Rescue!

When Bourne learned that Vice Admiral Akita was leading an attack on Frances Island, he ordered the elderly, women, and children to be captured and locked away somewhere out of sight.

At the same time, he distributed guns and ammunition to the able-bodied men, forcing them to join the fight against the Navy.

That was why the Bourne Pirates, despite having more than three hundred members, had only brought a little over two hundred to the battle.

The remaining hundred were guarding the elderly, women, and children they had captured.

There was no denying that Bourne was a bold man with formidable strength.

He dared to hand weapons to the men, completely unconcerned that they might rebel.

And so, the scene that followed unfolded: thousands of "pirates," their faces twisted with madness, charged the Navy's position.

Only a little over two hundred of them belonged to the Bourne Pirates. The rest were all residents of Frances Island.

"Looks like I was pretty much right."

Morito nodded to himself, understanding the situation.

The moment he realized something was off about these "pirates," he'd started imagining all sorts of possibilities.

Especially once he confirmed they were island residents, he'd guessed the Bourne Pirates must be threatening them.

Their faces were far too expressive.

Resentment, reluctance, madness, guilt, fury, humiliation.

If they had willingly joined forces with the Bourne Pirates, they wouldn't have shown such a wide range of emotions.

They would have shown just one: bloodthirsty bloodlust!

"Do you know where they're being held?"

Morito asked.

"I'm not sure of the exact location, but Frances Island isn't very big. The only suitable place would be somewhere in the mountains."

The burly man answered.

"Then come with me."

Morito picked up the man, who was two heads taller than him, with one hand. With a quick step, he vanished.

Morito decided to tell Vice Admiral Akita what he'd discovered. But Akita was currently fighting Bourne, and probably wouldn't have time to deal with this.

So Morito found the vice admiral's adjutant. As an adjutant to a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral, he was himself a colonel.

His strength was nothing to scoff at, either.

At the beginning of the story, Smoker was only a colonel.

"So that's what was going on behind the scenes. No wonder so many people suddenly showed up with the Bourne Pirates."

Colonel Doug learned the whole story from Morito.

He stroked his chin and pondered for a moment, then immediately gave an order to a Navy Ensign standing beside him. "Ensign Jimmy, you heard what he said, right?"

"I'm ordering you to take two hundred men and go with him to rescue them!"

Ensign Jimmy looked hesitant. "If I take two hundred men, what happens to everyone here?"

The enemy might have turned out to be residents instead of pirates, but they were still a vast, ant-like mass.

The Navy was already outnumbered. If he took a fifth of their forces away, wouldn't even fewer men be left to hold the harbor position?

"Rescuing them comes first. I'll hold the line."

Now that he knew the enemy were civilians being forced to fight, Doug couldn't bring himself to attack them without mercy.

He would hold the position and buy time until everyone on Frances Island had been rescued.

"Yes, sir!"

Ensign Jimmy saluted, gathered a squad of Navy soldiers, and was about to leave.

Just then, Colonel Doug called out to him.

"Wait!"

Doug glanced at Morito and said, "Take him with you, too. After all, he was the one who found out what was happening on Frances Island."

If the rescue went smoothly, the battle on Frances Island could be brought to a swift end.

It would be a major accomplishment.

Although Ensign Jimmy looked down on Morito as a reserve Navy recruit and thought he'd only hold them back, he couldn't argue with Doug's orders.

"Don't get in our way, and you'll get your share of the credit."

Ensign Jimmy said coldly, then led his men away, as if trying to shake off some dead weight.

Morito followed at the very back of the group, unbothered.

Would it really go that smoothly?

Probably not.

Everyone followed the burly islander into the mountains. This time, Morito was extremely cautious. Using the Byakugan, he examined every inch of the mountain, inside and out.

Just as the burly man had said, over a hundred pirates were blocking the entrance, while the elderly, women, and children from the town were being held in a cave behind them.

"This is definitely the place."

Ensign Jimmy surveyed the area in front of the mountain through his binoculars. A hundred or so pirates would be hard to hide.

He raised a hand and signaled that they were ready to attack.

Click, click!

Bullets were loaded, swords drawn. The Navy soldiers crouched, poised like tigers ready to leap from their cages.

"First squad, move in!"

"Second squad, provide covering fire!"

"Third and fourth squads, flank them from both sides!"

The force of a little over two hundred men was split into four squads, each with more than fifty men, making it easier to advance.

Mountain combat wasn't as simple as charging forward in one big group.

Morito wasn't assigned to any squad. Ensign Jimmy simply didn't trust him; he thought a reserve recruit would surely mess up the mission.

Since Morito was only here to share the credit, he could stay quietly in the rear.

Once the mission was complete, they could give him a share of the credit.

"Stay here, watch the enemy's movements, and be ready to support us at any time!"

Ensign Jimmy shoved his binoculars into Morito's arms, then charged forward with his sword alongside the Navy soldiers.

Morito silently hung the binoculars around his neck.

The words he'd been about to say died on his lips.

Support them?

They were a bunch of idiots walking straight into the enemy's trap. How was he supposed to support them?

The next second—

BOOM! BOOM!

A string of explosions rang out. Except for the second squad, which was providing covering fire, the first squad charging straight ahead and the third and fourth squads advancing on the flanks all entered the minefield where the enemy had buried explosives.

The Bourne Pirates had planted explosives in only two places. One was along the road from the harbor into town. Because Morito's cannon fire had disrupted their plans and the battle had begun at the harbor, those explosives hadn't been detonated.

The other place was the slope in front of the mountain.

Whether or not anyone tried to rescue the prisoners in the confusion, the explosives they'd planted would ensure there was no chance of failure.

And now the bombs buried beneath the slope had done their job!

"Ensign Jimmy!!"

Amid the flames, a charred figure was hurled through the air and slammed into the second squad behind them.

It was Ensign Jimmy. He was still alive, barely.

He was alive, but gravely wounded.

"Quick, retreat!"

Jimmy was full of guilt and regret. He should have sent someone to scout the area first. He struggled to his feet, leaning on his saber, and stood in front of the others.

The hundred or so men guarding the cave for the Bourne Pirates rushed out, pouncing on the fallen Navy soldiers. They slaughtered the three squads, leaving none alive.

Blood stained the earth and ran down the slope, strewn with corpses.

It gathered into thin, scarlet streams, a horrifying sight.

"Hurry and get out of here! Tell Colonel Doug what happened. I'll hold them off and buy you time!"

Ensign Jimmy might have been foolish and sharp-tongued, but he had a good heart.

Faced with certain defeat, he chose to stay behind and cover their retreat. He didn't shirk responsibility for the Navy's disastrous defeat, either.

That made Morito think a lot better of him.

Pfft!

Morito sent a thread of Chakra into one of Ensign Jimmy's pressure points. Jimmy's body stiffened. He remained conscious, but couldn't speak or move.

Morito casually tossed the immobilized Jimmy to a nearby Navy soldier.

"Leave the rest to me!"