One Piece: After Being Exiled by Sengoku, I Began Building Fortresses

"I surrender! Please don't kill me!!"

Bang!

A single gunshot rang out—followed by a clean bullet hole in the middle of his forehead.

The man collapsed backward, lifeless.

"Surrender and you still die? Then fight! Take them down!"

"Charge!"

"RAAAAHHH!!"

But…

What awaited them wasn't mercy or victory, but a hailstorm of bullets.

Of course, there were a lot of pirates in Mock Town—easily several hundred.

The 50 Jun Lin soldiers, despite wielding firearms far superior to anything this world had seen, couldn't completely hold the line against a massive frontal charge.

After three volleys of gunfire and over a hundred corpses littering the ground, the pirates finally closed the distance.

And with that, melee combat began.

From afar, your guns may be terrifying—but in close combat? The advantage is ours!

"Kill those Jun Lin bastards!"

"RAAAAHHH!!"

The 50 Jun Lin troops looked like they were about to be completely overwhelmed by sheer numbers.

But what happened next left everyone stunned.

Even though the dense mob of pirates blocked the view of the fight's center, figures kept flying out—one after another.

Every single one of them… was a pirate.

Within the melee circle, all the Jun Lin soldiers had slung their rifles behind their backs and were now brawling hand-to-hand—punching pirates into the air like they were swatting flies.

The 50 men Luo Lan had brought with him were few in number—but the weakest among them had doriki exceeding 500.

What does that mean?

It means they were almost on par with Kalifa after the main story began.

This kind of strength…

How could any pirate in the first half of the Grand Line possibly stand a chance?

It was like grown men bullying toddlers.

Finally, someone among the pirates cracked under the pressure. Trembling in fear, he turned and fled.

And once one ran, a second followed. Then a third. Then more.

In the blink of an eye, over 200 pirates who hadn't yet been beaten down scattered like frightened birds.

At the center of the Jun Lin formation stood Luo Lan.

"Pursue them. Don't let a single one escape."

"Yes, Captain!"

In an instant, the formation dispersed.

The 50 Jun Lin soldiers spread out into smaller units, dashing in every direction with incredible speed.

From time to time, the sharp crack of gunfire echoed in the distance—or you'd see another pirate go flying through the air, trailing behind him a scream and a streak of blood.

In short, the pirates of Mock Town were utterly devastated.

Roughly ten minutes later, silence finally returned to the town.

A squad of soldiers returned, escorting three prisoners.

"Captain, these three claim to be Navy. We refrained from using lethal force."

Luo Lan nodded. "They are Navy. I'll handle it. You all resume the search."

"Yes, sir!"

The three intelligence officers from the Navy stood there, slack-jawed in shock.

These guys—were they really not Navy?

Look at those perfectly executed salutes…

Look at their movements—disciplined, precise…

Look at their—

If someone told me they were an elite unit directly under a Marine Admiral, I'd believe it!

"You're Navy?"

"Yes. We're intelligence agents assigned to Mock Town by Marine HQ."

"No worries. Jun Lin doesn't harm the Navy. But until our mission is complete, we can't allow you to leave. You don't mind, do you?"

"Not at all! Not even a little bit!"

The three men shook their heads furiously.

This place was like hell right now.

Nearly a thousand pirate corpses were strewn everywhere.

Calling it a river of blood wouldn't be exaggerating.

Jun Lin… was even scarier than the wanted posters claimed.

If they were still speaking politely to you, who would dare take offense?

"Blindfold them and escort them to the ship. Lock them up—we'll release them when we return."

"Understood!"

Nearby, Ian gave a nod and gestured with his hand.

A few Jun Lin soldiers quickly stepped forward, pulled black hoods over the agents' heads, and led them away.

"Ian, you're in charge of cleanup. I need to confirm something with someone—when the Knock-Up Stream will appear."

"Yes, Captain!"

---

Ten minutes later.

Using his immense Observation Haki, Luo Lan arrived at the far side of Jaya Island—the base camp of the Saruyama Alliance.

The place was in chaos.

After all, the ruckus in Mock Town had been massive—there was no way they hadn't noticed.

"Is the Navy attacking!?"

"No idea! Boss, we should retreat!"

"No! Not until we've confirmed whether our ancestor was telling the truth—I'm not leaving!"

"Boss!!"

Luo Lan shook his head.

Swish!

He vanished from sight.

When he reappeared, he was already standing in the middle of the Saruyama camp.

"I don't think you all need to be so nervous."

"Who the hell are you?!"

A masked stranger suddenly appearing in your camp? Of course anyone would be on edge!

And now he tells us to not be nervous? Seriously?

But Luo Lan had no intention of answering that question.

"I actually know everything you've been trying to find out."

"For example—what happened to the other half of Jaya Island."

"Or why you've never been able to find the Golden City, Shandora."

"Or whether the golden bell Mont Blanc Noland spoke of truly exists."

"And even more than that."

"I'll tell you everything—if you can tell me when the Knock-Up Stream will appear."

The Saruyama Alliance members were stunned at first.

Then, as Luo Lan finished speaking, they all started looking confused.

Especially their leader, Mont Blanc Cricket.

"What's a… Knock-Up Stream?"

Luo Lan froze.

Wait, what?

Then it hit him—he slapped a hand to his forehead.

Right. The current story hadn't reached that point yet—there were still nearly two years to go before the canon events began.

So, at this point in time, Mont Blanc Cricket hadn't yet researched the Knock-Up Stream!

But in the original story… what was it again?

If I remember correctly, spotting a certain unusual weather pattern meant the Knock-Up Stream would appear the next day, right?

But what exactly was that weather pattern?

Luo Lan had no clue.

"The Knock-Up Stream is a powerful vertical current that shoots up into the sky—high enough to reach the clouds."

"Oh, that? It appears every month or two."

"You know where it happens?"

"Sure. It always occurs in the same area."

Luo Lan grinned.

Even if they couldn't predict the exact time of its appearance, knowing the location was enough.

They could just wait it out.

That was good enough for him.

As promised, Luo Lan shared a great deal of information with Mont Blanc Cricket.

All about Mont Blanc Noland and the lost city of gold, Shandora.

The whole alliance—including all the monkey-men—burst into tears.

---

The next day.

Ian returned, bringing with him a girl.

Apparently, her pirate crew had arrived at Mock Town that morning—and after Ian's unit wiped them out, this girl was caught trying to sneak aboard a ship to escape.

Unfortunately for her, she ran straight into Ian's men…

Of course, Luo Lan didn't really care about the details.

What caught his attention was…

This girl… why does she look so familiar?

---

Currently at chapter 420 on Ko-Fi

https:// ko-fi.com/sami27