Chapter 4: Roronoa ZoroWithout waiting for the other party to finish speaking, Shien just kept his head down and walked forward, aiming to lead the two to a secluded spot before dealing with them.The two soldiers didn't suspect anything and followed Shien the whole way. When they reached a corner, Shien sighed.Then, after looking around to confirm no one was paying attention, he immediately dispelled his Transformation Technique and knocked both soldiers out with two quick punches."Good grief, how could I hear such a conversation here..."As Shien spoke, he stripped the Marines' uniforms off the two, rolled them up, and tucked them into his shirt. At the same time, he saw their names: one was "Jabbes," and the other was "Lenus."These were useless to him, so Shien tossed the two identification cards aside and left.He then headed toward the restaurant to regroup with Luffy and the others, but he hadn't gone far before he saw Luffy and Coby walking along the road.Shien waved to get their attention. Luffy saw him and hurriedly waved back to greet Shien.Once the three met up, Shien began to share the information he had gathered."Luffy, I've gathered enough information. The highest-ranking officer of this Marine Base is Colonel Morgan..."Before Shien could finish, Coby covered his mouth to stop him from continuing.Coby looked around to make sure no one was there before letting go."Cough, cough! Coby, are you trying to kill me? I know the reputation of this Colonel Morgan here, so don't worry. There aren't many people around. Also, his son is the one who framed Zoro..."Upon hearing this, Luffy's ears twitched. It was clear he was interested in this news, but only just interested.Afterward, Shien explained all the gathered intelligence, including the location of the person named Zoro, the number of Marines, and so on.After finishing his report, Shien took out two Marineuniforms. "Luffy, we're going to sneak in next. Be careful and stay quiet..."Again, before Shien could finish, he saw Luffy's face twist into an expression of extreme disdain."Eh~"Seeing Luffy like this, Shien knew he didn't want to wear them. It seemed there was no choice; the stealth mission would have to turn into a forced breakthrough.The group then followed the path Shien indicated and arrived at the gate of the Marine Base."It's really magnificent up close!" Luffy exclaimed, looking at the building in front of him.At the same time, Shien and Luffy both looked at Coby. "Go on, Coby."Coby swallowed hard as he looked at the building, but he still knocked on the gate.After seeing him go in, Shien and Luffy climbed up onto the wall to look inside.Meanwhile, Luffy muttered to himself, wondering where the devil was.In the execution yard, there stood a cross, and tied to it was a man wearing a black bandana and a green sash.Because he was too short, his lower body just dangled down; he had to rely on the strength of his arms to keep from sliding down. This position was incredibly physically draining.The man seemed to hear some movement, looked up toward the wall, and saw a grinning idiot and someone who looked like a pretty boy, before losing interest."That must be Zoro, right? The ropes look like they could be cut easily." Luffy said to Shien.As if he had heard him, the man spoke up: "Hey, you kids over there, come over and help me... untie these ropes, will you? I've been tied up for nine days, and I'm exhausted!"Seeing that the man was smiling while making the request, Luffy admired him even more."Shien, that guy is amazing. Even in that state, he's still smiling."Shien nodded as well. Indeed, having been starved for nine days and bound in that position, the physical toll must be immense.Seeing that Luffy and Shien made no move, the man continued: "I'll reward you! Once I catch the wanted criminal, the bounty will be yours. I never lie; I always keep my word."Shien asked Luffy: "What do you think, Captain? Should we save him? Judging by the villagers' reactions, he seems quite dangerous. Aren't you afraid we might get killed by him?"Although his words were serious, his tone was unusually flippant.Luffy replied with a smile: "We won't be killed. Because I... I'm very strong!"Hearing Luffy's words, Shien also revealed a faint smile.Suddenly, the two heard some sounds.Shien and Luffy looked to the side and saw a little girl setting up a ladder to climb up.She looked at Shien and the other, making a'shh' gesture with her hand.Luffy and Shien were both puzzled, and the man below was equally confused, letting out a "Huh?"Then, they watched as the little girl jumped down from the wall and quietly approached the man who was tied up.Luffy and Shien lay on the wall, watching silently.Perhaps because he had been starving for so long and couldn't see clearly, the man