Disclaimer: I don't own anything from One Piece or High School DxD
Slowly but steadily signs began to pop up from all the way from the Four Seas to the Grand Line that the world as it was known as was all but gone. Reports of pirate activity grew at an alarming rate at each day, the call for the search of riches and adventure being too tempting to be ignored. There was no way of denying what was happening.
The Great Age of Pirates was beginning.
The Navy could only curse their luck. The execution of the pirate known as the Pirate King, Gold Roger, was made public, in order to shatter the spirit of the outlaws that sprawled the seas and islands.
However, no one expected that before his demise, the man would light the fuse that was now considered the bane of all marines.
One Piece. Said by the man himself that it was the amalgamation of his treasures, left somewhere in the vast horizon know as the Grand Line.
But it made no difference of how many pirates were out there. It was the Navy job to stop them, either locking them away of putting them down for good. They would protect the innocent and uphold Justice.
(Years later...)
"Bwahahaha! This is the third time just today! Maybe you should put a bell in his neck as well!"
"Shut up! This is no laughing matter! And don't suggest such idiotic things, he isn't an animal!"
"Might as well be, the kid's got a sixth sense I tell ya. Only way for him to be able to elude you like that Wahaha!"
Marineford is composed of Marineford Town, where the families of the marines that are stationed here live and the Marineford Headquarters, a building that is a large multistory ancient Japanese-stylized palace, with the base bearing the kanji for 'Marines' with the Navy symbol in between. Around the building's four cardinal corners are a small mountain with a small building on top and a flag with the Marines' symbol placed on top of the roofs each.
Being the main base of operations of the Navy, it embodies all that the Navy represents and stands for and how its soldiers and officers should act.
Loudly laughing and bickering in the halls of said headquarters certainly wasn't the wisest thing to do, but given whom these two where, few would dare to say anything against it.
Not only because of the position they held in the Navy, but because they were akin to legends, one more so than other, but nevertheless, they inspire those below them.
They were Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp, known as 'Garp the Fist', and Admiral Sengoku, known by the epithet of 'Sengoku the Buddha'.
Garp, who was having a blast at his old friend's predicament, is a tall, tanned man. Despite being in his fifties he still possesses a physically well developed body, along with a broad chest. The only indication of his age are the sideburns of his hair beginning to whiten, the rest of his unruly hair is of the color black, matching his goatee. Under his right eye resided his iconic stitched scar, similar to a "j". He wore the general attire of his rank, a suit and tie, his being a dark double breasted with a red tie, with a marine coat with epaulets over it, with the kanji for "Justice" plastered on it. The epaulets of most Vice Admirals are blue, but Garp's are black and red.
Glaring daggers at the Vice Admiral stood Sengoku, who was doing his best to avoid strangling the boisterous idiot in front of him. The Admiral is a tall, fair-skinned man, much like his friend, he sported an impressive physique for his age. While in Garp's case his scar was his unique feature, Sengoku's was his large afro hair. To complement his looks, he has black-rimmed glasses with round lenses and a moustache. His attire was similar to that of his coworker, a black double breasted suit with a blue tie and the marine coat over it.
"Its fine, its fine! It's not like the brat left the island, or the headquarters for that matter, so sooner or later he'll show up." Garp barked amidst his laughter
"This is the opposite of fine you dimwit! Having to worry about a kid snooping around aimlessly out of boredom is the last thing I need on my mind; I have a ton of other matters that need my attention!" Sengoku snapped back, the irresponsible streak that Garp has still surprised him after all this years
"Told you to not accept the promotion when Kong offered it…" The scared marine mumbled, sticking his pinky in one of his nostrils
*SLAP*
"GAAAH! Why did you do that for?!" He whined, holding against his chest his hand, that now was glowing red with a another hand imprint
Sengoku gritted his teeth at the childish display before him. "Have at least some decorum while in public! Act according to your station once in a while!"
"Don't be so uptight like that; it will only make you grow older faster." Garp waved off the remark
"You're the one here with white hair here!" Sengoku exclaimed, his eyes threatening to shatter the lenses in front of them from bulging so much out of frustration
"Uh?!" Garp's face blanked in surprise. "Then, forget what I said bwahaha!"
Having enough of the man's antics, Sengoku walked away.
