New World.
The mighty sea was turbulent.
The silver-white Ryusen sailed slowly, with three half-rusted iron cages placed on the spacious deck.
Arranged in order from left to right, the cages held Catarina Devon, Crocodile, and a sleeping Vasco Shot.
"Brother Atlas, what should we do with these people? Send them directly to Impel Down?"
Smoker and Enel looked around the three of them and asked.
"Hey!! Marine, what do you mean, are you humiliating me?"
Crocodile stared at Atlas fiercely through the iron railings, a thick seastone chain wrapped around his waist.
Without the support of his Devil Fruit, his arms had returned to their original shape, missing his golden pirate hook, leaving only empty air.
These guys, it's one thing to arrest him, and the worst they could do is imprison him in Impel Down again. But they actually dared to use an iron cage to imprison him! ! It's simply a naked humiliation.
"That guy shouldn't be a fruit user, right?"
Atlas pointed at Shot who was snoring loudly, ignoring Crocodile's shouting, with a sneer on his face.
"No."
"Chop him up and throw him down to feed the Sea Kings."
"——?!!"
Shot, who was still squinting his eyes and pretending to be sleepy, suddenly widened his eyes and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"What do you want to do? Marine!!"
Swish! ! !
There was a flash of sword light, and a blood-red slash leaped out, directly breaking through the iron cage and slashing towards Shot's thick neck! !
Splat!!!
Blood splashed, and a big head rose into the sky. There was still disbelief and... deep fear in the widened eyes.
This Marine... is really a madman! ! !
This was Shot's last thought before he died.
He regretted it extremely now, why did he come here to join in the fun?
"Kuahahaha!!"
Crocodile on the side watched helplessly as a large ball of blood spattered towards him, his face suddenly changed, and then his laughter suddenly turned from low to high.
"It's really completely different from before!! Hakuryu!"
When he first met this man before, he was just a little lieutenant.
Although he had strength far beyond his military rank, his murderous aura was not as strong as it is now.
Otherwise, he would not have been able to enter the underwater prison intact.
Unexpectedly, only such a short time had passed, and this guy was actually stronger than he imagined.
He was filled with bitterness when he recalled the battle on Delta Island just now.
Absolutely cruel! It was almost a one-sided abuse.
His Observation Haki could predict the future, the high-level suppression of his Armament Haki, and a Conqueror's Haki infusion attack directly overwhelmed Crocodile.
"People change, aren't you same? Crocodile."
Atlas glanced at Crocodile, who was wrapped in seastone shackles, and waved casually:
"Take the two of them down. They're an eyesore."
————
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
The port that was repaired after the war was much more spacious than before, and an ordinary Marine-style warship was docked here.
In the front, there were bustling and well-dressed recruits.
Uniform Marine sailor uniforms, without any epaulettes on the shoulders.
In the recruitment training camp, no matter what position you held before entering, you must be treated equally and return to a blank slate.
Of course, when a Marine enters the recruiting camp, his meager job title is of little use in Marineford, which is full of generals.
Boom!!!
There was a dull sound of footsteps, and a man wearing black sunglasses lowered his mouth, put his hands behind his back, and stretched out his military uniform with all his knotted muscles.
Along the way, the Marines on duty all stood at attention and gave the man a Marine salute.
"Everyone!!"
His eyes scanned the serious and immature recruits' faces, and he said: "Next, is the last actual combat of this training camp. This is not the first time you have participated in actual combat. I believe you all understand the rules."
"I won't get involved unless necessary. Everything depends on you."
After saying these words, the man strode forward towards the gangway. The Marines around him remained motionless and undisturbed.
Out of the corner of his eye, Zephyr couldn't help but nod with satisfaction.
Although there were no young talents that impressed him this time, he admired their hard work and strong execution ability.
Usually, Shuzo would lead the actual combat training, but Zephyr happened to be interested and wanted to examine the overall combat quality of this batch of Marines in more detail.
It can also be regarded as a practical assessment.
————
New World, an unknown sea area.
Aboard the Ryusen.
The blood on the deck had been wiped clean, and Crocodile and Catarina Devon were imprisoned in a temporary prison.
Other Marines on the warship were performing their respective duties.
Except... these two guys, Smoker and Enel.
"What are you looking at?"
"What are you looking at?"
"Want to fight!"
"Just try it!"
"..."
Conversations like this happened every few days.
"You haven't been back to Dressrosa for a long time, have you? Kyros?"
Ignoring the two, Atlas lay under the umbrella, took a sip of cold juice, and glanced at Kyros, who was practicing his sword diligently.
"Huh! Yes, it's been a long time. I wonder how Rebecca is doing?"
Hearing this, Kyros wiped the sweat from his brow, placed the broadsword in his hand on the ground, and said breathlessly.
Rebecca...
Kyros's eyes were full of doting.
Over the years, he and Scarlet had occasionally exchanged letters, often containing photos of Rebecca, which relieved some of his homesickness.
However, he always felt indebted to the mother and daughter.
After all, he not only left Scarlet during her most difficult time but also missed Rebecca's growth.
'Ha~~I don't know if Rebecca still recognizes me as her father after seeing me.'
Kyros thought somewhat self-deprecatingly.
"...In that case."
Atlas noticed the corners of Kyros's eyes shining in the sun and shouted loudly:
"Navigator! Set course for Dressrosa! It happens to be on the way too!"
"..."
Kyros was speechless, looked at Atlas suddenly, then turned around, secretly wiped his face, and muttered with the corners of his mouth raised:
"Really, it's not on the way, you're obviously taking a detour!"
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