Chapter 34 Luffy Tears Through the Black Barrier with His Bare Hands, Stunning the Marines"You two idiots, stop this now!"
Nami, in her fanged form, roared behind them, "Don't you know where you are? Want to die?!"
Zoro and Sanji glanced at the group of Marines watching the spectacle, snorted, and turned away, ignoring them.
Luffy stepped forward, grinning, and reached out to grasp the black iron bars binding Sanji.
"Hey, what's this kid trying to do? He's not trying to break Tina's black cage with his bare hands, is he?"
"What a joke! That's a specially made cage with a hardness comparable to steel!"
Tina also looked at Luffy with a mocking expression, absolutely confident in the hardness of her Devil Fruit ability.
However, they severely underestimated Luffy's physical abilities. With the enhancement of multiple templates, Luffy's physical strength had already reached the threshold of awakened Armament Haki.
Back in Alabasta, Zoro had already mastered the art of cutting iron; let alone Luffy now.
Luffy suddenly exerted force with both hands, veins bulging on his arms. The hard steel in his hands was like clay, instantly leaving deep finger marks.
With a low shout from Luffy, the seemingly indestructible black barrier was stretched and torn apart like ramen noodles, peeling off Sanji's body.
The surrounding Marines fell silent, staring at Luffy as if they'd seen a ghost.
What kind of monstrous strength was this?!
Armament Haki primarily increases defense and attack power, but this was pure physical strength!
While many present possessed Haki, very few could mold steel like noodles with their bare hands.
The playfulness in Tina's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by deep seriousness. She hadn't expected this seemingly frail boy to possess such terrifying explosive power.
"Let's go, beautiful, lead the way?"
Luffy's voice suddenly sounded from behind Tina. She felt a hand already resting on her slender waist.
Tina's pupils constricted to pinpoints.
So fast! When did he get behind us?!
Instinctively, she swung her hands back like iron bars.
But the next second, Luffy appeared five meters in front of her, looking completely innocent.
Tina gave Luffy a deep look, then turned and walked towards the headquarters building, no longer daring to underestimate the boy.
Luffy chuckled, waved, and led the others after him.
"Yo, old man! I'm here!"
Luffy showed no hesitation, swaggering open the door to Sengoku's Fleet Admiral's office.
"You brat! You've been acting pretty cocky lately!"
A roar exploded like a lion's roar.
Garp, spitting as he roared at Luffy, "How dare you wipe out the entire 16th Branch of the Marines without permission? Even if that rat captain colluded with pirates, there should be legal proceedings! Do you think Marine discipline is just for show?!"
After yelling this, Garp subtly glanced at Sengoku, who was reviewing documents beside him, his eyes seeming to say: See, I've already yelled at him.
Sengoku looked disgusted and slammed the thick stack of documents onto the table with a "thud."
"Alright, stop with this sob story."
"Anyway, there's nothing I can do about him. He's a commodore personally promoted by those five old men, he's incredibly valuable."
Garp completely lacked any sense of shame.
He picked his nose and yelled at Luffy in a loud voice.
"Hahaha! You brat, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and thank your Uncle Sengoku!"
"Next time you encounter a mess you can't handle, just mention his name and it'll work!"
Luffy's quick wit was unmatched; he immediately seized the opportunity.
He immediately stood at attention, even giving a proper salute, his voice booming.
"Hello, Uncle Sengoku! Thank you for your hard work, Uncle!"
Zoro and the others standing behind him watched their captain's shameless behavior, their eyes twitching wildly.
Is this thick skin really a family trait?
But only Luffy knew perfectly well that the man with the full head of braids before him was truly "one of their own."
Recalling the Marineford War, Sengoku's seemingly ferocious punch landed, but Luffy, like a rubber balloon, easily deflected it.
Then, when that unfortunate Blackbeard appeared, Sengoku delivered the same punch, the shockwave nearly wiping out the entire Blackbeard Pirates on the spot.
This blatant double standard would surely earn a "professional" from Kizaru if he saw it.
"I called you here mainly to assign you a mission."
Sengoku didn't respond to Luffy calling him "Uncle," but the twitching in his eye betrayed his inner helplessness.
He cleared his throat, his expression gradually turning serious.
"In recent years, the situation in the New World has completely spiraled out of control, leading to an explosive increase in the number of pirates across the four seas."
"Apart from your home sea, the East Blue, which remains relatively stable, several pirate groups dubbed 'Supernovas' have emerged in the other three seas."
Sengoku tapped his fingers on the table, making a soft, rhythmic sound.
"The Navy's morale is currently low. We urgently need to establish a role model, a capable fighter, to boost the morale of our soldiers."
"To be honest, Grant's experience and achievements originally made him a more suitable candidate for this position than you."
