Ding-a-ling-a-ling!
The bell rang loudly, signaling the end of class. Vice Admiral Tsuru, standing at the podium, finished tidying her textbooks and materials. Instead of immediately turning to leave, she greeted the Military School Students below the podium with a faint smile.
"Today is Friday. Saturday and Sunday are rest days," her tone was friendly, yet there was an undeniable firmness. "However, I hope you all use these two days to study and review thoroughly." She paused, her gaze sweeping across the room. "Because next Monday, we will have a comprehensive exam covering Military Theory and Navigation."
"Class dismissed!" With that, Vice Admiral Tsuru finally hugged her materials and walked out of the classroom door, leaving behind a crowd of students who began to buzz with whispers.
"Yo! Sephiroth, my friend, want to go out and have some fun?"
At the classroom door, Tokikake approached with Maynard. He grinned widely and slung an arm around Sephiroth, preventing him from pulling away. Ever since their fight on the training ground that day, Tokikake had indeed given up pursuing Gion and had shifted his attention to the female nurses in the infirmary. However, Sephiroth and Tokikake's relationship surprisingly hadn't soured, they had actually gotten along well, perhaps because Sephiroth had grown accustomed to Tokikake's peculiar behavior.
"Go where? To the bar in town again? If so, forget it..." Sephiroth shook his head and said.
Behind Marineford Marine Headquarters, there was a town that served as a residential area for Marine families. On this island, thirty thousand Marine soldiers were permanently stationed. Including their families, the total population reached around one hundred fifty thousand. Therefore, essential living facilities like restaurants, bars, bookstores, and so on, sprang up to meet demand. After school, Sephiroth had also been dragged out twice by Tokikake and the others to explore.
But, to be honest, in Sephiroth's eyes, the town wasn't much different from an ordinary village in his previous life, and the scenery wasn't particularly great either. Entertainment in the town was scarce, and the noisy bars were the only places that could be considered entertainment venues. He had been dragged there twice in a row... Sephiroth wasn't a drunkard, so he didn't hate drinking, but he didn't particularly enjoy it either.
The Marine Academy had a rule: from Monday to Friday, during regular class days, lights had to be out promptly at ten every night for sleep, and afternoon classes ended at six. After deducting time for homework and meals, he only had about two more hours. Therefore, he didn't want to waste his precious free time just at a bar. With his free time, he preferred to study medical skills or practice swordsmanship.
"No, no, no! It's a holiday now, how could we go to that town again...?" Tokikake cut in, his eyes sparkling. "Of course, we're going to the Sabaody Archipelago! That place is much more interesting than this."
"Sabaody..." Sephiroth murmured softly, his gaze shifting to Smoker beside him. "I'd like to go check it out. Are you coming?"
"Hmm! Alright, I have nothing else to do, so I'll go too!" Smoker puffed out cigar smoke, agreeing casually. As he spoke, Smoker pulled two cigars from the sleeve strap on his left arm, lit them, then put them in his mouth.
Seeing that, Sephiroth, whose nicotine addiction was flaring up, casually took one and shook it in his hand, gesturing for Smoker to lend him a lighter.
"Hey! You guys, if you want to smoke, just buy your own!" Smoker grumbled, feigning annoyance. "Smoking every day, what's the problem..." Although Smoker grumbled, he still tossed his lighter to Sephiroth.
"Well! I can't help it. Actually, I was planning to quit smoking, but you smoke in front of me every day, so I can't quit even if I want to..." Sephiroth shrugged helplessly, lit the cigar in his hand, took a slow puff, then exhaled white smoke from his mouth.
"If you want to quit, quit on your own, don't drag me into it," Smoker said with an annoyed expression, smoke wafting from his nostrils.
"What if I quit smoking, but you don't, and I share a room with you every day, wouldn't I be inhaling your cigarette smoke every day?" Sephiroth immediately retorted annoyedly, his logic undeniable.
"Are you all planning to go to the Sabaody Archipelago too?"
Gion, who was holding a textbook in her hand, heard their conversation and approached, turning to look at Tina who was standing beside her. "That's great! I was just about to go shopping... Oh, right, Tina, do you want to go?"
The girl with long pink hair, a slender physique, and a cute face tilted her head and thought for a moment before nodding and saying, "Tina happens to want to buy a new perfume that just came out. They should have it in the Sabaody Archipelago." Tina wanted to go too!
Thus, the six of them, after finishing their discussion, returned to the dormitory, changed into casual clothes, and boarded a high-speed commercial sailboat specially headed for the Sabaody Archipelago. After sailing for over an hour, they finally reached their destination.
The Sabaody Archipelago.
