Swain's New Ship!

The battlefield where Swain and Kuzan had fought had now become an ice-skating playground for the children.

Laughter and cheers rose one after another, as if no great battle had ever taken place here.

And so, three peaceful days passed.

That day, a warship came to a stop at the port.

"Ah la la, I know." Kuzan sat on the seaside railing, watching the children play.

The sea breeze swept past, and he pressed down on his hat with one hand.

Sengoku's voice came from the other end of the Den Den Mushi.

"You need to give me a detailed account of Swain's situation so we can formulate an appropriate countermeasure!"

Kuzan had also learned the other man's name was Swain from Spandam.

After hanging up, Kuzan stretched and said, "I can't slack off again. It's all that Swain's fault."

Sengoku was meticulous in everything he did, so he naturally demanded that Kuzan return in person to report the situation.

Meanwhile, in a newspaper office,

printing machines were working nonstop, rushing to print the news.

In the newspaper office, a birdman praised the man before him. "You did well this time. You'll receive one percent of this issue's profits."

The paparazzo before him was naturally overjoyed. A single issue could earn more than a hundred million Beli, and one percent would give him a million Beli.

For an ordinary man like him, that was a huge sum. He could stop working for two years.

The newspaper's headline read: "Navy Admiral and Rookie Pirate Swain End in a Draw!"

The war was even given a special title: the Water 7 Incident.

The next item in the news was also specially circled: "Rookie Pirate Ace Rejects Becoming a Shichibukai!"

Birdman Morgans lit a cigarette and muttered, "The future of this sea may not be dominated by the Navy after all!"

Swain, in Water 7, had no idea that he was about to become the focus of the news. Even if he had known, he would not have shown much reaction.

After all, there was different news every day. He would naturally be happy if he kept occupying the headlines.

Increased fame still had its advantages. Just look at Luffy—after defeating Doflamingo, his reputation soared, and he gained countless followers in no time. They voluntarily joined together to form the Straw Hat Grand Fleet!

The one who had left the deepest impression on him was that loyal fan of Luffy's with green hair. As for his name, Swain had already forgotten it.

Another three days passed.

Swain's injuries had mostly healed. During those days of recuperation, he had constantly been recalling his battle with Kuzan. Every time he did, he gained a new understanding of how to use Haki.

For example, during their first exchange, Kuzan had been able to accurately predict his next move from his breathing and turn into an elemental form to evade Swain's attack.

Once Observation Haki was cultivated to its highest level, one could even predict a person's next move from the slightest movement of any part of their body.

"Go check on Luke this afternoon and see whether he's finished your armor."

"We should leave this place too!" Swain said.

Norton was lying in a rocking chair, leisurely eating fruit and drinking wine. When he suddenly heard Swain speak, he choked.

He coughed wine from his mouth repeatedly, the spice turning his yellow face red.

Swain then went out to see whether his ship had been completed.

As soon as he arrived at the Galley-La Company, he heard a slightly hoarse voice shout, "This ship is finally finished! Super!"

He folded his arms and struck a pose. Wearing nothing but a pair of briefs, he looked extremely flamboyant amid the crowd!

Swain stepped forward and asked, "Franky?"

The man suddenly turned his head and asked, "I thought I heard a beautiful woman calling for me!"

But he only saw Swain standing there. Franky immediately turned his head away and pretended he had not heard anything!

Swain was left speechless.

"Stop fooling around! That's Mr. Swain!"

Iceburg came out and introduced Swain to Franky.

When Swain and Kuzan had fought, Iceburg had sealed off the surrounding area. Although deafening explosions had come from that location,

no one had gone over to take a look, so it was normal that they did not recognize Swain!

"I'm sorry. So you're the owner of this ship!"

"It's fine!" Even after meeting a member of the Straw Hat crew in person, Swain was not particularly surprised.

Their perspectives were different now. At present, the Straw Hat crew was not worthy of his attention.

He suddenly felt mischievous and asked Franky, "Want to join my crew? I'm a very powerful pirate!"

"No!" Franky rejected him without mercy.

Swain was still fantasizing about it, even though he would not have let Franky aboard if he had agreed.

"Uh... all right!" Hearing such a straightforward rejection still dealt Swain a bit of a blow.

He could only comfort himself: If we aren't family, we won't enter the same household!

"Mr. Swain, this ship was built from Adam Tree as you requested. It has now been fully completed. Please inspect it and see whether you're satisfied!"

Swain looked at the ship before him, fifty meters long and twenty meters wide.

He leaped onto the bow. The first thing that caught his eye was the towering mast. Beneath it was a lush green lawn, along with some exercise equipment, dining tables, and chairs.

The ship had a three-story structure, resembling a rustic rural-style building...

"Very good!" Swain excitedly gave the shipwrights below a thumbs-up. The praised shipwrights burst into laughter.

Nothing made them happier than receiving praise!

Swain then pulled Iceburg aside and said, "Brother Iceburg, you remember that I saved your life last time, right?"

"Th-this is only natural!" Thinking of what had happened, he could not help feeling a little awkward.

"Then you owe me a favor, right?" Swain coaxed him patiently.

"Th-that's true. I do owe you a favor!"

"Now I want you to repay it!" Swain said without the slightest shame.

"What???" Iceburg was a little dumbfounded.

Who demanded that someone repay a favor immediately? But judging from Swain's impatient expression,

if he refused, he was probably going to get punched the next moment.

"Fine! Tell me what it is. I'll do my best to agree."

"As long as it isn't too excessive." He was afraid that Swain would shamelessly make an outrageous demand, so he warned him in advance.

Otherwise, he would be left helpless and speechless.

"I want you to introduce me to a shipwright who can sail with me!"

Iceburg had not expected Swain's request to be so simple.

"That's easy. I'll send a notice to every shipwright in the city today!"

"You can choose one tomorrow!"

Swain was overjoyed. As the greatest shipbuilding center in the world, Water 7 naturally had shipwrights with exceptional skills. Otherwise, Swain would not have traveled all the way from the South Blue to find one.

At that moment, a flock of News Coos flew over and dropped several newly printed newspapers and wanted posters.

One of them landed on Franky's head while he was tugging at his briefs. He picked it up and glanced at the wanted poster.

When he saw the person wanted and the bounty amount, he instantly froze like a wooden chicken!

It was him?!

He turned to look at Swain.