And right after Gawain and his group left...
Thump!
A heavy voice suddenly rang out...
Looking at the giant mechanical arm that suddenly crashed to the ground, it was at least two meters long and eighty centimeters thick.
Akainu took a deep breath...
"Is this... the impatience of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Akainu looked helplessly at the Seastone mechanical arm on the floor.
Then he spoke to the doctor who was not far away.
"Pack this up, and I'll send someone to deliver it to Saint Gawain... and to Teacher Zephyr, who just had a hand installed but lost it again!"
After saying that, Akainu left the doctor's office with a smirk.
As an excellent Akainu simply cannot feel any affection for Seastone, which is naturally his weakness!
Not long after, on Gawain's ship, Gawain, covered in bruises, slammed down from the sky and crashed onto his own deck.
As he placed Zephyr and his group aside, the officers of the Dark Bird Ship also curiously came over to greet them.
As she approached, Gion couldn't help but ask.
Why did you suddenly leave after receiving the call?
Sir, what you're doing is very detrimental to our protection of you...?
Zephyr- sensei?!
As they were talking, Gion suddenly saw Zephyr, and she immediately showed an expression of utter surprise!
Meanwhile, on the training ground in the distance, Isuka, who was training against Ace and Ace crew, quickly looked in their direction!
It's worth noting that Isuka trained under Zephyr for a period of time before becoming a second lieutenant; Isuka became a junior officer even earlier than Smoker.
Even Smoker was Zephyr's disciple, so how could Isuka not?
So she quickly looked towards the sound and saw her teacher.
At the same time that even a young person like Isuka looked over, an old man like Rayleigh also burst into laughter.
"Haha, no wonder Captain Gawain disappeared so quickly, it turns out you agreed to his request over the phone, Brother Zephyr..."
"Shut up!!!"
Suddenly, Zephyr interrupted Rayleigh angrily.
"Dark King Rayleigh, you'd better watch your mouth! Who's your brother?!"
"Why?"
Upon hearing this, Rayleigh immediately became displeased.
"Brother Zephyr, stop playing dumb, okay? If I remember correctly, you're about four years younger than me and Garp, right?"
So I am seventy-three this year, and you are sixty-nine.
Haha, looking at it this way, aren't you the younger brother?
"You...!!!"
Hearing Rayleigh's mischievous laughter, Zephyr suddenly regretted coming to this ship with Gawain.
Even a reckless old pirate like Rayleigh, even if he embarks on what he sees as the path of reformation.
He really was still like a pickled rock soaked in a pirate pool, exuding that reckless, unruly pirate vibe!!!
So, facing Rayleigh's teasing smile, Zephyr fiercely raised his right hand.
Just like how you have to earn the respect and recognition of team members with your skills before joining a team, I also have to have a good fight with this old guy!
Although he was injured, he was younger than him, and he also had the Frankenstein's Science Monster Hand made by Vegapunk!
Perfect timing! Let's use this battle to truly test the power of this hand... uh... eh?!
After raising his right hand, Zephyr stared at it with a completely bewildered expression.
At this moment, he no longer had any mechanical right hand.
All that remained on his wrist was the severed hand that had been reattached by the doctor years ago.
At the same time, at the point where his wrist was severed, there was a special device that looked like a heavy arm guard, used to connect nerves and link to the giant mechanical hand.
So... what about your own hands?
The mechanical arm that I painstakingly commissioned Vegapunk to design, then had the Marine Science Unit manufacture for over six months, followed by two months of testing, was finally installed on me?!
For a moment, Zephyr raised his right hand with a completely bewildered expression on his face.
Where the hell is my hand that big?!
Seeing Zephyr's stunned expression, Gawain suddenly realized that his Rumble-Rumble Fruit shouldn't be able to move with Seastone, right?
So, he brought Zephyr's physical body over, but left his mechanical arm covered in Seastone at Marine Headquarters!
Thinking of this, Gawain couldn't help but cough twice. He really did look a little impatient!