"Don't be like that. I'll help you out with finding the kid." He said, matching Sengoku's pace
They remained for a while in silence before the sound of shuffling filled the corridor. Sengoku glanced to his side out of curiosity and saw the other veteran sticking his hand inside his suit, his expression a light frown.
"Aha!" His face beamed with a smile. He brought his hand out and with it a small bag.
He hastily opened it, and grabbed what was inside it. A rice cracker.
"(munch) (munch) I knew I still had a bag with me." He mused, thoroughly absorbed in the action of eating his snack. "Want one?"
He offered when he noticed Sengoku's dull stare on him.
The Admiral only owlishly blinked at the offer, noticing how much satisfaction the man was getting out of a handful of biscuits.
He then took out of Garp's hand the bag, raising it close to his face, suddenly opening his mouth and attempting to eat all of the crackers in one go.
"AAAAH! What are you doing?! I said only one!" Exclaimed the now desperate Vice Admiral, who jumped at the bespectacled man to try and save his precious snack
\\
"Oooh, this is place is huge! It bet that there are lots of awesome things around here!" Mused an euphoric voice
The voice was also young, too young to the point one wouldn't expect to hear it inside a Marine facility.
Running with a goofy smile and looking at everything that passed by him, was a nine years old boy, Hyoudou Issei. He was rather short- he firmly believes that he's just a late bloomer-, his weight was somewhere between being skinny and chubby, with short, spiky black hair. His big, innocent bright blue eyes were soaking in the new setting that he was in.
The hallways despite matching with the outside appearance of the headquarters, being Japanese-stylized, they were rather plain looking; the floor was composed of wooden boards, of high quality and well preserved by its pristine, the ceiling also made out of wood, but this time devised in small squares. All rooms had the same type of sliding door, all doors sporting the same image of a plant that resembled a bonsai. The lack of personnel roaming the corridors was something that came as a surprise and disappointment for Issei, who was hoping to see some "cool", as he put it, marines. He vaguely knew that the place he was in was where the big shots of the Navy could be found, so he presumed that there would be lots of strong people, capable of all kinds of stuff. But so far he had no luck in finding anyone like that.
For now, what was making the boy excited was the view beyond the wood rails. When he started venturing through the building, he was on one of the upper levels of the tower, meaning that the view encompassed the entire island. The town, which he noticed that was rather large, taking up a good chunk of the available space in the island, the sheer beauty of it mesmerized the young boy for a while, but what really made him smile was the sight of the sea. From one end to the other, all he could see was the blue color, stretching as far as the horizon went. The breeze carrying the salty scent was something he couldn't get enough of it, no matter how many times he smelled it.
"Ready, fire!"
*BANG*
The sound of gunshots made Issei involuntarily flinch and stop his daydreaming about the sea. His curiosity immediately got the best of him; he poked his head in between the rails to take a look at what was bellow him. What he saw made him smile from ear to ear.
Bellow him there was a large patio, full of marines in the middle of their training. He first spotted the group which had drawn his attention. Standing a few meters away from a group of dummies were the soldiers responsible for the loud noises of moments ago, they were now reloading their rifles as a higher ranking officer observed them at their side.
Scattered throughout the patio there was groups of marines focusing on different trainings; some were practicing their hand to hand combat, others were dealing with their swordsmanship, endurance and so on.
"Maaa, do we really need to do this today? Even Zephyr-sensei took a break so why shouldn't we do the same?" A tired voice inquired
"Enough of your inertia Kuzan. Only when you reach he's level you're allowed to consider such things." A steely voice replied
Not long after Issei saw three men walking through the patio and he could see with just a glance that they were different than the rest of the marines down there. They had a completely different clothing, while the others wore the standard sailor attire, theirs was anything but. From what Issei could see, since they were with their backs turned to him, they walked with one of them at the front, seemingly leading the small group. This one wore a red shirt and khaki pants and the other two, one with a suit of various shades of yellow and the other with a dark-blue trench coat, gave the impression of being less than excited about the whole ordeal.
Despite that visual discrepancy, what really made the trio stand out was the presence that they exerted. The rest of the marines that were at the patio couldn't even begin to compare with these three; they acted almost as a beacon, impossible not to notice. A good number of those that were practicing even stopped their activities to look at the newcomers.
The different attires, the absurd presence that could mean only one thing for Issei: those guys must be strong and know lots of cool stuff!
