The infirmary door slammed shut with a heavy thud.
In the corridor, Zephyr's chest rose and fell violently as he struggled to catch his breath.
He now somewhat regretted why he had been blinded by that excellent physical test data sheet and admitted this absolute menace into the Elite Camp.
Knocking someone unconscious in a spar was one thing, but then parading him around town like a trophy?
Parading him around was one thing, but then provoking the newly awakened person into a second coma immediately afterward?
Is this something a human would actually do?
"Teacher Zephyr..."
Kane stood in the shadow of the corridor, still holding the small spoon used to feed the medicine, his face full of feigned innocence.
"Sakazuki's psychological defenses are simply too fragile."
Kane sighed, his tone filled with a deep, fake concern for his comrade's future: "As a Marine, he will have to face heinous pirates later on. If he can't even handle this little bit of care from a comrade, how can he establish himself in the New World?"
Saying this, Kane stepped forward, his eyes looking sincere and helpful:
"Teacher, I have an immature suggestion. To strengthen my classmates' ability to withstand pressure, I suggest adding a Pressure Resistance Psychological Counseling Class to the Elite Camp."
"Although I am usually very busy with my own training, I am willing to sacrifice my private rest time to volunteer as a lecturer, specializing in..."
"Shut up!!"
Zephyr's roar interrupted Kane's casting before he could finish the thought.
"You want to be a lecturer? Do you want to teach all the New Recruits to be scoundrels like you?!"
"Everything for Justice, Teacher!"
"Still talking back?!"
Zephyr pointed to the end of the corridor, his fingers trembling with suppressed rage.
"Get to the port! Get on my warship right now! Scrub the deck for me! If it's not clean by dinner, you'll go catch fish in the sea to eat!"
Kane immediately stood at attention, his heels clicking together loudly in a mock military salute.
"Yes, sir! I guarantee mission completion! I won't let down your generous expectations, Teacher!"
"Scram!!!"
Zephyr kicked the air in frustration.
Kane used the momentum to turn around and fled faster than a rabbit down the hall.
"Hoo... hoo..."
Zephyr gasped roughly, feeling his blood pressure rising to dangerous levels.
He calmed his mood and swept his cold gaze across the remaining area.
"Kuzan!"
Kuzan, who was sticking close to the wall preparing to sneak away unnoticed, froze in place.
"P-present!"
"You want to stay and nurse him?" Zephyr sneered. "Or do you feel like you didn't run enough with that 2,000 kilograms of weight last night?"
"Report, Teacher! I suddenly remembered I have training I haven't finished! I request to go back and practice extra!"
Kuzan's survival instinct was maxed out, and he bolted instantly.
Are you kidding? Getting in trouble now would mean suffering immensely, if not death. Warriors like Kane were, after all, rare and insane.
In the blink of an eye, the corridor was empty.
Only a figure who clearly didn't want to move remained sitting at the end of the long wooden bench.
Borsalino had his legs crossed, his amber sunglasses reflecting a cold light, and he was holding a pair of nail clippers.
"Click, click."
Even though Zephyr's fury permeated the air, this person remained as steady as Mount Tai, even holding his freshly manicured finger up to the light for appreciation.
"Oh, the nail is trimmed a little too blunt, isn't it? How strange."
That lazy tone, coupled with that obnoxious and lewd expression, was the final straw.
The nameless fire that Zephyr had just suppressed in his heart immediately shot up again.
"Borsalino."
Zephyr walked over with a gloomy face, his tall shadow completely enveloping the Monkey-Type Youth.
"Click."
Borsalino's hand shook at the sudden shadow, and the nail clipper cut directly into his flesh.
"Hiss!"
He gasped sharply. That signature lewd face turned around, his eyes behind the amber sunglasses blinked, and he pouted slightly:
"Teacher Zephyr? Did something happen? You're blocking the light, you know."
Zephyr looked at that face, and his fists hardened.
"You're very free, aren't you?" Zephyr gritted his teeth. "Your comrade is lying in a hospital bed, and you're clipping your nails outside?"
Borsalino tilted his head and spread his hands in a helpless gesture: "But Teacher, I can't help with medical matters."
"Can't help?"
Zephyr showed a ferocious, predatory smile.
"Then go do something helpful! Kane can't scrub that warship alone, so you go help him! If the two of you don't get it clean by dinner, this week's meat supply will be entirely canceled!"
"Eh?"
Borsalino froze.
The nail clipper in his hand dropped to the floor with a metallic clatter.
I was just watching the drama? How did I get dragged in?
"Teacher! That's not fair!" Borsalino tried to struggle against his fate. "That monster Kane knocked Sakazuki out. I was just passing by."
"Don't want to go?" Zephyr sneered, his Haki faintly fluctuating in the air around him. "Then do you want to spar with me here?"
Borsalino instantly stood up, moving as fast as some kind of primate sensing a predator.
"How scary! Fine, I'll go. Teacher Zephyr is really too strict."
The midday sun shone fiercely over the Marine Base.
Zephyr's exclusive warship was a Giant Battleship, docked at the port like a small mountain of steel. The massive, dark deck was wide enough to be despair-inducing.
