New Recruits, Sweet Dreams

There was just one thing: his eyes were a little too vacant, his eyelids drooped, and he was yawning. He looked sluggish, as though he had just woken up.

"Ahh~"

The young Naito yawned and lifted his drooping eyelids slightly, looking toward the far end of the deck, where Zephyr was locked in a fierce fight with a man named Weevil.

"Would you look at that..."

He sighed.

Even with his arm broken by a punch, he can still fight Teacher Zephyr to this extent. Is Weevil too strong, or have you grown too weak, Teacher Zephyr?

"Oi, stupid son over there,"

His voice was listless, but he still did his best to raise it. "Your beloved mommy's been captured."

Weevil, who was struggling to fend off Zephyr's attacks, instantly forgot all about the fight. He simply looked over in horror at his mother, who was being held by the Marines. "Mom!!"

The next instant, Zephyr's iron fist slammed into his face.

Chapter 2: New Recruits, Sweet Dreams

"Mom!!"

Weevil lay on the deck, wailing weakly but at the top of his lungs. The snot and tears made his already mangled face even harder to look at.

But all he could do now was wail.

As a Devil Fruit user, he had been clapped in Seastone handcuffs and shackles. Now, weak and powerless all over, he could only lie on the ground and squirm like a caterpillar.

His mother lay beside him, also wearing Seastone shackles. The old woman was much quieter, though. Her face was just as mangled as Weevil's, but she had fallen into a sweet sleep.

And just like that, a sudden crisis was smoothly resolved.

Naito looked away from the mother and son.

Buckingham Stussy.

Once a senior officer of the Rocks Pirates, she was now a nobody whose very identity had been taken over by a clone. Even an old hand like Teacher Zephyr hadn't recognized her.

Still, if not for him, this mother and son would have shattered Teacher Zephyr's dao heart.

After losing his wife and child and stepping away from the front lines, Teacher Zephyr really had declined too much. Weevil at this age was, at best, only as strong as an ordinary Shichibukai, right? Let alone Buckingham, who was ridiculously weak.

All he could say was that conviction really was the real deal in this world. Those who lost their conviction were destined to become weak.

As the person who had contributed the most to resolving the crisis, Naito found himself surrounded by the recruits once Weevil and his mother had been fully restrained. They were lavish with their praise.

Binz, a recruit who was a little taller than Naito, with broad shoulders and long arms, patted Naito on the shoulder and praised him repeatedly. "You really can do it when you put your mind to it! Naito, I'm genuinely impressed this time!"

A recruit laughed. "Binz, Naito's Illusion-Illusion Fruit really is far more useful than your vines! If not for him, I don't dare imagine how things would have turned out!"

Binz was a user of the Paramecia-type Shove-Shove Fruit. He could freely control the growth of plants and usually fought by manipulating tough vines.

"Couldn't anyone with hands do that?"

Naito leaned against the ship's railing, his soft hair falling naturally over almost all of his eyebrows, making his drooping eyelids stand out even more. His voice was just as lazy. "What are you guys making such a fuss about?"

Everyone stared for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"That's Naito for you, as arrogant as ever!"

"Hahaha, Naito's only a little more modest when he's asleep!"

"Luckily, this guy isn't very bright."

Blue-haired Ain glanced back at Weevil, who was lying on the deck. "If he'd managed to calm down, Naito, I'm afraid the illusion you created wouldn't have fooled his Observation Haki. You should be more careful in the future."

"Ain,"

Naito lazily tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Are you telling me how to do my job?"

"You..."

Ain put her hands on her slender waist and sighed somewhat helplessly.

"That's Naito for you. He doesn't hold back even with the flower of our recruits!"

Binz couldn't help giving Naito another thumbs-up.

Ain was not only exceptionally strong, but also flawlessly beautiful! She was extremely popular among the recruits.

Naito yawned sleepily, shifted into a more comfortable position against the railing, and said unhurriedly, "I'm the man who's going to become Fleet Admiral. Women and all that just get in the way."

Ain rolled her eyes. "Don't be stupid, Binz. I don't want anything to do with this guy either."

