Rayleigh: A Toast to Our Future Navy Admiral!

Smack!

Shakuyaku rapped her on the head with her chopsticks and scolded, "You should be grateful there's food at all, and you're still being so picky. Why don't you go catch a Sea King yourself?"

"Not fair..." Hancock clutched her head, pouting miserably.

"Not fair, my ass!"

Unmoved, Shakuyaku snorted. "The Sea Kings are specially prepared for Junichi. They're repayment for saving you."

"You're the one who owes that debt, Hancock."

"Quit picking at your food. Wash the dishes after you eat. Consider it paying a little interest."

"Ah, how can you do this?!" Hancock became even more unwilling. She had been eating perfectly well, and suddenly she had an extra dishwashing job.

She was about to lose her appetite.

Nearby,

Hawk-Eye and Rayleigh ate calmly, showing no reaction as Shakuyaku lectured Hancock.

"When will we get to eat Sea Kings again?" Hancock looked at Shakuyaku pitifully. "If I don't get any soon, I'm going back to Kuja."

They had been away for quite some time. It was about time to head back.

"There aren't any. Go catch Sea Kings yourself when you get back to Kuja," Shakuyaku said coldly.

"Eh? How can it be like this?"

"Junichi won't be back anytime soon. If he doesn't return, there won't be any Sea Kings." Shakuyaku answered blandly, "By the time he comes back, you'll already be in Kuja."

"Ehh..."

Hancock looked utterly dejected.

She wanted to say something.

Suddenly, Hawk-Eye and Rayleigh both paused mid-meal.

A few seconds later,

Shakuyaku's movements also stalled.

The three exchanged surprised looks.

"What is it?" Hancock alone looked confused.

She had yet to awaken Observation Haki.

She did not know that, within the three's senses, a familiar presence was approaching.

That presence belonged to Junichi Uchiha.

Jingle!

The tavern door opened the next moment.

Junichi walked in.

"Junichi!" Hancock looked up and immediately cheered in delight. "Wonderful! Junichi is back, so we can eat Sea Kings!"

Junichi froze for a moment. After glancing at the food on the table, he understood what was going on.

He could not help shaking his head with a laugh.

These dishes were already quite lavish.

But for Hancock, whose palate had been spoiled by Sea King meat, they were apparently still not enough.

"I'm back."

Junichi walked in with a smile and nodded to them. "Mr. Rayleigh, Miss Shakuyaku, Mr. Mihawk, and Hancock."

"Welcome back," Shakuyaku replied casually, staring at Junichi with a surprised expression.

Mihawk and Rayleigh also looked astonished.

"You settled it?" Rayleigh asked, somewhat unable to believe it.

Only one day and one night had passed.

Normally speaking,

Junichi should still have been gathering intelligence by now.

"Yeah, it was fairly easy." Junichi nodded and pulled out a chair to sit down. "I even delivered all their heads to the nearby G-4 base and collected the bounties."

"So quickly?" Hawk-Eye looked at him in surprise.

"I got lucky." Junichi smiled without explaining the process in detail.

Rayleigh and the others immediately understood.

Young Junichi had actually been hiding his strength!

Otherwise,

there was no way he could have dealt with the Ten Thieves Rat Pirates so easily.

At that thought,

Rayleigh and the others were secretly shocked.

Junichi's apparent strength—two types of Haki plus the realm of a great swordsman—was already outrageous enough.

Who would have thought he had hidden even more?

He was no ordinary monster. Even among monsters, he belonged to the freakish tier!

"So that is Demon Eye?"

Hawk-Eye did not pry into the details. His gaze fell upon the sword at Junichi's waist.

Rayleigh and Shakuyaku also tacitly chose not to ask further.

"Yes."

Junichi slowly drew Demon Eye. Crimson patterns like flowing blossoms emerged along with the blade, as captivating as brilliant flowers.

Yet Rayleigh and the others all knew that this was a dangerous cursed blade.

Only in Junichi's hands

did it seem harmless, tame and beautiful like an ordinary sword.

In someone else's hands,

Demon Eye would immediately reveal its dangerous nature and lash back at its swordsman.

"An exceptional sword!"

Hawk-Eye examined it closely before giving his evaluation with solemn sincerity.

To a great swordsman, it did not matter whether a blade was cursed or not. They could master any sword.

"Indeed." Junichi slowly sheathed Demon Eye.

"What are you planning to do next?" Hawk-Eye suggested, "I heard there is an exceptional swordsman in the North Blue. I plan to seek his guidance. Interested in coming with me?"

"I'll pass. I plan to join the Navy." Junichi shook his head.

The moment he said that,

Rayleigh and the others wore strange expressions.

Of the five people here, three were pirates—Rayleigh, Shakuyaku, and Hancock.

The other, Hawk-Eye, wandered the gray areas.

And Junichi actually wanted to join the Navy?

"Oho, the Navy?" Hancock perked up instead and looked at Junichi curiously. "I'm from the Kuja Pirates. Will you come arrest me someday?"

"I can't be bothered." Junichi waved dismissively. "I just want to find a place where I can train in peace. I have no interest in the conflicts out at sea."

"Ehh..." Hancock sounded disappointed instead.

It seemed she had taken the Navy hunting pirates as some kind of game.

"The Navy is good too."

Rayleigh spoke, a nostalgic look appearing on his face. "Sengoku, Garp, and Tsuru are the ones at the top of the Navy now. With them around, the Navy will be a good place."

"With your talent, you'll certainly be given special training."

"I imagine that in a few decades, you'll become a new admiral."

As he spoke,

Rayleigh raised his glass, looked at everyone, and smiled. "A toast to our future Navy admiral!"

Shakuyaku and Hawk-Eye laughed and obligingly raised their glasses.

"Woohoo!"

Hancock raised her juice, half-understanding but excitedly joining in.

Junichi could not help twitching at the corner of his mouth.

Hawk-Eye was not a pirate now, but he would join the Seven Warlords of the Sea in the future, which still made him a pirate.

Four pirates celebrating a future Navy admiral?

This scene was way too strange!

"Ahem, thank you, everyone." Still, Junichi raised his glass and clinked it against theirs.

Clink!

The five glasses struck together with a crisp sound.

Then they drained them in one gulp.

The next day,

Hawk-Eye was the first to say goodbye. His reason for staying here was gone.

So he continued on his journey of training.

Then came Hancock.

"Junichi!"

"Junichi!"

"Junichi!"

Before departing, Hancock shouted Junichi's name and stuffed a Den Den Mushi into his hands.

"This is the Den Den Mushi for contacting me. Remember to call!"

"Okay." Junichi accepted it with a smile.

Afterward, he joined Rayleigh and Shakuyaku at the harbor to see off the Kuja ship.

One hour later,

aboard the Kuja ship,

"..."

Hancock stared unblinkingly at the Den Den Mushi, seemingly waiting for Junichi to call.

"Big Sister, who calls immediately after parting?" her younger sister Sandersonia said helplessly.

"Eh?"

Hancock's eyes widened in bewilderment. "But the manga says that lovers who miss each other can't wait to see one another, even if they have only been apart for a moment."

Sandersonia was even more speechless. "But you aren't lovers."

"Yeah, Big Sister. Junichi's reaction was so indifferent. He clearly isn't interested in you at all!" her other younger sister, Marigold, chimed in.

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