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

Chapter 216 Loguetown Weapon Shop

Rogue Town.

"Where have you two been? What, back to your old ways?"

Ain walked forward with a smile and took Karl's arm. Tashigi stared intently at Karl, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

"Sigh, what can I do? I'm destined to be a hard worker. I finally get to come out and still have to work. People's hearts have changed so much!"

Smoker rolled his eyes, turned to Monka, and said, "Put him in the cell."

"Yes!"

Karl patted Ian's shoulder: "How did you guys have fun while I was gone? This place is pretty good, isn't it?"

"Yes, of course! Tashigi and I explored the entire Loguetown, and I bought a lot of local specialties!"

"Haha, whatever makes you happy."

Ain nodded, seemingly remembering something, and quickly said, "Yesterday I heard someone say there's a floating restaurant called Barati in the East China Sea, right in the Sambas waters. They say the chef there is really good. Karl, I want you to come with me... okay?"

To maximize the effect of her coquettishness, Ain even transformed into a crystal-clear little girl, not even as tall as Karl's thigh.

The little girl, Ian, adorably shook Karl's cloak of justice, as if refusing her would be a heinous crime.

"Okay, okay, I promise, but let's talk about it in a couple of days. At least let me explore Loguetown first, right?"

"Okay! It's a deal. I'll take you there. Oh, by the way, Tashigi, didn't you have something you wanted to say to Karl?"

Tashigi blushed and stood shyly in front of Karl: "Lieutenant General Karl, I saw a sword shop here yesterday. I heard that this shop has a famous sword, but I... I can't find it."

Karl stroked his chin: "You want me to help you find that famous sword?"

"Yes, please, Lieutenant General Karl."

Good grief, is Tashigi planning to steal Zoro's Yubashiri and Sandai Kitetsu? If so... I like it.

"Alright, Ain, you come too! Wait a minute, Tashigi, don't you already have Togure? Besides, you're a One-Sword Style user, aren't you?"

Tashigi said earnestly, "I just don't want a famous sword to lie on the shelf unattended..."

Oh, I remember now. Tashigi's dream is to collect all the famous swords that have been stolen by villains. It's normal and logical for her to buy two swords for her collection.

"Alright then! Let's go! Smoker, you go ahead and get busy! I'll come find you later!"

"Okay, you go!"

......

Weapon shop.

The boss, who had the air of a colonel, was resting with his chin in his hand when he heard the noise at the door and immediately woke up.

Sigh~ It's a sad story. Before Smoker came, Loguetown was so-so. Even though there was a Marine base, there were still a lot of pirates. His business was so good back then!

But ever since Smoker arrived, every pirate who dares to land in Loguetown has met the same fate: being dried up and killed by Rear Admiral Smoker, without exception.

This caused his business to plummet. He had to squeeze every fat sheep he could find, and sure enough, the fat sheep—or rather, the customers—came to his door.

"Oh, just tell me what weapon you want to buy. This is a century-old shop, and we absolutely don't sell defective products!"

The first person to enter was Ain, who was dressed in casual clothes and wearing jewelry given to her by Karl. She looked like a wealthy young woman, which explained why the weapons shop owner was so excited.

However, upon seeing Tashigi walk in right after him, Ipponmatsu's (the weapon shop owner) face immediately fell.

It's that same clueless person who only looks but never buys again. Ugh, so annoying.

Just as he was about to ask Tashigi to leave, Ipponmatsu's gaze fell on Karl, who had just entered, mainly on the black swords, Shusui and Raiyu, hanging at Karl's waist.

"My God! This, isn't this the national treasure of Wano Country, Shusui? How could it be... Ah! You, you are the Navy hero, Karl!!!"

Ipponmatsu was shocked. Although he had heard yesterday that the new era's naval hero had arrived in Loguetown, it seemed that no one had seen him. He thought it was just a rumor!

He never expected that the naval hero would actually come and even appear in his small shop.

To him, Karl was not just a naval hero, but a powerful figure who stood at the pinnacle of swordsmanship, just like the world's greatest swordsman, Mihawk.

Karl slowly walked up to Ipponmatsu, looked down at him, and asked, "Are you from Wano Country?"

"Yes, no, no. My father is from Wano Country. I was born in Loguetown. Because he specializes in selling swords, my father often talked to me about Wano Country's long-lost national treasure—the black sword Shusui—and lamented it. That's why I'm so excited."

Karl smiled slightly: "No need to be so nervous. I've just brought my men here to choose a couple of good knives. Do you have any here?"

"Subordinate? Is it this fool—no, this beautiful lady?"

Tashigi suddenly looked up, glaring at Ipponmatsu with shame and indignation: "I'm not a fool, I... I just have decision-making difficulties..."

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, it was my fault," Ipponmatsu quickly apologized.

Carl waved his hand: "Forget about that, let's bring out all the good knives in your shop and have a look!"

