Is that what I need you to explain?
Nao rubbed his forehead, but then his mind quickly turned, and he understood. "That guy has developed his Devil Fruit ability to the point where he can swim through other materials?"
"That's right."
Kizaru said languidly, "Sand, walls, trees, even air – he can move through them quickly. He can truly fly and burrow, capable of anything. Except for the sea, he can't swim in it; if he falls in, he's done for. Everywhere else, he can just whoosh through at high speed…"
He can even swim in the air? No wonder he's so hard to catch.
Nao fell into contemplation.
If a guy like that sensed danger and burrowed underground, Nao figured he wouldn't have many options. At most, he could try randomly slashing out some sword energy, but whether it killed him would be purely up to luck.
But if Kizaru were to handle it…
Setting aside whether Barurru could even escape at light speed, with Kizaru's Yasakani Sacred Magatama, covering attacks 360 degrees with no blind spots, there would be nowhere to swim.
Unless Barurru changed his surname to Monkey right then and there.
"According to the latest intelligence we've gathered, this Barurru is currently active in the waters near Sandy Island, preparing to contact a hidden underground arms dealer to purchase a large batch of custom weapons."
"We've been monitoring that arms dealer for a long time. This time, to seize the opportunity and capture them all in one fell swoop, Vice Admiral Borsalino will personally lead the operation. Additionally, besides us, there's another Marine battleship on an external mission that has already reached the area ahead of us,"
Rear Admiral Gumiiru paused here, looked at Nao, and smiled, "Nao, you should be very familiar with the captain of that Marine battleship."
Gumiiru was also a disciple of Zephyr and a sixth-term recruit from the Headquarters Elite Camp, so he had a natural sense of closeness towards Nao, his brilliant junior.
"Very familiar?" Nao was slightly taken aback, then immediately understood. "Rear Admiral Buma?"
For such an important mission, Onigumo and Stainless clearly wouldn't have the qualifications to command a Marine battleship independently.
"Correct."
Gumiiru nodded slightly. "Rear Admiral Buma will be staking them out first. Once we arrive, we'll attack from both sides, forming a tight encirclement."
With this explanation, Nao had a complete grasp of the situation.
It seemed the scale of this operation far exceeded his expectations. The number of targets had multiplied, meaning he could rack up a substantial amount of battle achievements again.
And he'd get to fight alongside Buma again. Nao quite liked this straightforward giantess, who was also very fond of her subordinates.
As for that mysterious underground arms dealer who could supply custom weapons…
Nao guessed it was almost certainly the one Buma mentioned back when he wiped out the Hawk-Eyes Pirate Crew. It seemed after that mission, the G-2 Branch followed the clues and finally got a lead on their whereabouts.
Compared to that, the Swimsuit Pirates seemed more like a "buy one, get one free" bonus, not quite as important.
Marine Headquarters, Marineford
It was still early morning at the G-2 Branch, but here, it was already afternoon.
Sunlight poured through the clouds, warm and comfortable on the skin.
Sengoku, enjoying a rare day off, was lounging in a wicker chair on the balcony, eating rice crackers and drinking black tea, as leisurely as could be.
This was in stark contrast to Zephyr, who was busy working at his desk inside the room.
"I never thought I'd see the day when I'd be relaxing while watching you bustle about."
Sengoku fed a cracker to the goat beside him, eyeing Zephyr with a schadenfreude expression. "Sometimes I can't tell who's the current Admiral and who's retired to the second line. Don't you agree, Zephyr?"
"Today is just the monthly day for instructors from various branches to report on their trainees' progress," Zephyr said dismissively. "I'll be free again after these two days, at most I'll worry a bit about the new batch of disciples entering the camp. What about you? Your piles of documents must be stacking up like mountains, right?"
"..." A black line appeared on Sengoku's forehead. "You're as dull as ever."
Zephyr burst into laughter, no longer bothering with Sengoku, and continued to focus on the documents, occasionally nodding gently with a satisfied expression.
Sengoku secretly observed his reaction, itching with curiosity, and couldn't help but ask, "Judging by your expression, this batch of new recruits is doing quite well, aren't they? I wanted to see last month's report, but I was too busy and forgot. Since I'm here now, can you tell me a bit about it?"
"That's entirely up to you."
Zephyr leaned back in his chair, yawning, and gestured towards a figure standing silently nearby. "There, Brannew, read it to Admiral Sengoku."
"Yes, Mr. Zephyr."
The man named Brannew saluted and respectfully unfolded the document he held, bringing it over to Sengoku on the balcony.
That's right, this was Instructor Brandon's younger brother, the future "Meeting King," possessing a receding hairline and green hair just like his elder brother. Currently in his early thirties, he served as a Headquarters Lieutenant Commander in a civilian capacity.
"G-8 Branch, total of 8 new recruits. All passed the second monthly assessment. The most outstanding among them is Maynard, who participated in four combat missions this month, defeating approximately 120 pirates, including three pirate captains with bounties over 10 million Berries. Accumulated total of approximately 60 million Berries!"
"Maynard, huh…"
Sengoku nodded slightly, committing the name to memory.
"G-6 Branch, total of 9 new recruits. 8 passed this month's assessment. The only one who failed is named Shiryu."
Brannew paused here, then continued in a deep voice: "The most outstanding performer is also this person. This month, he participated in five combat missions, defeating approximately 230 pirates, including seven with bounties over 10 million Berries. Accumulated total of approximately 140 million Berries!"
"Hmm?" Sengoku looked startled, wondering if he had misheard. "Wait, with such excellent performance, why was he still deemed 'failed'?"
"Because that guy caused a huge mess…"
Zephyr, with a helpless expression, interjected from behind his desk. "I just found out the specifics myself. That kid got a bit injured recently while out on a mission. A female medical Marine bandaged his wound, and somehow he took a liking to her."
"Later, this female Marine was slapped and verbally abused by her superior, a Captain who was also a ship captain, for accidentally sticking a needle in the wrong vein while giving him an IV, and she was kicked off the Marine battleship. When this guy, Shiryu, found out, he couldn't hold back. He immediately went to settle the score with that Captain, seething with anger."
"He not only engaged in a life-or-death duel with the Captain at the port in front of thousands of people, but he also threatened to twist the Captain's head off and use it as a chamber pot."
"This counts as a serious violation, doesn't it? No wonder he was deemed 'failed'," Sengoku's eyebrows twitched. "But he certainly has spirit. What happened in the end? He wasn't injured by that Captain, was he?"
"You've got it backward."
Zephyr rubbed his temples helplessly. "He only suffered minor superficial injuries. On the contrary, that Captain was beaten into the hospital, unconscious for several days, and it seems he's still in bed now."
Sengoku laughed wryly, shaking his head. "How embarrassing. A dignified Branch Captain couldn't even defeat a new recruit. Zephyr, truly, your disciples are still…"
"Don't even start," Zephyr said, looking frustrated. "That Captain, the ship's captain, is also my disciple. He just graduated from the Elite Camp last year with excellent assessment results."
"..." Sengoku fell silent. "That sounds even more embarrassing then. What was his name?"
"Draw."
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin