*Chapter 258: I Think He Can Become a Navy Vice Admiral*

With those two old guys training him together, there's no need to worry about his strength in the future.

It can be said!

Just give it another ten years!

Lee Rock will definitely become a Navy Admiral-level powerhouse.

His nutrition and physical training have been excellent since childhood.

Right now, it's just that he's too young. Give it a little more time.

"Your disciple?"

Sengoku's eyes lit up instantly. He knew this old guy, Zephyr, would keep someone hidden.

How could he come here and not find a suitable personal disciple?

At least pass on all of his skills — that's the proper way to go about it.

He finally found one!

"Ahem! I was involved too. Lee Rock also counts as my disciple!"

At this moment, Garp gave a light cough, forcing his way into the conversation for a sense of involvement.

Although his training mostly involved getting beaten!

In any case, the kid turned out quite well.

The boy has learned quite a lot from Garp's Iron Fist.

His current strength is already terrifying.

"Is that so?"

Sengoku stroked his chin and glanced past Lee Rock to look at the other students in the ninja school.

Behind Zephyr, there were over a dozen students who all looked remarkable.

They appeared to be under ten years old, but they already had decent strength.

In fact!

Sengoku noticed that some of them had already mastered two types of Haki.

At their age, most kids would still be wetting their pants and playing in the dirt!

Yet these kids had already mastered Armament Haki.

The difference between them and regular kids was already showing.

There was even one with a mohawk who looked the most arrogant, standing there ruffling another kid's hair.

"Ahem! You don't need to pay attention to these brats! They're the next generation of Dressrosa, still in training."

"Even if you take a liking to them, Uchiha Raijin isn't going to let them go."

"So, you better give up on that and focus on other people!"

Zephyr blocked Sengoku, speaking directly.

These people were being heavily trained by Uchiha Raijin.

Even if Sengoku showed interest, Uchiha Raijin wouldn't hand them over.

These kids would inherit the families of Dressrosa in the future.

Even if Sengoku had his eye on them, he'd have to wait until they were adults to ask for them.

"Ahem! Am I that kind of tasteless person? It’s just that green-haired kid looks very promising!"

"I feel that with a little training in the navy, he could easily become a Navy Vice Admiral!"

"What do you think, Zephyr?"

Sengoku's voice got louder, deliberately making sure Bartolomeo could hear.

Bartolomeo was already old enough!

Once he joined the navy and earned a little merit, he could be promoted.

Sengoku wasn't confident in everything, but he trusted Zephyr's training methods.

This kid, even though he wasn't an adult yet, already had significant strength.

After some experience at sea, he might even become a candidate for admiral.

"Hehehe, Sengoku, you've got a good eye. This kid is the second-strongest in the school!"

"With his Devil Fruit abilities combined with his own strength, even at a young age, he can already fight pirates with bounties of over 100 million berries."

Zephyr chuckled; Sengoku had sharp eyes.

He immediately spotted a talented student.

At this point in the sea, a bounty was the most accurate measure of someone's strength.

Without mastering two types of Haki, you couldn’t even earn a bounty of 100 million berries.

Even with a special Devil Fruit, you’d be looked down upon.

A pirate with a bounty over 100 million berries could at least rival a Navy Rear Admiral.

Bartolomeo was still young!

With time, he could join the high-ranking forces of Dressrosa.

"Second-strongest? Who's the first?"

Sengoku was stunned; he didn't expect this kid to only rank second.

"The first isn't here. If he were, he'd crush this kid."

"As for these students, don't even think about it. Even if I wanted to hand them over, Uchiha Raijin wouldn't agree."

Zephyr spread his hands, directly dismissing Sengoku's thoughts.

"Then never mind!"

Sengoku felt a bit regretful, but it was understandable that Dressrosa wouldn’t want to give away their future leaders.

After all, they were grooming their own forces, not handing everything over to the navy.

That said!

Sengoku still felt a slight sense of loss.

All these students were excellent seedlings.

Each of them would undoubtedly become top-tier fighters on the sea.

It just goes to show!

Dressrosa has a lot of good stuff hidden.

But it’s fine!

Given how close their relationship with Dressrosa is, it won’t be difficult to integrate Dressrosa into the navy someday.

Sengoku set a goal for himself.

Before he dies!

He’ll make Dressrosa a part of the navy.

Borusalino was taken aside by Shikaku Nara, while the other two were busy selecting suitable subordinates.

Borusalino found himself standing in front of a strong, disciplined troop.

Borusalino could tell this was a powerful unit.

"Admiral Borusalino, what are your thoughts? Kakashi should’ve talked to you before."

"This is the only thing Mr. Kakashi can do for you, so please consider it carefully."

Shikaku Nara spoke calmly.

"Hehehe, do you think I’m afraid of Zephyr?"

Borusalino smiled oddly, with a strange emotion in response to Shikaku's words.

He, a Navy Admiral, being threatened by a retired old marine?

If word got out!

He wouldn’t be able to show his face as an admiral anymore.

But!

Remembering Zephyr’s shameless ways!

Borusalino decided he better take people anyway.

"But your Dressrosa ninjas aren’t bad. I’ve recently lost some subordinates."

"So, I'll take them, but…"

"Don't bring this up in front of me again."

Borusalino waved his hand, clearly displeased.

One day, he thought, he’ll have to piss on Zephyr’s grave after he's dead.

But for now, he’ll let it slide.

"Of course, of course! This is the unit we’ve prepared for you!"

Shikaku Nara's face immediately broke into a smile.

As long as the misunderstanding with Dressrosa was resolved, that was enough.

As for Zephyr!

That issue could wait.

Zephyr didn’t care about his own reputation anyway.

"You found this remote place; I'm impressed!"

