After Ben Beckman and Shanks regrouped with the others, Uta tearfully told all the crew members what had just happened.
Though the child was usually carefree, the fright she had suffered was still too much for young Uta to bear. Shanks tried his best to change the subject and keep her from dwelling on it, but the little girl's tears simply would not stop.
The sight of her sobbing broke the hearts of the Red-Haired Pirates' crew, and they all clamored to avenge Uta. If they had not known that Vice Captain Beckman had gone to handle it, they would have charged out long ago.
So when the crew saw Beckman return with his rifle slung over his shoulder, they immediately asked anxiously:
"Beckman, how did it go? Did you take care of them all?"
"Looks like it took you a while! Were there any troublesome people among those New Marines who wanted to kill Uta?"
Hearing his companions' questions, Beckman gently shook his head and answered:
"No. Ran into a little trouble."
Seeing him shake his head in denial, all the crew members froze. Even Shanks, who had been constantly comforting Uta, looked at Beckman in surprise. He had not expected even Beckman to fail.
"Jinbe, the commander of the New Marines base on Fish-Man Island, arrived."
"He saved the Fish-Man who gave the order to kill Uta."
Beckman spoke as if it did not matter, but the others became even more puzzled. They knew their vice captain very well. Given Beckman's strength, this should not have happened.
Shanks was perceptive. After exchanging a glance with Beckman, he understood what Beckman was thinking. He nodded slightly, clapped his hands, and said to the crew:
"Alright, so he got away. Guess that guy was lucky."
"Next time we run into