Dragon in Love? A New Shichibukai Arrives?

In the New World, in the Gateway Sea, not long after leaving the port of Mary Geoise, Ortolan boarded the G-5 warship that came to pick him up.

Back in the cabin office, before he could even settle in, the Admiral Sengoku Den Den Den Mushi called.

"Admiral? What is it?" Ortolan asked while making himself some tea.

"What else do you want to ask me? Why did you go to Sabaody Archipelago? It's one thing to go to Sabaody Archipelago, but why did you rob all those shops in Mary Geoise?" Admiral Sengoku asked, somewhat annoyed.

"What do you mean by 'robbery'? It's a Marines matter, how can that be called robbery? I was just following regulations and confiscating their illegal gains!" Ortolan said righteously.

Then, he described the situation to the Admiral Sengoku, including the slave trade and the threats against high-ranking Marines officers.

After hearing this, the Admiral Sengoku said nothing more, only muttering under his breath, "I'll handle this calmly. You better stay out of my way and avoid getting involved in this mess..."

"I know, I know, it was an accident this time," Ortolan replied sincerely.

If there is a next time, he is determined to nip it in the bud and eliminate even the complainants. As long as no one sues him, the matter will cease to exist.

Just when everyone thought that Admiral Sengoku would stop talking after that, on the other end of the Den Den Mushi, Admiral Sengoku quickly changed his tone and asked in a furtive, low voice, "Have you been in contact with that Garp guy recently?"

"Mr. Garp?" Ortolan scratched his head, thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "No, I only saw him at headquarters during that meeting about the Shichibukai, and I haven't had any contact with him since. What happened to him?"

"Nothing much..." the Admiral Sengoku mused for a moment before continuing, "It's just that he's been acting strange lately. He always has this odd smile on his face, like he's having some kind of good time. But when I ask him, he won't say. He even seems to be planning to go to the East Blue... I figured since you two are so close, I'd like to see if you know anything..."

"You're such a gossip, Admiral! You even care whether Mr. Garp is happy or not," Ortolan couldn't help but complain.

"Ahem!" The Admiral Sengoku cleared his throat, slightly embarrassed, and said, "I was just concerned about his life as an old comrade-in-arms."

After a pause, the Admiral Sengoku suddenly asked, "Do you think it's possible that he... has found the right person and is considering a second marriage?"

"Huh?" Ortolan was dumbfounded upon hearing this, and said in surprise, "Impossible, right? Who would want someone like him?"

Hearing this fair assessment, the Admiral Sengoku nodded naturally and replied to the Den Den Mushi, "You're right, kid. Even someone as handsome as me... cough..."

As soon as this guy let slip, Ortolan immediately understood. "Hey, you're jealous, aren't you? That's why you're asking around?"

Ortolan really wanted to take the opportunity to ask, "How are things going between you and Sengoku Chief Staff Officer Tsuru?"

After thinking about it, he realized that if he asked the question, Sengoku might make things difficult for him if he had the chance to be promoted to Admiral or something in the future, so he held back his question.

"Never mind, it's pointless to ask you. Is G-5 alright?" Admiral Sengoku changed the subject again and asked.

"I can handle all of that," Ortolan replied with a smile.

"Then you can do it yourself. If there's nothing else, I'll hang up." After saying that, the Admiral Sengoku hung up without waiting for Ortolan to say whether there was anything else.

Looking at the Den Den Mushi, Ortolan's lips twitched slightly. He shook his head, put the Den Den Mushi away, drank his tea, and pressed the communication button on the table, asking Tesoro to come over.

However, just as he put down his teacup, he suddenly seemed to remember something and looked at the calendar on the table.

October 1500 (Marine Era)...

"Hiss... This time period, I see..." Ortolan looked at the calendar, recalling Sengoku's earlier doubts, and instantly figured out the answer!

The reason Garp is secretly enjoying himself when he has nothing to do is probably because that guy Dragon got married!

It's now the end of 1500, and Garp's destined grandson was born in 1502. If there are no unexpected events or problems in Dragon's love life, he has found a wife, married her, and after a while, his wife will be pregnant. It all fits perfectly in time!

"At a time when the Revolutionary Army is just starting out, Dragon is really neglecting his duties by falling in love..." After guessing this, Ortolan didn't bother to ask Garp about it through a Den Den Den Mushi.

After all, this has nothing to do with him, so why should he care so much?

