East Blue, Shibari Island.
It was deep winter, and heavy white snow covered the entire island. A few orange streetlights at the crossroads added to the quiet and peaceful atmosphere of this small town, which only had a population of twenty thousand.
At Branch 16's Marine port, the marines on duty were watching in surprise as a white Marine ship, arriving from afar, slowly sailed into the civilian fishing port.
"Where did that Marine ship come from?"
Someone asked curiously, "Aren't all our branch's Marine ships in port for maintenance? I haven't heard of any going out on missions these past two days."
"No idea. Could it be from another branch… Huh, look at the paint on the side, is that Headquarters' insignia?"
"It looks like it! What's going on? Why did Headquarters send a Marine ship here?"
"Perhaps it's an emergency mission… Should we notify Captain Samor?"
While they were chattering and discussing, on this side, Nao had already disembarked with his subordinates, stepping onto his hometown's pier.
Snowflakes danced and swirled, and the cold wind howled. Everything in sight was a silvery white.
The group walked through the thick snow, trying to avoid the busier streets, and quietly entered the town.
"With all due respect, Rear Admiral,"
A subordinate following behind couldn't help but speak. "Aren't you returning home to visit family? Why does it look… like, like…"
He trailed off, and Nao glanced at him, chuckling lightly. "Like a thief scouting a place?"
"Pretty much," the subordinate scratched his head, embarrassed.
"I have to keep a low profile, you know…"
Nao rubbed Sadaharu's head, sighing helplessly. "I just want to get home early and have a good dinner with my family. If I cause a commotion and get stuck outside the door, missing out on hot food, that would be very troublesome…"
Cause a commotion? Get stuck outside the door?That makes sense.
All the subordinates looked at him and instinctively nodded in agreement.
There was nothing they could do; Rear Admiral Nao was simply too handsome…
Perhaps it was because he hadn't had a chance to cut his hair on the journey, Nao's hair was much longer than it had been at Headquarters. Simply styled, it hung loosely, and he wore light brown sunglasses over his handsome face, giving him a carefree and elegant air.
He wore a perfectly tailored white suit, white gloves, and white high-top snow boots… His strong muscles were concealed beneath this all-white attire, making him look proper and graceful.
If not for the cloak of Justice draped over his shoulders, anyone looking at him would think he was a distinguished nobleman, not a Marine.
"Let's go, it's almost dark."
Nao looked up at the sky, speaking leisurely. "It's been almost two years since I've been home. I miss my mom's cooking terribly. I really want to eat her homemade beef stew with potatoes. It's so flavorful and tender…"
At this point, he suddenly became vigilant. "Hey, you guys better restrain yourselves later! Don't hog all my share!"
"Eh??? There's even some for us?"
The subordinates were instantly moved to tears. "You're so considerate of your subordinates, Rear Admiral! We were just thinking we'd find a restaurant after dropping you off at home. We never expected you to include us…"
"Haha, so you all had plans already, huh? Well, alright then, I won't force you. Go ahead and eat out."
"...Wait, what?!"
...
Inside a simple yet elegant two-story house.
The kitchen water heater gurgled, gently simmering.
Captain Natsuya, who had just returned home from duty at the branch base, was tiredly nestled in the sofa, holding a teacup in one hand and flipping through today's newspaper with the other.
Old Natsuya was in his early fifties, with graying temples. Although time had etched wrinkles around his eyes, his facial features remained distinct, making it clear that he was once a strikingly handsome black-haired man in his youth.
His wife, a woman with flaxen hair tied neatly at her ears, exuded a gentle demeanor. She had just taken out the evening's ingredients from the refrigerator, her eyes disappearing in a pleasant smile as she watched her husband engrossed in the newspaper:
"Oh my, dear, didn't you read this newspaper this morning at breakfast? Why are you flipping through it again as soon as you get home?"
"I read it in a hurry this morning. I didn't look closely at many of the side pages,"
Old Natsuya didn't lift his head, muttering, "What if I just happened to miss some important news?"
"Important news wouldn't be hidden in the corners, would it?"
His flaxen-haired wife took out a kitchen knife and skillfully sliced celery into thin pieces.
"You're clearly just hoping to find news about our son in today's paper…"
"What do you know, Yukika!"
Old Natsuya scoffed, arrogantly dismissive.
"A mature gentleman naturally forms the habit of reading the newspaper thoroughly every day! As for that kid, whatever fame he achieves is his own business. Who cares…"
"Oh my, but you only started this daily newspaper-reading habit a few months after that incident, didn't you?"
His wife, Yukika, must have been a beauty in her youth. She smiled slightly, speaking softly: "Speaking of which, when I was tidying up old newspapers today, I found that the front page of that day's newspaper had been cut out. I wonder who secretly tucked it into their wallet or somewhere similar, secretly collecting it…"
"..."
The Captain's old face flushed red. He turned his head, grumbling resentfully in a low voice, "To secretly go through my wallet… Older women are truly not cute at all…"
"Hmm?"
The sound of the knife hitting the cutting board suddenly stopped.
"I'm sorry."
The old man decisively caved, standing up and bowing.
Chop, chop, chop, the knife continued to slice celery.
"Speaking of which, that brat Nao has been gone for almost two years now. I wonder when he'll finally graduate and come back to visit us."
Old Natsuya sat back down, crossed his legs, and sighed. "The Headquarters Elite Camp supposedly takes three years, right? So, by that count, it'll be at least another year before he can…"
"Dad, Mom, I'm home~!"
A familiar voice suddenly reached their ears.
Yukika and the old Captain simultaneously glanced towards the entrance, then turned back, one continuing to chop vegetables, the other continuing to read the newspaper.
