"Oh, is that so? I understand, don't worry, I'll take care of it."
"You got promoted to Rear Admiral? Congratulations, Captain Shawn-no, Rear Admiral Shawn now. Transferring to the New World? Nice, Congratulations! Maybe I'll see you there one day. The new Captain of Loguetown? Got it. I'll handle things here."
Dante tossed the disconnected Den Den Mushi to Robin, who was standing beside him, then frowned, lost in thought.
That call had been from his old partner, the former Loguetown base commander, now Rear Admiral Shawn.
Shawn wasn't the strongest guy around, but he wasn't a hardass either. He didn't preach about "absolute justice," but he wasn't overly corrupt or greedy.
He was just an ordinary guy with limited abilities, or so he claimed. For him as long as he could protect his jurisdiction and the civilians within it, he was content.
Dante had worked with him for years, and to be honest, he was a little reluctant to see him go. But that wasn't the real issue right now.
The Marine Inspection Team...
According to Shawn, they were investigating him for allegedly exploiting the threat of the vicious and dangerous pirate crew across East Blue- Mock Pirates, to secure military funds over the years. The higher-ups suspected fraud.
Marine Headquarters knew the state of East Blue.
Thanks to a certain Marine hero frequently visiting his hometown, there weren't any truly dangerous pirate crews here.
And what about their 16th Branch? somehow, this Branch had spent three years chasing a single pirate crew, raising their bounty from nothing to thirty million berries.
And for three years, they had constantly reported shortages of food, weapons, heavy losses, and outdated equipment-always requesting more funds.
One pirate crew, only targeting the 16th Branch? No other branch had any trouble?
They were strong enough to enter the New World, but they just wouldn't? What was that about? What kind of grudge was that? So, after multiple requests for funds, the higher-ups got suspicious. After some discussions, they seriously suspected the 16th Branch was scamming them!
"What are we going to do? What are we going to do? I heard the Marine Inspection Team has already arrived at the 16th Branch!" Nami paced back and forth, looking at Dante, who was still deep in thought. After a moment of hesitation, she finally gritted her teeth. "Let's go to sea! Let's become pirates together! I'll steer the ship, and we'll run away! With my skills, I can definitely evade the Marines!"
She looked up at him, with despair in her eyes.
"I don't want to be locked up in prison at such a young age! You know how dangerous prison can be, especially for someone like me!"
However...
Hearing Nami's words, Dante looked at her with a confused expression and said, "Don't worry. Even if they arrest someone, they'll only arrest me. You're just a Petty Officer, and you're not even registered with Marine Headquarters. I doubt they even know you are a Petty Officer in the 16th Branch."
Robin and Nami had never been listed in official records. Robin, for obvious reasons, and Nami simply hadn't had the time to file the paperwork.
Besides, a branch Petty Officer was insignificant to Marine Headquarters. It didn't matter whether they were reported or not, since they weren't going to Headquarters for further training.
His words had the opposite effect.
"What are you saying?" Seemingly enraged, Nami grabbed Dante's collar. "I'm worried sick, and you're saying this? Didn't you invite me to be your partner? Damn it, I don't want to be a pirate, but there's no other way now."
While saying that, she glared at Dante in front of her.
'This guy... He's so infuriating. Does he think I'll quit now, and give up? After all this?'
"That's right, Captain Dante, we know you're not a bad person, but now..." Genzo, the Cocoyashi Village Security Squad Captain, looked at the angry Nami, sighed inwardly, and said worriedly, "If things get really bad, do as Nami says and run! We'll all help block the Marines and delay them."
"Yeah! Captain, run! I heard that Marine hero Garp is here too."
"Please rest assured, we will definitely take good care of Cocoyashi Town. Everyone will always remember your kindness, Captain."
"Alright alright, geez, I said there's no need to worry." Dante patted Nami's hand and stopped everyone's attempts to persuade him.
He also understood everyone's worries.
But now...
"Things aren't that serious yet." Dante scanned the room, then tapped the table with his fingers. When everyone quieted down, he said, "I'll handle it. Everyone, go back to work."
He paused slightly.
"If things do get bad, I'll run away, just like you all want."
His words seemed to ease their tension.
Everyone was nervous about the sudden appearance of the Marine Inspection Team. They didn't want their benefactor to be arrested.
Captain Dante was clearly a good person, driving away pirates and the hateful Marines, allowing everyone to eat their fill. How could he be arrested? But since Captain Dante had said so, they could only accept it. Still worried, but not wanting to bother him, they quietly went back to work, hoping to ease his mind.
"Do you really have a plan?" Nami rubbed her hand, which had been patted a little too hard, blew on it, and looked at Dante unhappily. "You hit so hard, it hurts! If it really doesn't work, let's run. That's Marine hero Garp. Robin, you should try to talk some sense into him too!"
