Join My Division, and You'll Be the Deputy Commander

"Whitebeard, Edward Newgate!"

When they saw who had arrived, the pirates were utterly astonished. Their eyes nearly popped out of their heads.

Whitebeard, Edward Newgate!

In the Rocks Pirates, he had overshadowed countless monsters, including Shiki, Charlotte Linlin, John, Silver Axe, and Ochoku!

He had become the Rocks Pirates' First Division Commander!

His Bounty had reached 995 million!

His strength was so formidable that it rivaled a Marine Admiral's. He was one of the strongest fighters in the entire sea!

"What's a man this powerful doing in Paradise?"

The pirate underlings gazed at Whitebeard with admiration, their curiosity exploding!

A man who should have been stirring up trouble in the New World had appeared in Paradise. He definitely had a special purpose!

Could Whitebeard and Lord Rono be old acquaintances?

Or had Whitebeard come for a drink?

Whatever his purpose, Mock Town probably wouldn't stay peaceful for long.

They had to inform Lord Rono as soon as possible!

"I finally found you, Rono!"

After mooring his sailing ship in the harbor, Whitebeard was the first to activate his Observation Haki.

There was someone on Jaya Island whose presence was clearly different from that of the pirate underlings!

Even across the entire first half of the Grand Line, Paradise, Whitebeard couldn't find another presence so immense that even he could feel it!

Combined with the rumors he'd heard over the past few days, there was an eight- or nine-in-ten chance that Rono—the man he was looking for—was on this island.

After coming ashore, Whitebeard had no interest in wandering around. He headed straight for the powerful presence he'd sensed with his Observation Haki.

At Whitebeard's speed, he reached Mock Town from the harbor in just a few breaths.

"That's... a Celestial Dragon!"

He had originally intended to go straight to Rono, but the moment Whitebeard stepped into Mock Town, the sight before him stunned him!

The scorching sun beat down, and the air carried the faint, pungent smells of blood and sweat.

Looking up, beneath the glaring sunlight, he saw a Celestial Dragon with all four limbs missing, tied to the Bell Tower at Mock Town's highest point!

The once-noble Space Suit was soaked through with dirty blood, and the blood at the stumps of his limbs had dried under the scorching sun.

The arrogance of a member of the world's nobility had long since vanished. He looked more like a slaughtered pig.

"Help... help me... I... I don't want to die..."

He was still muttering, apparently clinging to the last thread of life.

"Treating a Celestial Dragon like this... those people in the World Government must be furious."

Whitebeard smiled faintly, then his expression suddenly changed as he thought it over.

Something seemed a little off!

People who attacked Celestial Dragons usually fled as soon as they were done.

After all, the moment a Celestial Dragon was harmed, the Marines would send an Admiral, their greatest fighting force, right away.

But why hadn't this guy left yet?

Or was the powerful presence on this island someone else?

Before Whitebeard could figure it out, the next moment-

Boom!

A terrifying Sword Aura suddenly struck from the tavern in front of Whitebeard!

Bang!

Whitebeard reacted quickly, too. The instant the Sword Aura was about to hit him, he raised Murakumogiri and covered it in Armament Haki.

A metallic clang rang through the air.

Screech!

Whitebeard was knocked back two meters. The powerful recoil shattered the ground beneath his heels before he finally stopped the slash.

"What a sharp slash. It's at least Great Swordsman level."

Whitebeard assessed the slash in his mind while staring straight at the tavern it had come from.

The next moment, a figure walked out.

He was around two meters tall, wearing a well-fitting white shirt and black trousers.

His appearance was neat and clean.

"Rono, it really is you! You actually stayed on Jaya Island instead of leaving. That's completely unexpected!"

Whitebeard was slightly surprised when he saw Rono.

After torturing a Celestial Dragon into this state, he really hadn't left. Instead, he'd stayed right where he was, taking things easy!

Wasn't this guy afraid an Admiral would come after him?

"Hm? Whitebeard? Why are you here? I thought you were a Marine Admiral!"

Rono was also taken aback when he saw who had arrived.

After all, he'd never met Whitebeard before and wasn't familiar with his presence.

His Observation Haki had only sensed a powerful presence arriving on the island. Rono had thought an Admiral had come to hunt him down, so he'd struck first.

But he hadn't expected it to be Whitebeard!

Whitebeard was very young at this point, and still had a flowing mane of golden hair that fell to his shoulders.

If not for his iconic crescent-shaped mustache and the Murakumogiri in his hand, Rono might not have recognized him.

"You thought I was a Marine Admiral? You've got to be kidding. You really were waiting here for an Admiral to show up?"

Whitebeard wondered if there was something wrong with his ears.

This guy really had been deliberately waiting for an Admiral to arrive!

What a kid—he was playing for high stakes!

He wasn't even twenty, yet he was decisive, ruthless, and every bit as crazy as the kingpins aboard Rocks's ship.

At least as far as Whitebeard could tell, apart from Rocks, no one in the entire sea would do something as insane as taking down a Celestial Dragon and then waiting right where they were!

"Of course. But what brings you here?" Rono asked.

Actually, when Rono saw Whitebeard, he could guess why he'd come.

Given Rocks's love of talent, Whitebeard had to be here to recruit him.

Though Rono was also interested in joining the Rocks Pirates, he had to act as if he didn't know.

After all, he couldn't go rushing to join the Rocks Pirates.

Rono knew well enough that simps never had good endings.

Besides, since Whitebeard had come all this way, wouldn't it be a huge loss if Rono didn't get anything out of it?

"Join my division, Rono!"

"No tests required. You'll go straight in as deputy commander!"

After thinking it over, Whitebeard replied with great sincerity.

As a matter of fact, Rocks had originally tasked Whitebeard with recruiting Rono.

But after meeting him, Whitebeard had his own thoughts.

This guy was so confident that after torturing a Celestial Dragon, he'd stayed right there to wait for an Admiral!

It seemed he was confident in his strength and willing to take responsibility for his actions!

Wasn't Whitebeard always looking for reliable crew members like that?

So Whitebeard decided to take the opportunity to invite Rono to join his division.

Rocks might value talent, but did Whitebeard value it any less?

"Whoa, he actually invited Lord Rono to join his division! Did I hear that right?"

"He offered him the deputy commander position right off the bat. That's second only to Whitebeard himself, isn't it? As expected of Lord Rono!"

"Exactly! Once we make it big, I hear Whitebeard himself doesn't care about money. He gives almost all of it to his men."

"I'm so jealous. I want to follow Lord Rono too—and Whitebeard!"

"Yeah, right. Look at you. You want to go, but would they even take you?"

"Damn you! What did you say? I'll beat you to death!"

"Bring it on! Who's afraid of who?"

By now, nearly every pirate on Jaya Island had gathered.

The pirate underlings formed a ring, chattering among themselves.

After all, it was hard to see a pirate with a Bounty over 300 million in Paradise. And here were two right in front of them: one with a Bounty of 500 million, the other with nearly a billion!

For these pirate underlings from Paradise, it would be difficult to see figures this important with their own eyes even once in their entire lives.