Pirate selection

This time, Whitebeard did not recite a grand entrance verse on Hachinosu as Shiki had.

He and Lind merely let a little of their presence radiate before stepping onto Hachinosu and walking toward Rocks and the others.

"Huhahaha! I thought Newgate would do the same as Shiki. The verse he recited with Lind in front of Sengoku a few days ago was pretty good!"

"Hahahaha! Why else would he be the First Division Commander? He's just more composed than certain people!"

As they watched Whitebeard, the others inexplicably recalled Shiki's return to Hachinosu and began teasing him.

"Jahahahaha! As a pirate, I should be free to do as I please. If I feel like saying something, I say it!"

"Newgate's obviously holding himself back right now!"

Shiki paid their teasing no mind and instead took a jab at Whitebeard.

"Gurararara! I don't make a habit of showing off in front of others! That was just to undermine Sengoku's presence!"

Whitebeard heard Shiki's words as he approached and immediately fired back.

"Huhahaha! As if we don't know what you're thinking!"

"Enough of that. You're only half the star of the show today anyway."

"Lind, you did an excellent job this time. You really slapped the Navy in the face!"

"Forget becoming Golden Lion's deputy commander. Take over as Seventh Division Commander and establish the Seventh Division instead. Plenty of people came here today because of you. They want to join your Seventh Division!"

Rocks interrupted their banter and began discussing the formation of the Seventh Division with Lind.

"I'll give you two months to properly refit your Wanderer, then recruit and train a batch of capable subordinates."

"You're in the spotlight right now, so the Navy will likely target you if you head out. You can lie low on Hachinosu for these two months!"

"Jahahahaha! Exactly! If you need any help during those two months, just say the word. Your brother here won't turn you down!"

It was clear that Rocks and Hachinosu's senior officers valued Lind highly. They genuinely wanted him to become a new Division Commander of the Rocks Pirates.

"Hahahaha! Thank you, Captain, and all the commanders, for your help. If you need anything from me in the future, I'll do everything I can!"

Faced with their goodwill, Lind quickly expressed his gratitude and reciprocated.

"Huhahaha! In that case, let's not put it off. We'll pick your first batch of members today!"

"As it happens, the latest batch of pirates to join us haven't decided where to go yet. I imagine plenty of them would be delighted to become members of the Seventh Division!"

With commanding authority, Rocks made the first arrangement.

"Hahahaha! Sorry for the trouble, Captain!"

Lind had no objections to Rocks's arrangement. The sooner he became a commander, the sooner he could start building up his own forces.

"Huhahahaha! You lot! To celebrate the victory of our First and Seventh Division Commanders, the Rocks Pirates will select a batch of new recruits today to serve in headquarters and the divisions!"

"All existing members, move ten kilometers away from the harbor. Anyone willing to take part in the selection, stay!"

Only ten minutes after Rocks's announcement, the crowd at the harbor had clearly separated into two groups!

Rocks looked at the several thousand people remaining at the harbor, nodded in satisfaction, and swept his hand out.

"Huhahahaha! Then, according to the Rocks Pirates' usual rules!"

"The last three hundred standing may join whichever division they want. Of course, your commander has to be willing to accept you!"

"Huhahaha! Let the slaughter begin!"

The moment Rocks finished speaking, the pirates who had stayed at the harbor began slaughtering one another.

Almost every pirate who made it to Hachinosu was a veteran with countless lives on their hands.

In just ten seconds, Lind saw at least several hundred people fall on the battlefield, giving him a visceral sense of how fragile life was.

Though he felt somewhat uncomfortable, Lind remained keenly aware of his own position and accepted that others had their own fates.

Expressionless, Lind spread his telekinesis across the entire battlefield. Though most of the pirates at the harbor were far weaker than him, every one of them was battle-hardened, and their varied combat experience taught him a great deal.

Through his telekinesis, Lind could also gauge the strength of the pirates present more clearly.

Soon, quite a few pirates distinguished themselves and caught Lind's attention.

The most outstanding was a young man over six meters tall with horns on his head. Lind guessed he was an Oni, just like Kaido.

There was no denying that the Oni were truly blessed by nature. They were probably the strongest warrior race after the giants.

The towering Oni youth on the battlefield still had a boyish face. Using unpolished Armament Haki, he swung his club without any technique, yet his sheer strength let him sweep aside every pirate in his path!

"Gurararara! The Oni really are born warriors. That one in the middle looks only fourteen or fifteen, and he's already this powerful without any real training!"

"Brother Lind, interested? I think he'd make a good deputy for you to train. You're both young prodigies, so you'd definitely get along!"

Newgate, standing beside him, had also noticed the Oni youth and struck up a conversation with Lind.

"Hahahaha! Of course I'm interested in a subordinate with that much potential. But it depends on what he wants. I don't like forcing people."

"Mamamama! Well said. That little Oni really does have tremendous potential. As for whose command he joins, that's up to him!"

Aside from Rocks, the other Division Commanders also showed interest in the Oni boy. Clearly, most of the commanders present thought highly of his potential.

Besides the Oni boy, quite a few other pirates displayed sufficient strength and potential as well.

The Division Commanders chatted idly about the pirates performing well on the battlefield.

One example was a short, wiry swordsman who used Two-Sword Style. Wielding a pair of watermelon knives, he hacked his way from east to west, then west to east, leaving rivers of blood wherever he went.

He reminded Lind of a character from a movie in his past life!

There was also a Black Cat Zoan Devil Fruit user who excelled with both guns and swords. Despite being a Zoan Devil Fruit user, his greatest strength was his marksmanship.

His transformed appearance took Lind straight back to his childhood!

There were other powerful pirates too, with formidable Taijutsu, swordsmanship, or Devil Fruits. All were very strong, but the first two clearly interested Lind more.

Though every pirate present had fought countless battles to reach Hachinosu, in this world, without enough talent and fortunate opportunities, the gap in strength would only keep widening.

That was exactly what happened to the thousands of pirates present. In just an hour, all the weaker pirates had fallen, leaving only around three hundred.

"Huhahaha! The battle is over. Congratulations on surviving! From now on, you're members of the Rocks Pirates!"

While Lind was still reflecting on the fragility of life and the unfairness of fate, Rocks decided enough blood had been shed and called a halt. At the same time, he unleashed his Conqueror's Haki over the battlefield, forcibly ending the slaughter!

"Huhahaha! Next, we'll decide which commander you'll serve under!"

"Everyone, go down and take the subordinates who interest you under your command!"

Though several hundred pirates remained, only a dozen or perhaps a few dozen had genuine potential. These were the ones who mattered most, candidates to become the commanders' future officers. The rest were largely expendable.

Those with potential had already been more or less allocated while the commanders chatted.

Since Lind had no subordinates yet, they gave him five powerful recruits to help him get started.

Besides the King of the Monster Kings and Black Cat Detective, who had interested Lind most earlier, there were two Taijutsu experts and a swordsman.

All five had mastered two types of Haki and could immediately serve as Lind's first batch of officers.