Chapter Sixty-Four: First Encounter with Smoker

Watching a group of marines escorting a band of pirates alongside another group of marines as they disembarked from the large ship, the townsfolk at the port were utterly dumbfounded.

What was going on here? Why were the marines from Loguetown arresting another group of marines? And why were these marines tied up together with pirates?

“What’s the story with those marines?” The townsfolk could see it, and so could the marine captain, who frowned and inquired.

“According to the pirates, they are subordinates of Captain Rat from the 16th Branch. Captain Rat colluded with pirates and oppressed civilians, and was defeated and captured by Mr. Roland.” As the marine spoke, he glanced at Roland, finding it all somewhat unbelievable.

This young man before him actually possessed the strength to defeat a branch captain—a truly surprising feat.

“Is all this true, Mr. Roland?” The captain looked at Roland, equally astonished that the youth had managed to defeat a branch captain. Clearly, he had underestimated him.

“That’s pretty much how it went.” Roland shrugged, offering nothing more.

Upon hearing this, the captain fell silent. Should these marines and the corrupt Captain Rat be arrested? Naturally; such people only tarnished the reputation of the marines.

Yet, even if Captain Rat deserved capture, it wasn’t Roland—who had no official status—who should be involved. He wasn’t blaming Roland; rather, he was concerned for him.

From the reports of the marines, the captain knew Roland was a man of justice, for not everyone dared to take action against corrupt marines.

Because of this, the captain felt a strong sense of goodwill towards Roland.

But among the marine leadership, there were always a few traditionalists or hardliners who firmly believed that anyone who attacked marines was a pirate, no matter the circumstances.

This made things difficult for the captain, as he didn’t want a young man so full of justice to be pushed into opposition against the marines by the stubbornness of the higher-ups.

“Never mind, let’s take these people back to base first.” The captain rubbed his forehead, clearly torn about how to handle Roland’s situation.

After thinking it over and finding no solution, he could only pass the problem up to his superiors.

Moreover, leaving these corrupt marines and pirates here wouldn’t look good, so it was best to bring them back to base for now.

“Mr. Roland, what do you say?” The captain looked to Roland.

“We’ll go back to the base with you,” Roland replied directly.

He hadn’t even met Smoker yet, so he certainly wouldn’t just split up from the marines.

As for joining the marines, he didn’t intend to discuss it with the captain before him; his rank was too low. Better to speak directly with Smoker and skip the intermediaries.

“Alright, this way please—” The captain walked at the rear of the procession, leading the way for Roland and the others.

“Are we heading to the headquarters’ marine base now?” Koby was full of anticipation about their destination.

“Let’s go. This will be a new beginning for us,” Nami said with a smile, taking Little Donna by the hand.

“Mm!” Little Donna was equally excited.

Zoro, however, remained indifferent; the marine base meant nothing to him.

As they walked, he kept scanning the shops along the street, hoping to spot a weapon shop that looked a bit more upscale.

He’d always practiced three-sword style, but now he only had one sword, which made him uncomfortable.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t fight well with one sword, but he was far more adept at the three-sword style, which allowed him to maximize his combat strength.

“Are you Roland?” At the crossroads, a booming voice suddenly rang out.

Roland turned towards the sound and immediately spotted the man crouching there.

“Sorry, my trousers ate your ice cream. Next time, buy a five-layer one.” The man pulled out a coin and handed it to the little girl beside him, then turned to Roland and said, “You’re Yorick’s son, Roland, aren’t you?”

Standing up, the man proved to be even taller than Roland’s one meter ninety. Roland recognized him at once.

Short, neat white hair, a scruffy beard on his chin.

He wore a jacket on his upper body, exposing the muscles beneath.

The chest and arms of his jacket were adorned with many cigars, making him look addicted to smoking, but Roland knew those were for Smoker’s Devil Fruit abilities.

He carried a jitte made of seastone on his back, so unlike the captain, Smoker didn’t wear a cloak.

“Captain Smoker!” Seeing who it was, the captain immediately saluted.

“Smoker, so you already know about me.” Roland wasn’t surprised that Smoker called out his father’s name; his father’s letters had mentioned that he was previously an undercover agent in Loguetown.

Since he’d been sent out as an undercover agent from Loguetown, it was only natural they had records about him here.

“You all head back to the base first. I have something to discuss with Roland.”

Smoker waved his hand, signaling the marines to proceed.

“Roland, what about us?” Nami asked, uncertain whether they should stay, follow the marines to the base, or find a place to settle in town.

“You go with them first. I’ll join Smoker and head to the marine base soon,” Roland thought for a moment before replying.

With Zoro there, he wasn’t worried about any danger befalling them.

“Alright.” Nami nodded, continuing to hold Little Donna’s hand as they followed the captain.

“Care to grab a drink?” Smoker asked.

He’d learned about Roland from the newspapers—the first time was due to the incident with the dictatorial captain in Shells Town, whom Roland had “recklessly” defeated.

Then came the Arlong Pirates affair. If it weren’t for the news reports, Smoker would never have imagined that a crew of fish-men had dominated a village in East Blue for years, committing atrocities.

After that, he received a report from the 16th Branch stating their captain had disappeared.

Looking at the map, noting the location of the 16th Branch base near Cocoyashi Village, Smoker instantly understood why the Arlong Pirates had been entrenched in East Blue for so long without his knowledge.

So, when the major went missing, Smoker made his own guess—and today, he saw he’d guessed right.

A branch captain, in all his supposed glory, truly colluding with pirates, abusing his authority, and exploiting the local people.

For someone who had always upheld justice, Smoker was infuriated.

Yet, more than his hatred for the corrupt marine, Smoker’s curiosity was piqued by Roland—the son of a marine undercover agent.

According to the intelligence, ten years ago the boy had disappeared from his hometown for various reasons.

Unexpectedly, ten years later, this young man reappeared and brought Smoker so many surprises.

He’d defeated the Krieg Pirates and the Iron Blade Pirates in succession, and then, with no fear of marine reprisal, privately captured two branch captains who failed their duties.

He’d even wiped out a pirate crew that had terrorized East Blue for years while capturing one of the captains.

Such strength and courage, Smoker admired, for even he—renowned for defying the rules at headquarters—wouldn’t dare take action against branch captains on his own.

Smoker’s invitation was one Roland would not refuse.

He knew Smoker was interested in him—just as he was eager to have a conversation with Smoker.

After all, whether he could directly enter marine headquarters depended on how Smoker communicated with the higher-ups.

“I’m fine with anything.”