Stepped on Ochoku, Then Set His Sights on Kaido
As the battle ended, the Marines fleet quickly approached Hachinosu Island, and Smoker led a large number of Marines off the warships.
Without Ortolan and the others needing to say anything, Smoker had already begun directing the Marines to sweep through the entire Hachinosu Island, capturing all the surviving pirates and sending them to warships.
This batch of pirates will be quickly sent to the Calm Belt to become the next wave of farm tools.
In the ruins of the port, Ortolan sat on a large rock, while two Marines medics treated his wounds.
However, it seemed that Ortolan didn't care much about the injury. He had a cigarette in his mouth and was talking to Hina.
"Send a briefing to headquarters, informing Sengoku that we have completely wiped out Hachinosu Island and eliminated both Wang Zhi and Silver Axe. Have headquarters cooperate in the propaganda campaign," Ortolan instructed.
"Yes, I understand." Hina quickly wrote down Ortolan's words in her notebook.
Not far away, groups of pirates, their hands bound, were being escorted onto warships by some Marines.
Tesoro suddenly appeared out of nowhere and ran up to Ortolan, saying, "Lord Ortolan, Lieutenant Commander Penn has been settled in. The doctor said his injuries are severe and he needs two months of recuperation before he can get out of bed. To fully recover, it will take at least six months."
Upon hearing this, Ortolan grinned and said, "As long as a person is alive..."
"After this incident, I'm afraid the cohesion and unity of our New World Marines will be significantly enhanced. I'm sure everyone will have more faith in and respect for you," Tesoro said with great emotion.
Although some high-ranking officials knew that when Ortolan was still the commander of G-5 base, he had already planned to deal with Wang Zhi and Silver Axe, and was preparing to take over Hachinosu Island and let Moria run it.
However, the lower and middle-ranking Marines would not know this information. In their view, this incident was entirely caused by Lieutenant Commander T. Penn, one of Smoker's subordinates.
Lieutenant Commander Penn went missing near Hachinosu Island, which alarmed the newly appointed Marine Admiral Benn Ortolan.
The Admiral seemed to have zero tolerance for such provocations by pirates against the Marines, and immediately mobilized his troops, personally going to Hachinosu Island to demand the person.
After that, a fierce conflict broke out with the great pirate king, Shiki and Silver Axe, and they wiped them all out!
What kind of behavior is this? This is the behavior of someone who is protective of their own. A Marine Admiral can alarm Admiral. The Admiral's care and affection for his subordinates is beyond words!
Just as Tesoro said, after this incident, the Marines of the New World will definitely have more faith in him, Ortolan!
Aside from the Marines, this incident will definitely deter many pirates in the New World, letting them know that anyone who dares to touch Ortolan, no matter their identity, will be killed without hesitation. They'll have to consider their own strength before attempting to harm the Marines again, and whether they have the weight of Wang Zhi and Silver Axe. Without that weight, where does their courage come from?
Upon hearing this, Ortolan immediately looked at Hina and said, "Put this idea into headquarters and tell them to follow this line of thought in their propaganda campaign."
Hina smiled and replied, "Yes, Admiral."
As the group chatted, they saw Smoker leading a group of Marines, using carts to pull out a lot of gold, silver, and other strange and precious items from the island.
Without a doubt, these are all war products. Wang Zhi and others have been managing Hachinosu Island for many years, and the wealth they have accumulated is quite substantial.
However, some of it was probably destroyed in the battle, but there are still many things that can be dug out.
"Do you have a number?" Ortolan exhaled a puff of smoke and asked Smoker.
Smoker shook his head and said, "It's too fragmented to estimate for now. Let's calculate it all together when we get back to base."
"Well, according to our usual rules, we should divide it up as it is," Ortolan casually remarked.
Smoker responded first, then said with a slight hint of embarrassment, "I'm sorry, Lord Ortolan, I just received a message from the fleet saying that we were unable to successfully pursue the Red Hair Pirates' warship."
