Chapter 33: Arrival at Clockwork Island

Two days later, Marine Headquarters, Marshal's office.

A plaque hung on the wall of the room, inscribed with "Supreme Justice." A goat was leisurely lying in its pen, sleeping. Tsuru, with a head full of white hair but still looking vigorous, sat upright. On the other side, Garp was holding a bag of rice crackers, munching away without a care for his image.

Zhan Guo, wearing his seagull cap, said with a grave expression, "To actually destroy a country and a Colonel's unit—it seems the Blood Calamity is even more troublesome than we imagined. He is more dangerous than the Straw Hat kid."

Tsuru said slowly, "Compared to the other three seas, the East Blue is considered the most stable. I didn't expect two new pirates to emerge at once, both committing shocking major incidents. It seems the world is about to fall into chaos."

"Wahahaha, that fool Owen, isn't it good that he's dead?" Garp said indifferently.

"Hey Garp, don't talk nonsense. You need to be clear about your position," Zhan Guo reprimanded helplessly.

Garp, however, continued to enjoy his rice crackers with an indifferent look, as if that were the most important thing at hand.

"Speaking of which Garp, those two newcomers you brought are performing quite well, especially that pink-haired kid. I see he's quite diligent," Tsuru said.

"Ah, you mean Coby? He's just a brat with a dream, wahahaha..."

Zhan Guo rubbed his forehead and picked up a Den Den Mushi: "Hello, notify Brannew immediately to hold a meeting. Increase the Bounty for the Blood Calamity Luo Di. Notify the units stationed in every sea of the East Blue to strengthen patrols. As long as they are spotted, immediately call nearby colleagues to conduct a joint arrest."

Another two days passed.

"Sister Lu Xi Ya, try this juice. That guy A Nuo just mixed it." On the deck, Ka Li Na handed a glass of juice to Lu Xi Ya.

Lu Xi Ya smiled and took it: "Thank you, Ka Li Na."

Currently, they were the only two women on the ship, and their personalities were very compatible, so they naturally hit it off. Aside from being busy with her own affairs, Ka Li Na spent almost all her other time with Lu Xi Ya.

Lu Xi Ya stood up and stretched, her white short skirt swaying like flowing gauze. She looked at the crew members training on the deck and smiled: "We should also work hard to train, otherwise there might be danger during a battle."

"It's fine, we have Luo Di, that guy, anyway," Ka Li Na said playfully.

Lu Xi Ya said, "Luo Di is very powerful, but we are currently only in the East Blue. As a navigator, you should know very well how vast the sea is. There are too many unknown things. We must at least ensure we don't hold him back."

Ka Li Na suddenly realized. In the past, under Luo Di's protection, even after experiencing several wars, she had never suffered serious injuries. Honey Queen, who had harmed her, had also died at Luo Di's hands. She had gradually become accustomed to this, but Lu Xi Ya's words enlightened her. They had already experienced several incidents in the East Blue; who knew what they would encounter if they went to the Grand Line.

"Alright, then let's train too. Let's see if we can learn the Six Powers that Luo Di taught," Ka Li Na said.

"Hmm, you're really motivated, just like at night," Lu Xi Ya suddenly said slyly.

Ka Li Na didn't understand at first, but once she reacted, her cheeks immediately flushed red. She lightly punched Lu Xi Ya's arm: "Oh my, Sister Lu Xi Ya, you're really too much."

"Hehehe..." Lu Xi Ya chuckled: "It's mainly because you two make such a big commotion; I can hear it even when I cover my ears."

At this moment, a News Coo flew over the warship.

Bang!

"Iron Body!"

Xiao En stepped forward and punched hard at the abdomen of Pa Lu, who was squatting in a horse stance in front of him. The moment his fist neared the stomach, a muffled sound exploded. Pa Lu's eyes widened instantly, as if his eyeballs were about to pop out, and he knelt to the ground with a constipated look on his face.

"Aiya, you guy are no good. Even I, A Nuo, can withstand this punch," A Nuo said from the side, humming.

"Ah, Chief Xiao En, I'm most afraid of pain!" Pa Lu wailed while clutching his stomach.

Xiao En bent down to help him up and said, "Pa Lu, you cannot rely only on the ability of your shield. Your physical body must be strong enough to wield an even harder shield. Captain Luo Di insists on training every day; we cannot be slack."

Luo Di had let Xiao En manage the crew entirely, so Xiao En divided them into two squads, with A Nuo as the first squad leader and Pa Lu as the second, making management more convenient.

Boom!

A water spout suddenly surged from the sea, circled the warship once, and landed on the other side. Gai Ou leaped onto the deck, where Luo Di was shirtless, doing one-handed push-ups while in a handstand.

"Not bad, Gai Ou, you're getting stronger," Luo Di praised.

"It's not enough. This still isn't enough to completely kill that guy Arlong," Gai Ou shook his head, still not very satisfied with himself.

Luo Di said, "Speaking of which, I still don't know your background, nor your grudge with Arlong. Tell me about it."

Gai Ou nodded and said slowly, "My father was originally a member of the Tai Yang Hai Ze Tuan. Ever since I could remember, he followed Senior Fisher Tiger, galloping across the sea. Later, at my mother's pleading, he brought me and my mother onto the ship as well."

"My Fish-Man Karate was learned at that time. Later, after Senior Tiger was harmed by humans and the Tai Yang Hai Ze Tuan split up, my father, because of Senior Tiger, also hated humans, so he took me and my mother and left with Arlong."

"Until one day, my father died in a battle against humans, leaving me and my mother behind. Arlong avenged him, but he wanted my mother to remarry him and make me his son."

"My mother refused, which angered Arlong, and he drove us out. My mother always lived with me until one day we encountered a group of humans. She was never good at fighting, but for my sake... for my sake, she fought desperately with them for a long time."

"In the end, I lost consciousness. When I woke up again, I was already in a patch of grass. I don't know where my mother went. I've been looking, but I can't find anything, and I don't know what happened during the time I was unconscious."

Speaking to this point, Gai Ou's eyes were full of helplessness.

"Later, I ran to Arlong Park, wanting them to help, but Arlong not only didn't help me, he even humiliated my mother." Gai Ou's resentful emotions surged again, as if he wanted to tear everything apart.

Luo Di realized: "So that's how it is. No wonder you hate Arlong so much. Rest assured, he isn't dead yet; he was just captured by the Marines and put in prison. If there's a chance, I will let you finish him off yourself."

"Besides, your mother is only missing, not necessarily dead. You still have a chance to reunite. As long as your name resounds across the sea, your mother might hear news of you."

Hearing Luo Di's words, a sharp glint burst forth in Gai Ou's eyes. He felt a bit more respect for him and told himself he must work harder and must find his mother.

"Luo Di!" At this moment, Ka Li Na ran over in a hurry.

"What's wrong?" Luo Di asked.

Ka Li Na handed him the Bounty.

The photo on the Bounty hadn't changed, but the bounty had increased to 60 million Berries.

"Yahahaha... how interesting. It seems I am now the pirate with the highest bounty in the East Blue," Luo Di laughed wantonly.

"I really can't do anything with you." Ka Li Na looked helplessly at Lu Xi Ya, who was walking over slowly.

Lu Xi Ya's eyes were filled with smiles: "This is our captain."

"How much longer until we reach Clockwork Island?" Luo Di asked.

"Soon, we'll arrive tomorrow morning," Ka Li Na replied.