PIRATES: I WORK IN NAVY FROM NINE TO FIVE

BOOM!

A dull explosion rang through the battlefield, shaking the very air.

Blades of shockwave swept outward in all directions.

All eyes widened in disbelief at the scene before them.

He caught it.

A single strike—one that had effortlessly overpowered even a Marine Vice Admiral—had just been blocked like it was nothing.

The sight shook everyone to the core.

Even Cavendish, who had just been about to leap into action, froze with shock on his face.

That same devastating attack… Cavendish had just concluded in his heart that even surviving it would have been pure luck.

But now—someone had blocked it like it was a casual slap.

"L-Luo Yu... Admiral Luo Yu?! Why are you here?"

Vice Admiral Momonga stared at the newcomer, mouth agape in disbelief.

His eyes locked on the man who had so effortlessly stopped Weevil's monstrous naginata with one hand.

Over the past month, stationed at G-93, Momonga had heard more and more unsettling rumors about this new admiral.

He had dismissed them all.

After all, to him, only the three veteran admirals—Kizaru, Aokiji, Akainu—were worthy of the rank.

How could some newcomer possibly measure up?

But now…

Watching Luo Yu effortlessly halt a blow that had flattened him moments ago, something in Momonga's convictions wavered.

"Headquarters received your distress call," Luo Yu said calmly, adjusting his gold-rimmed glasses.

"No one else wanted to deal with this ticking time bomb—so I came."

His gaze lifted toward the hulking figure in front of him—nearly five meters tall.

"So this is the one with a 15 million Berry bonus? Whitebeard the Second, huh?"

"No—let me guess. The new candidate for the Seven Warlords of the Sea?"

"Fifteen million... what a joke."

Fifteen million?!

Momonga's jaw nearly hit the ground. The admiration he had just started feeling for Luo Yu collapsed instantly.

Yes, he had heard the rumors.

The new admiral obsessed with performance bonuses. Clock-ins. Payday calculations.

But he had hoped—just this once—the man had come for justice.

Now it seemed Luo Yu had simply shown up to cash in a bounty.

Still, Momonga quickly steadied himself.

"Admiral Luo Yu… did you say that this pirate—the one who butchered Zephyr-sensei's trainees and cut off his arm—has actually been appointed as a Warlord?"

"That has to be false! We all filed formal protests against it!"

Momonga's voice trembled with restrained fury.

He had lived through the horror of that tragedy. He had watched Zephyr—a man they all revered—shattered in both body and spirit.

When rumors had circulated that Weevil was being considered as a Warlord, Momonga and others from Zephyr's class had immediately protested to the World Government.

And now, Luo Yu was saying… it was official?

"It's true," Luo Yu replied blandly. "Fleet Admiral Sengoku signed the papers. You'll see for yourself—Ain's got a copy."

"This idiot really is the World Government's new pick for a Warlord."

He looked Momonga up and down, sighing as he saw the blood and bruises.

In his heart, Luo Yu couldn't help but feel sympathy.

In the world of Marine Vice Admirals, Momonga had to be the unluckiest of them all.

He was everywhere—canon, films, you name it.

With his signature rooster crest, two tufts of facial hair, pinstriped suit, and stiff upper-lip demeanor, he was Marine professionalism personified.

And yet every time he appeared—he got trashed.

Faced Boa Hancock?Got sweet-talked into stabbing himself to escape petrification.

Followed two admirals to intercept Shanks in Red Film?Got wiped out by a single Conqueror's Haki shockwave.

Now here he was—flattened by a snot-nosed berserker with mommy issues.

Luo Yu couldn't help thinking...

If the Marines had a Vice Admiral Hall of Shame, Momonga would be on the cover.

"You're kidding, right?" Momonga managed weakly. "Maybe we should retreat to Marine HQ first… let Zephyr-sensei know…"

"If he finds out about this, he'll never accept it!"

"So, you're the new admiral everyone's been whispering about?" a sharp, rasping voice cut in.

Miss Bakkin stepped forward, hunched over her cane, her shriveled face twisted in a mocking grin.

"To make my baby famous, I've had my eye on you. A Marine Admiral would make a fine prize."

"Last time we turned down CP0's offer. This time? You walk right into our hunting ground?"

"Consider me flattered."

She flashed a mouthful of oversized gold teeth, then turned to Momonga.

"You heard what he said, didn't you?"

"My son—soon to be officially appointed as one of the Seven Warlords—slaughtered your recruits, maimed your Zephyr, leveled your outpost..."

"And thanks to his Warlord privilege, none of it matters!"

"After all…" she sneered, eyes gleaming, "Weevil's just a child."

"A poor, misunderstood child. Nothing he does could possibly be wrong."

"Even if he kills a Marine Admiral."

Her words echoed across the shattered battlefield.

Everyone froze.

That last line...

She was serious.

This hag actually intended to murder a Marine Admiral, and then wipe the slate clean with Warlord immunity.

Were they... were they treating Admiral Luo Yu like a soft target?

"He's... just a child?" Luo Yu muttered, looking up at the hulking man who stood twice his height.

He sighed.

"So even at thirty-eight, a brat's still a brat… in his mommy's eyes."

"That's the kind of 'child' who's slaughtered civilians, maimed Marines, and flattened bases."

He took a swig from his earthen liquor flask.

"Let me guess…"

"You plan to kill me, invoke his Warlord title, and use the chaos to boost his infamy, right?"

Miss Bakkin burst into wild laughter.

"Smart boy!"

"That's exactly right."

"But this is just a friendly spar, of course."

"My precious son just wants to show the world—his blade weighs more than your justice."

"Weevil—go."