The Banner

"You want to surpass me? That's quite a long road ahead."

Since he was rejected, Cifer turned and walked towards Little Ul, offering no comment on Will's thoughts.

Even if he was a child abandoned by Big Mom, his bloodline only gave him the potential to reach the level of a Sweet Commander; his ultimate growth was still unknown.

As for surpassing him, a young man who hadn't even set sail yet was naturally arrogant, thinking himself a genius. He didn't realize that even the most exceptional geniuses only glimpsed the threshold of his power.

"You shouldn't even think about setting sail. It's impossible to surpass that monster. If you don't go out to sea, you'll only feel the gap between you is like a mayfly and a giant tree. If you do go out to sea, you'll know the difference between a firefly and the bright moon."

Hina and Light happened to return to the dock with their arms full of bags, and they overheard Will's childish remark.

In Hina's eyes, it was difficult for another monster like Cifer to appear in the world. Marine Admirals? Four Emperors? Although those big shots were his match in strength, Cifer was still very young! He had plenty of time to grow!

Besides, it was good to stop a young man from becoming a pirate. Damn this Great Pirate Era!

Will ignored them, quietly watching Cifer's receding back. He wanted to engrave this person in his memory. His primary goal after setting sail would be to surpass him!

Seeing his lack of reaction, Hina didn't intend to bore herself and followed behind Cifer onto the ship.

"Hina is curious. You came to Kakaman Island empty-handed, so where did you get so much Belly and jewelry? You didn't do anything bad, did you?"

Hina saw the packages Cifer had casually placed on the deck and walked over to peek. She was almost blinded by the dazzling golden light, but luckily she was wearing sunglasses.

"I killed a wanted criminal and exchanged the money directly with the islanders. As for the jewelry, it was a gift. Take it if you like it."

Cifer was looking at a map. Although he couldn't understand it, he planned to find a place with an interesting-sounding name as his next destination.

Cifer's perfunctory attitude annoyed Hina, so she angrily grabbed several handfuls of jewelry from the package.

"Honestly, Hina is so annoyed. When are you going to let us return to Marineford?" Light was at the helm, and Hina, finally free, started nagging Cifer again.

"I'll let you go when the Shichibukai invitation arrives!"

Cifer answered her for the first time, which also made her feel a little uncomfortable.

"Of course, if you two want to leave the Marines and become my companions, that's also an option. After all, we get along pretty well."

Although they were weak, they were at least not cowards. Hina's surrender without a fight was only because she feared he would destroy the warship. Moreover, as Marines from Marineford, their character was quite up to par.

"Haha~ I'm fine with anything. I became a Marine in the first place to look after my little Hina. Mr. Cifer is a very interesting person!"

Light naturally had no objections. As a middle-aged man, after spending some time together, he still believed in Cifer's character.

"Uncle! We are Marines from the headquarters! Hina is going to get angry!"

Hina also thought Cifer was an interesting person and would never harm the innocent. However, he was still a wanted criminal. How could she, who had worked so hard to become a Marine Captain, give it up so easily?

"Cifer, how did you become so strong?"

Hina asked the question she had always wanted to ask. Even if she had trained since birth, she shouldn't be comparable to a Marine Admiral at such a young age.

"That's a good question… Probably innate…"

"Fine, if you don't want to say it!"

Cifer's answer made Hina roll her eyes. But he couldn't possibly say that he was a transmigrator who had also obtained someone else's power, right?

The three of them traveled around the first half of the Grand Line for a month like this. Cifer continued to spend lavishly, never looking at prices when eating or shopping. As a result, he killed many pirates along the way, and for a time, the pirates in the first half of the Grand Line became more restrained.

The Shichibukai invitation was still pending. Hina and Light spent considerable time with Cifer, and they completely let down their guard, as if they had truly become Cifer's companions.

"Ring ring~ Ring ring~"

After a long time, Hina's Den Den Mushi rang.

"This is Hina!"

"Is that guy by your side?" Sengoku's tired voice came from the other end.

"It's me."

Hina handed the Den Den Mushi over.

"The World Government has agreed to invite you to become one of the Shichibukai, but one of the original seven needs to be removed, and you have to deal with it yourself!"

"Is it that simple?"

Cifer expressed his doubt. He had killed a Celestial Dragon, and the Gorosei were willing to let him become a Shichibukai?

"Of course, it's not that simple!" Sengoku's tone turned grim. "They originally wanted you to go to Mary Geoise to apologize to that Celestial Dragon's family. I argued with them for a long time."

"Recently, many powerful newcomers have emerged from the Four Seas and are flooding into the Grand Line. Given your recent frenzied hunting of pirates, we plan to have you guard the Paradise (the first half of the Grand Line) for two years!"

"One year, at most!"

Cifer's attitude was firm. The only use of the Shichibukai for him was that it made daily voyages along the World Government's routes more convenient. How could he be bound?

He was willing to guard for one year because his promise to Shirahoshi was for one year. They didn't specify that the year would start counting from when he became a Shichibukai. He was already guarding in advance.

Furthermore, those so-called super rookies would prepare to enter the New World in about a year at most. Playing with them wouldn't be a bad idea.

"Alright, one year it is!"

Sengoku's tone was relaxed, seemingly surprised. Cifer fell silent for a moment, realizing that the other party hadn't expected him to agree to this request.

"When you take down one of the Shichibukai, you can officially take your position..." Before Sengoku could finish, Cifer had already hung up the Den Den Mushi.

"So? Which Shichibukai are you planning to go after, and when?"

Hina's expression turned a bit awkward. If Cifer took down a Shichibukai right away, she'd have to part ways with him. She'd actually enjoyed their time together...

No, no! Hina, what are you thinking? You're a Marine, and he's a pirate! How could you possibly be happy with him?

Thinking this, Hina suddenly realized that Cifer wasn't really a pirate at all. Aside from killing a Celestial Dragon, his actions were more like those of a bounty hunter. He didn't even have a basic pirate flag!

"No rush, the time isn't right yet."

Cifer intended to deal with Crocodile and meet up with Ace. The story hadn't progressed that far yet, and it would be a disaster if he messed things up.

"Speaking of which, you're about to become a Shichibukai. Aren't you going to put up your own pirate flag?" Hina reminded him.

"I'm not a pirate, why would I need a pirate flag?" Cifer pulled out a large, rectangular black cloth. "Can you draw one for me? No skull needed, just make it look like a mask. It just needs to be recognizable as my flag."

"Since you're asking Hina so sincerely, Hina will help you!"

Hina took the black cloth and began to draw on it with concentration.

Several hours passed, and Little Ul finally welcomed the first and only flag of its sailing life.

On the pure white mask, two dark green tear streaks were clearly visible. A pair of sharp horns adorned the top, and on either side of the mask, a pair of black wings spread open.

However, over the eyes, a pair of sunglasses were worn.