Chapter 167 New Crew! (Two in One)
Joracol Mihawk followed Yoriichi Tsugikuni and the others onto the ship, but not as a navy recruit.
Although Yoriichi said that Mihawk was a "labor camp prisoner", in fact, after Mihawk boarded the ship, Yoriichi Tsugikuni did not really assign Mihawk any "miscellaneous labor" tasks, nor did he put shackles on Mihawk that only prisoners needed to wear, and he did not even restrict Mihawk's movements.
Mihawk was like an ordinary citizen visiting the ship, even freer than many marines.
After returning to the ship, Yoshikazu Tsugakuni privately found Garp's intelligence officer to investigate Mihawk's past. He thought that if Mihawk had become a "naval hunter" now, then Mihawk's labor reform would have to become a reality.
However, what Yunyi did not expect was that the results of the intelligence officer's investigation were very different from what Yunyi had expected.
Young Mihawk is actually a bounty hunter.
In other words, there is a record in the Navy about Mihawk handing over the head of a wanted criminal in exchange for a bounty.
As for other things about Mihawk, the Navy has no further records. Currently, Mihawk is only about twenty years old and is not well-known in this world.
Although I don’t know why he will be called “Navy Hunter” in the future, and I don’t know why he will become close friends with the Four Emperors “Red Hair Shanks”, all this has become unimportant.
Now that Mihawk has been brought to the navy by Yoichiro, no matter what identity he has on board now, he will only have one identity in the future. That is a navy!
Yoriichi has already quietly made plans for Mihawk.
Not long after Ji Guoyuan and others returned to the ship, two familiar figures appeared at the port.
The master of Isshin Dojo, Shimotsuki Koshiro, accompanied by his father, Shimotsuki Kozaburo, appeared at the dock carrying a package.
When the two of them arrived at the dock, Tsugikuni Yoshiichi was meditating at the bow of the ship. It was Cyrus who first noticed the two of them. He stood on the deck and waved hello to the two people on the dock.
At the dock, the two people from the Shimotsuki family also saw the dog-head warship docked at the dock, and also saw Cyrus waving at them at this time.
After glancing at Cyrus, Shimotsuki Kozaburo turned his head and said to Shimotsuki Koshiro with a guilty look:
"Koshiro, I'm sorry for wronging you!"
"There's no doubt that the navy knows Wano Country very well, and he probably already knows that our Shimotsuki family is from Wano Country."
"Wano Country hides a secret that could shake the world. I don't know how much that marine knows about our Shimotsuki family, but Koshiro, we can't gamble."
"So that others can live peacefully on this island, Koshiro."
Shimotsuki Kosaburo spoke to his son in a heavy tone. Before he could finish, Shimotsuki Kosaburo interrupted him:
"Father, you don't have to say anything. I understand."
"I don't know what their purpose is, but at least they haven't fallen out, right?"
"Besides, they only invited me to join the navy, and I just wanted to see the sea."
"To be honest, if I have the chance, I would like to go back to Wano Country to have a look."
"Father, you don't have to worry about me. Take care of yourself while I'm away."
Koshiro Shimotsuki said his final goodbyes to his father at the dock. The father and son talked for a long time, and then Koshiro Shimotsuki carried his package on his back, a long sword on his waist, and walked towards the dog-head warship.
Cyrus on the deck had already realized what was happening and had the ladder lowered. When Shimotsuki Koshiro stepped onto the deck, he smiled and said to him:
"Welcome to our navy, Mr. Shimotsuki Koshiro!"
"Thank you." Facing Cyrus who came to greet him, Shimotsuki Koshiro pushed his gold-rimmed glasses and nodded with a smile.
Then, under the leadership of Cyrus, they went to the bow of the ship to meet Tsugikuni Yoriichi.
Seeing the arrival of Shimotsuki Koshiro, Tsugumi Yoshiichi seemed very happy.
Unlike Mihawk's treatment, Shimotsuki Koshiro, who had just boarded the ship, was led by Cyrus to register relevant information, and then received a set of navy uniforms, officially becoming a navy.
At the same time, under the guidance of the quartermaster on Garp's ship, Mihawk and Shimotsuki Koshiro were assigned to a double room.
However, Tsugikuni Yoriichi still gave them both preferential treatment different from that of ordinary navy officers, and he also showed humanitarianism to Mihawk, the "labor camp prisoner".
After changing into a navy uniform, Koshiro Shimotsuki returned to the deck.
At this time, Yoriichi Tsugikuni had finished his meditation for the day and was holding a bamboo sword, sparring with Mihawk.
There were no entertainment activities on the navy's warships. During the time when the warships were docked and waiting for Garp to return, the marines on board were doing their own things except for the necessary patrols.
Some people gathered together to play cards, some exercised in the cabin, and some stayed in their rooms to sleep.
Anyway, except for the marines on duty, everyone else is very free.
Not to mention people like Jiguo Yuanyi who were not originally part of this ship.
Mihawk is a fighting maniac. Although he lost to Yoriichi Tsugakuni on the island, Mihawk, who already has a clear goal, will not waste time "tasting failure" and will directly devote himself to training.
