One Piece: A Guide for Ordinary Players

But since General Tsuru had spoken, he had no choice but to obey and go inside, plopping down in the empty seat next to Sengoku.

Zhan Guo frowned and said, "You're just someone who stands during meetings, yet you dare to sit next to me so casually?"

Robert and Sengoku were very familiar with each other, and Robert chuckled and said, "I originally wanted to stand and listen, but when I saw that even an old man like you without a military rank was sitting in the back row, I, at least, am a lieutenant colonel with a nominal rank, so I had to find a seat too."

Zhan Guo was so angry that his beard almost stood on end. He had originally wanted to make a few sarcastic remarks to gain an advantage, but he didn't expect that Robert wouldn't give him any face at all.

Garp laughed heartily on the side. He himself was a hero role model set up by the Navy over the years, and he was very interested in Robert, a new generation of naval heroes who had made great contributions.

Several old friends spoke highly of him, and even his two personal disciples, the deserter king Kobi and the axe king prince Berumebo, felt inferior after working with him on missions.

Aokiji saw Robert laughing and joking next to the two old men, and the veins on his forehead throbbed.

But one of those two old men was a former naval admiral, his former superior and the most steadfast benefactor who recommended him to become the new admiral; the other was his mentor. He couldn't afford to offend either of them, so he could only start with Robert.

"Let's deal with Lieutenant Colonel Robert's matter first. Lieutenant Colonel Robert, after the Dressrosa incident, the Navy Headquarters decided to grant you the rank of lieutenant colonel after research. However, the Navy has a tradition of not making rank appointments or removals during recruit training, which is why it has been delayed until today."

Robert was beaming with excitement, looking every bit the bureaucrat, eagerly awaiting Aokiji's announcement of his new position.

No one knew that what he was really eyeing was the rank increase brought by military rank. Each rank increase could raise a level by 2, and from corporal to lieutenant colonel, there was a gap of 7 levels. Today, with this change of fate, Robert's level immediately soared by 14 levels, and the increase in attribute points could raise his personal strength by almost half.

Aokiji continued, "You were previously assigned to the Marine Headquarters Science Unit, under the direct command of Admiral Borsalino. During your research with Dr. Vegapunk this time, you also developed feelings for Dr. York... Logically speaking, you should continue to serve in the Science Unit."

Robert keenly noticed Aokiji's unspoken meaning. The moment he uttered the word "in accordance with reason," he knew he wasn't going to handle things in accordance with reason anymore; he was most likely going to reassign him to another position.

Robert didn't interrupt, and everyone else present seemed to have known this all along, simply listening quietly to Aokiji's arrangements.

Aokiji didn't give him a chance to interrupt: "But now we have a special mission to give you. This mission is very important, but it's a bit unfair to you, so you have the right to refuse. However, I still hope you can complete it first before making a decision."

Robert stood up straight solemnly, looking resolute.

When your boss says you can refuse, they're basically telling you not to be ungrateful.

Since I'm currently in the navy, I should at least give the marshal some face. I should at least listen to his explanation and verbally agree. In the end, I can just quit the navy altogether.

Everyone present was satisfied with Robert's attitude. Although he usually joked around and seemed unserious, he could be quite the naval officer when he needed to be serious.

"You were there during the Battle of Dressrosa, and the timely delivery of information by the naval forces was crucial in enabling them to arrive at the scene and control the situation immediately."

"Furthermore, when Doflamingo unleashed his massive damage attack, your decisive and efficient actions in coordinating with singer Uta to evacuate civilians to underground shelters effectively protected the lives of the people. It can be said that you upheld the dignity of our navy in the most unfavorable situation."

Robert blushed slightly when he heard Aokiji praising him so enthusiastically.

"But you should also know that right here in Dressrosa, Robert D. Nelo, the leader of the Worst Generation pirates who caused Marineford's destruction, has reappeared. Moreover, since that battle, he has committed a series of major crimes in the past few months, and we are still studying his new bounty."

Robert tensed up, trying his best not to show anything unusual. He never expected that the dagger would be pointed at him!

"We now suspect that he has actually joined forces with one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Terfalgar Law, and has effectively taken control of Dressrosa, but he is unable to take action against a World Government member state and a Warlord of the Sea due to a lack of evidence."

"Would you be willing to infiltrate Dressrosa again and help us uncover their crimes?"

Robert: What's going on here? You've sent Zheng Yaoxian to investigate the kite?

Chapter 7 Serving the People!

Robert dared not answer easily. Although most things in the pirate world do not conform to common sense, when it comes to his own life and fortune, he could not be too careful.

He couldn't be sure whether Aokiji genuinely wanted to send him to Dressrosa as an undercover agent, or whether he had discovered some of his secrets and was testing him here.

