One Piece: Blue Scale Admiral

There was no mirror in the room. Luo Xia was afraid that Yun Que would wait too long, so he quickly dressed, put his white military cap on his head, and opened the door.

Outside in the corridor, Lark was getting a little impatient.

"Is it ready yet, Brother Luo Xia? You're so slow, like a girl..."

She had just muttered something under her breath when she saw the door in front of her open, and a tall, handsome young military officer walked out with a smile.

The young man was tall and well-proportioned, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. He had a pair of light blue eyes on his handsome face.

Without activating the Life Return skill, his long silver hair, only about one meter in length, cascaded down from under his military cap and fell over his shoulders.

His already outstanding appearance, coupled with a pristine white military uniform and cap, made him look even more dashing and heroic.

"It's so beautiful..."

The lark stared in a daze.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. Let's go to town and take a look. I'm also quite interested in this place. By the way, what about Doss and Uncle Denor... Lark, are you alright?"

"Oh, I'm fine, let's go. Doss and the others are busy and won't have time to go, so don't worry about him. We can bring him some local specialties from town later."

Lark shook his head, put his hands behind his back, and followed Rorschach out of the residential area.

Along the way, the officers and soldiers of the 177th branch they encountered all smiled and nodded at Luo Xia, making Luo Xia feel somewhat flattered.

Yun Que laughed and said, "Brother Luo Xia, you've become a celebrity in the 177th branch now. Look, people recognize you wherever you go."

Luo Xia touched his nose and said with a wry smile, "But I'm still a newbie."

"A new recruit?" Hibari curled his lip. "Is there a recruit who can defeat 500 new recruits and be promoted directly to branch second lieutenant?"

"Skylark, if you keep praising me, my tail will be wagging in the air." Luo Xia quickly stopped Skylark, afraid that passersby would hear.

"Hehe, but it's true." Yun Que skipped ahead with her hands behind her back. "Hurry up and keep up, or my dad will see us and make me stay in the base again!"

"coming."

On the top floor of the 177th branch office building, Akainu watched the two figures disappear into the distance with a dark expression.

Major General Adila kept his eyes down, pretending not to see anything, and walked forward with a very serious expression.

"Brother Sakazuki, the warships are ready, let's set sail."

"Ah."

...

...

Wow, it's so lively here!

Lark exclaimed in surprise, walking not far ahead of Rorschach.

"It was indeed very lively, like a market."

The streets in Qianyan Town are very wide, exceeding ten meters.

The road is lined with three- or four-story buildings, all of which are shops on the ground floor.

Looking around, Rorschach could see shops such as taverns, fruit stands, clothing stores, and weapon shops.

The streets were bustling with pedestrians, vendors were shouting their wares on the roadside, and people were haggling over prices.

The pedestrians on the street have all sorts of outfits and body types.

There were fishermen in sailor uniforms, bounty hunters with knives and guns at their waists, and naval soldiers in military uniforms.

Here, Luo Xia saw a completely different living atmosphere from that of Red Leaf Village.

The people on the street had smiles on their faces and spoke with great confidence.

The shopkeepers dared to argue loudly with the naval soldiers and even dared to tell bounty hunters who didn't buy anything to get lost.

Passersby are not in a hurry to get on their way; they occasionally stop and chat with acquaintances while smiling.

"As expected of a place with a naval base, the people living here don't have to worry about being attacked by pirates, and their attitude towards life is completely different. Unlike Red Leaf Island, where people live a monotonous life, they work like zombies every day because they have to pay high taxes and sky gold."

Although both are located in Beihai and only a few hundred miles apart, their lifestyles are worlds apart.

The people of Red Leaf Village never had a single day of decent leisure in their entire lives, and in the end, they still had to face the massacre of the village by pirates.

Rorschach suddenly lost interest.

"Brother Luo Xia! The barbecue here is so delicious, you should come and try it!"

The lark's clear voice interrupted his drifting thoughts.

The boy looked up and saw the girl standing in front of a barbecue stall, holding a large handful of skewers of grilled meat, eating with gusto and her cheeks bulging.

“I remember you didn’t bring any money…” Luo Xia was a little embarrassed, but he forced himself to step forward.

"It's free." Yun Que's chubby baby face was full of a satisfied smile, which made Luo Xia's sad mood much better.