And with the existence of Yoriichi Tsugakuni, Mihawk will not lack opponents.
Tsugikoku Yoshiichi had no intention of rejecting Mihawk's challenge. Although Mihawk's current strength was somewhat inferior to his own, he was still fully qualified to serve as a sparring partner.
Before Mihawk boarded the ship, Yoriichi was worried about not having a suitable opponent. Issho was a devil fruit user and was not suitable as a sparring partner, but Mihawk was a pure swordsman, which made him perfect for Yoriichi.
“Da! Da! Da!!”
The sound of bamboo swords colliding continued to be heard, and on the empty deck, the figures of Tsugikuni Yoriichi and Mihawk flashed and intertwined.
Since it was training, Yuichiro didn't use his Kenmon-satsu ability, and he also controlled the output of his Haki, trying to use the same strength and speed as his opponent to fight Mihawk. The confrontation between the two was more of a battle of swordsmanship.
However, even in this kind of swordsmanship confrontation, Mihawk was always at a disadvantage in the battle with Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
In the transparent world of Tsugikuni Yoriichi, Mihawk's every move could not be hidden from Yoriichi's eyes. During the battle with Yoriichi, Mihawk felt very uncomfortable. He felt like he was not wearing any clothes in front of Yoriichi. Everything about him was completely seen through by his opponent.
“Bang!!”
On the deck, after Mihawk's stab was blocked by Yoriichi, he was directly cut on the wrist by Yoriichi's bamboo sword. The hand holding the sword subconsciously loosened and the bamboo sword fell to the ground.
And Yunyi, who had knocked down the opponent's weapon, stopped in time, put the tip of the sword against the blade of the bamboo sword on the ground, and gently picked up the bamboo sword and handed it to Mihawk.
Mihawk caught the bamboo sword again without any nonsense, grabbed the sword with one hand and rushed towards Yunyi again.
Shimotsuki Koshiro, who was on the deck, watched the two men fighting. He quietly walked over to Yixiao and Cyrus who were watching the battle on the side, and asked in confusion, "What's going on, you two?"
"Who was that young man who fought Vice Admiral Tsugukuni? He looked very strong!"
At this time, Mihawk's clothes had already become tattered during the battle. Through the "holes" in the clothes, Koshiro could see many blood marks on Mihawk's body caused by the bamboo sword.
But Mihawk seemed to be unable to feel the pain in his body, and attacked Yuanyi with excitement on his face.
Koshiro, who is also a swordsman, could feel Mihawk's strong fighting spirit and was curious about this young man, so he couldn't help but ask.
"He, Djorakor Mihawk, aims to become the world's best swordsman."
"Right now, Lieutenant General Jiguo is helping him grow."
Yixiao heard this and replied with a smile.
As soon as Yixiao finished speaking, something strange happened in the center of the deck. Tsugikuni Yoshiichi's bamboo sword hit Mihawk again. This time, Yoshiichi used more domineering power and directly knocked Mihawk away.
Mihawk's figure suddenly disappeared from the deck and fell towards the sea.
“Plop!”
As Mihawk's figure disappeared, a column of water rose from the sea.
"Huh?! Sorry, sorry!"
"I accidentally used too much force!"
When Yunyi saw Mihawk being knocked away, he immediately shouted apologetically, then ran towards the guardrail. Seeing Mihawk fall into the sea, he turned around and shouted to Cyrus:
"Hey~Cyrus, please, pull that guy out of the water."
"If Mihawk chokes on water after taking this blow from me, he'll drown."
Tsugikoku Yoriichi said to Cyrus with a smile. Seeing Yoriichi's expression, Cyrus shook his head helplessly and sighed to Koshiro: "As you can see, they are 'sparring'."
With that, Cyrus jumped directly into the sea.
"Sparring?!"
"This is a one-sided crushing, it can be considered an assault."
Koshiro didn't say this out loud, but just thought about it in his heart. Then, when he looked at Tsugikuni Yoriichi, he couldn't help but look at him with a little more awe.
If possible, during his time in the navy, he didn't want to compete with his superior, the lieutenant general.
Feeling Koshiro's gaze, Yoshiichi turned his head and smiled at Koshiro. Although Yoshiichi thought his smile was very kind, Koshiro's hair stood on end at this moment. He slightly avoided Yoshiichi's sight and looked at the sea.
He was afraid of being caught by Yunyi for sparring.
Soon, Cyrus rescued Mihawk back to the deck. The force of Tsugikuni Yoshiichi's attack was very strong, and Mihawk who fell into the sea really choked on water. After returning to the deck, he coughed violently and vomited sea water from his stomach.
"Are you okay? Mihawk, I'm sorry!"
Yunyi squatted beside Mihawk and asked with some concern.
Mihawk just glanced at Yuanyi with resentment and wanted to say something, but he just coughed.
"Don't talk for now, catch your breath." Yunyi patted Mihawk's back and said, however, his action only made Mihawk's cough more violently.
