Chapter 407: There's Only One Answer Now
Chapter 407: There's Only One Answer Now
While Kuro was enjoying some rare peace and quiet alone, his subordinates had already received the news.
Kuro dared to cut off the Transponder Snail, but they wouldn’t. After all, they needed intelligence from Headquarters. Headquarters’ updates were crucial, so they kept the Transponder Snail active and never interrupted the news.
But Kuro had explicitly ordered them not to do so. What could they do?
As Kuro’s strategist, Klah thought, Well, Mr. Kuro doesn’t care anyway. For the past eight months, nothing’s ever troubled him. Let’s just keep it under wraps.
As the right-hand man, Klah fully embraced his deputy role—fielding calls, managing news, and ensuring Mr. Kuro stayed blissfully unaware.
So he secretly reactivated the disabled Transponder Snail and immediately received a call from Headquarters.
They were asking whether the Lucius incident on North Blue’s Tomato Island was real.
Klah was stunned.
How did Headquarters find out?
Only the Navy on Pegasus Island should’ve known. They themselves wouldn’t talk, and Kas was under Kuro’s tight surveillance, with no chance to leak anything. Other than the three thousand Clone Soldiers, the rest of the Navy had already been recalled to Headquarters. Those Clone Soldiers weren’t exactly chatty, so spreading news was impossible.
The Vinsmoke Family wouldn’t admit to such an embarrassing incident, and the four kingdoms’ kings had been silenced by Kuro’s threats.
Just to be safe, Klah had even gone to sea to verify. Two months had passed since then, and Pegasus Island no longer carried the old newspapers. The news seagulls only delivered the latest updates.
Still, it was easy to find.
Klah visited the nearby Pegasus Island and casually obtained a newspaper from a local household.
It featured a photo of Kuro beheading Lucius, and an even clearer image of the North Blue Vinsmoke Four’s execution.
We’re done for.
That was Klah’s first thought.
This news absolutely couldn’t reach Mr. Kuro.
Otherwise, the only one who’d suffer was Kuro himself.
But secrets never stayed buried. He couldn’t hide this forever. If Mr. Kuro found out on his own, he’d be the one to suffer.
So he discussed the matter with Lida, unaware that Kas had overheard.
“What?! Commodore Kuro doesn’t know about this? How could this happen?!”
Then came the scene downstairs.
Lida and Klah exchanged glances, silently agreeing.
First, calm down this passionate big beard. Then figure out a plan.
“Actually, Mr. Kuro does know,” Klah said to Kas after a moment’s thought. “He just might not know the details. He’s aware that people know about Lucius’ death.”
That made sense. After all, so many people were present—how could no one know?
“We could spread the news ourselves, but for Mr. Kuro, it’s not worth mentioning.”
“Back on Tomato Island, you heard what Mr. Kuro said—Lucius was old, an elderly man. Killing an old man isn’t something to boast about.”
Klah continued, “So Mr. Kuro knows. But if you make a big fuss about it, he’ll think you’re too impulsive. You want to be Mr. Kuro’s shield, right? Then act more composed.”
“Oh! I see!”
Kas suddenly understood and thanked Klah earnestly, “Thank you so much, Major Klah! Without you, I might’ve made a huge mistake!”
“Exactly! Now go train. Mr. Kuro trusts you so much—you can’t let him down.” Klah nodded quickly.
“Wait? Commodore Kuro… no, Mr. Kuro trusts me?!” Kas asked, eyes wide with surprise.
“Of course! Look at your three thousand subordinates—the three thousand Dogger Family Navy. A regular branch base wouldn’t have such authority. Mr. Kuro had to pull strings for you.” Klah lied through his teeth.
Well, not entirely. He remembered Kuro saying exactly that to Admiral Lucius Kro back then.
“Hey, Gramps, I want those Vinsmoke Family Clone Soldiers. Help me get approval.”
“Oh~ Sure! But since you already have three thousand men, I’ll recall the rest.”
“Is that how it was? So that’s how it was!”
Kas wiped away tears of gratitude, looking up, “I’ll never let Mr. Kuro down!”
With that, he left for the training ground.
The Marine Base was divided into two massive walls. The inner wall housed Kuro’s Navy fortress and the officers’ quarters, while the outer wall contained the regular soldiers’ barracks, mess hall, and training ground.
“Comrades!”
Kas, still teary-eyed, stood on the training ground’s platform, shouting to the thousands of Navy soldiers who were already training. “Family!”
The soldiers halted, hands behind their backs, feet apart, standing rigidly straight.
Looking at them, Kas declared, “Today, I’ve learned Mr. Kuro’s true feelings toward me—I’ve been acknowledged!
“My long-held dream has finally come true. The answer is clear—I’ll take another step forward, offering my loyalty!
“One person’s strength is limited, but a group’s strength is boundless. Our revered Mr. Kuro stands alone, but with us, he’s never alone!”
“I, Kas, vow that I’ll not only be Mr. Kuro’s shield, but the Dogger Family will forever be the Rusiru Family’s shield.”
“You bear my surname, so we’re family! My oath is yours to uphold—generation to generation, father to son, grandfather to grandson!
“Even if the Grand Line collapses, the sky crushes down, and the world is destroyed—the Dogger Family will always, eternally, be the Rusiru Family’s shield!!”
“OH!!!”
Three thousand Navy soldiers roared in unison.
“You realize Kuro’ll skin you alive when he finds out?”
Amid the fervor, Lida shuddered, staring at Klah like he’d seen a ghost. “That was an oath of allegiance—it’s not just hierarchical anymore.”
“If I didn’t redirect him now, Mr. Kuro would’ve skinned me alive already. What future?”
Klah swallowed hard. He hadn’t expected Kas to react so intensely—just a little white lie about Kuro’s trust.
But maybe it wasn’t so bad.
Adjusting his glasses, Klah mused, “At least when Mr. Kuro’s child is born, there’ll be natural protection. Nothing wrong with that.”
“You’re right.”
Lida’s eyes lit up, inexplicably cheerful, “So my child’ll have many comrades!”
Klah twitched. What are you imagining now…
---
“What’s all the noise?”
Kuro’s quarters were soundproofed, and the training ground was far away, so he hadn’t heard Kas’s speech. But the collective roar reached him.
He bit his cigar, glancing out the window with a sigh, “Another passionate outburst from Kas, huh?”
Well, he was in a good mood. Let Kas play around on Pegasus Island. It wouldn’t cause any trouble.
(End of Chapter)
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