One Piece: Blue Scale Admiral

"That's because you're too strong, kid. Who could tear a mast off in one go?"

Doss was speechless. He couldn't help but steal a glance at Akainu and noticed that the admiral's fist, gloved with black gloves, was clenched tightly. He immediately felt a chill and quickly pulled the bewildered Rorschach away.

As he passed the bearded lieutenant, Doss muttered, "Jason, didn't I tell you not to order him around? This kid's body, which has been depleted for over a decade, has just recovered, and he's never received any systematic training. He has no way of controlling his suddenly increased strength."

"But these are the things new recruits are supposed to do, right? Everyone goes through this, who knew it would turn out like this..."

Lieutenant Jason, with the big beard, was almost in tears.

With the warship damaged like this, he, as the logistics officer, was bound to receive a severe reprimand upon returning to headquarters.

Jason looked resentful as he watched Rorschach being forcibly dragged away by Doss.

"He was asked to clean the deck, and he rubbed several large holes in it."

“He told him to furl the sails, but he broke them and snapped the mast.”

"When he was asked to adjust the breech, he flattened the cannon."

"If you ask him to move the shells, he'll just detonate them with the clamps!"

"What other good qualities does this kid have besides his big appetite?!"

"No, being a big eater isn't a good thing at all. Since this kid got on the ship, I haven't eaten my fill for three days, boohoo..."

As Luo Xia reached the cabin door, he saw the little girl, Yun Que, rubbing her eyes and yawning as she walked out.

Just as Lark was about to greet Doss and Rorschach, he caught sight of the chaotic warship deck behind them, and his mouth agape slightly before his eyes widened.

"Brother Luo Xia, did you damage the warship again? That's amazing! How did you do that? I heard from Uncle De Nuo that the warship's mast is made of top-quality wood and is very sturdy."

At the bow of the ship, Akainu's mouth twitched.

"They're more trouble than they're worth."

When the warship arrived at the port of Branch 177, Rear Adira, the branch base commander and Akainu's former subordinate in the North Blue, looked at the broken mast and torn sails on the warship with a shocked expression, and cautiously asked Akainu a question.

"Admiral Sakazuki, which great pirate attacked you? How could they break through the admiral's defenses and damage the warship like this?"

Chapter 13 Branch Recruitment

Major General Adila was a middle-aged man over forty years old, nearly two meters tall, with a robust and strong physique, and he looked like a stern and tough guy.

But when he saw Akainu disembark from the ship, Major Adira, who had been waiting at the port for a long time, immediately broke into a bright smile.

Especially when he saw Hibari behind Akainu, his face immediately broke into a wide smile.

"Oh my, my little princess Yun Que, you've finally returned to your hometown of Beihai! Uncle has missed you so much! Look what I've prepared for you!"

Adila smiled and stretched out her hand, and immediately a row of soldiers ran out from behind her, each holding a fluffy pink cotton candy.

"Uncle Adila, I'm not an eight-year-old anymore, why are you still trying to coax me with cotton candy..."

"However, I still really like cotton candy. Thank you, Uncle Adila!"

Lark ran up to the soldier holding the cotton candy with a grin, took three candies, and gave two to Doss and Rorschach.

"After three years, my little princess has grown into a beautiful young lady."

Major General Adira patted Hibari's little head, nodded to Doss and the others, glanced at Rorschach briefly, and then ran to Akainu.

“Brother Sakazuki, you arrived several days later than expected. I was about to call and ask if you encountered any blind pirates on the way. I saw that the warships were damaged.”

"Some unexpected things have happened." Akainu walked ahead without any politeness, taking the lead towards the Marine branch base ahead.

"What's going on with the Kingdom of Prince? In your intelligence report, you said that you suspected you saw Dragon appear near the Kingdom of Prince."

Adila quickly shook off the others and followed closely behind Akainu, replying in a low voice:

"About a month ago, our intelligence agents did indeed discover a ship belonging to the Revolutionary Army in the waters near the Kingdom of Prince. They also discovered that the Revolutionary Army leader, Dragon, had entered the royal city of the Kingdom of Prince."

"I personally led the troops there, but we couldn't stop Dorrag and his men from leaving."

"Why would the leader of the Revolutionary Army come to a small country like Prince?" Akainu frowned.

"It must be for the sake of food..."

Adila considered for a moment, “Recently, the World Government’s army has intensified its efforts to suppress the Revolutionary Army, and they are in dire need of food.”

During this time, Prince Ilya of the Kingdom of Princes had been purchasing grain and collecting large amounts of celestial gold and economic taxes in advance.

On the other hand, Prince VII's health is very poor, and rumors are already circulating that he is about to die, so..."

"So, you suspect that Ilya contacted the Revolutionary Army, wanting to use their power to seize the throne? But isn't he the eldest prince? With the king's death, the throne will naturally fall to him."

"Brother Sakazuki, you may not know this," Adila said with a smile, shaking his head.

Prince VII favored his youngest son, Gross, more than Ilya, the ambitious eldest prince.

Although Grus is young, he has a gentle personality and looks very much like his father. In addition, he is a powerful ability user.

