After retiring from the Navy, I became a doting husband.

"It's Ghost Ah Jin who answered."

"Take over this village, loot all their money, kidnap all the young women and children, and kill anyone who resists."

Klick ordered, "After we take this village, we can go and check out Loguetown. Its defenses should be quite weak right now."

.

Three days later, led by Mayor Budor, many residents brought food and wine to reward the sailors. They were incredibly enthusiastic, even having the girls sing and dance in front of them. They were practically ready to give each of these brave sailors a big red flower.

The entire naval base was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations. The naval soldiers drank fine wine and ate barbecue, exclaiming in delight as they immersed themselves in a peaceful and joyful atmosphere.

All naval personnel were ordered to remain silent, forbidden from speaking of anything related to the elegant gentleman, and classified as top secret. No one dared to tell the townspeople about it.

The credit naturally goes to the navy.

On the naval base lookout tower, Smoker sat alone, drinking in silence, his eyes fixed on the sea, utterly disgruntled.

Tashigi spotted Smoker drinking alone, looking sullen, from afar, and leaned closer: "Major, are you still thinking about that elegant gentleman?"

"Hmm, that guy seems to know my moves very well. Almost all of my attacks were ineffective, and he didn't even have time to react."

Smoker looked sullen and finished the drink in his bowl.

Yes, I lost. I lost in front of everyone. I lost face big time.

He had never been defeated in the East China Sea before, but now he suffered his first humiliating defeat.

And all of this was his own doing.

How could anyone be happy?

"Actually, you don't need to be upset. The other party is, after all, from the Grand Line, where pirates have bounties of at least tens of millions of Berries, and they are also a Devil Fruit user..."

Tashigi tried to comfort him, but Smoker's face remained ashen, so she changed the subject: "Major Smoker, we received help from retired Navy Warrant Officer Martin during this battle. It was he who killed Captain Ironhead."

"Okay, report it to your superiors. They'll give you some kind of reward. Don't give me any of that nonsense..."

Smoker continued pouring wine into his mouth, staring blankly at the azure sea.

Tashigi could also see it, so she stuck out her tongue and chose to shut up, then looked at Hanazono, who was displaying great power in the battle.

In the previous battles, she had killed about twenty pirates. As long as a pirate was stabbed, he would either die or lose his fighting ability, which made him a powerful weapon for her.

You know what, after getting a new pair of glasses, everything looks so beautiful. This knife is absolutely amazing!

Martin's dad!

Please take me as your goddaughter from now on.

Tashigi was thrilled and decided to repay Martin, who had temporarily "lent" her the knife, with a generous gift.

Just as Tashigi was lost in thought, a soldier suddenly approached Smoker with a Den Den Mushi: "Major, this is a call from Marine Headquarters. You are required to answer it personally."

Smoker answered the phone immediately: "Hello, this is Major Smoker... Hello, Brigadier General?"

"What? But this wasn't my doing."

"Why did you promote me?"

"besides……"

The voice on the other end of the Den Den Mushi was extremely irritable, almost arguing with Smoker over the phone, until the Den Den Mushi was hung up.

Tashigi listened intently: "Wow, Major, it sounds like you're going to get a promotion. Why are you refusing?"

"You knife-obsessed girl, what do you know?"

"The credit for defeating the pirate crew and saving Orange Town this time belongs entirely to us."

"But the credit doesn't belong to us."

"But that elegant gentleman..."

Smoker exhaled a puff of smoke: "We've both been promoted. I'm now a lieutenant colonel, and you're a second lieutenant."

"what?!"

Tashigi almost jumped up.

She didn't expect to be promoted so quickly, and even skip two ranks, directly bypassing the rank of warrant officer, which is extremely rare.

"This is what the higher-ups want to say. Don't get excited, Tashigi. Get ready, we need to go back to Loguetown."

"What? Back to Loguetown? So soon? There are still pirates nearby who haven't been wiped out, Major Smoker."

"That's not all."

Smoker said in a deep voice, "All the Marines will withdraw from Orange Town!"

Tashigi: "(⊙_⊙)?"

------

Could any of you Navy or Pirate readers please cast your vote? You're all so deeply submerged; I felt like I was adrift on the high seas all by myself…

Chapter 27 A tiny basic attack, how laughable!

"Martin, you helped the Navy kill all the core members of the Ironhead Pirates. The captain, first mate, boatswain, and navigator were all taken down. You wiped out the entire pirate crew. You've done a great service."

"The Ironhead Pirates are one of the newest pirate crews that have recently emerged. They've already committed several robberies and are involved in human trafficking. They all deserve to die!"

Inside the office of the 33rd Naval Base in Orange Town, an old man with gray hair was praising his former subordinates with a beaming smile.

“That’s something any capable resident of a small town should do.”

Martin nodded.

It would be strange if a retired naval warrant officer like him didn't step in to help, given his reputation for heroism.

The gaunt old man in front of me is Major Hank, the head of the 33rd base of the East China Sea Branch of the Navy, who was also my teacher and former superior who taught me the "Iron Block" technique.

He's also a rather "unconventional" older man!

