In a small town somewhere in the East Blue, a group of Marines arrived after receiving an urgent report.
The moment they saw what was waiting for them, their expressions twisted with rage.
More than a dozen Marine soldiers had been stripped naked, bound with rope, and hung high above the ground for everyone to see.
A large crowd of villagers had gathered nearby.
No one dared approach the prisoners.
The Krieg Pirates’ reputation was already bad enough that the townspeople feared what might happen if they interfered.
Someone had at least found the courage to contact the Marines, which was how reinforcements had arrived so quickly.
“Get them down.”
The officer in command spoke through clenched teeth.
His men hurried forward.
Only after the prisoners had been lowered did they discover that public humiliation wasn’t the worst thing that had been done to them.
One of the Marines, a Sergeant named Morgan, had words carved into his body.
Across his chest:
Marine Nemesis.
Across his back:
Krieg.
Together, the message was unmistakable.
Marine Nemesis—Krieg.
The commanding officer’s face darkened.
This wasn’t ordinary provocation anymore.
It was a direct humiliation of the Marines.
Almost a declaration of war.
“What happened?”
His voice was dangerously calm.
“Tell me everything. From the beginning. Leave nothing out.”
The rescued Marines slowly recovered enough to speak.
They recounted the pursuit.
The boarding battle.
Their defeat.
The loss of their warship.
Their capture.
And what had happened afterward.
Several of them broke down while telling the story, unable to contain the humiliation and fear they’d endured.
By the time they finished, the officer understood exactly what had happened.
And his anger only grew worse.
Pirates killing Marines was one thing.
They were enemies.
Battles happened.
People died.
But the Krieg Pirates hadn’t stopped after winning.
They had deliberately humiliated captured Marines, displayed them in public, carved a message into Morgan’s body, and stolen a Marine warship.
They hadn’t simply defeated the Marines.
They had gone out of their way to mock them.
The message couldn’t have been clearer.
The Krieg Pirates didn’t fear the East Blue Marines at all.
The officer’s jaw tightened.
“So this is what ‘Admiral’ Krieg thinks of us.”
He let out a bitter laugh.
“Overlord of the East Blue, is it?”
Then his eyes shifted toward Morgan.
There was little sympathy in his gaze.
Instead, there was irritation.
As long as Morgan remained in uniform, his very presence would remind everyone of what Krieg’s men had done.
Morgan said nothing.
His eyes were unfocused.
His career.
His reputation.
His future.
He slowly closed his eyes.
A single tear slid down his cheek.
…
“…And that’s everything, Admiral. You have to avenge Captain Bates!”
Bane spoke with great emotion.
He even tried to force out a few tears.
None came.
Krieg stared at him.
For a moment, he genuinely wanted to curse.
Avenge Bates?
They had already captured a Marine warship.
What else did Bane expect him to do?
Attack the entire Marine branch?
Krieg rubbed his temples.
“Enough.”
He exhaled heavily.
“This ends here.”
“Bates died fighting the Marines, but you already retaliated and took their warship. That’s more than enough.”
His gaze shifted toward the captured vessel outside.
“As for that warship… leave it where it is for now. I’ll decide what to do with it later.”
Krieg looked back at Bane.
“What’s your name?”
“Bane.”
Krieg paused.
“Bane?”
The name sounded familiar.
Then he remembered.
There was a newly wanted pirate in the East Blue with the same name.
Thirty million Berries.
For a moment, Krieg seemed surprised by the coincidence.
But clearly, this couldn’t be the same person.
For some reason, though, he found the young pirate standing in front of him rather agreeable.
“For now, you’ll serve as acting captain.”
Krieg waved him away.
“Wait for further orders. Dismissed.”
Bane nodded and left.
The moment he stepped away, the corner of his mouth lifted.
By now, the Marines should have discovered the little gift he’d left behind.
He was genuinely curious about what they would do next.
Would they endure the humiliation and stay quiet?
Or would they respond immediately?
Either way, his objective had already been achieved.
Far too many people had witnessed the scene for the Marines to bury the incident easily.
And Bane had taken an extra precaution before leaving.
He had specifically made sure reporters were notified.
The supposed overlord of the East Blue publicly humiliates the Marines.
What newspaper would pass up a story like that?
Even if publishing it risked angering the Marines, there would always be someone willing to run such explosive news.
Events unfolded almost exactly as Bane expected.
The front-page headline read:
Marine Nemesis—Krieg!
The accompanying photograph showed more than a dozen naked Marines hanging in public.
Morgan’s image was given special prominence.
The markings carved into his body were clearly visible.
According to the article, the information came from a “reliable source” familiar with the conflict.
The report described a series of clashes between the Krieg Pirates and the East Blue Marines.
It specifically claimed that one of Krieg’s captains had recently been killed by the Marines.
In retaliation—and to establish his dominance—Krieg’s forces had attacked a Marine warship, killed numerous Marines, seized the vessel, and publicly humiliated the survivors.
The message, according to the article, was obvious.
The Krieg Pirates were warning the Marines not to interfere with them again.
Otherwise, more Marines would die.
The article went even further.
It portrayed the entire incident as another step in Krieg’s supposed campaign to dominate the East Blue.
If the Marines backed down—or proved incapable of stopping him—then the East Blue would effectively be left at Krieg’s mercy.
By the end of the article, the Krieg Pirates had been transformed into the greatest pirate threat in the entire sea.
And “Admiral” Krieg had been elevated into something close to the uncontested ruler of the East Blue.
The writer showed little confidence in the local Marines.
At best, the article suggested, they would make a token show of resistance before quietly retreating from a confrontation they couldn’t win.
After all, if the East Blue Marines were truly capable of stopping Krieg, how had his fleet been allowed to grow to nearly thirty ships and more than three thousand men?
The article spread like wildfire.
And with it came public anger.
People across the East Blue had already grown accustomed to stories about incompetent or corrupt Marines.
Some branches struggled to deal with pirates.
Others were far more efficient at squeezing money from ordinary citizens and merchants than protecting them.
Even so, many civilians still wanted to believe the Marines could maintain some degree of order.
That belief took another serious blow after this incident.
A group of Marines had been defeated.
Stripped naked.
Hung in public.
Marked with Krieg’s name.
A warship had been stolen.
And the pirates responsible had apparently escaped without consequence.
Was Krieg really that powerful?
Or had the East Blue Marines simply become so weak that pirates no longer feared them?
Marine Nemesis.
Admiral Krieg.
Overlord of the East Blue.
Those titles spread alongside Krieg’s name throughout the sea.
For many people, it was the first time they had truly paid attention to him.
Thirty ships.
More than three thousand pirates.
A fleet powerful enough to openly humiliate the Marines.
There was actually a pirate force like that in the East Blue?
Not everyone was impressed.
In Cocoyasi Village, Arlong glanced at the newspaper, sneered, tore it in half, and tossed the pieces aside.
Elsewhere, Buggy skimmed the story, curled his lip, and quickly returned his attention to searching for treasure.
The East Blue Marines, meanwhile, were furious.
Their reputation had been dragged through the mud in front of the entire sea.
But perhaps no one was more confused than Krieg himself.
He stared at the newspaper in front of him.
His face slowly darkened.
He had absolutely no idea how any of this had happened.