Aftermath of the Battle

The battle at the Ghost Sea lasted for a full day.

Rocks and Sengoku fought from noon until evening. The sea was littered with broken planks, tattered sails, and floating corpses. Of the navy's twenty warships, seven were sunk, five were damaged, and the remaining eight were also damaged. Of Rocks' five ships, one was sunk and three were damaged, with only his Flagship remaining intact.

When it got dark, both sides stopped fighting at the same time.

It wasn't that a victor had been decided; it was that the fighting couldn't continue. Rocks' fleet needed repairs, and the navy's fleet needed to retreat. If the fighting continued, both sides would sink in this ghostly sea.

"Withdraw." Rocks stood at the bow, the hem of his black coat fluttering in the sea breeze. A faint bloodstain ran from the corner of his mouth—a scratch from Sengoku's golden shockwave. It wasn't deep, but it was enough for him to remember.

"Captain, Lin Yuan over there—" Ochoku over, his body wrapped in bandages.

"I know," Rocks interrupted him, raising his hand. "He emptied the Transport Ship. One hundred and twenty tons of Seastone, all in his hands."

"Are you just going to let it go like that?"

"Forget it?" Rocks laughed, a laugh that sent chills down your spine. "When have I, Rocks, ever held a grudge against anyone? I remember."

He turned and went into the cabin.

"Return to Pirate Island. Regroup. We'll go to Hachinosu when the time is right."

The Marine Fleet also withdrew.

Sengoku stood at the bow of the Flagship, looking at the damaged warships and wounded soldiers, and remained silent for a long time. His Human-Human Fruit, Model: Daibutsu power was greatly depleted; the golden light had faded, revealing a slightly tired face.

"Have the loss statistics been released yet?" he asked.

"Seven warships sank, five were damaged. Three hundred and twenty soldiers were killed, and nearly six hundred were wounded." Crane stood behind him, holding a piece of paper. "All three Transport Fleet sank, and Lin Yuan seized the Seastone. Two of the six escorting warships sank, and four were damaged."

The Sengoku was silent for a moment.

"Lin Yuan... it's him again."

"He helped us," Crane said. "If he hadn't stolen the Seastone, those things would be in Rocks's hands now."

"Help?" Sengoku gave a wry smile. "He's here to take advantage, not to help us."

The result is the same.

The Sengoku did not refute this.

Where's Garp?

"He went after Roger. He hasn't come back yet."

"Let him come back. No need to chase him." Sengoku turned and walked into the cabin. "Return to headquarters. When reporting to the Five Elders, say that Rocks stole the Seastone. Don't Lin Yuan."

The crane glanced at him.

You want to protect him?

"It's not about protecting him, it's about protecting our face," Sengoku said. "If Seastone were stolen by a deserter recruit, where would the Marine Headquarters put its face?"

The crane did not ask any further questions.

Hachinosu.

The Seastone in the warehouse was piled up like a small mountain. Ginny stood beside it, counting and writing numbers into the ledger for a full half hour.

"One hundred and twenty-three tons." She closed the ledger and looked at Lin Yuan. "Adding what we had stored before, we have two hundred tons of Seastone. Do you know what that means?"

What does that mean?

"Three years' worth of production from the New World. Six months' worth of mining output from the World Government." Ginny took a deep breath. "If we sold all of this, we could buy an island."

"Not for sale," Lin Yuan said. "Seastone is a strategic resource. Keep it."

What's the point of keeping it?

"Build weapons. Build ships. Build prisons." Lin Yuan looked at the pile of Seastone. "In the future, if we capture Devil Fruit Users, we can keep them locked up."

Ginny paused for a moment, then smiled.

You still want to capture ability users?

"It's not that we want to, it's that we'll catch them sooner or later."

Kaido sat at the warehouse entrance, gnawing on meat. He was wounded— Ochoku's broadsword had cut a gash in his shoulder, and Silver Axe's axe had left a bloody gash on his back. Not deep, but bleeding quite a bit. When Ginny bandaged him, he didn't even flinch.

"Oh, lol... that Ochoku, his knife's pretty sharp."

"You lost?" Bullet leaned against the wall, rubbing his fists.

"Neither lost nor won." Kaido meat. "He slashed me, I punched him. It's a draw."

"Where is that person? Slow Heartbeat?" Bullet asked.

Kaido.

"We didn't fight."

"Why?"

