Pirate: I'm about to do something big!

The coast of Forchart Island.

One by one, the bandits were shackled by the marines, taken aboard the warship, and thrown into the ship's makeshift prison.

There are only two possible outcomes for them: either they will be sent to a nearby member state for trial, or they will be sent back to the Navy Headquarters for trial. Either way, the outcome will not be good.

But for the island's residents, it's perfect.

The island kingdoms, the pirates on the sea, the bandits in the mountains—each one is a mountain weighing down on them.

Alyosha and his marines helped them move one of the structures, which made things much easier for them and made their lives much more comfortable.

In addition, during this period, Alyosha allowed Tiger's fishmen to make use of their racial advantages, bringing the island's residents, who made a living by farming and fishing, an abundance of fish, which allowed them to have a considerable surplus after paying their taxes.

As long as the island's kingdom policies don't change much and there are no pirates to harass them, they will enjoy a rare period of happiness.

This is what Alyosha can do now.

With the bandit eradication operation over, Alyosha had no reason to linger on Forsythe Island any longer. After tonight, he should return to Marine Headquarters to report.

So tonight he has to have a long talk with Tiger, trying to guide him on how to do better in the cause of freeing slaves.

"Mr. Tiger, I've reviewed your file, and based on our conversations over this period, I've made a few summaries. Please take notes."

Beside the campfire at the makeshift camp, Tiger felt as if he had returned to his days as an adventurer, using pen and paper to record what he saw and did, and learning about every place he had been with a thirst for knowledge.

"First, while clarifying the significance of the Sun Pirates, you also need to let your crew members, the slaves you rescued, and of course, the slave traders you released. They are your best promoters and will let more people on the sea know what you are doing."

"Secondly, when facing a counterattack from a slave ship, kill if necessary. The rule against killing humans without cause must be established after the battle is over. During the battle, the safety of your own crew must be the priority. They follow you, and you cannot let them be injured or sacrificed in vain, just like the process I used when I led the marines to fight pirates."

"Thirdly, we must strictly manage our crew members and enforce discipline. They must know what they should and should not do, and if they violate the rules, they should be punished. If necessary, they can be killed."

"Fourthly, on your ship, you can be the absolute core, the leader, but you can't make all the decisions yourself. You'll be too busy. You need someone to provide you with the trading times and locations of the slave ships, who the slave traders are, and to determine the number of people, ships, and plans for the operation based on the scale of the slave trade, instead of just drifting at sea like a seagull every day. Even seagulls know to return to their nests after catching fish, don't you know that?"

"Fifthly, from the Sun Pirates to the future fleet, you don't necessarily have to unite them all together. If you do, the next time the Navy launches an attack, it won't just be me, a commodore. It's very likely that several vice admirals and a dozen commodores will lead a fleet to cause you trouble."

"Sixthly, regarding the rescued slaves, we must ensure a complete resolution, returning them to where they came from. Of course, you can ask them if they want to come with you to rescue more slaves. But we must treat everyone equally! Humans, fish-men, or other races—we must be fair and just! We must also carefully verify their identities to prevent spies from hiding among the slaves and tipping off the member states and navies!"

"Seventh, you can tell your story to your crew and the slaves you have rescued. This is your advantage, and you can also use it as a starting point to get the slaves to tell you why they became slaves."

"Eighth point, we must learn to summarize. Whether it's the operation to combat the slave trade or how to rescue slaves, after each operation, we must hold a meeting with the crew and officers to discuss any problems and what could have been done better. These officers don't necessarily have to be fish-men; they can be humans or other races..."

That night, Alyosha and Tiger talked a lot.

From the problems the Sun Pirates need to solve now to their plans to potentially develop into the Sun Grand Fleet in the future.

The action plan clearly defined the fight against the slave trade as centered on "liberation" and "freedom," using numerous non-member states at sea as strongholds, and gradually undermining the slave trade through piecemeal tactics.

In this process, they recruited slaves who genuinely wanted to follow Tiger and his crew in fighting the slave trade, and gradually expanded the size of the Sun Pirates.

This is the current situation. The World Government classifies slaves in the slave trade as criminals and citizens of non-member states of the World Government. Most slaves also come from those non-member states.

It was a common occurrence for ships to appear in the waters of non-member states in response to the slave trade, and this was a risk that slave traders had to bear.

Let Tiger start with these non-member states at sea, develop manpower, and establish a stable rear base.

Some of these points were things Alyosha already knew, while others were things he summarized from his years of experience fighting pirates at sea.

Many pieces of knowledge cannot be copied blindly; we must learn to adapt them to local conditions. As long as the underlying core is correct, everything else can be adjusted according to the circumstances we face.

This lecture lasted all night.

Alyosha's mouth was dry from talking, and Tiger filled a whole notebook with notes.

Fortunately, one of them was a monster and the other a fish-man, both of whom had superhuman energy levels and could endure it.

Alyosha stopped speaking as the sun rose, while Tiger looked at his notes as if they were a priceless treasure.

He never imagined that combating the slave trade involved so much knowledge, let alone that it was Alyosha, a commodore at the Navy Headquarters, who provided him with this information.

But this only made Tiger more confused.

"Mr. Ran, I don't understand."

"You don't understand why someone like me would be in the Navy, serving the World Government, right?"