Kakashi walked to the window and glanced at the empty village. The village must have been uninhabited for at least two years.

It was probably due to a pirate invasion, as there wasn't a single living person left in the village.

However!

The sea has always been a place where the weak are preyed upon by the strong.

So Kakashi didn’t feel much about it.

“No one is here! This is the perfect place for me to give you some things. Most of these are things I’ve slowly copied out myself!”

“Many of them couldn’t be taken from the lab, so you’ll have to study them on your own.”

Kabuto pulled out a sealed scroll from his pocket. After forming a seal and opening it…

In an instant, the room was filled with a dazzling array of books.

Kakashi was stunned.

"Did this guy rob the World Government or something?"

Kakashi casually picked up a book and skimmed through it. It was filled with specialized knowledge about bloodline factors.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. It seemed the World Government had reached about the same level in their research as they had.

Although Kakashi wasn’t a researcher, he had been brushing up on his knowledge to be able to recognize what was valuable and important.

“This is about bloodline factors. I’ve heard that Dressrosa has already made progress in researching bloodline factors!”

“They can even easily transplant a ninja’s Kekkei Genkai!”

“But it seems like you were lacking some professional books, so I brought them all.”

“This section is all about bloodline factors, and I copied them all by hand.”

“This is the most cutting-edge research the World Government has on the subject!”

Kabuto explained to Kakashi.

"Yes, we were lacking that! What about the others?"

Kakashi looked at the other books.

There were piles and piles of them!

Who knew what they contained?

“This section is about the World Government’s research on human weapons! Vegapunk is currently studying Admiral Kizaru’s laser!”

“In just a few years, this human weapon will be completed. These are all the related materials.”

Kabuto pointed at a section of the books as he spoke.

"Human weapons? How powerful are they, do you know?"

Kakashi didn’t expect the World Government to still be researching such things.

They were even studying Kizaru’s laser.

“I’m not sure about the exact combat strength, but Vegapunk has estimated that it should at least be able to wipe out pirates with bounties exceeding 100 million Berries.”

“If it’s against pirates who have mastered Haki, the human weapons might struggle a bit.”

“This technology isn’t complete yet. When it’s more refined, I’ll personally contact you.”

Kabuto spread his hands as he spoke.

It wasn’t something that could be created easily.

If they planned to use this to wipe out the pirates of the sea, it would be almost impossible.

“Alright! There’s a mechanical ninja in Dressrosa right now. If there’s anything related to that, send it over.”

Kakashi temporarily understood!

Trying to surpass the strong of the sea with machines was like reaching for the stars.

Innovation was needed!

“I understand! This section is on artificial Devil Fruits!”

“Artificial Devil Fruits were the World Government’s main focus until recently!”

“But when they realized artificial fruits could only produce Zoan-type powers, they lost interest.”

“Supposedly, they used Kaido’s blood and his bloodline factor to create an artificial Devil Fruit.”

“But the fruit didn’t perfectly inherit Kaido’s abilities, so they tossed it aside in the lab.”

“However! I’ve heard Vegapunk recently made a breakthrough with Paramecia-type Devil Fruits. He’s trying to copy their abilities to create a terrifying army.”

“But the details are scarce. What we know is in here too. Vegapunk calls it ‘Green Blood’!”

Kabuto spoke seriously.

Since joining the World Government’s ranks, Kabuto had grown more and more shocked.

This "500 years ahead of its time" technology was no joke.

Even Kabuto had to admire Vegapunk’s capabilities.

The guy’s Devil Fruit was practically a cheat-level existence.

And he used it to push the world to terrifying heights.

“Hiss!”

Kakashi hadn’t expected the World Government to be researching this as well.

These were all things Dressrosa was eager to get their hands on.

“This is also the data on Seastone warships! There’s also information on an air-conditioning system that can cover an entire island.”

“Details on the Sky Island’s sea clouds, and how to make objects eat Devil Fruits!”

“And even a machine that produces coffee from a single drop of water, and an automatic cooking machine.”

Kabuto introduced these items one by one.

Kakashi frowned, realizing that there were still a few useless things among them.

But the fact that Kabuto had managed to bring all these materials back was already quite impressive.

“And the most critical part!”

Kabuto’s expression grew more serious.

“When you return, you must report this to Lord Raijin!”

“I understand!”

Kakashi felt that something important was coming.

“The World Government is researching something related to endless energy. I haven’t been able to get close to it yet.”

“They call it the ‘Mother Flame.’ If they succeed, the World Government will possess an everlasting fire.”

“In other words, eternal energy. I’m not sure what the exact effects are, but I’ll try to get more information.”

Kabuto spoke with deep gravity.

In his view, such a thing was impossible.

But with Vegapunk involved, maybe it really could happen.

He just wasn’t at a level where he could access it.

“Eternal energy? Isn’t that comparable to a tailed beast?”

Kakashi muttered to himself, thinking of the tailed beasts they had in Dressrosa.

Uchiha Raijin had always wanted to make use of the tailed beasts.

But Dressrosa’s technology wasn’t up to par yet.

After this, though, their technological power might be able to.

“That’s right! So, Lord Raijin must keep an eye on the World Government!”

Kabuto pushed his glasses up, feeling the pressure.

“I’ll report it! This is what Lord Raijin asked me to give you.”

“Dressrosa has acquired the Sage Arts of Ryuchi Cave. Even at sea, you can absorb natural energy and try it out.”

“If you can’t master the Sage Arts, you can try Orochimaru’s weakened curse seal, although it’s slightly weaker than Sage Arts.”

Kakashi handed over everything at once.

This mission wasn’t just to resupply Dressrosa, but also to resupply Kabuto.

Kabuto’s abilities were impressive, but he was lacking in techniques.

(End of chapter)