"Neee Sakazuki, I don't know why you want to get stronger so fast. You're already plenty scary with that scowl of yours you knooow?" A new drawled voice spoke up, belonging to the one with the suit
The now named Sakazuki didn't even bat an eye to compliment/jab at him. "Be as it may, getting stronger will only benefit the Navy against the pirate scum."
The trio moved to a more secluded spot of the patio, making them the most isolated group in there.
"Knowing you, you'll start without holding back won't you?" Asked the one with the trench coat
"Of course."
The one in the suit shook his head. "Gee, you can be worse than Zephyr-sensei you knoow?"
What happened next was something that Issei would never forget.
Out of nowhere the three marines began to physically change. Issei gaped when Sakazuki arm began to melt, his skin gaining a dark red color, his arm was barely recognizable as smoke began to flow off of it.
To only increase the boy's disbelief, the ground beneath the one with the trench coat began to freeze, the drop in temperature causing his breathing to become visible as he exhaled through his mouth, the ice starting to appear on one of his shoulders.
"Although it would be best to hold back as to not disturb our fellow marines don't you thiiink?" Added the suited one
He then crossed his arm, forming an X, and without delay his hands began to glow an extremely bright light, causing Issei and many marines to narrow their eyes or cover them with their hands.
Taking the light as a signal, the other two dashed forward, their attacks meeting each other halfway.
From then on, all that Issei could see was blurs of red, blue and yellow, his untrained eyes being unable to follow and comprehend what was happening. He only knew that they were fighting because occasionally a shockwave would ripple throughout the patio, knocking back a few of the marines.
Even if he couldn't make heads or tails of what was happening, Issei watched the spectacle with stars in the place of his eyes.
"OOOH! So badass! I need to get a closer look!"
Issei then stepped away from the rail and ran in order to find the staircase that would downstairs. He had reached the end of the corridor that he was in and was about to take the turn to continue his way.
"(sigh) Those knuckleheads have been warned not to train with their abilities in any of the patios without Zephyr and yet there they go." A stern voice reached Issei's ear but unfortunately, it was too late
*BUMP*
"Uff!"
He fell on his bottom after bumping with whoever was in front of him
"Are you alright Tsuru-san?"
"Now isn't this a rare sight around here?"
Issei looked up and saw three ladies in front of him. The oldest of the three seemed to be the one he ended up hitting, as one of the other two was fretting over her well being. The other young lady was staring at him curiously after her rhetoric question.
"It was nothing." Tsuru said in the same stern tone Issei had heard
Tsuru locked eyes with Issei, before the boy's gaze caved under its intensity and settle for throwing quick glances in her way.
The woman was rather tall and equally thin, having an aged appearance thanks to the wrinkles in her face, her fading blue hair was tied in a loose ponytail. If the situation weren't alarming, Issei would find funny the light orange shirt that she wore and was left hanging out, with its sleeves rolled up with a tie around her neck. She also had the marine coat draped on her shoulders, which meant that there was a good chance of her being a high ranking official; the epaulets of her coat had the purple color. Her lips were set in a thin line as her expression betrayed none of her thoughts as she still eyed Issei.
"If you are certain Vice Admiral." Added the concerned officer before falling silent behind the older woman
He sighed inwardly. While he knew little of the Navy's ranks, he knew that if the rank had in any form the name 'Admiral' attached to it, then the person was certain to be a renowned and influential figure. Just his luck to bump into one.
She stared at for a while longer before crouching; she then reached for him with one of her hands.
He tensed, thinking that he was about to be reprimanded, but was surprise when the hand simply landed on his head and started to gently ruffle his hair.
"Now what is a cute kid such as you doing around here? Are you perhaps lost little one?" She asked in a kind tone
Surprised by the changed in the woman's attitude, Issei only eyed her for a moment before taking notice of her question.
"N-not really, I was just looking around for anything fun." He blushed a bit under the gazes
The younger two officers giggled at his reasoning, finding him cute.
"I see, and did you have any luck with your search?" Tsuru asked, still ruffling his hair
"At first no," He sulked, but then beamed a smile at the three ladies. "But not long ago I saw some guys doing really awesome moves, I mean; I think that they were moves since I couldn't really see it, but even then…"
This time even Tsuru couldn't help but giggle at the boy, seeing him trying so hard to explain whatever it was that he had seen. She had a pretty good idea of what it was that he was mentioning, but it very funny to see him trying to put into words the Devil Fruit abilities he had seen.
