Crocodile: I Took Ten More Years of Detours Too!

July 1507 (Marine Era).

Admiral Benn's car slowly drove to his loyal G-3 Marine Base.

The ship's ladder was lowered, and soon, Ortolan, wearing Justice Cloak, a black suit, and Admiral's epaulets, stepped off the ship.

That's right, although he issued a public statement saying that he had followed orders from the Navy and resigned from his position Marine Admiral.

In reality, Ortolan still wore his Admiral's epaulettes everywhere he went, and no one dared to mention to him that he had already stepped down.

"Stainless, long time no see! How have you been? Any problems?" Ortolan walked onto the port and saw Stainless waiting there, greeting him with a smile.

Stainless saluted first, then responded with a beaming smile, "What problem could there be? It's perfectly normal. Most of our G-3 fleet has already joined forces with G-1 and Strawberry. I heard that Kaisa and the others are doing the same. Even in Dressrosa, Doflamingo has already dispatched several large naval fleets to G-1. Everyone is waiting for your order..."

"What do you mean by 'on a single order'? We are a loyal Marines force, don't talk nonsense." Ortolan waved his hand dismissively.

"Alright, alright, you're loyal." Stainless casually replied, then added, "The Shichibukai are all here and waiting for you in the conference room. I have some things to arrange, so I won't keep you company any longer."

"You know the way, you go about your business." Ortolan nodded.

The last time I had a meeting with Sakazuki and the others to discuss how to take down the Whitebeard Pirates was at G-3, so Ortolan really knows the place well.

On the other side, the buildings of G-3 Marine Base.

In the conference room, all seven of the Shichibukai were gathered.

Doflamingo, Moria, Smoker are like an iron triangle, with a very close relationship. Ever since Smoker joined this wealthy and powerful family, the three of them have often teamed up outside, so they are extremely familiar with each other.

On the other side, Mihawk remained as aloof as ever, sitting alone on the sofa with his legs crossed, arms folded in front of him, and eyes closed, seemingly resting.

Jinbe was clearly not on the same wavelength as these pirates, and he happened to be quite familiar with Moria, since Moria had been working as a foreman in the Golden City before, Jinbe was there too. So Jinbe sat next to Moria and would say a few words to Moria from time to time.

There was another guy who looked just as aloof as Mihawk; it was Sand Crocodile Crocodile. This guy had his hair slicked back, a cigar in his mouth, and a coat draped over his shoulders. He sat on a single sofa with the air of a big boss, ignoring everyone.

Speaking of which, Crocodile had intended to come to the New World before, but as soon as he arrived, he received a forced conscription order from Momonga New World, issued in the name of Ortolan, for the Shichibukai.

Thinking that he was about to meet Ortolan, Crocodile accepted the decree and came to the G-3 Marine Base.

Despite his seemingly aloof demeanor, he is actually the most anxious and uncertain among the Shichibukai.

The other Shichibukai have all cooperated with each other to some extent, know each other, and at least have some connection with Ortolan.

Only he is truly unreliable.

Sitting here, I can feel that I'm no longer part of their circle, especially those three guys led by Doflamingo, who seem to have a certain aversion to me.

To be honest, his purpose in coming to the New World to see Ortolan was that since Ortolan was taking action against the pirates in the New World, he thought he could find an opportunity to fight Kaido with Ortolan and eventually take over Wano Country.

When they arrived at G-3, they hadn't even seen Ortolan yet, and the war was already over.

Moreover, the result was completely unexpected by Crocodile!

The Beasts Pirates disbanded, Kaido, carrying all his possessions, joined the Big Mom Pirates.

Subsequently, the Big Mom Pirates also disbanded and, under the name of Whole Totto Land Totto Land, completely annexed Kaido's territory. Now, there is no longer Wano Country, only Totto Land Totto Land administrative region under the Onigashima regime!

Before he could even process this explosive news, good heavens, Totto Land Totto Land had become Affiliated Nation of the World Government.

The Marines can no longer attack Totto Land Totto Land; they've already landed there and killed their own Marines.

