Although it was an open-air hot spring, it was still surrounded by high walls.
Moreover, the person currently soaking in the hot spring was none other than the Fleet Admiral.
Even though Orion had explicitly forbidden the soldiers from sealing off the area, the moment he stepped into the hot spring, the marine soldiers blocked the entrance, prohibiting anyone from approaching.
Of course, Crocodile was an exception.
Having received his new mission, Crocodile didn't linger to disturb Orion.
With excitement bubbling in his chest, he quickened his pace towards the exit, a cigar clenched between his teeth.
"Stop!"
Before Crocodile could reach the exit, a low growl suddenly came from outside.
"Hey, hey, what's wrong with you, woman? Can't you see the sign says 'Men's Hot Spring Pool'?"
"If you want to soak, go next door!"
Hearing the commotion outside, Crocodile couldn't be bothered to intervene and simply sped up his steps.
At the entrance, the towering figure of Yamato stood before two marine soldiers as she shouted angrily.
"I am Yamato, i'm a man! I need to see the Fleet Admiral!"
With that, Yamato made a move to charge into the entrance.
Seeing this, Crocodile glanced back towards the hot spring pool, then at Yamato.
A sly smirk flickered across his lips before he silently turned and walked away.
"Sir Crocodile, you can't just pretend you didn't see this!"
One sharp-eyed soldier urgently called out, "She's trying to enter the hot spring to see the Fleet Admiral!"
"And?"
Crocodile stopped and turned back, his expression dead serious.
"If I recall correctly, Fleet Admiral Orion explicitly forbade you from stopping anyone who wants to enter the hot spring? If she's a man, then let her in!"
With that, Crocodile decisively quickened his pace and vanished in the blink of an eye.
The marine soldiers scrutinized Yamato from head to toe, their lips twitching uncontrollably.
"You're sure you're a man?"
Yamato nodded fiercely. "Yamato the man! Yamato is a man!"
"Alright then..."
The soldiers shrugged helplessly and stepped aside to let her pass.
"Thanks!"
Yamato even had the courtesy to clasp her hands in gratitude before striding confidently through the door, chest puffed out.
"Fleet Admiral!"
The moment Yamato entered the open-air hot spring, she shout at the top of her lungs.
"I'm here!"
Mid-shout, she swiftly stripped off her robes and tossed them aside, then marched boldly towards the pool.
Before Orion could react, Yamato plunged into the pool stark naked.
A thunderous splash erupted, sending waves cascading in every direction.
"????"
Pulling the towel off his head, Orion was instantly covered in question marks.
Yamato, now in the pool, showed not the slightest hesitation as she waded through the steaming water towards him, excitement blazing in her eyes.
"I want to become a Marine too! Can I, Fleet Admiral?!"
Without waiting for a response, she straightened up, saluted Orion with a dramatic flourish and shouted with overwhelming fervor.
"LOYALTY!"
Caught completely off guard by Yamato's sudden appearance—and her direct entry into the men's hot spring—Orion froze for several seconds before snapping back to reality.
He whipped his head towards the entrance and barked, "Who let her in!?"
"Fleet Admiral, it was you~!"
The soldiers outside the entrance replied, their voices tinged with suppressed laughter.
"You explicitly forbade us from stopping anyone..."
Orion had prevented others from entering the hot spring, even though he had previously claimed to "share joy with the people."
Hearing this, Orion's facial muscles twitched violently.
He wanted to say something, but fell silent upon seeing Yamato's gaze.
"Sit down and talk!"
Without hesitation, Yamato immediately squatted down and sat in the pool.
However, due to her tall stature, she still drew considerable attention even while seated in the water.
Noticing this, Orion spoke again, "Sit lower, let the hot spring water reach your neck!"
"Understood!"
Yamato complied accordingly.
Seeing this, Orion secretly sighed in relief.
Though this foolish girl was beginning to understand things, her perception of her own gender still remained stuck in the past.
After another two seconds of silence, Orion said seriously, "If you want to become a Marine, you can just report to the military camp. Why come here?"
Yamato became excited again, "This morning, I followed Captain Morgan around and realized that Wano Country is different now! I can't quite explain how, but I simply want to become a Marine and protect Wano as a Marine!"
Orion blinked and asked with a smile, "Just to protect Wano as a Marine?"
"Yes!" Yamato replied earnestly.
Orion shook his head with a smile, "The justice of the Marines isn't just about protecting Wano. Once you wear the Marine uniform, your duty is to spread the Marines' justice across the entire world!"
Yamato blinked, then suddenly stood up, sending water splashing everywhere.
She straightened her posture and raised her hand, mimicking the Marines she had seen outside the camp, shouting.
"For justice, I will not hesitate!"
"You—"
Orion nearly couldn't resist slapping her boobs when she suddenly stood up again.
"Do not stand up again—that's an order!"
"Yes!"
Yamato sat back down, letting the hot spring water reach her neck, grinning foolishly.
BOOM!
At that moment, an ear-splitting explosion erupted from a mountaintop on the outskirts of the Flower Capital.
Following the sound, they saw bolts of lightning descending from the sky, enveloping the entire mountaintop.
Before Orion and Yamato could react, a dazzling light burst forth from the mountaintop and a massive teleportation array appeared in the sky.
Amidst the crackling lightning and rising flames, a figure emerged within the teleportation array—Gunko, wearing a newsboy cap and a cloak, exuding an air of arrogance.
As soon as she stepped out of the teleportation array, Gunko immediately unleashed her unique Devil Fruit ability.
A gigantic arrow materialized in the sky, wrapped in bandages that extended from the mountaintop, pointing directly towards the Flower Capital.
"Hmm?"
From a distance, Orion watched the figure emerging from the teleportation array and promptly stepping onto the arrow, a flicker of surprise crossing his eyes.
"I didn't expect there to be a mark of the God's Knights in Wano Country!"
Before he could finish his thought, Orion sensed danger.
On the mountaintop outside the Flower Capital, as soon as Gunko stepped onto the arrow, it shot towards the city at an astonishing speed.
In the blink of an eye, Gunko rode the arrow into the Flower Capital, stopping directly above the open-air hot spring pool, hovering in midair opposite Orion.
"Fleet Admiral Orion—"
Hovering in midair opposite Orion, Gunko cast a puzzled glance at Yamato soaking in the hot spring beside him before speaking.
"Im-sama has ordered me—"
Before Gunko could finish her sentence, tendrils of black flame suddenly erupted from within her body.
In an instant, Gunko heterochromatic eyes abruptly turned crimson.
The beautiful hair beneath her newsboy cap also transformed, growing noticeably longer than before.
As her eyes shifted to that deep crimson hue, Gunko entire demeanor underwent a dramatic transformation.
She now gazed down at Yamato in the hot spring like a queen watching her subject.
Even her tone had changed completely—gone was the respect she'd previously shown Orion, replaced by an overbearing arrogance.
"Orion, who is this woman?"
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