"You mean those three idiots flaunting their skills at the patio?" She interrupted the boy's musings; otherwise it would take a while until he was finished
Under her hand Issei tilted his head, with a confused expression that was adorable to the three.
"I don't know about the idiot's part, but if you're talking about the ice man, shiny man and the one that was melting then yeah. I was on my way to take a closer look!" He exclaimed with a smile
Tsuru chuckled at the nicknames of the three newest Vice Admirals, finding the boy's cheery and innocent attitude endearing.
"Did a relative of yours brought you here?"
Issei nodded in affirmative.
"Then, let's make a deal: I will have to go down there to warn those three to stop before they destroy the place, so if you come with me and if, and only if, you stay close to me at all times, you'll get to have a closer look. But then afterwards, we will have to look for whoever is responsible for you. How does that sound to you?"
Tsuru had already won him over when she offered to take him with her, no matter the conditions to do so. His smile reached his eyes.
"Really?! That would be amazing!" He exclaimed, almost jumping out of joy
The older marine then stood up and offered Issei a hand. "The let's go…"
She arched her eyebrows, silently inquiring the kid's name, something which Issei fortunately caught up.
"Issei. Hyoudou Issei!" He said with a bright smile
"A lovely name. I'm Tsuru."
"Nice to meet you Tsuru-chan!" He chirped
A warm smile graced her expression at the boy's honorific. "Likewise, Issei-kun."
Still smiling, Issei grabbed Tsuru's hand a pick himself up from the ground.
"ISSEI!"
"So that's the kid huh?"
Two new voices boomed from the other end of the corridor, Issei flinching at hearing his name being shouted.
Tsuru turned towards the direction of the shouting, having an idea who the newcomers were by their voices but curious as to how one of those two knew the boy.
And as she expect, she saw standing two of her oldest acquaintances; Sengoku, albeit a bit winded and frowning, and with his head popping out from behind the bespectacled man, was Garp.
"Oh? If it isn't Tsuru-chan." Garp commented
"Grandpa Sengoku!" Issei gasped before hiding behind Tsuru's legs
The female officers parroted what Issei had said, shocked at what had just been blurred out. Tsuru for her part had widened eyes at the new piece of information.
"I finally found you! Do you know on how much trouble you could have gotten yourself into?!" Sengoku exclaimed, ignoring the shocked ladies and marching towards his grandson
"Sengoku." Tsuru's tone was once more stern, cutting short Sengoku's stride
"Ah! Tsuru?" He dumbly said, finally taking notice of the person standing in between him and Issei
"Is what he said just now true?" She inquired with narrowed eyes, challenging him to say anything but the truth
"Y-yes."
"Then how could you just let him roam around without anyone supervising him?" She admonished the Admiral
Both Issei and Garp were holding in their laughter at Sengoku's abashed expression, who was feeling like a child being reprimanded.
"Wha- It's not like I allowed him to do so! In a moment he simply vanished from my office while I was dealing with the last of the paperwork regarding the reconstruction of the island after Shiki's invasion."
"Really, paperwork? That's your excuse for being careless with a child?" She stated, not impressed with the man's defense
Sengoku was about to argue when someone spoke first.
"UOOH!"
The two found a dazzlingly Issei staring intently at Garp, who looked at the kid with a baffled expression.
"I didn't do anything!" He declared when he noticed the stares that had settled on him
Tsuru glanced back and forth between where Issei now was and where he had stood moments ago, behind her legs. The boy really had a knack for moving swiftly, she now had a better understanding of how he gave the slip on Sengoku. That doesn't mean that he's excuse though.
"You're Garp right? Garp the Fist? The one who faced off the Pirate King right?" Issei showered the man with questions
Garp only nodded lamely, which made Issei glow even more.
"So cool! Is it true that only fight with punches? You must be so strong! What is it like to fight all this legends like Whitebeard?"
The man could only blink at the barrage that was being thrown at him.
"Ara, you saying it like that…" He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed with all the praise
"Why are you getting all flustered?!" Sengoku barked before turning to Issei
Before Issei could react, he grabbed the boy by the scruff of his shirt, lifting him off the floor with ease.
