Jerseylo Island / Close-Quarters Combat

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Chapter 6: Jerseylo Island

Night fell quickly, and even Vice Admiral Garp's fantastical training methods clearly could not be carried out.

Bogard was taciturn, but he thoughtfully brought Xia Le a new Marine Uniform, along with a large amount of meat, vegetables, fruit, and fresh water.

"You need to replenish your strength."

His words were faint, but they made Xia Le look at him gratefully.

The two exchanged a glance, then tacitly said nothing more.

Xia Le began wolfing down the food.

Although death made him stronger and could also make his previous injuries disappear, the hunger in his stomach was still unbearable.

The night wind was slightly cool. With Garp's careless personality, he naturally was not going to bother about his living conditions.

Xia Le leaned against the mast and narrowed his eyes to ensure he got some rest.

Footsteps sounded. He slowly opened his eyes and saw Kuzan tiptoeing over with a thin blanket in his hand.

"I think you need this!"

Kuzan smiled.

"Thanks!"

Xia Le replied.

He took the blanket from Kuzan, who then slowly sat down and leaned against the mast as well.

"I've never met anyone like you. You're clearly just a commoner, yet you dared to swing a blade at the nobles and clash with the Celestial Dragons."

"And you're not a Devil Fruit User, yet you just can't die!"

Kuzan smiled.

He was clearly extremely curious, filled with interest in the secrets surrounding the young man.

"Nobles? Celestial Dragons?"

"What makes them different from us?"

After a moment of silence, Xia Le's voice rang out as a gust of sea breeze blew past.

Kuzan was taken aback. He instinctively wanted to answer, Of course they're different!

But he soon fell silent as well, actually beginning to think carefully about the question.

What made them different?

Their status and identities!

But on closer thought, they were also the same. They were all living beings, each with two shoulders supporting one head. A gunshot or a slash from a blade would kill them all.

At that thought, Kuzan's expression suddenly turned strange. If one really had to argue the point, the monster was the young man standing before him, wasn't he?

"You're right. There's no difference!"

In the end, Kuzan chuckled and nodded.

Xia Le said nothing more. He closed his eyes, and soon began to snore softly.

After being tossed around all day, both his mind and body felt utterly exhausted.

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, sunlight spilled across the deck.

Xia Le suddenly opened his eyes. He felt dazed at first, but soon realized something and fully awoke.

He was truly no longer in that world. Even after more than ten days, he still felt somewhat unfamiliar with this place, as though he did not belong here at all.

Still, he had to admit that last night had been the most comfortable sleep he had gotten in this period.

"Garp, Kuzan, Bogard."

Xia Le murmured the three names, a smile appearing on his face.

"Maybe this place will be interesting too!"

Suddenly, the Marine who had been keeping watch all night in the Lookout blew the whistle in his mouth.

"Pweeet~~~"

The morning's tranquility was shattered. The whistle was sharp and lasted a long time.

Xia Le stood up and walked toward the bow, looking ahead.

"Hey, you trainee! Stop looking around and get ready for battle!"

"See that Island up ahead? The Town there is packed with Pirates!"

"That is our objective this time as well."

"Jerseylo Island!"

Only then did Xia Le notice that, besides the Marine blowing the whistle, another Marine was standing inside the Lookout above the mast and shouting at him.

Get ready for battle?

How was he supposed to prepare?

A trace of confusion surfaced in Xia Le's heart. He had never had any experience fighting Pirates.

The next second, hurried footsteps sounded. Figures rushed out of the ship's cabin and quickly assembled on the deck. The solemn, serious faces made the atmosphere aboard instantly turn heavy and grim.

A tall shadow suddenly loomed over his head, and an Iron Fist came crashing down.

"What are you spacing out for? Get in line!"

The roar was like thunder, making Xia Le shudder. When the fist landed on his head, it nearly gave him a concussion, and the pain made him grimace.

He turned his head and finally saw that the man with the black crew cut and Square-Faced Man was Garp.