"It doesn't matter." Ortolan waved his hand dismissively and continued, "That Red-Hair guy left me an arm. Tell the Logistics Department to hurry up and break that arm down into Vivre Card. Make sure there are a lot of them and send them to the base commanders of each base. We also sent one to Kaido and the Big Mom Pirates, and one to the Shichibukai in the New World. Tell them to cooperate with our Marines in the operation to capture the Red Hair Pirates."
After a slight pause, Ortolan said in a deep voice, "At the same time, spread the word in the Underworld that whoever can get Shanks' head into my hands, I will promise to do something for him... Of course, the premise is that it does not violate my position and morality as Marine Admiral."
"Looks like he really angered you," Tesoro said with a chuckle.
Ortolan laughed and said, "I don't need to get angry with such a punk. I'll spare his life today because his first mate is still a man. But I didn't say that his offense was over. If he knows what's good for him, he'll get out of the New World and hide in some corner, never to appear in front of me again. I won't bother with him. But if he doesn't know what's good for him and still wants to steal and cheat in the New World, I'll drive him out!"
Aside from threatening Mihawk last time, Ortolan rarely targets an individual like this.
He just realized that since the Red-Hair guy was still alive, he could use him to establish his authority, mobilize his network of connections, and demonstrate his influence in the New World!
So that everyone knows that if you want to be in the New World, don't mess with Ortolan or make him angry. The Red Hair Pirates are a prime example!
Currently, Shanks has lost an arm and was severely injured. Given his physique, it's estimated that it will take at least half a year for Ortolan to recover. At the same time, the vice-captain of the Red Hair Pirates has also been killed. It can be said that the Red Hair Pirates are at their weakest point right now.
If they're unlucky enough to run into some tough character during this wave of arrests in Ortolan, they might not even make it out of the New World alive.
After all, in this New World, there are plenty of people eager to fawn over him, Ortolan!
"I understand, I'll make the arrangements," Smoker replied earnestly.
A moment later, Issho walked over with Den Den Mushi in his hand and said, "I've already contacted Moria. He's on his way and should arrive by tomorrow at the latest."
"What a dragging on! We've finished the fight and he still hasn't arrived," Ortolan complained, then said, "Let's rest here for today, and tomorrow, after Moria arrives, we'll have a go at him and then we'll leave."
There's no need to stay here and continue cleaning up the battlefield, nor is there any need for the Marines to help with the reconstruction. Moria is a big shot with plenty of manpower at his disposal. I estimate that the entire Hachinosu Island can be rebuilt in two or three months.
Once Hachinosu Island starts operating, Kaido's market will be effectively connected!
Although they are currently in a cooperative relationship, if Ortolan wants to unify the New World, Kaido is also an obstacle he cannot avoid. Therefore, he is also thinking about when and when he can get rid of Kaido's troubles.
Considering the decent relationship we've had over the years, it's not necessary to completely destroy him, but we still need to keep him in check and make him obey.
"How about we wait for the right opportunity, wipe out the Beasts Pirates, kidnap him, and send him to Cake Island so we can have a little fling with the old lady?" Ortolan thought to himself.
"No, that's not ideal either. The best way would be to help the Big Mom Pirates absorb the Beasts Pirates. Then, through my tireless efforts, the Big Mom Pirates would reform themselves, lead Totto Land to transform into Affiliated Nation, and become an important ally of our Marines in the New World... Finally, we could take care of Whitebeard and unify the New World!" Ortolan thought to himself.
However, his mother was not someone to be trifled with. If she really swallowed Kaido, her strength would increase dramatically, and who knows what other schemes she might come up with then.
After much thought, the New World really is not easy to navigate.
Ultimately, however, he still needs to cultivate his own inner strength. The stronger the New World Marines becomes, the more chips he, Ortolan, will have, and the more opportunities he can find to place bets in this game.