The officer dispatched by Navy Headquarters to audit Branch 133 wasn't just anyone, it was none other than Kuzan, now promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral.
Alongside the headquarters personnel accompanying him, Yoriichi Tsugikuni spotted a familiar face.
"Oh! Instructor Victor, you came too."
Of the two leading the Headquarters delegation, one was Rear Admiral Kuzan, and the other was none other than Victor, an instructor at the Naval Academy. Both were acquaintances of Yoriichi and Kyros.
"Yoriichi, what kind of guy do you think I am, huh? Why can't I be an examiner?"
"If even someone like you made it to Lieutenant Commander, what's so strange about me serving as an auditor?"
"You little brat… You were supposed to be doing field training out in the West Blue, and look at the commotion you've stirred up."
"Do you have any idea how much flak Zephyr-sensei has taken because of you?"
Kuzan stepped slowly off the ship, clad in a crisp white suit with the "Justice" coat draped over his shoulders. At the sight of a healthy and composed Yoriichi, a faint smile flickered across his face, but only for a moment. His expression quickly turned into one of exasperation.
Victor followed close behind, descending the gangplank silently. He gave Yoriichi and Kyros a polite nod and smile but said nothing.
"So the backlash is because of my sudden promotion to Lieutenant Commander?"
"Well, yeah. Promotions like that are almost unheard of in the Navy."
In the current Navy structure before the era of "World Military Conscription," ranks must be earned step by step. There's no skipping straight from civilian to admiral the way it might happen in the future.
So for Yoriichi to leap from third-class seaman all the way to Lieutenant Commander in one stroke… it was nothing short of astounding. Sure, he had slain a pirate worth two hundred million and protected the royal family of a member kingdom, a feat worth commendation.
But a ten-rank promotion? That bordered on myth.
By the time Kuzan set sail for the West Blue, news of Yoriichi's promotion had already spread throughout Headquarters.
Though the order came from Admiral Sengoku himself, Zephyr being both Yoriichi's mentor and legal guardian had inevitably come under scrutiny. People couldn't help but speculate that Zephyr had pulled strings.
And truthfully, he had.
"If it were just your promotion alone, the backlash wouldn't have been this severe," Kuzan continued.
"What really stirred the hornet's nest was what you did here at Branch 133."
"You arrested every officer above lieutenant based solely on suspicion. Honestly? No one's ever done something like that before."
"This incident has had huge repercussions. For reasons we don't fully understand, news of it has spread to other branches and the reactions there have been intense."
"Now people at HQ are saying Zephyr-sensei is spoiling you too much. That the Navy doesn't belong to a privileged few at the top, it belongs to everyone."
"If this isn't handled properly, things could spiral out of control."
"Yoriichi, tell me straight. Is there something seriously wrong with Branch 133? Have you found anything?"
As Kuzan spoke, he drew closer, lowering his voice so that only Yoriichi could hear. His tone grew grave. From his words alone, Yoriichi could already imagine the kind of pressure Zephyr must be enduring.
Even someone of Zephyr's stature might not be affected by mere gossip, but if things here weren't dealt with cleanly, his reputation would take a hit.
Realizing that his mentor was under public attack because of him, Yoriichi's expression turned solemn.
In the future, Gol D. Roger would unleash a new era of pirates with nothing more than a single speech. At all times, Yoriichi respected the power of public opinion, it was a blade that killed without shedding blood.
"Come on, let's head to the base. I'll fill you in," Yoriichi said, his voice calm but firm. "I've been keeping a lid on the unit's activities while waiting for your arrival."
"I don't have anyone I can fully trust here. The waters near the Kingdom of Mia are crawling with pirates, so Kyros has had to lead sorties frequently."
"Truth be told, I never formally launched an investigation."
"But Kuzan, one thing I do know for sure: there's something seriously wrong with Branch 133."
As they spoke, Yoriichi and Kuzan made their way to the base's conference room. Victor walked silently alongside them, quietly absorbing every word of their conversation. His expression remained unreadable the entire time.
But his eyes, sharp and deliberate, wandered over the petty officers of the branch with subtle scrutiny—as if already sizing them up.
With Kuzan's arrival, the patrol and prison guard duties of Branch 133 were immediately handed over to the headquarters marines, replacing the local personnel in full.
