The Marine soldiers had never seen such a scene. Terrified, they dropped their firearms to the ground.
"M-monsters!"
"Quick, call the Marines to arrest them…"
Captain Nezumi broke out in a cold sweat. He had seen some things in his time and naturally knew these two weren't monsters.
But given the current situation, monsters might have been preferable.
'One of them seemed to know 'Tekkai' from the Rokushiki techniques, and the other possessed a Logia-type Devil Fruit power.'
'With the forces of Branch 16, even if everyone attacked together, we stood no chance against such monsters.'
"Haha, a misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding…" Captain Nezumi forced an ingratiating smile, his hands unconsciously rubbing together. "How could I mistake the heroes who defeated Golden Lion for pirates? That was truly inexcusable."
However, neither of them paid him any attention.
'Armament Haki is really useful,' Setsuna mused internally. Although his current body could also withstand bullets, like Master Roshi, he could still bleed if machine-gunned. But after grasping Armament Haki, even at a basic level, he could nullify most firearm damage.
While reflecting on how useful Armament Haki was, Setsuna instructed Ace, "Don't rely too much on your Devil Fruit ability. Haki reigns supreme over all…"
Setsuna trailed off mid-sentence. After all, the one who famously said that, 'Teacher' Kaido, was himself seeking the ultimate Devil Fruit, and after uttering those words, was subsequently defeated by an even more supreme Devil Fruit.
Setsuna coughed twice. "Anyway, shooting like just now is a great opportunity. You should deliberately train yourself."
Ace seemed thoughtful, then looked at Captain Nezumi with eager eyes. "How about you have your men fire another round?"
Captain Nezumi was so scared he fell to his knees. "N-no, I wouldn't dare."
Ace made another request. "Come on, I promise I won't retaliate."
"No, no, this was all a misunderstanding."
Ace sighed in disappointment. "Captain, they're not cooperating."
"Then burn it."
"Roger."
Ace snapped his fingers. Blazing white flames instantly engulfed the entire parade ground.
Captain Nezumi didn't even have time to scream before turning to ash in the inferno. The Marine soldiers who had followed him in his misdeeds also fell, howling in agony.
Setsuna's gaze was indifferent. Any Marines with a real conscience had been sidelined and suppressed. Those trusted by Captain Nezumi couldn't possibly be good people.
Setsuna stepped over the still-burning wreckage, his eyes sweeping over the cowering Marines in the corners.
"Now, who is in charge in this base?"
The soldiers looked at each other. Finally, a young soldier trembled as he spoke. "M-most of the Commanders and Lieutenant Commanders were… by you… Now there's only…"
Before he could finish, a Warrant Officer stepped forward, interrupting. "I am Lieutenant Rohn. You can ask me whatever you need."
"Oh? Still covering for someone?" Setsuna chuckled lightly. "It seems that officer treated you well?"
Lieutenant Rohn's face changed, but he gritted his teeth and remained standing.
Setsuna couldn't be bothered to press further. He wasn't interested in the base's internal stories. "I'll only say three things. First, report the matter of Golden Lion to Marine Headquarters. Tell them to prepare the bounty money."
"Second, I am commandeering two battleships. Third, you will contact all Marine branches in the East Blue. Wherever there are reports of monster attacks, report them to me immediately."
Sweat beaded on Rohn's forehead. He had thought they would ask where Captain Nezumi's office was. "I'm just a Lieutenant, I have no authority to mobilize…"
Just then, a steady voice came from behind.
"These demands… I can agree to all of them."
The Marine soldiers parted to make way as a middle-aged officer strode forward.
"I am Commander Kain. I will fulfill your requests as quickly as possible. However, regarding the battleships, there may be some difficulty. Branch 16 only has two battleships. One is currently on patrol and may not return for some time."
(For information, even the G-5 branch only has six battleships.)
"Then one ship it is," Setsuna sighed. He had originally wanted to split up with Ace.
