As Gion relayed Orion orders, the major navy bases in the East Blue quickly responded.
Morgan too, was not idle. Having been personally bandaged by the marshal, he was filled with energy and had no desire to stay in Cocoyasi Village any longer.
He immediately led the soldiers of the 153rd Branch to set sail and return to their jurisdiction, being the first to execute the marshal order by conducting a thorough search of their assigned waters.
Smoker, the highest-ranking officer in Loguetown, was no exception. Always more committed to capturing pirates than engaging in power struggles, he followed the marshal order.
While issuing the pirate hunt order, he personally led his warship out of Cocoyasi Village.
Soon, the major navy branches in the East Blue also issued their own pirate hunt orders. One after another, branch warships sailed out of their respective ports, heading out to sea in a grand display.
.....
Cocoyasi Village.
After receiving a portion of the money they had once paid to Arlong and his crew for their lives, the villagers left Arlong Park one by one.
Having heard Marshal Orion words of "standing with them," they walked with their heads held high, their steps filled with confidence.
Especially Genzo, whose emotions were in turmoil. Not only had he recovered some of the treasures stolen by Arlong and his crew, but what truly left him unable to calm down was the fact that Bellemere had been posthumously honored as a navy hero.
The home Bellemere had left for Nami and Nojiko was now labeled as the home of a navy hero. This meant that from now on, as long as Nami and Nojiko did not act against justice, they would be under the protection of the navy for the rest of their lives.
Leaving Arlong Park with Nami and Nojiko, Genzo did not return home. Instead, he went straight to Bellemere grave.
"Bellemere!"
As soon as he arrived at the grave, Genzo couldn't contain his excitement. He fell to his knees with a thud in front of the tombstone, tears and snot streaming down his face as he spoke.
"I have good news for you! Arlong and his gang have been wiped out!"
"All of this is because... the Navy you once served has produced an incredible Fleet Admiral!"
"Not only did he personally come to the East Blue to eliminate Arlong and his gang, but he also ordered you to be posthumously honored as a Navy hero. From now on, Nami and Nojiko will receive special care from the Navy!"
At this point, Gen looked up at the grave before him and the image of Bellemere carved on the tombstone, speaking softly.
"You... can rest in peace now!"
...
Orion didn't leave Arlong Park.
After the villagers of Cocoyasi Village departed, he turned and walked straight to the open-air pool connected to the sea, gazing at the endless expanse of the ocean.
"Boom—"
Suddenly, the sea surface ahead rose rapidly. Immediately after, a massive sea cow emerged from the depths.
Before Orion could react, Gion and Ain, who had been quietly following behind him, almost simultaneously gripped the hilts of their swords. They both flashed in front of Orion, staring warily at the scene ahead as if facing a formidable enemy.
At the same time, a head popped up beside the giant sea cow.
"Jinbei?"
Seeing that it was Jinbei who emerged from the sea, Gion and Ain spoke almost in unison.
Jinbei didn't say a word. Instead, he slapped the sea surface with his hand, and with a burst of immense power, a curtain of water shot up, arcing through the sky like a sea dragon before crashing into the pool behind Orion.
As the water dragon fell into the pool, seven or eight soldiers who had been sent by Morgan to search for the sea cow underwater began coughing violently.
They quickly swam out of the pool, drenched and disheveled, raising their hands toward Orion and shouting.
"Fleet Admiral!"
"You are—"
Looking at the soaked soldiers, Orion blinked in confusion.
"Soldiers from Branch 153?"
"Yes, Fleet Admiral!"
The leading officer bowed his head in shame. "We were ordered by Captain Morgan to search for remnants of the Arlong Pirates underwater, but we nearly got killed. Thankfully, that fish-man arrived in time, or else we—"
Orion was stunned again. "Remnants of the Arlong Pirates?"
"Yes, that sea cow!" The officer's eyes lit up as he pointed at the sea cow floating on the surface.
"Captain Morgan said that the Arlong Pirates caused the Fleet Admiral to lose a beloved subordinate. Not only that sea cow, but even the earthworms in this park must be dug up and crushed!"
Hearing this, Gion, Ain, and the other officers standing beside Orion all twitched their face.
Many of them had heard of Morgan, the captain of Branch 153. In his youth, he had been a passionate and driven young man, but due to corruption within the Navy, he had never been able to rise through the ranks.
It wasn't until he met Orion that he was promoted to captain of Branch 153 during the coup. Under such circumstances, not just Morgan, but any one of them would have offered their unwavering loyalty to Orion.
However, Captain Morgan loyalty was somewhat amusing.
In one word, it was absolutely perfect!
"So that's how it is!"
Looking at the serious expression of the officer, Orion couldn't help but chuckle.
"In that case, I'll reward you with that sea cow. Take it back to the 153rd branch and have a grand feast! But you'll have to figure out how to transport it back yourselves, since your captain has already set sail to capture pirates!"
"What?!" The group of marines widened their eyes in unison.
"Go ahead~"
Orion didn't waste any more words and said decisively.
"When you return to the base, have Morgan record this as a merit for you. Just say it was my order!"
"Yes, sir!"
Hearing that capturing the sea cow would also count as a merit, the marines were overjoyed.
They saluted in unison and shouted.
"Loyalty!"
After watching the marines struggle with all their might to drag the sea cow toward Cocoyasi Village to seek help from the villagers for transportation, Orion immediately turned his gaze to Jinbei who had already come ashore and stood before him.
Frowning slightly, he asked. "Didn't you go to find Stock?"
"We found him!"
Jinbei didn't dare to look up and bowed slightly.
"However, we only found Captain Stock, his adjutant, and two soldiers, along with... the wreckage of the warship!"
Before Orion could respond, Jinbei quickly added.
"Please give me a few more days, Marshal. As long as the other soldiers are still at the bottom of the sea, I will definitely retrieve all of them!"
"Don't make promises lightly!"
Orion waved his hand.
"Finding Stock is already a great help to me. I'll give you three more days. If you can find more of the fallen soldiers, that's good. If not, I won't blame you."
With that, Orion gestured for Jinbei to leave, then took a step forward and looked out at the sea.
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