Bounty Posters and the Atrocities of Pirates

As soon as Dunn spoke, the suspicious expression on Colonel Mouse's face froze, and he pointed at Dunn, dumbfounded, his sharp teeth fully exposed.

"Y-y-y-you... you're that Pirate Hunter? You're still in the East Blue?"

Colonel Mouse looked completely bewildered.

"Of course I'm still in the East Blue. Where else would I go?"

Dunn stared at Colonel Mouse with a beaming smile, seemingly implying something more.

Because of Dragon's warning and the arrival of Garp, Dunn knew that his information had been reported by this guy.

"You actually didn't join the Marines? Did Vice Admiral Garp not find you?"

Colonel Mouse didn't hide what he knew at all, staring wide-eyed at Dunn.

He was aware that the Marine Headquarters had sent Vice Admiral Garp to find someone.

But as for the result, he truly didn't know.

However, he figured that since Vice Admiral Garp had taken action, the person had likely been found and brought back to Marine Headquarters.

That was what he had believed all along, which was why he had been so stunned after recognizing Dunn.

Dunn looked at Colonel Mouse, sizing him up for a few moments, but he couldn't tell if the guy was genuinely stupid or just playing dumb; regardless, he didn't really care about that matter right now.

"Two pirates, a bounty of 3.9 million Beli. Let's round it up to 4 million Beli."

Dunn stood up and started walking toward the exit as he spoke.

"Oh, and send the money to the usual place."

It was only when Dunn stood up that Colonel Mouse noticed the massive change in his physique.

"Sir!"

A Marine standing nearby called out cautiously, watching Colonel Mouse stare blankly in the direction where Dunn had left.

"Oh, oh! Lock these two bastard pirates up and prepare the bounty money."

Coming back to his senses, Colonel Mouse kicked the two restrained pirates, issued the order directly, and then headed outside.

Dunn's sudden appearance left Colonel Mouse filled with doubt.

He was wondering whether he should continue reporting on Dunn's affairs.

But what was the situation with the Marines earlier?

Could it be that they hadn't found him?

Thinking of this, Colonel Mouse returned to his office and immediately pulled out a Den Den Mushi to contact headquarters.

Brrr-brrr.

Not long after the Den Den Mushi started ringing, its appearance shifted to match the person on the other end.

Seeing this, Colonel Mouse instinctively stood at attention.

"I am Colonel Mouse, base commander of the 16th Branch of the East Blue, serial number 00733. I have a matter to report."

Subsequently, the Colonel reported the news that Dunn, who had appeared a year ago, had shown up again, and asked why Dunn was still in the East Blue.

"Please wait a moment, Colonel Mouse."

The person speaking from headquarters was a woman, and after a short while, her voice sounded again.

"Regarding the matter you mentioned, headquarters dispatched Vice Admiral Garp to the East Blue a year ago to search for him, but he was not found."

So they really hadn't found him.

Colonel Mouse realized this with a start, then asked how headquarters wanted him to handle it now.

"Colonel Mouse may extend an invitation yourself. If the other party is indeed a gifted individual, headquarters will record your contribution, and we will report this matter further up."

"Understood!"

Upon hearing this, Colonel Mouse nodded immediately.

Extending an invitation—that was a chance to earn merit; there was no shame in that.

After hanging up the Den Den Mushi, a Marine arrived with the bounty money to report, and Mouse didn't hesitate, taking his men to find Dunn in person.

The tavern in town.

It was no different from a year ago; the owner was still the same.

"A glass of juice!"

Dunn finished speaking and placed his sword on the counter.

The tavern owner was quite accustomed to this and skillfully poured a glass of orange juice.

It was very fresh!

Dunn's eyes lit up after taking a sip.

It had the perfect hint of tartness, with crushed fruit pulp mixed in; the texture was top-tier.

"Young man, the taste is good, right? These are oranges produced in Cocoyasi Village, famous throughout the East Blue. If the base weren't so close to Cocoyasi Village, we wouldn't be able to get such fresh ones."

Seeing the look on Dunn's face, the tavern owner said with a smile.

Upon hearing the name of the village, Dunn's expression shifted.

"Is it very close to Cocoyasi Village from here?"

"Of course it's close, it only takes half a day by boat!"

This answer didn't come from the tavern owner, but from a customer in the tavern.

