Chapter 62: A History That Hasn't Changed?

Sengoku had no idea why Kaito reacted so strongly after hearing the news of Zephyr heading out to sea. It was just a routine training voyage—was that really worth such a reaction?

Still, out of his trust in Kaito, he asked,

"What's wrong? Is there something wrong with this voyage?"

Of course there is. It's a huge problem.

In One Piece Film: Z, it was mentioned that when Zephyr took his last batch of students out for a training exercise, they were ambushed by Whitebeard Jr. In the end, only Ain and Binz survived. Zephyr even lost an arm.

Now, while history had already started to shift, and Zephyr had gone to sea earlier than expected, there was still no guarantee he wouldn't encounter Whitebeard Jr. If it ended well, that would be fine. But what if the result was even worse?

Thinking of this, Kaito's expression darkened further. He quickly asked,

"Where did Instructor Zephyr go?"

"Not exactly sure. I'll try reaching him with a Den Den Mushi."

Saying that, Sengoku dialed Zephyr's Den Den Mushi, but even after waiting a long time, no one picked up.

This unusual silence made Sengoku's expression turn serious. He looked up at Kaito and asked,

"What's really going on? Kaito, do you know something I don't?"

There was no time for a full explanation. "Somewhere southeast" was way too vague, but Kaito couldn't afford to hesitate now. He went straight to the window of Sengoku's office, activated his Deva Path ability, and soared into the sky.

Papers on Sengoku's desk scattered across the room from the sudden gust of wind Kaito created as he took off. Sengoku didn't bother with them. He immediately called in Aokiji and ordered him to take a ship full of soldiers to back up Zephyr.

...

In a stretch of open sea, the calm surface suddenly bulged upward—a massive head emerged.

A sea king over a hundred meters long burst out of the water, a huge whale clenched in its jaws.

With a crunch, the whale was snapped in half and swallowed whole.

After its meal, the sea king smacked its lips with human-like satisfaction and prepared to dive back beneath the surface—until a distant, fast-growing black dot in the sky caught its attention.

It squinted its massive eyes, trying to make out what it was. But just as the shape became clear—revealing itself to be a human—that realization was its last.

"Get out of my way!"

Thwack!

The sea king's head exploded into pulp from Kaito's impact, sending blood raining down across the sea.

The delay made Kaito stop in midair. His expression was dark and grim.

This section of ocean was just too vast. Even with the Rinnegan's perception and advanced Observation Haki, he couldn't locate Zephyr's ship.

"Damn it… is this tragedy destined to happen no matter what?"

He cursed himself. Why hadn't he left a Flying Thunder God marker with Zephyr? Had he gotten careless because of Zephyr's strength?

Kaito slammed a fist into the ocean surface. Hundreds of tons of seawater exploded upward into the sky and fell back down in a torrential curtain.

As the cold drops splashed across his face, Kaito's body trembled—and a technique he'd forgotten suddenly flashed into his mind: Rain Tiger at Will.

In Naruto, this was the technique Pain used to create rainclouds infused with chakra, allowing him to sense everything within the rainfall. It was perfect for this situation.

Kaito closed his eyes. He laced his fingers together, index and middle fingers raised—then activated Rain Tiger at Will.

In an instant, what had been a clear sky over several hundred kilometers of sea was covered with thick storm clouds. A heavy downpour began to fall.

He calmed his mind and focused on sensing.

Soon, a small cluster of life energy appeared in a certain location. One of them was already very faint.

With this information in hand, Kaito's eyes snapped open. He activated his Deva Path again and vanished from the sky.

...

Elsewhere on the sea, aboard a small lifeboat—

A group of Marine soldiers in blue and white vests huddled together. Many faces were familiar: Breach, Glefos, and Binz were all present.

All of them were bloodied to some extent, clearly having just survived a brutal battle.

But none of them were focused on their own wounds. Instead, they were watching sorrowfully as a blonde-haired female Marine cradled another girl with sea-blue hair, sobbing uncontrollably.

The two girls were Ain and her roommate, Alice.

Ain was in bad shape. Her half-lidded eyes fluttered, her long lashes trembling from pain. Across her lower abdomen stretched a deep, gruesome wound that was still pouring blood.

"Don't... Ain, stay with me! We're almost back to headquarters. Damn it, why did it have to start raining now?!"

Alice kept shouting at Ain, her face drenched with a mix of rain and tears. One hand desperately tried to staunch the bleeding, but the gash was too wide. No matter how hard she pressed, the blood kept slipping through her fingers.

Some of the other cadets couldn't bear to watch anymore. A few turned away, silently weeping.

Truthfully, the fact that any of them were still alive was largely thanks to Ain.

It was supposed to be a simple training voyage, led by none other than former Admiral Zephyr. No one could have expected this nightmare.

They'd encountered Whitebeard Jr., Edward Weevil, and Miss Buckin at sea.

At Buckin's command, Weevil immediately launched an attack on their ship full of cadets. Zephyr blocked the assault.

But Zephyr was old, his health failing. While protecting the students, he let his guard down and was injured by Weevil.

It was Ain who used her Devil Fruit powers to temporarily stop Zephyr's bleeding and even reverse his age by eight years—she had developed her ability further than anyone had realized.

Her intervention caught Buckin's attention. She immediately ordered Weevil to take Ain out, even if it meant taking another hit from Zephyr.

That was how Ain ended up slashed across the waist by Weevil—severely injured and unconscious. With her powers no longer active, Zephyr's age reverted, and the tide of the battle turned again.

But Ain forced herself to wake up, pushing her ability to the limit to reverse Zephyr's age once more. She held on just long enough for the remaining Marines to carry her to safety.

Hearing Alice's cries, Ain opened her mouth and coughed up a mouthful of blood. Alice sobbed even harder.

Ain's trembling hand reached for a bundle beside her. She passed it to Alice.

Alice wiped her tears and took it, asking,

"What is this? When we escaped from the ship, you made Breach bring it for you—was it something important?"

Seeing that Alice had taken the package, Ain sighed in relief and said weakly,

"It's a Devil Fruit I got during the exam... Give it to Kaito after we get back. It was meant for him..."

"Why not give it to me in person?"

A voice rang out as a figure landed on the boat.

It was Kaito.

The moment he arrived, the storm clouds above dissolved as if they'd never existed, and sunlight poured through, bathing everyone's faces in warm light.

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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