Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Chapter 207 The Dragon's Triumphant Tactics

While the world was in chaos, the number of pirates in the East Blue showed a decreasing trend, preserving the Navy's last shred of dignity. After investigation, the Navy's high command discovered that there were two reasons for the peace in the East Blue.

The first reason is Vice Admiral Garp, a naval hero.

He would return to the East China Sea every few days to visit his grandson and, incidentally, wipe out any pirates he encountered.

Those petty thieves who are new to the sea may not know who Garp is.

However, pirates who have reached a certain level will actively avoid the East Blue to avoid encountering this force majeure event.

Therefore, the strength ceiling of pirates in the East Blue is very low, and there are almost no powerful pirates that the Navy division cannot deal with.

The second reason is the 77th Naval Division.

This small branch, with only 176 naval personnel and a medium-sized warship, has performed remarkably well in the anti-piracy operations over the past year.

The 77th Branch doesn't launch attacks very often, but each time they accurately track their targets and capture the pirates in one fell swoop, rarely returning empty-handed.

This was of course thanks to Xia Zuo, who had been a sailor in this area for many years, serving as boatswain for two years and captain for more than half a year, and was very familiar with the surrounding waters.

After receiving information about the pirates' ship locations two or three times, Xia Zuo could estimate the pirates' current location and their target island.

The vast ocean is boundless, but that doesn't mean you can sail freely. After all, the waters in unfamiliar waters are unpredictable, and you may encounter hidden reefs at any time.

Sailing ships have limited range, and to avoid running out of water and food, they can only travel between islands where they can stop and resupply.

Therefore, there is never absolute freedom in navigation; instead, one must strictly follow the designated sea lanes.

His career as a sailor and captain also allowed Xia Zuo to accumulate a lot of connections, making his intelligence more accurate and timely than that of Colonel Pudding, the base commander.

Therefore, Xia Zuo was able to guide the warships to take a shortcut and intercept the pursuing pirates in advance.

Once the pirates' ship is blocked, it can be easily destroyed with naval cannons, and the pirates can be wiped out in one fell swoop.

The pirates of the East Blue are weak, and that's no exaggeration.

The 77th Naval Division made a great contribution, and all officers and soldiers at the base were promoted, especially the base commander, Colonel Pudding Pudding, who was promoted to brigadier general.

The highest military rank in the East China Sea has been increased to general, but the brigadier general can only command a base with fewer than 200 people and a warship. This strange situation is obviously problematic.

Xia Zuo knew, of course, that Brigadier General Pudding's promotion was entirely to suppress him, a lieutenant colonel.

Over the past year, Xia Zuo has diligently trained soldiers, handled official documents, formulated maritime patrol plans, and developed combat plans, bringing 26 resounding victories to the base.

In addition, Xia Zuo devoted all his energy to training, and finally developed the potential derived from Saint Seiya Xia Zuo and Saiyan Xia Zuo. He made rapid progress in his Haki training and his strength jumped to the level of an Admiral.

Moreover, under the guidance of the Nine Swords of Dugu, he mastered the Six Styles of the Navy, forming his own unique fighting style.

Xia Zuo now only needs an opportunity to defeat a formidable enemy and prove his strength to everyone.

Xia Zuo's diligence, self-discipline, and strong capabilities won over the hearts of the base's navy. His victory also won over the officers and soldiers of several nearby naval bases, fostering a positive atmosphere of close cooperation and coordinated operations across a significant portion of the East China Sea Navy.

Although there were still branches as rotten as the 16th branch, their duties were completely covered by other branches, leaving no opportunity for pirates to take advantage.

It was with this foundation that the East Blue Pirates were able to decline against the tide.

In 1510, the 77th Marine Division was ordered to hunt down the "Musketeers" pirate crew.

As is customary, Xia Zuo devised a route based on intelligence, and the warships took a shortcut along the edge of the calm zone to reach the waters of Cuttlefish Island, where they lay in ambush in the shadows beneath the island's cliffs.

Just half an hour later, the lookout shouted, "Pirate ships have appeared in the southwest! Three musketeers and a skull and crossbones flag—it's the Musketeer Pirates!"

"Wait, there's another ship! And it's flying a different kind of skull and crossbones flag. Two pirate crews have arrived!"

Brigadier General Pudding frowned and asked, "What kind of flag is the lookout on?"

The lookout observed carefully for a while, then took out the complete guide to pirate flags and compared it with the records before shaking his head and saying, "It's not in the records. This is a new pirate crew."

