Retract That Statement

At that moment.

Everyone looked at the Marine Hero.

Especially Nami, who had originally been somewhat nervous. Colonel Mouse and the Arlong Pirates came to mind, and she immediately looked at Garp with both anger and contempt.

And this was supposed to be a Marine Hero?

Wasn't he just like Colonel Mouse?

As for Xia Che... he was different in her heart. At the very least, he had never done anything outrageously evil.

He had even saved Cocoyasi Village!

Even Smoker, who had originally intended to question Xia Che about justice, now seemed deflated. After looking at Garp with a complicated expression, he looked at Xia Che again, seeming to want to say something but not knowing how to begin.

His face darkened.

His own superior's hands weren't clean, so what right did he have to question a colonel who had merely wanted to make sure villagers could eat their fill?

Although Xia Che's status was different from Vice Admiral Garp's, he understood that this little blemish meant nothing to Vice Admiral Garp.

Perhaps even Fleet Admiral Sengoku would not care if he heard about it, but Vice Admiral Garp was the Marine Hero!

At Marine Headquarters, he was like the benchmark and faith of every Marine!

And now...

Good grief...

They had come to investigate collusion between Marines and pirates, yet now the Inspection Team had already fallen apart!

Couldn't they see it? The pirates who should have been arrested by them were all looking at them with contempt now.

As for Tashigi... sensing that the atmosphere had turned strange, confusion appeared on her little face. Unlike Colonel Smoker, Tashigi was someone who offered even villains chances and kindness, so she did not believe Colonel Xia Che had violated so-called justice.

Colonel Xia Che was also a Marine who carried justice on his shoulders.

She also understood that after learning everything the 16th Branch had done, Colonel Smoker did not truly want to arrest Colonel Xia Che. He was simply furious that Xia Che had cooperated with pirates.

But what were they supposed to do now?

And at that moment...

Seeing everyone's eyes fixed on him, Garp's expression stiffened before instantly returning to normal. He resumed his cheerful smile and scratched his head. "Oh? You found out?"

As he spoke, he lowered his head and looked calmly at Xia Che.

"Kid, how did you know?"

"I merely obtained the information by chance." Seeing that the atmosphere was about right, Xia Che revealed a calm smile. "So... Vice Admiral Garp, do you have anything else to say?"

The moment his words fell.

Before Garp, who was scratching his head and wondering what to do, could speak, Smoker suddenly stood up from the side. He feared that if this continued, something else unexpected would happen.

Smoker looked expressionlessly at Xia Che and got straight to the point. "Dander Xieche, you colluded with pirates and defrauded Marine Headquarters of military funds..."

"Hey, wait, wait, wait. What do you mean, colluded with pirates? Our 16th Branch has never done such a thing." Xia Che spread his hands as if playing dumb. "Don't slander us. As for defrauding military funds... every request we made for military funds was legal and compliant. Otherwise, Marine Headquarters would never have approved them. If you don't believe me, ask Udo~."

"Yes, our 16th Branch has never defrauded anyone of military funds." At Xia Che's signal, Udo hurriedly nodded and said earnestly, "Every time I requested military funds, I followed the procedures. All the paperwork was legal and compliant!"

"Colonel Smoker, don't falsely accuse us!"

"That's right, Colonel Smoker. Our 16th Branch is poor, so what's wrong with asking for a little more money?"

"You still want to quibble?" Hearing Xia Che and Udo's back-and-forth, Smoker's face turned completely black. "Captain of the Moke Pirates..."

But before he could finish.

"Thank you, Colonel Smoker, for assisting the 16th Branch in successfully capturing the Moke Pirates." Xia Che directly interrupted Smoker, speaking with a solemn expression. "This group of vicious pirates has plagued our 16th Branch for years. They were extremely cunning, but unexpectedly, they were finally brought to justice today."

Then he turned to Udo.

"Hey, Udo, hurry up and send the Captain of the Moke Pirates to the 16th Branch prison. Don't let him get away!"

"Yes, Colonel!"

"..."

Was this guy treating them like idiots?

Watching Colonel Xia Che and Marine Udo continue to argue, Smoker's expression darkened further. He slammed his palm down on the table. "Are you making a fool of the Marines? Colonel Xia Che, have you forgotten Teacher Zephyr's teachings? Have you forgotten the justice you bear as a Marine?"

"Marine justice?" Xia Che glanced at Garp, who was cheerfully watching the show from the side, and raised an eyebrow.

Good grief, even at this point, was this old man still not going to say anything?

Wasn't he worried they might actually start fighting?

As a transmigrator, Xia Che did not believe in so-called justice at all. The World Government at the top was already rotten to the core!

The roots were rotten, so what justice was there to discuss with him?

If they had the guts, they could kill him. At worst, he would return and become a fourth-level civil servant department chief.

That was enough!

He was not afraid in the slightest.

Xia Che sat back down and looked at Colonel Smoker, whose face was cold. He spoke expressionlessly. "What kind of justice is this so-called Marine justice?"

"Maintaining peace and order in the world, and driving out the evil that brings chaos to the seas!"

"Driving out the evil that brings chaos to the seas? Then what exactly is the evil that brings chaos to the seas? Senior Smoker, does justice become justice simply because someone claims to bear it?" Xia Che sighed as he looked at Smoker. He also knew that not every Marine understood the truth about the World Government and the darkness hidden within the Marines.

Xia Che stood up, met Smoker's gaze directly, and said calmly, "Is it those who burn, kill, and plunder? The slave-catching groups that seize slaves at will? Or those who hunted innocent pregnant women everywhere because of one baby? Or those who caused the destruction of God Valley..."

Before he could finish.

Just as expected.

"Shut up!"

He was interrupted!

