The natural system started off strong, but the navy finally reached its peak!

"Daily training time is maintained at 8 hours, and the soldiers' physical fitness pass rate is 100%."

"Training for 8 hours every day?!"

"What? You think it's too short too? But I have to follow the soldiers' training manual..."

"It's alright, you can continue!"

“Hmm,” Sakazuki continued, his tone growing increasingly serious.

"Moreover, our average time for pirate eradication missions is only 3.2 days, which is 47% shorter than the time limit set by headquarters."

"Damn, are the soldiers in G-3 really that miserable?"

A bead of cold sweat trickled down Gren's forehead: "Uh, pretty, pretty impressive..."

When Sakazuki saw that Gren agreed with him, his tone became even more relaxed.

"In addition, our logistics supply turnover rate is as high as 80%, which means we are practically in a state of combat at all times!"

Furthermore, here you can completely unleash your desire to behead pirates.

Aside from those tasks requiring survival, I can completely turn a blind eye to the rest.

"Even if an entire pirate crew's heads were chopped off, I agree..."

"Wait!" Gern quickly raised his hand to interrupt, "Colonel Sakazuki, I'm just here to transfer prisoners, there's no need for such details..."

Sakazuki frowned, seemingly displeased with his interruption: "Efficiency is the foundation of justice."

If you intend to stay at G-3, you must have access to this data.

Gern chuckled dryly twice: "Ha, ha... I'll consider it."

“I know you’re considering Professor Zephyr’s attitude.” Sakazuki stared at him for two seconds, then suddenly pulled a thick booklet from his pocket.

"This is my combat report and efficiency analysis from nearly three years of stationing at G-3 base. You can preview it first."

Gern: "..."

No, don't love me! It's pointless!!

……

Several days later, in the New World Sea, dark clouds gathered and the sea breeze whipped up layers of waves.

The Golden Lion's flagship, the "Flying Lion," lay quietly at rest on the sea, surrounded by five or six auxiliary pirate ships.

On deck, the crew members were terrified and dared not even breathe.

At the height of his power, Shiki the Golden Lion sat on the throne at the bow of the ship, his long golden hair dancing wildly in the wind, a cigar dangling from his lips, his face grim.

By this time, the sake cup in his hand had already been crushed, the shards deeply embedded in his palm, blood dripping from between his fingers, yet he was completely unaware.

"That bastard Newgate..." Shiki cursed under his breath, recalling his brief encounter with Whitebeard not long ago.

Despite their Flying Pirates having an absolute advantage in numbers and strength.

But even Shiki had to temporarily retreat when faced with Whitebeard at his peak and his devastating Tremor-Tremor Fruit power.

What angered him even more was that the Whitebeard Pirates, despite being just a group of rookies, managed to force his entire fleet to retreat.

Especially Whitebeard's line: "Shiki, I don't want to sink you into the sea here."

This sentence is tantamount to putting Shiki's face on the ground and stepping on it!

"Damn it! Aaaaah!" Golden Lion roared, throwing the already crushed sake cup away.

"Admiral..." an officer began cautiously, but was silenced by a single glance from the Golden Lion.

Then, footsteps were heard from behind the deck.

David, the "Death Knell," rushed back and walked towards them with his head down, the shadow of his top hat obscuring his sinister face.

As soon as he reached the Golden Lion, he knelt on one knee and said in a hoarse voice, "Admiral, I'm sorry I'm late."

Looking at this guy, the Golden Lion stared at him coldly, exhaled a puff of smoke, and said in a chilling tone: "David, you're late."

David didn't argue, but simply said in a deep voice, "I'm in trouble."

"Oh?" Golden Lion narrowed his eyes. "What trouble could possibly keep you, the captain of the Third Division, occupied for so long?"

David looked up, a hint of seriousness flashing in his eyes: "That newcomer who defected to us, 'Rift Island' Dog... has been captured by the Navy."

"What?!" Shiki's rage erupted instantly, and his Conqueror's Haki surged out uncontrollably.

The wooden planks on the deck cracked inch by inch, and several weaker pirates immediately fainted.

"Useless!" Golden Lion kicked over the table in front of him, sending shards flying everywhere.

"What use are you if you can't even keep a newcomer?!"

I had just been defeated by that guy Newgate when one of the guys who was planning to defect to me was arrested by the Navy right in front of my officers.

What do you take my Flying Pirates for?! You bastard.

Faced with this situation, David gritted his teeth, withstood the pressure from the Golden Lion, and whispered, "Admiral, the navy that captured Dog... is not simple."

"Heh." Golden Lion snorted coldly: "How strong can a mere navy be?"

Seeing that the Golden Lion's aura had subsided slightly, David took a deep breath and slowly said, "His abilities... are the same as Whitebeard's."

The air solidified instantly.

The golden lion's pupils suddenly contracted, and the anger on his face was gradually replaced by a dangerous calm.

He then slowly stood up, walked to David, placed one foot on his shoulder, and looked down at him condescendingly.

"You, say it again."

David looked up, his gaze resolute: "That navy's ability can cause tremors, even shatter space itself."

Although their methods differ slightly from Whitebeard's, they are fundamentally very similar.

“Just like Newgate…” The Golden Lion lifted his foot, paused for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter, a laugh tinged with a chilling coldness.

"Interesting, very interesting! The Navy actually had someone like this hidden away?"

