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

Or rather, it was because of Karl's care that they were able to continue their pirate careers; otherwise, they would have been used by Karl to exchange for merits long ago.

And Shanks? He is indeed someone who has done Luffy a great favor. The fact that Luffy keeps mentioning him is enough to prove his importance in Luffy's heart.

But to them, before meeting Shanks, he was just a figure who existed in newspapers and in Luffy's words. He did save Luffy's life, that was only important to Luffy, and they weren't that interested.

Take Nami for example, Karl saved Cocoyasi Village and defeated the evil dragon.

For Chopper, Carl helped him defeat his nemesis Wapol...

In short, because of Karl's presence, the bond between some members of the Straw Hat Pirates and Luffy wasn't as deep.

Therefore, they did not want to be enemies with Karl.

So no matter how much Luffy begged, they refused to remove the extremely pure seastone handcuffs from him. Instead, they sped up and left Aregia Island. As for Uta, who was still sleeping... they'd deal with him when he woke up!

Isregia.

Ding-a-ling!

Karl gripped the Raven tightly in both hands and kept slashing at Shanks in front of him. Shanks could only defend passively, and when he managed to counterattack, Karl would easily deflect his weapon.

There was nothing he could do; the difference in strength was too great. Shanks was already weaker than Karl, and Karl was using both hands. Shanks could only grit his teeth and endure it.

thump~

After Shanks blocked Karl's downward slash, he lost his balance and staggered back more than ten steps before regaining his footing.

Shanks planted Griffin in the ground, staring intently at Karl, his chest rising and falling slightly.

"What's wrong, Shanks? You're tired after only an hour? That won't do! I'm prepared to play with you for a whole day and night! You have to hang in there!"

Seeing that Karl was alright, Shanks couldn't help but think to himself: That bastard is a beast! Does he really have an inexhaustible supply of stamina?

Now he understands how Big Mom caused the destruction of Tales of Tales in a single day; there's no need to think about it anymore.

Carl would definitely focus on attacking Big Mom to wear her down, while the other generals would deal with Big Mom's officers and then be free to attack her. Otherwise, given Big Mom's strength, she could have held out against Carl for a day or two, since she's tough and resilient.

Now, the Navy is probably using the same strategy, using Karl to wear him down and keep him from paying attention to others.

If they continue fighting, they will either face death or imprisonment.

Most importantly, they couldn't escape; their boat was under control, and their only escape route was to jump into the sea.

But with the navy making such a large-scale mobilization, how could they possibly succeed?

In this case, the only option is to fight to the death!

Boom! A breathtaking aura suddenly erupted—the domineering presence that made Shanks famous!

Karl narrowed his eyes slightly, looked at Shanks who exuded an overwhelming aura, and said with a smile, "What an impressive spirit! It's just a pity that everyone has Conqueror's Haki."

Karl's gaze sharpened, revealing the "righteous spirit" unique to naval heroes!

Kakakka~

Their Conqueror's Haki clashed like thunder and fire, one pressing down on the other, the other pushing back, neither willing to yield.

Because both of their domineering auras had the effect of influencing the real world, everything around them was destroyed by this aura, creating two bare "vacuum" zones at their feet.

Shanks lifted Griffin and gently stroked it with his hand, imbuing the blade with his unparalleled aura. The silver-white blade instantly transformed into a dark purple, and red and black lightning crackled around Shanks, making even the air thicken.

"Ready to get serious, Shanks?"

Seeing that the commotion was quite significant, Karl, in order to prevent a mishap, decisively released a large amount of holy light, which condensed into a substantial "holy light shield" to protect himself.

A red glint flashed in Shanks' eyes as he softly murmured, "God... Silence..."

The sky suddenly darkened, Shanks bent down, assumed a fighting stance, and vanished from the spot, leaving afterimages.

*Crack!* Shanks slashed at Karl's shield. At first, nothing seemed amiss, and Karl assumed that Shanks' trump card was nothing special.

However, Carl soon realized something was wrong.

Crackling sounds echoed as spiderweb-like cracks rapidly spread across the shield. At that moment, a glint flashed in Shanks' eyes, and he increased his strength even further.

The shield shattered completely, and Griffin's blade came hurtling towards them.

Karl's gaze sharpened, and he twisted his wrist, using the Raven to block Griffin. The moment the weapons clashed, Karl's expression changed.

That's way too strong!