asked."Hey, who are you?"Once she got closer, he finally saw her clearly and quickly said with a grim face: "Are you looking to die, kid? Get lost!"However, the little girl wasn't scared. She held up the rice balls and said: "I made rice balls for you! Big brother, you've been tied up this whole time, you must be hungry!"The man swallowed hard as he looked at the rice balls, then said against his better judgment: "I'm not hungry at all. Take that stuff and get lost."But the little girl acted as if she hadn't heard him and continued to introduce them to herself: "Even though it's my first time making rice balls, I really tried my best! But..."Seeing that the little girl wouldn't leave, the man started to roar: "I said I don't want them! Go back! Or I'll kill you, kid!"Just then, a voice came from not far away: "Roronoa Zoro, bullying people is wrong! I'm going to tell my father."A man wearing a suit, with a long, horse-like face and a strange hairstyle, walked over."Another weird guy has shown up."Luffy muttered as he looked at the strangely styled man.But Shien heard Luffy's muttering and began to introduce who this person was."Luffy, this is Colonel Morgan's son, Helmeppo, and he's the one who started all this."Luffy listened, nodded, and then continued to watch.Zoro saw Helmeppo approaching and knew that the little girl wouldn't be able to leave, so he decided to mock him to draw the hostility toward himself."Hmph—just a stupid son who relies on his dad..."Upon hearing this, Helmeppo's face changed immediately: "You bastard! Don't get cocky! My dad is Colonel Morgan."Seeing his behavior, Shien thought to himself that the man named Zoro was right; he really was just a second-generation brat who threw his weight around by relying on his father.After scolding Zoro, Helmeppo didn't pay him any more mind. Instead, he walked up to the little girl, picked up a rice ball, and said to himself: "Hey! Little girl, these rice balls look delicious. Are they a consolation gift?"As he said this, he popped it into his mouth.The little girl saw this and tried to stop him: "Ah! No!"Unfortunately, he had already eaten it. Then, his face began to contort: "Pfft—this tastes awful! It's sweet! Did you put Sugar in it? Rice balls are supposed to have salt!"The little girl explained: "B-but I thought sweet ones would taste better..."Her voice grew quieter and quieter, and she looked like she was about to cry.But Helmeppo ignored her, threw the rice ball onto the ground, and stomped on it forcefully.As he stomped, he said: "Idiot! How could anyone eat this kind of thing!"The little girl became anxious when she saw this, crouched on the ground, and tried to stop him: "Ah! Don't step on it! Don't! Now it can't be eaten!"Shien, lying outside the wall, muttered to himself, "What a piece of trash."At the same time, he realized he couldn't let the guy hurt the little girl.Luffy, meanwhile, watched everything happening before him with a gloomy expression.Hearing the little girl's words, Helmeppo laughed and said: "It's fine, the ants will eat those rice balls, hehehe."As he spoke, he shook his body as if he were struggling to hold something back.The little girl looked at the flattened rice balls and finally burst into tears: "That's too much... I worked so hard to make them..."Whether out of a sudden pang of conscience or because he was brewing some idea, Helmeppouncharacteristically covered his face and said to the little girl: "Oh, stop crying, stop crying. This is why I hate children the most."He then pointed to a wooden sign and said: "You're the one in the wrong! It's written clearly right here, didn't you see it?"The sign read: 'Anyone who helps a criminal is an accomplice' 'Marine Colonel Morgan'He then crouched down, grabbed the little girl's chin to force her to look at him, and warned her with a sinister expression: "You should know how terrifying my dad is! If you were an adult, you'd be sentenced to death."After threatening the little girl, he stood up and said casually to the soldier behind him: "Hey, throw this kid out."The soldier behind him looked confused, as if he had misheard: "What?!""Ugh, good grief. You people just aren't as sensible as Jabbes and Lenus."Helmeppo then turned around, grabbed the man by the collar, and shouted: "I said throw her outside the wall! How dare you disobey my orders! Watch out, or I'll tell my dad!"The soldier replied nervously: "Y-yes, sir! I'll do it right away."He then came up to the little girl and threw her over the wall.Seeing this, Luffy and Shien reached out and caught the little girl.Luffy then stood there without a word, gently brushing the dirt off the little girl.After doing this, he looked toward the other side of the wall; no one knew what was going through Luffy's mind at that moment.