Immediately afterward, Golden Lion's smile vanished, his eyes flashing with murderous intent: "Tell me, what's that Marine's name?"

“Gern…Gern Reginald Sigma!” David answered honestly, and then recounted the information he had already gathered upon his return.

After all, the news about Gern was meant to deflect blame for his own negligence.

"He is a captain in the Navy Headquarters. Just a few days ago, he was the adjutant of 'Black Arm' Zephyr. I heard he is Zephyr's personal disciple."

“Zepha’s disciple?” Golden Lion sneered. “No wonder he dares to be so arrogant.”

"And...and..."

"Hmm? What else?"

"This guy fought Whitebeard in the West Blue three years ago!"

Chapter 44 Attack!

"You've fought Newgate?" The Golden Lion's voice suddenly deepened, his expression momentarily stunned, clearly not having reacted yet.

After all, one was a small-time naval officer he had never even heard of, and the other was Whitebeard, who was much stronger than him.

Honestly, there's no way to connect the two in the Golden Lion.

“Yes, three years ago in the West Blue.” David swallowed and continued, “It is said that… he also blocked Whitebeard’s attack head-on.”

The air solidified instantly.

The golden lion's fingers slowly tightened, and the wooden armrest shattered silently beneath his palm.

At the same time, a ferocious smile curled at the corner of his mouth, and his voice was hoarse: "Oh? Block Newgate head-on?"

David broke out in a cold sweat, but he still forced himself to add, "His abilities are similar to Whitebeard's; both can cause shockwaves, only the way they manifest is different."

"and......"

"And what?" The Golden Lion's voice was as cold as ice.

"It seems that Whitebeard remembered his name after that encounter."

They even went so far as to call it an "airquake."

"—Ha!!" The Golden Lion suddenly burst into wild laughter, his Conqueror's Haki exploding outwards.

The entire ship trembled violently, and the pirates on deck all knelt down, their faces pale.

"Interesting! Very interesting!" Golden Lion's laughter stopped abruptly. "You mean, the Navy is hiding a little whitebeard?"

Not just Zephyr's disciple? He's even crossed paths with that bastard Newgate?!

With that, he stomped on the deck, shattering it, his long golden hair whipping wildly like a lion's mane: "So, the Navy thinks... a fake can scare me?!"

David lowered his head, not daring to reply.

"Hehe." The golden lion turned and walked to the bow of the ship, his long golden hair dancing wildly in the wind, like a lion's mane.

"I can't touch Newgate for now, but a fake..."

He grinned, revealing gleaming white teeth: "I'm going to chop him up myself and feed him to the sea kings!"

"Admiral, what's next...?" an officer asked tentatively.

Golden Lion didn't turn around, but coldly asked, "Where did that brat's warship go?"

“G-3 base,” David replied, “where Sakaski is stationed.”

Upon hearing the name, the Golden Lion's lips curled into a ferocious smile: "That magma brat?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly raised his hand, and the seawater in the entire area churned violently under his control. Several pirate ships slowly rose into the air and hovered above the clouds.

"Pass down the order!" The Golden Lion's voice echoed through the sky, "All troops, turn around! Target: Naval Base G-3!"

David was startled: "Admiral, you're going to take action personally? That's the Navy's G-3 base."

Golden Lion grinned maliciously: "Since the Navy dared to capture my people, and even harbors a Devil Fruit user like Whitebeard..."

"Then I'll show them the price of messing with me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Golden Lion drew his twin swords, "Sakura-ju" and "Kumo-ki," from his waist. The blades gleamed with a cold, sharp light in the sunlight.

"Moreover, whether it's air tremors or lava, they... are not enough to stop my Golden Lion!!"

........

Three days later, in Sakazuki's office at Naval Base G-3, sunlight streamed through the blinds, casting sharp stripes on the floor.

Gern was originally there to transfer prisoners, but headquarters intends to keep Dog here temporarily, with headquarters later sending someone to escort him to Impel Down, the underwater prison.

And Gern's warships will return to Marineford together with the escort warships.

That's the gist of it, but is it really okay to be here alone facing Sakazuki, who is completely different from what I imagined and has a very enthusiastic attitude?!

"So you mean, the annual operational report for G-3 base needs to have three more data modules added?" Gern rested his chin on one hand, his fingertips tapping impatiently on the table.

The "Five-Year Development Plan for Base G-3" spread out on the table has been turned to Chapter 73.

Sakazuki sat behind his desk, the shadow of his military cap obscuring the upper half of his face, only his tightly pursed lips revealing his good mood.

He even felt that Gern would soon be staying at the G-3 base.

“Gern, it’s not just the data module. The standardized processes of the logistics support system also need to be…”

Just as Sakazuki continued to tell Gern how great his G-3 base was...

Suddenly, Gern's pupils, which had been bored, contracted sharply.

His Observation Haki detected the anomaly in a fraction of a second.

The vibrations, coming from high above the base, were the sound of some enormous object tearing through the air.

That wasn't the sound of wind, nor was it a thunderstorm, but rather...

“Sakazuki!” Gern jumped to his feet, the chair scraping against the floor with a screeching sound.

"What?" Sakazuki, whose Observation Haki was not as strong as Gern's, frowned and looked up, only to see Gern's figure already turn into a blur and rush out the window.

"Boom!" The glass shattered into diamond-like crystals under Gern's impact.

Immediately afterwards, he stepped on the window frame and shot towards the highest watchtower of G-3 base like an arrow.