Unfortunately, as his mastery of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit- Rumble-Rumble Fruit improved, its influence on his personality deepened. Every night before bed, he needed to meditate for a long time to gradually calm himself down, going against Rumble-Rumble Fruit natural instincts.
Even so, I sometimes get impatient...
Thinking of this, Gawain innocently rubbed his hair.
"Ahem, Mr. Zephyr, it seems... I think I left your hand at Marine Headquarters!"
No problem, haha, we happen to have a genius mechanic on board whose mechanical skills are no less than Vegapunk's.
"Ahem, Franky, come quick!"
As he spoke, Gawain greeted Franky in the lab with a wry smile.
Just as Franky arrived at full speed, Rayleigh, having figured something out, also looked at Zephyr's severed hand with a deep expression.
He said slowly.
"Long time no see, Brother Zephyr..."
Back then, that old devil Garp was always chasing after my pirate crew and Roger's crew, Sengoku was chasing after the Whitebeard Pirates.
And you, you've always been fighting the Golden Lion Pirates.
We haven't had much contact, so I don't know much about you.
All I know is that you... cough cough.
In short, you later gave up your position Admiral and instead stayed at Marine Headquarters to focus on educating students.
When you relinquished your Admiral position, it was probably about twenty-six or twenty-seven years ago. Because you were no longer active on the high seas, the Shiki, now with nothing to do, directly engaged us in the Battle of Edd War.
Alas, if it weren't for the storm's help, we would have been defeated by the Shiki in that naval battle.
In short, all I know is that you're not up to the task of Admiral, but this hand of yours...
As they spoke, Rayleigh, ignoring Zephyr's disgusted expression, gently pulled over his right hand and examined it closely.
After a moment, Rayleigh gently shook his head.
"Your right hand wasn't severed by a swordsman, is it because you have superpowers?"
"Strange, why have we never heard of this? We had no idea that your hand had been broken once..."
"Snort!"
Hearing Rayleigh's words, Zephyr forcefully pulled his right hand back behind his back.
Then, he said to Rayleigh in an annoyed tone.
"As for my severed hand, that's not something I can't talk about!"
But for the Navy, that's a top secret that must be kept confidential!
As soon as he finished speaking, Zephyr pointed to his chest.
"When I was injured, I was no longer working Admiral, but instead became an instructor."
However, back then I at least held the rank of Admiral!
So, haha, have you ever heard of any Admiral failing on this vast ocean?
To answer my question, can you give me even one example of Admiral failed, other than myself?
After speaking, Zephyr coldly looked at Rayleigh and his group, silently awaiting their answer.
Upon hearing Zephyr's words, everyone couldn't help but frown and ponder.
"Indeed!"
Jinbe was the first to lose his temper.
"In all my years, I have truly never heard of Admiral being defeated."
Although I've occasionally heard of Admiral going toe-to-toe with so-and-so, there has never actually been a case where Admiral suffered a complete defeat!
"That's right!"
Jinbe to the side, Gion nodded heavily.
"This point was explained to me, the Fleet Admiral Sengoku, as a candidate for the next Admiral."
In the Navy, one of the most important factors for becoming Admiral is never being defeated by a pirate of the same generation!
If an Admiral cannot overpower powerful pirates of his generation and maintain an undefeated record, he will not become the pride of the Navy, but merely..."
Gion didn't continue, but her words made Zephyr's expression even worse.
Fortunately, at the same time, Shiryu up.
"There's nothing we can do about it, tch, that's just the government's rule."
This rule isn't unique to your navy; we in Impel Down have a similar one!
If we can't control every criminal in the Impel Down, then we deputy wardens will never be qualified to be wardens!
The reason I couldn't compete with Magellan wasn't just because he was a cut above me, but also because in Impel Down, only he could inherit the old warden's tradition and single-handedly suppress every prisoner in the prison!
And I..."
Shiryu shook his head angrily.
"In the deepest recesses of Impel Down live two... enemies I absolutely cannot defeat right now, alas..."
Only Magellan, with his poison gas, could barely suppress those two men by himself.
Therefore, those two guys are also my role models, constantly reminding me not to be complacent...