"You're coming with me, enough of your little adventure for today." He decided
"Eh? No way Gramps! Tsuru-chan said she would take me to see those guys that were making those crazy moves! You can't do this to me!" Issei protested while flailing his arms and legs in the air
Not that deterred the Admiral in the slightest.
"I not only can but I will. Do not test my patience any further young man." The tone of finality was more than enough for Issei to give up all hope
Sengoku then started to make his way back to his office, still carrying Issei the same way he had picked him up.
"I'll see you around Garp-san, Tsuru-chan!" The boy waved the Vice Admirals off
The two waved back at the boy, watching him disappear with his grandfather.
"An interesting boy." Tsuru commented, her two subordinates nodding in agreement
"Well, he certainly has all the enthusiasm Sengoku lacks wahaha." Garp added his two cents
\\
Issei spent the rest of the afternoon with his grandfather, with no chance of escaping again as Sengoku seemed to know his intentions even before he set them in motion. That was something that really scared the life out of him; it was almost as if the old man could read his mind!
When Sengoku decided to call it a day, it was already night time. He picked Issei up again, to avoid him wandering around if something happens to catch his eye and made his way to Marineford Town.
That didn't mean the way back was boring for Issei. Being for the first time in the town, he took his time to observe it.
It was surprisingly… normal, unlike the headquarters, the houses and stores didn't follow the trend of Japanese style, rather looking like the same as any other town he had visited with his father, although the state of both the streets and buildings made it look like the town had just recently been build. The stores were buildings up to two-story, varying from bars to barbershops, coffee shops and such. Issei also noted that the town was very quiet, whereas in others places it would full of people speaking, animals such as dogs barking, occasionally a theft. Issei would be really surprised if the last one were to happen in here.
"Where are we going Gramps?" Issei asked, still taking in his surroundings
"To my house. Your new place, you could say." Sengoku answered, his eyes still looking straight ahead. "It's on a more isolated part of the town."
"Why's that?"
"The higher raking officers all have bigger houses on a more secluded space, to have more peace when not dealing with anything work related; its serves as a bonus that comes with your station." Sengoku explained
"What about the rest of the marines?" The boy continued his inquire
"The infantry and sailor division have dormitories inside the headquarters whenever they're stationed here. If a marine reaches the ranking of Commander and aren't assigned elsewhere, you're given the opportunity of having a house in a random part of this town, minus where we are going, to live by yourself or with your family if you have any."
"Then Tsuru-chan and Garp-san live nearby?" Issei asked expectantly
"… You could say that, although it is rare for them to stop by their houses here, since they're often on assignments all over the seas."
"On the seas? Must be nice…" Issei mused to himself in a low tone, but even then Sengoku was able to hear him and raised an eyebrow, curious with his reaction
\\
"Here we are. Feel free to look around while I'll fix us something to eat."
Barely having finished speaking and Issei had already set off to explore his new home.
The first space that he found was the living room, which had two light purple large sofas with a small coffee table in between them. It seemed like his grandfather wasn't much of a materialistic person, since there was a lot of empty space in the room. There were two doors aside from the one he just came in, one leading to the dining room and the other, which grabbed the boy's attention, lead to a medium sized open area.
The moonlight illuminated the courtyard; allowing him to see the walls of the gate that enclosed the house and delimited the open space. In one of the corners, it could be found a shed that Issei was sure to explore another day.
Issei lay down on the ground, facing the moon and the stars, simply relaxing as the cool breeze of the night passed by with the whistling of the wind. He closed his eyes, enjoying the peaceful moment.
Unfortunately, the moment didn't last long, as something began to poke at Issei's forehead. The boy frowned, eyes still closed, when the sensation suddenly stopped. His features were starting to soften again when the poking returned with renewed vigor.
"Knock it off!" He demanded, having had enough of whatever it was bothering him
He turned to face the responsible party; he froze at the unexpected sight.
"Beee."
Staring at him with its black orbs filled with the utmost innocence, completely unaware that his actions had bothered the boy, stood a goat, a baby one at that, given his small size and even smaller horns.
Not knowing what to make of Issei's facial expression as the boy stared at him, the goat simply tilted its head to the side; the boost in cuteness would surely make any girl swoon at him.
