"Your strength has already reached this level, Jora?" Shirakawa said to Jora, because with every attack Jora made, Shirakawa could feel the sharp sword intent radiating from his opponent.
"But compared to you, Captain, I'm still far behind." Jora looked at Shirakawa and noticed that while the captain didn't handle him with complete ease, there wasn't the slightest hint of seriousness on his face either.
Hearing this, Shirakawa let out a light chuckle and didn't say much. To be honest, even he himself didn't know exactly what level his strength had reached by now.
Jora's statement had basis to it, because the crew all understood how Shirakawa's ability worked—only when Shirakawa used more than eighty percent of his power would that giant sword appear above his head.
But right now, no sword had appeared in the sky, which meant Shirakawa wasn't even using eighty percent of his strength against him.
"The captain's power just keeps getting more and more terrifying." The watching crew members all said the same thing.
By now, they had roughly gauged Jora's strength, but Shirakawa's power remained a mystery to them even now.
"Captain, could you fight me at full strength, just once?" Jora pleaded earnestly.
"That's probably not a good idea." Shirakawa responded, worried he might beat Jora so badly he'd never recover.
"Don't worry, Captain. You don't need to worry about me. Only after I understand the gap between us will I have even more motivation to improve."
"If that's what you want, then don't come crying to me later."
After saying this, a cold smile tugged at the corner of Shirakawa's lips, and a silver-white glow emanated from his body. The Sword of Damocles had appeared in the sky above at some unknown moment.
"The captain's getting serious?" Seeing that sword, the watching crew members all perked up with excitement.
"Come then, Jora. Let me show you the gap between us."
As soon as Shirakawa finished speaking, Jora came charging forward with both swords drawn. "Dual-Sword Style: Flash Step."
It was a technique similar to the One-Sword Style's Iaido Slash—both relied on speed to claim victory.
But then something unexpected happened. Shirakawa stopped Jora's blade with a single hand, preventing him from advancing even one step further.
"What?" The crew members watching were stunned, and Jora was stunned too. He knew exactly how powerful this technique of his was—even his master Mor couldn't claim to be able to catch it with certainty.
Yet the captain had stopped it with just one hand.
Of course, Shirakawa wasn't actually as relaxed as he looked. Jora was, after all, a great swordsman—and a great swordsman of considerable skill at that.
What Shirakawa had just done was a risky gamble. His hand now bore a wound—a wound that was difficult to heal, because Jora's sword intent clung to the injury.
"So I was being a bit too reckless after all." Shirakawa stepped back and looked at the gash on his hand.
Although it healed quickly, Shirakawa could feel that the stamina consumed in recovering was far greater than that of an ordinary wound.
"Well? Want to keep going?"
Shirakawa asked Jora again.
"No need. I've already seen the gap. I won't go looking for more punishment."
Jora sheathed his blades and gave a self-deprecating smile. Who would have thought that after five years, the gap between him and the captain had only grown wider.
The two returned to the ship, and Shirakawa stood at the bow, gazing out at the distant sea.
His crew stood behind him, all thinking the same thing: Captain, what exactly did you go through in these five years?
Though they each felt they'd experienced and grown a lot over those five years, they still couldn't shake the feeling that they were no match for their captain.
"We're back. How did it go?"
After returning to Tom's shipyard, Tom asked Shirakawa.
"How else could it go? Obviously I won. Did you think I'd let one of my crew beat me? If that happened, there'd be no point in me being captain anymore, would there?"
"Ha, fair enough. But when do you all plan on leaving?"
Now that all the members of the Silver Pirates had gathered, there was no reason for Shirakawa to stay here any longer.
"Tomorrow. We'll set out early tomorrow morning. Today we'll buy some sailing equipment and provisions here first."
"That's wise. You need to make thorough preparations before setting out to sea."
"Everyone's dismissed for today. Gather here tomorrow morning."
Shirakawa said to his crew.
"Yes, Captain."
They all agreed readily, but when evening came, every single one of them returned.
How could a reunion after such a long separation not be celebrated with a banquet? They'd already planned it out in advance—a few of them went to buy sailing necessities, while the rest went to buy supplies for the party.
Sure enough, everyone got drunk that night. The joy of reunion and the longing they'd felt for their crewmates all burst forth in a single evening.
By the time the night wore on into the early hours, not a single person on the scene was sober anymore. Apart from the occasional crackling of the bonfire, there was no other sound to be heard.
Oh, and the snoring of a few individuals.
But since everyone was sleeping like the dead, those snores didn't wake anyone.
What was surprising was that even that frog had joined in the drinking this time—Tom's pet, whom Shirakawa had seen a few times on previous visits. Who'd have thought it could drink with such style and flair.
There was also a mermaid named Kokoro, and Shirakawa still didn't know what secret relationship she had with the fish-man Tom.
Early the next morning, as if by silent agreement, all the members of the Silver Pirates opened their eyes at almost exactly the same time.
"Captain, are we leaving now?" William asked Shirakawa. Since he'd lived here for five years, he felt he should say goodbye to Mr. Tom before leaving—after all, Tom was practically his master now.
"Yeah. What, feeling a bit reluctant to go?"
"Yeah." William nodded, his voice somewhat subdued.
"That's normal. If we left now, you'd be the only one feeling reluctant. But if we waited until they woke up, then a whole group of people would be reluctant to see us go. So this time, you'll just have to bear with it."
Shirakawa knew that if they waited until Tom and the others woke up before leaving, the other side would definitely shed tears, and that wasn't a scene Shirakawa wanted to witness.
"Then Captain, where are we headed this time? Straight to the Sabaody Archipelago?"
"No. We're going to that island where you all came to pick me up five years ago. I need to say my farewells to the people there too."
In Shirakawa's mind surfaced the memory of that little girl from five years ago, and the promise he'd made to her when he left.
He had told her that he would definitely come back to see her.
I hope you haven't forgotten who I am by the time we meet again.
A smile spread across Shirakawa's face, carrying with it a feeling of tender affection.
/-\
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