Upon hearing this, Ippon Matsu looked conflicted. He did have a good knife, but it was nothing compared to Karl's Autumn Water or Thunderstorm.

"Ah! Lieutenant General Karl, since you've put it that way, I won't hide anything anymore. Please wait a moment." With that, Ippon turned and ran to the back room, returning shortly with a rather presentable knife.

“Lieutenant General Karl, this is my family heirloom, the Fifty Good Swords - Snow Walk, with a black lacquered hilt and a chaotic small T-shaped blade. It is exceptionally sharp and can cut a hair in two with ease.”

Tashigi, standing to the side, gaped in surprise. There really was a famous sword, though it was only a good-quality one, it was still quite impressive.

Not every swordsman can wield three top-tier swords like Lieutenant General Karl.

No, apart from Autumn Water, Raven and Thunderstorm only became Supreme Grade Swords and Grade Swords because they were in the hands of Lieutenant General Karl.

"Snow Walk? Hmm, looks pretty good. Hey, Tashigi, what do you think?"

Tashigi was overjoyed, her eyes wide as she observed every detail of Yuki's movements.

"Snow Walk... It sounds like a scene of walking quietly in the snow, or the snowflakes slowly falling, cold and sharp, truly a fine knife!"

Karl raised an eyebrow, surprised that Tashigi was so professional in appraising famous swords. He almost forgot that besides Yubashiri, there was also a Sandai Kitetsu here.

Forget it, let's leave it to Zoro. It's useless to him, and Tashigi can't handle it either.

"Since you like it, then buy it! Boss, name your price!"

Karl, who carries billions of Berries with him, speaks with such confidence!

Chapter 217 Sea Restaurant

Ippon-matsu straightened up and looked up at Karl.

"Lieutenant General Karl, this sword is free! However, I have a small request: I would like to have my eye on your sword, Autumn Water! Please!"

With his hands clasped together and a 90-degree bow, Ipponmatsu truly embodies the spirit of a craftsman, befitting a descendant of the people of Wano Country.

"Haha, the boss is really generous, but I won't let you suffer a loss."

"Qiu Shui, you can have it if you want, but I have to give you Bailey too. Since you're not going to name a price, I'll just give you whatever I can think of."

After saying that, Karl pretended to take out money, then randomly pulled out a handful of Berries from the system space. They were all 5000-dollar denominations, each handful worth about 100 million Berries, and slammed them on the table.

"These are what you deserve, take them. The Navy will not take a single needle or thread from the people for nothing."

Ippon Matsu was deeply moved. "Truly a naval hero! Such a grand vision!"

"Thank you, thank you!"

Karl waved his hand, took out the Autumn Water from his waist, and placed it on the table. It was worth every ounce of light; at this moment, Pele was like a piece of waste paper in his eyes.

Ipponmatsu took a deep breath, very professionally put on gloves and a small magnifying glass, and solemnly picked up the Akisui and placed it on the prepared knife rack.

"This is the sword that once slew a dragon! It's breathtakingly beautiful."

"Heavy and tough, it truly lives up to its reputation as the sword of a dragon-slaying warrior. Cough cough, of course, it is an honor for it to be used by you."

Karl chuckled softly, saying nothing more.

In fact, he rarely uses Qiushui anymore, because it has been marked with Longma's mark, and Longma is the only master it truly recognizes.

This feeling became even stronger as Karl's swordsmanship skills deepened.

This indirectly caused Karl to feel inexplicably awkward when using Autumn Water. Although it didn't affect his combat, he always felt a bit strange.

I don't have this feeling when using Raven and Thunderstorm. Of course, this only applies to good swords. Fast swords like Snowwalker and Shigure don't have this problem at all.

After admiring it for a while, Ipponmatsu sighed and said, "If my father could have seen the sword of the Dragon Slayer, he could have died in peace."

Karl smiled slightly, saying nothing more. Perhaps this was the influence of the unique samurai culture of Wano Country...

The scene shifts back to the Straw Hat Pirates.

After leaving Shells Town, Luffy and Zoro somehow ended up in Orange Town, where they defeated Captain Buggy with Nami. Although Nami didn't immediately agree to let Luffy join the Straw Hat Pirates, she had gradually come to accept him.

He was indeed different from other pirates, but she also had her own concerns.

After all, when she was a child, Cocoyasi Village was saved by the Navy, and she promised that she would meet that man on the high seas.

All her efforts were aimed at successfully reaching the Grand Line and seeing that man again.

However, Nami did not want to meet that man as a pirate, so staying by Luffy's side was only a temporary measure.

However, after what happened in West Brom Village, Nami began to waver.

Because Luffy now has a ship, a ship big enough to carry her to the Grand Line - the Going Merry.

Since they're all going to be navigators anyway, what's the difference between a merchant ship and a pirate ship? Besides, merchant ships value seniority, so would anyone really believe a young, beautiful girl like her?