"But I don't know if the Five Elders have lost their minds… cough cough, anyway, they personally selected you to be molded into this generation's Navy Supernova!"
Sengoku stared into Luffy's eyes, speaking each word with deliberation.
"What you need to do is simple: advance into the Grand Line, hone your skills and grow stronger along the way, and then..."
"Snipe all those other so-called Supernovas!"
Luffy suddenly understood.
No wonder the promotion ceremony for Commodore was such a grand affair, as if they wanted the whole world to know.
So they were using him as a figurehead for the Navy.
"I don't really have a problem with that, but the sea is so vast, and those Supernovas aren't wooden stakes; how easy are they to find?"
Luffy scratched his head, voicing his doubt.
After all, in the original timeline, those Worst Generation only appeared in droves after reaching the Sabaody Archipelago.
This also indirectly shows that the Navy's encirclement and suppression of them in the first half of the Grand Line was basically a failure.
"Don't worry about intelligence. The World Government's intelligence network isn't to be underestimated; they'll provide you with coordinates in real time."
Sengoku waved his hand, looking confident and in control.
"Then you just do what your grandfather Garp did back in the day—chicken, like a mad dog, or rather, a hunting hound, and chase them down."
"Whether you catch them or not is another matter. As long as you chase them all over the world, the World Government will publicize your 'glorious achievements' to boost morale."
Saying this, Sengoku glanced at Zoro and the others standing beside him, adding a casual remark.
"Of course, it would be best if you could catch them. But in my opinion, with your current strength, if you really fought, you might end up getting beaten up."
"Huh? Who are you talking about?"
Zoro immediately became displeased, his hand instantly gripping the hilt of his sword, his eyes sharp.
Luffy quickly waved his hand, signaling the green-haired guy to calm down.
"Don't be impulsive. This is Marine Headquarters. If a fight breaks out, our numbers wouldn't even be enough to fill their teeth."
"By the way, there's something else I need to remind you of."
Sengoku suddenly revealed a malicious grin, an expression that sent chills down Luffy's spine.
"Those mid-level officers down there are incredibly resentful about your sudden appointment as a 'model Marine.'"
"Originally, these troublemakers planned to come and 'spar' with you as soon as your ship docked."
"But, your grandfather forcefully suppressed that."
Luffy looked at Garp, who was picking his nose beside him, with surprise.
Has the sun risen in the west? When did this old man become so protective of his own?
However, before Luffy could even feel touched for two seconds, Sengoku's next words almost made him spit out blood on the spot.
"Your grandfather suggested that since we're going to fight, let's make it big."
"He proposed that at tomorrow's medal-awarding ceremony, these troublemakers be allowed to challenge you directly, and that the entire event be broadcast live to the Four Seas and the New World!"
"That's why I'm here to ask for the opinion of the person involved."
Sengoku smiled like a cunning old fox.
"It seems your grandfather has blind confidence in your strength. I'm also quite curious; what kind of astonishing methods does someone who can make even the world's greatest swordsman, Mihawk, feel inferior possess?"
Luffy's forehead veins throbbed, and his fists clenched so tightly they cracked.
You can guard against anything, but it's hard to guard against a traitor within your own family!
So, the culprit who got him killed was his own grandfather!
This old man is definitely seeking revenge for forcing him to kneel back then, right? Absolutely!
Garp laughed heartily, slapping Luffy's shoulder with a force as if he were driving a pile driver.
"Screw you! Don't be modest!"
"Show that same ruthlessness you showed when you made Hawkeye kneel! Let those five old fogies in Mary Geoise see just how awesome my grandson is!"
"Don't worry, my dear grandson, I've already spoken to the officers of general rank and above. They're too embarrassed to interfere. You only need to deal with that bunch of colonel-level rabble."
Luffy's lips twitched wildly; he was completely dumbfounded.
This was utterly ridiculous... no, ridiculously ridiculous!
That ability that made Hawkeye kneel was a system-given "100% chance of catching a blade bare-handed!"
That's a causality skill brought by the Li Jing template!
That's a bug! It's a cheat code! It has a time limit!
While he currently has a speed boost, it comes at the cost of burning stamina. In a real tag-team battle, he'd be exhausted to death.
"A mere colonel-level officer, worthy of being Luffy's opponent?"
Before Luffy could figure out how to refuse, Zoro beside him was brimming with fighting spirit, his face full of confidence.
"Let's just have all the brigadier generals and rear admirals come at us!"
"Luffy is my ultimate goal in pursuing the pinnacle of swordsmanship! How could I be tripped up by a bunch of lowly minions?"
Luffy's eyelids twitched violently; he wanted to cover Zoro's mouth.
