Marine Branch 16, East Blue.
“Sir!
Sir!”
Anxious shouting woke up Captain Morgan, who was resting with his eyes closed.
“You idiot!
What’s the rush?”
Morgan glared angrily at the soldier who burst in.
“Sir!
A pirate ship is heading straight for the base!”
The soldier stood at attention and reported quickly.
“Huh?
A pirate ship?”
Morgan widened his eyes, still half-asleep.
“Yes, Sir!” The soldier nodded firmly.
“Is the Base Commander back yet?” Morgan stood up and frowned.
“Uh…
the Base Commander went to Headquarters for a meeting.
He just left.”
“Sound the alarm!
Prepare for battle!”
Morgan ordered sharply.
The soldier saluted and ran out.
Grabbing his sword, Morgan was puzzled.
“There are no strong pirates in the East Blue.
And none are stupid enough to attack a Marine base directly.
What’s going on?”
He walked out.
Sirens blared, and Marines lined up in formation.
Morgan led hundreds of soldiers to the harbor.
The townspeople watched in confusion.
Arriving at the shore, they saw a small pirate ship sailing directly toward them.
“Prepare for battle!”
Captain Morgan was not completely useless.
He had worked his way up from a regular soldier to his current rank.
The Marines lined up, weapons ready, waiting for the ship to dock.
On the pirate ship, Ban stood at the bow, seeing the soldiers clearly.
Behind him, on the deck, the pirates were all crouching with their hands on their heads.
Only a few were steering the ship; the rest were behaving perfectly.
“Slow down and dock!” Ban ordered.
The ship slowed down and pulled alongside the pier.
Ban stepped off and looked directly at the man leading the Marines.
He had whiskers like a rat and a rather sneaky face.
“I am Captain Morgan, Vice-Commander of Marine Branch 16, ID number 00733!
You pirates dare attack a Marine base!” Morgan pointed his sword at Ban.
“I’m not a pirate.
Actually, I’m a Bounty Hunter.
I’m here to hand over these criminals and collect the reward money.”
Ignoring the misunderstanding, Ban pointed back at the ship.
Morgan froze.
He looked up and saw heads peeking over the railings.
“A Bounty Hunter?”
Morgan was confused.
The Marines standing ready were also looking at each other in surprise.
“Oh, and there’s treasure on board.
Convert that into Berries and bring it to me as well.”
Ban glanced at Morgan and walked past him.
The line of Marines instinctively split open to let him pass.
Watching him walk toward the town, Morgan and his men were completely baffled.
When they boarded the ship, they found the pirates unbound but completely docile.
They began to realize just how strong this man must be.
After identifying Dol and his crew, they were arrested and interrogated.
The pirates had accepted their fate.
Most criminals bully the weak and fear the strong.
After seeing Ban’s power, these rookies had no will to fight left and sailed straight to the base voluntarily.
“Controls fire…
got cut by a sword and didn’t even bleed?”
Morgan muttered as he reviewed the interrogation report.
“A Devil Fruit user?
A fire-based ability?”
He immediately dropped any idea of stealing the treasure or taking credit for the capture.
These pirates were ignorant, but Morgan had served for years.
He knew what Devil Fruits were.
Hearing about fire instantly told him this was an ability user.
“Sir?”
A soldier called out, snapping Morgan out of his thoughts.
“What about the Bounty Hunter?”
“Pay him the bounty and the value of the treasure.
Also, find out more about him—at least get his full name.”
Morgan decided it was best not to provoke someone whose power he didn’t understand.
He didn’t even dare to imagine it was a Logia type.
Only the three rising Vice-Admirals at Headquarters possessed such power, and they were already candidates to become Admirals.
In the town tavern, Ban sat at the bar, listening to the gossip.
Seeing the Marines bring in an entire ship of pirates was a rare event here.
“I heard they were caught by a single Bounty Hunter.
A whole ship full of them!”
“That’s amazing!
He must be a true master.”
“Definitely.
Catching dozens of pirates takes serious skill.”
Ban smiled quietly to himself, enjoying the talk.
Then, two Marines walked in, silencing the room.
“Sir Ban, here is your reward and payment for the treasure.
Total: 9,530,000 Berries.”
They handed over a heavy bag.
Suddenly, every eye in the tavern was on him.
“Thanks.” Ban took it casually.
“Sir, we need to register your name for the records.”
A soldier stepped forward with a clipboard.
“My name is Ban.
Just started sailing.”
“Is that all?”
“That’s all.”
“Where are you heading next?”
“Next?
I’ll keep hunting pirates.
After all, that’s what I do.” Ban smiled slightly.