Setsuna reminded him, "Those monsters escaped from Golden Lion's sky islands. Aside from us, probably no one in the entire East Blue has the power to deal with them. Every minute you delay, another village could be destroyed."
Kain's expression changed dramatically. He had been wondering about their purpose but was too intimidated by their strength to ask. Now he finally understood.
He didn't doubt the truth of their words. With their power, they had no need to lie to him.
Kain responded swiftly. "I will immediately contact all branches in the East Blue to establish an emergency communication network. As soon as there is news of monster attacks, we will report to you immediately."
…
Two hours later, at the port.
A Marine battleship was ready. Commander Kain stood on the deck personally, handing an East Blue map to Setsuna.
"The first batch of intelligence has been compiled. Currently, there are seven confirmed sky island wreckage crash sites in the East Blue. Monster attacks are mainly concentrated near Loguetown, Shells Town, and Windmill Village."
"Windmill Village!" Ace's expression changed drastically upon hearing the name. It was the place where he and Luffy had grown up.
"It seems our first destination is decided. We go to Windmill Village," Setsuna ordered.
"Yes, sir." Kain turned and ordered the helmsman. "Full speed ahead, destination Windmill Village!"
Seeing the battleship moving at full speed, Ace still felt anxious.
"I'll help." Ace went to the stern and used his fire jets to accelerate the ship's progress.
The battleship cut through the waves like an arrow released from its bow, its speed instantly more than doubling.
Watching the battleship skim across the sea's surface like a skipping stone, Rohn whispered in distress, "Commander, accelerating like he is… the ship will be wrecked soon!"
"You should be grateful we have their help," Kain said in a low voice. "Aside from Captain Smoker in Loguetown, almost all the Marine branches that went to assist have been completely wiped out."
"What? Wiped out?" Rohn couldn't believe it.
"I already warned them not to act rashly, but they obviously didn't want to listen to a mere Commander," Kain sighed. "This is a disaster for the entire East Blue. Compared to that, the loss of a few battleships means nothing."
"A few?" Rohn was stunned for a moment, then suddenly understood his superior's meaning. He was going to attribute all the deficits caused by Captain Nezumi's years of embezzling military funds to this disaster.
…
Deep in the forest of Mt. Colubo, the 14-year-old Luffy was breathing heavily. His fists were swollen and red, blood from his forehead sliding down his cheek.
Before him, a gigantic monster was staggering, its crimson eyes filled with unwillingness. Why wouldn't this human die no matter how much it was hit?
Finally, with Luffy's last punch, the colossal beast crashed to the ground.
"We finally won!"
"Haha, Luffy, not bad, kid!"
"Hey, why not give up being a pirate? Become a mountain bandit instead. There's no Mountain Bandit King in this world yet."
The mountain bandits of the Dadan Family cheered, though they were utterly exhausted, barely able to muster the energy to cheer for Luffy.
"Truly that old bastard Garp's grandson," Dadan wiped the blood from her face, her voice full of relief.
However, her relief lasted only a second.
The sea surface in the distance suddenly erupted. Over a dozen ferocious monsters broke through the water and began landing.
"Dammit, we have no strength left…" Dadan gritted her teeth, only to find Luffy struggling to get up and starting to gnaw on the corpse of the dead monster.
"Meat… if I eat meat, I'll have strength…" Luffy mumbled through mouthfuls of raw flesh when he suddenly heard a familiar voice by his ear.
"Eating raw meat isn't good. Let me cook it for you."
Luffy looked up sharply. Seeing Ace, he was overjoyed. "Ace, you're back?!"
But then he remembered his promise with Ace, and Luffy felt as if struck by lightning. "Ace… have you already become the Pirate King and come back?"
Ace, who was lightly roasting the monster with a small flame with a smile, suddenly froze.
'Was I supposed to say that I had become someone else's subordinate not long after setting sail?'