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

"Douglas Barrett! It can only be him!"

Karl said without hesitation that after the Marineford War, 99% of the pirates who escaped Impel Down were either arrested or killed, except for Douglas Barrett, who disappeared as if he had vanished from the sea.

Carl originally thought he would make a comeback in two years, just like he remembered, but he didn't.

Now that the situation is stable and everything is normal, he can't help but want to cause trouble.

Chapter 388 Bonus Chapter: Adventurers' Expo 2

"The Devil's Heir, Douglas Barrett, tsk, another guy connected to Roger?"

Kuzan shook his head helplessly. Now the Navy and the new government are in cahoots, and their attitude towards pirates is the same: zero tolerance.

Speaking of which, it's been a long time since any pirates have dared to cause trouble so openly. Barrett really isn't afraid of death.

"Now that he's escaped Impel Down, why does he have to come back to the battlefield? I really can't figure that guy out. By the way, are you going on this mission?" Kuzan glanced at Karl, who was playing with his daughter, and thought that Karl probably wouldn't go.

But the next second, Karl said without hesitation, "Of course, after resting for so long, it's time to get out and stretch our muscles."

It's definitely not because he doesn't want to clean up after his daughter anymore! That's exactly it!

Kuzan glanced at Karl suspiciously, but couldn't discern anything amiss, so he said, "Since you're going, I'm relieved. Do you need anyone else to help you?"

"What a joke, do you think I need help? It's just a Barrett, right? I'll just smash him and that's it."

"Besides, this guy's fusion fruit ability is quite troublesome. Sending too many warships would just be sending him materials, so I can go alone."

Kuzan nodded in agreement. He had faith in Karl's combat capabilities, but he still needed to send someone to clean up the mess. Hmm, he would just have Lieutenant General Peng go there.

"Alright, then this task is yours! Get ready and set off!"

Karl nodded: "There's no rush to set off. We should let Professor Zephyr and old man Sengoku see my daughter first, shouldn't we?"

New recruit training ground.

"Hey, look, that man looks familiar? Wait, isn't that General Karl? Is his vacation over?"

"Holy crap! General Karl, ahhh! General Karl! I'm your fan!!!"

Karl held Liana in one arm and waved to the new recruits with the other.

These new recruits are promising newcomers selected by the Navy Headquarters from around the world through rigorous screening. There are only about 50 of them, but these recruits will at least reach the rank of colonel at the Navy Headquarters in the future. This shows that the Navy has thoroughly implemented the principle of prioritizing quality over quantity in its military.

Passing the new recruits who were training, Carl found a tall old man around the parade ground.

"Professor Zephyr, it's been a long time! You still look as energetic as ever!"

Zefa smiled as he looked at Liana in Karl's arms, and asked impatiently, "Is this...is this your child?"

"Yes! Teacher Zephyr, her name is Boa Liana, she just turned 3 months old. What do you think? Doesn't she look like me?"

Zephyr narrowed his eyes slightly, carefully examining Liana's features, and exclaimed, "So alike, so very alike! She'll definitely grow up to be a great beauty. But, isn't this the child of that Pirate Empress?"

"Oh, that was so many years ago. He's now the king of a member state of the United Government. You can't judge him with prejudice!"

Zefa chuckled and scratched his head: "You're right. May I hold her?"

Without hesitation, Karl handed Liana directly to Teacher Zephyr.

Zephyr's eyes widened as he carefully took Liana and held her in his arms. Liana, who was sleeping, groggily opened her eyes and saw Zephyr's face.

However, Liana wasn't afraid, because compared to Zephyr, Hancock's two sisters were the real monsters, and Liana was already used to it.

Liana stretched out her chubby, lotus-root-like hand, opened her mouth wide and yawned to regain her energy, then reached out to tug at Zephyr's beard, letting out the most captivating laugh of a human child.

Zefa's lips curled up slightly, as if he was thinking of his wife and children. A single, glistening tear welled up in the corner of his eye, and his eyes reddened slightly.

"That's wonderful! Carl, you must protect her well and let her...grow up healthy and happy."

"Of course, Professor Zephyr!"

"Hey! It really is you, kid! I was wondering why the new recruits were all so distracted! Oh, who's this kid?" Sengoku, that old rascal, rushed over in a flash, looking at Liana in Zephyr's arms with a motherly smile.

"Karl, is this your cub? Oh my, so cute! Let this old man hold him!"

Carl shrugged, indicating that they would have to do it one at a time.

Hearing Zephyr and Sengoku's praise, Karl's lips curled up slightly. Sure enough, showing off your child is most effective when done with this group of bachelors.

......

April 1st, Terrade Island, at the Adventurers' Expo.

