Perhaps I Really Do Have Some Justice in Me?

In the Marineford residential area, Ortolan, as a general, naturally also had his own courtyard.

However, his courtyard was not compliant with regulations before, but it was Garp who made it possible for him. It is right next to Garp's courtyard, and the two are neighbors. The reason it is not compliant is because this is Vice Admiral's residential area.

But then there was a lot of renovation work going on, and Ortolan didn't live there. He left Marineford for the South Blue. Now he's back, everything's compliant, and he's finally comfortable.

Standing at his own door, Ortolan hesitated for a few moments, looked at Garp's yard, and wondered if he should just stay at Garp's house instead?

It wasn't that he wasn't used to living alone, but rather that Portgas D. Rouge, who had accompanied them all the way back from the South Blue, was staying at the Ortolan house!

Why don't you come in?

Just as Ortolan hesitated, Rouge had already appeared at the door, looking at Ortolan with a calm expression and asking him a question.

Seeing this, Ortolan reluctantly went into the courtyard, forcing a smile, "I was just thinking, is there anything I haven't finished tomorrow..."

Rouge followed Ortolan inside, and upon hearing this, she simply nodded calmly without saying a word.

The two walked a few steps, but the atmosphere was so oppressive that even Ortolan couldn't stand it anymore.

Just then, Rouge spoke up, "Speaking of which, I haven't thanked you yet, about Roger's matter... and about the child's matter and my matter."

As she said this, Rouge's calm expression could no longer be maintained, and a hint of embarrassment appeared on her face.

She and Roger never went through the marriage formalities, but she did with Ortolan in the South Blue. How could she not feel embarrassed?

Ortolan rubbed his nose, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "It's nothing. I didn't have any particular relationship with Roger. If you have to say, was it some kind of grudge? This was just because of justice, and... Garp was saving face for me."

Rouge what Ortolan said, Rouge's shyness seemed to dissipate considerably, and she nodded. "Perhaps we will live together for a long time, so please take care of me in the future."

"Ah... um..." Ortolan mumbled a response, then said, "Actually, as long as you don't go out normally, there's no need to pretend. My friends at headquarters are all quite busy and don't usually come to visit. Just keep it up for a year or two, like Garp said before, and once things have calmed down, you'll tell them everything."

"I understand." Rouge nodded slightly, then said, "During this time, I will take care of things at home. Please rest assured, I won't cause you any trouble."

"Then I'll leave it to you," Ortolan replied.

And so, they spent a peaceful night at home. The next morning, Ortolan began packing his luggage, and Rouge made breakfast as if she were truly Ortolan's wife.

After Ortolan came out with his suitcase, Rouge said, "Shall we eat breakfast first?"

Since the meal was already prepared, Ortolan didn't refuse, nodded, and then said, "I'm going out on a field mission tomorrow, but that's alright. I heard yesterday that a few of my friends are coming back from their missions in the next few days. Knowing their personalities, if they find out I'm 'married,' they'll definitely cause a scene, so I'm going out to lay low for a while..."

Thankfully, when Ortolan returned, those bastards, Flying Momonga Tokikake, weren't in Marineford. Otherwise, if they had suddenly found out about his marriage, they would definitely have given Ortolan a good dressing down. After all, even though they said their friends were busy, these kinds of things are really unavoidable.

But Ortolan didn't want to be bothered, so he decided to run away first. Once the storm had passed, people probably wouldn't be interested anymore.

After breakfast, Ortolan left home without looking back and quickly headed to the Marineford naval base, where he boarded his own warship.

Gion will not be accompanying me on this trip to Ohara in the West Blue, as their joint mission has ended. However, I will meet up with Borsalino in Ohara. I heard that Borsalino has already gone there ahead of time, and Ohara has been blockaded for quite some time. It's been around ever since Ortolan reported the relevant work to Admiral Sengoku that the Marines, in conjunction with the CP Agency, completely blockaded the waters around Ohara, allowing entry but not exit.

