Shimotsuki Village and the Three Great Marine Powers

"So, that's what he said? Dunn?"

Listening to the report from the marine before him, Major Nezumi waved him out before picking up the Den Den Mushi.

Regardless of the details, a guy suspected of being a power user needed to be reported.

After all, a Devil Fruit was a secret treasure of the sea.

Power users were extremely rare.

Even within the Navy, there were only a few dozen power users at most.

Meritorious service wasn't just about capturing pirates or guarding a base; recommending talent was also a way to earn credit.

If the Navy managed to recruit a power user because of his report, it would be a significant contribution.

"Headquarters? This is Major Nezumi of the East Blue 16th Branch, serial number 00733. I have something to report."

Once the connection was established, Major Nezumi spoke with a serious tone.

At the town pier.

Dunn watched the pier return to its busy state, contemplating the information he had just gathered while examining the nautical chart he had just purchased.

The East Blue was vast, or rather, all four seas were vast.

He had set his next destination as Shimotsuki Village.

Before he possessed sufficient strength, he didn't intend to head to the Grand Line, so he would stick to his pre-planned route to find a way to Shimotsuki Village.

However, there were no ships heading directly to Shimotsuki Village.

According to the distance between here and Shimotsuki Village on the chart, a standard merchant ship would likely take about three months.

Of course, if they traveled directly without stopping at other islands along the way, the time might be shorter.

"In that case, I'll hire a ship."

A moment later, Dunn shook his head slightly and made his decision.

Perhaps he could find a ship heading to Shimotsuki Village by going to a larger island, but he didn't want to waste time on that.

With nearly ten million Beli on him, it was definitely enough for the short term as far as Dunn was concerned.

It was better to head to Shimotsuki Village as quickly as possible and begin his plan to grow stronger.

Having made his decision, the subsequent steps were much simpler.

After offering a payment of five hundred thousand Beli, Dunn easily hired a merchant ship. Following a brief period of preparation for supplies, the ship left the pier and sailed out into the ocean.

The news of Dunn's departure by ship was naturally reported by the Marines who had been keeping an eye on him.

Among the details, the name of the destination Dunn had inquired about—Shimotsuki Village—was also reported to Major Nezumi.

"Is this his destination?"

After pondering for a moment, Major Nezumi reported this new information to headquarters as well.

Since the information had been passed up, he didn't need to concern himself with it any further.

Several days later.

Marine Headquarters, Admiral's office.

The crunching sound of senbei being chewed made the veins on Sengoku's forehead throb as he looked down at his documents.

"Garp, you bastard, don't you have your own office?"

Unable to hold it in any longer, Sengoku suddenly looked up and glared at Garp.

"Don't be so angry, Sengoku! I just ran out of senbei!"

Garp didn't care about Sengoku's rage at all. He poured the remaining senbei from the bag into his mouth, stood up, walked over to Sengoku's desk, pulled open a drawer, and took out a large bag of senbei.

Seeing his old comrade act this way, Sengoku was speechless, though mostly just resigned.

"If you feel so idle, I'll find you a mission."

Garp, who had just sat down, turned his head to look at Sengoku without saying a word.

"You've refused the promotion to Admiral again this time, and the World Government has a lot of complaints about you."

Seeing Garp's reaction, Sengoku sighed and said.

"They can only have complaints!"

Garp looked away, tore open the bag in his hands, and acted as if he didn't care.

"Forget it, you're right about that."

Sengoku's forehead developed a few black lines at these words, but he felt helpless.

The title of Hero of the Marines had been circulating within the Navy for over a decade.

The Navy had deliberately shaped Garp, the man who captured the King of the Pirates, into a hero of the Navy, and Garp's personal influence was indeed immense now.

As long as he didn't make any mistakes, the Navy and the World Government wouldn't touch Garp; or rather, even if he did make mistakes, they still wouldn't touch him.

What's more, he was a top-tier combatant on the high seas.

No one was a fool.

"Ever since the execution of Roger back then, the number of pirates has increased every year. Now, in the New World, the influence of Whitebeard, Kaido, and Charlotte Linlin is growing ever larger. The Navy is preparing to put the top-tier combatant plan on the agenda.

We are planning to officially promote Akainu and the other two to Admirals. What do you think?"

Watching Garp eat his rice crackers, Sengoku suddenly spoke, though he shifted the topic.

"You and the World Government can discuss that yourselves."

Garp, however, acted as if he didn't care.

"Promoting the three of them to Admirals this time is mainly to deal with the growing influence of Whitebeard and the others here in the Grand Line; it is imperative. Additionally, Commander-in-Chief Kong is preparing to head to the World Government to take up his post."

"Oh?"

Garp was taken aback and turned to look at Sengoku.

Previously, the Navy only had two Admirals: one was the strategist Sengoku, and the other was Black Arm Zephyr.

However, due to certain events, although Zephyr was still an Admiral, he only served at the Navy Headquarters training camp. In this way, the next Fleet Admiral should be Sengoku.

"So, are you sure you won't take the position of Admiral? To you, it's just a title, and it wouldn't add many tasks to your plate."

Sengoku tried to persuade him once more.

Garp shook his head directly, refusing flatly.

"Fine, since that's the case, take a look at this report."

As he spoke, Sengoku tossed a report to Garp. Garp raised his hand to catch it, looking at it with some confusion.

"A pirate hunter has appeared in the East Blue. Judging by his age, he should be fourteen or fifteen, having just set out to sea. He is a suspected user of flame-related abilities, possibly even a Logia-type Devil Fruit user. You should head back there and see if you can find him.

If you find him, see if you can recruit him into the Navy!"

"A flame-related ability user, and possibly a Logia-type? Sengoku, what do you think Logia-types are?"

Garp was speechless.

He had joined the Navy for decades and fought countless pirates; there were only a handful of Logia-type users, and three of them were the three brats in the Navy.

"What if it's true? Of course, if you don't want to, I'll send someone else."

Sengoku replied immediately upon hearing this.

"I'll go. I was planning to head back there anyway."

Garp stood up immediately upon hearing this.

Since he finally had the time to go back, he might as well treat it as a paid vacation.

Watching Garp saunter away, Sengoku shook his head helplessly.

This old friend had less and less drive these days, and as for the reason, he naturally understood it well.

But at their age, Sengoku didn't want to force him.

The most critical thing next was the appointment of the three Navy Admirals.

After all, with this appointment, the Navy would also undergo internal reforms, and the news of the three great Navy combatants would be spread across the entire ocean.

Deterrence was also a key component.