Therefore, the nobles of the capital city were whispering among themselves that Prince VII intended to pass the throne to Princegros.

"Colluding with the Revolutionary Army is a capital offense!" Akainu's face was icy, and his eyes were already filled with murderous intent. "Even if the Kingdom of Prince is a member state of the World Government, being convicted of this crime is enough to lead to the destruction of the kingdom!"

“That’s the problem,” Adila said, puzzled. “The Revolutionary Army did show up, but they left quickly. Our intelligence agents in the Royal City, along with those from the World Government, didn’t find any Revolutionary Army soldiers left behind. It seems they just bought a batch of food from Ilya. On the contrary, Ilya has been in close contact with the Giant Worm Pirates lately.”

"The Giant Insect Pirates?"

"It's the Supernova Pirates of the North Blue. Their captain is a ruthless and powerful guy. They've risen to prominence in the last two years, recruiting many promising new pirates. He claims to be a subordinate of Gecko Moria, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."

"Why are we bringing up the Seven Warlords of the Sea again? The North Blue is still as chaotic as ever."

Akainu snorted coldly and strode into the naval base in front of him.

The naval base in front of him covers an area of ​​more than a quarter of the entire Thousand Rock Island.

The training grounds, logistics department, base building, and residential area together cover an area of ​​four to five square kilometers.

Outside the naval base, there is a sizable town.

This town does not belong to any kingdom in the North Sea. It is a settlement that gradually formed because the 177th branch is located here.

This town is inhabited by people who have drifted here from all over the North Sea, the families of branch soldiers, or innocent civilians who were rescued by the navy from pirates but have no home to return to.

The seventeen women who survived the massacre in Red Leaf Village will be arranged to live on Thousand Rock Island.

"Is this the naval base? It's huge and very lively."

Rorschach, Doss, Lark, and the others, each with a cotton candy in hand, followed the branch soldiers into this magnificent fortress of justice.

Looking at the huge training ground surrounded by long walls, now teeming with people, forming five long lines, Luo Xia couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

The 177th branch base was indeed overcrowded.

Everywhere you look, there are crowds of people.

Are they all soldiers? What are they doing?

"If I'm not mistaken, they're recruiting soldiers, right?" Doss pushed up his glasses and said to the lieutenant walking in front of him.

The young branch lieutenant quickly saluted. "Yes, sir! Our branch officially started recruiting this month. As a result, people from nearby towns have come to take the test after hearing the news."

"So many people are willing to join the navy? I thought recruitment would be difficult." Rorschach glanced around and roughly estimated that there were at least five hundred people queuing up on the training ground.

The branch lieutenant was somewhat surprised that Rorschach, a private, could chat and laugh with Lieutenant Colonel Doss from headquarters.

Hearing Luo Xia's question, he dared not be negligent.

In the ensign's mind, Rorschach might be the descendant of some naval officer, just like the graceful lark standing beside him.

Rorschach's appearance and demeanor were simply too outstanding.

Her long, silver-white hair was tied up, and her height of 2.3 meters made her look quite wiry.

With a face that still looked youthful yet undeniably handsome, and those deep blue eyes, he looked like a big star compared to the other oddballs around him.

"Because if they join the navy, they can have enough to eat, and their families will have the opportunity to move to Thousand Rock Island."

The lieutenant explained with a smile.

"Will we be able to... have enough to eat?" Rorschach paused for a moment.

That's a really simple reason.

At this moment, Daosi suddenly interjected, asking the branch, "With so many people signing up, the branch should be screening them, right? Could it be... that this recruitment is another exception to the usual selection criteria?"

The branch lieutenant hesitated for a moment, but did not hide anything.

The recruitment process is open to the entire Beihai region.

"Yes, if there are outstanding new recruits who haven't made any serious mistakes, they have a chance to be selected exceptionally, and the highest they can be promoted directly to branch lieutenant."

"Second Lieutenant? Private Third Class, Private Second Class, Private First Class, Sergeant, Warrant Officer, that's equivalent to jumping six ranks in a row!"

His eyes lit up, and he smiled as he looked at the somewhat bewildered Luo Xia.

"Kid, your chance has come. Your chance to quickly shed your recruit status."

Chapter 14 Fellow Villagers from Beihai

If you perform well in the selection of new recruits, you will have the opportunity to be promoted to a higher rank.

Could someone have risen through six ranks to become a second lieutenant?

Upon hearing this, Luo Xia couldn't help but breathe heavily.

Moreover, he suddenly realized a crucial issue at that moment.

With Akainu's consent, I officially joined the Navy and became a private third class under him.

In other words, one's rank should perhaps be calculated according to the standards set by the Navy Headquarters.

That is, a third-class private at the Navy Headquarters.

As is well known, the rank of the headquarters and the branch differs by three levels, which is one major rank.

A captain or lieutenant at the Naval Headquarters would be equivalent to a colonel or lieutenant colonel at the Four Seas Branch, making them the highest-ranking officers at the Four Seas Admiral level.

That's why the branch lieutenant who led the way treated Doss with such respect.

Because Doss's rank was Lieutenant Commander in the Navy Headquarters.

In a place like the Sihai Branch, officers of this rank are practically a force to be reckoned with.