Ryu was no longer the same person; a bounty of over ten million was no longer worth his time running around East Blue. He planned to visit Loguetown for a catch-up with Smoker before heading back home. After two years of training it finally paid off as he is a Rear Admiral now and he could establish a base for the Navy there, which would better protect the villagers.
If he encountered any of those pirates on his way back, he wouldn't mind dealing with them, considering even Buggy had a bounty of 15,000,000 Berries!
A day later, Ryu stood at the gate of the Loguetown Naval Base, feeling a wave of nostalgia.
"Hello, may I ask what brings you to the Marine Base?" After standing there for a while, someone finally took notice of him. The voice was somewhat familiar.
"Oh, it's you, Sergeant Tashigi!" Ryu turned around to see Tashigi, her sword, Shigure, strapped to her side.
"Hmm? Do you know me?" Tashigi asked, still carrying her usual obliviousness.
"Can't believe you don't remember an old friend! I hope Smoker does!" Ryu chuckled, shaking his head.
"Huh?" Tashigi was confused. Knowing her meant he knew Smoker? She didn't remember Ryu at all.
This was partly due to the fact that Ryu had changed significantly in the two years of training at the Navy Headquarters, both in physique and demeanor.
"I'm Rear Admiral Ryu, here to visit Rear Admiral Smoker. Please lead the way, Sergeant Tashigi!" Ryu showed her his identification with a smile.
"Good day, sir!" Tashigi froze for a moment before quickly saluting, causing the fruits she just bought to scatter all over the ground.
Ryu felt a headache coming on. If Smoker saw this, he would definitely think he was bullying his beautiful subordinate.
"What are you doing?" A low, deep voice came from behind Ryu. Just by the voice, he knew his earlier predictions had come true.
"Oh! Smoker, it's been a while!" Ryu turned around, trying to act nonchalant.
"Hmph, you're not bullying my subordinate using your rank, are you?" Smoker eyed Ryu suspiciously.
"Ahaha, how could I? Sergeant Tashigi is so lovely!" Ryu laughed heartily to cover his embarrassment.
"But I heard from Tina that since you became a Rear Admiral, you've been showing off in front of her quite a bit!" Smoker said, taking a leisurely puff from his cigar.
Ryu's expression changed. He noticed Tashigi looking at him differently, as if she was thinking, "So this is what you're like?"
"Yikes, Smoker, are you standing up for Tashigi here? Besides, do I look like that kind of guy?" Ryu feigned righteousness.
Ryu's acting was still on point; at least Tashigi's gaze started to waver.
"Do you think you're not?" Smoker replied, still looking at him with a face that said he totally believed Ryu was that type of person.
"Am I?" "You're not?" "Am I?" "You're not?"
The two stared at each other intensely at the base's entrance, their childish argument drawing the attention of Tashigi, who had just picked up her fruits.
"How about a duel? Let's see if your two years at Headquarters have been wasted!" Smoker finally challenged, unable to resist Ryu's provocation.
"Sure, I want to test if you've improved since two years ago!" Ryu readily accepted.
Although they held the same rank, the experience points seemed to be based on strength, so as a Logia user, Smoker should give him a significant amount of experience!
At the training ground, the Marines gathered to watch. On one side was their superior, the "White Hunter," Smoker, a Logia user of the Smoke-Smokey Fruit, and on the other was Rear Admiral Ryu, whose strength was unknown.
Despite coming from the Headquarters, they all knew how powerful Logia users were, especially since Smoker was from the Headquarters too. In East Blue, he hadn't faced any opponents yet.
"Hey, don't say I didn't give you face. I'll let you have three free hits!" Ryu boasted arrogantly.
"Hmph, let's see if you can back that up!" Though Smoker said this, he knew that two years ago, Ryu had already possessed the ability to attack Logia users' physical forms, and after two years of training, he would likely be much more skilled.
"White Smoke Launcher!" Smoker shot out smoke from behind him, rapidly moving toward Ryu.
He wielded a Sea-Prism Stone weapon; after battling Ace, he had applied for this weapon from Headquarters.
"Hmph, that technique won't work on me!" Ryu's arm turned black as he activated his Haki.
"Looks like you've mastered that ability!" Smoker narrowed his eyes.
"Of course, as a Rear Admiral, it would be strange not to have mastered it, right? Right, Rear Admiral Smoker?" Ryu deliberately provoked Smoker, as he hadn't yet fully grasped Haki himself.
"White Wind!" Smoker transformed into smoke, aiming to envelop Ryu and trap him.
