Shaking off Sengoku, Lind relied on his powerful Telekinesis to catch up to Whitebeard in less than half an hour.
Meanwhile, Whitebeard looked at the warship flying in the sky and Lind standing at the bow, almost losing control of his expression.
This time, he really bullied Sengoku a bit too miserably, and Sengoku's face was completely lost!
"Gurarara! Brother Lind, you did a great job this time! Let's have a good drink today!"
As soon as Lind arrived on the ship, he heard Whitebeard's hearty laughter and laughed loudly as well.
"Hahahaha, it is mainly thanks to you, big brother Newgate. Your strength is formidable; I am no match for Sengoku right now!"
"Speaking of which, we still have to thank Sengoku for his contribution. I think we might as well throw a banquet!"
"Gurarara, well said! Little ones, let's thank Marine Vice Admiral Sengoku together. It's time for a banquet!"
Accompanied by a grand banquet, time soon arrived at the next day.
"Gurarara, Brother Lind, there's a call from the Marines!"
Early in the morning, Lind was standing on the deck feeling the sea breeze when he suddenly heard Whitebeard's somewhat excited voice.
Looking at Whitebeard walking over with giant strides while holding a Den Den Mushi in his hand, Lind smiled.
"So fast? It seems the efficiency of the Marines is still quite high. Is it Sengoku or Kong?"
"Gurarara, Sengoku probably has no face to make this call. He should still be drifting on the sea right now, or perhaps sitting on Zephyr's warship chasing after us!"
"The one calling is Kong. It looks like the Marines are getting a bit anxious!" Whitebeard laughed heartily.
"Hahahaha, Admiral Kong, hello! I am Lind, captain of the Seventh Division of the Rocks Pirates. It's a great honor to meet you!"
Lind looked at the Den Den Mushi with a stern expression in Whitebeard's hand and politely greeted Kong.
"Gurarara, Kong, what do you think of our Seventh Division captain? Isn't he an exceptionally outstanding young man? You Marines don't have such outstanding talent!"
"Lind, is it? I've remembered your name. Since you chose the path of pirates, I hope you won't regret it!"
Although Kong greatly admired such an outstanding young man like Lind, Lind had already joined the Rocks Pirates and was destined not to be recruited, so he could only express his regret!
"Whitebeard, let's talk about the Marines you captured!"
Hearing Kong's words, Whitebeard glanced at Lind. Lind made a gesture of ten, and Whitebeard's pupils shrank noticeably, but he still spoke calmly to Kong:
"Gurarara, Kong, these are Sengoku's direct subordinates, after all. We aren't asking for much-one billion Beli will do!"
As soon as Whitebeard finished speaking, Kong on the other end instantly lost his composure and roared:
"One billion Beli? Do you see me as worth that much money?"
"No way, people and fleet combined are worth at most thirty million Beli!"
Lind could guess Kong's current anger just by looking at the ferocious expression of the Den Den Mushi.
"Gurarara, Admiral Kong, you're an admiral, after all. You must be able to remain completely unfazed even if the Red Line collapses before you!"
"Your Marines have vast resources and deep pockets. A mere one billion Beli isn't even higher than my bounty. There is definitely no problem for you to cough that up!"
Whitebeard was very satisfied when he saw Kong's expression, but he didn't show any intention of backing down!
"Hahahaha, that's right, Admiral Kong. These are all subordinates who followed Vice Admiral Sengoku to battle in the New World. Without them, the Marines' strength throughout the entire New World will be weakened considerably."
"If any pirates happen to get out of control by then, the resulting losses might be more than just one billion!"
Lind also chimed in to assist from the side.
Anyway, it was free money, so he just had to open his mouth wide. He believed the Marines would give a satisfactory reply.
"Impossible! Fifty million Beli at most. The funds of us Marines are also limited, and Sengoku will find a way to overcome the difficulties!"
