Furthermore...
"These Marines who experienced the war can become key officers within our ranks!"
Hearing Dante's assessment, Zephyr smiled with satisfaction and nodded. "Marines who've been through war are different from those who haven't, especially after a large-scale conflict like this."
Keep in mind, the troops deployed this time were the elite of the East Blue branch. Their strength already rivaled HQ's elite, and in terms of physical conditioning, they even surpassed them. It went without saying: in the future, this group would become the backbone of their new Marine.
Seeing the East Blue Marine flourish and grow stronger under his command brought Zephyr considerable joy. This place was still weak, lagging far behind Marine HQ, but there were no Celestial Dragons here. No so-called World Nobles oppressed them from above. They didn't have to uphold absolute rule by doing despicable chores, so he was quite content.
He just wondered how far their rebel faction could truly go.
"Handle it as you see fit, Zephyr-sensei. Arrange them however you think best. Let's drop the subject." Dante spoke casually, picking up the tea his secretary had poured him. "Did you come looking for me so early for a reason?"
"Oh, right. I almost forgot because of that red-nosed brat." Zephyr collected himself. He looked at Dante, an edge to his tone. "I came to ask how you plan to resolve the issues in the other half of the East Blue."
He sighed. "Even though we did this to draw the World Government's attention to the pirates hunting for the One Piece, it still riled up their ambitions. The pirates in that half of the waters can't escape, so their numbers keep growing. The local branches can't suppress them anymore."
He fell silent.
Hearing Zephyr's words, Dante fell into thought. A few years ago, his territory couldn't manage that area, so he had ignored it. Now, they were preparing to advance into the other half of the waters, and it truly needed a clean resolution.
The question was, how? Suppress them all? Captured them to build bridges? How long could they possibly suppress an entire sea?
Thanks to this world's unique environment, adventure was the mainstream. Bizarre islands, unique climates, undiscovered geography, and unpredictable treasures, not everyone wanted to be a bloodthirsty pirate, but those longing for adventure were endless. Perhaps Blackbeard was right, people's dreams would never end. Someone like Dante, focusing on infrastructure while keeping his eyes fixed on the World Government, would be considered an anomaly.
Dante looked up at the old instructor across from him. "Then what do you think we should do, Zephyr-sensei?"
"Me?"
Caught off guard by the ball kicked back to him, Zephyr stared blankly for a second. He frowned, fell into thought, and recalled something. He sighed in resignation. "Although I was extreme a couple of years ago, I also understand pirates can't be completely wiped out right now. How about... we release them and let Marine HQ and the World Government deal with the headaches?"
A smile crept onto Dante's face. He blinked and nodded. "I think so too."
Rather than letting it give them a headache, let HQ deal with it.
"But..." His tone shifted. "We can't release all of them. We have to be selective."
Pirates who only burn, kill, and loot wouldn't give the World Government headaches. The ones that caused real trouble were those immersed in adventure, seeking the One Piece, and unearthing history.
"We have to let them know about the bizarre islands, unique climates, mysterious races, the Emperors, and the Shichibukai out there. Make them realize how exciting the outside world is, convince them the moon over the sea is rounder elsewhere, and get them out there as soon as possible."
Dante paused, thinking of something else. "We also have to vet them and establish Pirate Industry Standards, making them follow our requirements. Otherwise, they simply won't leave."
Hearing Dante's words, Zephyr blanked out again. He immediately asked, "Would they still be pirates like this?"
"Whether they're pirates or not isn't up to us, but the World Government." Dante smiled at Zephyr, giving him a pointed look. "As long as they seek history, to the World Government, they are all pirates."
"Hehehe!"
Seeming to understand, Zephyr couldn't help but laugh, shaking his head. "You clever brat, you sure have a lot of tricky ideas. When the time comes... won't the World Government have a massive headache?"
"Who cares? It won't be us getting the headache anyway. By the time they notice, we'll probably have cleaned this place out."
"So we're doing this?"
"We're doing this." Dante nodded. "I'll still need your full cooperation, Zephyr-sensei, to aggressively suppress a batch of pirates first."
"No problem." Zephyr shook his head, smiling. "It's about time these kids saw some blood, lest they freeze up in fear when a real battle breaks out."
With that, the two looked at each other and immediately broke into knowing laughter.
