Fish-Man Tribe

Rogge walked out of the cabin with a grim face and ran straight into a Marine sergeant. Seeing Rogge emerge from the cabin with a cold expression, the sergeant found it strange. He had never seen this kid before, so he reached out and placed a hand on Rogge's shoulder.

"Which unit are you from?" the sergeant asked, gripping Rogge's shoulder.

Rogge turned his head, and their eyes met. The next moment, the sergeant's body jolted and his eyes widened as he stared at Rogge in disbelief.

A dagger pierced his heart, and blood gushed from the wound.

Rogge pulled out the blade, spattering himself with some of the Marine's blood. Without blinking, he pulled his cap low to hide his eyes and walked out of the cabin with the dagger in hand.

Pirates had already used grappling hooks to board the warship and were fighting the Marines on deck.

"Kill!"

A pirate saw Rogge emerge and raised his broadsword, bringing it down in a slash.

Rogge halted, leaning his body slightly backward as the blade fell past his nose. He switched the dagger from his right hand to his left, gripped it in reverse, and stabbed forward.

"Pfft!"

The dagger passed through the pirate's throat. With a hard pull, Rogge nearly severed the pirate's head, leaving only half of it hanging from his neck. His eyes were wide with disbelief, but he was dead beyond doubt.

The battle on the deck was fierce. The pirates showed the Marines no mercy, and naturally, the Marines would not spare the pirates either. This was not some sanitized anime world. A real battlefield was brutally cruel. People died in this world every day, and not from old age or illness.

After cleanly killing one pirate, Rogge was immediately targeted by two more. Facing them, he became slightly more cautious.

Yet he still seized an opening, shooting one pirate in the chest with his pistol. Then, he drove his dagger into the other pirate's eye, piercing straight into his skull and destroying his brain.

As he fought, Rogge watched the warship in the distance that was highly likely to be carrying the Devil Fruit. The five warships escorting the Heavenly Tribute had become the pirates' main targets.

The pirates did not dare use cannon fire, but the ships were loaded with immense wealth. Greed had long since clouded their minds, and they charged at those five warships one after another, heedless of their lives.

Even Doberman probably had not expected this. He regretted allowing himself to be pinned down at the harbor while the warships remained out at sea.

Fortunately, the soldiers aboard the warships were capable. In the face of the pirates' assault, they held their ships.

The Den Den Mushi in Rogge's chest finally rang, and he immediately took it out.

"You're Madman, right?" A steady voice came from the Den Den Mushi.

"That's right."

Rogge replied.

"I've already reached the bottom of the ship. Find a chance to jump into the sea. I'm ready," the voice said through the Den Den Mushi.

"I'm wearing a Marine uniform and holding a dagger," Rogge said.

"No problem," the Den Den Mushi replied.

Rogge slashed down the pirate in front of him and, without another word, turned and jumped into the sea.

The entire shoreline had long been dyed red with blood, yet the sea in this world was still so clear. Rogge opened his eyes and searched in every direction.

Very soon, a yellow-skinned figure rapidly approached. Rogge waved the dagger in his hand, and the figure quickly came over. He held a piece of coral and pressed hard on its top. A bubble squeezed out and wrapped around Rogge.

With air around him, Rogge released the breath he had been holding and carefully examined the yellow-skinned man.

Strictly speaking, he was not human, but a Fish-Man. Ham had gone to enormous lengths to find this member of the Fish-Man Tribe in the West Blue.

"Which warship?" the Fish-Man asked.

"That one." Rogge looked around underwater. He remembered the warship's position, and after locating it, he pointed at its underside.

"I'll make a way in for you. I'll meet you in the sea afterward," the Fish-Man said.

"No problem." Rogge nodded.

The Fish-Man grabbed Rogge's hand and brought him beneath the warship. Leaving Rogge there, he pulled a hammer from behind his back. It was quite large, with one flat end and one pointed end.

Gripping the hammer with both hands, the Fish-Man swung it through the water. After spinning around several times, he fiercely smashed its pointed end into the ship's hull.

"Bang!"

A huge hole was punched through the bottom of the ship, and seawater immediately rushed inside. Rogge swam in through the opening.

The Fish-Man put away his hammer. After watching Rogge enter the cabin, he soon turned and swam toward an injured Marine soldier who had fallen into the sea.

The Marine had fallen into the water, but despite his injuries, he could still move. He was about to swim back toward shore.

Then he felt something grab his leg and drag him downward. As he was pulled under, he saw a terrifying yellow face.

"Gurgle!"

The Marine swallowed a mouthful of seawater in terror. Before he could even taste its saltiness, the hammer struck his head, and a burst of blood exploded through the water.

After entering the cabin, Rogge followed the opening down to the bottom of the ship. He had not expected the Fish-Man to find this location. This was not an air compartment. A ship had many air compartments, providing enough buoyancy for a warship to bear greater weight.

If he had entered through an air compartment, Rogge might have needed to break through its wooden boards to get inside the warship. But the opening the Fish-Man had made happened to be at a maintenance point. There was an entrance here, so he did not need to waste time breaking through planks.

Since he could enter the cabin directly, Rogge did not dwell on the matter.

Because all the guards were outside, Rogge entered the bottom of the cabin without difficulty. He quickly found where the Heavenly Tribute was stored.

He had studied the structure of the warship. This was the most likely place for the Heavenly Tribute to be kept.

What Rogge did not know was that two CP members had been guarding the entrance. However, they had never expected anyone to enter the cabin directly from beneath the sea.

Seeing the gold, silver, and jewels filling an entire cabin, Rogge swallowed. No wonder the Heavenly Tribute could make the Celestial Dragons the richest people in the world and drive those kingdoms to ruin. There was simply too much of it.

None of this treasure was Rogge's goal. He began searching for the three Devil Fruits. Time was tight. Though the pirates were numerous, the Marines' strength was beyond imagination. They were true Marine elites; even after he had drugged them, their combat power remained astonishing. The battle would probably end soon.

Rogge searched through the treasure chests rapidly, but more than ten minutes passed. Sweat covered his face, and his anxiety grew. He had opened every chest, yet found no trace of the Devil Fruits.

"Damn it, they aren't on this warship?" Rogge said, drenched in sweat. The cries of battle outside had already grown sparse. The pirates had probably been slaughtered into submission and no longer dared charge the warship.

"There's no time. They aren't on this ship, so I can only leave. Damn it." In a fit of anger, Rogge raised his foot and kicked a cabinet.