=============, These are the two furrows that Karl plowed out with his feet.

"God's Evasion, God's Silence, hehe..." Karl twisted his neck, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Not bad at all!"

"However, you shouldn't even think about defeating me with this move!"

Shanks' gaze turned serious, bracing himself for Karl's counterattack...

the other side.

In the battle between the Navy and the Red-Haired Pirates, the Navy almost completely overwhelmed the Red-Haired officers, not to mention the buffs given by Karl, who expended a lot of energy.

Just look at the navy's lineup and you'll know.

Sarutoshi and Fujitora, two generals.

Momousagi and Chaton are two candidates for general.

Fifteen vice admirals, including Fire Mountain, Flying Squirrel, and T. Penn.

The Red-Haired Pirates didn't have many capable members. Apart from a few core officers, the rest were all newcomers and not particularly strong, so they were quickly defeated.

The remaining crew members probably won't last long either. The Navy already has more combat power than them, so with this disparity, each of the Red-Haired Pirates' officers will face even more Navy personnel, not fewer.

bang bang bang~

Beckman fired three shots at Kizaru. Kizaru couldn't dodge in time and was hit just as he turned into a golden light. After all, these were bullets imbued with Haki.

"As expected of Shanks' right-hand man! He's terrifying!"

The ape used his hands to pry the bullets out of his abdomen one by one and threw them on the ground. Under the influence of the holy light, the wound healed rapidly and recovered in a few breaths. The ape then revealed a chrysanthemum-like smile.

Beckman thought to himself: Is it Karl's ability again? Damn, this is disgusting. If this continues, they are bound to lose.

"Heh, looks like it's no use! Next time, remember to aim for my heart or head, maybe that will kill me."

"The Kusanagi Sword!!"

The battle continued, but an atmosphere of despair silently spread throughout the Red-Haired Pirates.

Without their leader, and facing a navy where everyone is a mini-Kaido, they are truly exhausted.

Chapter 351 The Red-Haired Pirates, Defeated

The following day, the Thousand Sunny.

Uta slowly woke up and looked at the unfamiliar surroundings, feeling a sense of unease. Then the door opened, and a brown raccoon cat pattered in.

"Ah! Miss Uta, thank goodness, you're awake! Hey everyone, Miss Uta is awake!"

Uta looked at the shouting Chopper, patted her head, and remembered that he was one of Luffy's crewmates.

At Chopper's call, the Straw Hat crew all rushed over.

"Miss Uta, how are you feeling? Are you alright?"

Uta shook his head: "It's nothing, just a little tired. By the way, what happened? Why am I on your ship?"

"This..." The Straw Hat crew was speechless. How could they tell her?

What if she goes berserk if I tell her?

Uta immediately had a bad feeling: "Did something happen on Aregia Island? Tell me!"

Seeing that Uta was showing signs of losing control of her emotions, Chopper quickly said, "Miss Uta, please don't get agitated. You've exhausted yourself. You should rest now!"

Nami and Robin exchanged a glance. After Robin nodded, Nami took a deep breath and looked at Uta.

“Miss Uta, don’t worry, your fans are all fine. After you sent everyone back to the world of Songsong, they have been evacuated from Aregia Island by the Navy. They will be safe.”

Uta breathed a sigh of relief, but then he thought, evacuate? Why evacuate?

Where is Shanks?

At that moment, Robin stepped forward: "Let me explain, Miss Uta."

"After you fell into a coma..."

After hearing Robin's story, Uta's expression was extremely complicated. What was this? Had she been abandoned again?

“Miss Uta, all we can do now is wait for the outcome of the battle on Aregia Island. The battle on Aregia Island is not something we can participate in. Shanks doesn’t want us to participate either. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have personally put Seastone handcuffs on Luffy.”

Uta stared blankly at the sea outside the window, remaining silent for a long time, and the room fell into complete silence.

Seeing this, Nami could only whisper to comfort her, "Miss Uta, we'll be going now. You should get some rest. If you need anything, just call us anytime."

Crack... Bang!

The room, which had been packed with people, suddenly became empty, with only Uta whispering, "Shanks..."

Meanwhile, on the island of Areggia.

At this point, there was no intact land left on Islegia. It was riddled with holes and crisscrossed with ravines. In the center of the island, a red figure was panting heavily, and the ground was already stained with blood.

Standing opposite him was a trio of generals led by Karl.