One Piece: Starting as a Marine Lieutenant, I Slack Off and Get Stronger

As if he had thought of something bad, Monka's face suddenly turned very gloomy.

But the other naval personnel were different. They weren't stupid and could vaguely guess what was going on. After all, they had submitted quite a bit of material to report Colonel Monca. Were they going to punish this arrogant guy today?

Koby, who had always dreamed of becoming a righteous Marine, gaped, his eyes wide with disbelief. A Marine hero? What kind of place would a Marine hero come to?

Luffy scratched his head. "Naval hero? What's that? Never heard of it!"

Zoro, who had finally gotten his hands on the sword, was startled. Although he hadn't heard what anyone was saying, the familiar flying slash immediately reminded him of the first time he met Karl.

There's no mistake, it's him!

"Colonel Monca, Commander of Naval Base 153, you are accused of embezzlement, abuse of power, and oppression of civilians... The evidence is conclusive. Please come with us!"

The speaker was Smoker, a former member of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) of the Navy, who was more professional in this regard. Carl was just watching from the sidelines.

Monka immediately exclaimed excitedly, "Nonsense! I am the base commander of Branch 153, and I have that authority."

Before Smoker could say anything, Carl patted him on the shoulder, the unspoken message being, "Now it's my turn."

"Whether you have the authority or not is not up to you to decide, but rather up to Naval Headquarters. However... it's quite outrageous that a mere branch colonel like you dares to erect a statue for yourself. I, a naval hero, don't even have one!"

"Indeed, we've been here for a while now, observing your every move. Based on my experience as the former head of the Navy's Independent Commission Against Corruption... hehe, get ready to enter Impel Down!"

Monka waved his hand dismissively: "What right do you have to send me to Impel Down? I am the highest-ranking officer here. Even if you have a higher rank than me, you have no right to arrest me!"

"Come on, kill them!"

Unfortunately, none of the naval officers and soldiers dared to move.

Nonsense! A naval hero capable of killing a vicious criminal with a bounty of nearly 50 billion Berries—you think you can just kill him whenever you want? Besides, who the hell are you?! Don't even try to get involved; I'm afraid the naval hero will misunderstand!

"This guy is hopeless."

Smoker snorted and shouted, "All naval officers and soldiers, listen to my order! Immediately arrest the corrupt Navy officer Morgan, or you will all be considered accomplices!"

Upon hearing this, the naval officers and soldiers present immediately turned their guns towards Monka without the slightest hesitation.

"Fine, you bunch of traitors, traitors! I'm going to execute you all!!!"

After speaking, Colonel Monca raised his right hand and swung his giant axe at the navy soldiers in front of him. For a moment, none of the navy soldiers dared to fire.

Karl raised his right hand with an ape-like air, and dazzling golden light instantly gathered at Karl's fingertips, followed by a beep.

The holy light bullet struck Monka's hand axe precisely. The next second, Monka's eyes widened, and he frantically swung his right hand.

"It's so hot! It's so hot! It hurts so much!"

Upon closer inspection, it became clear that Monca's hand axe had turned bright red and was soon melting into a pool of molten iron, with a meaty aroma gradually filling the air.

Standing beside Karl, Smoker stared wide-eyed at him in disbelief: "You, when did your Holy Light become capable of harming people? This, this isn't like Admiral Kizaru..."

Karl waved his hand dismissively: "It's nothing, I just accidentally awakened my ability."

Smoker: ...You're awesome!

Sigh~ This guy has gotten stronger again! Although he has worked hard to develop the Smoke-Smoke Fruit over the years, he hasn't even touched the threshold of awakening it.

"It's alright, it's alright. Even powerful characters like Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru haven't awakened their Devil Fruit abilities, have they?" Smoker thought to himself, feeling much better.

"Is this...is this the strength of a naval hero? He took down Colonel Morgan so easily?"

"Nonsense, Vice Admiral Karl is a man who has fought against every one of the Four Emperors in the New World!"

Smoker coughed lightly and pointed at Morgan, who was groaning on the ground: "What are you all standing there for? Tie him up!"

"Yes, sir!"

Karl then turned his gaze to Zoro beside him: "You've disappointed me greatly, Zoro."

Zoro didn't know how to answer, so he could only look at Karl in silence.

"Hey, who are you?!"

Luffy seems to have completely forgotten Karl. Well, that makes sense, considering they only met once, many years ago. Given Luffy's personality, it would be strange if he remembered him.

"Monkey D. Luffy, is that it? That's surprising. The grandson of a dignified Marine hero would choose to become a pirate. What's wrong with this world?"

"Huh? You know my grandfather? Wait... I remember now, you're that navy auntie who can turn people into children... Um, what's your name again?"

Karl's lips curled into a slight smile: "You'll find out later."

"As for you guys... Smoker, do any of them have bounties on their heads?"

Smoker gave Luffy a deep look, then shook his head firmly: "No, this guy looks like a greenhorn who's just set sail, how could he possibly have a bounty? But..."

“Mr. Karl, although Mr. Luffy is a pirate, he is not a bad person, and neither is Mr. Zoro. He has not done anything bad!”

