Under everyone's watchful eyes, the warship slowly docked.
A gangway nearly three meters wide was lowered, and two rows of marines, holding guns, lined up along its edges. Their expressions were serious. A red carpet extended from the top of the gangway all the way to the shore.
Then, a figure dressed in a white long coat slowly walked down the ship.
A long, thin face, a goatee, and eyes squinted into narrow slits.
"Pfft, acting all grand." Nami scowled. "Got my hopes up, and then this creepy guy steps off the ship. Just looking at him, I can tell he's no good."
"Shh, Nami!"
Nojiko hurried to cover her mouth. "That guy's no ordinary person. Don't talk like that. It'll cause trouble for Shano!"
"Hm?"
The man, known as Mouse, glanced over. He didn't catch exactly what the two girls were saying, but he happened to step right next to the edge of the red carpet, which was clearly in the way.
He lazily waved his hand, signaling to the two marines behind him. They exchanged glances, sighed, and started walking toward Nami and Nojiko to push them aside.
However, before they could lay a hand on them, a strong arm reached out and blocked their way.
"Marine of the 16th Branch?"
Shano gently pushed the two marines aside and looked up at the man in front of him. "Colonel, what brings you to our village?"
"Impudent! Does the Navy need to inform civilians like you before we act?"
Mouse scoffed.
"I'm asking you. I heard that the Dragon Pirates attacked the Conomi Islands, and the last place they were seen was Cocoyashi Village. That's why I came with my men, to capture these pirates. You're from this village, right? Do you know where those fishmen went?"
"Don't know."
Shano shook his head.
"Don't know?" Mouse sneered, his smile growing wider. "Maybe you should think harder?"
His earlier words were nothing but lies.
Over a month ago, Mouse had received intelligence that Arlong, the fishman who once belonged to the Sun Pirates, with a bounty of 20 million Berries, had entered the waters under the jurisdiction of the 16th Branch with his large crew.
This wasn't something he could handle on his own.
Terrified of the consequences, Mouse had contacted his superior, who had once promoted him, for advice.
His superior's response was vague, but the message was clear — turn a blind eye. They hinted that Arlong's group had close ties with the current Warlord of the Sea, Jinbei.
The World Government's grant of legal plunder to the Warlords might also apply to Arlong.
Realizing the situation, Mouse had kept silent for the past month, ignoring the urgent distress signals from his base.
That is, until a few days ago, when he heard rumors that the Dragon Pirates had been wiped out near the Conomi Islands.
Excited yet nervous, Mouse rushed out to investigate.
Now, seeing Shano's lack of cooperation, Mouse clicked his tongue in frustration. He waved his hand, signaling his subordinates to push the curious onlookers who had gathered at a distance.
Then, with a smile, he looked at the burly young man before him, who appeared a little naïve and easy to fool, and said:
"Fine, I'll be straight with you. I just got word that those fishmen have died on this island. Haven't you seen their bodies?"
He raised two fingers. "Don't worry. If you cooperate, I'll give you this amount as a reward for supporting the Navy's operation."
"Two hundred thousand Berries?" Shano raised an eyebrow.
The man was so stingy. He wanted to pocket the bounty worth over 80 million Berries, but was only willing to offer this little?
"Two thousand Berries!"
Mouse snapped back, annoyed. "I can't believe it! You're young and yet so greedy. Do you know that even the highest rewards for completing such a big operation would only be a few hundred thousand at most?"
Shano sneered inwardly. He couldn't care less about that small reward. This guy was likely already planning to pocket the bounty and split it with someone else behind the scenes.
Tired of wasting time with him, Shano was about to walk away but stopped when he considered that Mouse might start harassing the villagers. So, he simply said:
"I killed them."
"Hm?" Mouse froze, not understanding at first. "What did you say?"
"The Dragon Pirates, all sixty-seven of them, were killed by me," Shano said casually, then called out, "Manba!"
"Here, Boss!" came the gruff voice from the ship.
"Bring all those heads out and show this Colonel what we've got."
"Right away, Boss!"
In no time, the fishmen's heads were lined up along the side of the ship.
To prevent them from rotting and stinking, they had been packed in ice. Through the ice, the heads looked lifelike, many of them still showing wide-open eyes and mouths, frozen in expressions of fear.
No one knew what they had gone through before dying, but their faces certainly conveyed their terror.
"T-this... this…" Mouse's eyes widened in disbelief. "So it really is…"
"Colonel," a young lieutenant stepped forward. "Should I take a few men to verify?"
"No need!" Mouse immediately interrupted.
He had already studied the wanted posters of these fishmen. He recognized every one of them. There was no mistake!
These were the Dragon Pirates, every one of them with a bounty, right here.
"Never would've imagined..."
Mouse burst into a loud laugh, his demeanor suddenly changing to one of warmth as he moved to slap Shano on the shoulder.
"Such a young hero, to wipe out such a powerful pirate crew all by yourself! I knew something big was happening here, but now I see you're preparing to go out and collect your bounty?"
"Exactly. I've already contacted the 77th Branch. I'm getting ready to go over there," Shano said, easily dodging Mouse's hand as it reached for his shoulder.
"The 77th Branch?"
Mouse's eyes widened in shock. He leaned in close, lowering his voice.
"Listen, my friend. You probably don't know how tough it is to collect a full bounty. Even well-known bounty hunters struggle to claim the whole amount. Don't be fooled by what they say at the 77th Branch. Once you get there, you'll be lucky if they give you 30% of the bounty."
Shano stared at him quietly.
"Cut to the chase. Spit it out."
Mouse's smile froze for a moment, but he quickly recovered, clearing his throat. "Alright, alright. My point is, instead of running all the way out there, why don't you just hand over all these pirate heads to me? Considering the good fortune, I'll make an exception and give you a very generous share. We'll split it fifty-fifty. What do you say?"
"..."
Shano shook his head, uninterested, and turned to walk away. "Nojiko, Nami, let's go."
"Oh! Coming!" The two girls, who had been engrossed in watching the scene, quickly snapped out of their daze and hurried to follow.
"Stop right there!"
Suddenly, a furious shout rang out. Mouse, enraged, drew his gun and aimed it at their backs. "How dare you... Who gave you permission to leave!"
Shano turned his head, seeing the black barrel of the gun, his eyes narrowing slightly.