Chopper leaned against the railing, looking at the sea of ​​people on Terrady Island, and couldn't help but exclaim, "So many people! Are they all adventurers?"

"Of course! No adventurer would want to miss this grand event! After all, that's a billion Alliance Coins! That's enough for us to live on for a very, very long time!"

After saying that, Nami turned around, grabbed Luffy by the ear, and yelled fiercely, "Did you hear me, Luffy?! You have to win the championship! Otherwise, you won't get any pocket money anymore!!!"

Luffy calmly picked his nose: "What am I doing here if I'm not going to win the championship?"

"Hahaha, that's right! Since we're here, we're here to win the championship! We'll do the mission, and we'll win the championship! It's killing two birds with one stone!" Nami danced with joy.

"Wait, that's Shanks' ship!" Luffy leaped up and jumped towards the large ship in front of him.

Once on deck, Luffy smiled and looked at the tall man in front of him, excitedly calling out, "Shanks! Long time no see!"

Shanks turned around in surprise: "Luffy, what are you doing here?"

"Hehe, after all, I'm an adventurer too, so, Shanks, are you here to take second place?" Luffy's eyes revealed his fighting spirit.

In his opinion, since Shanks came to participate in the World Expo, he must be here to compete with him for the title of strongest adventurer. He had long wanted to compete with Shanks!

"Hahaha! Then we'll see what you're capable of, Luffy!" Shanks said, but he clearly didn't think that way. He came here to stop Bullet.

The moment Shanks saw this quest in the Adventurers' Guild, he mentally went through all the possible people involved. Combined with his experience in Impel Down, he quickly identified his target.

Douglas Barrett, even when he was an intern, was already an incredibly powerful monster.

With so many people and so many ships, given Barrett's abilities, he's bound to cause a catastrophe! Therefore, he must stop Barrett.

"Straw Hat Kid! What are you doing here?"

Buggy looked at Luffy in shock, and Luffy looked back at Buggy with equal seriousness.

"You look so familiar! Sir, who are you?"

"Nani!!!"

Chapter 389 Bonus Chapter: Adventurers' Expo 3

"You damn Straw Hat brat, you've even forgotten Lord Buggy's memories? You fish-like memories?"

Buggy was furious. He grabbed Luffy by the collar and shoved his big red nose against Luffy's forehead, yelling at him.

Luffy wiped the drool off his face, slightly lifting his head: "Oh, I remember now, you're Buggy the Red-Nosed!!!"

"What?! Damn it, I'm going to kill you!!!"

"Alright, stop it. Please stop making a scene. Just to save me face, okay?"

Shanks activated the Face Fruit, and the effect was outstanding.

"Hmph, I can't be bothered with this bastard." With that, Bucky swaggered away.

Shanks shook his head helplessly: "Luffy, this Adventurers' Expo is far more complicated than it seems. I think we all need to be prepared for a fight. The mastermind behind this is a troublesome guy."

"Hehe, I'm not afraid at all. No matter who it is, I'll send them flying!"

Shanks patted Luffy on the shoulder encouragingly, "That's great! By the way, the Expo is about to start. No matter what happens, see you later!"

"Uh-huh!"

Meanwhile, Carl also quietly arrived at the World Expo. To be honest, he was quite surprised when he first arrived; it was truly a place teeming with hidden talents.

The red-haired girl who was forcibly naturalized, the straw hat girl, and the gluttonous girl Bonnie and Law who were pardoned by the United Government, as well as Aramaki, who was originally going to become a Marine Admiral, also came.

In addition, the new government also sent people over: Sabo, Betty, and a woman Karl didn't recognize.

"Hehe, this is going to be interesting. I probably won't even need to lift a finger; Barrett will be ganged up on."

Presumably seeing that most people had arrived and it was time, the organizers of the World Expo began the opening ceremony at the main venue.

The process for this battle to become the strongest adventurer is very simple.

Whoever reaches the highest island, finds the treasure chest, and obtains the pointer to Laugh Tale will automatically win the championship, receiving a reward of 5 million Alliance Coins in cash, as well as various items provided by sponsors.

The second and third place winners are similar; they just need to find specific items.

"Now, I declare the Adventurers' Expo officially open!!!"

"Rush!!!"

"The title of strongest adventurer is mine, and no one can take it from me!!!"

The scene was quite chaotic at one point. If Karl hadn't known beforehand that this was the Adventurers' Expo, he would have thought it was a pirate brawl.

At this moment, only one sentence can describe how intense the battle was.

The eight immortals cross the sea and each show their magical powers.

Although they didn't directly call for a fight, they kept using dirty tricks and underhanded tactics. Anyway, if I can't win the championship, no one else can either.

In situations like these, only those with real skills can stand out. For example, Bonney, Luffy, and Law are far ahead of the competition.