I... cough cough.
If I were to say that I enjoy the habit of indiscriminately killing prisoners, it's because I was severely beaten by those two, and that's how I developed it.
Do you believe it?
"Cough cough!"
Hearing Shiryu's words, Ichisho couldn't help but cough. As he coughed, he said to Shiryu with amusement.
"I love the Dark Bird Ship I'm on so much because everyone here is talented. Although not everyone here is a good person, everyone here is truly honest."
Especially you, Shiryu, what I admire most about you is your ability to easily turn bad habits into good ones and openly discuss them with everyone...
"So unruly and defiant!!!"
After saying that, he smiled and sighed, then picked up his cup.
After the joke ended, Zephyr finally spoke up again.
He spoke softly to the crowd.
"Rayleigh, it's not just you who don't know that I lost my hand."
Even the newest members of the Navy today are unaware that I ever existed!
The new marines of today, after my defeat, have long been so thoroughly publicized by their superiors that they no longer know my story...
"Haha, that's normal, Brother Zephyr!"
Rayleigh chuckled and patted Zephyr on the shoulder. Just as Rayleigh turned away in Zephyr, Rayleigh continued softly.
"You, in the first half of your life, were incredibly hypocritical. What were you insisting on back then?"
I remember... the justice you uphold is justice that doesn't kill, right?
Ah, I actually admire your sense of justice, but it's clear that this ocean has never upheld the principle of not killing.
Even Roger, alas, he once insulted Gaban because the people of the Enbair Kingdom insulted him, saying he looked like a butcher with an axe.
As a result of that remark, Roger immediately led us to slaughter everyone in the Enbair Kingdom...
Whenever I think about this matter in my dreams, I feel ashamed and uneasy.
But in those times, if we were weak, we would inevitably be vulnerable everywhere. Back then, only by being ruthless like Roger and me could we protect our loved ones and family on the far more treacherous seas..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Rayleigh sighed sadly.
Just as he said, he couldn't help but feel that every drop of blood spilled on this sea was intimately connected to him.
It wasn't just his assumption.
Rather... the sins they committed back then were simply too many!
They are pirates, the crew of the Pirate King!
Do you think they're adventurers?
The moment they proudly proclaimed the word "pirate," they ceased to be adventurers!
Meanwhile, listening to Rayleigh's words, Zephyr first gritted his teeth, then softened his expression and gently shook his head.
"Why..."
Zephyr sighed.
"Just like you said, gentleness can't protect those around you; it only puts them in danger..."
If I had understood this principle thirty years earlier, then... then my child would probably be the same age as Garp's son...
Ahem, never mind, I'll try another one.
I must have lost my mind. How could I compare my son to a vicious creature like a dragon?
Anyway...
I was wrong back then, because I never killed anyone.
So even though I possess great strength, I still cannot earn the fear of pirates!
They... they even killed my lover and my young child...
"If I had been as ruthless as Garp and Sengoku back then, perhaps that tragedy wouldn't have happened to me, who deserves even more fear?"
As he spoke, Zephyr shook his head slightly, then said listlessly.
"In short, I lost to Doflamingo back then."
Four and a half years ago, that Flamingo and his family attacked my ship!
Fortunately, Vergo arrived at the crucial moment, buying me time to recover, which is why I barely survived...
"And this matter has been completely hidden by the navy since the day I failed!"
"What?!!"
As soon as Zephyr finished speaking, everyone nearby froze, and Hancock shouted in disbelief.
"Did I hear that right? You're talking about that Flamingo with the really arrogant walk?"
You are a former Marine Admiral, while he is... a mere Warlord whom even I have never taken seriously!
How could you possibly lose to him!
"Uh, although I want to remind Hancock that you are just a mere Martial Sea warrior in your own words."
But let's talk about Brother Zephyr's matter."
Beside Zephyr, Rayleigh also shook his head.
"Are you sick, Zephyr? You were the Black Arm Zephyr who could defeat Golden Lion Shiki!"
Even if he was weakened, the Doflamingo of four years ago shouldn't have been able to hurt you, right?
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