"Boss is a smart man. We don't need to worry." Unlike the others, Robin, who was leisurely drinking black tea and reading a book, didn't seem concerned. She smiled slightly, raised her head, and said elegantly, "Besides, I'm just a small secretary. Why would Boss listen to me?"
She sighed and shook her head.
"If things get really bad, we can always find a new boss."
"..."
'Why does she sound so sarcastic?'
Dante rolled his eyes but continued, "It's just suspicion. Marine Headquarters doesn't have any conclusive evidence. Remember, we're Marines who uphold justice. How could we do something like that?"
However...
Faced with his words, Nami just rolled her eyes. As a Navigator, she had guided the Mock Pirates, so she knew exactly what was going on.
'This guy is even lying to me!'
"Cough, cough." Looking at Nami's expression, Dante coughed twice, still speaking righteously. "Every bit of our military funds is applied for according to the rules. It's all legal and compliant. It's just that the Mock Pirates are vicious, and the 16th Branch really can't withstand them. It's normal to ask for more money to buy equipment. It's all for the sake of maintaining peace at sea!"
He wasn't worried about Garp. That guy's hands were dirtier than his. He wasn't a real pirate, and he hadn't done anything truly evil.
If he wanted to run, he believed that Garp wouldn't really try his best to catch him, just like with Axe-Hand Morgan.
If things really went south... then he'd just run. He just had to avoid getting into confrontation and hurting anyone under Garp during his escape.
He'd been operating here for so long; he had plenty of escape routes.
Compared to Garp, the one who gave him a bigger headache was Smoker. That guy would actually try to follow the procedures and enforce justice. If he wanted to catch him, he would give it his all.
Of course... he wasn't worried about Smoker's current strength.
Anyway, it wouldn't be easy to catch him. Of course, if possible, he didn't want to go to sea like this and become a pirate hiding everywhere, and...
Dante crossed his hands in front of his chin, a serious expression appearing on his face. "I suspect that a big shot is about to emerge from our East Blue. The Mock Pirates... are a vicious group of pirates!"
As long as they didn't catch Mock, who could say that he was colluding with pirates? He grabbed the Den Den Mushi, dialed a number, and said in a serious tone, "Hello, is this Mock?"
"Boss!" A loud voice came from the other end. "I'm heading to Conomi Archipelago! Nota's on the ship too, and there are a few guys I haven't seen before. Are they the new underlings that you recruited?"
He said cheerfully, "I saw them on the way, sailing a broken-down ship to Conomi Archipelago. I just let them board. Oh, right, Boss, what's up with the call?"
"..."
Dante stared blankly at the receiver.
"...I forgot what I wanted to say, but it doesn't matter anymore! I'm hanging up. If it's not important, don't call me 'Boss' anymore."
"Huh?"
'What did the boss mean?' But before the confused Mock could say anything...
"Dudu dudu~"
The Den Den Mushi was hung up.
After a long pause...
He silently looked at the Den Den Mushi in his hand, then sighed deeply. "I might've made couple mistakes..."
---
Slightly earlier...
Before Dante and the others had their meeting, in the sea near the 16th Branch of East Blue...
A huge pirate ship was slowly sailing on the calm sea.
If anyone saw the Fishbone Pirate Flag, they would know it was the Mock Pirates, the vicious pirate crew in East Blue that had been giving the Marines of the 16th Branch a headache for years.
At this moment...
Seemingly carrying a heavy cargo, the pirate ship's draft was noticeably deep.
"Achoo!"
A loud sneeze echoed.
"Captain." A Mock Pirates underling looked curiously at the burly, nearly three-meter-tall, bald giant who was rubbing his nose and said, "The 16th Branch is ahead. Should we stop by?"
"Stop by for what? Remember, we're pirates now." Mock slapped the back of the underling's head with the hand that was rubbing his nose. "Don't cause trouble for Captain Dante. After we unload the goods at Cocoyashi Town, then we'll go see Captain Dante!"
As someone who had been personally brought up by Captain Dante, he knew Dante's rules. It wouldn't matter if they went now, but there was no need to cause trouble.
As soon as he said that...
The underling, who had been slapped hard, pouted with a wronged expression but understood Mock's meaning. But...
He pointed ahead and said in a wronged tone, "There's a small boat coming out of the 16th Branch. Are we just going to ignore it?"
"What small boat?" Mock was stunned. He looked toward the 16th Branch and saw a small boat slowly sailing on the sea, heading toward Cocoyashi Town.
'Coming out of the 16th Branch? And traveling by small boat? Could something have happened?' Mock pondered for a moment, touched his bald head, and said, "We're all brothers. Go ask them if they're in trouble. It'll take that small boat all day to row to Cocoyashi Town!"
"Get ship closer," he ordered. "Let's see if they need help."