The Feast
The members of the Night Pirates followed Teach forward, their goal being to reach the Marine Branch near the center of the town.
"Captain, that's a brilliant idea! Let the whole town join us for a feast!" Wallace said with a smile, looking at Teach.
"This navy is interesting, and there are so many civilians behind us. If they put up a fight, we won't hold back." Nelson followed behind Teach.
"That navy officer made the right choice, saving not only himself but also this town. Otherwise, this Marine Branch would have been history by tonight," Kos said with a smile, holding his gun.
"It's a bit of a pity. I thought there would be another hunt today." Gari shook his head and sighed, making the others around him feel a bit of a pain in their teeth. Hunt? He had killed the most people today, even more than the highly efficient Pito. One-fifth of the more than three thousand enemies died at his hands.
After spending a few months with him, I've come to know a bit about Gari, this powerful Mink Tribe. He's a Hunter who enjoys killing, and he won't let any opponent go, whether strong or weak.
But among the ordinary people behind them, no one expected things to be so simple.
At this moment, someone realized what was happening and pulled his son along, saying, "Come on, let's go back and get ready."
A man standing nearby who recognized him asked with some confusion, "Preparing what?"
"Of course, we're preparing a banquet!" the man holding his child replied upon hearing the question.
"It's just having a meal together, what do you, a singer, need to prepare?" the man asked, somewhat puzzled.
"A banquet isn't that simple. A banquet is only a banquet if it's lively. The food and the entertainment all need to be prepared well. What if the Night Pirates are not satisfied with the banquet?" the father replied. "Besides, this is a great opportunity for me to show off my singing voice. Maybe I can become a big star overnight!" As he spoke, he couldn't help but laugh proudly.
His voice carried and was heard by many people, who instantly came to their senses. They realized he was right; a banquet was never that simple. The Night Pirates had to be satisfied!
At this moment, the mayor and staff members, who were mixed in with the crowd, stepped forward. They did not run away, but instead vowed to fight Marrow Town to the death.
The town Old Burke, who is sixty-three years old, has been mayor for more than thirty years and enjoys great prestige throughout the town. He is considered a highly respected figure.
"For the future of Marrow Town, we must all unite and hold a grand banquet that will absolutely satisfy the Night Pirates," Old Burke solemnly declared. "Our town government will take charge of organizing this. Everyone should have a clear division of labor, as time is running out. The banquet should begin tonight, and we only have three hours."
"Everyone should do their part; I'll provide some of the meat," a butcher shouted, raising his hand.
"We're all part of Marrow Town, I'll supply some of the fruit," a fruit vendor shouted.
At this crucial moment, vendors stepped forward, providing free ingredients for their hometown and for the future of this banquet.
"I'll take care of the cooking; I'm a pretty good cook," a woman said.
Immediately, many women raised their hands, shouting, "Me too!" There were even some men among them.
"There are also performers, let's join in." Singers, dancers, and acrobats all stepped forward.
The scene setup also brought together the best of the entire Marrow Town.
All the residents were willing to do their part for this banquet.
"Thank you so much!" Seeing this scene, the Old Burke, who had devoted himself to the town, couldn't help but have tears in his eyes. He stood on a high platform and bowed deeply to the surrounding residents.
All the residents were filled with enthusiasm for this banquet, along with some reporters, pirates, and spies from other factions.
The cohesion of the residents of Marrow Town reached its peak at this moment. All the residents had clear divisions of labor and were divided into several groups. Just as Old Burke said, time was running out. This was a grand banquet, a banquet that included more than 200,000 people.
Marrow Town is considered large for a town, and with the protection of the Marine Branch and the relatively peaceful environment of the East China Sea, it has developed quite well. In a few more years, it might even become a city.
This banquet was destined to be a huge undertaking, given the large number of people involved.
"Holding a banquet with pirates, just thinking about it is exciting." During the operation, a resident thought about what they were about to do and couldn't help but say.