Yoriichi guided Aokiji and Victor into the conference room. Once everyone was seated, he began recounting everything that had happened at the branch—his suspicions, his deductions, every event in full detail.
He spoke of how he and Kyros had disguised their identities and boarded the warship returning from Kaen, how he began to grow suspicious of the missing "deckhands" on board, and how they were ambushed at sea under mysterious circumstances. No detail was spared. Yoriichi laid it all out for Aokiji and Victor.
To support his claims, Yoriichi also brought them aboard the patrol vessel where it had all occurred, showing them the "scene" as it had remained.
He had deliberately left it untouched, anticipating the arrival of Headquarters investigators.
As they stepped aboard the ship again, the overwhelming stench of blood and rot hit them like a wave.
More than ten days had passed. The bodies were already decomposing.
But that didn't prevent an examination. It was still easy enough to distinguish between fatal wounds, whether inflicted by sword or by gun. Even the weapons used had been left behind. It wouldn't be difficult to piece together the truth.
After inspecting the site and hearing the full story, Aokiji visibly relaxed. He now realized just how deep the rot ran in this 133rd Branch.
Zephyr had warned him about some of this beforehand, but until he'd seen the evidence himself, Aokiji had remained uneasy, not because he didn't trust Yoriichi, but because he feared the boy's youth might make him impulsive or unreliable.
But to his surprise, Yoriichi had acted with a degree of order and strategy. His methods were admittedly rough, but he'd preserved enough evidence to initiate a proper investigation.
Without delay, Aokiji took over all affairs of the branch and began auditing every officer stationed there.
Now that Aokiji had assumed control of the investigation, Yoriichi finally had the freedom to dig deeper into the organization whose influence had wrapped itself around the entire Kingdom of Mia like a network of tentacles—the Loro Trade Consortium.
He hadn't forgotten, those pirates he'd wiped out had been acting under direct orders from a so-called "President."
"Next up, we'll be presenting a series of exceptional items,""Ladies and gentlemen, keep your eyes sharp, you won't want to miss a thing!""Now then, feast your eyes on the next lot..."
The booming voice came from the center of a grand auction hall. The host stood beneath a spotlight, microphone in hand, stirring the crowd into a frenzy.
As he spoke, the lights dimmed. A single beam of light illuminated the center of the stage.
With a faint clunk, the floor next to the host split open. Slowly, a platform began to rise, lifting into view a massive iron cage.
"Ta-da! All eyes here!""Item number six! A group of five strong, prime-bodied slaves!"
"These fine specimens are top-tier catches, each one a notorious pirate with a bounty on their head!""We went through a lot of trouble to seize them, all in the name of preserving the Kingdom of Mia's maritime peace!"
"Item number six: five pirate slaves, formerly active in the West Blue!""Starting bid five million Berries! That's right, just five million, and you can take the whole set home!"
With the host's cry, the hall erupted in raucous cheers. Despite the grotesque nature of what was being sold, human lives, every bidder in the room was brimming with enthusiasm, as if the roof itself might crack under the roar of their excitement.
Watching from a shadowed corner of the hall, Yoriichi sat in civilian attire, arms crossed, his back lightly resting against his chair. His gaze was calm, fixed on the sixth item now center stage. He turned to the companion beside him and asked quietly:
"Those earlier lots were relatively normal, but now they've started auctioning slaves? Remind me, isn't the Kingdom of Mia a member of the World Government? Does that mean slavery is legal in all member nations?"
"More or less," came the reply. "Most nations do practice slavery. Once someone becomes a slave, they're treated as property. It's not unusual for them to be sold at events like this."
The speaker was Kyros. He frowned slightly, as if recalling something painful, and answered in a low, restrained voice.
"In Dressrosa too," he added, "many of the gladiators who fight in the arena are slaves."
Yoriichi looked thoughtful. His knowledge of this world's slave systems was limited. Seeing Kyros seemed to know more, he pressed further.
"And how do people become slaves in the first place?"
This time, it wasn't Kyros who answered, but another man sitting beside them.
"There are many ways. Some are sold off by their families. Some are born into slavery. Others are pirates captured by slave-hunters. And some... are simply bought from other traders."
The man leaned in slightly.
"What's the matter, Yoriichi? Interested in buying a slave?"