Feeling Mihawk's murderous gaze, Yunyi stopped awkwardly, laughed, looked at the ragged Mihawk, raised his eyes to glance at the sky, and said with a smile:
"Let's stop here for today's training. Your clothes are torn, go change."
"There are no prison uniforms on board, but you can wear navy uniforms first."
"It's okay, I don't mind."
Yoriichi patted Mihawk's shoulder, slowly stood up, and said with a smile. After that, he winked at Cyrus. Cyrus received the signal and helped Mihawk up and took him back to the cabin.
By now, Mihawk had a better idea of what Tsugakuni Yoriichi was up to, but he wasn't against it. Whether or not he joined the navy wasn't important to him at all; what mattered was that he defeated Tsugakuni Yoriichi, set sail, challenged swordsmen even stronger than Tsugakuni Yoriichi, and ultimately became the world's number one!
Becoming stronger is what Mihawk is pursuing now!
As for the rest?! It doesn’t matter what it is!
After Cyrus and Mihawk left, Yoriichi put away his bamboo sword, walked to the bow of the ship, leaned against the railing, and looked at the sea.
As the sun sets, golden sunlight shines on the sea, making the waves sparkle. Seabirds fly across the water in front of Yuanyi, and the sea breeze makes the sweaty Tsugakugo Yuanyi squint his eyes in comfort.
"The weather is a bit cold." A laughing voice came from Yunyi's ears, and the cloak of justice was put on Yunyi again.
"Thank you! A smile."
Yunyi didn't turn his head, looked at the sea view and said with a smile.
There was no response. Yixiao just stood quietly behind Yunyi, looking at the sea.
At this moment, Koshiro also came to the side of Tsugakuni Yoshiichi, tilted his head slightly, and looked at the calm-looking lieutenant general beside him with his peripheral vision. He had no way of connecting the young man in front of him with the lieutenant general who had just "abused" the prisoner.
"Koshiro, welcome to join our navy."
Suddenly, Tsugikuni Yoriichi, who was looking at the ocean view, said this. Without waiting for Koshiro to reply, Yoriichi turned his head slightly, stretched out his hand towards Koshiro, and said:
"I invited you to join the navy simply because I think you have outstanding abilities, there is no other reason."
"And I think people your age shouldn't stay in that small town."
"This ocean is vast, Koshiro, would you please come with me to take a look?!"
"Of course, if you change your mind now, I won't have any objections. I'm sorry for saying that to you in the gym before."
After fighting with Mihawk, Yoriichi's heart completely calmed down. After calming down, Yoriichi couldn't help but reflect on whether it was appropriate for him to "invite" Koshiro Shimotsuki to join the navy in that way.
He actually doesn't want anyone to join the navy under duress. Such people are unlikely to become "seeds of change."
Yunyi attaches great importance to the branch he is about to form. To a certain extent, Yunyi intends to make it perfect.
As for Mihawk, he is different from Koshiro. Mihawk is a pure person, and Yoriichi can easily dye him with his own colors.
"Change your mind?!"
"Lieutenant General Jiguo, you are joking."
"I joined the navy voluntarily. If I have the chance, I actually want to go back to Wano Country."
"I don't want to be like my father, guarding that village forever."
"I actually also long for life on the sea!"
Seeing that Yunichi had spoken out, Koshiro also smiled and spoke out his true feelings. On the lenses of Koshiro's glasses, Yunichi's gentle face was reflected. Looking at the young lieutenant general in front of him, Koshiro's heart no longer had any unhappiness.
"Welcome, Koshiro."
"This time, we really welcome you. Welcome to join our navy!"
Koshiro held Yoriichi's hand, and Yoriichi's smile grew even wider when he noticed Koshiro's movements.
While the two were talking, Mihawk changed into a white navy shirt and black slim-fit trousers, and returned to the deck with Cyrus.
Looking at Mihawk and Cyrus walking towards him, Yunyi's gaze fell on Mihawk and he pressed his temple helplessly.
Is Mihawk afraid of the heat?! Why doesn't he button up his navy shirt properly?!
After coming to Yoriichi's side, Yoriichi introduced Koshiro and Mihawk to each other, so that everyone knew each other.
The sun sets in the west, and the sunlight shines on the deck. A few young people who have just met are chatting while looking at the sea view.
When Vice Admiral Garp returned to the warship after meeting his son, night had already fallen.
He was greeted by Ji Guoyuan and others.
When Garp walked onto the deck, he saw two unfamiliar faces appearing behind Ji Guoyuan for no apparent reason, and his face was full of confusion.
After subconsciously releasing his Observation Haki and sensing the aura of Mihawk and Koshiro, Garp's expression became very strange.
Scratching his hair, Garp couldn't help but ask Yunyi:
"Yuichi, where did you find these two treasures?!"
Yunyi smiled upon hearing this and replied:
"No need to look for it."
“Fate will bring together people like us who share the same interests.”
When Karp heard this, he snorted and said in a muffled voice:
"A little brat. Pretending."
"Let's go! Back to the Seven Water City. By the time we get back, the blueprints for your warship should be ready."
"Go see what that guy Tom can come up with!"
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com