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

Sengoku's fondness and regard for Karl grew even stronger, and he even thought that if Karl could grow to the level of an admiral, he would definitely be the best choice to become the Fleet Admiral!

"Good! Well said! Karl, I am very pleased that you said those words! If Kizaru and Aokiji could learn more from you, I would have so much less to worry about!"

"However, there's a reason why I'm letting you rest..."

Sengoku pulled out a stack of bounty posters marked with an X and placed them on the table, saying, "Look, these are the results of the past few months. We've basically captured or killed any pirate crews that have dared to show their faces recently."

"Aside from the New World, there are basically no big fish worth your attention! Those small pirate crews are more than enough for other admirals."

"Your abilities should be used for more difficult missions. I can't expect a Rear Admiral like you to spend your days chasing down pirate crews with bounties of tens of millions, can I?"

Karl frowned. There was indeed some truth to that. A major general should do what a major general should do. He couldn't very well volunteer to arrest some nobody, could he?

"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, in that case, I'll go to the New World to carry out my mission! I'm not afraid of pirates with bounties exceeding 500 million!"

At this point, Sengoku shook his head and said somewhat helplessly, "It's not that I don't want you to go to the New World, but the Whitebeard Pirates are just waiting for you to go there!"

The Whitebeard Pirates? Karl frowned slightly. Could it be because of the Ice Witch Whiteybe?

"Is it because of Waidi Bay?"

Sengoku nodded: "Yes! Whitebeard's protectiveness is not just talk. The New World is full of Whitebeard's territory. If you show up, you are very likely to be caught like a turtle in a jar."

"For your safety, you still need to grow for a while before I can send you to the new world to carry out a mission."

The subtext is that Karl is very important to the Navy, and it's not worth it to go head-to-head with a max-level character like Whitebeard; he should level up first.

Karl remained silent for a moment before continuing, "Alright then! Marshal Sengoku, but I still don't want to go on vacation! How about this!"

"I happen to be very interested in Fishman Island. I bet no one has finished that mission to investigate Queen Otohime's death yet, right?"

Zhan Guo paused for a moment, then shook his head.

"Alright, I'll take this mission. After the Shichibukai meeting concludes, I'll go to Fishman Island to investigate. If I can find out anything, great; if not, I'll just treat it as a vacation. What do you think?"

Da da da...

Zhan Guo tapped his fingertips on the desk, remained silent for a long time, and finally sighed.

"Alright! I'll agree to your terms for now, but the Seven Warlords meeting is the priority right now. We'll discuss this later."

Carlton breathed a sigh of relief; at least he didn't have to take a real vacation!

You little rascal, watch and learn more! We're both slacking off, but the Warring States period should praise us!

When Carl left Naval Headquarters, an unexpected old friend was already waiting for him.

"Hey! Karl, it's only been a few months, and you've become a major general now!"

Upon seeing who it was, Carl smiled and walked towards him. When he got close, he took a cigar from the man's chest, put it in his mouth, lit it, and then exhaled a smoke ring.

Carl looked at Smoker with an arrogant expression and said, "Carl, is that how you address me? Call me 'Sir'!"

Smoker was stunned, his cigar almost falling to the ground: "You, Karl, you're actually trying to pull this on me!"

"Hahaha! Just kidding. What's up, on vacation?"

At this point, Smoker's expression darkened, and he shook his head: "It's not a vacation, it's a suspension."

"Suspended? Are you kidding me! Why?"

"Some dirty and messy things make me angry just thinking about them, let's not talk about them! We've finally managed to get together today, how about you come with me for a drink?"

It was noon, and Karl hadn't eaten yet, so he didn't refuse.

......

"Karl, do you think the current navy truly deserves the title of 'justice'?"

Karl stroked his chin, and after thinking it over, said, "The Navy is naturally righteous, but where the light of justice cannot shine, darkness will naturally grow."

Tons tons tons~

Smoker downed the entire bottle of liquor in one gulp, wiped the stains from his mouth with his sleeve, and sighed, "Yes! But there's just too much darkness brewing..."

Carl didn't know what kind of darkness Smoker had encountered, but he was certain that at this moment he was somewhat disappointed with the Navy, feeling that it was far from the righteous army he had in mind.

"So, what can a naval lieutenant commander like you change?"

"I guess... Sigh~ I can't change it."

Karl laughed and said, "So, cheer up! On the high seas, only the strong have a voice! Whether it's the navy or pirates!"

"Since you can't stand the darkness and want to change it, you need to have the means to do so."

