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Silence.
A sudden, unnatural stillness fell over the warship, as if every sound had been wiped away.
The gloom on Kyle's face was obvious to the naked eye.
Crocodile stared straight at him, his mind focused on a single thing: an answer.
Shattered memories stirred, merging with a newly awakened self. Long-buried ambitions resurfaced one after another.
Pirates. Marines.
Everything broke apart, then reassembled, until it all condensed into the face of the young marine standing before him.
After a long moment, the sea breeze brushed past, lifting the cape behind Kyle. The darkness on his face finally faded, replaced by a faint smile.
"Did you remember something from before?" he asked.
Crocodile nodded. "Not much. But vaguely, I understand my own past now."
"So you were there that day, two years ago as well?" Kyle let out a soft sigh.
Back then, he truly had not expected anyone to witness it. The alley had been narrow, less than a meter wide. At the far end, the exit was filled with figures kneeling on the ground.
Facing a Celestial Dragon, who would dare lift their head to look ahead?
And yet, Crocodile had been there.
"Yes."
Crocodile nodded again.
"Then what do you think?" Kyle chuckled lightly, his gaze settling on the subordinate in uniform before him.
Crocodile fell silent, deep in thought.
Someone who could strike down a Celestial Dragon without hesitation possessed courage and audacity beyond imagination. Such a person would never be satisfied with remaining a mere rear admiral. In fact, their future likely would not stop at the navy at all.
After a long while, Crocodile lifted his head.
"Whatever ambitions or grand designs you hold in your heart, one thing is certain."
"You will need people you can truly trust."
He took a deep breath and looked straight into Kyle's eyes.
"I'm willing to become your subordinate. Your most reliable, most powerful right-hand man."
His former self may once have dreamed of becoming a great pirate, even Pirate King. But those memories were shattered now, pieced together only through fragments.
What he valued now was the present, just as Kyle had said during his promotion ceremony.
Live in the moment.
Kyle laughed. He looked at Crocodile and burst into hearty laughter.
The others exchanged confused glances, having no idea what the two of them were talking about.
"Hey, Old Sand, what's going on?"Rosinante ran over, slinging an arm around Crocodile's shoulders. "What were you talking to Officer Kyle about?"
Evans and the others also turned their heads, eyes full of curiosity.
"I discovered one of our officer's secrets," Crocodile said with a smile, pressing his lips together.
"What secret?"
"You're going to tell us, right?" Mina asked.
Crocodile smiled again, glanced at Kyle, then spoke.
"Our officer here…"
"He's killed a Celestial Dragon."
In an instant, the entire ship fell silent.
Rosinante's grin froze as his pupils shrank. The others' expressions changed just as sharply.
But when they saw Kyle standing ahead with his arms crossed, smiling calmly at them, everyone quickly forced their smiles back into place.
"Hahahaha!"
"Hey, quit joking around!"
"That's not funny at all."
"I nearly got scared to death!"
Laughter and curses rang out as everyone brushed it off.
No one took Crocodile's words seriously, because their officer had never admitted it.
Only Evans, who happened to turn his head away for a moment, felt the smile vanish from his face, replaced by shock and dread.
"He didn't deny it either!"
But soon enough, the matter faded from everyone's mind.
As if it had never happened.
What caught their interest next was the wooden crate Evans was carrying.
"What do you think is inside?"
"The officer said headquarters takes this mission very seriously."
"Whatever's in there has to be worth a fortune, right?"
"It's probably something we can't even imagine."
Everyone was itching with curiosity, but bound by regulations, none of them dared to touch the lock.
"If you want to know what's inside," Kyle said with a grin, "why not just open it?"
He himself wasn't particularly interested. He already had a pretty good guess.
Most likely a Devil Fruit.
By now, Vegapunk should have already begun extensive research into Devil Fruits and lineage factors.
"Is that really allowed?"
"Isn't this mission supposed to be strictly confidential?"T. Bone asked in surprise.
"If none of us says a word, isn't that still confidential?" Kyle replied casually."Don't be so rigid, Little Bone. That kind of thinking will get you burned someday."
Then he turned to Crocodile.
"Little Sand, use your ability. Open it."
Crocodile smiled. "That's easy."
Moments later, grains of sand slipped into the keyhole and quickly solidified into the shape of a key.
With a soft click as the lock was forced open, the crate was unlocked.
Evans lifted the lid, and everyone leaned forward. Inside lay a fruit covered in bizarre, swirling patterns.
"A Devil Fruit!" Kaku exclaimed in shock.
"Our mission was to escort a Devil Fruit?" Giolla added.
Everyone was stunned. Kyle, however, remained calm.
He knew well that once the navy secured Vegapunk, the scientist had launched a series of studies on Devil Fruits, producing numerous breakthroughs.
"Close it."
Seeing the hunger in their eyes, Kyle spoke flatly.
With a sharp snap, Evans shut the lid.
"Heh. If you want that kind of power," Kyle said with a grin, "we can fight for it ourselves in the future."
"This fruit belongs to the mission."
Only then did the desire in Kaku and the others' eyes finally fade.
Egghead Island was neither especially close nor particularly far.
Ten days later, their warship finally entered the island's harbor.
Just as Kyle had expected, Egghead was heavily guarded. A vice admiral personally came to receive them.
"My apologies, Rear Admiral Kyle," the vice admiral said gravely. "By regulation, no one outside this island is permitted to enter."
"What about me?" Kyle took the wooden crate from Evans and continued,"My orders are to personally deliver this item into Vegapunk's hands."
The vice admiral fell silent for a moment before speaking again.
"As Vice Admiral Garp's disciple, I trust you."
"But as I said earlier, only you may enter, and only with the mission item."
Kyle nodded.
He passed through the harbor, guarded by elite marines, and entered the island alone.
Without question, Egghead had become a heavily fortified research base.
At the entrance, Kyle noticed not only marines, but also figures dressed in black, their expressions cold and alert.
About fifteen minutes later, inside a waiting room, he finally saw Vegapunk.
"Come with me, Rear Admiral Kyle."
Vegapunk waved at him and turned to leave.
Kyle paused for a beat, then lifted the crate and followed after him.
"..."
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