He didn't intend to report the situation to the Admiral Sengoku. After putting his thoughts aside, there was a knock on the door a short while later, and Ortolan responded.

Then, Lieutenant Gild Tesoro, wearing a blue Marines uniform, walked in from outside the door.

Indeed, as the base commander of G-5, Ortolan had the authority to directly recruit his subordinates and granted Lieutenant Tesoro the Marines rank.

The reason I didn't give it a high score is mainly because Tesoro is still quite weak. He doesn't have Devil Fruit ability and doesn't have much strength to speak of. In terms of combat power, he's not even as strong as a proper veteran Marines.

His business acumen and talent have not yet been demonstrated, nor have he made any significant achievements. Therefore, it is not convenient for Ortolan to give him a high position. He will be given a Lieutenant to get by first. Once he achieves results, promotion and wealth will be just a matter of time for him.

"Bane, you wanted to see me?" Tesoro asked respectfully after giving a proper military salute.

"Well, come on, take a look at these documents. These are the economic problems we G-5 have encountered recently, along with some preliminary solutions. Do you have any suggestions?" Ortolan casually tossed a thick stack of documents onto the table.

Tesoro swallowed hard, seemingly sensing Ortolan's trust in his abilities. A determined glint flashed in his eyes as he stepped forward, picked up the heavy document, sat down on the sofa, and began to read.

"No rush. You can take him to study and figure it out. At our current speed, it will take some time before we reach G-5. Once we get to G-5, tell me something interesting, and you'll pass the test." Ortolan noticed Tesoro's nervousness and comforted him with a smile.

"Yes, Bane!" Tesoro quickly stood up again and respectfully replied.

"Alright, alright, let's take him to see..." Ortolan didn't let him linger there any longer and waved his hand.

Meanwhile, in a certain sea area of New World, several warships and a huge pirate ship were facing off on the sea.

These warships, with their sails billowing in large letters G-5, clearly belong to the G-5 fleet.

On the flagship, Yi Xiao leaned on his cane, his face serious as he looked at the pirate ship in the distance. He said in a deep voice, "Smoker, are you trying to go to Impel Down to go to Impel Down by blocking our way so openly?"

That's right, this time it wasn't Yixiao who went to cause trouble for this Smoker, but rather this guy who blocked Yixiao's path.

On the bow of the pirate ship, there was a young man who looked to be about twenty-five or twenty-six years old. He was strong and had a messy, spiky hairstyle. He looked quite heroic and handsome. He was shirtless and dressed in a very unrestrained manner.

This guy is the one who ate the Paramecia Crush- Crush-Crush Fruit, known in the Marines as "Crush Strike," and has a bounty of 360 million Beli.

Smoker and Issho have clashed many times in the New World. Although Sloth always manages to escape Issho's pursuit, his strength is indeed formidable. After all, not every pirate can escape from Issho.

Even though Yixiao had not yet reached the peak of her combat power.

"Hahahaha, Yixiao!" Smoker greeted Yixiao arrogantly, then ripped open a parchment scroll and showed it to him, saying, "Thanks to you, I reached an agreement with the World Government the day before yesterday. As Shichibukai of the Sea, as the Marines, you have no right to continue pursuing me until I relinquish my Shichibukai status. Today I'm telling you this: from now on, I can do whatever I want in the New World, so don't bother me!!!"

"Shichibukai?!" Issho exclaimed in surprise upon seeing the parchment scroll, looking utterly incredulous.

Seeing Yixiao's shocked expression, Smoker laughed even harder, shaking his head and saying, "That's right, in some ways, we're on the same side now..."

A moment later, Yi Xiao recovered from his shock and looked at Smoker seriously, saying, "Then come with me to G-5 and settle the debt of 20 billion Beli."

Smoker???

"What 20 billion Beli? What nonsense are you talking about? When have I ever taken your money?!" Smoker cursed angrily.

"As Shichibukai, you have to pay 20 billion Beli to G-5. If you don't even understand this basic rule, I don't think you'll stay in your Shichibukai for long..." Issho said calmly.

"What bullshit! I'm the only one who ever extorted others. Nobody has ever been able to extort me. I refuse to believe it. I just won't give you the money. What can you do to me?" Smoker replied arrogantly. Then, with a wave of his hand, he ordered his underlings to turn around, not intending to waste any more words or get entangled with Yixiao.