Useless scum would remain in the East Blue for hard labor, useful scum would be unleashed to plague the World Government. The specifics of this strategy required careful design to maximize the rebel Marine's interests.
Of course, while the full plan remained undisclosed, Zephyr had already dispatched a squad of outstanding graduates to the other half of the East Blue to crush a faction of rowdy pirates. His goal? To terrify the criminal underworld before the official implementation.
The results were remarkably effective.
As the dominant force in the region now that Mock had departed for the Grand Line, the current generation of pirates stood no chance. Once the East Blue Marines entered the latter half and employed heavy-handed suppression tactics, the outlaws who had dared hide in that sector immediately trembled in fear.
Especially when the Quick Blade Pirates were bloodily dismantled. Boasting a bounty of 9.8 million Berries and hailed as the most qualified to inherit the title of East Blue Overlord, their defeat instantly terrified the rest. Many panicked so severely they hurriedly took down the Jolly Rogers hanging from their ships, fearing they would be targeted next.
That was a great pirate with a bounty nearing 10 million Berries. And the result? They could not even fight back. In the blink of an eye, the entire crew was captured, along with their captain, the man deemed qualified to dominate the seas and become the third Overlord.
It was imaginable. This Marine Branch 16 and that Shichibukai were truly terrifying. They were the East Blue Marine that claimed to have broken away from HQ to become an independent justice force.
Many pirates instantly panicked. At the same time, they finally understood why Mock had gathered most of the pirates yet still failed to conquer the Marines back then. The strength of this group was simply too overwhelming. They were not on the same level as the local branches at all.
So, was Marine HQ going to do nothing about it?
However, HQ genuinely had no time to deal with it right now. After the public execution failed, the entire world fell into chaos. Although the Fleet Admiral later used Buggy to strike at the rhetoric regarding Roger's son, the frenzy had already been unleashed. How could it be so easily erased?
Moreover, during that war, Marine HQ suffered heavy losses. Their control over local seas had already weakened, so where would they find the energy to deal with Dante's faction? HQ would quietly laugh to themselves as long as this group did not enter the Grand Line to search for history.
Furthermore, they were catching pirates too. Why would Marine HQ go out of its way to save criminals? They probably wished for the East Blue Marines and the local pirates to tear each other apart, decimating both sides.
Even when local branches reported the situation to HQ and condemned Branch 16 for crossing jurisdictions to enforce the law, HQ ignored them. They simply ordered them to carry on as usual and not to provoke Dante's forces for the time being.
And so, with Marine HQ and the local branches watching from the sidelines, the pirates in this half of the sea were instantly gripped by panic. Some even sought protection from the branch Marines.
However, these branch Marines, whom they paid tribute to every year and had enjoyed such pleasant cooperation with, all fell silent. They quickly severed ties with the pirates, terrified of being implicated.
Dante paid no mind to those matters. Surrounding the corrupt branches and dealing with them later would work just as well, just like the Member Nations within their jurisdiction right now.
However, just as a cherry pie lover would say... people's dreams never end.
As time passed, such high pressure instead ignited the fighting spirit and resistance of that group of pirates.
After all, they had gone to sea for their dreams, abandoning wives, children, parents, and families. How could they give up so easily? Especially the young. Their hearts burned with hot blood, convinced they were destined for greatness, that the legendary One Piece and the throne of the next Pirate King belonged to them. This was merely a minor setback. One day, they would set foot on the Grand Line.
Thus, after the Quick Blade Pirates were captured, the captain of the Scissor Pirates mimicked Mock. Carrying a bounty of 5 million Berries and touted as a candidate to inherit the title, he issued the legendary Pirate Challenge Letter to the remaining outlaws of the East Blue. His goal was to gather the survivors to discuss resisting the detestable Marines and entering the Grand Line.
For a time, many crews responded, heading to the secret island dubbed "Hope Island" by the Scissor Pirates, preparing to fight for their future.
===============
Dear Readers and Fans,
For those eager to dive into next chapters earlier before others, I invite you to join us on Patreon. By becoming our Patron, you not only gain access to exclusive advanced chapters but also help us continue this endeavour and expand it further.
pat reo n.co m /8Ashes8
(no space)
You can read upto 30 Chapters in advance.