Kuzan slouched back in his chair, his expression cold and godlike as he gazed toward the center of the auction hall. His voice was low, almost indifferent. As a man who now upheld the doctrine of "Burning Justice," he wouldn't interfere with such transactions directly—but that didn't mean he could stomach them.
From the moment this particular lot was brought out, Kuzan's face had already darkened.
"Of course not," Yoriichi replied flatly. "I'm just trying to understand—what kind of slaves are considered legitimate, and which ones aren't?"
"Take a look at those so-called 'docile pirates' in the cage. No matter how I look at them, they don't seem like pirates at all."
His words gave both Kuzan and Kyros pause. Surprised, they instinctively turned their eyes toward the central cage in the arena.
Until now, Kuzan hadn't paid close attention. But prompted by Yoriichi's comment, he examined the five men more carefully and quickly noticed something off.
There was no killing intent. None.
What kind of people could truly be called pirates? Was it simply those who pursued freedom and sailed the seas? That notion sounded far too romantic. If that were the definition, wouldn't someone like Rolando also qualify as a pirate?
No, true pirates were those who plundered the seas, who lived by pillage and slaughter. And those known as great pirates had no doubt survived countless battles. Regardless of their strength, they all shared one unmistakable trait: an overwhelming, unmistakable bloodlust.
But these five so-called great pirates locked in the cage had none of that. Not a trace. Though all five were well-built and muscular, their bare upper bodies showed no scars. Not even a hint of combat experience.
"Yoriichi… are you saying…" Kuzan rubbed his chin, his interest clearly piqued by the implication.
"The Rosello Trading Company's weakness… it might be here."
"Let's move now. I have a feeling these five are holding the answers I want."
Even as Yoriichi finished speaking, Kyros had already stood up, sword in hand, ready to act. But as soon as he rose, he noticed Kuzan and Yoriichi both still seated, looking at him strangely.
Kyros scratched his head in confusion. "Aren't we making a move? What are we waiting for?"
Kuzan's breath caught for a moment. He stared at Kyros as if looking at some rare, exotic creature. Seeing that Kyros was entirely serious, Kuzan sighed deeply and explained:
"Yeah, we're making a move but not right now."
"Too many people. Too much attention. I know you're eager, but hold your horses."
"We wait. Once the auction ends and the crowd disperses, we'll strike. No need to rush. Our targets aren't going anywhere."
"Besides, let's keep watching. Who knows? They might bring out more 'pirates' like those."
He tugged gently at Kyros' sleeve, pulling him back down into his seat.
Meanwhile, the auction had resumed, and bidding on the five "pirates" was underway.
Normally, an adult male human slave would start at 500,000 Berries each. These five wouldn't usually fetch more than 3 million combined. But with the title of great pirates added, the final price skyrocketed to 7 million Berries.
After confirming the buyer, the auction platform slowly descended. The host glanced down at the sheet in his hand and suddenly raised his voice, eyes gleaming with excitement:
"Attention, everyone!""Up next is one of the premium items in today's auction!""Now then, let's take a look at Lot Number Seven!"
The spotlight hit the center of the stage just as the platform began to rise again.
Sitting atop it was a delicate, rose-pink cage.
Inside, a young woman.
She wore a flowing black gown. Her snow-white hair fell freely over her shoulders, untouched by restraint.
Her eyes were bright and clear, and her deep, obsidian pupils held a glimmer of wisdom.
Her face was strikingly elegant, exuding a quiet independence. Her beauty wasn't of the flirtatious kind, but one of intelligence and dignity. Even in captivity, she radiated a composed and singular aura.
The appearance of a female slave sent the atmosphere of the auction house into a frenzy. The roar of the crowd erupted in an instant.
"Why does she look… familiar to me?"
Yoriichi's gaze landed on the woman in the cage, his brows knitting slightly. There was an overwhelming sense of familiarity emanating from her, but he couldn't place where it came from.
In the center of the hall, the auctioneer began his pitch.
"Not only is this woman stunning, she's also a scholar!"
"She's nothing like those vulgar trinkets you've seen before. A high-grade slave like this is extremely rare!"
"I won't waste words. Once you bring her home, you'll understand her true value yourselves!"
"Starting bid: Ten million Berries!"
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