The Chaos of the New World

After staying at the G1 Branch Base for a few days, Jon clearly noticed many changes compared to his last visit.

There were more patrolling soldiers, stricter inspections at the island's surrounding ports, and the soldiers' training sessions were longer and more professional. Many other changes were also evident.

It was clear that since Sakazuki became the commander of G1 Base, he immediately began reforming the branch, completely transforming its atmosphere.

Over the past few days, Jon also learned a lot about G1's responsibilities—its jurisdiction covered a vast area of the New World.

Although the Navy's control over the New World had greatly diminished since the Rocks era, it still held considerable authority there. Many places in the New World depended on the Navy to maintain law and order.

Every naval base in the New World deployed patrol ships daily to monitor their respective regions, and the Navy had established offices on many islands. If any incident occurred, those offices could quickly contact the naval branch.

After understanding the area under G1's jurisdiction, Jon prepared to set sail using one of the base's patrol ships.

Jon, Pemberton, and two hundred soldiers boarded a standard patrol ship, setting off from G1 Base.

"With Sakazuki as the commander of G1, things are a lot smoother for us. Operations are much easier too," Jon said as he and Pemberton sat on the deck enjoying the sea breeze. They had already been sailing for two days.

Normally, a patrol route around the jurisdiction would take about two months. But since they had special permission from Sakazuki, they weren't in a hurry, sailing while waiting for intelligence reports.

The New World is vast, and even though there are many pirates, finding them isn't easy—especially the powerful ones. Unless they have a base of operations, it's mostly up to luck to encounter them.

Currently, not many pirate crews in the New World have permanent strongholds, and those that do are typically powerful—too risky for the Navy to confront head-on.

Jon and his crew only had one patrol ship. Storming a pirate stronghold would be suicide.

So under normal circumstances, they could only passively wait for intel. If a town came under pirate attack and couldn't handle it, they would report it to the Navy for assistance.

That's what Jon and the others were waiting for—news of a pirate attack. Otherwise, all they could do was continue sailing, hoping to stumble across something.

Of course, that kind of thinking only applied to Jon and others confident in their strength. Most patrol crews hoped not to run into pirates at all.

With only one warship, encountering a large pirate crew could mean being wiped out instead of wiping out the pirates.

Only Navy personnel like Jon, who were confident in their abilities, actively sought out pirates to earn merit and climb the ranks.

Sakazuki being the G1 commander really made things easier for Jon. If someone else had been in charge, they wouldn't have such freedom.

"Sakazuki chose to lead G1, while that sly Borsalino picked G2—typical," Pemberton commented.

G1 was located deep in the New World and under intense pressure, while G2 was in the first half of the Grand Line, where the pressure was much lighter and support from Marine HQ was nearby. It was far more comfortable than G1.

Jon laughed. "That fits Borsalino's style perfectly. He's always been lazy."

From their choices alone, it was clear Sakazuki had more sense of duty, while Borsalino was more laid-back.

"You know what really gets me? How the hell did that kid Momonga get promoted faster than us? Damn it, I just can't accept it."

Pemberton had been feeling pretty defeated lately—so many younger people outranked him now, making him feel like he had wasted all those years.

"Can you have a little ambition? We've only just started. What's the rush?"

"That's easy for you to say. I'm pushing forty, more than ten years older than you. You think I can afford not to worry?"

Pemberton gave Jon a look that said, "easy for you to talk."

His feelings were valid—after forty, promotions in the Navy became much harder unless one had exceptional luck. Originally, he had planned to enjoy life after forty, but after acquiring the Heat-Heat Fruit, he grew more ambitious.

Right then, a Den Den Mushi rang. Pemberton pulled it out.

"Looks like we've got work."

Sure enough, it was a distress call. A group of pirates had attacked a town, causing heavy casualties. The kingdom's guards couldn't handle it, so they requested Navy support.

"Wai Kingdom, Karen Island."

Their patrol ship was stocked with a large number of Log Pose pointers. Most of the important islands within G1's territory were covered, so after checking the map, they headed straight for Karen Island.

They moved quickly, but by the time they arrived, the pirates had already left. After gathering intel, they immediately gave chase.

They caught up just as the pirates were attacking another town.

After a short battle, Jon's crew completely annihilated the pirates. Unfortunately, none of them were notable figures—the captain had a bounty of just over 40 million Berries.

In the first half of the Grand Line, that bounty would've meant something. But in the New World? It was small fry.

They killed the resisting pirates and handed the rest over to local authorities, leaving it up to them whether to imprison them or turn them over to the Navy.

Over the next few weeks, Jon's crew encountered several similar cases. It was a high frequency.

Jon remembered how back in the first half of the Grand Line, they'd go weeks without any action. Now, in just a few days, they'd already responded to several pirate attacks.

No wonder the New World had such a high casualty rate for Marines. Without enough strength, facing these pirates would be deadly. That's also why many Marines were unwilling to be stationed in the New World.

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