"The pirates are here!" The dock erupted into chaos. By the time Rono arrived, dozens of fully armed Marines were guarding the harbor. "Mad Sword Pirates, what are you doing here? The Major General will be here any minute. Do you want to go to prison?"
Rono hopped onto the Ship Wheel and raised both hands. "It's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding! I'm a bounty hunter. I killed off the entire Mad Sword Pirates, and now I'm here to collect the bounty."
"Oh? You're so young, and you managed to kill the whole Mad Sword Pirates? Oh! I know what happened. A few days ago, they went after a merchant ship, but ran into the Sapphire. They must've fled with their tails between their legs, and this kid just got lucky. If what he says is true, that is." Major General Kassel had just arrived. He listened to Rono's explanation and analyzed the situation.
"Do you have any proof?" Kassel asked gravely.
"Of course!" Rono tossed the bodies on deck onto the dock one by one. Kassel gave a signal, and a Marine slung his rifle over his back and hurried over to inspect them.
"Reporting, Major General. The inspection is complete. They are indeed members of the Mad Sword Pirates' crew."
The Major General nodded. He had already figured it out when Rono tossed down the first body; the inspection was just a formality.
"You can go to Marine Headquarters to collect the bounty. But you're so young. Have you ever thought about joining the Marines, fighting pirates, and making a contribution to the Great Sea?"
"Sure. What are we waiting for? Let's go." At that, Rono leaped down from the Ship Wheel and headed toward town.
"It's fine. You don't have to give me an answer right away. When you start thinking about it, we—"
What? He actually agreed? I only said that offhand! I'd even prepared what to say! And what's with acting so familiar, you jerk? I haven't even agreed yet!
The Major General was clearly taken aback, but he was a Major General, after all, and quickly recovered. "All right. Do you know the way?"
Rono stopped after walking several meters, silently pulled back his outstretched foot, and stood beside the Marines, gazing down at his nose, his nose at his mouth, and his mouth at his heart.
Everyone: "..."
The Major General took a deep breath, resisting the urge to make a sarcastic remark. He ordered his men to clean up the bodies, then led the way back.
"Name?"
"Rono. Wolf Rono."
"Age?"
"Fifteen."
"Height?"
"About 1.84 meters, I guess. I feel like I've grown taller lately."
"Ability user?"
"Mm-hmm." ...
The physical examination report was completed soon after. Since the world of the Pirate King had none of those testing machines, they just took his word for everything. Under the instructor's guidance, Rono received two Marine uniforms, some daily necessities, and a bank card containing a bounty of nearly 50 million Beli. If he had been a Marine, the bounty would have been recorded as a merit instead, and he wouldn't have gotten much money. But when Rono claimed the bounty, he was still a bounty hunter, so they had to pay him. Even if Rono had wanted to convert it into merit, that wouldn't have been possible. The Marines wouldn't promote an unknown kid the moment he joined.
In his office, Kassel lit a cigar and looked over the two reports in front of him. The first was the physical examination report. After a quick look, he turned to the second. "A little thief from New Moon Village. He only went out to sea about half a month ago, yet suddenly gained such impressive strength. According to Asiya, the captain of the Sapphire, he trained hard every day, but a year ago, the villagers all said he was a lazybones. The possibility of a Devil Fruit Ability boosting his strength can't be ruled out." The information had all been gathered over the past few days. The Marines usually wouldn't investigate someone this closely, but Rono was different. What new recruit could take down an entire pirate crew alone? If he was a spy sent by some major pirate crew, they couldn't let him rise to a senior position. They might even be able to follow the clues back to the source.
Kassel carefully read the report again, took a Den Den Mushi from his desk drawer, and dialed a number.
"Buru buru, buru buru. Kua Jiang."
"Moshi moshi, this is Marine Headquarters. What can I do for you, Major General Kassel?"
"Here's the situation..." The Major General explained Rono's circumstances, then added his own opinion at the end. "This boy has extraordinary talent. If the information is accurate, he gained this level of strength after just one year of training. I recommend initiating B-Class Supervision. If his background checks out, he might reach the level of an Admiral in less than ten years!" As he spoke, the Major General's expression grew serious and his voice dropped, as if afraid someone might overhear.
"..." The Den Den Mushi copied Kassel's expression perfectly, leaving the other person silent. It even furrowed its two brows and pursed its lips. "We'll need to verify the details. Headquarters will send someone." They still sounded a little doubtful.
"Sorry for the trouble." Kassel hung up, stubbed out his cigarette, and called for a messenger. "Tell the recruit who arrived the day before yesterday to come see me."
About ten minutes later, the red-haired boy kicked the door open. "What do you want, old man? I need to get back to the tournament!"
"..."
Kassel was speechless. What's with calling me 'old man'? I'm only thirty! And why are you so enthusiastic? Are we that familiar?
"You damaged government property. Go pay the fine later." Kassel pointed at the office door, its lock broken. Why am I secretly pleased? No, no, I must be imagining it. I'm a Marine devoted to justice. I must've been so busy these past few days that I need to request some time off.
"...Old man, is that the only reason you called me here?" Rono wore an extremely serious expression. If you hadn't called me, would I have kicked the door in?
"Ahem. Of course not. Here's the thing, young man. I see you have exceptional talent, so I've got a recommendation letter for Marine Headquarters. It's yours for only 9.98 million Beli! Take home a Marine Headquarters recommendation letter today! How does that sound? I'm even giving you a discount."
"...I'm going to pay for the damage." Rono turned and walked out without looking back.
A gust of wind blew through the window, leaving Major General Kassel standing there in stunned silence. This is a recommendation letter from Marine Headquarters! How can you treat it like that? Isn't that the holy land all Marines dream of?
"Hey, hey, don't go! All right, ten thousand. Take it." Kassel handed Rono the recommendation letter, his face full of pain.
Rono's response was to quicken his pace. Just as he was about to step out of the office, Major General Kassel panicked. "Fine, fine! You little brat, you can have it for free!" A gust of force sent the envelope flying toward Rono's head, and then it went in—went in...
"...Shit, this is bad, this is really bad. He can't have died just like that, can he?" Major General Kassel froze in the act of throwing.
"Then I won't pay for the door." Rono turned around and said gloomily to Kassel, without so much as a glance at the envelope sticking out of the back of his head. He pulled it out, tucked it into the pocket of his uniform, and headed for the tournament grounds. Kassel nodded dumbly as he watched Rono leave the office.
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