"Hah! Hrr! Ah!"
On the Marine training plaza, a towering swordsman swung his blade in relentless drills, sweat raining down like a summer storm.
A young Marine officer lounged nearby in a reclining chair, basking in sunlight. He stretched lazily and called out,
"Hey, Brother Penn, it's vacation.
Can't you relax for once?"
"Huff… huff…"
Two years of growth had made T. Penn's already massive frame even more imposing.
He kept swinging his sword as he panted,
"No… If I want to catch up to Brother Longinus,
I have to work harder. Much harder."
"You still haven't let go of that impossible dream?"
The young officer groaned.
"Big Bro Longinus is a monster among monsters!
We normal folks can't catch up even if we try for a lifetime.
All we can do is wave flags behind him and cheer."
Seeing that Penn was ignoring his "wisdom," the young officer sighed helplessly.
"Listen, reality's cruel.
It's not scary that someone has more talent than you—
it's scary when someone with more talent works harder than you."
"Like Longinus.
Is that guy's training even human?
Diving into deep seas to temper his body,
training endurance in molten magma,
sharpening willpower atop glaciers,
comprehending nature under lightning strikes,
standing firm against roaring hurricanes,
fine-controlling strength in swamp quagmires…"
He waved a hand theatrically.
"Tell me—are these things humans do?"
Penn didn't stop swinging.
"You said it yourself—
even someone like Brother Longinus trains so hard.
A normal man like me has no right to stop moving forward."
"…You're not exactly normal either,"
the young officer muttered.
"B-bad news!"
A Marine soldier sprinted over, gasping for breath.
"Captain Gregory! Lieutenant Penn!
Major Longinus has been captured!"
"PFFFF!"
Gregory spat out his tea, eyes bulging.
"Captured? Longinus?
What kind of sick joke is that?!
Did some Yonko's crew sneak in from the New World?!"
"N-no."
The soldier shook his head violently.
"It was the Battleaxe Pirates' vice captain."
Gregory stared.
Even T. Penn paused mid-swing, turning stiffly.
"The Battleaxe Pirates' vice captain?
That small fry with a 27 million bounty?
A hundred of him wouldn't beat Brother Longinus."
"Seriously, I don't think anyone in the entire first half of the Grand Line can trouble Big Bro Longinus," Gregory added.
The soldier continued,
"They couldn't defeat Major Longinus,
so they used innocent civilians as hostages.
To save them…
he shackled his own hands and feet with seastone cuffs
and let himself be taken as hostage.
He's already been taken off Sunset Island."
Penn's face changed instantly.
"Seastone shackles…
Even Brother Longinus can't break those!"
He rushed to gather his weapons.
"Gather a squad—NOW!
We're going after those pirates!"
"Brother Penn, calm down."
Gregory stood and spoke with uncharacteristic seriousness.
"We don't know why Longinus did it,
but one thing is certain—
he never makes a move he isn't sure about."
He crossed his arms.
"And you know his physique.
Those little pirates with barely 10–20 million bounties
can't touch him even with every trick they have."
Penn slowed down… slightly.
"I know… but I can't just do nothing!"
Gregory grinned.
"Heh.
Who asked you to do nothing?
Just get ready to welcome the Major back."
He stood up.
"I'll bring him home myself."
His body expanded—
feathers burst from his arms,
eyes sharpened,
a hooked beak formed—
and he cried out sharply as golden wings unfolded.
Marines gasped.
"That's Captain Gregory's Devil Fruit!"
"The Bird-Bird Fruit, Model: Golden Eagle—
one of the five true flying abilities in the world!"
With a single beat of his wings,
Gregory shot skyward like a golden arrow.
Penn watched him disappear into the clouds and murmured,
"With Gregory's abilities…
he'll definitely bring Brother Longinus back safely."
Meanwhile…
"Hahahahahaha!"
Bart the scar-faced pirate howled with manic laughter, clinging to an old treasure map.
"Hobbit the Great Pirate's treasure is MINE!
I'll be one of the biggest names on these seas!"
His men showered him with sycophancy.
"Brilliant Captain Bart!
You'll lead us to glory!
To the pinnacle of piracy!
Maybe even to the title of Pirate King!"
One pirate, after flattering him, gulped and whispered,
"But… Captain…
that Marine…
He's important.
Killing him would bring us fame…
but the Marines will hunt us to extinction!"
Bart's face twisted.
"Do you think we still have room to negotiate with the Marines?!
We attacked a town and abducted a Marine Major!
They'll wipe us out regardless!"
He cursed inwardly.
If Rock hadn't lost his spine,
Bart could've simply thrown him to the Marines
and escaped punishment.
"C-Captain… then what do we do?"
"Heh."
Bart grinned coldly.
"We'll use him as a stepping stone.
Once we shed his blood,
every ambitious pirate will come seeking us.
With enough manpower,
we could even rival the Marines!"
With that, he led his crew toward the shack where Longinus was imprisoned—
intending to make an example of him.
He swung the door open—
—and froze.
The seastone cuffs lay broken on the ground.
His guards were already dead.
And Longinus…
…was standing there calmly, stretching his shoulders.
"You-you-you-you—"
He looked like he'd seen a ghost.
Longinus smiled gently.
"Oh?
You want to ask how I broke free of seastone shackles?"
Bart nodded mechanically, mind blank.
"Simple," Longinus said.
His long hair fluttered—
then writhed like a nest of serpents.
Bart shrieked.
"AAAAAAHHHHH!!
DEMON!! DEMON!!!"
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