Dunn turned to look at the customer who spoke, a middle-aged man dressed as a sailor, holding a large mug of ale while looking over.

"Are there boats going there?"

Dunn asked.

"Of course there are boats, every day. You should know that Cocoyasi Village is in the Conomi Islands, which produce all kinds of fruit. Especially when the fruit is ripe, there are boats every day."

Dunn nodded upon hearing this, said nothing more, and then turned his head to look at the tavern wall.

Hanging on it were rows of bounty posters.

There were no bounty posters for the great pirates of the New World; they were basically pirates from the East Blue, or pirates from the East Blue who had headed to the New World.

Admiral Krieg, bounty of 12 million.

Captain of the Black Cat Pirates, Klahadore, bounty of 10 million.

Dunn swept his gaze over the two prominent bounty posters, examining them closely.

"These two are the big pirates of the East Blue."

Seeming to notice Dunn's gaze, the tavern owner put down the glass he was wiping and spoke up.

"Ten million makes them big pirates?"

Dunn's expression was a bit strange upon hearing this.

"That's only natural. The East Blue is the weakest sea. Pirates here don't dare stay too long; as long as a pirate's bounty gets too high, it will attract the Navy.

This, after all, is the hometown of the Hero of the Marines, Garp."

The tavern owner said with a look of reverence.

"Hometown? The East Blue is very large."

Dunn could understand the tavern owner's thinking, but it covered about a quarter of the planet's surface.

Dunn shook his head slightly.

"Yeah, the East Blue is very large. Even the Navy can't wipe out all the pirates. You should be careful when you go out to sea, young man."

The tavern owner clearly didn't understand what Dunn meant and offered a kind reminder.

"I will!"

Dunn would thank others for their kindness.

However, the ones who might need to be careful were these pirates.

Dunn's eyes swept over these bounty posters one by one.

Except for the first two which exceeded 10 million Beli, the rest were all in the millions.

But in the East Blue, these were already considered pirates with relatively high bounties.

Of course, the photos were also very abstract.

It fit the temperament of this world perfectly.

"These are the bounty posters I've compiled of pirates in the East Blue who haven't been caught yet."

Just then, the tavern owner revealed his true colors, pulling out a stack of bounty posters like a magician and placing them in front of Dunn.

"It only costs 150,000 Beli."

As soon as these words were spoken, the others in the tavern couldn't hold back.

"Old Komodo, you're too much of a crook."

Clearly, 150,000 Beli was not a small amount for these people.

"You bastards don't know a damn thing. I collected a lot of information to compile these. Look, on the back of each one, there's the location where the pirate appeared."

As he spoke, he picked one up to show the others.

Sure enough, there was a lot of text on the back of the bounty poster, recording all the places the pirate had appeared and their general range of activity.

It even noted what they had done in the past.

It was indeed very detailed.

"Did you recognize me?"

Dunn was silent for a moment, then asked.

"Hehe, although your physique has changed, young man, I am Old Komodo, and my eyes are very good. A year ago, you caught pirates to collect the bounty."

Old Komodo, the tavern owner, did not deny it.

However, considering the large number of people who must come here every day, his ability to remember him was truly quite impressive.

"After all, those guys don't look like human beings, unlike you, young man."

Was that a compliment?

Dunn was stunned upon hearing this, feeling rather speechless.

Still, his style was indeed different from everyone else in the tavern.

"How about it? Would you like a copy, young man? One hundred thousand Beli will do."

"I'll take one, then."

Dunn nodded in response.

It worked out well; while waiting for Arlong, he also intended to get some activity in.

If he could find Krieg or Kuro, that would certainly be a good thing.

However, at this point in time, Kuro of the Black Cat should not have faked his death to hide himself yet.

As for Krieg, the range of that guy's activities should be quite vast.

After all, when he later set sail, this guy was known as the hegemon of the East Blue.

But for a pirate crew that could muster five thousand men, it was uncertain whether this guy, like Arlong later on, had any collusion with the Navy.

Tossing his money pouch onto the counter, Dunn sipped his juice leisurely and picked up a bounty poster to look at the record on the back.

"A pirate with a bounty of only three million leading a pirate crew, slaughtering three island villages and killing at least five hundred people?"

Looking at the record on the back, Dunn's eyelids twitched.

Although this was just a record, it represented, in no uncertain terms, hundreds of lives.