As the morning sun began to rise.
At the G-2 Branch harbor, bathed in a faint golden glow, Marine warships bustled in and out. Teams of Marines constantly rushed past, rushing toward their assigned missions.
Occasionally, someone would notice the blue-haired girl standing in the sea breeze, quietly gazing out at the ocean, and couldn't help but cast curious glances her way.
This girl has been waiting at the docks every morning for several days now, hasn't she? Who is she waiting for…?
A few Marine Headquarters Elite Camp recruits happened to pass by at this moment. After exchanging glances, they walked over together.
"Are you still planning to wait here for Nao today, Shia?"
A short-haired girl asked with concern. "He might be gone a while longer. Our probation's ending in a few days—you sure you don't want to come do one last mission with us? It'd help with your final ranking."
"You guys go ahead."
The blue-haired girl kept her gaze fixed on the distant sea, shaking her head gently. "I'll just wait here."
She really doesn't care about her assessment ranking, does she? The short-haired girl sighed, stopped trying to persuade her, tugged at her companions, and turned to leave towards the warship docked at the pier.
"I really envy Boss Nao. Not only is he strong enough to defeat a Warlord of the Sea, but he also has such a beautiful girl like Shia waiting for him…"
Kawakawa Shuma, who looked like a skinny monkey, followed behind, sighing with a grimace:
"Ah, I won't even dream of taking down a Warlord of the Sea; I'll never be able to do that in my lifetime. But when will I have a girl who loves me enough to wait for me like that…?"
"When you're half as handsome as Nao."
The short-haired girl rolled her eyes at him.
"…"
A few black lines appeared on Kawakawa Shuma's forehead. He said with a bitter face, "Well, then forget it. Taking down a Warlord of the Sea seems more realistic."
"I heard that, Shuma."
Just then, a chuckle suddenly came from above. "When you take down a Warlord of the Sea, remember to call me to witness it first."
The voice was all too familiar.
The few of them looked up in astonishment and found the handsome black-haired boy squatting on the railing at the bow of a recently docked Marine warship, smiling down at them.
"Nao!"
"Boss Nao!"
Everyone was instantly surprised and delighted. Kawakawa Shuma was so excited that he scrambled up the rope ladder onto the deck. "You're finally back! So, were you escorted to Enies Lobby? Those bastards from CP, they didn't do anything to you, did they?"
He instinctively reached out his right arm, about to lift Nao's shirt to check for scars. Nao immediately pressed his hand down, saying helplessly, "Don't worry, I'm fine. What did you expect? A few guys from CP9 are no match for me, even if they teamed up, are they?"
"True."
Kawakawa Shuma nodded in deep agreement, then suddenly asked curiously, "Huh, wait, why are you coming back on a Marine warship? Didn't they send you back?"
Looking across the harbor, there was no sign of the CP speedboat.
"They were originally sending me, but halfway there, I just happened to run into this guy."
Nao pointed behind him. Everyone looked and saw Captain Onigumo happen to walk over. "It was on the way anyway, so I just switched to his ship and came back together."
"Was that 'on the way'?"
Onigumo had a dark look on his face. "I was on my way out to pursue a target! I'd just spotted a pirate ship's trail when you cut it in half with one swing! What else was I supposed to do but turn back?"
"It's all pretty much the same."
Nao put an arm around Onigumo's shoulder, patted him, and burst into laughter. "Besides, didn't I save you the trouble? You should be thanking me."
"…"
Onigumo's eye twitched. He almost wanted to punch that smug face, but in the end, he clenched his fist and held back.
He couldn't help it; he simply couldn't beat him.
Recalling CP9 Commander Spandam's overjoyed and relieved expression when Nao transferred to his Marine warship, Onigumo began to suspect whether this cunning fellow had done something to those agents on the way…
"So, on the way back, he also casually took down a pirate crew?" Kawakawa Shuma exclaimed. "As expected of Boss Nao! How much was that pirate captain's bounty?"
