Shipwreck Treasure

Marine Calendar 1507, Marine Headquarters, Marineford, harbor.

Garp sat on the ground, staring at the sea as he muttered in confusion, "Strange. The kid's always punctual. Why hasn't he come up yet today?"

Suddenly, a massive shadow burst from the water and shot into the air, sending up a huge spray.

"Ah! Zhong Hao, you're a little late today!" Garp stood and called out when he saw the figure emerge.

With a flip, Zhong Hao landed steadily in front of Garp and tossed an eight-meter-long sea fish onto the ground. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Teacher. I found something strange just now."

Garp grabbed the fish by its tail and tossed it onto a cart nearby, then pushed the cart toward the island. As they passed the soldiers on duty, Zhong Hao raised a hand in greeting.

Over the past three months, Zhong Hao had walked around with Garp every day and had become a familiar sight throughout Marine Headquarters. Everyone knew he was Garp's newly accepted disciple. Out of respect for Garp, coupled with Sengoku's indulgence, Zhong Hao was allowed to go almost anywhere that was not classified.

Because of this, Akainu had protested to Sengoku more than once.

Garp asked curiously, "Oh? What did you find?"

"A shipwreck. A wrecked warship."

Garp scratched his head. "What's so strange about a wrecked warship?"

Zhong Hao shook his head. "That wreck looks like it's been there for years. And I've visited the seabed where I found it several times before—it wasn't there then."

Garp pondered for a moment. "I see. Maybe an ocean current carried it away from its original location."

"An ocean current?"

Garp stopped and pointed in two different directions. "Marine Headquarters, Enies Lobby, and Impel Down form a triangle, with a direct sea route connecting each of them. At the center of that triangle is a massive whirlpool that never stops. Whenever the Gates of Justice open, the currents change. Perhaps those changing currents gradually pushed a wreck from somewhere else to where you found it."

Zhong Hao nodded in understanding. "I plan to enter the wreck tomorrow and see what I can find. There might even be treasure."

"What treasure would a warship have? Just have other Marines salvage it. Why go through all that trouble?" Garp said.

Zhong Hao hopped onto the cart and plopped down on the sea fish, letting Garp push him along. "Whether there's treasure isn't important. What matters is the process of treasure hunting and the surprise of finding it. Teacher, you don't have anything to do anyway. Come with me tomorrow."

Garp grinned. "Sounds pretty interesting. Then I'll go with you and experience the fun of treasure hunting for myself."

Early the next morning, after breakfast, the master and disciple arrived at a beach.

Garp took off his shirt, revealing his explosively muscular body, then placed a breathing bubble over his head.

Garp could not figure out how Zhong Hao could move freely through the sea without needing to breathe. He had even wondered whether Zhong Hao had Fish-Man blood. But Fish-Men could only breathe underwater—they still needed to breathe—so he dismissed that possibility.

"Teacher, I'll lead the way." Zhong Hao jumped into the sea first, with Garp following close behind.

Before long, Zhong Hao and Garp arrived at the shipwreck one after the other. After Garp made a gesture, they entered through separate holes in the wreck and each searched half of it.

Zhong Hao entered through a hole in the deck and found bones scattered and floating throughout the ruin-like cabins. Not a single skeleton was intact. Judging from their shapes, they were human remains, likely left behind by dead Marine soldiers. Many rusty sabers and muskets lay beneath them, all long since unusable.

He searched through the wreckage all the way until he finally found a relatively intact skeleton in a corner. It was wrapped in a tattered suit and covered by a Marine coat. One skeletal hand gripped a completely azure long blade.

The blade was 1.1 meters long and weighed about four kilograms. Its body was rather narrow, only about one and a half fingers wide, and it was covered in black wave-like patterns. At first glance, it somewhat resembled a Miao saber from his previous life. Strangely, despite having been submerged in seawater for so long, it did not show even a trace of rust. It was clearly no ordinary weapon.

He removed the blade and held it in his hand, examining it carefully as delight appeared on his face. He then searched around some more and found its scabbard beneath a pile of wreckage on the other side.

A current swept through, lifting a corner of the coat covering the skeleton and revealing the tattered suit beneath. Zhong Hao looked over and saw something inside through a tear in the suit.

He tore open the ruined suit and pulled out the item that had been hidden against the bones.

It was a rolled-up map. When he opened it beneath the faint glow emitted by the seaweed, a nautical chart appeared before him, with a red X drawn in its center. He flipped it over and saw some writing on the back, though it was too unclear to make out underwater.

He put the map into his storage space, intending to examine it after they returned.

After searching for a while longer and finding nothing else of value, Zhong Hao left the wreck the way he had come. He ran into Garp, who had also just emerged, looking excited as he held a chest as large as a freezer.

The two exchanged smiles and swam toward the surface.

After reaching shore, they put on dry clothes.

Garp looked at the blade in Zhong Hao's hand and said thoughtfully, "Did you find that sword? It looks a little familiar."

Zhong Hao handed the sword over. Garp took it and carefully inspected it in his palm. Only after a while did realization dawn on him. "So it belonged to Bazzel. No wonder."