"He's gone. Ginny said he sat out to sea for a day, and then he left."

Bullet remained silent for a moment.

That person is very strong.

"Um."

Neither of them spoke again.

Late at night.

Ginny sat in the Intelligence Room, her fingers forming circles, her eyes gleaming with a purple light. Her gaze pierced the sea, through the night, and landed on the harbor of the Pirate Island.

Rocks' fleet returned. Five ships went out, four came back. One sank and three were damaged. When the Flagship docked, Rocks was the first to disembark, his face calm. Ochoku and Silver Axe followed behind him, both of them wrapped in bandages.

Slow Heartbeat, last one.

As he disembarked from the ship, Rocks stopped.

"What did you see?"

Slow Heartbeat raising his head, his gray, snake-like eyes gleamed coldly in the night.

"Hachinosu. Six people: Kaido, Bullet, Kuma, King, Moria, Inazuma, and Lin Yuan." His voice was calm. "They have Seastone ore in their Training Grounds, Seastone in their warehouses, and Intelligence Room in their Castle."

"And what about their strength?" Rocks asked.

"Kaido and Ochoku a draw. Bullet and Silver Axe didn't fight. Kuma's Paw-Paw Fruit can deflect physical attacks. King's flames can burn through steel. Moria's shadow can trap twenty people. Inazuma's ability—can cut through Armament Haki."

Rocks raised an eyebrow.

"Can it cut through Armament Haki?"

"The thin kind. The thick ones won't do," Slow Heartbeat said, "But he's making progress."

Rocks remained silent for a moment.

"And you? Did you make a move?"

"No. I was just looking."

"Why?"

"Because there's no need," Slow Heartbeat said. "They're not our enemies. At least not now."

Rocks stared at him for a long time, then laughed.

"Fine. If you say it's not, then it's not."

Ginny looked away and rubbed her sore eyes.

"Lin Yuan Slow Heartbeat our situation to Rocks: our capabilities, numbers, and training methods. He analyzed it very carefully."

"I knew he'd say something," Lin Yuan said, standing by the window, looking at the sea outside. "And what else?"

"Rocks asked him why he wouldn't intervene. He said, 'There's no need.' Ginny paused. 'He said we're not their enemy. At least not now.'"

Lin Yuan remained silent for a moment.

"He's right. Not now. And later—it's hard to say."

The next morning.

Zephyr's small boat reappeared at the port of Hachinosu.

This time he didn't hesitate. As soon as the ship docked, he walked directly onto the pier and headed towards the Castle. The guards at the gate recognized him but didn't stop him.

Lin Yuan sat in the hall eating breakfast: a bowl of porridge, a plate of pickled vegetables, and a fish.

"Instructor, have you eaten?"

"Without."

Lin Yuan asked Ginny to serve him another bowl of porridge. Zephyr sat down, picked up the bowl, and started drinking. He moved quickly, just like when he was at Marine Headquarters —he ate quickly, walked quickly, and spoke quickly.

"Have you figured it out?" Lin Yuan asked.

"I've figured it out." Zephyr put down his bowl. "I'll do it."

What are you doing here?

"I'll train your people," Zephyr, looking at him. "Not to help you fight the Marines, not to help you kill the Celestial Dragons. I'll train them, teach them how to survive."

"OK."

But I have conditions.

"Explain."

"First, I don't wear pirate clothes. I wear my own clothes."

"Casual."

"Secondly, I don't fight former navy personnel. If your ship encounters a navy ship at sea one day, I won't intervene."

"Can."

"Third," Zephyr paused for a moment, "If one day the World Government comes looking for me and asks me to go back, I will leave."

Lin Yuan looked at him.

Will you go back?

Zephyr remained silent for a long time.

"Have no idea."

"We'll talk about that later."

Zephyr nodded.

Ginny arranged a room for Zephyr. It was on the second floor of the Castle, at the end of the corridor, with a south-facing window overlooking the sea. The room wasn't large, but it was clean. It contained a bed, a table, a chair, and a wardrobe.

Zephyr put his things inside—a change of clothes, a wooden knife, and a family photo.

"Instructor, where are your family?" Ginny, standing in the doorway.

"Sent to the East Blue. A small island, no navy, no pirates. Safe."

"Don't you miss them?"

Zephyr looked at the photo and remained silent for a moment.

"I want to. But they're safer there. If I'm there, they're in danger."

