Chapter 193: Head-On Clash
Over the course of two days, Fujitora had a blast, and Zeke and the others who also enjoyed gambling had just as much fun.
To be honest, although Fujitora was addicted to gambling, his luck at it wasn't very good. The group gambled with him, but this old man kept losing, to the point where Zeke and the others felt a bit embarrassed winning from him.
Still, to ensure Fujitora could enjoy himself to the fullest, Ian would toss him some money whenever he lost it all.
When they came out of Old K's casino, Ian exchanged all the chips he'd won for cash. Because Old K had conceded defeat, Ian's two million six hundred thousand Beri had tripled to seven million two hundred thousand Beri. Including his original stake, he now had over ten million Beri on him. He casually threw some to Fujitora for gambling, treating it as giving the crew a red envelope through his hands.
Fujitora had never gambled so happily before. Even after two days, when they were nearing the G-5 branch's location, he still felt a bit unsatisfied.
At that moment, he couldn't help but think that maybe joining the Dragon Hunter Pirates' ship wouldn't be a bad choice after all.
The G-5 branch's base wasn't exactly a secret facility. Since the Marines were responsible for maintaining maritime security, they often received reports from ordinary citizens. If it were a secret base, how could they follow the mass line?
However, due to the G-5 branch's notorious behavior, not only were pirates terrified of them, but even ordinary people feared them. Unless absolutely necessary, they generally avoided approaching the G-5 branch's base.
This also meant that near the island where the G-5 branch was located, no ships could be seen at all.
At that moment, Ian was holding a blueprint, sitting in front of Fujitora, studying it with him.
According to Old K's account, the one who had caught him and forced him to open a casino to make money was actually a Commodore from the G-5 branch named Overhead. A Commodore was a transitional rank between Captain and Rear Admiral. Ian estimated that this Commodore Overhead wasn't very strong, but the G-5 branch had a formidable figure: the base commander, Vice Admiral Vergo.
Vergo was known as "the gentlemanly Marine of G-5," referring to his conduct, which was completely different from the barbaric, violent Marine soldiers of the G-5 branch. He presented himself as very gentlemanly.
However, Ian knew that Vergo was actually one of Doflamingo's men. He served as a spy within the Marines but had earned their trust, making him an elite Vice Admiral.
Ian couldn't say for sure whether Vergo was stronger or weaker than Vice Admirals Momonga and Fighting Dog, but if he remembered correctly, Vergo's Armament Haki was exceptionally powerful, capable of hardening his entire body with it.
Old K had once planned to use his Devil Fruit ability to sneak back into the G-5 branch and rescue his companions, but due to concerns about Vergo, he hadn't yet implemented his plan. However, Old K had drawn a rough map of the G-5 branch's layout from memory, which was the one Ian was holding.
Originally, Ian didn't want to meddle in this matter. He didn't even know this Old K, so there was no reason to risk entering the infamous G-5 branch for him. But because of Fujitora, he had to accompany him on this trip.
Ian had initially considered sneaking in quietly, like knocking out a Marine soldier and wearing his uniform to blend in. But after stroking his chin and thinking it over, he changed his mind.
"How about this, Uncle Issho? Considering your eyesight is inconvenient, why don't you draw the Marines' attention from the front, and I'll go in to help rescue the person? What do you think?" Ian asked Fujitora.
"How do I draw the Marines' attention?" Fujitora asked.
"Fight them!" Ian said with a smile. "You're so strong; the Marines at the G-5 branch can't hurt you. The bigger the commotion you make, the emptier their prison guard will be!"
Fujitora nodded and said, "That's true, but something feels off to me."
"What's off about it!" Ian said casually, patting Fujitora on the shoulder. "Look, we're here to help you as a favor, but you need to know your priorities. If you won't take the head-on clash, are you expecting us, the volunteers, to do it?"
Fujitora thought the phrase "head-on clash" sounded strange, but he understood the gist and felt Ian had a point, so he nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, Ian was secretly laughing to himself.
Since Fujitora didn't mind becoming a pirate, Ian planned to make it happen. By having him directly engage the G-5 branch's Marine soldiers in battle, even if he held back, the soldiers would inevitably get hurt. Such an act of challenging Marine authority would surely make Fujitora a wanted man by the Marines afterward.
Ian was curious to see if, when the Marines held their world conscription, they would still promote Fujitora to Admiral if he became a wanted pirate.
And there was another point: if Fujitora really became a pirate, wouldn't the chances of Ian recruiting him increase significantly?
For a moment, Ian felt he was finding some amusement in this matter.
After discussing it, Ian told the Dragon Hunter Pirates' members to stay on the ship, far from the island, and come to pick them up after the mission was done. After all, Marine bases had cannons on land, and Ian didn't want his ship to be spotted and blown up.
Then, Ian and Fujitora launched a small boat and slowly rowed toward the Marine base.
On the boat, Fujitora said to Ian with some concern, "I can protect myself, but Ian, young man, are you sure you'll be okay rescuing the person?"
During the two days on the ship, Fujitora hadn't really seen Ian display his strength, so he was a bit worried now.
"Relax!" Ian reassured him. "I might not be as strong as you, but handling a Vice Admiral or two is no problem."
Hearing this, Fujitora was secretly startled. He had heard about the Mary Geoise arson incident, but he wasn't clear on the exact details. After all, his current identity was just a wanderer, with limited access to intelligence. He had only learned about the Mary Geoise incident from some pirates.
So, he never imagined that the Ian before him was also a formidable figure.
"In that case, I'm relieved!" Fujitora said. "I'll firmly draw the Marines' attention."
When the small boat was about to reach the shore, Ian said to Fujitora, "I'll go from the other side. Uncle, keep rowing forward!"
Seeing Fujitora nod in understanding, Ian jumped into the sea and swam toward the other shore.
Although Fujitora couldn't see, he could sense Ian's movements through Observation Haki. After confirming that Ian had landed, Fujitora got off the boat, using his staff sword to probe the ground as he slowly walked toward the Marine base's location.
When he got close to the base's main gate, he was spotted. A Marine guard, yawning with his hat crooked, squinted at him and then shouted impatiently, "Hey, blind man! This is a Marine base. If you don't want trouble, get lost!"
Fujitora smiled slightly and said, "I've come to the G-5 branch to ask the Marines something."
But the Marine guard didn't even listen. He grabbed the gun beside him, fired a shot at Fujitora's feet, and chuckled, "Whatever it is, get lost now, or I'll be rough with you!"
"I'm just a commoner. Can't I even ask the Marines a question?" Fujitora opened his eyes, revealing his pale eyeballs, and said angrily.
The Marine guard had no idea who he was dealing with. Growing more impatient, he shouted, "Commoner? You're probably a pirate! Leave now, or I'll arrest you!"
Fujitora shook his head and said, "Just as the rumors say—barbaric and unreasonable!"
He realized that Ian was right: reasoning with the G-5 branch people was completely useless. So, without further ado, Fujitora drew his staff sword and swung it horizontally toward the Marine guard from a distance.
"Gravity Blade: Tiger!"