"Master, that guy from earlier was really strong."
As they walked away from the confrontation, Erica spoke calmly beside Mio, though the glint of battle fervor in her eyes betrayed her excitement. Lilith, walking just behind them, showed a similar gleam.
Stronger than herself.
But that didn't mean she would lose.
"Of course he was strong," Mio chuckled. "That guy's a Navy Admiral, after all."
…
At that moment…
Gritting her teeth, Vice Admiral Gion—better known as Taotu—slowly got to her feet, her body aching from the earlier clash. Her sharp gaze focused on the towering man before her.
"Teacher Zephyr…"
The man standing before her was tall and burly, with short purple hair and a commanding presence. He was none other than Admiral Zephyr—the man once renowned as "Zephyr the Non-Killer." Known for his powerful Armament Haki, Zephyr once prided himself on his refusal to take lives. Yet, in this cruel world, especially as a Navy officer tasked with subduing pirates, such ideals now seemed almost laughably naïve.
Currently, Zephyr was in his prime. Though he still held the rank of Admiral, he had long since moved away from frontline duties, opting instead to guide the future of the Navy as an instructor. His students—Akainu and Kizaru—were now Vice Admirals, while Aokiji had recently joined the ranks under his tutelage.
Unlike the tragic figure he would become in the future, this Zephyr was still whole, still strong—and still driven by conviction.
Even so, Mio felt no fear of Zephyr. His "non-killing" reputation offered at least some reassurance.
"Teacher Zephyr, what brings you here?" Taotu asked, clutching at her side, where her injury was still bleeding slightly.
"Sengoku requested me to come," Zephyr said with a sigh. "He said this area might pose a potential danger. I happened to be returning to headquarters after supervising training at the Naval Academy. I was passing by and came to assist."
"Were those pirates earlier your target?"
"Yes," Taotu nodded. "The Black Crow Pirates. They've just emerged from the North Blue and entered the Grand Line. It's been about a month since they were first reported."
Zephyr's eyes widened slightly. "Newcomers already this strong? That slash earlier… it wasn't something an ordinary rookie could pull off. Even in the first half of the Grand Line, such power is rare."
Taotu smiled bitterly. "Exactly why Admiral Sengoku asked me to keep an eye on them."
Zephyr nodded gravely. "A newcomer with that much potential… He could easily surpass most average Navy officers. Right now, only a few can handle someone like that. The others are all deployed in the New World."
"You should return to headquarters and recover from your wounds," Zephyr added.
"No," Taotu shook her head firmly. "The Black Crow Pirates are too great a threat. In our last fight, I had the upper hand, but now the captain has grown strong enough to defeat me. That progress in such a short time… if we let them continue to grow, they'll become a true nightmare for the Navy. And it's not just him. Even his crew are no ordinary fighters. One of the new members may have eaten a Zoan-type Mythical Beast Devil Fruit."
"I'm the only one in headquarters suited to monitor them for now. Besides, Sengoku promised to send reinforcements. As long as we avoid direct confrontation, the risk isn't too high."
Zephyr shook his head at her stubbornness, then sighed. "Alright, I'll escort you back for now."
"Thank you, Teacher Zephyr."
"By the way," Taotu added, "how's the situation in the New World?"
"As chaotic as ever," Zephyr replied. "The Navy can barely operate there. The pirates are united in their hatred for us, making it hard to advance. Still, we've made some progress. Once things stabilize, we'll pull back from the region. Old man Garp left the New World early, though. Not sure what he's up to."
"I see…"
…
Back at the Alabasta Coast
Mio, Erica, and the rest had returned to the ship. Just as they reached the edge of the deck, a massive figure burst from the sea.
It was Hanba—the giant beast of Mio's crew.
He clutched the torn body of a sea monster, his mouth dripping with blood as he tore into his catch. The scene was feral, almost grotesque, but familiar.
Clearly, he was in the middle of a meal.
"Master!" Hanba called out excitedly upon spotting Mio.
"Hanba, long time no see!" Mio grinned. "Get ready—we're leaving."
With that, he led Erica and the others up the gangway and boarded the ship.
As they stepped aboard, Robin headed directly to her room, a stack of documents in hand. She was clearly eager to analyze the photos she had taken of the Poneglyphs.
Lilith, still holding her thick medical book, turned to Mio. "Master, I'll be in my room reading. Call me if you need anything."
"Go ahead," Mio nodded with a smile.
He then turned to Erica and Warwick. "It's getting late. Erica, get dinner started. Warwick, fetch me a bottle of wine—with ice. We'll set sail after."
"Yes, Master!" both replied in unison.
Soon, Mio found himself alone on deck.
Once they were out at sea, he took out a map and a permanent log pose he had purchased earlier. Walking to the edge of the deck, he pointed forward and shouted:
"Hanba, one o'clock direction—full speed ahead!"
"Understood!" Hanba replied. With that, he tossed aside the sea beast's remains and plunged back into the water, grabbing the ship's underside and pulling it forward with powerful strokes.
The vessel surged across the waves, quickly vanishing into the open sea.
…
With no more reason to remain on deck, Mio returned to his cabin.
Inside, he saw the two Devil Fruits he had recently acquired—one from Doflamingo, the other looted from the Alabasta royal palace. On the table beside them was a small box containing the mysterious black panther cub.
In addition to those two, he had two other Devil Fruits stored away. Unfortunately, their abilities were unknown, so he hadn't dared to use them yet.
All in all, Mio's collection was quite impressive. He was practically swimming in treasure now.
Now that he had some free time, he decided it was the perfect moment for a little fun.
A lottery draw.
And maybe, he thought, it could help raise this little black panther.
Mio figured that the Devil Fruit from Doflamingo was likely an ordinary Zoan-type. If not that, then maybe an Ancient Zoan—but almost certainly not a Mythical Zoan.
Neither of those were particularly valuable to him right now.
So, instead of using them, Mio exchanged both Devil Fruits for two lottery draws.
The Devil Fruits vanished in a flash of light as the system consumed them, replacing them with two glowing counters labeled "Draw Chances: 2".
With a thought, Mio summoned his system panel.
The Gene Fusion System interface opened in front of him. A large roulette wheel slowly materialized before his eyes, its segments spinning with an overwhelming array of genes and powers.
As always, Mio's eyes were drawn to one particular prize: the Super Saiyan Gene.
Rubbing his hands in anticipation, Mio took a deep breath and pulled out a stopwatch.
"Alright… three seconds until 6:00 exactly. That's when I spin."
Three seconds.
Two seconds.
One.
As the final second ticked over to 6:00, Mio's eyes sparkled with excitement. He slammed the [DRAW] button.
The roulette wheel instantly began to spin at high speed, its segments blurring together…
And so, the next chapter of Mio's adventure was about to unfold—with the roll of destiny spinning in his favor.