The situation of these residents naturally did not escape Teach's notice, nor did it escape the notice of his companions who Observation Haki, who couldn't help but smile.
"This is really interesting. It seems this banquet will be even better than I expected," Teach with a faint smile.
"I don't know why, but I always feel a strange sense of accomplishment," Wallace nodded and smiled.
"This is fate!" Kos smiled. Did they represent evil? They were just doing whatever they wanted. If they were to slaughter civilians, he would still feel a little reluctant.
"We are lucky." Baccarat looked around at the residents. Two hundred thousand people had gathered here. The road was long, but the Marine Branch was also close at hand.
Originally, they were just celebrating their victory in battle, but now they are actually looking forward to the start of the banquet.
"Hahaha! Just wait and see, this grand feast!" Teach shouted excitedly.
Time passed quickly, and the whole Marrow Town was filled with a lively and bustling atmosphere.
The weather was fine tonight, but the area around the Marine Branch was brightly lit, with thousands of people gathered inside a huge, temporary factory-like building.
Ingredients were constantly being brought in, while prepared food was also being brought out. In the streets that stretched outwards from the Marine Branch, tables and chairs were set up everywhere except for passageways.
Meanwhile, the performers have already begun preparations, and large screens have been built, the cost of which is unknown.
These large screens are actually quite expensive; there are specialized companies that build them, and there's no shortage of buyers. However, today they received a huge order for one hundred large screens, specifically for broadcasting the banquet to the townspeople and members of the Night Pirates. This also cost a fortune. You should know that such large screens can't be bought for less than several million Beli, and what Marrow Town needs are the larger types of screens, which are even more expensive.
The town government certainly couldn't raise enough funds, but if all the town's 200,000 residents each contributed a few thousand Beli, that would be enough. Some wealthy individuals even contributed tens of millions of Beli.
The large screen was quickly transported to Marrow Town by ship and finally arrived before the banquet began. They were already aware of the situation in Marrow Town, and many people were paying attention. Some were even secretly broadcasting it live. The news of the destruction of the three Marine Branch had already spread, shocking everyone.
It's important to know that each branch of the Navy has its own territorial waters, a sea area, and the entire East Blue is closely monitoring the arrival of the Night Pirates in Marrow Town.
They thought this Marine Branch would be destroyed, but the Night Pirates pulled off a bizarre move, getting the entire town to host a banquet with them.
Of course, the remaining Marine Branch played a part, but few people mocked them. Although it was somewhat humiliating, they protected their homeland, saved a town, and rescued countless lives. What was wrong with that?
After destroying three warships led by Marine Captain, and having already won a battle against overwhelming odds, the Night Pirates have become the undisputed overlords of the East Blue. Their formidable strength is evident to other pirate crews through the footage.
At the Marine Branch 22, the Marines who had been flying high were gone, replaced by the pirate flag of the Night Pirates, which fluttered high in the wind.
Marines in other areas who witnessed this scene through the footage were furious. It was a trampling of the Navy's dignity; pirates brazenly occupied Marine Branch and held a banquet inside—it was a complete joke.
Although some of the marines in the 22nd Marine Branch complained, they had no right to criticize them. The Navy's top priority is to protect civilians, and they clearly did so. With their strength, they were completely powerless against the Night Pirates.
The eighteen Marine Branch in the surrounding seas have already made contact with each other, aiming to eradicate the Night Pirates, this scourge. After all, the Night Pirates no mercy to the Navy, and so far, six Marine warship have already been lost to them. If they are not stopped, their Marine Branch might be next.
It should be noted that there are more than a hundred Marine Branch in the East China Sea, but each Marine Branch does not have many marines. Apart from the Marine Branch in Loguetown, which is guarded by the veteran vice Vice Admiral Brom, who is known as the "East China Sea Admiral", and has several thousand elite marines, the other Marine Branch have very few people, ranging from a thousand to only about five hundred.
