. The new colonel of Loguetown? I understand. Don't worry, I'll handle it."

Xia Che casually tossed the disconnected Den Den Mushi to Miss Robin beside him, then frowned and fell into thought.

That call had been to his partner, Commodore Sean, the former Loguetown Base Commander.

Although Commodore Sean was not particularly strong, he was not rigid either. He did not abide by the so-called Absolute Justice, yet neither was he excessively corrupt or greedy.

As he saw it, he was merely an ordinary man with limited abilities. As long as he could protect his jurisdiction and the civilians within it, that was enough.

He and Commodore Sean had worked well together for many years. To be honest, Xia Che was somewhat reluctant to see Sean leave.

As for this so-called Inspection Team... according to the information Commodore Sean had sent him, Xia Che had spent the past few years using his resistance against a vicious pirate crew—the Moke Pirates—to request military funding. He had done so for several years, and the higher-ups now suspected that he had been fabricating expenses.

After all, Marine Headquarters knew the situation in the East Blue perfectly well.

Thanks to a certain Marine Hero constantly returning to his hometown for family visits, there simply were no overly powerful pirate crews in these waters.

And what about their 16th Branch?

Over the past few years, they had not caught a single pirate crew. They had spent nearly three years chasing just one crew, driving its bounty from zero to thirty million.

And throughout those three years, they had constantly complained about being poor, suffering heavy losses, and having outdated equipment, demanding military funding for three whole years.

For all those years, they had chased only one pirate crew. And such powerful pirates did not cause trouble for any other branch—they only bullied the 16th Branch?

They were even strong enough to enter the Grand Line, yet they simply refused to go?

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

How deep did that grudge have to be?

Thus, after repeatedly requesting military funding, the higher-ups had noticed something was wrong. After discussions among the relevant departments, they now seriously suspected that the 16th Branch had been swindling military funds!

"What do we do? What do we do? I heard the Marine Inspection Team has already arrived at the 16th Branch!" Nami paced back and forth anxiously. Looking at Xia Che, who was deep in thought, she hesitated before finally gritting her teeth and saying, "Let's go to sea! Why don't we become pirates together? I'll steer the ship, and we'll run away together. With my skills, we'll definitely be able to evade the Marines' pursuit!"

As she spoke, she raised her head despairingly.

"I don't want to be locked up in prison while I'm still so young~"

However.

Hearing Nami's words, Xia Che looked at her oddly, then comforted her. "Don't worry. Even if they arrest someone, it'll only be me. You're just a branch sergeant, and you haven't even been registered with Headquarters. The Marines probably don't even know you're a sergeant of the 16th Branch."

Neither Robin nor Nami had been registered. Robin was because of... her identity, while Nami simply had not been reported yet.

And to Headquarters, a branch sergeant was completely insignificant. It made no difference whether she was reported or not, since she was not going to Headquarters for further training anyway.

As soon as he finished speaking.

"What are you talking about?" Apparently angered by Xia Che's words, Nami grabbed his collar furiously. "I'm clearly this worried, and you're still saying things like that! Didn't you invite me to become your partner? Damn it, I didn't want to become a pirate either, but there's no other choice now."

As she spoke, she glared at Xia Che before her.

This guy...

He was seriously infuriating. Did he believe she would not just quit? Next time he invited her aboard, she would refuse.

"That's right, Colonel Xia Che. We know you're not a bad person, but now..." Kensuke, captain of the Cocoyasi Village Security Force, looked at the furious Nami. After sighing inwardly, he said worriedly, "If it really comes to it, follow Nami's suggestion and run! We'll help hold back the Marines and buy you time."

"Yeah! Colonel, run! I heard that Marine Hero has come too."

"Please rest assured, we'll definitely look after Cocoyasi Village. Everyone will always remember the colonel's kindness."

"Alright, I already said there's no need to worry." Xia Che patted Nami's hand and helplessly stopped everyone from trying to persuade him.

He understood everyone's concerns as well.

But right now...

"The situation isn't that serious yet." Xia Che glanced over the crowd, tapping the table with the five fingers of his right hand. Once everyone had quieted down, he said expressionlessly, "I'll handle it. Everyone, go back to your work."

He paused slightly.

"If it truly doesn't work out, I'll run away as you all suggested."

Hearing that, everyone finally felt somewhat relieved.

They were all extremely nervous about the suddenly appearing Inspection Team. They did not want their benefactor to be arrested just like that.

Colonel Xia Che was clearly a good man. He had driven away the pirates and those hateful Marines, allowing everyone to eat their fill. How could he be arrested?

But since Colonel Xia Che had said so, they could only accept it. Worried about disturbing him, everyone remained somewhat anxious, but they quietly left and returned to their work so Colonel Xia Che would not have to worry about them as well.

"Do you really have a way?" Nami rubbed the hand Xia Che had patted red, blew on it, then looked at him irritably. "That was way too hard. It hurts! If it comes down to it, we should still run. That's the Marine Hero! Robin, you should talk some sense into BOSS too!"

However.