"Oh my, it seems I'm missing him too much, having hallucinations now," Yukika shook her head slightly.
"That doesn't make sense," the old man mumbled to himself. "But lately, I really have been missing that brat more and more…"
Thump, thump, thump!
An urgent knocking at the door interrupted his thoughts.
"Hey, hey, hey, open up, Dad, Mom!" The shouting from outside became incredibly clear this time. "What are you doing? It's snowing heavily out here! Are you trying to freeze your son to death?"
It wasn't a hallucination?!
The couple exchanged glances, their expressions changing simultaneously.
Clang!
The kitchen knife clattered to the floor. Yukika, without even stopping to untie her apron, dashed towards the front door at a hundred-meter sprint speed; Captain Natsuya also hurriedly uncrossed his legs and fumbled for his slippers, but he made a mistake in his haste, tripping over his left foot with his right, letting out an "Ouch!" as he fell face-first onto the floor.
"Son!!!"
On the other side, Yukika twisted the doorknob for a long time but couldn't open it. She simply kicked the door open violently, ignoring the gusting wind and snow, and looked out with a face full of pleasant surprise.
She then saw that standing in their courtyard, besides Nao, were over twenty Marines, all staring at her with astonishment.
"..."
Yukika's expression stiffened slightly, but the next moment, she gasped and covered her mouth, saying in a soft, delicate voice, "Oh my, were there so many people coming along too? Nao, honestly, you didn't even say anything beforehand…"
She subtly straightened the large door behind her and blossomed into a warm, approachable smile like a tulip. "Are these all your colleagues?"
"..."
The courtyard remained deathly silent. The Marines stood there, bewildered, looking blank.
Isn't that right, ma'am? Your change of expression was a bit too quick, wasn't it?
The ferocious scene of you kicking the door was still fresh in everyone's minds! No one here is blind!
—You damn kid, do something to relieve your old mother's embarrassment!
Yukika glanced at Nao with a smiling look. He instantly understood his mom's unspoken message.
"Ahem, Mom, let me introduce you. These are indeed colleagues, and they're also my subordinates."
Nao took off his sunglasses, coughed lightly, turned his head, and said solemnly to the group: "Thank you all for seeing me home. It's getting late, and I'm sure you're all hungry. If you want to eat, find a place yourselves. Any big meal is fine, I'm paying."
He winked at the Marines.
"Yes, Mr. Nao!"
All the subordinates instantly understood, saluting and replying in unison, "Then we won't disturb you. We wish you a happy reunion with your family!"
"Oh my, you're just going to let your colleagues eat dinner at an outside restaurant? What kind of behavior is that?"
Yukika pointed at the apron she was wearing, chiding playfully, "I'm just preparing dinner now. It would be so much better if everyone stayed for a meal together…"
"No need to trouble you, ma'am!"
The Marines shivered and responded in unison without hesitation.
They weren't fools. At a time like this, if they dared to stay and involve themselves in the Rear Admiral's family dinner, they would probably be drowned in beef stew with potatoes tonight…
The group bid farewell to Nao and left the courtyard as if fleeing for their lives.
"What a pity," Yukika sighed softly, her brows furrowed, watching them leave. "I was thinking it would be livelier with more people at dinner…"
"That's enough, Mom."
Nao pouted, helping to lean the kicked-down door against the wall. "Everyone's gone, so stop acting. If you really had to make dinner for twenty or thirty people, I'm afraid it'd be dark before your dishes even made it to the table… Ugh, ugh?"
He hadn't even finished speaking when Yukika grabbed his cheeks, one in each hand. His voice instantly became muffled and indistinct. "H-h-hurts, what are you doing, let go…"
"Let go?"
Looking at her son's puffed-out cheeks, Yukika gritted her teeth:
"You just came back out of nowhere, making your old mother lose face in front of all those people, you brat! Couldn't you have sent a letter or called beforehand?!"
"We don't even have a Transponder Snail at home, and I can't exactly call the Branch 16 base, can I…? As for a letter, I decided to come back on a whim this time, so I didn't even think about it…"
Nao met Yukika's light green eyes and blinked innocently. "Besides, to be precise, Mom, what you just did wasn't 'losing face.' It should be called 'revealing your true ape form.'"
"Go to hell!"
With a loud thump, old Captain Natsuya, who had struggled to get up and barely reached the doorway, stared wide-eyed as he watched his own son get kicked high into the air, screaming, and smash the two snowmen piled in the courtyard to smithereens…
Moments later.
Nao limped along the hallway into the living room, followed by the equally limping old Captain Natsuya.
"You've grown taller and much handsomer,"
Yukika, who had "re-embedded" the door back into its frame behind them, followed and marveled at Nao. "Truly a big transformation for a man reaching adulthood! I never thought I could give birth to such a sight for sore eyes…"
Why wouldn't you think that? With my excellent genes, how could our son go wrong? Old Natsuya's expression was serious, but he was muttering inwardly.
"Mom, I was already eighteen when I left home, and I was already very handsome back then, okay?"
Nao shrugged helplessly. "But I have indeed grown much taller. Should the door at home be re-sized? I clearly bent down when I came in earlier, but I still hit my head…"
The house's door was 2.2 meters high, certainly not short. However, with the aid of height-enhancing potions, his height had now shot up to 2.45 meters.
"Oh, right, Dad," he turned to look at the old man behind him, asking curiously, "Why are your legs also…?"
"I suffered some injuries in a battle chasing pirates a while ago, and they haven't fully healed yet."
Captain Natsuya sternly said with a cold voice, "That's just part of our Marine duties, no need to mention it. Let me ask you this: Aren't you still supposed to be in training? What's with those Marines who came with you? I vaguely heard you say they were your subordinates?"