"I originally thought you would become lax after we got married, but it seems you haven't given up on your cultivation and have even made some breakthroughs, so I'm relieved."

Old Hank nodded slightly, his brows furrowed, and his voice was deep: "The environment in the East Blue has been very bad lately. Many new pirate crews are stirring up trouble on the sea, and that Sea King is constantly causing destruction. The Navy is struggling to cope."

"These pirates are getting bolder and bolder. They dare to bombard Orange Town in broad daylight and launch sneak attacks at night. They completely disregard our navy... If I were twenty years younger, I would definitely go to the battlefield myself and wipe them out."

"By the way, Martin, are you interested in rejoining the Navy? I can make you a lieutenant and put you in charge of the Orange Sheriff's Team."

Upon hearing his former boss's suggestion, Martin decisively shook his head: "I refuse, I'm not interested."

He then asked, "Major Hank, why has the Navy been so weak lately?"

Old Hank shrugged: "You should be able to guess why the Navy is so weak."

His gaze was extremely serious, and he clenched his fist: "Now we live in the Great Pirate Era. Most of our fighting force has been transferred to the Grand Line. I heard that a few great pirates are causing trouble. Even our East Blue forces have been largely mobilized, so we can't even keep these small pirates in check."

"Especially that sea king, if the navy could send just one commodore, they could kill that sea king..."

Martin raised an eyebrow: "A commodore? Is that sea king very strong?"

In my memory, the Lord of the Coast bit off one of the Four Emperors Shanks's arms, but was defeated by a single punch from Luffy when he first debuted.

"Yes, the colonels who went to pursue him were unable to catch the guy, or even leave any marks on him, and they even suffered casualties."

Old Hank pursed his lips and changed the subject: "These are not things for you to worry about. Actually, there is something you will know soon, but since you are not in the Navy, I cannot tell you... There are some responsibilities that you must shoulder."

Martin sensed something was off about what the other man was saying and really wanted to ask him for clarification, but Old Hank changed the subject: "Um... I almost forgot, you haven't collected the pirate's bounty yet."

"You rescued the Navy and single-handedly defeated the leader of the Ironhead Pirates and several others. You can claim the entire bounty."

Martin scoffed, "Old man, I thought you'd forgotten about this. Are you only talking to me about the bounty now?"

"Haha, getting old makes you forget things, kid, don't complain."

Hank pulled out several thick stacks of banknotes and a few wanted posters from the drawer: "Ironhead Pirates' captain Ironhead has a bounty of 850 million Berries, First Mate Astu has 460 million, and the boatswain and the others together have a bounty of 350 million Berries... Here's a total of 1880 million Berries!"

"The money is yours once you sign."

Looking at the banknotes, Martin smiled and said, "Indeed, fighting pirates is the fastest way to make money."

After signing the papers, he put the banknotes in a cloth bag, feeling quite pleased with himself.

"Oh? Then why don't you go and crack down on those rampant pirates in the area? I'm having a terrible headache over this."

Hank flashed a white smile.

Martin shook his head and refused decisively. He then pulled out a wad of cash worth 200,000 Berries and pushed it in front of Hank: "Old man, I want to buy you some information. Do you know if there are any powerful female marines or female pirates active in the East Blue recently?"

Hank calmly and quickly put the banknotes into the drawer, thinking to himself that this kid was really sensible. He was also a little puzzled by the question: "You asked about powerful female marines or female pirates?"

"Let me think... There are two female pirates operating in the East Blue. One is Madame Curie, and the other is the fat Alvida. Both are very troublesome characters."

Martin rolled his eyes: "I've heard about those two before... Are there any prettier ones, like normal women?"

Hank gave a meaningful, sly laugh: "Then a strong female navy... isn't that right in front of us?"

Martin was puzzled: "Right in front of you? You mean Tashigi? She's clearly very weak..."

"Martin, thank you for rescuing Sergeant Tashigi. She is a very promising young woman. She is a skilled swordsman at a young age and also owns a famous sword."

Having received the money, Hank didn't mince words: "This girl is a very nice person, very talented in swordsmanship, and quite good-looking too."

Hank smiled and said, "Martin, I remember you're an Alabasta citizen, which means you can have many wives. Do you want to marry Tashigi?"

"If you want me to act as a go-between, you'll have to pay extra!"

Martin shook his head speechlessly, did not select "add more money", and immediately turned and left the dojo office, not giving the old man any chance to add money.

He knew the old man's temperament; although he was relatively humane, he loved money and probably planned to make a fortune before retirement. He figured that once the money was increased, it would never end, and he absolutely couldn't fall for it.

This old man's sense of justice has some blemishes.

He had originally intended to bribe the other party to get some jade, but seeing how greedy the old man was, he decided against it.

Tashigi has a lot of potential, but she's too young!

Upon arriving at the familiar naval logistics base, one sees only a few scattered recruits wielding swords.

You know what, after not being back for months, I'm starting to miss this place a little. I'd better hurry home and snuggle into bed; Robin must be getting impatient waiting for me.

He hadn't gone far when a slender figure blocked his way. It was none other than Tashigi.

Tashigi, dressed in a naval ensign uniform, with a long sword at her waist and a brand-new pair of glasses, saluted Martin.