"Commodore, two pirate crews are fighting! They're battling each other!"

The Commodore walked to the statue on the bow of the ship and loudly commanded, "Good opportunity! No matter which pirate crew they are, since they've been encountered by our 77th Branch, they're just unlucky!"

"I order the entire ship to attack! Annihilate both pirate groups!"

The navy sailors responded in unison. Working together, they lowered the anchor, adjusted the sails, and, taking advantage of the sea breeze, left the island's shadowy area and rushed towards the battlefield where the pirates were fighting.

The sight of the naval warships emerging from the shadows, their menacing appearance startled both groups of pirates.

The Musketeer Pirates, who were firing volleyballs at each other, panicked when they saw the flag of the 77th Branch. They lost all will to fight and turned their ship around to escape.

Unfortunately, the pirate crew fighting them had no intention of letting them go. Instead, they inexplicably accelerated, and the jagged ship's bow, like a ram, suddenly rammed into the hull of the Musketeer, firmly fixing the two together.

When Xia Zuo saw the strangely shaped ship, a flash of inspiration struck him. Then, looking at the skull and crossbones flag decorated with a megalodon on the mast, he knew the origin of this new group of pirates.

The Arlong Pirates are led by Arlong, a giant shark-man, and all members of the crew are fish-men.

These fish-men were originally members of the Sun Pirates. After the death of their leader, Fisher Tiger, Arlong and Jinbe had a clash of ideologies and left the Sun Pirates to form the Arlong Pirates.

The problem is, the timing is wrong.

How could the evil dragon arrive in the East Sea so early?

The reason is actually quite simple: Fisher Tiger died two years prematurely.

Because when he arrived at Mary Geoise, the dangerous individual Chazelle happened to be passing through Mary Geoise.

Admiral Borsalino of the Navy had been keeping a close eye on Shazo, so he saw the fire in Mary Geoise and provided immediate support.

The Admirals are the pinnacle of naval power. Despite Borsalino's half-hearted efforts, he still managed to seriously injure Fisher Tiger, who nearly died in the Holy Land.

After that, Fisher Tiger was busy forming the Sun Pirates, and his injuries never fully healed. Not long ago, his injuries flared up again, and he collapsed completely.

Fisher Tiger was a staunch scorpion supremacist who refused to accept human blood into his body, so he was unable to undergo surgery and ultimately died at sea.

The Sun Pirates were taken over by Jinbe, the strongest member of the crew. Arlong and other fish-men, unable to accept his peace ideals, chose to leave the Sun Pirates and form their own Arlong Pirates.

However, Arlong was very self-aware and knew that he was not strong enough to lead his pirate crew to survive on the Grand Line.

So he used the sea kings he raised to tow his pirate ship across the Calm Belt and settled in the weakest part of the East Blue.

Crossing the Calm Belt is an extremely arduous and dangerous undertaking. Even with the Sea Kings at their disposal, the Arlong Pirates exhausted their fresh water and food supplies. After leaving the Calm Belt, they encountered the Musketeer Pirates, and Arlong couldn't wait to launch an attack.

His pirate crew desperately needed to replenish their fresh water and food, but more importantly, they needed to seize the nautical charts.

Only by obtaining the sea routes and understanding the distribution of islands, countries, and naval bases in the East China Sea can the evil dragon decide which island to settle on.

He didn't come to the East Blue simply to seek refuge; his plan was to acquire enough money here to build the most powerful weapons, and then return to the Grand Line.

Arlong's goal is to defeat Jinbe, reclaim the Sun Pirates, and revive the great Fish-Man race.

Therefore, the foothold in the East China Sea must be carefully selected. There must be enough villages nearby to rob, and it must be far enough away from the naval branch.

However, the Musketeer Pirates were composed of three snipers who were very skilled at using muskets. They used their well-coordinated volleys of fire to make it impossible for the fishmen to get close.

The dragon charged several times but was driven back each time. Although the lead bullets could not break his skin, the intense pain was unbearable.

So he ordered the fishmen to use the ships as cover to sneak into the sea from the other side and dive close to the enemy ships.

But just as the stalemate was at hand, the navy suddenly appeared, throwing the fish-men into chaos.

Xiao Ba hurriedly suggested, "Boss, we should retreat quickly. We're scattered, and everyone is hungry and thirsty. We can't possibly win a battle against the Navy."

The dragon sneered, "Little Eight, you're such a fool!"

"Our compatriots approached the group of human pirates underwater. By the time they swam back to retreat, we had already been attacked by the Navy."