"Forty or fifty million, I don't remember the exact amount for such a small fry…" Nao had just answered halfway when he suddenly stopped talking, his gaze passing over Kawakawa Shuma's head, staring blankly into the distance.
What's wrong? Kawakawa Shuma turned his head in confusion. When he saw a slender figure sprinting towards them, he immediately understood.
He quietly pulled his companions aside, watching as Nao flipped off the deck and landed, then smiled and embraced Shia as she rushed into his arms.
"…Lucky bastard."
A few bittersweet sighs echoed simultaneously.
...
In the Bustling Marketplace
A commotion suddenly arose from the street corner. Pedestrians curiously stood on their tiptoes, looking towards the source of the disturbance, only to find that it was a young couple.
The blue-haired girl nestled against the black-haired boy's side. The girl was beautiful, and the boy was handsome. Those who saw this scene suddenly realized why so many people were flocking to witness it.
Especially that boy, he's so incredibly handsome…
Many girls clutched their flushed cheeks, already sporting starry eyes.
"This is really troublesome."
Feeling the gazes gathering around them, Nao rubbed his temples, sighing, "That's why I hate shopping so much…"
The place they were currently in was a town located behind the G-2 Branch fortress. It wasn't large, but it was unexpectedly prosperous.
The streets were bustling with people, and there were all sorts of food stalls, clothing shops, and entertainment venues, making it quite lively.
The reason they came here was that he had to return to Headquarters in a few days. He planned to prepare some gifts for the high-ranking officials who had helped him, especially the less familiar Sengoku and Tsuru. He'd have to make special visits to thank them.
"I never imagined there was a place like this behind the fortress…"
Shia hugged his arm tightly, her gaze constantly flitting over the small stalls. "I remember G-2 Branch was originally built on an uninhabited island; it was purely a military base…"
"That's normal. Once it develops, these supporting facilities are essential. Marineford is the same way."
Nao said casually, "There has to be a place for entertainment and relaxation on the island. You can't just train and fight all the time; no one could stand that. Marines are people too, after all."
"But Nao, you…" Shia looked up at him, bewildered.
I'm not human.
Nao pouted, muttering inwardly. With his current monstrous physique and uncanny abilities like limb regeneration, he apparently wasn't considered human in the biological sense anymore.
Just then, to his right, there was a rather large gift shop. He thought for a moment, then led Shia inside. The shop owner, a woman in her thirties, was originally looking down at her ledger. Seeing him enter, she excitedly stood up, almost wrenching her old back.
After about ten minutes.
With the owner's reluctant farewell, Nao walked out with a large string of gifts.
The shopkeeper had been incredibly enthusiastic with her sales pitch, even offering a fifty percent discount. As a shy and simple young man, he found it hard to refuse, so he also got a few small gifts for his two long-unseen roommates.
"Want to browse that shop?"
There was a clothing store at the street corner. Nao suddenly felt like a responsible boyfriend. He lowered his head and softly asked Shia, "You haven't bought new clothes in a long time, have you? Want to pick some out in there?"
It seemed that accompanying girls shopping always involved going to such places, tormenting himself. Luckily, he was incredibly strong, so carrying any number of large or small bags was no trouble.
"No need, really."
Shia glanced at the clothing store, hesitated, then gently shook her head: "It's too much trouble for Nao, and I don't really need any."
The moment her words fell, the white Marine recruit uniform she was wearing suddenly transformed into an elegant, simple, off-white long dress.
Oh, right, Nao slapped his forehead. He almost forgot about the Clone-Clone Fruit.
However…
"Those are all fake. You still need to buy real ones. Go ahead and pick whatever you want, you can even empty the entire store, I'll pay!"
He waved grandly, and without waiting for protest, grabbed her soft, pale arm and charged into the store.
The girl let him pull her along, her gaze quietly fixed on his eyes. When he eventually noticed and turned his head curiously…
She tilted her head, unable to help but press her lips together, revealing a sweet smile.