Garp interrupted him directly!

Garp's cheerful smile vanished. He frowned and looked sternly at Xia Che. "Xia Che, although this old man does not know where you learned these secrets, some secrets are fine to know, but they cannot be spoken aloud."

"Of course~ I was merely frightened by Senior Smoker just now."

If it had been in front of anyone else, he truly would not have dared to say those things so easily. But he had no choice. If he wanted to develop in the East Blue, he could not avoid these two.

Raising his head, Xia Che looked at Smoker, whose brow had furrowed because of his words. After a moment of silence, he still said, "Senior Smoker, the justice borne by the Marines may not be as just as you imagine. In this era, there is no absolute justice!"

As his words fell.

Before Smoker, who was staring deeply at him, could say anything.

"I knew Sengoku would only dump troublesome matters on this old man." Garp clutched his head in pain. "I thought you were just a Marine colluding with pirates, but it turns out you know even more than I expected. What do we do now? How about we pretend we never met?"

"Vice Admiral Garp..." Smoker looked speechlessly at Garp. Although he did not know what Xia Che's words meant, he could sense that this was an extremely troublesome matter.

The Marine Hero wanted to abandon his post and run away?

How could it not be troublesome?

But before he could say anything.

"Let's leave it at that for now!" Garp picked his nose and looked cheerfully at Xia Che, whose hand had remained on the hilt of his sword. "This old man is already old. I don't want to find more trouble for myself now! Besides, you... don't really want to arrest this kid either, do you?"

"Hmph!" Smoker snorted coldly after Garp exposed him so directly, but he did not say anything else.

His face dark, he turned to Xia Che again. "The Moke Pirates must be judged. I will arrest the Moke Pirates and lock them in Loguetown prison."

"Arrest us if you want!" Hearing Smoker's words, Moke still stubbornly held his head high and said unyieldingly, "As long as the boss is fine, what does it matter if I, Moke, get locked up?"

But then.

"Shut up!" Xia Che stopped that fool with exasperation.

They had been negotiating perfectly well, so why was he looking to get himself killed?

Moke was someone he had brought up himself. He did not want to send him away like this.

When Xia Che had first met him, he had been skinny as a rake and sallow-faced. Who would have thought that in just a few years, he would grow so burly?

He was already taller than Xia Che.

Had he only grown a body and not a brain?

Of course~

Though he was foolish and simple-minded, Moke listened to him very well. As long as Xia Che gave an order, Moke would carry it out seriously. That was why Xia Che had felt so at ease sending Moke out to become a pirate.

He did not need to worry that Moke would turn bad.

Xia Che turned his head, ignoring Smoker as he looked at Garp. "Thirty percent!"

"???"

"Thirty percent of the military funds the 16th Branch applies for from now on!"

The moment those words fell.

Everyone froze, then looked at Xia Che with dark expressions.

Was this guy bribing the Marine Hero?

And right in front of so many people? Wasn't that far too bold?

Especially Smoker... his face turned livid. Was this kid completely disregarding him?

He was actually bribing the Marine Hero right in front of him?

And that was the Marine Hero!

How could he possibly be bought off with a mere thirty percent of a branch's military funding?

Sure enough...

Before Smoker could even stop him, Vice Admiral Garp was already looking coldly at Xia Che. "Kid, what do you take this old man for?"

However.

Before Smoker could let out a cold laugh.

"At least fifty percent!"

Immediately.

"..."

Everyone fell silent once more.

Before anyone could speak.

"Deal!" Xia Che's face showed some surprise, as if he had not expected Garp to actually agree. If Garp had refused, Xia Che had even been prepared to reveal Ace's secret and see if that could threaten him!

He directly slapped Garp's outstretched hand.

"Should I give it to you directly next time, or to your grandson?"

"Why give it to this old man's grandson? That kid has grown up and needs to rely on himself!" Garp unhesitatingly ignored his own grandson and said cheerfully, "You don't need to give it to this old man either. You know the Goa Kingdom, right? There are refugees there too."

The moment those words fell.

"..."

Xia Che immediately understood why this guy had agreed. No wonder he had agreed so readily—he had been planning this all along.

That made sense. Garp had done nothing, or rather, what Xia Che had done was nothing to an old man whose own hands were not clean. Rather than let Xia Che talk carelessly, or even go out to sea as a pirate and spread those words around, it was better to have him stay here obediently.

Besides, Xia Che had no intention of running around for the time being, so this suited him perfectly.

As for the Goa Kingdom...

Hiring workers was the same no matter where they came from!

A smile appeared on Xia Che's face. "Pleasure doing business with you!"

"Pleasure doing business with you!"

Both men wore meaningful smiles.

But then...

"Is this about percentages?" Smoker grabbed Garp by the collar and roared, "Do you know what you're doing, Vice Admiral Garp?!"

"Oh? Smoker, don't be so anxious. This old man knows exactly what he's doing. Haven't the Moke Pirates done nothing?" Garp, grabbed by the collar, laughed awkwardly as he picked his nose. He looked cheerfully and meaningfully at the bewildered Moke. "It's fine to let them go!"

"Do you know what you're saying? You're a Marine, and they're pirates!"

"Ah, I almost forgot. I retract that statement!" Garp laughed heartily, seeming not to care at all that he had misspoken. Then he sighed sentimentally, shook his head, continued picking his nose, and said with a wandering gaze, "Who would have thought that the Moke Pirates were truly as Colonel Xia Che said? They were far too cunning. They actually escaped from this old man's hands. Marine Headquarters must be alerted."

As his words fell.

Smoker: ...

Looking at such a shameless Marine Hero as Vice Admiral Garp, he had a sentence in his heart that he did not know whether he should say.

Did this old man take him for an idiot too?