Sengoku ultimately had no intention of Shiryu; he merely instructed Momousagi to keep a close eye on Shiryu from now on...
Momousagi couldn't say whether she felt regret or relief, but Sig had anticipated this— Sig had a firm grasp on Sengoku's mindset!
The matter at the G8 Branch was quickly resolved.
Shiryu's actions led to a flurry of accusations against Fwo, exposing all his crimes...
However, what made Gion uncomfortable was that some of the charges were ultimately covered up. It wasn't that they hadn't discovered them, but rather that after they were discovered, they had to destroy the evidence under the direction of headquarters, and these things wouldn't be mentioned in the official report.
This includes, but is not limited to, "human trafficking involving Mary Geoise," "impersonating pirates to commit arson, murder, and looting," etc.
The former was due to pressure from the World Government, while the latter was due to the egregious nature of the actions.
The Sengoku only aimed to reorganize the navy; it did not intend for the navy to isolate itself from the World Government or its Affiliated Nation.
Momousagi and Shiryu touched on these matters, to which Shiryu merely chuckled and said, "The Navy can handle it themselves," adding that he wouldn't interfere. However, Momousagi still felt silently despised.
In any case, the trip to the G8 Branch went relatively smoothly. Afterwards, Shiryu and Momousagi decided to head to the G2 Branch next.
"At the next stop, the G2 Branch, our focus will be on appeasement and commendation. At that time..."
Before Momousagi could finish speaking, Shiryu interrupted, "Then you can handle it. I'm not good at giving rewards or anything like that."
Commander Gumir of the G2 Branch is a veteran in the navy. If he hadn't been transferred to the division early on, he might have become a Headquarters Vice Admiral.
Within the Navy, Gumir belongs to the "calm and collected Justice" faction. He has been in charge of the G2 Branch for twenty years, and is highly praised by both the branch's navy and the surrounding Affiliated Nation.
The first stop of the previous inspection resulted in the capture of the commander of the G8 Branch, and... the process of "capture" spread like wildfire for some time afterward.
Shiryu's infamous reputation is already well-known in the navy, so what needs to be done now is to cool things down a bit.
Although the Sengoku had already planned which people to take down, which to reward, and which to punish, it was clear that a balance between rewards and punishments was necessary.
Otherwise, if they were to capture the branch commander at every stop during their inspections, wouldn't they know something was wrong the moment they saw Shiryu and Momousagi heading their way?
Therefore, the awarding of prizes was also handled by Shiryu and Momousagi, but... Shiryu clearly had no interest in this part.
When Sig arrived at the G2 Branch, he could clearly feel that from the moment "Shiryu" stepped off the gangplank, the surrounding navy was filled with tension.
Even though they knew they were there to commend their branch, they all stood ramrod straight with nervousness; clearly, "Shiryu" now had a notorious reputation...
However, at the G2 Branch, "Shiryu" didn't do much. He just stayed in his prepared office, drinking tea, smoking cigars, reading newspapers, and keeping up with the world situation... especially the situation in the New World.
Every day at mealtimes, either Gumir would come to invite him or the food would be delivered to his office.
Even for the sake of the navy's physical and mental health, we will resolutely not let Shiryu go to the cafeteria in person!
Although the rumor is that the navy officer who was disemboweled was still alive and kicking afterward, suggesting that Shiryu indeed a highly skilled surgeon, people still couldn't help but feel some fear and skepticism.
And...
A prison guard who was also an expert in surgery.
This matter itself is easy for people to speculate about!
Especially the navy, who frequently escorted prisoners to Impel Down, might have heard rumors about Shiryu secretly testing his sword on prisoners. Now, putting it all together... it's no exaggeration!
The Navy at the G2 Branch was worried for nothing, because "Shiryu" had rarely appeared in the past few days and showed no intention of randomly selecting a lucky Navy member from the mess hall to check the food.
Three days later, Shiryu and Momousagi left safely, and the Marines of the G2 Branch finally breathed a sigh of relief...
Shiryu, on deck, watched the G2 Branch's navy personnel still standing at attention, seeing them off, and couldn't help but purse his lips, saying, "They're really being too polite..."
Momousagi just chuckled twice.
Over the next four months, Shiryu and Momousagi visited five more naval branches along the Grand Line, and even made a surprise visit across the Calm Belt to inspect two naval branches in the East Blue and two in the South Blue!
The branches subject to random checks are those outside the "data" of the Sengoku; Momousagi may handle these matters at his discretion.
As Sig predicted, the three naval branches in the East and South China Seas were utterly rotten, with their supervising officers either colluding with pirates or oppressing the local populace...
The remaining branch was also rife with chaos. Although the branch manager didn't collude with the corrupt practices, he was powerless to change anything and just drifted through his days!
Compared to Momousagi's perpetually sullen face, Sig had already guessed it. After all, he had seen many naval branches, while Momousagi had been enlisted in the Marine Headquarters from the beginning and was a key trainee. She didn't know much about the naval branches in the four seas, so she was somewhat shocked.
The patrols of the other five branches in the Grand Line also went "relatively" smoothly.
The only slight deviation was that, instead of offering some reassurance, a major from the G11 Branch went directly to Momousagi and confessed to the authorities...
Actually, the work of the G11 Branch was going well, and there weren't any major internal problems. However... the major in charge of the canteen couldn't take the pressure and confessed to Momousagi that very day that he had been using inferior materials and obtaining improper benefits.
As a result, the division commander was also reprimanded for "lax supervision".
Then Momousagi and Shiryu encountered another tough nut to crack after Fwo!
The commander of the G4 Branch thought to himself that he hadn't done anything excessive on a daily basis. He couldn't say he was selfless, but it was just "the usual things the navy does," and he didn't think anything would happen.
Even Momousagi hadn't considered him a "tough nut to crack" during the inspection.
However, while the ship was resting on a nearby island, a victim came to file a complaint against the G4 Branch, saying that his son, who was supposed to be delivering goods for the G4 Branch's navy, had died under mysterious circumstances, supposedly because he had offended a high-ranking officer there...
Although it was an unexpected situation, Momousagi still agreed to the old man's request to investigate. At the same time, Momousagi was also conflicted, as she had not originally intended to make a big fuss about the G4 Branch.
Momousagi sensed that the old man who had mustered up the courage to come and complain didn't seem to be lying, but she was also conflicted, unsure whether to hope for the truth to come out or whether it would be better if nothing was found.
However, it didn't trouble Momousagi for long...
Like a master Detective, Shiryu solved the case in no time, his reasoning was meticulous and his investigation yielded irrefutable evidence!
Even the fact that the commander of G4 covered up his subordinates' crimes was uncovered.
After...
Shiryu then left the decision to Momousagi.
Shiryu just a "famous Detective," not a brilliant detective. Anyway, the truth has been uncovered, and how to handle it is up to Momousagi.
However, since things had come to this point, Momousagi did not intend to suppress the matter. Although she did not act first and report later, she truthfully reported to Sengoku and dismissed the commander and the colonel who directly committed the crime.
Sengoku did not criticize Momousagi's actions, after all... the G4 Branch was something that could be moved or not moved.
However, this made Sengoku realize that the "inspection" was getting out of control...