"Issei, dinner's ready." Sengoku made himself know in the small porch that lead back to the living room
Having ditched the suit and coat in favor of something more comfortable, Sengoku now wore a pair of loosen blue pants with a white tank top shirt, showing the result of years of hard work and training in his arms and torso.
"Where did he come from Gramps?" Issei asked while reaching for the goat's head with his hand
Sengoku glanced at the quadruped before brushing his afro with a hand.
"Garp gave him to me, said that maybe the little guy would make me loosen up a bit." He grunted, clearly annoyed with the antics of the eccentric man. "Careful though, he's still tries every now and then to bite stuff."
"Don't worry Gramps, Dad always says that I have a way with anima-" He declared
*BITE*
With eyes the size of saucers, Issei stared at his trembling hand, as his fingers, minus the thumb, comically grew in size and became as red as a tomato.
"YAAAH! My haaand!" He screamed before running in circles
Sengoku pinched the bridge of his nose. He was sure that the number of his daily headaches would only increase from now on.
\\
After Sengoku calmed Issei down- in his own way- the duo moved to the dining room with the goat following closely the marine veteran.
Like the rest of the house, at least the part Issei had seen, the room was simple, with nothing that grabbed one's attention. On the center of the table could be seen a big plate with soba noodles, with a small bowl of dipping sauce in front of each chair.
They sat and gave grace for the food, a comfortable silence settling in the room afterwards.
"Hey Gramps, what's his name?" Issei asked while getting more noodles from the plate
"(slurp) To whom are you referring?" Sengoku replied
"The goat." Issei pointed at the animal with his chopsticks
Said goat was currently laid down in one of the corners of the room, content on watching the two humans. He showed no visible change at being the center of their attention.
"He doesn't have one. It's been barely two weeks since Garp dropped him here and I didn't have the spare time to worry about naming him."
"Then can I choose one for him?" The boy asked, jolting out of eagerness
"Make sure to pick a good one then." Sengoku conceded instantly
"Leave it to me Gramps!" He declared before returning to his food
Sengoku chuckled at his grandson. Even with his face almost inside of his bowl and his mouth full of noodles, it wasn't enough to hide his smile.
After finishing his portion, Sengoku rested the bowl in the table then crossed his arms over his chest.
"Issei, how was your father doing?"
The boy only blinked at the question, a lone noodle strip hanging from his mouth.
"(slurp) Dad? He was the same as usual, aside from being very excited with the new job he took before he contacted you about sending me here." He said before taking another mouthful of noodles. "The lady who hired him this time was also pretty nice, even if she seemed to be in a hurry; she even bought me some ice cream!"
"Did you happen to catch her name?"
"Hmm… I don't remember it. She did have white hair, it was really pretty. And I remember she said she's an archio-no, archeologist?" He half asked
"Archaeologist." Sengoku corrected, his hands balling into fists under his arms and his countenance turned stony
"Yeah that one!"
"I see." His grandfather simply said before closing his eyes
Silence once more settled in the room, but not like the first time, the mood in the room now had a grim feel to it. Issei was lost as to why his grandfather looked so serious, almost aggravated. It was making him uncomfortable, thinking that he said something wrong.
"Er… Gramps?" He called
For a moment that felt far longer than it really was Sengoku didn't make a single move or showed any sign of having heard Issei. And with that, Issei's discomfort with the current mood grew by the second.
…
"Yes?" Sengoku asked after what felt like an eternity to the boy
The mood suffered an immediate shift after that. Gone was the grimness, as was the hardened look in Sengoku's expression. He still maintained a neutral face as he waited for Issei to speak up.
"M-my baggage, the marine that spoke to me when I arrived took it." He explained
Sengoku nodded. "Momonga was off duty at that moment so I asked him to look after you upon your arrival, since I wouldn't be able to do so. Don't worry; your baggage is upstairs in your room."
"Can I go take a look?"
"Of course. I'll handle the table. It's the second door on the left."
Issei dashed from his chair to the staircase, the goat following him.
Even after the sounds of Issei's footsteps faded, Sengoku remained in the same position, pondering on what the boy had said.
He took his glasses off, resting them on the table and then rubbed his tired eyes. He released a long sigh.
"For you to even leave him with me… what are you getting yourself into Hikigaya?"
\\
"Hey, stop pushing! You've got plenty of space there!"
Issei was now in his bed that was quite big for him but very comfortable. He was now struggling with his new animal friend, who had taken upon himself to occupy more space than he was physically capable of.
