Dunn?
Back in Baltigo, Dragon froze for a moment, recalling the strange boy he had met in Shimotsuki Village.
"That boy? What about him?"
Dragon was genuinely intrigued.
He waved his hand, and the several Revolutionary Army officers in the room glanced over curiously but didn't interrupt him.
"You should have noticed his talent."
Koshiro's voice came through the Den Den Mushi.
The officers grew even more curious, while Ivankov, who had met Dunn, looked puzzled.
Dragon was puzzled too.
"Of course I noticed. The boy's talent is impressive. It's rare for someone his age to have mastered both Observation Haki and Armament Haki."
"That's not what I meant."
Koshiro's voice came through again. Then he told Dragon about his sparring sessions with Dunn over the past few days.
This time, surprise showed on Dragon's face.
"He doesn't get hurt?"
Dragon asked in astonishment.
"That's right. We've sparred for a long time, and he hasn't been injured even once."
Koshiro's words made the Revolutionary Army officers exchange glances.
"Could he really be from that race?"
Dragon had previously dismissed the possibility that Dunn was a Lunarian, but now he wasn't so sure.
Or perhaps this boy named Dunn had the same talent as Charlotte Linlin?
Charlotte Linlin had been a force to be reckoned with on the seas for many years.
She had once been part of the Rocks Pirates. After they disbanded, she founded the Big Mom Pirates on her own and made a name for herself.
One of her talents was especially famous.
The Iron Balloon.
Her body's defenses were terrifying.
Plenty of people knew about it.
Thanks to her unusual physique, Charlotte Linlin had rarely been injured, even when facing opponents on her own level.
If what Koshiro said was true, Dunn's talent was terrifying.
"So what exactly are you getting at?" Dragon asked, though he already had a guess.
"Perhaps we could try recruiting him into the Revolutionary Army again."
Koshiro's voice came through.
Dragon fell silent.
"That won't work. He turned down my invitation before, and I could tell how he felt."
"He doesn't know what we're doing. Perhaps we could tell him a little."
Ivankov suddenly spoke up.
Dragon glanced at him, then shook his head before speaking into the Den Den Mushi.
"He doesn't care about what we're doing. Telling him wouldn't change anything."
After a pause, Dragon sighed and continued speaking into the Den Den Mushi.
"You've sensed how he feels about the outside world, so you should understand. What we're doing, the pirates, the Marines, even the World Government and the Celestial Dragons—none of it matters to him."
"I just thought we could try one more time."
There was a hint of helplessness in Koshiro's voice.
"You didn't contact me just because you want to recruit Dunn, did you?"
Dragon had become the Revolutionary Army's leader for a reason. He quickly realized that Koshiro had another motive for reaching out.
"That's right. I'm not skilled enough to teach him. He needs a better teacher, or his talent will go to waste."
Koshiro revealed his other reason.
"You could ask him what he thinks."
Dragon smiled and offered a suggestion.
"All right. I'll ask him."
"Then we'll leave it there."
Dragon waited a moment. When Koshiro didn't say anything further, he hung up the Den Den Mushi and turned to the officers.
"Does that kid really have such terrifying talent?"
As soon as Dragon hung up, Ivankov couldn't help asking.
He had seen Dunn himself, so he was even more curious.
At the time, he certainly hadn't noticed anything.
"It must be true. Koshiro wouldn't say it unless he'd confirmed it."
Dragon shook his head, his gaze sweeping over the room.
"All right, let's put this aside and continue discussing our next plan."
Shimotsuki Village.
After daybreak, Koshiro called Dunn aside and told him about contacting Dragon, recommending that Dunn join the Revolutionary Army, and trying to find him a new teacher.
Dunn listened calmly.
"Dragon said you wouldn't agree, but I still wanted to ask what you think."
Koshiro looked at Dunn's calm expression and asked him.
"This is your fight."
Dunn was silent for a moment, then shook his head.
Dragon had guessed correctly.
Koshiro felt a little helpless at Dunn's answer.
"I'm not capable of guiding you for much longer."
Koshiro spoke to Dunn earnestly.
"It's fine. I won't stay here much longer. I have some things to take care of after a while."
Dunn didn't seem to care.
"You're leaving Shimotsuki Village?"
Dunn had mentioned before that he wouldn't stay long. Now it seemed he had a definite time in mind.
"Yes, but I won't leave the East Blue."
Dunn nodded.
"Won't you reconsider? Dragon is much stronger than I am."
Koshiro pressed on.
"No thanks. Your ideals aren't right for me."
Dunn refused again.
"If that's how you feel, then all right."
Koshiro nodded and didn't bring it up again.
He had been wrong to contact Dragon without asking first. Since Dunn had made his position clear, Koshiro wouldn't press him any further.
Still, he felt that Dunn needed a better teacher to guide him. Otherwise, his terrifying talent would surely go to waste.
But he didn't know Dunn's true circumstances.
Dunn himself, however, understood his situation perfectly.
His sparring sessions with Koshiro had taught him one thing.
Battle was the best teacher.
Whether he wanted to improve his fighting skills or test out new techniques, he could do it in battle.
Even his physique had improved rapidly during this period of fighting.
So finding suitable opponents was the best path for Dunn right now.
Of course, he already had a pretty good opponent here. Rather than go searching elsewhere, he could keep learning from Koshiro and make just as much progress.
He could improve while waiting for the right time to leave.
After that conversation, Koshiro never brought up recruiting Dunn again.
Every day, he was left astonished by how quickly Dunn improved.
Meanwhile, Dunn searched for a fighting style that suited him and worked on techniques to use alongside the Flame-Flame Fruit.
Of course, he was also figuring out how to recreate Old Man Yamamoto's techniques.
Even if he couldn't reach such high temperatures, there was still plenty he could learn from them.
Then a major news story appeared on the front page of the newspaper.
Doflamingo had become the king of Dressrosa and accepted an invitation to join the Shichibukai.
Before you continue