Sailing the seas was actually quite time-consuming.
Michael and the Old Geezers Pirates weren't in a hurry to head straight for Sabaody Archipelago.
Instead, they kept moving between islands along the way, eliminating many pirate crews attempting to plunder various places—all under the pretense of pirate infighting.
In other words, they were still fulfilling the original function of Reiju's "firefighting squad."
This was also at the request of Reiju and Ace.
Seeing the young ones so full of vigor and responsibility, Michael happily agreed and even handed over the autonomy to them.
Then Michael, along with a bunch of old-timers and middle-aged folks, watched from the ship as the youngsters engaged in battle.
"Tsk tsk, no matter how you look at it, that batch of kids back then... their talent was just terrifying, wasn't it?" Shu leaned on the ship's railing, observing the youngsters fighting against other pirate crews nearby.
The Old Geezers Pirates' recent habit of sabotaging other pirate crews had finally drawn the ire of their peers.
As a result, over a dozen larger pirate crews banded together, amassing thousands of men to besiege the Old Geezers Pirates.
While a few crews genuinely sought revenge, most allies primarily aimed to make a name for themselves by defeating the Old Geezers Pirates.
After all, currently, the Old Geezers Pirates were the true top dogs of the sea.
Only the recently reactivated and expanding Angel Pirates could rival their popularity.
Thus, in the eyes of other pirate crews, the Old Geezers Pirates had become a golden ladder to fame.
Defeating them meant both fame and fortune.
To them, while the Old Geezers Pirates' bounties were intimidating, they believed these were inflated.
Pirate bounties had always been comprehensive assessments, not solely based on combat strength but also on threat level.
Since setting sail, the Old Geezers Pirates had either raided Alabasta or assaulted Enies Lobby.
Each of these actions represented a threat level far exceeding their combat capabilities.
Therefore, apart from spectators, most major pirate crews in Paradise believed the Old Geezers Pirates' strength didn't match their bounties.
This was why they dared to unite and challenge the Old Geezers Pirates at the height of their power.
"Shu... at least four of those kids are stronger than us."
"You only see four?" Shu tilted his head. "I count at least seven."
"Enough, you two aren't that old yourselves, why do you sound so ancient?" Garp stretched and continued, "To you, many of them might seem like monsters, but don't forget, back in the Marines, your SWORD Classified Special Forces were monsters too."
"I know that, Mr. Garp... I'm just marveling at how far they've come," Shu shook his head. "Just a few years ago, I was still teaching them..."
"Honestly... these pirates are no match for these kids," T-Bone said while flipping through wanted posters for comparison. "None of these pirates have bounties over 100 million, but there are over a hundred with bounties above 30 million."
"If they get overwhelmed by mere numbers at this level, I'll be seriously disappointed," Zephyr chuckled. "Every single one of them would be dragged back to Marineford for retraining!"
As the instructor who spent the most time with that class, Zephyr understood his young students better than anyone.
Nearly every one of them possessed talents that left Zephyr in awe.Even the weakest among them, Nami and Nojiko, possessed astonishing achievements outside of direct combat.
For instance, Nami's unparalleled talent for navigation was evident even when she was just a kid, showcasing the makings of a navigator.
By the time the Angel Alliance was established and various factions merged, no other navigator could surpass Nami in terms of professional skill.
As for Nojiko, she was a born sniper.
Though her direct combat ability, like Nami's, ranked at the bottom of the entire junior class, her battle record was actually the most outstanding among them.
Not only did she far surpass her peers in terms of confirmed kills, but she also managed to leave a penetrating bullet wound on Blackbeard's left chest.
Unfortunately, the bullet had only grazed Blackbeard's heart.
Of course, even if it had hit, that guy would have survived anyway…
So, Zephyr had full confidence in his students.
A battle like this was, at most, just a warm-up exercise for them.
"Gomu Gomu no… Gatling!"
Luffy roared, his rubber fists flinging several notorious pirates far into the distant sea.
"Hey! Luffy! Couldn't you have left a couple more for me?!" Nojiko shouted from afar. "I already had them in my sights!"
"Ahaha, sorry, Nojiko!"
"...Fine, since you apologized, I'll let it slide."
"Hey! Nojiko, aren't you being way too lenient with him?!" Nami, standing guard beside Nojiko to prevent pirates from flanking her sister, couldn't help but complain.
"You spoil Luffy way too much!"
"Ahaha, do I?" Nojiko chuckled. "Well, what can I say? Luffy's like a little brother to me…"
"Enough! Stop right there! I refuse to be siblings with this airheaded idiot!" Nami yelled before spinning around, her Clima-Tact whirling as a bolt of lightning crackled through the air, frying a pirate who had tried to sneak up on them into a twitching mess.
"Oh? Where did Nami get that thing…?"
Michael watched Nami with keen interest.
The Clima-Tact… wasn't its prototype originally crafted with Usopp's help?
"You mean the Clima-Tact? That was custom-made for Nami by Dr. Vegapunk," Zephyr explained.
"It's practically the pinnacle of Vegapunk's weather-control technology. So even though Nami's combat ability is at the bottom, her potential ceiling might actually be the highest."
"What I'm concerned about is whether this weapon can be mass-produced."
"I already asked Vegapunk about that. Sadly, there's only this one prototype… and Nami only got it after agreeing to become the spokesperson for Vegapunk's tech."
Michael clicked his tongue, then glanced at Usopp, who was watching the battle nervously from the sidelines.
If… Usopp, the original creator in the source material, were to study Vegapunk's principles behind the Clima-Tact, could he produce a mass-produced, budget version?
With that thought, Michael muttered to himself:
"This thing… is way better than a gun."