Marine Patrol Headquarters.
No one knew when he appeared. When the soldiers on duty noticed him, this man in pirate clothes was already walking along the road to the administrative building.
"Who's there?!" the lookout shouted, reacting with a second's delay.
Without even having time to complain about his slowness, he immediately rushed forward to do his duty. A whole row of flintlocks rose, the lookouts cocked their hammers and took aim.
In response, they were met with a wide smile from the stranger and a strange phrase: "Don't worry, I came to visit an old friend."
- Don't move! One more step and we shoot!
- Hahaha, I'm not moving. Contact Garp and tell him that his old friend Roger has come to see him.
Roger's smile was filled with enthusiasm and was infectious.
The guards involuntarily relaxed, but the next moment their eyes widened and cold sweat appeared on their foreheads.
- It's Roger! The Pirate King Roger?!
- Quickly, raise the alarm! Pirates have attacked Marineford!!
Roger's name was so famous that the soldiers were completely at a loss.
- Huh? Didn't I tell you? I just came to visit an old friend. Don't be so nervous.
The same smile continued to radiate natural charm. Although the lookouts knew perfectly well that the most powerful pirate was in front of them, their tension was strangely weakened, and their vigilance was lowered.
Having calmed down, they were able to think more clearly. If the Pirate King had truly come with hostile intentions, he wouldn't be standing here talking to them, and they themselves would have been dead long ago.
- Don't move. My hand is already on the panic button. I'll call the boss now, but if you make even one move, I'll press it.
The sentries knew they were doing the wrong thing, but they still made this decision, which was inexplicable to them. Even later, looking back on it, they found it incredible that they never pressed the alarm button.
- Come on, faster!
Of course, the Dozons couldn't directly contact a hero like Vice Admiral Garp, but if they really had an important message, they could contact the Rear Admiral on duty.
- I report, Rear Admiral Momonga...
The lookout briefly outlined the situation and was immediately met with angry shouts from Momonga.
- Idiots, it's Roger! Why didn't you press...
Pooh!
Roger suddenly appeared nearby and intercepted the phone.
- Hey, little Momonga, it's Roger. I asked them not to press. Enough of this idle chatter - either I go to the building to look for the right person, or Garp will come here. Which do you choose?
- You... wait!
Soon a group of people arrived. Not only Garp, but also Fleet Admiral Kong, Admiral Sengoku, Vice Admirals Akainu, Aokiji, and many other high-ranking officers.
"I never thought it was really you! Hahaha, Roger, have you really come to surrender?" Garp's cheerful voice came from afar.
It was just a joke - they all remained vigilant, because an uninvited guest rarely comes with good intentions.
At this point, many of them were running through various possibilities in their minds: Maybe there were other pirates hiding behind Roger? Maybe he had teamed up with people like Shiki? However, given what they knew about Roger, this seemed unlikely.
The only thing they didn't think about was Garp's joke.
- You always understood me well, Garp! I, Gol D. Roger, have indeed come to surrender!
The watchmen on duty had never seen such a sight in their lives. With the exception of a few senior officers of the Marine Watch, all those whom they respected, admired and revered so much, simultaneously showed expressions on their faces that defied description... To be more precise, their expressions were not just surprise, but complete confusion...
- Really? Then come with me to Impel Down! Hmm, just let me finish this donut!
Garp was the first to come to his senses. In fact, he was the only one who could keep up with Roger's train of thought.
"Shut up, Garp!" Fleet Admiral Kong snapped, then looked at Roger and asked, "Do you even know what you're saying?"
- Hahaha, put on the shackles.
Roger held his hands out in front of him as if to say... I'm already here, what are you waiting for?
Sengoku nodded to the two rear admirals next to him and said, "Forward."
Both rear admirals, with serious and wary expressions on their faces, slowly approached Roger, holding the handcuffs in their hands. The other officers also remained vigilant, ready for any surprises.
Only Kong, Sengoku, and Garp were completely calm, with no hint of tension on their faces. After years of knowing Roger, they knew he wasn't the type to say one thing and do another. However, his surrender was still a complete mystery to them, though that mystery could be explored later.
Most of the officers remained on guard, but nothing out of the ordinary happened until Roger was handcuffed and led away. In fact, the lack of anything out of the ordinary was itself a surprise.
Although the arrest of the Pirate King should have been a cause for celebration, the group of officers standing there looked lost. They had spent so much effort hunting the Pirate King, and now they felt like all their efforts had gone to waste.
Akainu: - There's definitely some kind of conspiracy involved here...
Aokiji: - As expected from Garp-san's strength, Roger himself came into our hands!
Garp: - Hm? Haha, Roger probably wanted my donuts!
Sengoku: - Kong, let's take this opportunity to suppress the pirates' spirit!
Kong: - You're right, Sengoku. Everyone here, listen carefully: everything that happened today is top secret. Remember, only one thing happened today - Roger was captured!
- Eat!
....
Murphy watched the transmitted image intently, and only when the officers had dispersed did he come out of his state of excitement. Wasn't this the event he had been waiting for all along?
Despite planting spy Den-Den-Mushi in Marine Headquarters, his chances were pretty slim. What if Roger had surrendered at the branch office and then been taken straight to prison? What if he hadn't taken the main road at all, or had broken into the office building?
There were many possibilities, and he simply did his best, not expecting to actually be able to successfully capture the event. Also, his judgment turned out to be very accurate - the five Den-Den-Mushi he initially installed were able to record everything that happened.
Exhaling, he calmed down and turned his gaze from the transmitted image back to the auction.
Suddenly he noticed that at that moment there was an auction going on for some slave, but from time to time strange glances were thrown at him.
"Hey, did I win the auction for that blade?" Murphy asked the man next to him.
- Are you still bragging? A typical country bumpkin! - the man looked at Murphy with disdain, which completely puzzled the latter.
No matter! Since he won the auction, he just needs to take the sword after the auction is over.
He stood up from his seat and walked out of the auction house.
The sky was blue, the air was fresh, and even the slaves at the entrance seemed more pleasant to look at.
Opening the system, he exported the newly recorded footage to a storage device. Then he took the manuscript he had prepared in advance from his pocket and looked through it - it was a report on the event with Roger.
After this he called the news girl over and handed her both items.
As for the question of when the manuscript was written? Hmm, he always prepared such things in advance...