The infirmary door slammed shut.
In the corridor, Zephyr's chest rose and fell violently.
He now somewhat regretted why he had been blinded by that excellent physical test data sheet and admitted this menace into the Elite Camp.
Knocking someone unconscious was one thing, but then parading him around town?
Parading him around was one thing, but then provoking the newly awakened person into a second coma?
Is this something a human would do?
"Zephyr-sensei..."
Tatsuki stood in the shadow of the corridor, still holding the spoon used to feed the medicine, his face full of innocence.
"Sakazuki's psychological defenses are simply too fragile."
He sighed, his tone filled with concern for his comrade's future. "As a Marine, he will have to face heinous pirates later on. If he can't even handle this little bit of 'care' from a comrade, how can he establish himself in the New World?"
Saying this, he stepped forward, his eyes sincere. "Sensei, I have an immature suggestion. To strengthen my classmates' ability to withstand pressure, I suggest adding a 'Pressure Resistance Psychological Counseling Class' to the Elite Camp."
"Although I am usually very busy with training, I am willing to sacrifice my private rest time to volunteer as a lecturer, specializing in..."
"Shut up!!!"
Zephyr's roar interrupted Tatsuki.
"You want to be a lecturer? Do you want to teach all the recruits to be scoundrels like you?!"
"Everything for justice, sensei!"
"Still talking back?!"
Zephyr pointed to the end of the corridor, his fingers trembling. "Get to the port! Get on my warship! Scrub the deck for me! If it's not clean by dinner, you'll go catch fish in the sea to eat!"
Tatsuki immediately stood at attention, his heels clicking loudly.
"Yes, sir! I guarantee mission completion! I won't let down your generous expectations, sensei!"
"Scram!!!"
Zephyr kicked the air.
Tatsuki used the momentum to turn around and quickly fled.
"Hoo... Hoo..."
Zephyr gasped roughly, feeling his blood pressure rising.
He calmed his mood and swept his gaze across the area.
"Kuzan!"
Kuzan, who was sticking close to the wall preparing to sneak away, froze.
"P-present!"
"You want to stay and nurse him?" Zephyr sneered. "Or do you feel like you didn't run enough with that 2,000 kilograms of weight last night?"
"Report, sensei! I suddenly remembered I have training I haven't finished! I request to go back and practice extra!"
Kuzan's survival instinct was maxed out, and he bolted.
Are you kidding? Getting in trouble now would mean suffering immensely, if not death. Warriors like Tatsuki were, after all, rare.
In the blink of an eye, the corridor was empty. Only a figure who clearly didn't want to move remained sitting at the end of the long bench.
Borsalino had his legs crossed, his sunglasses reflecting a cold light, and he was holding a nail clipper.
Click... Click...
Even though Zephyr's fury permeated the air, he remained steady, even holding his freshly manicured finger up to the light for appreciation.
"Oh... the nail is trimmed a little too blunt, isn't it? How strange."
That lazy tone, coupled with that obnoxious and lewd expression...
The nameless fire that Zephyr had just suppressed in his heart immediately shot up again.
"Borsalino."
Zephyr walked over with a gloomy face, his tall shadow completely enveloping Borsalino.
Click.
Borsalino's hand shook, and the nail clipper cut into his flesh.
"Hiss..."
He gasped sharply.
That signature lewd face turned around, his eyes behind the amber sunglasses blinked, and he pouted:
"Zephyr-sensei, did something happen? You're blocking the light, you know."
Zephyr looked at that face, and his fists hardened. "You're very free, aren't you?"
He gritted his teeth. "Your comrade is lying in a hospital bed, and you're clipping your nails outside?"
Borsalino tilted his head and spread his hands. "But sensei, I can't help with medical matters."
"Can't help?"
Zephyr showed a ferocious smile. "Then go do something helpful. Tatsuki can't scrub that warship alone, so you go help him. If the two of you don't get it clean by dinner, this week's meat supply will be entirely canceled."
"Eh?"
Borsalino froze.
The nail clipper in his hand dropped to the floor with a clatter.
I was just watching the drama?
"Sensei, that's not fair." Borsalino tried to struggle. "That monster Tatsuki knocked Sakazuki out, I was just passing by."
"Don't want to go?" Zephyr sneered, his Haki faintly fluctuating around him. "Then do you want to spar with me here?"
Borsalino instantly stood up, moving as fast as some kind of primate.
"How scary. Fine, I'll go. Sensei is too strict."
...
The midday sun shone fiercely.
Zephyr's exclusive warship was a Giant Battleship, docked at the port like a small mountain of steel. The massive, dark deck was despair-inducing.
Tatsuki carried two buckets, standing in the center of the deck. He looked up at the scorching sun, then glanced at the tall, thin figure beside him, who was also holding a mop and looked utterly bewildered.
At this moment, although Borsalino didn't yet possess the veteran slacker demeanor of the future Admiral, he already had the makings of a slacker.
Wearing sunglasses, he pouted and sighed while looking at the massive deck.
"Geez. What bad luck, having to do hard labor like this in the middle of the day."
Borsalino slowly poked the mop onto the ground, leaning on it limply, completely lacking the desire to start working.
Clang!
Tatsuki casually tossed the buckets aside and sat down in the huge shadow behind the main cannon turret.
He pulled out two oranges from his pocket and tossed one to Borsalino. "Catch. To cool off."
Borsalino caught it subconsciously. Feeling a hint of coolness on the orange peel, his eyes behind the sunglasses brightened, but then he hesitated.
"Eh? Tatsuki, sensei is furious, you know. If we slack off now and get caught, we really will be thrown into the sea to feed the fish. That would be terrifying."
"Slack off?"
Tatsuki popped a segment into his mouth, the juice bursting out.
He looked at Borsalino as if he were an alien. "Borsalino, your ideological awareness is seriously flawed."
"Oh? How so?"
Borsalino grew interested, leaning on the railing, his long legs casually crossed as he began peeling his orange.
"Think about it." Tatsuki mumbled, tossing another segment into his mouth. "What is the duty of the Marines? It's to catch pirates and protect civilians, right?"
Borsalino nodded. "That's right."
Tatsuki asked, "What if a bunch of vicious pirates suddenly attacked now—like Golden Lion Shiki or Whitebeard?"
"And you, Borsalino, because you spent three hours scrubbing the deck under the scorching sun, are exhausted and sore, causing you to be 0.1 seconds too slow at the critical moment, resulting in you being sliced to death."
Tatsuki paused, his expression suddenly turning incredibly solemn, pointing at Borsalino's nose. "Then you would be a sinner of the Marines. You would not only fail yourself but also the civilians waiting for you to save them."
Borsalino's hand, holding the orange, froze mid-air.
Although it sounds strange, how is it... so logical?
Tatsuki spoke earnestly, pushing the half-peeled orange he had prepared into Borsalino's hand, "So, we are sitting here eating oranges to preserve ample physical strength in preparation for a fierce battle that could happen at any moment. We are being responsible for future justice."
Tatsuki held up a finger and shook it in front of Borsalino, stating seriously, "This isn't called slacking off, this is called 'Ambiguous Justice'. Finding the optimal solution between action and inaction, that is the justice of the wise."
[Ding! Successfully instilled 'heretical logic' into the future Admiral, successfully constructing the 'Slacker Logic Loop', accelerating the formation of the future Admiral's worldview.]
[Judgment of Subversion degree underway... Logical Genius! Violation points +800!]