One Piece: I'm a Hunter on the Grand Line

A small request?

Judging from your tone, this request is no small matter.

Colonel Linde wanted to refuse, but when he saw Thorne's lifeless body on the ground and recalled his narrow escape from death, he realized that the girl was quite strong, and he hesitated.

Maybe we should listen to it.

Although the other party is not easy to deal with, they are not pirates or enemies.

"Ahem...you go ahead."

Colonel Linde clutched his chest and coughed twice on purpose, thinking to himself, "I'm in such a sorry state, you shouldn't be too rude to me."

"Don't be so polite, just call me Yelena."

Yelena was a little unaccustomed to hearing people around the same age as her father address her with such formal respect.

"I live in the small town behind here. Some of my neighbors know me. You can ask around. I'm saying this to prove that I have a clean background and am not a suspicious person of unknown origin."

"I have been practicing swordsmanship at home for many years, but today's battle revealed many shortcomings. I thought of training with you at the Navy branch to improve my skills."

"In return, when you go out to hunt down pirates, I can serve as an unofficial member of the fighting force. Just like today, we'll split the bounty fifty-fifty."

Yelena made her request, half-jokingly.

After a brief period of consideration, she concluded that temporarily following the navy's operations would maximize her own strength.

The naval branch has professional training facilities and a relatively systematic training program for soldiers. Following their training is more effective than training on your own.

The navy has a powerful intelligence network. Wherever pirates are rampaging, they will be the first to receive the news, which is much more convenient than foolishly waiting on the island for pirates to come to them.

Most importantly, her home was destroyed by pirates, and she had nowhere to live. Finding temporary accommodation with food and drink was exactly what she needed at the moment.

Colonel Linde looked somewhat troubled upon hearing the girl's words.

Outsiders training with the navy?

There's no precedent for this.

But since you want to receive training at the Navy branch, why not just be more straightforward and get straight to the point...?

After a moment of silence, Colonel Linde stared intently at the girl and asked the question that had been nagging at him: "Why don't you just join the Navy?"

He has a clean background, is skilled in swordsmanship, and is young and has great potential.

This is an outstanding new recruit that the Navy couldn't find anywhere else!

If the other party agrees, he will immediately recruit the person into the army, skipping the ranks of privates and making them officers directly.

Join the Navy?

Yelena rejected the answer without even thinking.

She wouldn't do the job of being a lackey for the Celestial Dragons!

Most importantly, the Navy doesn't have the same freedom as bounty hunters. As their strength increases, they can fight whichever pirate they want without having to consider any balance or worry about the consequences.

She has a deep-seated hatred for a certain Shichibukai. After joining the Marines, will her superiors allow her to take revenge?

General Zephyr, who made outstanding military achievements, is a living example!

She just wanted to find a place to spend her early learning period; she didn't want to put herself in any constraints.

However, there was no need to explain these things to Colonel Lind.

"I'll see. Maybe after staying in the branch for a while, I'll consider joining the navy."

Yelena's attitude was ambiguous; she neither gave a definite answer nor explicitly refused.

"Alright, I agree! The battle in town isn't over yet, let's go over there and capture the rest of the pirates!"

Colonel Linde didn't have time to think too much. Once he had recovered, he broke free from Yelena's support, grabbed a knife in one hand, and dragged Thorne's body with the other, heading towards the dock.

Yelena followed behind, secretly opening the [Super Bounty] warrant.

She felt that her power had increased after inheriting Thorne's court swordsmanship, and she wanted to confirm it.

[Name: Yelena]

[Age: 14 years old]

[Strength: 5]

[Agility: 6]

[Constitution: 5]

[Armament Haki: None]

[Observation Haki: None]

[Conqueror's Haki: Beginner (60%)]

[Skill: Court Swordsmanship]

[Devil Fruit Ability: None]

Yelena's eyes showed some surprise. All three basic attributes had increased simultaneously, especially strength, which had increased by two points!

It is already on par with adult males.

She stared at the skill bar and quickly understood the reason for this upgrade.

After acquiring the court swordsmanship, her body was adjusted by the [Super Bounty Order] to a state where she could skillfully use swordsmanship.

After all, even if a normal person only practices swordsmanship and not body techniques, after several years of training, their various physical qualities will improve to a certain extent.

Yelena was secretly delighted. Fortune really does come from danger. She had made a fortune this time!

Just as she was about to close the panel, her gaze was suddenly drawn to a line of text above the skill bar.

[Conqueror's Haki: Beginner (60%)]

It used to be 30%, but the domineering aura has increased?

When did this happen?

Yelena recalled the details of the battle just now, and the images flashed through her mind. Suddenly, she realized that something was wrong.

Just before the broken blade pierced the enemy's abdomen, the enemy's movements seemed to pause for a moment.

She initially thought it was caused by the colonel's sneak attack, piercing her heart. Now, thinking back, without that brief pause, the colonel's fatal blow wouldn't have been so easy to land.

The enemy's movements were likely affected by the Conqueror's Haki she unintentionally emitted.

Yelena was a bit of a headache. Her domineering aura was a powerful weapon, but when she could use it was not up to her!

I wonder what changes will occur once it breaks through the initial stage?

"That's... the captain?! How is that possible?!"

Some sharp-eyed pirates noticed a tall figure walking slowly from the west. Before they could even see the person's face, they were terrified by the corpse in the other person's hand!

The usually cruel and ruthless captain was dragged over by the navy like a dead dog!

How is this possible?!

As the figure clad in the coat of justice drew closer, more and more pirates discovered the true nature of the corpse. Many stood frozen in place, even forgetting the fight.

Colonel Linde raised the corpse in his hand, his deep voice echoing throughout the entire dock:

"The 'Fallen Swordsman' Raymond Thorne has been defeated and is dead! The remaining members of the Thorne Pirates, lay down your weapons and surrender immediately! Otherwise, I'll personally send you to meet your captain!!"

This shout startled many pirates; at least half of them instinctively dropped their weapons and crouched on the ground.

The navy cheered as they tied the surrendered pirates together.

But there are also many desperate pirates; some of them jump into the sea and swim towards the pirate ship!

Someone pushed aside their companion blocking the way and ran wildly into the town!

"How dare they resist to the very end!"

Colonel Linde tossed the body to his men and, sword in hand, chased after several pirates fleeing toward the town.

These henchmen weren't as difficult to deal with as their captain. The colonel swiftly chopped several men down with his knife, as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

He turned to look at the pirates fleeing towards the town from other directions, took a step with his right foot, then immediately pulled it back. He chuckled and shook his head, "Looks like they don't need me here."

The colonel turned and strode toward the pirate ship.

He wanted to take advantage of his remaining strength and wipe out the entire pirate gang as soon as possible!

Six pirates rushed into the street in a disheveled state.

"Why didn't the navy give chase?"

"Forget everything else! Escaping is the priority!"

"Where can we escape to? Let's grab some hostages and trade them for a ship with the navy!"

"Great idea! Damn it, I thought Thorne was some kind of tough guy, but he can't even beat the Navy! If I'd known this would happen, I definitely wouldn't have boarded his ship!"

"Look! There's someone up ahead! Great! It's an injured girl!"

"Brothers, a hostage delivered right to our doorstep! Grab her!"