Chapter 82 "General Cleaning" Is Over, A Huge Harvest

Whiskey Peak.

This is the first stop upon entering the Grand Line and a haven for pirate hunters. But thanks to its strategic location, it has naturally become the Marine's second headquarters.

"Hey, Sengoku, look, another pirate crew."

"This is the ninth one recently, right? These pirates are strange. Instead of heading to the Sabaody Archipelago, they come here. Do they underestimate us old-timers?"

"I don't think so. It looks more like... they're running for their lives."

As they watched the pirate ship speeding across the sea in the distance, both fell into a brief silence.

"We're just going to stand here and watch?"

"Don't worry. It's just a low-ranking pirate crew. Zephyr can handle it."

Sengoku sighed and continued, "It's the same with Garp—always running off to East Blue whenever he pleases. And Aokiji…"

At this point, Sengoku couldn't help but sigh deeply.

He wasn't sure what the Marine had become under Carlos' leadership.

Maybe it was time to have a chat with Onigumo, Doberman, and the others.

"The battle is over," Zephyr said calmly, gazing into the distance.

The next moment, his brow furrowed as he quickly picked up his telescope.

On the horizon, a massive Marine fleet appeared.

"Sakazuki?" he muttered.

Warships arrived one after another at the Marine base. After resupplying, they didn't linger but promptly turned around to head back out to sea.

Watching the steady flow of warships, both Sengoku and Zephyr fell silent.

From Akainu and the others, they had finally learned what had been happening within the Marine recently.

Generous welfare benefits, military competitions, and large-scale "spring cleaning" operations...

All of these measures implemented by Carlos since taking office had left Sengoku stunned.

And the results were undeniable.

In just twenty days, the fleet led by Akainu had defeated twenty-three pirate crews.

The number of pirates killed, and the amount of treasure captured were immeasurable.

Such an impressive record left Sengoku in disbelief.

Counting the time spent on the sea, they were taking down one pirate crew per day!

It wasn't that Sengoku doubted Akainu's strength, but this level of efficiency was almost too extraordinary to believe.

He could hardly imagine how high morale must have been.

For a moment, Sengoku even wondered if he'd been a mere figurehead during his time as Fleet Admiral.

"This guy is really shaking things up," Zephyr said with a serious expression, shaking his head.

"Face reality, Sengoku," Zephyr added. "Carlos is doing a better job than any of us expected."

"In the future, he might really lead the Marine to change the world."

Sengoku nodded slightly, unconsciously agreeing with the sentiment.

Elsewhere, the Marines' aggressive movements had attracted attention from other powerful forces.

The Island of White Earth, Baldigo.

At the Revolutionary Army headquarters, in a dimly lit conference room, Ivankov, Betty, Lindbergh, Morley, and karasu all sat gathered around.

Looking over the reports in front of him, Dragon couldn't help but sigh.

"After defeating the Beasts Pirates and Big Mom Pirates, and now just recently becoming Fleet Admiral, he's already organized such a massive operation."

"Carlos... what an extraordinary man," Dragon remarked.

As the leader of the Revolutionary Army and the son of Garp, a former Marine hero, Dragon naturally had a vested interest in the Marine's activities.

He had been keeping a close eye on the string of events since Carlos took power.

Under his leadership, the Marine had completely shifted its old ways, eliminating pirates across the first half of the Grand Line with swift and decisive action.

Even Dragon was impressed by the speed of the transformation.

On the other side of the table, Army Commander Ivankov looked equally serious.

"Now that the New World has lost two of its Yonko, do we have a chance to expand our influence there?"

The defeat of Kaido and Charlotte Linlin had created an unprecedented power vacuum and chaos in the New World—a situation ripe for the Revolutionary Army to exploit.

Betty, commander of the Eastern Army, responded:

"Even so, the situation in the New World is still very complicated. There's no guarantee we'll come out on top. It's a huge risk."

"Plus, judging by the Marine's rapid advance, their target is likely the New World, so it's inevitable that we'll cross paths."

Everyone looked to Dragon, waiting for his decision.

Dragon frowned, tapping his fingers rhythmically on the table. After a few moments of silent thought, he finally spoke.

"Marines fight pirates, and we liberate the people. There's no direct conflict of interest between us right now."

"Though the Marines are under the World Government, there are still those with a sense of justice, like Fujitora."

"If the opportunity arises, it'd be ideal to reach out and perhaps even convince him to join the Revolutionary Army."

"Ivankov, prepare to head to the New World with me."

"The New World? Are we...?" Ivankov hesitated.

Dragon nodded slightly.

"I've received intel that the World Government has begun taxing the Heavenly Tribute from kingdoms like Vodka and Macabaka. The people are in an uproar."

"If we want to overthrow the Celestial Dragons and change the world, we must rally all forces."

"Besides gaining support, I also intend to visit Egghead Island."

Everyone's attention turned to him, curious.

"Egghead Island? Isn't that under World Government control? I heard it's where Vegapunk conducts his research."

Dragon sighed, a trace of guilt flickering in his eyes.

"For the sake of the Revolutionary Army, Kuma volunteered to become a subject of their experiments."

"Before they begin, I want to see him one last time."

Marineford, Marine HQ.

Footsteps echoed down the corridor.

Bang, bang, bang!

A rhythmic knock came at the door.

"Enter."

The scent of perfume wafted in as Ain walked to the desk, holding two documents.

"Admiral Carlos, this is the report from the front lines. Please review it."

"Just give me a verbal report."

"Yes, sir. After twenty days, the operation is nearing completion. The fleets are returning."

"In total, fifty-five pirate crews, large and small, were wiped out. We seized three Grade Swords, ten treasure maps, fifteen Devil Fruits, and gold and silver worth 4.2 billion beli."

Carlos nodded in approval.

The Marine's operation had gone more smoothly than expected, and the haul was substantial. Most importantly, the rear was now secure, allowing the Marines to shift focus.

The three Admirals had shown their distinct styles during the campaign.

Akainu was swift and ruthless, killing the most enemies, capturing the most pirates, and completing his mission the fastest.

Green Bull had performed well too, capturing nearly 10,000 pirates. These captives could be used as labor for building Marine bases.

Of the three, Fujitora's progress was the slowest, but his approach was different. Along his path, he had earned the hearts of many civilians. More than a few had chosen to follow him voluntarily.

The fleet of 10,000 soldiers he started with had swelled to nearly 30,000 in under a month.

The overall campaign was a success.

Next, the focus would shift to the New World.

Carlos glanced at the other document on his desk and muttered to himself, "Vegapunk has had the Master Ball for a while now. It's time to see if he's figured out how to deal with Kaido."

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