Night Prowler

West Sea Marine Base.

A warship returned laden with spoils. Under the astonished gazes of the Marines aboard the other ships, it slowly sailed into the harbor.

"Whew, they're back. Looks like this joint operation is finally over!"

Yakuri, the commander of the West Sea Marine Base, sat in his office watching the warship and let out a sigh of relief. He spoke to Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni, who sat across from him.

"Yeah. This time, it's finally behind us."

Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni also breathed a sigh of relief. He lit a cigarette and took a long drag. Things could finally get back on track.

They were still the commander and lieutenant colonel of a West Sea Marine Base.

"But, boss, how much longer do we have to live like this? Don't you want to fight back?" Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni hesitated.

"Fight back? How are we supposed to do that? He's a Great Pirate with a bounty of over a hundred million. He's famous even in the Grand Line. We can't afford to cross him!" Commander Yakuri sighed.

"But Marine Headquarters sent reinforcements this time!"

"It won't matter. How strong can those guys sent to wipe out the Mafia be? How could they possibly stand up to a force that powerful?"

After their conversation, two more sighs echoed through the room.

Commander Yakuri finished his cigarette, lit another, crossed one leg over the other, and smiled at Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni. "Anything happen while I was away?"

"Well, there is one thing. The Big Saber Pirates ransacked a small town, and the mayor asked the Marines for help..." Rujeni gave a wry smile. "Sigh, the Big Saber Pirates have been getting more and more unruly lately."

"The Big Saber Pirates? Those guys again. But they should be entering the Grand Line soon, so there's no need to bother with them!"

Just then,

there was a sudden knock at the door. It opened, and the commander of the warship carrying Luo Sa and the others strode in with his chin held high and a smug look on his face.

"You're back. Did everything go smoothly?" Commander Yakuri asked without looking up.

"Yeah, everything went very smoothly. And I've brought both of you a gift!"

"A gift?"

Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni, sitting off to one side, took the box that was handed to him and opened it.

Suddenly, he froze. The cigarette fell from his hand, its glowing tip hitting the floor before slowly going out.

Yakuri frowned and looked over. He was just as stunned.

The room fell completely silent. For a long while, no one said a word.

"Is this... the head of the Big Saber Pirates' captain?" Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni still looked incredulous.

"Yes, Lieutenant Colonel."

After getting confirmation, Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni nodded with difficulty. A moment later, he asked, "Did you kill him?"

"No, no, of course not. A few new recruits here for training from Marine Headquarters did it!"

"New recruits here for training?" Commander Yakuri and Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni exchanged a glance.

New recruits?

A few new recruits had taken down a Great Pirate with a bounty of fifty million Beli?

"Wait, could they be from that place?!" Lieutenant Colonel Rujeni suddenly thought of somewhere and his eyes widened.

"Looks like it. Only new recruits from the Elite Camp could be that terrifyingly strong. Send word—we'll throw a party tonight to give the kids a proper welcome!" Commander Yakuri stubbed out his cigarette, his expression turning solemn.

"A party? Not interested. I'd rather spend the time training," Luo Sa said with a shrug. He had no interest in eating, drinking, and having fun.

A flash of white light, and Luo Sa transformed into a Winged Gull and soared into the sky.

"That guy!" Smoker took a hard drag of his cigarette, then turned into smoke and rose into the sky as well.

"Where's the training ground? I'm going to train too. The annual tournament is in a month, and I can't afford to slack off at all!" After asking where the training ground was, Drake headed straight there.

"Those three are hopelessly stubborn. There are plenty of ways to get stronger in this world besides training!" Sakartam shook his head and gladly accepted the invitation.

"You all go ahead and train hard. Leave the logistics to me!" Hina quickly figured out what she needed to do next, then headed toward the banquet hall with Sakartam.

Beneath the pitch-black night sky, the sea lay calm and still.

Heh heh heh!

Suddenly, a shadow darted across the surface of the sea, trailing a series of eerie laughs.

"Hey, mate, did you hear something?"

On a pirate ship, one of the pirates standing watch asked his companion.

But the only answer was silence.

The pirate shuddered and slowly turned around.

"Whew, so he fell asleep?"

Seeing his companion sound asleep, the pirate breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hm? Really... I guess drowsiness is contagious. Why do my eyelids feel so heavy? I'm so sleepy..."

Thud.

The pirate's eyes closed as he hit the deck, falling asleep as well.

"Giant Axe Pirates? I wonder if they've got any decent nautical charts aboard."

Gastly's form slowly materialized on the deck. He gazed toward the ship's cabin, full of anticipation.

Gradually, Gastly began to sink into the deck, fading from sight.

Boom!

Suddenly, a muffled crash rang out from inside the cabin.

"Ugh! I can't believe you weren't completely put under by Hypnosis. No wonder you've got a ten-million Beli bounty!"

Inside the captain's quarters, Luo Sa hovered in the air in his Gastly form. Opposite him, a pirate's eyes were wide as saucers.

"Damn it! Who are you?" The pirate captain dragged his sword across his left arm, cutting a gash into it. At last, the intense pain helped him resist Gastly's Hypnosis!

"Heh heh heh. I'm here to take your head, of course!" Luo Sa let out Gastly's signature wicked laugh.

"Take my head? Don't get too cocky!" The pirate captain roared and swung his sword at Gastly!

But the next moment, his eyes flew wide open. He realized he hadn't touched his opponent at all; he had simply passed straight through his body!

"Heh heh heh!"

Luo Sa had expected this and threw his head back in laughter.

"Shadow Ball!" Luo Sa raised a hand and gathered Ghost Attribute energy, forming a black orb that he hurled at the pirate captain!

"A Devil Fruit User? Damn it!" The pirate captain roared and raised his sword in front of himself!

Then, to the pirate captain's horror, the Shadow Ball passed straight through his body and slammed into the deck behind him, sending splinters flying everywhere.

"Ugh, just as I thought. Everyone in this world has a Normal type. Their attacks can't hit me, but my Ghost-type moves don't work on them either!"

"What a damnable type matchup!"

Watching his Shadow Ball miss, Luo Sa grumbled to himself.

He had put in who knew how much effort to learn Shadow Ball, but now his Ghost Attribute move was practically useless!