Rear Admiral Adilla was a middle-aged man in his forties, standing nearly two meters tall, with a strong and imposing build, looking every bit like a stern and uncompromising soldier.
But when he saw Akainu disembarking from the ship, a bright smile immediately appeared on the face of Rear Admiral Adilla, who had been waiting at the port for a long time.
His smile widened even more when he saw the little Hibari following Akainu. His face practically lit up.
“Oh, my little princess Hibari, you’ve finally returned to your homeland, the North Blue. Uncle Adilla missed you so much. Look what I have prepared for you!”
Adilla smiled and extended his hand, prompting a row of soldiers to come forward, each holding a fluffy pink cotton candy.
“Uncle Adilla, I’m not eight years old anymore. Why are you still trying to win me over with cotton candy?”
“However, I still love cotton candy. Thank you, Uncle Adilla!”
Hibari happily ran to the soldiers holding the cotton candy, took three sticks, and handed two to Doss and Rosha.
“It’s been three years, and my little princess has grown so beautifully.”
Rear Admiral Adilla patted Hibari’s head, nodded at Doss and the others, and gave Rosha a quick once-over before rushing to Akainu.
“Brother Sakazuki, you arrived several days later than expected. I was about to call to check on you. Did you run into some troublesome pirates on the way? I see the ship is damaged.”
“We encountered some unexpected events.” Akainu said bluntly as he walked ahead, leading the way towards the naval base.
“What’s going on with the Principality of Princy? You mentioned in your report that you saw Dragon near the Principality of Princy.”
Adilla quickly dismissed the others and followed closely behind Akainu, answering in a low voice:
“About a month ago, our intelligence officers indeed spotted a Revolutionary Army ship near the Principality of Princy. They even discovered that Dragon, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, had entered the royal palace of Princy.”
“I personally led a team to intercept them but couldn’t prevent Dragon and his men from leaving.”
“The leader of the Revolutionary Army, what would he be doing in a small country like Princy?” Akainu frowned.
“Probably for food supplies,” Adilla speculated. “Recently, the World Government’s army has intensified its crackdown on the Revolutionary Army, causing severe food shortages for them.
“Meanwhile, Prince Illya of Princy has been purchasing large amounts of food and preemptively collecting a hefty amount of Heavenly Tribute and taxes.
“On the other hand, King Princy VII’s health is deteriorating, and there are rumors that he’s on his deathbed. Therefore…”
“So, you suspect that Illya is in cahoots with the Revolutionary Army, trying to leverage their power to seize the throne? But isn’t he the crown prince? When the king dies, the throne should naturally go to him.”
“Brother Sakazuki, you might not know,” Adilla said with a wry smile. “Despite Illya’s ambitions, King Princy VII favors his youngest son, Gluse, much more.
“Though Gluse is young, he has a gentle personality and resembles his father in appearance. Plus, he’s a capable fighter with a Devil Fruit ability.
“Many nobles in the royal court speculate that King Princy VII intends to pass the throne to Gluse.”
“Colluding with the Revolutionary Army is a capital offense!” Akainu’s face turned icy, his eyes filled with killing intent. “Even if Princy is an allied nation of the World Government, such a crime is enough to bring about its destruction!”
“That’s the issue,” Adilla said, perplexed. “The Revolutionary Army did appear but left soon after. Our agents in the royal court haven’t found any Revolutionary Army soldiers left behind. It seems they merely purchased a batch of food from Illya. Interestingly, Illya has been in close contact with the Giant Bug Pirates recently.”
“Giant Bug Pirates?”
“A rising Supernova pirate crew in the North Blue, led by a brutal and powerful captain. They’ve been gaining influence rapidly over the past two years, recruiting many new pirates, and claim to be subordinates of Warlord Gecko Moria.”
“Why is it always the Warlords? The North Blue is as chaotic as ever.”
Akainu snorted, striding into the naval base ahead.
The naval base in front of them occupied more than a quarter of Senga Island.
Training grounds, logistics department, base buildings, residential areas—altogether covering four or five square kilometers.
Outside the naval base, there was a sizable town.
This town didn’t belong to any kingdom in the North Blue. It had gradually formed because of the presence of Branch 177, becoming a gathering place for residents.
The town housed people from various parts of the North Blue, families of branch soldiers, or innocent civilians rescued from pirates who had nowhere else to go.
The seventeen women who survived the massacre in Maple Leaf Village would be arranged to live on Senga Island in the future.
“This is a naval base? It’s huge and bustling.”
Rosha, Doss, Hibari, and others, each holding a stick of cotton candy, followed the branch soldiers into the grand fortress of justice.
Seeing the vast training ground enclosed by long walls, filled with people lined up in five long queues, Rosha couldn’t help but exclaim in awe.
Branch 177 was indeed packed with people.
Everywhere Rosha looked, there were crowded streams of people.
“Are they all soldiers? What’s going on here?”
“If I’m not mistaken, it’s probably recruitment,” Doss said, adjusting his glasses, and addressed the lieutenant walking ahead.
The young branch lieutenant immediately saluted. “Yes, sir! Our branch officially started recruiting this month, and hearing the news, people from nearby towns have come to apply.”
“So many people willing to join the Navy? I thought recruitment would be tough.” Rosha scanned the area, roughly estimating that there were at least five hundred people in line.
The branch lieutenant was somewhat surprised that Rosha, a third-class soldier, could converse so casually with Headquarters Lieutenant Commander Doss.
Hearing Rosha’s question, he didn’t dare neglect him.
In the lieutenant’s mind, Rosha might be the descendant of some high-ranking Navy officer, much like Hibari, who stood beside him.
Rosha’s appearance and demeanor were indeed exceptional.
With his long silver hair tied up, he stood two meters and thirty centimeters tall and looked quite dashing.
A youthful yet striking face, with those sapphire blue eyes, made him look like a star among the surrounding crowd.
“Because joining the Navy means they can have enough to eat, and their families might have the chance to move to Senga Island.”
The lieutenant explained with a smile.
“Enough to… eat?” Rosha was taken aback.
Such a simple reason.
At this moment, Doss interjected, asking the branch lieutenant, “With so many applicants, the branch should conduct screenings, right? Is this another exceptional selection?”
The branch lieutenant hesitated but didn’t hide the truth.
Recruitment was publicly announced throughout the North Blue.
“Yes, if any of the applicants show outstanding abilities and haven’t committed any serious offenses, they have a chance for exceptional selection, with the highest possibility of being directly promoted to branch lieutenant.”
“Branch lieutenant? From third-class soldier, second-class soldier, first-class soldier, sergeant, warrant officer—that’s equivalent to skipping six ranks!”
Doss’s eyes lit up, and he grinned at the somewhat bewildered Rosha.
“Kid, here’s your chance. A quick way to shed your rookie status.”
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