After all, no matter how outstanding his performance was, he was just a junior officer who had only joined the Navy for half a year and whose rank was only lieutenant colonel. He should not have been given orders by the marshal himself, let alone be discussed as a major issue at such a high-level meeting.

Kizaru's lazy voice broke the awkward atmosphere: "Before we came here, you were so confident that you would do anything that would benefit the world, even if you didn't want to be a Marine. Now that we're not letting you be a Marine, you've changed your mind?"

Robert suddenly recalled what Kizaru had talked to him about on the way there, and realized that this was what it meant.

Combining the two perspectives, he felt relieved.

To be honest, I had always wanted to find an opportunity to leave the Navy, but now I'm just afraid that there might be a trap because this opportunity came too quickly and too easily.

"It's not that I disagree. Obeying orders is a soldier's duty. I won't refuse the tasks given to me by my superiors. I was just thinking about how to infiltrate without it being too abrupt."

The phrase "Obeying orders is a soldier's duty" caught the eye of someone present. These country bumpkins from the pirate world had never heard such heroic words from the People's Liberation Army before, and their gazes towards Robert softened.

"You don't need to worry about those things. Chief of Staff He will finalize the specific details with you after the meeting. Now I want to tell you something else."

Seeing Aokiji's serious expression, Robert's mind raced, anticipating what he might say to avoid revealing any flaws due to shock.

"The Navy has a special, classified unit called Sharp Blade, whose members are all former Navy personnel who have submitted their resignations and returned their Navy serial numbers."

"This secret unit of the Navy has a high degree of autonomy. They can even fight against the Four Emperors without reporting to headquarters. However, in return, the Navy will not be responsible for anything they do, and may even erase all their connections with the Navy at any time."

"Now I'm going to incorporate you into the razor blade. Any objections?"

Robert almost gave himself away, not because he was surprised to hear about such a secret unit, but because he knew too much about what kind of organization it was, so he almost looked constipated.

Robert always felt that the existence of the Blade was a product of the Navy's collective intellectual decline.

Strictly speaking, only Captain X Drake is somewhat plausible, since he actually put on a show, leaving the Navy to form a pirate crew, infiltrating the ranks of the Four Emperors Kaido with a bounty on his head, and then secretly passing information to the Navy.

But none of the remaining members, who are children of high-ranking officials, seem to have any secret military intentions; they're all more high-profile than the regular navy personnel.

Kobi, Helmeppo, and Hibari openly protected the World Government member states attending the World Conference in their naval capacity.

At the time, he was wearing a navy cloak and a hero's medal, as if he were competing for the trust of a naval admiral. No one knows what secrets he had or how he submitted his resignation and withdrew from the Navy.

Later, when Kobby was imprisoned on Beehive Island, Bellmare and Lark went to ask "Prince" Prince Gross to rescue him, and they went directly to the naval base where he was stationed.

Whose secret unit, whose members have already submitted their resignations, is stationed at a naval base?

There's also Robb's old acquaintance, Peacock. She's Vice Admiral Tsuru's granddaughter, a true Celestial Dragon in the Navy. If something happens to her, can the Navy erase her file?

All members of Sharp Blade are undoubtedly second-generation military personnel, either relatives of high-ranking officials or apprentices of generals. If I join, wouldn't I become the only amateur?

Aokiji had no idea that he had been mentally ranting about all those things, and he was quite pleased with Robert's calm and collected demeanor, raising his voice as he said:

"Lieutenant Colonel Robert! As the Fleet Admiral, I am issuing you a direct order to transfer you from the Headquarters Science Unit to the Special Secret Unit—Sharp Blade!"

"Your secret identity is known only to those present today, and your military rank will be erased, but everything you have done is to bring true justice to this sea."

Do you have any objections?

Robert feigned an expression of being influenced by Aokiji, and gave a resolute military salute: "No!"

Aokiji also stood up and saluted Robert: "You are a true soldier. Go find Peacock; she will coordinate the details with you."

Robert hadn't wanted to attend the meeting in the first place, and now Aokiji was clearly telling him to get out of there and stop lingering in the meeting room listening to these high-ranking officials discuss confidential matters, so he simply turned around and walked out.

This time, no one stopped him. As he walked out of the conference room, Robert, being meticulous, did not wander around the Navy Headquarters on his own. Instead, he asked the guards on duty at the door where Peacock was.

A naval orderly stepped forward and said, "Come with me. The Marshal has sent me to take you to see Rear Admiral Peacock."

Robert narrowed his eyes, nodded slightly, and followed behind the orderly.

The two walked through the winding corridor and entered an empty conference room.

The orderly said in a soft, charming female voice, "Lieutenant Colonel Robert, now that you've caught the eye of all the high-ranking naval officers, have you forgotten who put you in this position before?"