With the advent of the Great Pirate Era, the Navy's forces have been constantly depleted. Even with the continuous recruitment of new soldiers and expansion of its ranks, it has been difficult to suppress the turbulent seas and the endless stream of pirates.
The navy is currently understaffed and has not yet reached the point where the entire navy will have hundreds of thousands of personnel in the future. It should be noted that the 100,000 elite troops gathered at the Marine Headquarters during the Marineford War were all officers of the rank of admiral and colonel.
These numerous mid-level combatants are the foundation of the navy's ability to suppress the seas. The Marine Six Styles are the basis of all this, not because they cultivate strong individuals, but because they cultivate a large number of mid-to-strong individuals within the Marine Six Styles.
Meanwhile, the pirates, and even some civilians, felt that the Night Pirates were very Haki, openly holding a banquet at the Marine Branch, and some even targeted the Night Pirates.
The crew members of the Night Pirates sat in their seats, enjoying the food and wine as plates of delicious food were continuously brought to the table.
Their faces were beaming with smiles, they were very happy. After sailing on the sea for so long, they had been feeling somewhat repressed lately. Training, fighting, training, fighting—while fighting allowed them to vent, nothing felt as comfortable and liberating as this.
On the large screen in front, performances kept coming up, one after another.
What the navy considers extremely bad is something many people envy.
In a small town in the East Blue, a red-haired youth wearing Straw Hat stared at a large screen. "Who is this guy? Why does he look so familiar?" Shanks looked at the captain of the Night Pirates, who was seated at the head of the banquet on the screen.
It felt so familiar, like I'd seen it somewhere before, but Shanks just couldn't remember where.
They don't know Teach's name yet; it hasn't been revealed at all. He rarely makes a move; it's mostly the crew who do the work. However, with the Navy's intelligence, they should be able to find out about him soon.
This is also because he has gained the Navy's attention. The Marine Headquarters is currently in a state of chaos, with most of the high-ranking officers in the New World, except for the strongmen stationed in the four seas and the first half of the Grand Line.
The pirates of the New World coordinated their attack on the Navy 'Marine Branch in the New World. In a short period of time, several Marine Branch were destroyed, and a large number of elite Navy personnel died.
It will take them another two or three years before they realize they can't protect the New World, that the New World is a world of pirates. At that point, they will abandon the New World and shift their attention to the four seas.
This pirate crew, which rose to prominence in just over two months, has become the overlord of the East Blue. He was very envious of such a banquet scene and knew that he also needed to speed up his pace and find more companions.
Elsewhere, someone recognized Teach. "How could it be him! Wasn't he a member of the Whitebeard Pirates? Did he go solo?" Red Nose Buggy was shocked. He had a very strong impression of Teach and never expected that the Night Pirates, which had recently become famous in the East Blue, were actually founded by Teach.
He hadn't noticed it before because the bounty poster only showed one side of the body. Even though Teach had changed his clothes, he still recognized Teach after two years.
"That guy has gotten stronger." Buggy's eyesight was excellent; even through the screen, he could tell that Teach's strength was far more terrifying than it had been two years ago.
"That guy is too dangerous. Luckily, I'm not in that area of the sea," Buggy thought, letting out a sigh of relief.
However, what he didn't know was that the fairytale kingdom of the Boka Boka Kingdom, where he lived, was the destination of the Night Pirates.
If they knew, they would be devastated and would leave immediately.
Although they knew someone was secretly broadcasting the event, Teach and his group didn't care; the only consequence was that it further enhanced their fame.
Pirates pursue nothing more than fame, wealth, and power.
Teach enjoyed the wines, which came in all sorts of varieties, some of which were homemade and tasted quite good, with a familiar, comforting flavor.
This meal was arguably the most delicious food they had eaten since setting sail, as it featured renowned professional chefs, famous restaurants, and snack shops offering their best culinary skills.