After answering the Den Den Mushi, Garp punched Ace and Luffy twice each, sending them rolling across the ground. Only then did he look at the Den Den Mushi.
"Vice Admiral Garp, he's back!"
The Den Den Mushi's mouth opened and closed, and Bogard's voice came through.
"Wahahahaha! That kid's back at the 16th Branch Base? Keep him there. I'm heading back now."
After saying that, Garp stood up and looked at the two boys, who were rolling around on the ground with huge bumps all over their heads.
"If I hear you two saying you're going to set sail and become pirates again, you'll get another Fist of Love from me."
Garp shook his fist and glared at Ace and Luffy.
The two brats clutched their heads and instinctively scrambled to their feet and backed away.
Garp turned and left without another word.
"Gramps, I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"
Watching Garp's retreating figure, Luffy yelled at the top of his lungs. Ace immediately clamped a hand over his mouth.
Garp heard him, but didn't turn around.
After all, he still had things to take care of.
Smack!
Luffy got a slap to the back of the head. The burly bandit Dadan had a cigarette between her lips as she glared fiercely at him.
The two turned around, saw Dadan, cried out, and immediately ran.
"You two little brats, get back here!"
Dadan hadn't expected the brats to run the moment they saw her. She grabbed a club and chased after them.
"One old bastard and two little brats!"
The town at the 16th Branch Base.
The pirates had already been taken away.
Clearly, the people here still hadn't gotten over their excitement.
Good grief, they'd never seen anything like it. Had they caught every pirate in the East Blue?
After all that excitement, no one felt like getting back to their own business. They gathered in groups, chatting about what had happened that day.
The tavern was packed in no time, too.
Old Komodo kept swallowing nervously, glancing now and then at the two large bags beside Dunn.
"Having too much money is a problem too, isn't it?"
Dunn finished his juice and set down the cup, looking troubled as he eyed the two bags of Belly.
Old Komodo couldn't help rolling his eyes.
Why not give him that kind of problem?
"How about you hold on to this for me?"
Dunn picked up the bag beside him and tossed it to Old Komodo.
"When I'm ready to leave, I'll come back for it."
Old Komodo was still staring at the heavy bag, trying to process what had happened, when Dunn got up and left.
"Old man, what did that young fellow give you?"
The people at the counter had naturally noticed what was going on, and someone asked.
"N-nothing!"
Old Komodo swallowed and hurriedly put the bag behind the counter.
But his heart was pounding.
He'd never seen this much money in his life. If he packed it up and left, he could live like a rich man anywhere until the day he died.
But when he thought of how Dunn had captured so many pirates all by himself in such a short time, Old Komodo quickly dismissed the thought.
The pier.
When Dunn returned, the Marines were cleaning the pirate ship he'd brought back.
"Looks like they haven't deducted anything for the ship!"
Dunn narrowed his eyes as he looked at the ship, which was considered large by pirate standards.
It should be worth a few million Belly, right?
"This is your ship."
Bogard had spotted Dunn as soon as he arrived. He walked over, heard Dunn's remark, and replied.
"Vice Admiral Garp is on his way back from Foosha Village."
After saying that, Bogard watched Dunn's expression.
Dunn's expression didn't change.
"Give it up. You can't force me to join the Marines, can you?"
Dunn smiled and looked back at Bogard.
"I can't say. Vice Admiral Garp is the one who decides. But there are plenty of less obvious perks to joining the Marines. If you want to hunt pirates, the Marines have far more news and intelligence."
Bogard had no doubt about Dunn's ability.
Dunn looked quite sturdy, but his face made him seem young.
Someone with that kind of ability at his age reminded Bogard of another person who had once served under Garp.
Another monster in the Marines.
The Marine Admiral Aokiji.
Even Aokiji had still been in training at Dunn's age.
[Top-tier Swordsman]
The blue words hovered over Bogard's head. Dunn glanced at them a few times, then looked away.
"I hunt pirates for the money, not because it's a hobby."
Dunn waved a hand, then walked over to the Marines cleaning the pirate ship and spoke to one of them in a low voice.
Watching Dunn's back, Bogard knew he was probably going to set sail.
But Vice Admiral Garp was on his way back.
And wasn't this guy tired?
Wouldn't he rest for a few days?
He could at least wait for Vice Admiral Garp to return.
Bogard hesitated, wondering how he could keep Dunn there.
But the man probably didn't have a ship right now.
There was no way he could operate a pirate ship that big by himself.
Just as the thought crossed his mind, he saw the delighted expressions on the faces of several Marines talking with Dunn.
Bogard's heart sank. He had a bad feeling about this.
Then he watched as a few Marines left, only to return a moment later, steering a small boat.
Dunn looked back and waved to him. Then he climbed aboard alone and sailed away.
On the calm sea,
Dunn sat at the stern of the small boat, his arm transformed into flames. A long plume of fire streamed behind him, and the boat seemed to have a motor.
It was an idea he'd had earlier.
He'd gotten the inspiration from Monkey D. Luffy's method of flying while fighting Doflamingo in Gear Fourth.
Luffy propelled himself with bursts of air, while Dunn used rocket-like flames.
This method took a lot of stamina, though.
Of course, with his current stamina, he could handle this small amount of exertion.
He could treat it as training his Mera Mera no Mi abilities.
Besides, he was getting used to moving this way. Later, he could use it to achieve rapid movement.
Clearly, this was faster than rowing with oars or paddling with his long sword.
He set off in the afternoon and reached Cocoyasi Village just before sunset.
Before long, Bell-mère stood in front of Dunn, staring at him in a daze.
"Pack them up?"
Dunn nodded.
"Same as before?"
Dunn nodded again.
"All right!"
Bell-mère didn't refuse this time. She took the Belly Dunn handed her, then went to call Genzo to help carry the oranges.
After that, Dunn planned to patrol the nearby waters.
After all, that was why he'd come. Now that he'd heard about Arlong, the bastard would probably show up soon.
Meanwhile, at Reverse Mountain,
a huge pirate ship flying the Sun Pirate Flag crossed Reverse Mountain, plunged down the reverse-flowing waterway, and crashed onto the surface of the East Blue.
The Marines keeping watch nearby immediately spotted the ship and surrounded it. But when they saw the pirate flag flying above, their faces all changed.
That flag?
The officer leading the warship turned pale as he recognized the pirate flag.
One of the Shichibukai, with the legal right to plunder—the Knight of the Sea, Jinbe.
What was someone like him doing in the East Blue?
Before you continue