As a ten-year veteran and a time traveler, how could Karl not know about the intricacies of the Navy?

But what good is knowing? Before, he was just a branch captain, willing but powerless. Now, although he is a major general, he still has little say.

The only thing he can do now is to try his best to improve his strength, his reputation, and his military rank.

Only in this way can he have a voice and the ability to change the status quo of the navy.

Having the ability to change is one thing, but choosing not to change is another.

For Carl, it didn't really matter whether he changed it or not, since he was just slacking off anyway.

Smoker frowned, looking at Carl as if he understood something, but said nothing, chugging down his drink in silence before collapsing onto the table.

Carl shook his head and sighed, then snapped his fingers.

Hello, how can I help you?

Carl stood up, pointed at Smoker, and said, "This is Major Smoker. He'll be paying for everything today. Oh, and get me a bottle of red wine too."

"Okay, wait a moment!"

Carl picked up a pack of napkins, wiped his mouth, took the red wine handed to him by the waiter, and left the restaurant, keeping his good deed hidden.

Little did Smoker know that while he was pretending to be asleep on the table, his fists gradually hardened, and his mind was filled with thoughts that would be silenced if spoken aloud.

They tried to steal a chicken but ended up losing the rice instead!

Chapter 69 The Seven Warlords of the Sea Have All Arrived

The next day, Crescent Bay.

A warship slowly approached, and a man wearing a flamingo coat and sunglasses strode off with an air of indifference.

Although his eyes were obscured, his nimble tongue revealed that the man was in a good mood.

"Fufufufu... So this is the Navy Headquarters? It doesn't look like much!"

Vice Admiral Fire Mountain, who was in charge of picking up Doflamingo, sarcastically remarked without a care in the world, "Doflamingo, you should be glad you became a Shichibukai, otherwise you would be in Impel Down!"

That's not wrong. Before Doflamingo became a Shichibukai, the person in charge of hunting him down was Strategist Tsuru, the woman who once drove the Donquixote Family to the brink of despair.

If Doflamingo hadn't used the Celestial Gold to force the World Government to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, he might have actually been sent to Impel Down by Advisor Tsuru.

Doflamingo couldn't help but recall the relentless pursuit of Staff Officer Tsuru, and with a cold snort, he swaggered toward Naval Headquarters.

Outside the VIP room, Carl, who had been resting alone at home for the night, was preparing to visit Hancock when he unexpectedly ran into Lieutenant General Firemount.

Good morning, Lieutenant General Huoshaoshan.

Fire Mountain smiled at Karl and said, "You're really efficient, kid! You even got the hardest one to come!"

Carl smiled without saying a word; it was still hard to say who would win.

"Fufufu~ Isn't this Karl, the world's number one handsome guy? It's a rare sight indeed, and he really does have the look of a pretty boy."

Fire Mountain turned to look at Doflamingo behind him, a dangerous glint in his eyes: "Doflamingo, don't be too arrogant, this is the Marine Headquarters!"

"Sigh~ General Huoshaoshan, don't say that. Look at him, he wears sunglasses every day and doesn't dare to show his full face. It's normal for him to be jealous of my appearance."

"I'm already used to it!"

Huoshaoshan patted Karl on the shoulder and laughed, "You little rascal!"

Doflamingo's eyes suddenly turned gloomy. He walked up to Karl and looked down at him, saying, "Fufu~ What a silver tongue you have..." Then he walked straight to his VIP room.

"Karl, ignore him. Oh, right, I need to report to Marshal Sengoku. I'm off!"

"Yes, General Huoshangshan, take care!"

Watching Doflamingo's departing figure, Carl gradually fell into deep thought. Doflamingo seemed to understand him very well!

Could it be that the habit of reading newspapers has been formed long ago?

VIP room.

"Hancock, this is the breakfast I brought you, come and eat! Oh, and there's also Salome."

"Thank you, darling, you're so kind!"

Carl hugged Hancock and kissed her, laughing as he said, "Silly girl, who else would I be nice to if not you?"

"By the way, I probably won't be able to stay in your room today!"

Hancock panicked and quickly asked, "What? Why?"

Karl then told Hancock that all the Seven Warlords of the Sea would soon be arriving, and after comforting her, he calmed her down and left the VIP room for Crescent Bay.

Perhaps because they heard that many Shichibukai would be coming today, there were quite a few people watching the spectacle.

For example, there's this guy who tried to rip off Carl for a meal but ended up getting himself into trouble—I won't say who he is.