Robert had seen through her identity the moment she approached, and said with a smile, "Miss Alpha, it doesn't feel like you're eyeing Vegapunk. Instead, it seems like you're trying to take down the Fleet Admiral?"

“As soon as I arrive at Naval Headquarters, you will inevitably be here disguised as an undercover agent, revealing the truth to me. How long can he keep this up? If you are preparing to close in soon, I will disobey the orders he gives me.”

Alpha gave him a disgruntled look: "You've been in Eghelm for four months, why haven't you sent back a single message?"

“Our people say that sometimes they don’t see you for a week or two, and even when they do see you from afar, you’re flirting with that blonde bombshell.”

Robert coughed awkwardly twice: "Vegapunk said he wanted to study my Devil Fruit ability, and he's been keeping me locked up in the lab every day. What can I do? I'm just a guinea pig. I have no access to his other research. Where am I supposed to find evidence for you?"

Alpha squinted, as if trying to see through Robert: "Although you are a scumbag, having such a beautiful girlfriend and still having an ambiguous relationship with Vegapunk's clone, I have to say you did a good job this time."

Robert became alert: "What do you mean?"

Alpha lowered his voice and said, "I heard you got kicked out of the Navy?"

Robert wasn't surprised that Alpha knew the contents of the meeting, even though Aokiji had just confidently stated that only a handful of people in the meeting room knew about it.

"We'll help you take York with you, and then hand her over to us after you leave the Navy!"

Chapter 8 CP, you don't understand love, Pangu City will fall down.

Robert already knew that the Navy had no secrets from the CP department, so Alpha's previous words couldn't fool him at all.

York was won by selling her body, and she hasn't even put in any real effort yet, but so many people are already eyeing her and planning to steal her away.

First, there's the Navy side. Everyone tacitly avoided mentioning York at the meeting, but the way they were calculating was almost enough to knock Robert's face off.

Kizaru had already said that York would join the Science Unit as a special shipwright, but then he turned around and kicked him out. Isn't that just intercepting the super technical talent that he painstakingly recruited from Eghardt?

So Robert deliberately didn't mention York, and afterwards, it was perfectly normal for him to leave the Navy with his girlfriend. He could easily pretend that Aokiji and the others had tacitly approved of it.

Now the CP department has also set its sights on York. Without a doubt, their aim is to uncover Vegapunk's secrets through the Punk Records.

Vegapunk had already reported to the World Government that he had created six clones of himself who could share knowledge, experience, and even memories of thoughts.

Without Robert's involvement, Vegapunk would have taken all his clones to the Holy Land of Mary Geoise to report to Satan, the God of Scientific Defense.

At that time, York will witness the extravagant lifestyle of the Celestial Dragons, which will ignite his desire to become one himself, leading him to choose to cooperate with the World Government and betray Vegapunk.

York hasn't been corrupted yet, but he's still being watched by the CP department. Robert even suspects that York's corruption in the original storyline might also be a conspiracy meticulously planned by this group.

"What do you mean by handing him over to you? Where are you taking York?"

Robert's tone was undisguised, and Alpha immediately sensed his resistance.

"Hmph, don't be ungrateful. Wait, are you still moved by Aokiji's appreciation for you?"

She covered her mouth and laughed non-stop: "Looks like you haven't found anything. Those naval officers are on guard against you. They've long realized that you have an ambiguous relationship with us."

Robert's expression was mocking: "Them? You guys? I've known for a while that something was off about you. A naval inspector can even investigate the Fleet Admiral? Who exactly are you!"

Alpha paused for a moment with a smile: "Oops, I let it slip. But it's okay, you'll find out sooner or later that I belong to the World Government's intelligence agency, and the Navy is naturally within our surveillance scope."

"The identity I arranged for you back then was so perfect that the Navy would suspect us with just one glance. That's why they never trusted you from beginning to end."

"Their biggest fear is that after you're promoted to a high position, you'll take the Navy's secrets and defect directly to us."

"If you don't believe me, think about it carefully. Why is it that in this global conscription, even a general can be selected directly from the civilian population who has no merits, while you, a regular soldier who has made numerous outstanding contributions, are only a regular lieutenant colonel? Oh, by the way, now you're about to lose your lieutenant colonel rank."

After Robert understood Alpha's explanation, he realized many things.

He said that the Navy's attitude towards him was so strange. Although he was indeed not clean, it was not enough to make so many people, such as Chief of Staff Tsuru, former Fleet Admiral Sengoku, and Navy Admirals, suspicious.

He presented himself as a young man with combat capabilities only at the level of a colonel. If he really thought there was something wrong, he could just be arrested and interrogated. Why did he need these most prestigious officials in the world to take turns testing him personally?

Now it's finally clear: all that fuss was because they never suspected he was a pirate. All his efforts to separate Robert De Niro from Robert D. Nelo were in vain.