Chapter 13: New Bounties
"What's up, Ron? How's the missus?"
"Still pregnant and still moody. At least I've got a desk job now, or she'd have reported me to Fleet Admiral Sengoku-san already."
"You've got a good one, Ron. Hold onto her. Wish I had someone like that."
"You're a damn playboy, dude. Stop hanging out in pubs if you actually want to settle down."
"Come on, man. I don't need another lecture from you. Let's just get to the files. North Blue sent me theirs."
"Yeah, yeah. Lunch ended an hour ago. I don't need another warning from the boss. So, what's the update? Any new bounties we need to issue?"
"Yep. There's this new pirate crew—'Heart Pirates.' They're the talk of the town right now."
"What'd they do?"
"Well, the thing is, they're not your usual pirates. They don't go around looting and pillaging randomly. They just target big names for their treasure."
"How many members?"
"About fifteen or so."
"Anyone strong?"
"That's the weird part. They work fast, and we don't even know what their ship looks like."
"That's gonna be a problem."
"Yeah. But we do have info on two members. The first one is their captain, Trafalgar Law. He's a devil fruit user."
"Any idea how it works?"
"Yeah, North Blue sent us the details. It's the Ope-Ope-no-Mi."
"Huhuhu. So, he got his hands on that fruit. The World Government was trying to find it a few years back."
"Did they ever get it?"
"Nope. A marine spy was supposed to deliver it, but he was discovered and killed. I ran a couple of missions with him. Good man."
"Fucking pirates. Killing off good people. So, this kid got the fruit. But he's only 20—no way he killed our guy. How much bounty are we giving him?"
"The World Government's not looking for the fruit anymore, but its power is still dangerous. He hasn't started killing off people randomly yet. Let's give him 30 million belly for now. Now, what about the second guy?"
"This one's a bit confusing."
"Confusing? Just spill it already."
"He's a swordsman. Wields a simple katana. A Navy squad managed to surround him on Stormreach Island, and he defeated them all without leaving a single scratch."
"How'd he manage that?"
"He... used the back of his sword. The soldiers who were there said he moved so fast it was as if he was a phantom."
"Hmm. Taking out a squad with just the back of his sword... he must be really skilled. Any other incidents?"
"Just one more. A Navy captain got intel on a pirate group called the 'Lion Pirates.' Their leader, Lion King Robby, had a bounty of 50 million belly. The captain took his elites to capture him. When they arrived, all the pirates were either dead or critically injured. Robby was the only one still alive, in his lion form. Then he was sliced in half with a single sword strike."
"I remember that crew. They used to massacre villages. That 50 million bounty was more for their brutality than their strength, but Robby was not weak. In his lion form, he had the strength of ten men. This is worrying. What do they call the swordsman?"
"Phantom Blade Zephyr."
"Fitting name."
"What bounty should we give him?"
"Hmm... let's start with 25 million belly for now. We'll reevaluate if anything changes. Any other news?"
"Yeah, Swallow Island is becoming the new hub for deranged...
As the two officers continued their conversation about various criminal activities in North Blue, two new wanted posters were added to the bulletin board. The first featured a young man with a strange, spotted hat and a cold expression, while the second depicted a figure dressed in a light green kimono, a katana at his side, and a calm yet intense look in his eyes.
Surgeon of Death, Trafalgar Law- 30,000,000Belly. (Dead or Alive)
Phantom Blade Zephyr-25,000,000Belly. (Dead or Alive)
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
TestSubject5
TestSubject5 No pirate is a true pirate till they get a bounty. Now, things are actually getting serious.
First major arc will start from tomorrow.
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