A Marine soldier reported with a salute.
Zephyr stood by the ship's railing, looking at the overly calm sea with a deep frown:
"Are there any identifiable flags or markings on the wreckage? Can we determine if it was a merchant ship or a pirate ship?"
The soldier shook his head: "No flags remain, and we can't even find a trace of personal belongings. That ship was destroyed very thoroughly, as if it was completely demolished by some kind of massive force."
Zephyr slammed his fist heavily onto the railing, making a dull thud:
"Damn it! Are we a step too late again?"
Just then, an urgent shout came from the lookout tower:
"Rear Admiral Zephyr! At ten o'clock! An unidentified vessel has been spotted!"
Zephyr immediately looked up and asked loudly:
"Can you distinguish what type of ship it is?"
The lookout raised his telescope and observed carefully for a moment, his tone uncertain:
"Report! Unidentifiable! That ship looks... very old, with many repair marks on the hull. It's not flying any flags, and even the figurehead is severely damaged, making its original appearance unclear... wait... it looks like some kind of fish? Like two fish entwined?"
"Fish?" Zephyr pondered for a moment.
"Perhaps it's a ship that encountered a disaster at sea. Approach it, check the situation, and provide assistance if necessary."
"Understood! Rear Admiral Zephyr!" The lookout turned and relayed the command loudly: "Ten o'clock! Full speed ahead!"
...And at this moment, on the "wrecked ship" they were tracking—the oro jackson—a farce was unfolding.
"Roger! I'm going to kill you, you bastard! My Amy! My Agy! How could you leave me like this~"
Jabba was holding the head of an exquisitely carved Mermaid statue, crying "heartbrokenly." It was the only remaining head of the two Mermaid statues on their figurehead.
"Ahahaha, an accident, it was purely an accident!" Roger scratched his head awkwardly.
"I didn't expect that Sea King's target wasn't me, but our figurehead instead~"
It turned out that when they left the Calm Belt, the noise of their rowing had indeed awakened some Sea Kings.
In his excitement, Roger had sliced off a giant tentacle with one sword strike, but he hadn't controlled the direction well, and the flying tentacle happened to smash into the figurehead.
Jabba instantly transformed into a fanged, furious state, grabbing Roger by the collar and roaring:
"What 'bullshit accident'! You were clearly just greedy! You wanted to eat Sea King meat again! That's why my Amy and Agy were decapitated! Don't even think about shirking responsibility, you bastard!"
Roger was being shaken until he was dizzy and quickly promised:
"Alright, alright! Next stop! Next stop, we'll go to Water 7! We'll find Tom! We'll let him give the oro jackson a complete overhaul! Then I'll have him carve two bigger, more beautiful Mermaid statues for you! How about that?"
Jabba instantly retracted his furious expression and let go with satisfaction: "That's more like it."
Just then, Doringer's voice came from the lookout tower:
"Captain! There's a Marine warship rushing toward us!"
"Captain! Are we going to fight?" Doringer asked with a hint of excitement.
Roger grabbed the straw hat from behind his head and put it on, laughing loudly:
"Fight? Why fight! We're pirates! When we see the Marines, of course we should run! Boys! Turn the ship! Full speed ahead! Let's get out of here! Shoo-hahahahahaha!"
...On the Marine warship.
"Rear Admiral Zephyr! That ship turned and fled immediately after spotting us!" the lookout reported hurriedly.
"Wait! Rear Admiral Zephyr! The Captain of that ship... seems to be a man wearing a straw hat!" The lookout added the key information.
Zephyr's brow furrowed: "Fleeing? Why would shipwrecked fishermen run when they see the Marines? Wait... a straw hat? A damaged figurehead? Fish?"
Several keywords quickly linked together in his mind.
He suddenly leaped onto the lookout tower, snatched the telescope, and aimed it at the "wrecked ship" that was frantically fleeing.
Through the lens, he instantly recognized the figure wearing a straw hat and laughing arrogantly—it was the guy Garp had forced him to become incredibly familiar with! Roger!
"Hahahaha! I didn't expect to catch such an unexpected big fish!"
Zephyr put down the telescope, an excited smile appearing on his face.
"Contact Headquarters immediately! No! Put me through directly to that bastard Garp! Tell him we've bumped into the Roger Pirates!"
In another nearby area of the sea, a warship with a giant dog-head figurehead was sailing leisurely.
On the deck, a crew-cut young man wearing a floral shirt and lying on a sun lounger suddenly sat up, letting out a deafening but pleasantly surprised roar into the transponder snail in his hand:
"What?! You guys met Roger?!"
The transponder snail mimicked the respectful expression of the Marine on the other side:
"Yes, Vice Admiral Garp. Rear Admiral Zephyr asked us to notify you immediately."
Garp excitedly slammed his fist onto the side table:
"Hahaha! Good! Keep a close eye on him! I'll be there right away! Roger! Don't you think you're slipping away from me this time! I'm definitely going to throw you into Impel Down to feed the fishes!"
The dog-head warship immediately sounded the alarm, rushing toward the direction Zephyr had reported at an incredible speed that was completely inconsistent with its bulky appearance!
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