Vice-captain of Whitebeard pirates

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At this time, at the Navy Headquarters, Marine fando sat in Tsuru's office, rubbing his temples and sighing, "The news says that Roger and Whitebeard have known each other for a long time. Now Roger's returned to the East Blue, and, as expected, he's headed straight for Whitebeard."

The more Tsuru thought about it, the worse her headache became. "The Roger Pirates and the Whitebeard Pirates... If these two groups reunite, they'll definitely throw the East Blue into chaos."

In her mind, both the Whitebeard Pirates and the Roger Pirates were the most troublesome for the Navy. Their getting together was far from ideal.

She could only do her best to stabilize the situation and keep them from making any rash or extraordinary moves.

Meanwhile, Larson had a feeling something was off. Tsuru trusted him so much that she dared to let the Whitebeard Pirates protect those civilians. Was it bravery, or did she truly have that much faith in him?

Larson couldn't believe that someone like Tsuru would genuinely trust pirates like him, nor would she entrust the safety of civilians to them. There had to be another reason, but what it was, he couldn't figure out.

When Larson returned to the ship, he didn't hide the fact that Tsuru had summoned him. Whitebeard had already guessed a few things, so he wasn't particularly surprised.

Rayleigh and Gaban, on the other hand, were completely taken aback.

"A Marine actually asked pirates for help?" Rayleigh said, disbelief clear on his face. "Did we hear that right? It feels like the world's upside down."

"The world's so crazy that even mice are becoming bridesmaids for cats," Gaban added.

During their battle with the Rocks Pirates, the Roger Pirates had only cooperated with Garp out of necessity. This situation, with Tsuru actively seeking assistance, was something else entirely.

Rayleigh remained silent for a while, then finally spoke up, unable to hold back anymore. "So, what's your plan? Are you really going to help the Navy?"

"Of course we'll help," Larson answered with a grin. "We're not a charity. The Navy will have to pay."

Rayleigh, visibly annoyed, shot back, "We? She only asked you."

Larson slung an arm around Rayleigh's shoulders. "What's the difference between you and me, huh?"

For Larson, it was crucial to get the Roger Pirates on board with this. If anything went wrong, having them around would make things easier to handle. Plus, he had only promised Tsuru that he'd do his best to protect the civilians. Worst case, he could pretend to kill a few Sea Kings and claim he'd done all he could.

After all, Tsuru wasn't coming in person, so she wouldn't know what he was actually up to.

Rayleigh thought for a moment and said, "Fine, but if there's no difference between you and me, then we'll split whatever the Navy pays us evenly."

Larson groaned dramatically, "We're supposed to be good brothers, and now you're nickel-and-diming me over something so trivial!"

Rayleigh smirked. "You expect us to be your free labor? Nice try."

"Alright, alright!" Whitebeard joined them, giving Larson a hearty pat on the shoulder. "It's just some money."

"Exactly!" Gaban chimed in with a grin. "Larson, stop being so stingy!"

Larson was fuming, gritting his teeth in frustration. "You, Gaban! You've been on my side all this time, but now you're eyeing my money too?"

"But..." Rayleigh suddenly paused, as if something important had crossed his mind. "Wait, we don't even know where the island is yet, do we?"

Roger, ever the carefree captain, chimed in, "What's so difficult about that? People in the East Blue must be talking about it. We'll just stop a ship at sea and ask. Simple as that."

Larson recalled that the group from the tavern was also headed to Yerug Island. All they had to do was stop them.

Just as Larson and the crew were preparing to set sail, a distant voice cried out, "Wait for us!"

Larson turned around and saw Marco flying in their direction, with Shanks and Bucky following behind him. He slapped his forehead, realizing he had nearly forgotten about the three of them.

Marco, pushing himself to his limit, accelerated even more, finally collapsing from exhaustion when he reached the ship. The reason for his frantic dash? They had seen the ship departing without them, and in a moment of panic, thought they'd been left behind. Marco had practically burned himself out flying at his maximum speed.

Larson approached with a grin. "Oops, sorry! Totally slipped my mind about you three."

He didn't seem embarrassed in the slightest.

Marco, Shanks, and Bucky looked at him with a mix of exasperation and disbelief. How could someone forget about them after sending them off the ship to handle something? Yet in an instant, they were nearly abandoned.

Even so, the trio didn't dare voice their complaints. Shanks and Bucky barely knew Larson and had witnessed his overwhelming strength. Not knowing his temperament, they chose to swallow their frustration. As for Marco, he had been trained under Larson's watchful eye and had long since learned to keep his anger to himself.

It was both pitiful and heart-wrenching.

With a smile still on his face, Larson asked, "So, did you three get any useful information?"

At the mention of this, the three of them visibly perked up. Larson noticed it immediately—their faces practically radiated with pride.

Unable to contain himself, Marco was the first to boast, perhaps eager to impress Larson. "We've got some big news! You'll be shocked when you hear it!"

Larson's curiosity was piqued. "Oh? What news?"

Marco gave him a mysterious look. "We found out the name of the mysterious island—it's Yerug. How about that? Bet you didn't know that, huh?"

Laughing smugly, Marco added, "Hah! What do you think of the information we uncovered? Surprised, aren't you?"

Larson clenched his fists, the veins on his forehead becoming pronounced. It took every ounce of his self-control to restrain himself from lashing out.

Marco noticed the shift in Larson's expression and quickly changed his tone, suddenly sounding unsure. "Uh, what's wrong? Hey, hey, you told us to go out and gather information. Now that we've done it, you can't hit us for it!"

Larson took a deep breath, forcing a tight smile. "Did you find out anything else?"

Marco glanced back at Shanks and Bucky. The two of them lowered their heads and muttered, "Isn't that news good enough?"

The smile on Larson's face grew even more strained. No, he had to hold himself back. Both Thatch and Rakuyo were members of the Roger Pirates. Any reckless action could easily jeopardize the friendship between the two pirate crews.

Then,

His gaze slowly shifted to Marco.

Marco suddenly felt a murderous intent looming over him and instinctively shivered.

Larson said calmly, "Marco, come here with me."

Marco's body trembled slightly. "Do I have to?"

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