When he reached his room, he found his baggage close to the closets that were on the wall at the side of the door. He hastily opened it and grabbed a spare set of clothes, wanting to go to sleep. He would deal with unpacking in the morning.
His room was spartan like, aside from the closets and bed it only had a desk with a chair and a curtain to block the light that came from out of the window. It didn't really bother Issei; he would have all time to make the room feel like it was his later.
They both stopped their little wrestling when they heard knocking on the door.
"Come on in." Issei said
As expected, when the door opened Sengoku came in.
"Everything alright in here? Is the bed any good?"
"We're good; the bed is the best Gramps! I think this is the biggest one I've ever seen."
"I'm glad you like it. I forgot to mention earlier that there is another person living here."
Issei perked up at that little bit.
"Oh? Where's that person then?"
"He's away on an assignment. He should be back in a few days." Sengoku said as he leaned on the closet
"What's he like then?"
"He's a…" He gave an exasperated sigh, not being able to find the right words. "You'll see when he comes back."
"Oh, okay then." The boy said
Not having anything else to add, Sengoku bid him good night before turning to leave the room.
"Hey Gramps?" He suddenly called
"Yes?"
"I want to become a marine."
Sengoku held his breath. His eyes widened, surprised by such an honest and upfront statement. He never pegged his grandson for one that would seek this lifestyle, given that so far in his life he mostly lived with only his father.
"I have no desire of joining the Navy Pops."
To this day Sengoku remembers the night when he son said those words, when he had decided to leave to see the world with his own eyes.
Sengoku smiled. Life really was full of surprises.
"Hoh? And why's that?"
Issei grinned, almost splinting his face, and puffed his chest out.
"I want to be strong! Strong enough to pull off those flashy moves that I saw earlier!" He exclaimed
By now, Sengoku already knew what "flashy moves" Issei was so infatuated with and despite knowing that the kid wouldn't be able to do those specific attacks, there were no shortage of techniques for him to learn and try to master.
"And why do you want to be strong?" Sengoku probed further
If possible, Issei's grin grew even further.
"I want to be just as strong as Mom!"
"… That's it?"
"Yep!"
*BONK*
"OW! Why did you do that Gramps?!" Issei demanded while rubbing the top of his head
"That alone is not a good enough reason to join the Navy."
"Eh?! Why not?! What would be a good reason then?" Issei asked curiously
"That is for you to find out." Sengoku said before walking out of the room
…
"Geez, hitting me out of nowhere." The boy said before lying down.
"Not a good enough reason." He mimicked his grandfather. "What do you think he meant by that?" He asked his furry friend
"Beee."
"Figures. Good night." He said before accommodating himself in the bed
Out in the hallway, Sengoku mulled over the conversation as he walked towards his room.
"He wants to be like his mother." He shivered at the thought.
"BEEEE."
"Crap!"
"Issei get back on the couch." Sengoku demanded without even looking away from the documents on his desk
Issei found himself spending another day in his grandfather's office. The room had green mats and beige walls. Looming over Sengoku was a portrait the size of a plank, full of kanji's that meant "Justice Over All".
And just like yesterday, Issei was bored out of his mind, having nothing to do.
"But Gramps, I'm hungry!" He whined
"No you're not, you just had breakfast. Now sit down."
Issei sighed, dropping on the sofa. If he only he was able to sneak out of there…
"And you! I thought I could trust you, you traitor!" He accused
He closed in on the one who wronged him, brown eyes almost touching black eyes.
The goat blinked at the accusation before liking the boy's face, seemingly amused by his attitude.
"(sigh) Why do I even try?" He wondered
Not wanting to divide his attention between work and making sure Issei doesn't run off to God knows where, Sengoku put the animal on guard duty, so that every time Issei attempts to flee, the goat would go off like an alarm. For an animal that hadn't even lived a month with the Admiral, he certainly had learned impressive tricks.
"What to do, what to do?" Issei muttered
He continued to sulk for a while, until something in his mind clicked. He checked on Sengoku, who was absorbed with his work, paying him no mind.
"How about we make a deal?" He whispered to the animal
The goat, who at first was staring at nothing, slowly turned its head in the boy's direction, his eyes twinkling.
"I was planning on holding these until later, but I don't have much choice now."
