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

"And this is just the headquarters' navy. What about the four seas? What about those places that headquarters can't cover?"

Carl remained silent for a while, listening to Smoker's words, and thought that he might as well tell Smoker about the plan he had been preparing for a long time.

He wanted to create an agency similar to the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) to thoroughly investigate corrupt naval personnel. He would take the credit, while Smoker would handle the actual work, killing two birds with one stone, and he could also slack off in his office.

“Smoker, I understand what you mean. Actually, I’ve been thinking about this for a while now. But never mind, let’s talk about it properly after we catch Gaspard.”

Smoker was taken aback. You only said half of what you meant!

"Stop beating around the bush, just tell me now!"

Carl opened his mouth, hesitated, then sighed and began to speak.

"I've actually thought about what you're talking about, and I even have a somewhat immature idea."

Smoker, seeing that Carl hadn't spoken yet, said with a speechless expression, "What are your thoughts?"

Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)!

"Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)? What's that?"

"Accepting and reviewing allegations of corruption within the Navy."

Smoker raised an eyebrow.

"Investigate any alleged or suspected offenses that violate the Naval Management Regulations."

Smoker's cigar fell to the ground.

"Investigate any suspected extortion offenses committed by the Navy in connection with abuse of power."

Smoker's mouth dropped open.

"Investigate any activities within the Navy that may be related to or contribute to corruption."

Smoker grabbed Carl's shoulder, his face beaming with excitement. In his eyes, the idea was absolutely brilliant! He practically wanted to shout, "Me too!"

"This idea is fantastic! If it really works, I'll definitely be the first to join!"

But Karl chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Instead of fighting the pirates, you're going to turn on your colleagues? You really want to do that?"

Smoker said earnestly, "I'm willing to take on anything to make the Navy better."

Carl smiled with satisfaction. Smoker, that hot-blooded young man, was so easy to fool! If it were Ape, he'd probably be busy getting his nails done...

"Karl, when do we begin?"

"Ahem, let's not rush this. We need to catch Gaspard first, don't you think?"

"That's right! I'll take care of this guy!"

Smoker then couldn't wait to run out and start developing his abilities, even wanting to kill a few pirates to add to the excitement.

After a while, Ian walked into the lounge with a strange look on her face and said to Karl, who was sitting with his legs crossed, drinking cola.

"What did you say to Smoker just now? He sounded like he was on steroids."

Upon seeing Ain enter, Karl's eyes lit up, his expression instantly changed, and an aura of a master conman erupted from him.

"Aion, what do you think of the Navy now?"

"what!?"

ten minutes later.

With a calm expression, Ain walked out of the lounge. She didn't care about dealing with the corrupt navy; as long as she could act with Karl, she was content.

Two days later, the warship arrived at the port of Borios.

This port is quite large, but it's in a mess right now. It must have been the site of a battle and hasn't had time to be repaired yet; there's debris everywhere.

Before the warships even got close, civilians on the dock pointed at them and shouted in panic, "The navy! It's the navy! They're back! Run!!!"

Carl:? ? ?

Carl even glanced back at the naval ensign above his head; it wasn't hanging incorrectly!

"Could it be because Gaspard looted this place and is trying to pin the blame on the Navy?"

Smoker sneered, "That scoundrel!"

"Nelson, drop anchor, and get the men!"

Yes!

Upon entering the town, the streets were deserted, but a dozen or so armed civilians watched them warily.

"Don't come any closer, or we'll shoot!"

These words left the naval officers and soldiers with mixed feelings. When had they ever been treated like this, as if they were pirates?

But they're from the navy!

"Please calm down, everyone. I am Rear Admiral Karl from Naval Headquarters. I am here to investigate the attack on Port Borios. We will not harm you. Please trust us."

The burly man at the head of the group shouted excitedly, "Stop lying! The people who attacked this place were your navy!"

Nelson was about to speak when Carl stopped him.

"Don't cause me any trouble!"

"Yes."

Carl then turned to the burly man, a friendly smile on his face, and pulled out a wanted poster, saying, "The person who attacked you is the naval traitor Gaspard. He did it a few days ago..."

Chapter 100 Hannabar

"We're here to arrest him. Please cooperate so we can apprehend him as soon as possible and recover your losses!"

After a long silence, the burly man at the head of the group still did not speak.

Carl shook his head helplessly, then turned to Smoker and said, "You take all the naval soldiers back to the warship. Ain and I will stay here."

"why?"

Carl didn't answer. He couldn't very well say, "You don't look like a good person!"

After Smoker and the others left, Carl and Ian instantly appeared harmless.

"Now it's just us left. Please trust us, trust the Navy!"

The burly man at the head of the group first coughed lightly, covering his mouth with his hand, then turned to the people around him and said, "Everyone, put down your guns."

"Hello, Major General Carl, I'm Mayor Joe, just call me Old Joe. We had no choice just now..."

Carl smiled and waved his hand: "It's alright, I understand. But don't worry, I mainly wanted to ask you about Gaspard's situation."

"Sigh... two days ago..."

After some time, Karl and Ian returned to the port, having gathered almost all the information he needed.

"Oops~ This is troublesome!"

"What's wrong?" Smoker asked, completely bewildered.

Karl glanced at Ain, who then said, "Gaspardi stole a steamship in Port Borios called the 'Salamander.' It's very fast, and he'll probably be far away by now."

Smoker said anxiously, "What should we do? We can't just let him get away with it, can we?"

Carl rubbed his temples, recalling the information Mayor Joe had just provided.

Gaspardine's body parts can transform into any shape and are immune to bullets.

This gave Karl a sense of déjà vu. Could this guy also be a character in the story?

Sigh! These minor characters are such a hassle.

"Aion, what islands are around here?"

"Wait, let me look at the nautical chart."

Ain spread out the sea chart and named them one by one: "Selum, Mustar Island, Breath of the Wind Island, Banana Island, Lewick Port..."

"that's it?"

Ain shook her head: "No, there's another island called Hannabar, but it..."

"and many more!"

Hannabar, the name of the island, sounds somewhat familiar to Karl.

"Let's go to Hannabar!"

Ian and Smoker looked at each other, and said in unison, "Why?"

"intuition!"

Okay, you're the boss, you make the decisions.

Regardless of what they thought, Karl was full of confidence because he had remembered that Gaspard was the Gummy Fruit user.

The Gummy Fruit is similar in nature to the Mochi Mochi Fruit; if developed properly, it can be very powerful. However, given Gaspard's strength, it probably won't be that much stronger.

"Let's go immediately!"

......