Was there anything wrong with Smoker's words?
No. Seastone weapons were indeed remarkably effective against Ability Users, but they had never become widespread. More precisely, they had never become a material for crafting specialized weapons.
The Navy did have Seastone net rounds. Weapons specifically designed to fire Seastone nets were meant to counter Ability Users.
Seastone was difficult to process and even harder to shape. Nets only needed fragments hung from them, making them relatively easier to produce.
Moreover, most Ability Users were troublesome opponents. Even if every regular soldier was equipped with a Seastone weapon, they might not be able to get close. Usually, stronger officers dealt with them, while ordinary soldiers used net rounds for support.
These officers generally knew Haki and had their own combat habits. Forcing them to use Seastone would instead hinder their fighting.
Besides, Ability Users were not especially numerous across the seas. They had not reached the point of being everywhere, so net rounds were enough to meet the Navy's needs as targeted weapons.
Within the Navy as a whole, Smoker was one of the few who had chosen Seastone weapons as a transitional option.
Smoker was still ranked first in the youth training camp. Applying for a weapon was no issue. At the very least, Smoker had now realized the weakness of his Body Technique, which was good news for Zephyr.
This surprise inspection had mainly targeted Smoker. Hina had merely been there as a foil.
At least she showed no signs of becoming a troublemaker, so Zephyr casually tested her with a couple of moves before letting her go.
"All right, continue your vacation. Yeklik, stay behind."
With Zephyr's order, Smoker and Hina did not linger and instead returned straight to the warship.
They still had money left from selling scrap,