"Hmph, small tricks!"
Ryu channeled his internal energy, activating the Grass Skimming Technique and combining it with the expansive Arhat Fist, immediately forcing Smoker's physical form out.
"Smoker, you rely too much on your Devil Fruit abilities. While your martial arts are decent, they're still lacking against me!" As he received experience points from the system, Ryu's sparring session with Smoker came to an end.
"Rumor has it you have a move that can unleash a dragon form. Why didn't you use it?" Smoker asked, his expression dark.
Despite losing, he couldn't accept that Ryu hadn't even gone all out.
"That move takes too much energy, and I can't master it well. This is just a spar, not a life-and-death battle!" Ryu shook his head.
Ryu's explanation eased Smoker's expression somewhat, though he was unaware that Ryu had already mastered the first five moves of the Dragon Subduing Eighteen Palms. He simply didn't feel the need to use them.
"Weren't you supposed to return with Vice Admiral Garp? Why are you here in Loguetown alone?" After their sparring, although Smoker had lost face in front of his subordinates, he still had to host Ryu, taking him to the base's mess hall for lunch.
"My hometown is also in East Blue, and I wanted to take a look after coming back with the old man. By the way, I have one more favor to ask. I hope to establish a Marine outpost in my hometown. No need for a full base, just a simple post!" Ryu said while eating.
"Sure thing!" Smoker nodded in agreement.
"Also, I need to borrow a ship. I came here on a merchant ship, so I don't have one to return with!" Ryu patted his full stomach and raised his cup.
"Of course. When do you plan to leave?" Smoker seemed a bit anxious.
"Hmm? I was planning to leave tomorrow, but since you asked, I think I'll stay a few more days. What's wrong? Don't you welcome me?" Ryu teased.
He knew that after beating Smoker, Smoker felt a bit awkward seeing him, but Ryu, who had a taste for this kind of mischief, enjoyed it. Everyone at Headquarters had already gotten used to Ryu's challenges, and it had been a long time since he'd seen Smoker with such a similar expression.
A few days later, on the morning of departure, Ryu boarded the naval ship Smoker lent him. The crew and soldiers were all equipped and ready, as this was Smoker's usual ship for travel.
"Sergeant Tashigi, do you think Smoker is still hung up on that sparring match where I defeated him?" Ryu asked Tashigi, who seemed a bit flustered, while standing on the deck.
Smoker hadn't even come to see him off that morning and only sent Tashigi to convey his regards.
"Probably not. Rear Admiral Smoker must be busy with official duties!" Tashigi said, though she didn't fully believe it herself.
"Alright then, I'll return the ship when I get back!" Ryu shrugged and ordered the ship to set sail.
Tashigi stood at the harbor, watching the ship depart before finally relaxing.
She knew that Smoker was quite concerned about the sparring match. Originally, both she and Smoker were part of the same Marine division, but due to various reasons, Smoker had self-assigned to East Blue, where the resources and conditions were not as good as at Headquarters. Two years ago, Ryu, who was weaker than Smoker, could now easily defeat him, and it was natural for Smoker to feel a bit resentful.
Additionally, over the past few days, Ryu had been intentionally lingering around Smoker, which only made him more irritated. Tashigi feared that if Ryu didn't leave soon, Smoker might even ask him to leave.
After the ship set sail, Ryu rested in the cabin. Based on the ship's speed, he expected to reach his hometown by the next afternoon. It was a far cry from his earlier days at sea on a small wooden boat, drifting with the wind.
The following afternoon, when Ryu arrived at his hometown's port, he was taken aback.
The port had clearly been bombarded, and with no signs of human life detected by his Observation Haki, Ryu was stunned.
"Breathe. Send a message to Smoker and ask what happened on this island. The rest of you, come with me ashore!" Ryu took a deep breath and said in a somber tone.
"Yes, sir!" The only officer on the ship, a petty officer, saluted.
Anyone returning home would feel disheartened by such a sight, so the petty officer dared not say anything further and immediately contacted the naval base in Loguetown using the ship's den-den mushi.
"What a tragic scene!" Ryu walked through what was once a small town, looking at the now desolate place with an expressionless face.
The entire town had fallen into ruin. In just two years, the peaceful and harmonious place had transformed into this.
As Ryu walked, he observed the situation, suspecting that it was likely attacked by pirates. He had seen many places like this during his missions in the Grand Line; now it was his hometown's turn.
..............
Started editing the chapters now ^^
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