"I was feeling frustrated, and then, in just a few days, I suddenly heard that the Ah Long Pirates had been wiped out. And now, the heroes who rid us of this scourge are standing right in front of us!"
Sofia's expression suddenly became serious as she was speaking, and she was the first to raise her right hand, "Marines, attention! Salute the heroes!"
— Swish, swish!
The surrounding marines suddenly stood at attention and saluted in unison, this sudden action startled Nami and Nojiko.
"Hey, Nojiko."
Nami's face turned red, and she whispered into her ear, "Don't you think the marines at this base are way more formidable than those guys at Base 16?"
"Are they?"
Nojiko tilted her head, shaking it, "As for combat strength, not necessarily, but they certainly are much more presentable, looking quite imposing. It seems this Colonel Sofia is much more competent than that Mouse."
"Thank you, thank you so much,"
Scar, who had never received such treatment before, grinned widely.
Although he knew it was because of their leader, he felt proud for a moment too, with a beaming face, he quickly said, "But we don't deserve the word hero. It was Shano, our boss, who single-handedly took out the entire Ah Long Pirates."
"Ah, I know, I heard you mention it over the phone."
Sofia nodded with a smile, looking around curiously, "Eh, where is Sir Shano? Didn't he come?"
"He did come, but after just finishing a big battle, his injuries haven't healed yet. He caught a cold at sea, making his body quite weak, so it's not good for him to see people. He didn't get off the ship, I hope you can understand."
Scar apologized, pointing to a part of the ship.
Sofia looked over.
She indeed saw a sturdy figure draped in a black robe, carrying a long sword, leaning on the railing, smiling and waving in acknowledgment towards them.
But he immediately started coughing violently, clutching his chest, and with the assistance of two nearby crew members, he limped and turned back into the cabin.
"I heard that Sir Shano is quite young and won the swordsmanship tournament at Asakura Island last year. Now he's able to defeat a formidable enemy like the Ah Long Pirates, his swordsmanship must have greatly improved, and not just among the younger generation. It's not an exaggeration to say he's the strongest Swordsman in the entire East Sea."
Sofia withdrew her gaze, her face full of regret.
"Such a pity, I'm a Swordsman too. It's rare to have the chance, I was hoping that if there was an opportunity this time, I could spar with Sir Shano, and have him instruct me in swordsmanship."
Really, is that so?
Scar chuckled dryly, recalling the scenes he witnessed firsthand on the mountain, the hollowed-out mountain, the soaring giant trees, the bulletproof skin...
Could it be that Boss Shano can still be considered a Swordsman?
...…
At the same time, at the top floor of the Base 16 Fortress.
Mouse wore a gloomy face and kicked open the office door, striding quickly behind the broad office desk and sitting in the familiar leather armchair.
"That brat..." He clenched his fists, his teeth grinding into a grating sound.
Where the hell did this kind of fierce character come from in the East Sea? He's a complete monster!
With such ability, he doesn't go to the Grand Line to make a name for himself, and instead stays in a little village to farm?
"Just you wait..."
Mouse harbored unquenchable hatred in his heart. Though he couldn't afford to provoke you for now, someday you'll leave your hometown, and then your family, and those foolish villagers who dared to laugh at me...
Broo~ Broo~!
The radio snail on the desk suddenly started ringing.
Mouse snapped out of his fantasy, quickly picking up the receiver, "Hello... Eh, is it you? Major General sir, weren't we scheduled to contact each other next week? Why all of a sudden..."
"A few days early, what's the difference? Listen, the share that's mine, it should be ready, right?"
A deep, magnetic voice came from the other end of the phone, at the same time, the radio snail somehow found a pair of sunglasses and put them on, leisurely smoking a cigar.
"Ready, it's ready!"
Mouse replied in haste, pressing a red button under the desk, causing the bookshelf behind him to flip over, revealing a huge metal safe.
Opening the safe, it was full of stacks of one million Belly bills, roughly counted, amounting to at least a billion Belly.
"It's a total of ten million Belly, rest assured, I'll deposit it in your account at the bank tomorrow." Mouse took out a pile, closed the safe, and counted the money with a grin on his face.
"Ten million Belly?"
The other side was momentarily stunned, then their tone turned cold.
"Mouse, you must be joking, wasn't the original agreement thirty percent for the first year? You're about to complete a full year in office, don't tell me you only earned thirty million Belly in total."
"Money is hard to earn, shit is hard to eat, sir."
Mouse was quick to complain, "This place is remote and far away, many villages are in godforsaken lands, in fact, I haven't even earned thirty million yet. Being able to come up with ten million was quite difficult, just rounding it up nicely, and by the way thanking you for the guidance on Ah Long's gang."
"... Barely acceptable, let it be for this year."
The magnetic voice said coldly, "Next year, this figure should not be less than thirty million, remember, it was my accolades that got you the base command position, and it's worth far more than just that bit of money."
"Yes, yes, I understand, Major General Sir."
Mouse nodded repeatedly, hesitated for a moment, and then said:
"Speaking of which, Sir, I've recently offended someone, who is very hidden and I'm a bit afraid he might come for revenge, so I was thinking, should I go on the offensive first, to..."
"Hidden and unexposed?" The magnetic voice chuckled, "In a place like the East Sea, where could there be any hidden and unexposed character, what's the name?"
"Called..."
Boom!
Just then, the window shattered.
A shadow, who had been listening outside for a while, suddenly stepped into the top-floor office.
Upon hearing the noise, Mouse instinctively turned his head, before he could react, an iron clamp-like strong hand gripped tightly on his throat, like an eagle grabbing a chick, lifting him high off the ground.
It's you!
You really dared to come here?!
The black-haired youth's expression before him was indifferent, Mouse's eyes widened in disbelief, he struggled desperately to speak, but in the end, could only let out a muffled, painful "Ugh... ugh" sound.
"Mouse? Mouse!"
An urgent voice came through the receiver, "Hey! What's happening! What's going on over there?!"
No one could answer.
In Mouse's terrified pupils, the black-haired youth slowly revealed a menacing grin, then suddenly grabbed Mouse's entire head, smashing it hard against the iron door of the safe!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
One, two, three... Shano's movements were swift and crisp, giving Mouse no room to struggle.
"Ugh, ugh..." Initially, the latter still emitted some weak moans, but soon there was no sound at all, while the iron door of the metal safe was gradually stained with blood and brain matter, collapsing and denting bit by bit...