It is located in front of the Red Line in the middle of the Grand Line. The archipelago is covered with many towering trees, and many giant tree roots penetrate the ground. The Sabaody Archipelago is divided into Islands 1 to Island 79. Every ten islands form a single area, and the islands in different areas have their own specialized industries.
The greatest characteristic of the Sabaody Archipelago is the special natural sap released by the roots of the Yarukiman Mangroves due to respiration. This sap expands into bubbles in the air and slowly floats skyward. Because these bubbles are only suitable for the climate range of the Yarukiman Mangroves, once the bubbles leave the Sabaody Archipelago's climate zone, the resin components will explode as they cannot exert their full power.
The inhabitants of the Sabaody Archipelago have fully utilized their creativity and imagination, using these special bubbles to form a unique bubble culture and industrial chain, such as bubble bicycles, bubble lanterns, bubble chairs, ship coatings, and other products.
The first half and second half of the Grand Line are blocked by the Red Line, which encircles the entire planet and is tens of thousands of meters high. Therefore, there are only two ways to go from Paradise, the first part of the Grand Line, to the New World, the second part.
The first method is to apply at Mary Geoise. This method is not only time and labor-intensive but also requires leaving the original ship and paying a large sum of money to use the sky elevator to reach the New World. Furthermore, this method is only applicable to the rich and nobles; it is impossible for commoners, criminals, and Pirates to use it.
The second method is to coat the ship with resin, then dive ten thousand meters underwater to Fish-Man Island and enter the New World. In addition to the expensive coating cost, this method also carries a significant risk of encountering Sea Kings. If not careful, the ship will be destroyed, and the people will perish, buried in the sea.
With the World Government's permission, whether intentional or not, the Sabaody Archipelago, besides the Marines and Pirates, also has many underground forces. They are closely intertwined. Slave trade, arms trade, drug trade... Everything is available on this island; it can be said to cover all the dark aspects of the world.
The Marines are also helpless against the World Government's connivance and tacit approval. The Marines stationed in the Sabaody Archipelago can only follow orders and take refuge in the area from Island 60 to Island 69, preventing Pirates from causing major incidents. If the World Government was truly determined to crack down on Pirates and crime, the most direct way would be to ask the Marines to send a large force to guard the Sabaody Archipelago, making it impossible for Pirates to coat their ships, dive to Fish-Man Island, and enter the New World.
Therefore, Sephiroth had no good feelings whatsoever towards the World Government, an organization rotten to its core, everything about it was disgusting!
Coincidentally, the current Commander of the Sabaody Marine Base was Vice Admiral Kizaru Borsalino, the Marine's lazy king, and one of the future Admirals... Perhaps Kizaru also saw the situation in the Sabaody Archipelago and the World Government's actions, which is why he adopted his so-called "ambiguous justice"...?
Sabaody Island 79, Hotel Street.
After disembarking from the ship, the six of them, led by Tokikake, arrived at the fourth floor of a luxurious restaurant, in a VIP private room. The room was European architecturally styled, dominated by white, with elegant decorations.
Upon entering the room, Tokikake waved his hand grandly and said with a laugh, "The food at this restaurant is delicious! When I was stationed at the Sabaody Marine Base, I often came here to perfect my dishes... Today, it's my treat, order anything you want!"
Sephiroth found a seat by the window in the room. Feeling the air inside was a bit stuffy, he reached out and pushed the window open, looking at the bustling street below bathed in colorful lights, with people coming and going.
Although Tokikake said it was his treat, not everyone deliberately ordered extremely expensive food to trick him; they all ordered food they liked but weren't overly expensive. Instead, Tokikake, while waving his hand, ordered three bottles of red wine, each costing fifty thousand Berries, which was more expensive than all the dishes everyone else ordered combined.
"This is red wine from West Blue, with a mellow and refreshing taste..." While introducing it, Tokikake took the red wine and poured about a third of a glass into each of the six stemmed glasses, then gestured for everyone to try it.
Gion took the stemmed glass containing the red wine and gently swirled it in her hand. She sniffed the aroma of the red wine with the tip of her nose, then unconsciously murmured, "I didn't expect your taste to be so good!"
"Of course. But it's too late for you to realize my merits now..." Tokikake said, a flirtatious smile adorning his face. "After all, I've already fallen for Liliana. Seeing her in that white nurse uniform is etched in my heart..." Tokikake said with affection, leaving Gion speechless.
"..." Hearing this, Gion's eyes twitched slightly. She didn't want to continue this topic.
Various dishes were served one after another. The deep-sea lobster and seafood bisque Sephiroth ordered were also placed in front of him. Just as he raised his spoon, preparing to taste the fragrant milky white soup in the bowl in front of him, the bustling sounds outside the window suddenly fell silent. He unconsciously turned to look out the window.
Tokikake's ears twitched, as if he had just thought of something. An expression of disgust immediately appeared on his face.
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