"Why is it free? Did Major General Adila make prior arrangements with the merchants in town?" Luo Xia asked, puzzled.

"no no."

The lark shook its little head like a rattle drum, smiling as it pointed to the owner behind the barbecue stall.

"Look who this is?"

"what?"

Luo Xia paused for a moment, then turned to look.

"Old John's boys, today's barbecue is free. Eat as much as you want."

The familiar voice entered his ears, leaving Rorschach stunned.

Chapter 21 Hellish Asceticism! Begins! [Please add to your favorites]

Standing behind the barbecue stall were the seventeen women who had survived the massacre in Red Leaf Village.

They were wearing aprons and gathered around a five- or six-meter-long barbecue grill, each busy with their own tasks.

Some people were adding charcoal to the stove, some were blowing air, some were greeting customers, and some were collecting money and giving change.

With clear division of labor, they were all very busy and happy.

Luo Xia stared blankly at the smiles on their faces.

That was indeed a genuine smile.

“Come on, old John’s son, try your aunt’s cooking.”

A skewer of grilled meat was handed to him.

The aroma of cumin-scented meat skewers, smoky and pungent, hits right into your nostrils.

"Thank you, Aunt Pello."

Rorschach took the roast meat.

He recognized the middle-aged woman who was speaking to him.

She is Pello, the wife of Roryl, a fisherman from Red Leaf Village. She should be around forty years old this year.

Pelosi is a very kind woman.

Rorschach still remembered that over the years, the bracelets and necklaces he made from the seashells he collected were the ones that Perot traded for the most black bread in Red Leaf Village.

The Pelosi family wasn't wealthy, but she and her husband Laurel had no children, so they could save some food rations.

Some of these rations were given to him by Pelosi.

Every time, Pelosi would tell herself that her old seashell bracelet was gone and she really wanted to exchange it with him for another one.

"How does it taste?" Aunt Perot asked with a smile.

Rorschach nodded emphatically: "It's delicious, absolutely wonderful!"

"That's good," Aunt Perot said, busy grilling meat and brushing chili powder onto the skewers, while muttering, "I used to always want to go to Port Meruze to sell grilled fish, but alas, back then, the fish caught in Laurel were too few. The money we made, after paying the tax collector, wasn't enough to support our trip to Port Meruze..."

"Aunt Pello, how come you... how come you've started a barbecue stand so quickly?"

Luo Xia ate his kebabs, hesitated for a moment, and then asked the question that had been bothering him.

Aunt Pello laughed. "The barbecue grill was ready yesterday afternoon, thanks to the kind navy soldiers. The house in the back was rented to us in advance. The first three months are rent-free, and after that, we'll pay the rent to the navy branch once we've earned some money."

Is the rent expensive?

“It’s not expensive at all. The money we make in a few days is enough to cover a month’s rent. I’ve done the math, and if this barbecue stall continues to operate, we can buy our own house in this town in just two years.”

"The money for the barbecue..."

"The navy paid for it for us, saying we could pay them back interest once we made some money. Ah, these navy officers are such good people. If they had been there when the pirates reached the village, my clumsy husband wouldn't have been killed protecting me..."

Luo Xia didn't know how he got back to the branch base.

After following Yun Que and touring around Qianyan Town, Luo Xia's depression vanished, and he became energetic and full of fighting spirit.

Thinking about Aunt Pello's current situation, Rorschach gained a deeper understanding of the justice he now upholds.

Strive to train and become stronger, not to fight for power and gain, or to wantonly trample on the lives of others.

Instead, as we see before us, they are protecting the ordinary lives of those in the community.

Perhaps, this is true justice.

...

...

Three days later, at the seaside drill ground of Branch 177.

"As lieutenants, you are the backbone of justice in Beihai!"

"We need you to lead the teams when we're sweeping up pirates and criminals in the surrounding waters."

"It can be said that the strength of your forces will directly affect the number of casualties your soldiers will suffer in battles against pirates!"

“Every elite soldier in this branch is nurtured with abundant resources. The loss of even one is a huge blow to the forces of justice, and a dereliction of duty on your part!”

"Therefore, when you are not on maritime patrol missions, you must complete the full amount of training every day before you can go out for entertainment, rest, or do your own things!"

On the undulating beach, thirty-two branch officers, including Rorschach and Richard, stood in a line, looking straight ahead, listening to the solemn speech of branch lieutenant colonel Jennifer.