Aokiji left Admiral Sengoku's office.
On the way he happened to meet Smoker and Tashigi.
Aokiji was surprised. "Smoker, aren't you stationed at Loguetown, preventing East Blue pirates from entering the Grand Line?"
Smoker and Aokiji both trained under the former Marine admiral Homicidal Zephyr. They were superior/subordinate but also friends.
"I've been back at Headquarters a few days," Smoker said, cigar in his mouth. "I came to investigate rumors about the Red-Haired Pirates."
"Red-Haired?" Aokiji was even more surprised. The Red-Haired crew stay in the New World — that's ten thousand miles from Loguetown. How could they be connected to Smoker's post?
Though years ago Shanks had indeed travelled the East Blue and once stole a Devil Fruit that the World Government was escorting. Later Shanks lost an arm there. But at that time Smoker wasn't even the captain at Loguetown. Shanks and Smoker probably never met face to face.
Aokiji voiced his confusion. Smoker drew a long puff of smoke and didn't answer. Tashigi, his subordinate, spoke up:
"Because Captain Smoker was injured in Loguetown a little while back by someone who looked like the Red-Haired crew!"
"What?!" Aokiji flinched.
Shanks wounded Smoker? That made no sense. Aokiji had just heard from Fleet Admiral Sengoku that Shanks went to see Whitebeard — how could he be in the New World and also in Loguetown? Does Shanks have a cloning jutsu?
Smoker exhaled smoke and gave a wry smile. "Never mind. It's not something to be ashamed of."
"I wasn't actually struck by Shanks," he continued. "It wasn't even really a blow — it was intimidation. That stranger used nothing but a surge of Conqueror's Haki and I was injured."
Aokiji's pupils tightened. Smoker wasn't weak, but for someone to be injured by mere intimidation — that person was extraordinary. And that person's Conqueror's Haki must be the kind that causes physical harm, the same type associated with Shanks.
Aokiji's expression grew serious. "So you came back to Headquarters to investigate the Red-Haired crew in hopes of finding clues about that stranger?"
Smoker nodded. On this sea, the only known person who manifests Conqueror's Haki that can cause physical harm is the Red-Haired Shanks. It was natural for Smoker to suspect a connection.
"Any leads?"
"No. Shanks has been in the New World. He just met Whitebeard. He shouldn't be in Loguetown."
Aokiji had no solid clue either. Strong people are many in this world, but those who wield Conqueror's Haki like that are extremely rare — it must be some special, mysterious figure.
Suddenly a name popped into Aokiji's head: the Beast Courtier, the Fifth Emperor Roxing.
That man's bounty had long reached two billion berries. Live capture reward: fifty billion. Neither the World Government nor the Marines had ever seen his true face. When he appeared in Dressrosa he wore a demon mask. Also, during the incident in which he killed Donquixote Doflamingo, Roxing had used a binding of Conqueror's Haki.
Putting those clues together, Aokiji increasingly suspected that the man who stunned Smoker might be that mysterious Roxing. But it was only conjecture — there was no hard evidence. Aokiji kept that hypothesis to himself.
"So what will you do next? Return to Loguetown?" Aokiji asked.
"No." Smoker replied without hesitation. "The pirates who move from the East Blue into the Grand Line are too weak. I won't improve there. I'm going to the New World to temper myself."
Being stunned by a single look from Roxing had struck at Smoker's pride. He wanted to get stronger — he didn't want to feel like an ant again. Aokiji patted Smoker on the shoulder.
"The New World will test you. You'll grow fast there. By the way, I heard G5 is increasing its forces to deal with the New World situation. You should head to G5 — I'll arrange it."
Smoker gave a grateful, determined smile. "Thanks, Kuzan."
…
Roxing didn't know that the look he'd given Smoker had already driven Smoker to transfer to G5. That might speed Smoker's growth — but it would also make Smoker's fate more miserable than in the original story. G5's current commander, Virgo, was already working for Roxing, and Roxing had fed Virgo a high-level Monster Cell that boosted Virgo's power up to the level of one of the Calamities, allowing him to stand against admirals for a while. Smoker would have no glory facing that.
But for now Roxing was in the mid-level Time-Gravity Room training. After his fights — with the Golden Lion and travels over Sky Island and East Blue — Roxing had gained fresh insight into both Conqueror's Haki and swordsmanship. He was turning that insight into practice.
The mid-level Time-Gravity Room was Roxing's combination of the mid-level Time Room with a five-fold gravity chamber. Compared with the earlier beginner Time-Gravity Room, both gravity and time-flow multiplier had increased. Where the old Time-Gravity Room treated one day in the chamber as roughly a month outside, this new room made one day equal to one hundred days externally. Three days inside equaled a year of normal training — a huge boost to Roxing's growth.
At the same time, in the Flower Capital — the shogun's residence — Zoro finally emerged after sealing himself in a gravity room since arriving in Wano. He went straight to look for Roxing.
"Roxing! Roxing!" he called.
"No big brother," came a clear child's voice.
A little girl with a topknot was hopping around, happily sipping a bowl of red-bean soup.
Zoro, having been in isolation, only knew Roxing and Yamato and few others in Wano, so he awkwardly asked the girl, "Who are you?"
"My name's O-Tama," she answered, smiling. "Do you know where Roxing is?"
"No," Zoro said, "maybe on Onigashima. I can go look."
"Okay…" Zoro started to leave, then paused. "How do I get to Onigashima?"
O-Tama wiggled her finger. "From here you walk east, then turn south, until you hit the harbor. Take a boat west."
"Got it." Zoro set off.
"Hey, wait!" O-Tama called after him.
Zoro turned, puzzled. "What's up? You want a fare? I don't have money."
O-Tama snorted. "I don't want money. I want to tell you you're going the wrong way. I told you to go east — why are you going west?"
"Isn't this east?" Zoro blinked.
"You don't know north-south-east-west, do you?" O-Tama laughed, holding her belly. "How can an adult be worse at directions than me? You're amazing, Mr. Green-Hair!"
Zoro blushed and was about to get angry when a long-nosed old man appeared.
"O-Tama, what are you laughing about?" the old man asked.
That man was Tengu Mountain Flyche, O-Tama's master. Seeing Zoro's green hair, he recognized him immediately.
"You must be Goro's disciple," Flyche said — referring to Zoro's master lineage. The returning of Goro's elders to Wano had led to several reunions.
Zoro nodded. "Yes. And you are?"
"I'm a swordsmith," Flyche said.
"A swordsmith?" Zoro's eyes lit up like fire. "Do you have good blades? I need two good swords!"
"Of course I have blades," Flyche looked at the Wadō Ichimonji at Zoro's waist. "But only one blade here suits pairing with that Wadō."
"One will do!" Zoro replied without hesitation.
"That blade is a demon blade — those who wield it can die by misfortune," Flyche warned.
Zoro didn't flinch; instead his interest deepened. "A demon blade? I'm a beast — I need blades like that!"
Flyche was impressed. "Alright, come with me."
Zoro eagerly followed, O-Tama tagging along to watch. Flyche presented a strange-patterned, oddly shaped sword. The instant Zoro touched the blade, a sudden indescribable feeling washed over him, as if the sword had consciousness and linked itself to him.
Zoro treasured it as if finding a relic. "What's this sword called?" he asked, eyes burning.
Flyche drew a breath and said, with emphasis, "This blade is called… the Second Onigiri!"
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