Brother! You're really my brother!
This isn't just fooling others, even his own people are believing it!
If a vice admiral really gets involved, I really can't beat him, you bastard!
Luffy quickly coughed, trying to save face.
"Ahem... well, I think Grandpa's arrangement is quite reasonable."
"Just a colonel-level officer, what if I accidentally beat up an admiral-level officer? The Marine Headquarters would lose face, wouldn't they? We have to save face for Uncle."
Zoro behind him nodded regretfully, seemingly quite disappointed.
"That's true, it's for the greater good. I was originally thinking of taking this opportunity to steal a couple more moves of your unparalleled swordsmanship."
Luffy was internally devastated at this moment, wanting to scream to the heavens.
Learn your swordsmanship my ass! That's acrobatics!
Sengoku nodded in satisfaction, seemingly pleased with Luffy's "sensibility."
"Since there are no objections, let Tina take you to your dorms to settle in."
"The awarding ceremony is scheduled for tomorrow at noon. Rest and recharge tonight."
"Let's teach those arrogant guys at headquarters a lesson. They've all gotten too cocky lately, not even producing a decent new recruit."
Tina stepped forward, preparing to lead Luffy and the others away.
"Um… Uncle Sengoku, please wait a moment. There's something I need to report to you."
Luffy suddenly coughed twice, a fawning smile plastered on his face.
Sengoku looked up in confusion, adjusting his glasses: "What other trouble is there?"
Luffy pointed to the red-nosed man behind him, trembling with fear.
"I want to remove this guy's wanted poster and recruit him to run errands for me."
"Buggy the Clown?"
Sengoku narrowed his eyes, his gaze sweeping over Buggy like lightning, instantly recalling the information in his mind.
"A former apprentice crew member of the Roger Pirates."
Buggy, whose name was mentioned, instantly felt a chill run down his spine, as if he were being stared at by a ferocious beast.
He stammered, forcing a smile, "Ha...haha, an apprentice, just a menial trainee!"
"I haven't heard of this guy getting into any big trouble over the years. He's always been holed up in that little place in the East Blue, so I haven't paid much attention."
Sengoku put down the documents in his hand, somewhat puzzled.
"What do you need such a useless piece of trash for?"
"Because I'm poor!"
Luffy instantly channeled his dramatic side, bursting into tears and sobs, looking as pitiful as could be.
"The old man insisted I save up military merits and money to buy a warship."
"But with my meager salary, when will I ever save enough for a warship?"
"I think this guy might not be the strongest, but he's got a sharp mind. I'm planning to have him start a delivery company."
"He could deliver packages along the Grand Line, maybe dig for treasure on the side to supplement his income. That's not too much to ask, is it?"
Sengoku was stunned. "You're not planning to have him join the Navy?"
"With his lazy, irresponsible attitude, I'd be embarrassed to see him in a Navy uniform."
Luffy grinned and leaned closer to Sengoku, lowering his voice.
"I just want to use his 'Pirate King's crew member' and 'Red-Haired's best friend' titles to make some extra money in the underworld."
Sengoku's eyes sharpened instantly, staring intently at Luffy.
"You want him to become a Shichibukai?"
"Hahahaha..."
Luffy awkwardly scratched his head, laughing it off.
But inwardly he thought: "As expected of the legendary strategist, his reaction speed is too fast."
What gives the World Government the power to control the largest and most powerful machine on the ocean—the Navy?
Besides centuries of so-called "justice" brainwashing, the fundamental reason is the Celestial Dragons' immense wealth.
Warship manufacturing, technological research, personnel salaries, logistical support, not to mention the astronomical bounties.
Each of these costs a fortune.
Having controlled the world for eight hundred years, the Celestial Dragons, without exaggeration, control over 80% of the world's wealth.
A slave who escapes can become a Golden Emperor; priceless Devil Fruits are merely snacks to amuse their slaves.
If the funding chain were cut off, the seemingly massive naval system would crumble instantly.
This is why the Five Elders dared to point their fingers at Akainu and say, "Your face is worthless."
In the eyes of those in power, the Fleet Admiral is nothing more than a watchdog; disobey? Just kill him and replace him.
Even CP0's Lucci, a direct subordinate of the Celestial Dragons, dared to sneer at Akainu.
This clearly demonstrates how much the Fleet Admiral's authority has diminished since Akainu took over.
Luffy, wanting to escape this control, would surely starve on his meager salary.
He needs a stable source of income of his own.
As a Marine, he can't accept "heavenly gold" like the Celestial Dragons, nor can he engage in plunder and murder like pirates.
The remaining paths are essentially two: business and double-crossing.
These two paths precisely correspond to Doflamingo's underground arms trade and Crocodile's Baroque Works model.