The warship slowly sailed away from the Marine Headquarters. Ortolan stood on the deck, looking at Marineford and Fortress of Justice, and sighed, "Looks like we won't be able to spend New Year's Eve here..."

Beside him, a man in Justice Cloak with colonel's epaulets smiled and asked, "Is there any trouble with this mission? What do you need me to do?"

It was his first time serving in the Marines, so it was still quite new for him. He was not the same person he would be more than twenty years later; he was only in his early thirties and had not even chosen to 'close his eyes' because he had seen too much darkness.

"There shouldn't be any trouble. You probably won't need to resort to violence. Just treat it as a vacation," Ortolan said after thinking for a moment.

"Is it that easy?" Yi Xiao asked, somewhat surprised. Then she asked, "Does what you said before about fieldwork subsidies still count?"

"Of course it counts," Ortolan said without hesitation.

Yi Xiao was relieved. It wasn't that he was greedy; as he said before, he didn't really care about money. The reason he was paying attention to these things was simply because he wanted to pay back the money to Ortolan as soon as possible.

This is his integrity!

For him, joining the Marines is just a new attempt and experience. After all, what difference does it make where you work? Do you really think he endorses the Marines's justice? At least at this point in time, he doesn't have those thoughts.

After paying off his debts to Ortolan, he felt that if things went well with the Marines Department, there was nothing wrong with continuing to work there.

If he feels that this is not where he belongs, and he has paid off his debts, he will not complain about Ortolan anymore, and he can retire and leave at that time.

All of this had already been explained to him by Ortolan. If Yixiao chose to leave, Ortolan would readily approve it.

Ohara is not in a remote location; after all, it is Holy Land of learning and a benchmark of the world. It is located on an island in the West Blue, near Mary Geoise.

If the Marine Headquarters wanted to go to Ohara, it wouldn't even take a few days. From the Headquarters, they would travel to the Red Line, cross over to the West Blue, and sail for two days to reach Ohara!

They're so close, practically right under the noses of the World Government, yet they still have the audacity to engage in this deadly business.

All I can say is that his head is made of real iron!

After two days of sailing, from the deck of Ortolan Station, we could already see the island at the end of the sea. The first thing we saw was the famous Ohara Tree of Knowledge.

Beside Ortolan stood Orbia, a woman whose expression grew increasingly complex the closer she got to Ohara. She wondered what she truly was now; was she a sinner of Ohara?

"Professor Clover and the others will understand you." Ortolan suddenly spoke up, "I have basically done what I promised you about your relationship with Ohara. Next, you need to persuade Professor Clover and the others not to try to resist, but to preserve their lives and go to Punk Hazard to wait for the future. That is the right thing to do."

"Once the students set foot on Punk Hazard, they can never leave. It's called a research base, but it's really a cage for us students. Entering it is tantamount to handing ourselves over to the World Government. In that case, does Ohara really have a future?" Orbia asked with some pain in her eyes.

She knew it was indeed the optimal solution, but she still felt heartbroken about it.

"There will be." Ortolan said softly but firmly, "I know I'm not a righteous person, but I don't know what's right and what's wrong. This world has gone too far astray, but I still firmly believe that one day, I will be able to change this damned world!"

Ortolan admitted that there was an element of performance in what he said to Orbia, but there was also some genuine sincerity in it, such as the desire to change this damned world.

Previously, Ortolan wanted to change the world, or rather, to stand at the top of the world, out of self-interest and various personal factors.

But South Blue, ever since he met Bartholomew Bear and Ginny, although they didn't have much contact and their interactions weren't pleasant, he suddenly realized that he might also have some genuine 'justice' and kindness in his heart.

That is, occasionally, he also wants to change the world for people like Bartholomew Bear and Ginny.

Thinking about this, Ortolan couldn't help but feel a little emotional. A person's experiences and environment really do have a great influence on them.

He had never thought about these things before. Could this... be considered a kind of growth after coming into this world?