Kane carried two heavy buckets, standing in the center of the deck. He looked up at the scorching sun, then glanced at the tall, thin figure beside him, who was also holding a mop and looked utterly bewildered.
At this moment, Borsalino, although he didn't yet possess the veteran slacker demeanor of the future Admiral—the one who believes "Four Emperors Wrecked When Pay Is Right"—already had the makings of a true loafer.
Wearing his amber sunglasses, he pouted and sighed while looking at the massive expanse of the deck.
"Geez. What bad luck, having to do hard labor like this in the middle of the day."
Borsalino slowly poked the mop onto the ground, leaning on it limply, completely lacking any desire to start working.
"Clang!"
Kane casually tossed the buckets aside and sat down immediately in the huge shadow behind the main cannon turret.
He smoothly pulled out two golden oranges from his pocket and tossed one to Borsalino.
"Catch. To cool off."
Borsalino caught it subconsciously. Feeling a hint of coolness on the orange peel, his eyes behind the sunglasses brightened, but then he hesitated:
"Eh? Brother Kane, Teacher Zephyr is furious, you know. If we slack off now and get caught, we really will be thrown into the sea to feed the fish. That would be truly terrifying."
"Slack off?"
Kane popped an orange segment into his mouth, the sweet juice bursting out.
He looked at Borsalino as if he were an alien from another planet.
"Borsalino, your ideological awareness is seriously flawed."
"Oh? How so?" Borsalino grew interested, leaning on the railing, his long legs casually crossed as he began peeling his orange.
"Think about it." Kane mumbled, tossing another segment into his mouth. "What is the duty of the Marine? It's to catch pirates and protect civilians, right?"
"That's right."
"What if a bunch of vicious pirates suddenly attacked now—like Golden Lion Shiki or Whitebeard?"
"And you, Borsalino, because you spent three hours scrubbing the deck under the scorching sun, are exhausted and sore, causing you to be 0.1 seconds too slow at the critical moment, resulting in you being sliced to death..."
Kane paused, his expression suddenly turning incredibly solemn, pointing at Borsalino's nose:
"Then you would be a sinner of the Marine! You would not only fail yourself but also the civilians waiting for you to save them!"
Borsalino's hand, holding the orange, froze mid-air.
Hiss... Although it sounds strange, how is it... so logical?
"So,"
Kane spoke earnestly, pushing the half-peeled orange he had prepared into Borsalino's hand.
"We are sitting here eating oranges to preserve ample physical strength in preparation for a fierce battle that could happen at any moment."
"We are being responsible for future Justice!"
Kane held up a finger and shook it in front of Borsalino, stating seriously:
"This isn't called slacking off, this is called—Ambiguous Justice! Finding the optimal solution between action and inaction, that is the Justice of the wise!"
[Ding! Successfully instilled heretical logic into the future Admiral, successfully constructing the Slacker Logic Loop, accelerating the formation of the future Admiral's worldview.]
[Judgment of Subversion degree underway... Logical Genius! Discipline Points +800!]
Just like that?
Kane was delighted internally, but outwardly maintained a look of deep concern for the nation and its people.
Borsalino stared at the orange in his hand for a long time. The lewd curve of his mouth gradually widened, finally turning into a knowing smile, as if he had finally found a kindred spirit in this rigid military.
He sat down next to Kane, mimicking his posture, stretching his long legs out straight and leaning comfortably against the cold metal of the cannon turret.
"Brother Kane... You are truly terrifying."
"I've been enlightened. I like this kind of Justice very much."
He shoved the orange into his mouth, mumbling indistinctly, clearly having completely succumbed to the logic:
"But, even though it makes sense, the deck still needs scrubbing, right? If it's not clean, Teacher Zephyr's explosive temper will really throw us into the sea to feed the fish."
"Who said we have to scrub it ourselves?"
Kane tilted his head slightly, looking up at the seemingly cloudless blue sky, a mysterious smile playing on his lips.
The midday sun was still blinding, and seagulls circled overhead in the heat.
But in Kane's perception, which integrated his original body's top-tier Navigation Skill talent, the surrounding air humidity had reached a critical point.
"System! Enhance Navigation Skill!"
[Consuming 5,000 Discipline Points! Skill infusion underway...]
In an instant, the world in Kane's eyes changed.
Wind direction, subtle changes in air humidity, the specific color beneath distant clouds... all data converged into a precise weather map in his brain.
He sensed a damp, heavy, earthy smell in the sea breeze—the prelude to an impending downpour.
On the southeast horizon, a black line barely visible to the naked eye was rapidly advancing, and the air pressure was dropping drastically.
"Borsalino, do you know how to brew tea?" Kane suddenly asked.
"Eh? I know a little. I quite enjoy tasting tea normally."
Kane pointed to a shaded corner of the deck, "Did you bring a tea set?"
"Huh?"
"It doesn't matter if you didn't, the Captain's cabin definitely has one. Follow me." Kane showed a meaningful smile.
Borsalino looked at Kane's confident back, then at the vast, messy deck, and hesitated for two seconds.
Immediately, that old face showed a lewd and expectant smile, the excitement of having found a like-minded individual.
"That sounds interesting."