The air in the command center seemed to solidify. Colonel Nezumi slumped in his chair, beads of sweat dripping down his face.
His hands were clenched into fists, but he dared not meet the eyes of the man in front of him.
Kai stood there, his aura sharp and pressing, making every officer present gasp for breath.
No one in the entire command center dared to make a sound.
"Hand over all the profits you gained from colluding with pirates and amassing wealth!" Kai's voice was icy, devoid of any emotion.
Colonel Nezumi's lips trembled. He wanted to resist, but his body's instinct was already out of his control.
He slowly pulled out a key, his bony hands shaking slightly in the air.
The key was golden and heavy, with a rat pattern carved into its handle.
"Did you think you could hide it?" Kai raised his head slightly, his gaze like a knife. "Is your life more important, or your money?"
Colonel Nezumi's Adam's apple bobbed. He seemed to want to speak, but faced with Kai's substantial aura, he couldn't say anything.
Finally, he let out a dejected sigh, got up, walked to the wall at the back of the command center, inserted the key, and pressed an inconspicuous button.
"Click."
The wall slowly opened, revealing a secret door.
Behind the door was a glittering secret room, piled high with boxes of all sizes. Their lids were half-open, revealing them to be full of Berries and gold.
Golden light spilled out from the boxes, illuminating the entire secret room with a dazzling glow.
Nami's eyes immediately lit up, like two brilliant stars.
"Oh my god..." Nami almost shrieked. She rushed to the entrance of the secret room in two steps, staring at the wealth. "This is at least 300 million Berries!"
"Not bad." Kai sneered. "Nezumi, you have quite a lot of money."
Colonel Nezumi lowered his head, his fingers intertwined.
He wanted to explain, but Kai gave him no chance.
"All this money, you've been extorting it from the citizens and pirates all these years, haven't you?"
Colonel Nezumi had nothing to say. His face was ashen, and his hands and feet were cold.
He knew he had reached the end of the line.
"Pen and paper, bring them here." Kai turned to an officer nearby, his tone calm but full of unquestionable authority.
The officer nodded subconsciously, trembling as he retrieved a pen, ink, and paper from the table and placed them in front of Colonel Nezumi.
"Write down all your crimes, from the very first day until now, not missing a single one."
Kai looked down at him. "Don't try to play any tricks, or I'll make sure you don't even get a chance to write."
Colonel Nezumi's body shook at his words. He picked up the pen with trembling hands.
His hand moved stiffly on the paper, the words etched by the pen tip messy and scrawled.
At first, he only wrote some innocuous content.
Kai didn't speak. He simply extended a finger, flicked it lightly, and an invisible wave of energy swept past.
Colonel Nezumi's arm jolted, and the pen in his hand fell onto the table.
In an instant, cold sweat broke out on him again.
"Write the truth." Kai's voice was deep and cold. "Don't waste my patience."
Colonel Nezumi nodded stiffly, picked up the pen again, and this time, he dared not conceal anything.
He wrote down the details of his collusion with the Arlong Pirates and how he amassed wealth.
How he exploited the public under the guise of the Marines, and how he secretly condoned pirates.
He even listed his transaction records with several other pirates.
With each line he wrote, his heart sank a little deeper.
He knew that these words would become evidence that would forever seal his fate.
"Enough." Kai spoke coldly. "Zoro, do it."
Zoro stood up, holding Wado Ichimonji in his hand, its blade glinting with a chilling light.
The moment Colonel Nezumi saw the blade, his face turned ashen. He shook his head frantically, muttering:
"No... don't kill me... I can work for you... I..."
Before he could finish, a flash of the blade, and Colonel Nezumi's head flew off, blood gushing out and staining the command center floor.
The remaining officers all trembled, not daring to even breathe loudly.
Kai walked to the table, picked up Colonel Nezumi's confession of guilt, and coldly scanned the crowd.
"I'll leave these here." Kai's voice was like the cold wind of winter.
"Send his confession to Marine Headquarters. And these pirate heads, consider them your compensation.
Behave yourselves from now on. If you dare to collude with pirates again, this will be your fate."
He motioned for everyone to pack the boxes full of Berries one by one and casually tossed them in front of Zoro and Sanji.
"Take them away."
Kai and his group left with the wealth, leaving behind a group of ashen-faced officers in the command center.
They looked at each other, no one daring to speak, only cold sweat running down their cheeks.
Inside the command center, all the officers were in a state of chaos. The smell of blood still permeated the air.
Colonel Nezumi's head lay on the floor, and the confession of guilt was spread open on the table.
Those lines of crooked handwriting were like cold judgment, making everyone's hearts pound in their throats.
"Contact Headquarters!" An officer finally mustered the courage to shout, his voice trembling but full of urgency.
In a corner of the command center, the Marine responsible for communications tremblingly picked up the Den Den Mushi.
The Den Den Mushi's eyes slowly opened, showing signs of groggy fatigue, but as the other party's voice connected, the atmosphere immediately became tense.
"This is East Blue Branch 16, requesting an urgent report—" The officer's voice trembled uncontrollably. "A major incident has occurred. Please immediately transfer to a superior commanding officer."
The Den Den Mushi's expression immediately changed, becoming serious and stern.
The other party's voice was deep and cold: "This is Headquarters. East Blue Branch 16, report the details of the incident."
The officer took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, but his speech was still rapid, as if afraid of being swallowed by the next second's fear:
"Our branch... encountered a powerful group of pirates! Their pirate flag is a straw-hatted skull.
The leader is a man of unknown identity, possessing Conqueror's Haki!
Yes, that's right, it's Conqueror's Haki! He knocked out all the soldiers in the entire branch without a sound! We had no power to resist at all!"
There was a moment of silence from the other end. The Den Den Mushi's face grew even more serious.
The officer swallowed and continued:
"This group broke into the command center... forcibly demanded Colonel Nezumi hand over the wealth in the secret room... The Colonel... has been executed by them."
"They left behind the Colonel's confession of colluding with pirates and the heads of East Blue's great pirates, Arlong and Krieg..."
The voice on the other end of the Den Den Mushi was chilling: "Conqueror's Haki... Very good, this information is very important.
The confession and those pirate heads must be sent to Headquarters immediately.
Furthermore, any intelligence regarding this pirate group in the East Blue, collect it and report it immediately."
The officer nodded repeatedly: "Yes! We will arrange it immediately!"
The other party added coldly: "The failures of East Blue Branch 16 cannot be overlooked.
Nezumi's collusion crimes will be handled by Headquarters, but you must also provide a detailed report on the branch's defense negligence.
Remember, there must be no concealment."
"Understood! We will cooperate fully!" The officer quickly agreed, and after hanging up the Den Den Mushi, he slumped into his chair.
The command center was silent. All the officers' faces were etched with exhaustion and terror.
They knew that this phone call was just the beginning.
Especially the phrase "Conqueror's Haki," which was destined to cause a huge stir at Marine Headquarters.
And they, at the center of the storm, could only await Headquarters' judgment.
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