Several days later, Gern's warship finally sailed completely beyond the jurisdiction of West Blue Marine Base 133…
On deck, Gern stood at the stern, his fingers unconsciously rubbing along the hilt of the black blade Bahuang at his waist.
"Vice Admiral Gern."A petty officer hurried over, a navigation chart spread in his hands."We've now left the West Blue Marine patrol zone. Next should be the Marine-exclusive current route, but the course you marked…"
"I intend to detour through the Calm Belt."Gern's fingertip traced a curved line across the map."We're not taking the Marine route—we'll take the pirates' path instead. It's also a good opportunity to let our new recruit get used to it."
"Th-this…"The petty officer wasn't stupid. He hesitated, glancing toward the edge of the deck.
There, Tezoro—who had only been wearing his uniform for a few days—was bent over the railing, dry-heaving violently. His hands clutched the ship's side as if his life depended on it, his face paler than the sea fog drifting across the water.
"Ugh—!"Another wave of nausea hit him, and the gold rings on his fingers flashed comically in the sunlight.
"Hey! Don't puke your rings into the sea!"Gern suddenly appeared behind him, grabbing Tezoro by the back of the collar and hauling him upright."That's most of your gold right there, you know. I really didn't expect you to get seasick this badly—have you never been on a ship before?"
"S-sorry… Vice Admiral Gern—urgh!"Tezoro wiped the corner of his mouth, breathing hard."I really haven't… I didn't think this would be ten times worse than a casino hangover…"
"Get used to it."Gern released him and turned back to the petty officer."We've got pirates ahead who'll need him to step up. Have the kitchen prepare some ginger soup. He can't afford to slack off tonight either."
He paused, tone casual but sharp."Otherwise, when I hand him over to Instructor Zephyr, and Zephyr starts finding faults… that won't be pretty."
After all, Tezoro wasn't Lippo.And Gern didn't have the time to train him step by step—handing him to Zephyr was the best option.
As the saying went: give Zephyr a good seedling, and he'll return a fine, solid tree.
"Yes, sir!"The petty officer nodded in understanding.
Ever since Stella had been settled into the officers' family quarters, Tezoro's nightly Devil Fruit training had caused small disturbances aboard the ship—especially whenever gold was involved…
Late at night, the warship drifted like a lonely island upon the sea. Moonlight laid down a silver path across the deck.
When Gern pushed open the iron door of the training bay, Tezoro was gasping for breath in front of a target. Around him lay scattered arrows of solidified gold.
"Your stamina drain is far too fast."Gern kicked aside a lump of gold near his foot."At this rate, you'll never sustain the Gold Fruit's abilities."
"I didn't expect Devil Fruit usage to consume this much energy either…"Tezoro replied between heavy breaths, sweat plastering his bangs to his forehead.
"Then pause fruit development for now. Train your physical fundamentals too. The rest—you'll grow through live combat."Gern's eyes were cold, decisive."That's the fastest way to improve."
And so, in the days that followed, whenever Gern's ship encountered small pirate crews, he let Tezoro handle them alone.
Tezoro went from initial panic, to cautious adaptation, and gradually began to grow accustomed to his identity as a Marine.
But Gern's deliberate slowdown of their journey caused their route to slowly overlap with another pirate crew—one returning from the New World.
In the end… avoidance became impossible.
...…
First half of the Grand Line.
Beneath a vast blue sky, the Oro Jackson cut through the waves.
On deck, the Roger Pirates were enjoying a rare moment of leisure.
At the bow, Buggy and Shanks chased each other around, Buggy triumphantly waving an orange he had no idea where he'd stolen from.
"Come on, Red-Nose Buggy! Catch it if you can!"
"Hey! Shanks!"A vein popped on Buggy's forehead."Who are you calling red-nose?!"
Rayleigh leaned against the railing, a cup of rum in hand, shaking his head with a helpless smile.
"Kids really are full of energy," Gaban chuckled, a cigarette hanging from his mouth.
The rest of the crew enjoyed themselves in their own ways—until Rayleigh's gaze suddenly sharpened as he stared toward the distant horizon.
"Hm?"He frowned slightly."A warship?"
"The Marines?"Gaban followed his line of sight.
Sure enough, a Marine warship flying the Marine flag was approaching from an irregular route.
"It really is the Marines?!"Gaban grimaced."Don't tell me it's Garp and Sengoku again—that'd be a real pain."
Among the Roger Pirates, it was practically common sense: the only Marines who truly troubled them were Garp and Sengoku working together.
"Impossible. Garp isn't in the Grand Line.""A patrol ship from a branch? Or heading to the New Wor—"
"No."Rayleigh rubbed his chin."Why would a normal Marine ship be using that route? That's a common path pirates take to reach Sabaody. The Marines have their own current lanes."
Gaban grinned, flashing a full set of teeth."Who cares? Maybe they're just feeling confident and want to gamble on catching the captain!"
Their conversation quickly caught Buggy and Shanks's attention, and the two rushed over.
"A warship?!"Buggy's eyes lit up, rubbing his hands together excitedly."Hey, hey—don't tell me it's that 'Heaven-Shaker' Gern? I heard the Celestial Dragon disappearance in the West Blue was handled by him!"
Shanks adjusted his oversized red captain's hat, narrowing his eyes."If it's him… that could be interesting."
"I swear…"Rayleigh sighed."You two always think about fighting first."
But Roger had already strode over, his trademark bold grin plastered across his face.
"Oh? Marines?"He laughed loudly."Perfect! Let's see who's come to play with us this time!"
Gaban burst out laughing."Captain, you didn't sound like that last time Sengoku and Garp chased us halfway across the sea!"
"That was different!"Roger laughed with his hands on his hips."Those two are way too serious—no fun at all!"
Then he turned to Crocus and winked."No problem, right, Crocus?!"
Faced with Roger's expectant gaze, Crocus adjusted his glasses and replied flatly,"Battle? Hmph. Compared to that, if you drank less alcohol, my job would be much easier."
At the same time—
On Gern's warship, from the lookout tower, the Marines could clearly see the pirate ship—just as Rayleigh had seen them.
"Vessel sighted! Forty-five degrees portside!"The hoarse voice of the observer boomed through the speaking tube into the command room."It's—it's the Oro Jackson!!!"
A glass slipped from the petty officer's hand and shattered across the teak floor. The entire warship fell into dead silence, as if even the steam engines had stopped breathing.
"C-confirm identification?"The petty officer's voice cracked like a strangled rooster.
Up in the lookout, the soldier had collapsed into the basket, his telescope rolling across the deck.
"Twin-fish prow figurehead… red sails… and that flag—there's no mistake!"
"The Roger Pirates?!"
Chaos erupted across the deck, frantic footsteps exploding in all directions.
"Silence."Gern's cold voice cut through it all.
The pressure he released froze everyone in place.
Calmly, unhurriedly, he fastened the clasp of his cloak, Bahuang resting at his waist.
"Now," he said evenly,"I want a proper combat report."
"R-reporting to Vice Admiral Gern!"The observer's teeth chattered."Enemy vessel at five nautical miles. No cannons deployed. Suspected—suspected they're holding a banquet…"
"…Is that so?"Gern suddenly smiled.
The sight made Tezoro's scalp prickle.At that moment, Gern looked exactly like a casino dealer flipping over the final card.
A madman drunk on confidence.
"No need to evade."Gern's voice rang out, sharp and absolute."Maintain course. All hands—advance."