"You knew him, Teacher?" Zhong Hao asked.

"Yes. Bazzel was a young Rear Admiral at Headquarters, a capable swordsman. This sword belonged to him. About seven or eight years ago, Bazzel suddenly disappeared and was never seen again. It happened when Golden Lion invaded Marineford. Headquarters guessed that he encountered Golden Lion on his way back and was killed. Looks like that was indeed what happened," Garp said.

Zhong Hao suggested, "Let's open the chest first. There might be some clues inside."

Garp rubbed his hands excitedly and laughed. "This is my first time finding treasure."

The lock on the chest had long since decayed, and it came off with a light tug.

When they opened the chest, they found a layer of soggy paper on top, probably banknotes such as Beli. Unfortunately, they had been ruined by the water. After removing the pulp, they found the chest packed with gold coins and gemstones, glittering beneath the sunlight.

"There really is treasure," Garp said in surprise. Then he casually dumped it onto the ground as though he were taking out trash. Gold coins and gemstones spilled everywhere, revealing a small box beneath them.

Zhong Hao picked up the small box and held it in his hands. There was no lock, so he opened it casually. A fruit resembling a papaya, covered in dark yellow patterns, came into view.

"Is that... a Devil Fruit?" Garp leaned closer, picked up the fruit, squeezed it, and handed it back to Zhong Hao.

Zhong Hao took it, tossed it twice in his hand, then threw it onto the pile of treasure, completely uninterested.

Garp wore a tempting expression. "Don't you want to try eating it? I hear they're delicious."

"Teacher, stop trying to fool me. Smoker told me long ago that Devil Fruits taste worse than shit. I don't understand why he used shit as a comparison, though. Besides, after eating one, I'd become a landlubber. Wouldn't that waste my ability to swim freely underwater?" Zhong Hao drew the blue blade halfway from its scabbard and observed the patterns along its body. The more he looked at it, the more he liked it.

"A pile of valuables worth over a hundred million, a Devil Fruit, and a sword. Well, looks like that's all we got. Treasure hunting isn't that interesting after all. It ended so quickly," Garp said with a curl of his lip.

"That's because you don't care much about valuables, Teacher. If pirates had found this, they'd probably be so excited they'd throw three banquets in a row."

"Then it seems Rear Admiral Bazzel obtained this treasure and Devil Fruit after wiping out some pirates, only to encounter Golden Lion on his way back." Garp slammed a fist into his palm, looking certain.

"Teacher, since you knew Rear Admiral Bazzel, you should know this sword's name, right?" Zhong Hao asked.

Garp nodded. "This sword is Sea Fang, one of the Fifty Skillful Grade Blades. They say it contains the power of the sea, but it's not that mystical. Seastone was simply added during its forging."

"My old sword was damaged, and Sea Fang suits me perfectly. With it, my strength should rise to another level. Whenever I think about that fight with Smoker, I feel incredibly stifled. I was beaten around passively the whole time and had no way to fight back. But now... I can't wait to beat him up."

Iaijutsu: Iai Slash

Sea Fang flashed from its scabbard like lightning, sending a silver-white slash toward the distant sea. The slash tore through the surface, carving out a trench twenty-five meters long and one meter deep. Its power remained condensed instead of dispersing, and only two seconds later did the seawater begin to fill the trench.

His maximum range had previously been fifteen meters. With Sea Fang equipped, he could now strike twenty-five meters, and the slashes he unleashed were sharper as well. Satisfied with the result, Zhong Hao nodded to himself. With this sword, my overall strength definitely won't be inferior to that of a Marine Headquarters Lieutenant Commander. But who wins and who loses will only be known after a real fight.

He sheathed Sea Fang and held it in his hand.

He had been in this world for over a year. Thanks to the unusually abundant food, he had grown from 1.15 meters to 1.5 meters tall. As a result, his arms were now just long enough to draw the one-meter blade of Sea Fang without it getting stuck.

At that moment, Zhong Hao seemed like someone with hyperactivity, constantly drawing the sword to touch its blade. The smile on his face would not fade. "By the way, Teacher, do you know what ability this Devil Fruit has?"

Garp held the Devil Fruit in his hand. "I don't remember, but I think I've seen it in the Devil Fruit encyclopedia. We can look it up when we get back. Still, I don't recommend eating it. Devil Fruits can grant powerful abilities, but their weakness is too fatal."

Zhong Hao nodded solemnly. "Don't worry, Teacher. I really enjoy swimming through the sea. I don't want to become a landlubber."

Yet inwardly, he thought, With so many powerful cultivation systems available, only an idiot would gain a fatal weakness for the sake of temporary power. Besides, swordsmanship, martial arts, and Haki are no weaker than Devil Fruits.

Garp grinned approvingly. "I don't want this treasure. If you do, put it away. It's fine if you don't want it either—just leave it here. But you should store the Devil Fruit. It might come in handy someday."

Zhong Hao nodded and placed his hand over the pile of gold coins and gemstones. With a whoosh, the treasure instantly vanished. Then he placed his hand over the Devil Fruit and did the same.

After finishing, he saw Garp's widened eyes and grinned.