One Piece: Starting from Awakening the Cosmo at Marineford

Aaron walked to the bar entrance and saw several people lying at the feet of Lark and Finbdi.

"Boss," Finbdi began explaining before Aaron could even ask, "These guys were human traffickers. They saw Captain Lark and got wicked intentions, trying to kidnap her. Luckily, I performed as expected and took them down!"

Aaron said, "Well done."

"Ah!" Lark suddenly exclaimed, squatted down, and picked up a mud figure from the ground.

"It's broken!" Yun Que was heartbroken to see that one of the clay figures' hands was broken.

Aaron looked at it and realized that this clay figure should be the one that Grus had sculpted that looked a lot like him.

"You ruined my clay figurine! I'll kick you to death!"

Yun Que, unlike her usual timid and submissive self, kicked the legs of the two human traffickers on the ground twice with her right foot.

The human traffickers on the ground groaned and moaned, not daring to utter a single complaint.

The lark breathed on the clay figure again, as if the clay figure could feel pain.

Aaron said, "These human traffickers have committed crimes no less serious than those of pirates. Finbuddy, kill them."

Lark was examining the clay figurine when he heard Aaron's words and was startled.

She felt a little reluctant.

But then I thought about how long these people had been entrenched here, and how many people they had trafficked.

These trafficked people are fitted with explosive collars and live in constant fear and threat of death. They are forced to serve as slaves, allowing their bodies and human dignity to be trampled upon.

Just now, they even tried to kidnap me.

The worst thing was that she broke her most cherished clay figurine.

The lark didn't try to persuade her; she turned her head away, preferring to avoid seeing it rather than worrying about it.

Finbuddy glanced at Aaron and saw his cold, ruthless eyes, yet his pupils seemed to burn with flames. Without hesitation, he squatted down and punched each of the traffickers in the throat with his knuckle duster-clad fist.

Aaron said, "We need to find a way to wipe out all these human traffickers."

"Boss," Finbdi said, "human trafficking is practically an open secret in the Sabaody Archipelago. Apparently, the human trafficking rings on the islands have powerful backers."

"Hmph! If they didn't have powerful backing, they wouldn't dare put this kind of business next to Marineford!" Aaron was furious. "Acquiesce? I didn't acquiesce!"

Aaron turned around and went back into the bar.

There was still only one waiter inside; the others had long since disappeared, too afraid to show their faces.

Waiter Chong Yaren forced an extremely awkward smile: "Sir, it'll be ready soon..."

Aaron said, "Give me what you've already found. The rest you can keep for your shop as compensation."

Aaron stripped a relatively clean piece of clothing off a pirate, wrapped the banknotes and some gold jewelry inside, packed it into a bundle, and carried it in his hand.

Bored, Finbdi walked to the door and saw a pile of corpses on the ground. He quickly covered his mouth, turned around and ran out, bending over and dry heaving.

The lark asked, "What's wrong? Why is it so quiet inside?" He then curiously lifted his foot to go in and take a look.

Fempedi quickly shouted, "Don't go in!"

Aaron happened to walk to the doorway and blocked Lark's path.

Lark peered inside, trying to see further, but Aaron had already grabbed her hand and pulled her out.

"Let's go to GR1 now, we have some things to take care of."

...

The drunken pirate left the tavern. At first, his legs were weak, but as he got further away, his courage and strength seemed to return a little, and he ran faster and faster.

Finally, exhausted, he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

The hellish scene in the tavern flashed through my mind again, and my stomach suddenly spasmed.

But he had already vomited up everything he had eaten before, and now he could only vomit a little bit of foam, which also had a few strange green tinges.

This is because they were so scared that bile refluxed into their stomach.

He lay on the ground and exhaled a few breaths, then remembered Aaron's twisted smile.

He began to hesitate, wondering whether he should listen to Aaron and actually go and tell those pirates.

If we don't do as instructed, where can the ocean go, even though it's vast?

With the navy's intelligence network spanning the entire world, finding someone shouldn't be too difficult.

Most importantly, the scene in the bar terrified him; he seemed to be able to see his own near future.

If he continues to be a pirate, he will die a violent death sooner or later.

Or should we just slip away and go into hiding?

He had been at sea for more than ten years without saving a penny. He then went into hiding to farm, fish, hunt, and do other hard work.

Back then, wasn't it because he didn't want to do these hard, low-paying manual labor jobs and wanted to make quick money that he went to sea to become a pirate?

"I will give you some money so you can go back to your hometown and retire."

The drunken pirate gritted his teeth: "Fortune favors the bold! He's a marine, at least he'd be more willing to keep his promise than a pirate! Let's do it!"

He struggled to his feet, dusted himself off, straightened his disheveled clothes and hair, and headed toward the village not far away.

Most pirates enjoy drinking, so they like to gather in bars after they come ashore.

Besides alcohol addiction, drinking alcohol can relieve rheumatism caused by long-term exposure at sea, kill bacteria, and is also a good way to replenish fresh water.

Rum, in particular, contains a lot of vitamins, which can help prevent scurvy, a disease that is common among sailors.

On islands like Sabaody Archipelago, which are a must-pass for pirates, almost every GR has one or more bars.

He walked into the bar, glanced around, and saw nothing but pirates.

The bar was noisy, filled with the smells of alcohol, food, the salty smell of the sea, and the sour stench of vomit.

"Hey!" he shouted.

Everyone in the bar turned their attention to him.

"I've come to deliver a message. A Marine Headquarters lieutenant commander has given all pirates on the island three days to leave. Otherwise, they will face the consequences!"

A moment of silence fell over the bar, followed by a burst of laughter.

The sounds of slamming tables, smashing bottles, swords striking chairs and tables, and even gunshots could be heard.

The bar was noisy for a while, then quieted down.

"A naval lieutenant commander? Such a low-ranking officer, yet with such a big mouth? Hah!"

"Leave the island within three days? Even before the Marine Headquarters relocated, there wasn't such a rule. Who does he think he is!"

"Bear the consequences yourself? What consequences? Is he going to beat me up? Hahahaha!"

The pirates chattered amongst themselves, completely disregarding what they had said.

The drunken pirate, also losing his temper, said irritably, "Let me tell you, less than half an hour ago, that naval lieutenant commander wiped out three pirate crews all by himself! I recognize one of the captains; he's Nick the Red Fox with a bounty of 3200 million Berries!"

Upon hearing this, the pirates in the tavern gradually quieted down.

A pirate captain asked, "Are you serious?"

"Believe it or not, it's up to you! If you don't leave, he also said he'll be waiting for you at the human trafficking site in GR 1 at noon three days from now!"