When Nao slowly regained consciousness and opened his eyes again, the first thing he saw was an unfamiliar ceiling.
"Finally decided to wake up?"
A soft voice came from nearby, both familiar and strange at the same time.
He turned his head in confusion—and was met with the sight of someone who looked exactly like him, sitting on a chair by the bedside, legs crossed, idly toying with her fingernails.
Nao Natsuya was startled, the fog in his mind instantly dissipating. He sat up abruptly, his voice sharp as he demanded:
"Who are you?!"
But the moment those three words left his mouth, he froze—because the voice that came out wasn't his usual one. It was clear, melodious, like a mountain spring.
He suddenly realized something far more frightening than seeing his own doppelganger.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
Nao took a deep breath and looked down. As he feared, what met his gaze was not his familiar chest but a more pronounced, eye-catching curve. Beneath it was a slender waist, pale long legs…
A faint fragrance drifted to his nose, refreshing and elegant, inexplicably reminding him of the scent of gardenias blooming in June from his past life.
As he shifted slightly, a faint rustle came from behind him—the sound of a Justice cape embroidered with soft pink epaulets brushing against the bed linens.
"Phew…"
After a moment of shock, Nao quickly calmed down. He rubbed his temples helplessly, then looked toward the "himself" sitting by the desk and cautiously asked:
"Rear Admiral Gion?"
"Mhm."
The "Nao" by the desk nodded slightly, her gaze showing mild surprise, as if she hadn't expected this young recruit to react so calmly.
"Our bodies have been switched." Gion habitually tried to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear—only to come up empty. "Any idea why, kid?"
"That Sea Raccoon."
Nao barely hesitated before answering. "The ability to swap bodies isn't something Sea Raccoon naturally possess. That particular Sea Raccoon must've accidentally eaten a Devil Fruit."
It was an easy deduction.
Especially since he recalled Shiliew mentioning how, when the group of Sea Raccoon approached the ship, they all swam over—except for the one he touched, which was lazily lounging on a bamboo raft.
A Sea Raccoon that couldn't swim?
That thought flickered through his mind. Meanwhile, Gion's expression shifted from mild surprise to genuine astonishment.
"Bingo!"
She snapped her fingers, her lips curving into a smile. "Exactly right. That matches what I coaxed out of it just now. Smart kid—saves me the trouble of explaining and calming you down."
"C-Coaxed out of it…?" Nao blinked.
Coaxed who? That poor little Sea Raccoon?
"Oi, Kuzan, you can come in now," Gion suddenly called toward the hallway.
"…For the last time, don't call me that in front of others."
Vice Admiral Kuzan's voice came from outside. A moment later, the door creaked open.
The future Admiral appeared in the doorway, his usual stoic expression intact, with the chubby Sea Raccoon perched on his shoulder. "I'm older than you, outrank you, and suggest you show some proper respect in front of subordinates—it's good for everyone."
"I've always called Garp 'Old Man' too."
"Then never mind." Kuzan set down the Sea Raccoon, then turned his gaze toward the "Nao " sitting by the bed. His expression was slightly strange. "Ah-la-la, we meet again, kid."
"Vice Admiral Kuzan," Nao said quickly, rising to his feet. He was about to salute when Kuzan waved a hand dismissively.
"This is a private setting—no need for formalities. Back when we first met, your attitude was pretty amusing anyway… Oh, right—your name's Nao Natsuya, right?"
"Yes, Vice Admiral."
This was the first time Nao had looked Kuzan directly in the eye, and now, with Gion's body, he was at eye level. Gion's frame was a bit over three meters tall, almost matching Kuzan—truly the "admiral-level height" familiar to manga fans.
"I heard everything you two were saying just now," Kuzan said as he casually dragged over a chair and sat down, resting his chin on his folded hands. "Let me fill in the missing details. This little guy accidentally ate a Devil Fruit that drifted onto the sea's surface about six months ago and gained the ability of the Swap-Swap Fruit, a Paramecia type."
"At first, it couldn't do much—just swap small objects, like apples, bananas, bread, cakes, that sort of thing."
He reached out and stroked the Sea Raccoon's chubby head. Though he was only in his late twenties, he looked as gentle as a grandfather doting on his grandchild.
"But after a few months of practice, it improved and could even swap objects much larger than itself—including living creatures."
"As for this time, it was its first attempt to swap two human bodies."
He didn't say it explicitly, but it was clear: the Sea Raccoon had tried its best to prove its capabilities after being underestimated by Gion.
"Wait a second…" Nao furrowed his brow. "Sea Raccoons can't talk. How did you get such detailed information from it…?"
"Because this little guy's also a gifted artist," Kuzan explained with a wry smile, pointing to the wall. "I ask, it draws."
Only then did Nao notice that the west wall was covered with a series of paw-drawn storyboards.
Although the art style was… rather crude, rivaling that of Oda-sensei's caricatures, it did indeed tell the entire story in vivid detail.
"No wonder you're a Vice Admiral," Nao muttered in amazement. "You can even tolerate the sound of tiny claws scratching up your walls."
"…"
Kuzan's eye twitched. Ignoring Nao's off-topic remark, he brought the conversation back on track. "Anyway, there's something you need to know. You probably… won't be able to switch back to your original body right away."
"What?"
Nao, who had been calm until now, could no longer maintain his composure. "Why? Now that we know the cause, can't we just get the Sea Raccoon to activate its power again?"
"If it were that easy, that'd be great."
Gion shrugged and leaned back lazily in her chair. "The little guy says it used up almost all its energy swapping our bodies, and it's got a splitting headache. To safely pull off another switch, it'll need at least a while to recover."
"How long is 'a while'?" Nao frowned, sensing something ominous.
"A week if we're lucky—maybe ten days if we're not," Gion said, her tone light but her eyes twinkling with mischief.
"In other words, kid, it looks like… you'll be missing out on the upcoming live-combat assessment."