Ginny didn't ask any more questions and turned to leave.

On the Training Ground, everyone stood in a row.

Kaido, Bullet, Kuma, King, Moria, and Inazuma. Six people stood in a row. Zephyr stood in front of them, his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over each of their faces.

"My name is Zephyr, a former Marine Headquarters Instructor. From today onwards, I will be in charge of your training."

Kaido yawned.

"What makes you think you can teach us?"

Zephyr walked up to Kaido and looked up at him. Kaido was two heads taller than him, but Zephyr's eyes were fiercer.

"Because I've taught in the Navy for thirty years. Because I've trained more Admiral you've seen pirates in the New World. Because I can improve your Armament Haki by one level in three months."

Kaido stopped yawning halfway through.

"Real?"

"Give it a try."

Zephyr punched Kaido squarely in the chest. It wasn't a sneak attack, it was a direct hit. Kaido didn't dodge, nor did he use Armament Haki. The fist slammed into Kaido's chest muscles with a dull thud. Kaido took a step back, his chest burning with pain.

"Oh ho ho..." Kaido rubbed his chest. "That's interesting."

Zephyr didn't laugh.

"Meet at the Training Ground at 5:00 AM tomorrow. Anyone who is late will have to run ten laps around the island."

"Ten laps?" Moria's expression changed. One lap around Hachinosu is about five kilometers, so ten laps would be fifty kilometers.

"Not enough? Twenty laps."

Moria shut up.

Evening.

Lin Yuan stood on the Castle rooftop, watching the Training Ground. Zephyr was teaching Inazuma how to use Observation Haki to sense his opponent's next move. Inazuma closed his eyes, his fingers moving slowly through the air, trying to find Zephyr's weakness.

"Rapid progress." Ginny walked up, holding a ledger. "Zephyr said that with the Inazuma - Snip-Snip Fruit, he can cut through ordinary Armament Haki in actual combat within three months."

Where is Moria?

"The hardness of the Shadow Wall has increased by thirty percent. Zephyr had him spar with Bullet, and Bullet's punches couldn't break his Shadow Wall anymore."

Where's Kuma?

"The Paw-Paw Fruit's launch distance has increased by two hundred meters. Zephyr said his Haki still needs more practice, but his Devil Fruit ability is almost fully developed."

Where is Jhin?

"His control over the Float-Float Fruit has improved. He can manipulate twenty boulders simultaneously, with each boulder's trajectory not overlapping. Zephyr says he's a natural battlefield controller."

Where Kaido?

Ginny paused for a moment.

Kaido didn't go to training.

Lin Yuan turned to look at her.

"Where did you go?"

"Warehouse. Gnawing on meat." Ginny sighed. "He said his Armament Haki is already strong enough, he doesn't need to practice."

"Let him come see me."

Kaido walked out of the warehouse, holding a piece of meat in his hand.

"Lin Yuan, you were looking for me?"

"Go to training tomorrow."

My Armament Haki has already--

"I know. But you're not fast enough. Your reactions aren't fast enough. Your Conqueror's Haki control isn't stable enough." Lin Yuan looked at him. "Zephyr can help you."

Kaido remained silent for a moment.

"Okay... fine. I'll go then."

Late at night.

Ginny sat in the Intelligence Room, making circles with her fingers. Her gaze pierced through the night, landing on the harbor of Pirate Island. The Slow Heartbeat ship was still there. Rocks' ship was also there.

Just as she was about to look away, she suddenly saw Slow Heartbeat emerge from the cabin. He stood on the deck, looked up, and gazed in the direction of Hachinosu.

Their eyes met across the distance.

Ginny's hand trembled slightly.

A slight smile played on her lips Slow Heartbeat.

Then he turned and went into the cabin.

Ginny lowered her fingers and gasped for breath.

Lin Yuan.

"Um?"

"Slow Heartbeat... He knows I'm watching him."

He always knew.

"Then why didn't he say so?"

"Because he wants Rocks to know," Lin Yuan said. "He knows you'll tell Rocks. He knows you'll be scared. That's exactly what he wants—to make us feel like we've been seen through, to make us scare ourselves."

Ginny remained silent for a long time.

"Then what do we do?"

"Ignore him," Lin Yuan said. "Let him watch, we'll practice. Once we've practiced enough, it won't matter to him watching."

Ginny nodded.

(End of Chapter 61)