In the days after the bust, both the 16th Marine Branch and the Conomi Archipelago were taking stock of their gains.
After Nami ran the numbers, the haul wasn't just bounties and ships, there was a chunk of treasure too.
The pirates had hidden it well, so well they almost sold the ships with the treasure still aboard, but with Nami on the case, nothing valuable, no matter how cleverly stashed, could escape those sharp eyes of hers. She found every last bit.
Like they'd planned, some of the ships had to go. Neither the islands nor the 16th Branch needed that many vessels, anyway, and some just weren't suited for civilian or Marine use. Better to sell them off and buy proper ones later.
The Conomi folk kept a few for cargo, and the 16th Branch kept some too, planning to repaint them as Marine warships.
Real Marine warships, whatever the model, were built to standard specs and ordered officially. Strictly speaking, pirate ships weren't cut out for Marine duty.
But they didn't have much choice right now. With no proper supplier, they'd have to make do.
Getting actual Marine warships meant building them secretly, buying from black market dealers, or ordering from HQ.
Building was out, they had no shipwrights, and even if they did, no blueprints. Despite how common warships seemed, the tech wasn't simple. Especially the big ones. Besides, building warships privately was illegal.
Black market dealers... expensive, unreliable, and easier to find on the Grand Line or in the New World anyway.
Ordering from HQ? Please. The 16th Branch pleaded poverty every year just to get funding after pirate attacks. Where would they find the cash for new warships? That would just tell HQ they had more than enough money. How could they ask for subsidies after that?
Even the five warships the 16th Branch did have were mostly scrounged up over the years thanks to Shawn pulling strings, plus some creative damage reports.
Of course, they could use this incident to claim a warship was damaged and get HQ to send a replacement. Then the 16th Branch would have six proper warships, plus the repainted pirate ships. Just looking at hull count, they'd arguably be the strongest Marine branch near the Grand Line entrance in the East Blue.
Whether there was a stronger branch somewhere else in the East Blue, Dante couldn't say.
But numbers weren't everything. Look at the Krieg Pirates, the so-called 'overlords' of the East Blue, they boasted five thousand men and fifty ships, but one strong fighter could tear them apart.
Without real strength backing it up, equipment didn't mean much. Strictly speaking, the 16th Branch still had fewer Marines than pirates under Krieg.
Of course, the branch had been recruiting nonstop. Posters were up all over the Conomi islands, sparking a bit of a recruitment craze. Even Smoker had probably caught wind of it.
Case in point...
*Bang!*
The door burst open.
Dante looked up from his plans for the branch's development. Smoker stood there, having barged in without knocking. Dante took a slow sip of the black tea Robin had poured him. "Smoker," he said, sighing theatrically, "you really need to work on that temper. Good thing I wasn't... occupied. Would have been awkward. No wonder they shipped you off to the weakest sea. You could stand to learn a thing or two about tact from me."
"..." Smoker's nonchalant expression soured. Dante's words hit a nerve. 'Learn from him? Learn what? How to bullshit his way through reports, deceive HQ, and embezzle funds? Or maybe how to cherry-pick pirate fights? Besides... what makes him think he's any better, getting demoted? And what the hell was he implying about being 'occupied'?'
Smoker jerked a thumb towards the pink-haired, round-faced kid beside him. "This kid heard you're recruiting. Wants to join the 16th Branch."
The kid immediately stepped forward, eyes wide with hopeful excitement as he looked at Dante. "Captain Dante! My name is Koby! Please, let me join the 16th Branch! I want to become a Marine strong enough to catch all the pirates, just like you!"
'I hadn't seen exactly what happened back then,' Koby thought, 'but waking up to find everyone captured... it had to be these two Marines. '
Just two of them taking down that many pirates? It was incredible. And when he found out the man was Captain Dante, the base commander himself... Koby knew he had to be incredibly strong.
That's why, when he heard the 16th Branch was recruiting, he'd desperately wanted a chance. But he hadn't found the right moment or maybe, he'd just been too scared they wouldn't take him. Then he heard they were being sent back to their home islands, and panic set in.
Finally, he worked up the nerve to ask Captain Smoker, who'd brought him here.
"Koby..." The name made Dante look up, surprised. Seeing the pink hair confirmed his guess. 'I didn't expect to pick him up along with the pirates.'
Dante raised an eyebrow, ignoring Smoker's glare. He focused on Koby, steepling his fingers under his chin, his expression turning serious. "The 16th Branch is short-handed," he began, his tone grave, "but we only take the best. Elite soldiers, hardened men of the sea. You, however..."
He didn't finish, but Koby understood. His shoulders slumped, head dropping in disappointment. 'Of course, they'd reject a coward like me.'
'But I finally found the courage to atleast ask. I would've regretted it forever if I gave up now.' Koby took another shaky breath, looked Captain Dante straight in the eye, and opened his mouth to argue-
"-But," Dante cut him off smoothly, as if anticipating the protest. He leaned forward slightly. "As a Marine Captain, dedicated to justice, I'm willing to give you a chance." His voice took on an official tone. "Pass the 16th Branch's exclusive assessment, and you're in."
Confusion flickered across Koby's face.
Robin, who had been quietly observing, tilted her head, looking at Dante with faint confusion. 'An exclusive assessment? Since when? Wasn't it just the standard HQ assessment, maybe with slightly lower bars for branch recruits?'
Even Smoker, who'd looked bored, turned his head, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes. What kind of special assessment did this branch have? 'Honestly,' he thought, 'as demoted Captain, Smoker was curious what kind of test this guy, supposedly more talented than him, would come up with.'
"I... I...!" Hope surged back into Koby. He clenched his fists, practically vibrating with excitement. "I'll work hard! Thank you, Captain Dante! Thank you for the chance! I won't let you down!"
"Excellent." Dante nodded, satisfied. He kept his hands steepled, his expression hardening once more, projecting that unmistakable Captain's authority. "In that case, I will assess you myself."
Koby blinked. 'Captain Dante himself is going to assess me?'
Before Koby could fully process it, Dante spoke again, his voice cutting through the room.
"Listen closely. Here is the question." All eyes were on him. "Imagine a massive battle between Marines and pirates. You're there, on the field. The fighting winds down, the Marines have won, but the pirates haven't been wiped out. The battlefield is littered with bodies. You see comrades, people you know, dead or dying all around you. In that moment... what do you feel? What is your reaction?"
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