Carl looked down at the short, pink-haired boy, a traitor who was loyal to one side but not to the other, and was utterly repulsive to look at.

"Are you a pirate too, you pink-haired brat?"

Koby suddenly froze, then stammered something unintelligible, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

Is he a pirate? Yes, he was. He had been working as a pirate's handyman under Alvida, though not voluntarily. But the Navy didn't have that much time to find out if he was there voluntarily or not.

How could someone with a pirate background become a righteous Marine?

"Hey, he's not a pirate. Look at him, he's nothing like a pirate. He's cowardly and a crybaby..." Luffy kept listing Coby's shortcomings.

Coby wasn't angry; instead, he looked at Luffy with gratitude, because he knew that Luffy was taking the initiative to distance himself from him, thus proving his innocence.

Smoker scoffed, "You think I can't see through your tricks? Drawing a line between us is such a childish thing."

Chapter 214 The Navy Doesn't Need People Like You

Koby's face stiffened and suddenly turned deathly pale.

"This, this is all because..."

Smoker waved his hand dismissively: "No need for further explanation. You claim to be a righteous Marine, but behind the scenes you're entangled with pirates. How can the other Marines trust you? How can they entrust their backs to you?"

"Mr. Luffy is not a bad person!"

Karl sneered: "You say he's not a bad person, so he's not a bad person? Fine, then I'll assume he's a good person. But let me ask you, would a good person become a pirate?"

“No, that’s not how it is.” Koby shook his head abruptly.

"Interesting. Now, let me ask you this: if you joined the Navy and were tasked with capturing this straw hat kid, what would you do?"

Coby glanced at Luffy and was speechless.

He identifies with Luffy and admires him, but Luffy is a pirate, and he wants to become a righteous Marine, whose mission is to capture pirates, which is a contradiction.

This also means that Coby will become the sixth man when facing Luffy.

Perhaps Coby's initial dream was to join the Navy and defeat the bad guys, and in his own mind, he believed that pirates were bad guys and the Navy were good guys.

He naively believed that "all pirates are bad people," but when he first started out, he met Luffy, who was his mentor. Luffy was willing to do anything to protect his dream, which made him realize that there are good people among pirates.

At the same time, he believed that all the navy people were good people. During this experience, he met the scoundrel in the navy - Morgan. It was because of this experience that his dream was changed to some extent.

Later, through his own "efforts," he gained the approval of Luffy's grandfather, the naval hero Garp, and even aspired to become a naval admiral.

As we all know, in terms of naval combat power, the Admirals are considered to be the strongest force in the navy. In Karl’s view, wanting to become an Admiral can also be understood as Koby wanting to become the strongest force in the navy.

At the same time, perhaps in Coby's heart, the Navy Admirals are among the best, and he hopes to reach a certain level while also upholding true justice.

However, during the Marineford War, Koby's character was completely ruined.

In Karl's view, every Marine during the Marineford War was upholding their duty. Magellan fought desperately against the invaders, and Hannibal, usually a smooth talker, held off most of the pirates in prison to buy time for Magellan, all for the sake of his beliefs.

Although Garp, as the grandfather, was conflicted, he still chose to stand on the side of the Navy. All the Navy soldiers were fighting desperately at the front, but at this time, Coby was hiding in a corner, trembling with fear.

Just as his teammates were about to be wiped out, Koby stepped forward, hoping to avoid any unnecessary sacrifices. Wotterfa?

Koby's behavior is that of a deserter. Even if he is a coward and doesn't dare to go to the battlefield, he hides in a corner and cries while his teammates are fighting on the front lines. After his teammates are cleared out, he jumps out and stands on the moral high ground, spouting nonsense.

Is this all you think you can become a Navy Admiral?

As members of the Navy, we must be clear about our stance on matters of principle. Don't forget, there is only one Straw Hat Pirates in this world.

Those in positions of authority should fulfill their duties!

As a member of the navy, one should think from the navy's perspective about how to minimize the losses in war, and resolutely obey orders, instead of being cowardly in front of pirates and arrogant in front of colleagues!

This is the real reason why Carl dislikes Koby.

Therefore, it's better for this kind of person not to join the navy. The navy doesn't need another combatant like you. If you don't want to join the navy, there are plenty of people who want to.

Back to the topic.

Smoker was very dissatisfied with Koby's performance and shook his head in disappointment.

When that indifferent gaze pierced through him, Koby felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his face, and his whole body felt chilled to the bone.

"Alright, stop wasting time talking to this kid. Anyway, everything that happened today will be recorded. Anyone who is clearly associated with the Navy will never be allowed to join the Navy."

Karl nodded slightly, glancing at Luffy and Zoro who remained silent to the side.

"Now it's your turn. You're pirates, aren't you?"

Luffy raised his head and looked directly at Karl: "Yes, my name is Luffy, and I'm going to be the Pirate King! Zoro is a crewmate I just found, so what?"

"Luffy! Don't speak!"

Karl smiled slightly, walked up to Luffy, and patted him on the shoulder: "Very good, very energetic."