"So the ones guarding that stretch of sea right now are…"
"Enel and Tiger?"
The sharp-eyed Den Den Mushi blinked, its expression serious.
"Yes. I've seen what the two of them can do. When they work together, they can unleash something truly terrifying. That's why I felt safe leaving."
"Enel and Tiger working together?"
Ozz's interest immediately sparked.
"Controlling seawater and lightning, huh?"
Conductivity?
It was easy to picture.
First, the Fish-Man floods you with a crushing surge, leaves you drenched, exhausted, your body heavy and sluggish.
Then, right when you can barely breathe, a real, solid bolt of heavenly thunder crashes down on your head.
A combo where one plus one clearly became more than two.
But that also meant Enel would be stuck in the New World for a long time.
Which meant Luffy's Sky Island arc would definitely get a lot more… bland.
Still, that was fine.
Enel now had both forms of Haki, and with his horizons widened and his Goro Goro no Mi developed far more efficiently, he was no longer an opponent the current Luffy could defeat.
If anything, it was a difficulty adjustment.
With the laboratory's temporary arrangement settled, Mihawk asked about Ozz's next plans. If possible, they could travel together again.
"As for me… I'm heading back to Sabaody Archipelago to rest for a while. It's been too long. I've been missing the massage services in the red-light district."
"Sabaody Archipelago?"
That was perfect, not far from Marine Headquarters either.
"Then I'll…"
"No, no, Little Hawk. Why are you going back so early?"
"…?"
Mihawk had barely started before Ozz cut him off.
"This time I'm going back for two reasons. To rest, and to educate some brats."
"And you've got your own kid to look after, don't you?"
Mihawk frowned.
"You mean…?"
"Moria."
"That guy's going to follow Little Croc's footsteps soon enough. When that happens, Perona will be all alone. Go pick her up."
Mihawk's eyelid twitched.
"Perona…"
Come to think of it, he really had not visited that girl in a long time.
Years ago, after Ozz asked him to look after Perona, it had turned into something like a divorced family arrangement. Perona would occasionally stay at his castle for a while.
And Mihawk, in a way, had raised her like half a father.
But time passed.
Mihawk was no longer that clean-cut young man who once roamed the seas with Ozz.
And Perona was no longer the little brat who barely reached his knee.
"So that's how it is."
"Moria will lose to those youngsters too…"
Thinking of that child who feared being alone, who used to cling to her dolls, Mihawk closed his eyes and sighed.
"She's most afraid of loneliness."
"I'll go."
The call ended.
And the two of them headed in different directions.
…
Sabaody Archipelago.
The Lawless Zone.
Shakky's Rip-off Bar.
In three quick moves, Shakky dealt with a customer who wanted to drink "Overlord liquor," took the money, and returned behind the counter.
The former "number one beauty of the seas," Shakky wiped down a glass while watching old Rayleigh sway his way back in.
She lifted her lips into a smile.
"You're back early today, Rayleigh."
"Usually you don't come home unless you've drained every last free drink from Ozz's bars until night."
Rayleigh could only laugh awkwardly.
"Can't be helped. Everyone at Shakky's place is busy right now."
"No one has time to entertain an old man like me."
He sat at the counter. Shakky poured him a drink and lit a cigarette for herself.
"What happened?"
"…Ozz is coming back."
"I see. That explains it."
Shakky exhaled slowly, her smile faint.
"Little Ozz has always been popular with girls."
"Especially on Sabaody, where so many of them live under his protection and eat because of him."
Even her own shop benefited from Ozz's shadow. She could not deny that.
"Handsome and strong."
"I even heard that the Marine vice admiral stationed on Sabaody, Doll, came because of him."
That surprised Rayleigh.
"A female Marine officer for Ozz? Really?"
"My intel doesn't miss."
Shakky blew him a puff of smoke, then joked lightly.
"If Little Ozz had been born in Rocks and Roger's era… maybe I wouldn't have ended up here on Sabaody with you."
Rayleigh laughed.
"Well… hahaha!"
He was an old man now. He had long since passed the age of jealousy and petty rivalry.
"That's not impossible."
"Ozz really is likable."
He swirled the liquor in his glass, expression turning thoughtful.
"To be honest, I haven't seen Ozz fight in years."
"I can't even pin down his true strength anymore."
"Maybe even Shanks still can't match him."
Shakky narrowed her eyes slightly, keeping her composure.
"Little Shanks… he's already not much worse than Roger was back then, isn't he?"
"And still…"
"Yeah."
"Ozz is different."
A sharp glint flashed in Rayleigh's eyes.
"Roger once told me…"
"Every era produces a sovereign who stands above all the strong."
"In our era, there was only one."
"You mean…?"
A figure surfaced in Shakky's mind, someone she had once adored.
"Yes."
"Rocks."
"Ozz is that kind of man."
"And he's even more mysterious. Stronger. More troublesome."
"Honestly, with my current level of Haki, I don't think I can face Ozz head-on."
Shakky clicked her tongue.
"If you used Pure Gold, you could keep your peak strength, right? You'd at least be able to fight someone like Rocks."
"Why not use it?"
Rayleigh raised his glass. The reflection in the liquor showed an old man with graying hair and beard.
"A pirate's fate shouldn't be prolonged with something like that."
"Roger and I… we were never the type to care about it."
"And you?"
"If you used Pure Gold, you could keep the beauty you had when you were called the world's most beautiful woman."
"Even the Pirate Empress, Hancock, would have to give you space."
Shakky smiled, not looking bothered in the slightest by the fact that Rayleigh had once wanted to hand her that Pure Gold.
"I'm the same as you."
The two of them chatted on and off…
Until footsteps entered the bar.
Both of them looked up at the same time, surprise and delight flashing across their faces.
"Yo, you two."
"Talking about me behind my back? I heard all of that."
"Oh? Isn't that Ozz!!!"
"And Rayleigh, how do you know I didn't run into Auntie Shakky back then… on Hachinosu Island?"
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