South Blue, Melon Island, base of the 194th Marine Base.
The lieutenant ignored the salutes from the marines on the way, hurriedly pushed open the door without knocking, and shouted to Captain Harros who was sitting behind the desk and just raised his head.
"Base Commander, Rear Admiral Dragon sent an order requiring us to arrive at the waters of Thutmose Kingdom within two hours to cooperate with the arrest operation!"
"Huh? Didn't you say that the two 'cats' have been caught?"
The lieutenant's words were a bit hasty. Captain Harros was a little confused because he didn't react at first, but he immediately realized the crux of the problem.
"The sea area of Thutmose Kingdom!"
He suddenly stood up from the sofa, put his hands on the desk, and asked in shock: "Why are they going there? And they just said it was an arrest operation. Who are they arresting?"
The captain actually had a vague suspicion in his mind, and an unknown feeling came to his heart.
"The order is to capture the 'Slaver King' of the underworld, the King Taklama, and conduct a thorough investigation of the entire Kingdom of Thutmose, arrest all armed personnel, and if there is resistance, they are allowed to be killed on the act!" The captain's face looked very serious. He was pale, with a little cold sweat on his forehead.
Captain Harros' expression kept changing, but eventually it turned into a sigh, and he said: "Has something happened? I seem to have very bad luck, don't I?"
Previous Base Commanders managed to earn enough money to promote or retire without problems. Why was everything exploding here with him? If that wasn't bad luck, what was?
"I didn't expect... I really didn't expect that the Navy Headquarters fleet wouldn't come for the 'cats', Rear Admiral Dragon always targeted the Kingdom of Thutmose from the beginning. They fooled us all, I guess it will be something similar with King Taklama."
The lieutenant asked in panic: "Captain, let's do it now. Should we notify King Taklama immediately to prepare?"
"No!"
Captain Harros had a quick understanding of the situation. Although his physical aptitude is not high, his brain is still good, and he can think about various details quickly.
"The Navy Headquarters is obviously well prepared this time. Rear Admiral Dragon's previous 'smoke bomb' also shows that he is suspicious and wary of us in the Marine Branches of South Blue. They may be listening to our calls right now. We can't give them a chance to intercept us!"
"The most important thing is that our 194th Branch is closest to the waters of the Kingdom of Thutmose and will probably be regarded as a key focus. At this time, we must not mess up, let alone have any contact with that place, and King Taklama is finished. It's completely over, what's the point of informing him?"
But the lieutenant was a little confused and asked: "Completely finished? From what I know, this 'Slaver King' has had a lot of power and influence for decades in the dark world. Although the fleet of the Navy Headquarters is strong, they have only sent two Rear Admirals this time."
"Humph, I said he is completely finished because his identity has been completely exposed, and the Navy Headquarters is obviously going to ruthlessly deal with him. Compared to the world's strongest military organization, what is a slave king?" Captain Harros looked at the lieutenant with disdain.
"The big figures in the dark world are certainly scary if they are in the dark, but once they are exposed to the sun, they will be meat on the chopping board!"
"Even if Taklama has the ability to defeat Rear Admiral Dragon's fleet, what if the Navy Headquarters sends a stronger and larger combat force in the future? What if Vice Admiral Garp arrives?"
Finishing, Captain Haros looked meaningfully at the Lieutenant: "Between King Taklama and the Navy, which side do you think we should be on? I don't think it will be difficult to choose."
"And I'm sure that even if we weren't there, some fool would call and warn the Kingdom of Thutmose. Maybe it's happening right now, and those people will be our scapegoats!"
The lieutenant, after hearing the explanation, calmed down and asked one last question: "If we are under suspicion, we are likely to face consequences. What will we do, Commander?"
"There is a high possibility of being held accountable, but the crime does not lead to death. We have only been here a few years. If we really want to be held accountable, the previous base commanders must be investigated one by one. On the other hand, if we try to help King Taklama at this point, it will be like being his accomplices!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Captain Harros straightened his suit and coat of justice, then picked up the Den Den Mushi and gave the order seriously: "Transmit the order, the entire fleet must prepare immediately and arrive at the sea area of the Thutmose Kingdom within the stipulated time!"
Then he quickly passed the lieutenant and walked out of the office. When the latter saw this, he quickly followed behind him.
"Base Commander, how many troops will we send to each ship this time?"
The warships of the Marine Branches can usually carry 300 people, and when fully loaded, it can carry 500 people. The specific number of people depends on the situation. The remaining navy is responsible for staying at the base.
"Fully loaded!"
"At full capacity." Captain Harros responded without hesitation. If they were going to continue in the Navy line, they needed to show their maximum commitment. It was the best way to save the situation at this time.
"Understood." The Lieutenant agreed.
Ten minutes later, the eight warships of the 194th Branch, which had been well prepared, quickly sailed out of Melon Island and headed towards the Kingdom of Thutmose, fully armed.
At the same time, the navy headquarters fleet led by Dragon was less than three hours away from the Kingdom of Thutmose.
Rear Admiral Irwin walked out of the cabin and came to the deck.
"Rear Admiral Dragon, you guessed it right. The people from CP2 just sent information. After receiving our order, the 242nd Branch and the 289th Branch immediately notified the Kingdom of Thutmose, but strangely there was no movement from the 194th Branch, which was the closest. Instead, all the warships were sent with full force."
At first, after hearing the previous part, Dragon did not change at all and was still looking at the sea in the distance silently. But after hearing the latter part, he subconsciously raised his eyebrows and turned to look at the other party.
"I remember the base commander of the 194th Branch was Captain Harros, right?"
"That's right."
"It seems that Captain Harros is very smart."
Dragon's mood was a little complicated at this time. He originally wanted to report it to the Navy Headquarters and clean up all the corrupt navy who were colluding with the "Slaver King".
But now Harros's performance is a bit difficult to manage, because he is in sharp contrast with the other two base commanders.
In this way, I believe that the senior officials of Marineford will not embarrass the other party too much when they find out. At most, most of the bribed property will be confiscated, the military rank will be demoted, and they will be transferred from their posts. Instead, the two base commanders will need to go to the Enies Lobby.
"It's time to meet Captain Harros."
Immediately afterwards, Dragon looked at Rear Admiral Irwin and asked: "How are the pirates doing?"
"The injuries of those who survived are not serious. The ship's doctors have already taken care of them. However, the two 'cat' Captains are still unconscious. Their injuries are the most serious. But the doctors say that they are unlikely to die, after all, they are Zoan-type devil fruit users, their resistance is higher than that of ordinary people."
After speaking, Rear Admiral Irwin asked curiously: "Are you implying that we won't take them to Impel Down?"
"Yes, I want to take them to Marineford and lock them in our prison." Dragon responded without reservation.
"Seeing as how these pirates haven't attacked civilians, I don't consider them extremely evil. I don't think they need to be sent to that hellhole of Impel Down. I'm considering recruiting them into the Navy."
"So, it's like this. Two Zoan-type ability users are indeed of great value. Once trained, they will be good combat power." Irwin nodded and was not too shocked.
The Navy often recruited captured pirates if they were useful and were not high-level criminals according to the World Government. Although, if a problem arose later, the navy officers could be held responsible.
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