Tiger nodded in confusion, and Alyosha gave Tiger an answer he had expected.

"Because I'm not strong enough. I can't make this world turn according to my will. That's why I suggested you go back to Fishman Island and hide for a while to think things over. This attack was a lesson. The cause of rescuing slaves can result in death. Alright, it's about time. Pack up and go say goodbye to Arlong."

"Do you really have to take Ah Long with you, Mr. Ran?"

"I also need to report back to Marine Headquarters, but I can assure you that I will not throw Arlong into Impel Down."

Tiger knew there was nothing he could do about it, and based on his trust in Alyosha, he could only nod.

After thanking Alyosha again, Tiger returned to his crew and discussed with them the matter of Aaron staying behind.

Alyosha returned to his own warship and signaled to the sailors on board to make final preparations before returning to port.

This dawdling took up the whole morning.

By noon, Tiger had used his personal charm to persuade Jinbe and the rest of the crew to come and see Arlong off.

Just then, a commotion arose from the woods.

The crowd looked in the direction of the sound and saw a large group of villagers, led by a little girl named Kera, running towards them with fruits, vegetables, and meat.

They surrounded Alyosha's warship and Tiger and the other fishmen.

Alyosha was used to this. He gave Smoker and Tina a signal, and they took their own people to discuss the matter with the villagers who had come over.

Meanwhile, the village led by the little girl Kera headed towards Tiger's side.

"Boss Tiger, are you leaving?"

"Koala, you've gone home, and Boss Tiger is going home too, but you're still a member of the Sun Pirates, that's beyond question!"

"Little Kella, remember to practice the fishman karate I taught you a lot."

The fish-man Haku also emphasized this to Kelra, his only human disciple.

Tiger looked past Kerla and saw the old man standing behind her. He was the village chief of Kerla Village, and the one who had tipped off the navy.

But now the village chief approached Tiger with shame.

"Mr. Fisher Tiger, I am extremely sorry. It was my fault for informing the Navy, which led to your serious injury."

"This matter is over, Village Chief. I'm still alive, and Kella has gone home."

"Then please accept our token of appreciation, Mr. Tiger!"

The village chief shouted loudly, and soon Tiger saw the Sun Pirates ship, which had been wrecked by Rear Admiral Stobelli's cannon fire, sailing in from the other side with many signs of repair.

This surprised Tiger and his companions, as they had already planned to swim all the way back to Fishman Island.

"Consider this my parting gift to you. Of course, the work was all done by the villagers. As long as the keel is not broken, it will be easy to repair."

Alyosha appeared beside Tiger at some point and offered an explanation as he watched the approaching Sun Pirates ship.

Meanwhile, the little girl Kelra had already walked up to Arlong, the fishman who had surrendered.

"Kera, what are you doing here?"

Arlong the fishman still looked down on humans, and was the only fishman on the Sun Pirates who spoke coldly to Koala.

But Kerla was not afraid of Aaron.

"Mr. Alon, are you being taken away?"

"This is a deal between me and the Navy. Only in this way can Boss Tiger and the others return to Fishman Island."

"Mr. Ah Long, are you still able to come out?"

"I don't know, and it's none of your business."

"Mr. Aaron, by the time you come out, Kera should have grown up. Could you come and pick me up then? I want to continue my adventure with you to find Boss Tiger."

It is said that sincerity is the best weapon. At least for Arlong, who has not yet completely gone to extremes and is obsessed with fishmen, he could not continue to speak coldly under Koala's direct gaze.

With a muffled groan, Ah Long stood up and gestured to the marines beside him to escort him onto the ship.

The little girl, Kera, followed behind Aaron until they were about to board the ship, at which point Aaron stopped and spoke.

"Stay with your family, Kella, the sea will wash away all the sad memories."

"Koala loves everyone in the Sun Pirates so much!!! Koala isn't sad at all!!!"

The child's voice was loud and clear, and Kella's puffed-up face was quite adorable.

Arlong the fishman turned around, revealing his fangs as if he were smiling.

"Then prove it to me, Kella."

The sea breeze was blowing, and Alyosha stood at the bow of the ship, watching Tiger's Sun Pirates ship depart first.

Tiger and his companions have their own way of returning to Fish-Man Island, so Alyosha doesn't need to worry about that. As for what Tiger does after returning to Fish-Man Island, that's his own business.

In any case, he has already sown the first seed. Whether it will burn brightly or be extinguished by the merciless sea is up to Tiger himself.

After all, you can never rely on others for this kind of thing; you can only rely on yourself.

All he could do was offer some advice and suggestions.

"Have you figured out how to explain this to headquarters? Anyway, there's nothing I can do to help you, but I won't say anything more."

"Tina can't either."

"I call this playing the long game."

"I can't tell."

"Tina can't tell either."

"So I'm a brigadier general, and you're still field officers. Besides, I have a score to settle with Stobery back at headquarters."

Alyosha turned around, looked at the marines who were ready to return to base, and then shouted:

"Marine sailors, raise the sails, set sail, and return to Marineford!"

"Yes, Brigadier General!"

Seagulls lifted the sails of the ship, carried by the sea breeze, and Alyosha's warships sailed away from the coast, bidding farewell to Forshat Island.

Next stop, Naval Headquarters, Marineford!