However, the other man's expression had none of yesterday's joviality. Instead, it was completely cold.

"Get in line, Marine trainee!"

Garp bellowed.

"Yes!"

Xia Le instinctively shouted while holding his head, then ran to stand at the back of the formation.

He saw that Kuzan had already arrived there, with his position right beside him.

The future Admiral stood ramrod straight, his expression solemn and his eyes fixed ahead without the slightest deviation. He stared at Garp, who was facing them from the very front, his eyes shining with unmistakable admiration and longing.

"It's an emergency mission. You should all know about it already."

Garp spoke in a deep voice.

Xia Le froze. He did not know anything at all.

"At dawn yesterday, the Jerseylo Island branch suddenly came under attack by Pirates. Within an extremely short time, it lost Control of the Island."

"The Pirates have occupied the Town ahead. The branch base's Major made the correct choice. They evacuated together with the villagers from the Town."

Garp paused, a smile appearing on his face.

But Xia Le clearly saw that the smile on that Square-Faced Man carried a biting killing intent.

"In other words, our mission is going to be very simple."

"That is to completely eliminate the Pirates on the Island. Leave no one alive!"

A Marine in the front row saluted and asked loudly, "Vice Admiral Garp, do we know the identity of these Pirates?"

"Do we need to know?"

Garp raised his brows.

The Marine faltered, then lowered his head.

Clearly, their Superior Officer had not had time to ask for more specific Intelligence—or perhaps he simply did not care.

"Proceed according to the old plan."

Garp picked his nose as he spoke.

"Yes!"

The Marines shouted in unison.

Xia Le stood in the formation, completely baffled.

What was the mission? And what was the old plan?

Besides, where was his weapon?

But no one paid him any attention. Even Kuzan merely winked at him before hurriedly going to prepare.

Boxes of cannonballs were quickly carried to the bow.

"Let's give them a little greeting first!"

Garp grinned and scooped up a cannonball.

Xia Le praised him inwardly when he saw it. He knew very well that the black cannonball was extremely heavy. From the other's casual movement, one could see his powerful wrists and palms.

No wonder his head was still faintly aching.

The next second, Garp suddenly hurled the cannonball in his hand.

"Whoosh!"

The black cannonball shot out at an incredible speed, following a precise arc before landing in the middle of the fleet moored along the shore ahead.

"Boom!"

The explosion was deafening. Flames soared into the sky and instantly engulfed the entire Pirate ship, followed by a chorus of screams.

Xia Le sucked in a breath. The instant the cannonball landed, the ship had already broken apart at the impact point, splitting in two.

The Warship suddenly accelerated, closing the distance to the shore at incredible speed.

The Marines beside him bared fierce expressions, drew their long blades or other weapons, and leaped from the bow one after another like dumplings dropping into a pot.

"Attack!!"

"For Justice!!!"

"Kill those bastards!"

Their slogans shook the sky, and the atmosphere instantly became feverish and boiling.

Xia Le watched Kuzan charge out with a Short Blade in hand, looking like an impassioned young man bursting with enthusiasm.

He glanced down at his empty hands, then turned and grabbed the Chair beside him. He charged forward and leaped from the bow.

"Kill!!!"

Behind him, Garp had just been about to sit down when he suddenly saw Xia Le running along the shore ahead with the Chair in his arms. He was instantly dumbfounded.

"You damn brat."

"That's my Chair!"

Chapter 7: Close-Quarters Combat

Jerseylo Island.

The battle entered a fever pitch in an instant, with battle cries shaking the sky.

Xia Le followed at the rear of the formation. In such a charging environment, his emotions were affected as well. His adrenaline surged, and hot blood boiled in his heart.

The Pirates reacted extremely quickly. The explosion of one ship caused the Pirates on the other ships to leap into the sea at once. At the same time, a sharp alarm whistle tore through the air and traveled toward the nearby Town.

"The Marines are here!"