"BOSS is a smart man. We don't need to worry about him." Unlike the others, Robin sat nearby, leisurely drinking black tea and reading a book. She did not seem worried at all. Smiling faintly, she raised her head and said elegantly, "Besides, I'm only a lowly secretary. Why would BOSS listen to me?"

She sighed and shook her head.

"If it really comes to it, we can only find a new boss."

"..."

Why did she make that sound so sarcastic?

Xia Che rolled his eyes, but continued, "It's only suspicion. Headquarters doesn't have conclusive evidence yet. You have to remember, we're Marines who uphold justice. How could we possibly do something like that?"

However.

Nami merely rolled her eyes at him. As the navigator, she had personally shown the Moke Pirates the way. How could she not know what was going on?

This guy was even trying to fool her!

"Ahem." Seeing Nami's expression, Xia Che gave two fake coughs and continued righteously, "Every bit of military funding we requested was applied for according to the rules. It was legal and compliant. It's simply that the Moke Pirates are vicious and the Marine 16th Branch truly can't withstand them. Asking for a little more money to buy equipment is perfectly normal. It's all to protect the seas!"

He was not worried about Garp. That guy's hands were even dirtier than his own. Xia Che was not really a pirate, nor had he done anything bad.

As long as Xia Che wanted to run, he believed that slacker would not truly go all out to catch him, just like when he had chased the Axe Emperor.

If it really came to it... he would just run away.

Having operated here for so long, he had plenty of ways to escape if he wanted to.

Compared to Garp, the one giving him a bigger headache was Smoker. That guy truly enforced the law impartially and was utterly incorruptible. If he wanted to arrest someone, he would go all out.

Of course~

Xia Che was not worried about Smoker's current strength either.

It would not be so easy for Smoker to catch him, anyway. Of course, if possible, Xia Che did not want to go to sea like this and become a pirate constantly hiding from place to place. Besides...

Xia Che clasped his hands before his chin, a serious expression appearing on his sharply defined face. "I suspect another East Blue Big Shot is about to emerge. The Moke Pirates... are a vicious crew of great pirates!"

As long as they did not catch Moke, who could say that he was colluding with pirates?

As he spoke, he directly took out his Den Den Mushi and dialed a number. In a solemn tone, he said, "Hello, is that Moke?"

"Boss!" A booming voice came from the other end. "I'm on my way to the Conomi Islands! Udo is on the ship too, along with a few guys I haven't seen before. Are they new underlings you recruited, Boss?"

He continued cheerfully, "We ran into them on the way. They were trying to get to the Conomi Islands in a broken little boat, so I let them board. Oh, right, Boss, did you call because something happened?"

"...There was something just now, but there isn't anymore! I'm hanging up. If there's nothing important, don't call me Boss again."

"???"

What did Boss mean by that?

But before the utterly confused Moke Den Den Mushi could say anything.

"Beep, beep, beep~"

The Den Den Mushi was hung up directly.

Xia Che:...

He silently stared at the Den Den Mushi in his hand, then let out a long sigh. "What a sin!"

Let us rewind time slightly.

Before Xia Che and the others held their meeting, in the waters near the East Blue's 16th Branch.

A massive pirate ship was slowly sailing across the tranquil sea.

If anyone saw the pirate flag with a fish bone fluttering above it, they would know that it belonged to the East Blue's vicious pirate crew that had given the Marine 16th Branch a headache and evaded capture for years—the Moke Pirates.

At this moment.

The pirate ship was clearly sitting deep in the water as though it carried something heavy. On its deck.

"Achoo!"

An enormous sneeze rang out.

"Boss." A Moke Pirates underling looked curiously at the bald, burly giant before him, who stood nearly three meters tall and was rubbing his nose. "The 16th Branch is up ahead. Should we stop by?"

However.

"Stop by for what? Remember, we're pirates now." In response to his underling's question, Moke slapped the hand rubbing his nose against the back of the man's head. "Don't cause trouble for Boss Xia Che. We'll go see Boss Xia Che after we unload the cargo at Cocoyasi Village!"

As someone personally raised by Boss Xia Che, he knew Boss Xia Che's rules very well. Even though it would be fine if they went now, there was no need to cause Boss Xia Che trouble.

As soon as he finished speaking.

The underling, who had been smacked hard on the back of the head, pursed his lips resentfully. He understood Boss Moke's meaning, but...

He pointed ahead and said aggrievedly, "But there's a small boat coming out from the 16th Branch ahead of us. Do we just ignore it too?"

"What small boat?" Hearing his underling's words, Moke froze for a moment and raised his head to look toward the 16th Branch. Sure enough, he saw a small boat slowly moving across the sea, apparently heading toward Cocoyasi Village as well.

It came from the 16th Branch?

And it was traveling in a small boat. Could something have happened?

Moke pondered for a moment, rubbing his bald head before saying, "We're all brothers. Go ask whether they've run into any trouble. If that little boat has to row all the way to Cocoyasi Village, the sun will probably be setting by the time they get there!"

He waved his hand grandly. "Bring the ship over and see if they need help."