Marineford Military Academy, dormitory building.
The moment Sephiroth opened the door to his dorm room, he found the air inside filled with the smell of cigars. White smoke drifted through the room, blurring his vision.
Smoker had two cigars clenched between his lips. He lay sprawled across the bed in the shape of a starfish, looking like a thoroughly seasoned salted fish.
The ashtray on the bedside table was already overflowing with cigar butts, with some scattered across the cabinet.
"Don't tell me you spent the entire vacation lying in bed and rotting away?"
As Sephiroth spoke, he walked to the window and pushed it open. A gust of cold wind mixed with white snowflakes immediately blew into the room.
Before they knew it, Marineford had shifted from summer into winter. The end of the year was approaching.
"What else was I supposed to do?
"The vacation was only a month long. It's not like I could've gone all the way back to my hometown in East Blue, right?"
"Fair enough."
"Didn't you already get a new blade? Why haven't you thrown away that broken old blade on your desk? Are you still planning to use it?"
Hearing this, Sephiroth looked at the Autumn Leaf Blade resting on the sword stand atop his desk. He reached out and gently stroked the hilt, speaking with a hint of nostalgia.
"It was the first Meito I ever used, after all. And I used it for so long that I can't help feeling attached to it...
"Though I can't continue fighting with it, throwing it away feels like a waste."
"Then you could remove the rusted parts and turn it into a short blade. That way, you could keep using it."
"A short blade... What would I use it for? Cutting cigars?"
"That