"Moreover, we don't have a nautical chart for the East China Sea, so we don't know where to retreat. If we get lost at sea, we fish-men will die of thirst."

Salt Burnt asked, "Captain, what should we do now?"

The dragon looked at the medium-sized naval warship, suddenly had an idea, and revealed a ferocious smile.

He jumped onto the jagged bow of the ship and shouted, "Fishman brothers!"

"The current situation means that only fighting can ensure survival, while retreat will inevitably lead to death. We are noble fish-men; are we not even capable of defeating the mere human navy?"

The fishmen who followed the Sea Dragon and left the Sun Pirates were all staunch fishman supremacists and racists.

Hearing the captain's provocation, they excitedly drew their strange weapons and screamed wildly, "Kill humans! Fishmen are supreme!"

The dragon was pleased with his men's morale. He turned to the panicked Musketeer Pirates and ordered, "Have Moo push the ship hard and ram the human pirates' ship!"

"Let's kill all the human pirates first, then wipe out the human navy, and seize this warship to make it the new flagship of our noble fish-man pirates!"

The fishmen listened with fervor, brandishing their weapons and shouting, "Fishmen supreme!"

The fish-men on the ship responsible for taking care of the Sea Kings jumped into the sea, piloted the Sea King Moo Moo, and dragged the Shark pirate ship towards the Musketeer Pirates.

When the serrated edge pierced the side of the Musketeer Pirates' ship, the fishmen on board swarmed forward, braving a hail of bullets to charge at the pirate ship, and a fierce battle ensued.

The fish-men who had gone to sea earlier emerged from beneath the surface and climbed up the ship to the back of the musketeer pirates, completely disrupting the human pirates' formation and dragging the battle into a chaotic melee.

The melee best utilizes the fish's size and stamina advantages.

Commodore Pudding was quite surprised but also very happy to see the two groups of pirates fighting even more fiercely instead of fleeing from the naval warships.

He changed his order: "Halt!"

"It's good for pirates to kill each other. Let's wait here and let more pirates die."

"Straighten the ship, load the cannons, and prepare to fire."

The battle between the pirates ended quickly. The fishmen of the Arlong Pirates routed the Musketeer Pirates, and even the pirate captain "Sniper" Edward had his head chopped off by Arlong.

The dragon, carrying Edward's head, stood at the edge of the ship's railing and taunted the navy: "Human navy, if you don't want to die at the hands of the great mermaid, you'd better run for your lives!"

Commodore Pudding muttered, "Fishmen are all idiots. They actually dare to threaten the Navy when facing the cannons."

Xia Zuo warned, "Sir, fire! Those fishmen—"

Brigadier General Pudding raised his hand to stop Xia Zuo from speaking, saying, "I know the characteristics of fishmen, Lieutenant Colonel Xia Zuo. You don't need to remind me of this common sense."

Pudding deliberately gave Xia Zuo a hard time because he received orders from the Navy's high command to suppress Xia Zuo's achievements and prevent him from being promoted due to his merits.

Xia Zuo shook his head and ignored the officer.

The smooth sailing battles of the past year made this base commander, who had unjustly enjoyed his achievements and promotions, arrogant and no longer able to accurately assess his own true strength.

Actually, this wasn't Xia Zuo's fault. In the original history, Commodore Pudding Pudding took the initiative to wipe out the Arlong Pirates, who were not in his defense zone, and ended up being completely wiped out.

Commodore Pudding walked to the ship's railing, stood in front of all the officers, and shouted loudly, "I am Commodore Pudding Pudding of the 77th Marine Division. We are the most elite naval force in the East Blue. If you fish-men are willing to surrender—"

Upon hearing the rank of brigadier general, the dragon felt a chill run down his spine. He still remembered the imposing presence of Admiral Borsalino, who had hunted down Fisher Tiger.

The Marine Admiral transformed into a dazzling golden light, relentlessly attacking the Sun Pirate Ship. Even powerful figures like the captain and Jinbe were unable to catch up with or attack him.

The entire Sun Pirates crew, consisting of hundreds of powerful fish-men, was completely suppressed by a single Marine Admiral, utterly powerless to retaliate.

Arlong himself tried to attack, but was knocked unconscious by a single kick from a Marine Admiral. He didn't even know that Borsalino had already shown mercy.

If naval admirals are so terrifying, then how powerful must naval commissars be?

Upon hearing that the naval commander was a commodore, Evil Dragon felt an involuntary sense of fear.

He even instinctively wanted to turn around and run away.