As Shichibukai, he has immunity. Theoretically, the World Government wouldn't care whether he harms the Allied Nations or not. If Crocodile insists on attacking Whole Totto Land Totto Land, there's no problem, and the World Government won't interfere.

But the question is... does Crocodile have that kind of skill?

Now, Totto Land Totto Land Island is allied with Charlotte Linlin and Kaido. When he wanted to deal with Kaido, he considered how to win over Ortolan to join him. If he tries to do the same now, wouldn't that be suicide?

So Crocodile was very worried during this period, feeling that his future was bleak and he didn't know what to do next.

Especially after seeing Smoker, he actually felt a little envious of him.

Currently, Smoker is arguably the strongest pirate in the entire New World. After all, of the three who were stronger than him before, Whitebeard is dead, the Whitebeard Pirates have basically collapsed, and Charlotte Linlin has gone ashore with Kaido and stopped being a pirate.

He, the fourth brother, suddenly became the New World!

This made Crocodile feel very uncomfortable. As for the Shichibukai, he was the first one Shichibukai the entire Shichibukai!

I was the one who started it!

How come I ended up being the worst performer?!

"Leaving the New World was definitely a wrong step. I should have paid off those 20 billion Beli much earlier. Maybe I would be thriving in the Realm of the New World by now and have already defeated Pluton..." Crocodile thought with deep regret.

He regretted taking the wrong turn.

On the other side, the last of the Shichibukai the Pirate Empress Boa Hancock, couldn't sit still. She paced back and forth in the meeting room, her expression anxious and uncertain. Every now and then, she would look in the mirror to see if there was anything wrong with her makeup or her appearance.

As Hancock paced back and forth, footsteps echoed down the corridor.

This made Hancock's expression brighten, and her eyes filled with anticipation as she looked towards the conference room door.

Similarly, Doflamingo and his group, who had been chatting and joking with each other just moments before, quickly fell silent.

A moment later, Ortolan's tall figure came into everyone's view. He smiled and raised his hand to greet everyone, saying, "Sorry, the wind was too strong on the way, so I'm a little late. I've kept you waiting."

"You and Dover always come up with the same excuse, Admiral ..." Moria laughed and said, "When I asked him to deliver goods to the Golden City, he would always say it was windy or rainy. A hundred excavators hadn't been delivered in two months. People would think I asked him to send them to the moon!"

"Don't say that, don't be like that. In the end, didn't I send you two hundred vehicles? The construction schedule wasn't delayed either..." Doflamingo replied with a smile.

Before Ortolan could even respond, Hancock had already whirled around to Ortolan, her hands nervously clasped together and resting on her chin. Looking at Ortolan with a rosy expression, she said, "My Admiral, it's so good to see you again. Do you still remember me?"

"Oh, Hancock?" Ortolan was nearly blinded by her beauty, exclaiming, "It hasn't been that long, and you've already blossomed into such a stunning beauty! I heard that on your first voyage, the World Economy News Paper took photos of you, and that issue of the newspaper sold out instantly... Everyone says you're the most beautiful woman in the world, and now it seems they're right, you really are beautiful!"

Today, Hancock is wearing a black yin-yang style cheongsam, still in her exaggerated style with slits that almost reach her waistline. With every step she takes, her smooth, delicate skin and long legs seem to be taking someone's life.

Add to that her slender and shapely figure, and her absolutely perfect face, and she truly captivates the heart.

Hancock is praised for her beauty every day, and she's long since become immune to such compliments.

But the moment Ortolan uttered those words, she seemed to be bewitched; her delicate face instantly flushed crimson, steam rose from her head, her eyes turned into mosquito coils, and her body swayed uncontrollably as if she couldn't stand.

"Admiral... Admiral, are you saying you want to... marry me!?" Hancock almost fainted at the thought.

Good news! Ortolan followed closely behind, and Hina quickly stepped forward to catch Hancock, who was about to fall.

At this moment, Hina felt disgusted. Damn it, another competitor has appeared?

But when Tina saw Hancock's pitiful appearance, Hina felt that her sexual orientation might have changed... Why is my heart racing so fast just because I'm holding her?!