Naito didn't move his head or lift his eyelids. He merely shifted his eyes slightly to look askance at Ain. "Ain, the fact that you think that way shows you at least know your place."

"Naito!"

Ain clenched her fists, and a vein on her forehead twitched.

Though he could be said to have turned the tide this time, Naito was still the same annoying Naito!

"I think I heard you talking about becoming Fleet Admiral, Naito."

Zephyr walked over. Though usually rather stern, he now wore a distinctly gentle expression, and there was even a hint of teasing in his voice.

He had just gone to contact headquarters and report the sudden attack.

Naito said unhurriedly, "Isn't there a saying? An Admiral who doesn't want to be Fleet Admiral isn't a good Admiral."

Zephyr smiled and nodded approvingly. "That's right. Truly great people set their sights as high as they can, then keep moving forward."

The kid always looked half-asleep, and he was outrageously arrogant in everything he said and did. But in fact, he worked the hardest of all the recruits in his class, pushing himself harder than anyone else.

Not only did Naito work harder than anyone else, but his talent was also among the very best.

During their year of training, the kid had not only fully mastered all of the Six Powers, but had even become quite proficient in both types of Haki. Kuzan hadn't even learned Haki by the time he graduated.

It was just that his Devil Fruit was a little lacking. The Paramecia-type Illusion-Illusion Fruit could freely create all sorts of illusions and phantom sounds, but at least for now, it wasn't very useful against someone skilled in Observation Haki.

"Also, Naito."

Zephyr raised a hand and patted Naito on the shoulder. "Good work."

"Ohh-"

Naito sighed very lazily, drawing even his sigh out. "That felt good. Teacher Zephyr, next time, just praise me honestly."

"Hahaha!"

Zephyr couldn't help laughing.

Naito was definitely not a good student in the conventional sense. He was arrogant and narcissistic, but probably no teacher would dislike him.

Hard work, talent, and, on top of that, the courage to step forward without hesitation.

This child would become a pillar of the Marines in the future.

Zephyr had no doubt about that.

"We're heading back, kids!"

He called out, "The final assessment has been successfully completed!"

"Yeah!!"

The deck erupted in cheers.

With that, they had finally graduated.

"Teacher Zephyr."

Binz looked at Weevil and his mother, who were still lying on the deck nearby. "What are we going to do with them?"

Zephyr answered without hesitation, "They're bound for Impel Down, of course."

I knew it.

A glimmer of interest flashed through Naito's half-lidded eyes.

Now that he had successfully graduated, it was time to get moving.

First, he would give this mother and son a sweet dream.

"Where the hell is this?!!"

Buckingham Stussy threw back her head and shouted with all her might.

She was on an immensely vast grassland.

A gentle breeze blew, stirring the grass.

The open land stretched endlessly in every direction.

The blue sky was clear, with beautiful white clouds.

It was a view like a painting.

But Buckingham was in no mood to admire the scenery.

All she remembered was suffering two heavy blows one second, then appearing here the next.

Her body was whole and unharmed, with no trace of the grievous injuries she had suffered.

Before Buckingham could spend much time rejoicing, she discovered that she seemed to be trapped.

There was nothing blocking her way, but no matter which direction she ran, there was only endless grassland. As far as the eye could see, nothing else existed.

"Which bastard's ability is this now?!"

Buckingham jabbed her cane furiously into the ground in a frenzy, leaving hole after hole. "Where have you sent me?!"

She was frantic with worry. Without her, Weevil was done for! That child had no brains at all!

It was then that Buckingham suddenly froze.

When she tilted her head back without thinking, she saw something above the sky—no, somewhere even higher!

Perhaps it was outside this world, or perhaps it was in heaven.

Suspended high like the sun and moon, one shining gold and the other gleaming silver, a pair of eyes as vast as stars watched her in silence.

"...!"

Buckingham stopped breathing.

Her body trembled, and her mind went blank.

What is that?

Is it a god?

Before Buckingham could think, her eyes suddenly shattered, tiny fragments spraying out with blood.

"Aaagh!!"

The old woman clutched her eyes and screamed in agony.

The piercing pain was more than even an old hand like her could bear.