At that moment, while Crocodile was still thinking, a white wave appeared in the distance - marine patrols rushing to help.
Crocodile froze for a moment, and then an irritated expression appeared on his face: "Hmph, these annoying weaklings... They're clearly not my rivals, but no matter how many I kill, they never end."
He made no visible movements, but then a light gust of wind caught him and his figure dissolved into thin air, leaving only the grains of sand floating in the air to indicate the direction of his departure.
Finally, the wind carried his words: "Remember, I want to be on the front page. If you don't, I'll come back and kill you!"
"No problem, I'll be glad to see you anytime," Murphy answered calmly, slightly adjusting his glasses.
Whether Crocodile would get a spot on the front page, he didn't know, but if they met again in the future, it would be unknown who would kill whom.
Marine reinforcements soon arrived. Seeing the field strewn with bodies, they could not hide their grief and rage. The locals had long since fled, leaving Murphy as the only witness. As a result, one of the Marines immediately approached him.
"Boy, have you ever seen a pirate with such a high hairdo..." the lookout began, gesturing vigorously, but Murphy interrupted him.
"Crocodile, huh? He ran that way," Murphy pointed without hesitation in the direction the grains of sand had flown. "He turned into sand and flew that way."
"Oh, thank you, buddy!" the lookout thanked him and hurried to report to the commander.
Murphy actually wanted to leave right after Crocodile left to avoid trouble, but his Devil Fruit and all the things he bought with points were still in the bookstore. If he left now, he risked not being able to find them later.
As he expected, after reporting to the lookout, an officer of the Watch headed towards him - apparently, the commander of the detachment, the rear admiral.
"I am Rear Admiral Bernard of the Marines. You have been here all this time? So close to the battlefield - weren't you afraid of Crocodile?" Bernard asked bluntly, stopping in front of Murphy.
Bernard looked young, about 20 years old, stood up straight, with an arrogant expression on his face, radiating an unpleasant pressure.
"Of course I was. How could you not be afraid of such a ferocious man?" Murphy replied with a smile, surprisingly immune to the pressure coming from the rear admiral.
- All the other civilians ran away. If you were afraid of him, why didn't you do the same?
- Well, that's...
"What?" Bernard leaned forward slightly, looking menacing.
"Life is hard!" Murphy said, still smiling and patting the Dan-Dan-Mushie in his hands.
"Are you from the press? Let me see the camera!" Without asking permission, Bernard unceremoniously extended his hand.
He didn't notice how Murphy's hand with the camera trembled slightly, as if he wanted to do something, but he changed his mind and let Bernard take the camera.
Bernard started looking through the photos, and already at the first picture his face darkened. In the photo, a bloody pattern was unfolding in the air, and under this pattern stood Crocodile, bursting into uncontrollable laughter, looking unbearably evil.
Holding back his grief and anger, Bernard continued to look through the images. Each image depicted the brutal deaths of the sentries, cutting deeply into his heart.
There were many photographs, and they consistently depicted the battle. After looking at them, you didn't even need to ask questions to understand how the battle unfolded. All three captains were his subordinates, and he knew their strength very well, but in this battle, Crocodile did not receive even a scratch.
Bernard closed his eyes and mentally recreated the course of the battle and realized that the fight was completely one-sided. Even if he, the rear admiral, had entered the battle, he would hardly have been able to win.
Bernard took a deep breath and turned to Murphy. "You're very brave, risking your life for your work. But these photographs are very valuable - they allowed me to understand the situation immediately."
He had his suspicions about Murphy at first, but he knew there were plenty of journalists in the world willing to risk their lives for a story. Plus, Crocodile always acted alone, so this man was definitely not his accomplice.
Moreover, after looking at all the photos, Bernard no longer paid the slightest attention to the young man standing in front of him. He was eager to report to headquarters as soon as possible - they may have greatly underestimated Crocodile.
"Glad to help the Marines," Murphy replied with a satisfied look.
"That's all," Bernard said, turning to leave.
"Mr. Bernard, have you forgotten anything?" Murphy's quiet voice came from behind him.
"You mean this?" Bernard turned and waved the camera.
- Exactly.
"These photos cannot be released. They are now classified Marine material," Bernard said with authority, his expression suggesting that Murphy should be grateful for the honor, as if providing these photos was already a great privilege.
Murphy smiled wryly at the answer. It was hardly surprising, though, as the photographs he had taken at risk to his life had been confiscated.
But are the photographs really missing?
It was only when Bernard was out of sight that Murphy's expression returned to its usual calm.
The rear admiral acted like he was used to bossing everyone around him, which was disgusting. However, after two months on Jaya, where Murphy had seen everything, it was just a minor irritant - another incentive to become stronger.
But confiscating the camera really pissed him off. It was one of the tools he used to get the material. After all, by taking those photos, wasn't Bernard blocking his way to earning points?
A cold glint flickered in Murphy's eyes. Bernard had been wary of the photos leaking, thinking they would make the Marines look incompetent and enhance the pirates' reputation. But did he really think these were the only copies?
Dan-Den-Mushies acquired through the system, whether photos or videos, stored data directly in the system. And if Murphy had not loaded some photos into the camera in time, Bernard would not have seen a single photo.
This move was only made out of concern that an empty cell would cause suspicion and unnecessary trouble. Who would have thought that it would allow him to see the true face of the Marines. Compared to this Rear Admiral, that simple-minded Crocodile seemed much more likeable.
Murphy watched as Bernard made his report on the Den-Den-Mushi, then led a portion of the squad in pursuit in that direction, though at a noticeable slower pace. The rest of the patrol remained in place, cleaning up the battlefield—or rather, collecting the bodies of the fallen.
"So this is the Sabaody Archipelago garrison..." Murphy muttered, narrowing his eyes.
It is not known whether he will meet this Bernard again, but the secret photographs that the rear admiral spoke about definitely deserved wide publicity!