Marineford, rocky shore.
The three sat shoulder to shoulder on smooth rocks, chatting quietly.
Zhong Hao asked, "Smoker, which branch will you be assigned to?"
Smoker gritted his teeth. "How would I know? Aside from the female recruits being assigned under Vice Admiral Tsuru, everyone else is being sent to major branches across the Four Blues and the Grand Line."
Hina giggled mockingly. "A certain delinquent is Instructor Zephyr's troublemaker. He won't be welcome anywhere."
Smoker retorted, "Nonsense. I just beat up an officer who bullied civilians."
Hina said smugly, "Which is why you're a troublemaker. After you beat him up, Hina secretly followed him and beat him so badly he couldn't get out of bed for a month. No one knew Hina did it."
Smoker's eyes widened. "So it was you! I was wondering why. I held back so much that there was no way I could've beaten him badly enough to keep him hospitalized that long. So you framed me."
Zhong Hao asked somewhat puzzledly, "Weren't you still waiting for your assignments? Where did an officer come from?"
Hina replied, "We interned at the G-6 Branch for a month half a year ago."
Zhong Hao nodded. "Trash like that deserves a beating. So what? If it were me, I'd throw him onto a deserted island and leave him to fend for himself."
The three of them knew they had no idea when they would next gather like this, so they chatted for a long time before parting.
That evening, Zhong Hao did not go to the dining hall. Instead, he took prepared food out of his space and ate with Genghu beneath the setting sun.
After eating, Zhong Hao leaned against Genghu's neck and said softly, "Genghu, I'm going back. The space hasn't developed enough to carry living