"Gurarara, eight hundred million Beli. Kong, we are still very sincere!"
"That's right, eight hundred million Beli. You name the place; as long as it's not a place like Marine Headquarters, we can even provide home delivery!"
With both sides giving and taking, under Kong's stubborn refusal to budge, the Marines ultimately paid one hundred and eighty million Beli to redeem the men and warships.
As for the trading location and method, Whitebeard and Lind only needed to wait in place, and soon Zephyr and Sengoku would catch up and take the people away.
"Gurarara, Kong, happy cooperation. Next time there's a good thing like this, we'll still look for you."
After finishing the talk, Whitebeard was in a very good mood and chuckled as he bantered with Kong. Unfortunately, Kong did not continue talking with Whitebeard and directly hung up the phone.
Soon, Lind saw Sengoku again, accompanied by a purple-haired young man who should be Zephyr.
"Gurarara, Sengoku, we meet again. Your subordinates have all been living very well on my ship!"
"Besides, did you bring the money?"
"Hmph, Newgate, Lind, you guys really did a great job this time!"
Sengoku right now was still too naive compared to the future Fleet Admiral. Standing a long distance away, Lind could still feel Sengoku's teeth grinding in hatred!
"Hmph, needless to say more. The money is naturally brought. Hand over the money, hand over the people!"
Zephyr beside him patted Sengoku with his hand, stepped forward, and spoke to both Whitebeard and Lind.
It was fortunate that Zephyr happened to be delivering funds to various Marine Branches in the New World this time, otherwise there really would have been no way to redeem Sengoku's subordinates back so quickly.
"Gurarara, then hand over the money and hand over the people!"
Neither side engaged in too much pleasantry this time. Once Whitebeard and Lind's side received the money, they released the captured Marines and warship, and sailed away toward Hachinosu!
In the blink of an eye, after sailing on the sea for seven days, the pirate ship returned to Hachinosu once again!
Yet within these exact seven days, Lind's name resonated throughout the entire ocean.
As a new commander of the Rocks Pirates, the captain of the Seventh Division became the most prominent figure across the entire seas in a short period of time.
Not yet twenty years old and having debuted for less than a month, he possessed a bounty exceeding six hundred million, leaping instantly into a great pirate renowned the world over!
Just as Whitebeard's pirate ship was about to return to Hachinosu, the entire port of Hachinosu was packed with people, all wanting to catch a glimpse of this newly rising legendary figure.
Some newcomers even hoped to join his command and become founding members.
Even Rocks himself brought along any free commanders to welcome the two of them.
After all, this was the first time the Rocks Pirates had achieved such a complete and resounding victory, leaving the number two figure of the Marines-Sengoku, known as the Strategist-in such a wretched state.
(According to my setup, the Marines only had Kong as an Admiral during this period, so although Sengoku was still a Vice Admiral, he was also the number two figure of the Marines.)
"Gahahaha, Shiki, with Lind's current reputation, he'll probably establish the Seventh Division directly and won't be able to go be your vice captain!"
"Jahahahaha, Boss, Lind is my good brother. I'm quite thrilled that his reputation is this massive right now."
"It's you instead, Boss-you owe me a vice captain. You've got to keep me in mind next time there's a suitable candidate!"
"Gahahaha, I'll leave this job to Lind. I trust he can find you a pretty decent helper!"
"Mamamahaha, that's right. You can't let yourself take all the perks. I don't have a vice captain right now either; when can the Boss arrange one for me?"
"I think that new Oni brat is pretty good! With a bit of training, he'll be a qualified powerhouse. He's already acknowledged me as his older sister, so you lot better not fight me for him later!"
"Newgate and Lind are coming over, stop talking about all this for now. Today's protagonists aren't us!"
Sure enough, Whitebeard's ship had already docked at the port, and Whitebeard and Lind were currently walking side by side toward the group!
"Gurararara, everyone, long time no see!"
Before you continue