Marine Headquarters.
Inside the Admiral's office.
Garp raised a huge wine cup and drained it in one gulp, then sighed.
His feelings toward his old rival Roger were complicated.
"Garp, you bastard, no matter what, Roger was a pirate, and he's already been executed. Pull yourself together. The Marines still need your strength."
Sengoku stood beside him, trying to fire him up.
Garp raised his eyes at Sengoku, who was trying to motivate him, then lowered his lids again. He grabbed the bottle once more, turned it upside down, and poured the liquor straight into his mouth.
Seeing this, Sengoku, who was still a Marine Admiral at the time, completely darkened his face, veins bulging on his forehead.
"Garp!"
The thunderous roar made the entire office tremble several times.
"Brrr brrr!"
Just then, the Transponder Snail began to ring.
Garp frowned and reached into his clothes, pulling out a Transponder Snail.
"Didn't I say not to bother me with anything lately?"
Garp sounded displeased.
Clearly, Garp's temper was nowhere near as mild as it would become later. Of course, that might have been because Roger had been executed.
"Vice Admiral Garp!"
The Transponder Snail's face shifted slightly before a voice rang out.
"Someone here appears to have used the King of the Pirates' sword strike—the terrifying slash he used when fighting you, King of the Pirates Roger."
"Huh?"
Garp stared wide-eyed at the Transponder Snail.
"This subordinate suspects that King of the Pirates Roger may have had a disciple or successor."
"Where is he? Have you found him?"
Sengoku's expression changed as well. He immediately stepped forward and spoke with a grave look.
Recognizing Admiral Sengoku's voice, the Transponder Snail's expression became serious.
"Admiral Sengoku, we haven't found anyone. Uh, it's only this subordinate's speculation!"
Hearing that Sengoku was there, the reporting Rear Admiral sounded somewhat hesitant.
"Whether it is or not, find him and capture him."
Sengoku said this with a livid expression.
Roger alone had already turned the entire sea upside down, and now he might have a disciple?
Such a thing absolutely could not be allowed.
Garp stroked the stubble on his chin, his expression strange.
"That doesn't seem right."
After muttering that, Garp looked at Sengoku.
"What? Are you planning to cover for Roger?"
Sengoku's eyes widened at his words.
"That strike was a Flying Slash enhanced by Conqueror's Coating. If someone can use Conqueror's Coating, how many people can stop them?"
As soon as Garp said that, Sengoku's expression changed.
That was right, it really did seem that way.
The sudden news had left him a little stunned just now.
"So it was a misunderstanding?"
Sengoku considered it, then shook his head.
"We'll know after we find the person."
Loguetown.
Having received Sengoku's orders, the Marines moved even faster.
Conflicts broke out everywhere in Loguetown, and they began spreading toward the outer coastal areas.
Hawkeye, Moria, and Crocodile all encountered Marine resistance.
But ordinary Marines clearly could not stop them.
"Men, kill our way out and board the ship!"
Moria laughed with a "Hee hee hee" as he swung his massive sword, cleaving apart the Marines blocking his path and taking the lead in breaking through the encirclement.
"Yeah!"
The pirates behind him cheered and charged forward.
Gunfire and the clash of blades rang out throughout Loguetown.
Far too many pirates had been drawn here by the execution of the King of the Pirates.
The Marines had originally intended to use this opportunity to capture a large number of pirates, and had deployed many Marines around the outskirts.
After leaving the execution platform, Lin Ye kept his newly acquired level-one Observation Haki active.
Though it was only level one, his perception of the surrounding situation was far stronger than before.
Avoiding the Marines who were racing about in search parties, Lin Ye headed straight for the coast.
"I need time to grow. There are many pirates here this time. I need to find a pirate ship to board, preferably one belonging to some powerful people."
Lin Ye's mind was clear.
The best course of action would actually have been to find a place to hide through this chaos, then set sail at a safer time.
But that would take too long.
He knew very well that the more he thought about it, the more variables there would be.
He did not want to wait that long either. This was a rare opportunity.
After avoiding several battlefields, he picked up more than a dozen Entries along the way and shattered them into nineteen Blank Entries.
The number of Blank Entries needed to upgrade an Entry increased in tiers.
Going from level one to level two required two, level two to level three required four, level three to level four required eight, and so on. Going from level nine to level ten might require more than five hundred.
That was neither a lot nor a little.
[Divine Departure: Level 4] [Observation Haki: Level 2] [Armament Haki: Level 3]
Divine Departure had consumed twelve Blank Entries to reach level four, Observation Haki consumed two Blank Entries, and Armament Haki consumed six Blank Entries.
[Blank Entries: 0]
Although upgrading Conqueror's Haki would vastly increase his overall strength, and raising it to a high level would allow him to use Conqueror's Coating and make his attacks even stronger,
at this time, even a slight upgrade to Conqueror's Haki would not help. Once he used it, it might draw certain people's attention.
Grow quietly.
Lin Ye reminded himself inwardly.
Suppressing the urge to wander around Loguetown and collect more Entries, Lin Ye quietly retreated toward the coastal docks.
"Stop!"
A voice rang out. Lin Ye did not frown as he stopped and looked at the two Marines blocking his way.
He had still been discovered.
Observation Haki could help him avoid these Marines, but if he did not want to charge directly into a battlefield, he could only take another route. Yet the Marines had already sealed off the entirety of Loguetown from the outside.
"Drop your sword and kneel on the ground!"
Seeing that it was a child carrying a sword, the two Marines approached with serious expressions, weapons in hand.
Lin Ye stared intently at them and raised a hand to grip his sword hilt.
A streak of blade light flashed. The two Marines' eyes widened abruptly as they clutched their throats and dropped to their knees. They stared at Lin Ye in horror before collapsing limply.
"Hee hee hee, kid, you dare kill Marines at such a young age. Want to join my pirate crew?"
A tall figure poked his head out from above.
Blue skin, a head narrow at the top and broad at the bottom, and a mouth full of sharp teeth—his appearance alone could make children cry at night.
Upon hearing that voice, Lin Ye, who had long sensed his presence, nodded.
"Sure."
"Hee hee hee, then keep up with your captain..."
Seeing Lin Ye agree, Moria laughed as he carried his sword and strode forward.
Lin Ye turned and merged into the pirates behind Gecko Moria.
Those pirates had naturally heard Moria's words. Seeing a child approach, none of them thought to stop him.
In this era, it was not unusual for a child that age to become a pirate.
With Moria clearing the way, the journey to the coast became much smoother.
Lin Ye looked at the towering Moria ahead of him, a glint flashing through his eyes as he picked up every Entry along the way.
By the timeline, Moria would go to Wano Country and wage a great battle against Kaido a year later. The current Moria was far stronger than when he encountered Luffy in the Devil's Sea.
"Men, board the ship!"
Moria shouted, using the long sword in his hand to cut apart two ships beside a pirate vessel before boarding his own ship and raising his sword high with another shout.
"Yeah!"
The pirates boarding with Moria cheered. Lin Ye followed them aboard, then turned to look at the chaotic Loguetown.
The sails rose, and the ship set off.
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