"Cross-kun, are you alright?"
Suddenly, Gion's voice rang in Cross's ear, snapping him out of his daze.
Cross rubbed his temples, his head still aching. Seeing Gion's concerned expression, he gave a soft chuckle. "I just didn't sleep well last night. Nothing serious."
"If you say so…"
Gion nodded hesitantly, though her eyes lingered on him with an odd look. Then she brought up the topic again. "So, what do you think about my earlier suggestion? Tsuru-nee said you're a prodigy, it'd be a real waste if you didn't join the Marines."
"Really now… To think someone like Vice Admiral Tsuru would take an interest in me. What an honor." Cross looked genuinely surprised. He couldn't help but turn his head toward the shoreline.
There, Vice Admiral Tsuru was engaged in conversation with General Humil. As if sensing his gaze, Tsuru turned and met his eyes with a warm smile.
Cross smiled and gave a polite nod in return. His gaze then flicked toward General Humil, and he couldn't help but mutter internally:
Hey, General Humil, the Marines are poaching someone from the Tobias Kingdom right under your nose. You really okay with this?
Gion rolled her eyes at him, clearly annoyed. "Cut it out, brat. Talking like some slick old bureaucrat… not charming at all!"
"Alright, alright."
Cross waved her off with a mock-surrender. "Dear Lady Gion, I'll need to think it over. I can't give you an answer until I finish delivering this shipment of arms back to the Tobias Kingdom."
"Fair enough. Once you've made up your mind, just head to the nearest Marine base and apply. Tsuru-nee will have everything arranged ahead of time. You'll be transferred straight to the Marine Academy at Marine Headquarters."
Gion's usually playful face turned serious. She fixed her gaze on Cross's still-young features, her mind replaying the conversation from not long ago…
Ten minutes earlier.
"Gion, come here a moment."
Standing at the edge of the harbor embankment, Tsuru waved her over.
"What is it?"
Gion approached, one hand holding a freshly cracked green coconut, the other resting on the hilt of her blade.
"I have a task for you," Tsuru said plainly. "Go sound out that young count. Ask if he's interested in joining the Marines."
"Eh?!"
Gion's pretty face twisted in surprise. "Why are we trying to recruit that cocky brat?"
"He's only fifteen, and he already managed to clash with Donquixote Doflamingo," Tsuru replied evenly. "If talent like that strays from the right path, becomes a pirate or something worse, he could be real trouble for the Marines."
"Tsuru-nee, aren't you giving this kid way too much credit?" Gion puffed her cheeks in protest and slurped coconut juice through a reed straw.
Tsuru didn't respond right away. She just looked at Gion, then asked calmly:
"Have you heard of Douglas Bullet?"
"Douglas Bullet… yeah, I know the name."
Gion's expression shifted, becoming solemn. "In Sea Calendar Year 1501, the Marines launched a Buster Call against him. Even Vice Admiral Garp and Admiral Sengoku joined the assault before he was finally captured and sent to Impel Down. He was once part of the Roger Pirates."
"Correct. But do you know how old Bullet was at the time?"
Before Gion could answer, Tsuru continued, "At fourteen, Douglas Bullet destroyed his own country. At fifteen, he wandered the seas until he met Roger, who finally defeated him. That's when he joined the Roger Pirates. At eighteen, he left the crew and made a name for himself as a rising star. After Roger's execution at Loguetown, Bullet went berserk at twenty-one, wreaking havoc across the Grand Line. At twenty-two, it took a fleet of Marine ships executing a full-scale Buster Call and an alliance of pirates he'd beaten before to finally wear him down and capture him."
"…Was that guy even human?!"
Gion stood stunned, her coconut forgotten. She couldn't wrap her head around it, someone destroying a country at fourteen? That was just absurd.
"Talent doesn't guarantee everything," Tsuru went on, eyes narrowing. "Hard work can still elevate ordinary people to the top of the world. But the truly gifted ones… are always a headache. I'd rather he become someone else's headache, a pirate's, not the Marines'."
Gion's face settled into a serious expression. After a long pause, she nodded. "Understood, Tsuru-nee. Leave it to me."
Soon after, the Marines finished repairing the damaged sails on their warship. With their prisoners in tow, the entirety of the Mad Bear Pirates, they set sail, departing the Kingdom of Lvneel.
Though they hadn't managed to capture Doflamingo, bringing down an entire pirate crew wasn't a wasted effort.
After all, Doflamingo could fly. Once he chose to flee, there were few in the world capable of stopping him.
Cross stood atop the harbor embankment, watching as Tsuru's warship shrank on the horizon until it vanished from sight. Only then did he turn back and return to the Haritch XIX.
At that moment, General Humil was wrapping up a tense exchange with officials from the Kingdom of Lvneel. With great reluctance, he handed over three briefcases stuffed with Berries.
Using local manpower, they began loading the three hundred million Berries' worth of weapons.
Crates of muskets, all kinds of ammunition, and barrels of gunpowder were moved one by one; Lvneel's dockworkers scurrying like ants across the deck of the Haritch XIX.
However, when twenty cannons, dozens of shells, and several barrels of powder walked themselves onto the dock, neatly arranged and laughing as they moved, it sent half the port into a panic. People thought they were seeing ghosts.
Fortunately, some Lvneel officials who understood what was going on quickly rallied the braver soldiers to restore order, keeping the situation from spiraling into chaos.
"Come again anytime!"
By late afternoon, a portly Lvneel official stood on the dock, beaming as he waved at General Humil.
It was no wonder he looked so pleased. Lvneel's standard military death benefits weren't exactly generous, 100,000 Berries for a soldier, 200,000 for a junior officer. With nearly a thousand casualties from this incident, the maximum payout would barely exceed 100 million.
Yet they'd just pocketed 200 million profit from the Tobias Kingdom, all thanks to this skirmish.
No surprise that the officials were all smiles, even extending an open invitation for a next time.
"…Hmph!"
On deck, General Humil's face was thunderous. Without a word, he turned and stormed back to his cabin.
He'd thought he could save 300 million Berries and walk away with the arms haul for free. Who would've guessed that things would go so awry, and end with them buying back their own weapons?
"Unbelievable."
Cross gave a wry laugh and shook his head. Then, turning toward the now-enlivened warship, he gave the command:
"Raise anchor. Unfurl the sails. Set course for open sea."
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