Have You Heard My Story?

Driven by curiosity, Zoro immediately drew the long blade at his waist and rapidly paddled twice along either side of the small boat, heading toward the harbor.

And just then...

A well-behaved little head poked out from the railing of the Tiga.

"Huh?"

Little Tiga looked at Zoro and shouted curiously in a soft, childish voice:

"Hey~ What are you here for?"

"Huh!?"

Startled by the voice, Zoro froze for a moment before slowly raising his head to look above him.

Only then did he realize that what stood beside him was not some wall of the harbor, but a massive warship.

More than ten meters above him, a child was leaning over the railing and waving at him.

"Strange. Why is there a child at a Marine base? Doesn't anyone look after him?"

Because of his angle, Zoro failed to notice the pirate flag fluttering above the Tiga.

He muttered to himself, then shouted at Little Tiga:

"Hey! Are you with the Marines?"

"The Marines?" Tiga tilted his head cutely.

"I'm not with the Marines. What do you need the Marines for?"

Considering that showing a child two bloody heads might not be appropriate, Zoro deliberately turned sideways and used the two bundles at his waist to block them from view.

"I'm a bounty hunter. I came here to collect a bounty!"

"A bounty hunter?" Little Tiga continued to tilt his head and muttered softly:

"Bounty hunters seem... to be Captain Kael's enemies?"

"No! I have to report this to Captain Kael!"

Whoosh!

Little Tiga suddenly vanished.

What!?

Zoro was startled. His eyes widened as he looked around, yet he could not figure out where Little Tiga had gone.

"What a strange kid!"

After muttering that, Zoro continued rowing with his blade and entered the Marine base.

At that moment, Tashigi stood at the entrance of the base, supervising the Marines as they moved supplies.

Coby quietly held a small notebook, recording every batch of supplies seized from the Marine base.

You never knew until you counted. Once they did, it was truly shocking!

From just one Marine base in the East Blue, they had looted a full billion Beli in cash...

And that was not even the bulk of what this Marine base possessed!

From Colonel Nezumi's private treasure vault, they had uncovered all kinds of precious treasures worth another billion Beli!!!

And that did not even include the money Nezumi had squandered over the years, used to grease the palms of his superiors, and used to win people over...

If they actually calculated it all in detail, the total would definitely be an astronomical, horrifying figure!!!

Across the entire sea region, more than twenty villages and nearly a thousand people had all become slaves of Colonel Nezumi and the Arlong Pirates, spending every bit of their income and savings just for the chance to stay alive.

Standing at the gate, Tashigi stared at the crates of cash and treasures, her hands clenched tightly!

At that moment, she truly wished she could revive the Arlong Nami had already killed, then carve him into a thousand pieces and leave him in eternal, agonizing pain!

She wished she could immediately draw her sword, sever Colonel Nezumi's limbs, hang him high in the air, and let the blazing sun scorch his sinful body.

Unfortunately...

Captain Kael had said that a living Nezumi was more valuable than a dead one.

Tashigi trusted her captain. He would definitely not let Colonel Nezumi off easy!

Compared to Tashigi, who trusted Kael completely, Coby—who had yet to be entered into the character template—was far more shaken inside.

He could not imagine that the Marines he had dreamed of joining would be like this.

The young man rapidly recorded the valuable supplies in his notebook.

With every line he wrote, his heart shuddered violently.

Just then, Zoro suddenly walked over carrying two heads.

When he saw Tashigi from behind, he instinctively assumed that she was the commanding officer of this Marine base.

Zoro stepped forward.

"Hello, may I ask..."

His voice suddenly came to a halt.

Zoro's eyes widened as he stared in disbelief at the young woman who had turned back to look at him. Even his body instantly stiffened.

"You... you... you... you..."

He raised a hand and pointed at Tashigi, stammering for a long time without managing to say a single word.

"Hm?"

Tashigi frowned slightly, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and asked:

"What? Do you need something?"

"..."

Zoro suddenly fell silent. Seeing Tashigi's cold and proud demeanor, he knew she was not his former close friend.

If Kuina were still alive...

After taking a deep breath, Zoro pulled himself out of his memories.

He lifted the two bags in his hand.

"Hello. I'm a bounty hunter, and I came here to collect a bounty."

"A bounty hunter carrying a famous blade!?"

Tashigi's gaze sharpened, and her expression toward Zoro immediately turned serious.

She had already noticed the Great Grade Blade at Zoro's waist—Wado Ichimonji.

A swordsman capable of wielding such a famous blade could not possibly be weak.

Considering that he was also indirectly ridding the people of evil, Tashigi hesitated for a moment before saying:

"I'm sorry, but Marine 16th Branch has important matters to handle today and is temporarily closed to the public."

"You can sail west and collect your bounty at Marine 17th Branch."

She did not want Zoro to remain here for too long.

After all, pirates and bounty hunters were enemies by nature.

Not to mention that Captain Kael was a "pirate" with a high bounty on his head.

If possible, Tashigi did not want any conflict with Zoro.

However, what Zoro said next made her fall silent at once.

"Marine 16th Branch!? Isn't this Marine 85th Branch!?" Zoro blinked in shock.

He looked as though he had just heard something utterly unbelievable.

"..."

Tashigi fell silent, but her eyes gradually took on the look one gave an idiot.

After a while, she sighed helplessly.

"Marine 85th Branch is in the southwestern waters of the East Blue, while this place is in the northeastern waters of the East Blue..."

"The two bases are far apart. How did you end up here?"

After pausing for a second, Tashigi could not help adding:

"Could it be that you have no sense of direction?"

"What kind of thing is that to say!?"

Zoro flew into an embarrassed rage, his body trembling as his face flushed red.

Too ashamed to stay, he instantly turned and walked away.

"If you're not open here, I'll go somewhere else."

Damn it, this is humiliating!

"..."

Could this guy really make it alive to the next Marine base?

As she watched Zoro's retreating figure, a trace of concern suddenly flashed through Tashigi's eyes.

Just then, her gaze froze again.

A figure suddenly leaped down from the Tiga and landed steadily behind Zoro.

"Please wait, Mr. Roronoa Zoro!"

Zoro abruptly stopped, then turned around again to look at the man who somehow knew his full name.

Zoro frowned. "Do we know each other?"

"Not really." Kael chuckled, then said:

"But your head is filled with your story."