He reached inside his pants pockets.
\\
"The Beast Pirates are becoming quite the nuisance." Sengoku commented as he piled the reports regarding pirate activity at his side
He grabbed another pile and, out of reflex, glanced at the sofas before returning to the paper in front of him. One moment later he froze, eyes widening as his mind finally caught up with what he had seen.
He snapped his head in the direction of the sofas. "Wha-!"
He almost jumped out of his chair before quickly reaching the source of his shock. A thick mark grew in his forehead.
"I don't believe it, that little rascal!"
Instead of seeing a boy and a goat on the sofa, there was only the goat. A goat that was happily munching on some infuriatingly familiar rice crackers, Issei's spot now filled with crumbs.
"Beee." The animal happily chirped
"ISSEEII!" The Admiral bellowed
\\
"Hehe I'm so going to hear it later." Issei concluded as he heard his grandfather outraged yell reverberating through the hallways
Once more running in the headquarters corridors, Issei tried to remember the path he took that lead him to that training patio, hoping to catch a glimpse of the marines training regime again.
Unfortunately, his enthusiasm of yesterday dimmed his attention to details, causing him to more than once stop to think about where he should go. This time he also saw a few people along the way, mostly low ranking marines, given that they wore the standard sailor outfit, that did show some surprise at seeing a boy as young as Issei roaming in a Navy facility, but made no move to stop or question him.
He eventually managed to find the same hallway that he had been while watching the training session the other day, and much to his glee, there were some people at the patio, albeit a smaller number and the three that had stood out from the rest were nowhere in sight.
This time Issei made sure of walking calmly when taking the turn at the end of the corridor, not taking any chances of going face first into someone again and was able to quickly find the staircase that would lead him to the training area.
Or so it should have been.
"Huh? What's this?"
Issei's feet glued to the floor, the hoarse voice making him hesitate. Just when he was reaching the first step of the stairs, another person was also about to do the same, only that he was coming from the opposite direction.
Even with Issei being on higher ground, he had to look up in order to see the face of who stood in way. The moment he did it, he immediately felt the urge to look away, as he was greeted with a piercing gaze. Having some experience in being under such intense stare, he was able to ignore the urge.
Issei recognized the person; it was one of the three he had briefly seen yesterday, the one that melted. He was sure that at one point his name was mentioned but he couldn't remember it, but what he did recalled was that of the small group, the red shirted one seemed the less friendly.
A remark that was only reinforced by the scowl aimed at Issei. For a moment, the man's eyes widened in genuine surprise, over what Issei had no idea, and then they quickly narrowed, aiming at the boy a dark look.
"The minimum age required to join the Navy is thirteen, something you're clearly not." He stated
He landed his feet on the last step of the staircase, making him seem even bigger and intimidating to Issei.
"What are you doing here brat?"
Although it was said like a question, his tone left no doubt that it was anything but. He was ordering the boy. Issei had been called brat before, mostly when he annoyed Sengoku, but it held no ill meaning. The way the man before him spat it, it was derogatory, demeaning.
Issei could feel a lump in his throat, the atmosphere was now oppressive, as if it was about to crush him, shrinking under the man's stare. Even then, he refused to look away, his gaze still locked with the scowling man. Even if it was pointless, maybe he was just frozen out of fear and couldn't budge a muscle, in his mind he refused to back down on that. That was something that his mother drilled in him, try to stand your ground.
The marine raised an eyebrow at the boy. On another situation, he might have found commendable the kid showing some backbone, however, this time this petty defiance only served to irritate him.
He forcibly grabbed Issei's forearm, the boy grimacing from the pain caused by it. He was able to still maintain his gaze in the man.
"I want an answer. Now." He sharply demanded
Not long after he said so, the area of the forearm which the palm of the marines hand was covering began to heat up. It wasn't hot enough to hurt, yet, but as it gradually grew hotter and didn't show any sign of stopping, a sense of dread griped Issei insides, not understanding what was happening.
Just when the heat was becoming unbearable, as if his arm was way too close to a furnace, a hand suddenly gripped the marine's pulse. Not a second later the heat lowered, as if it had never been there and the weight on his shoulders disappeared, the atmosphere once more light.
"And just what do you think you're doing Sakazuki?" A raspy voice interjected
Said marine clicked his tongue, albeit not loud enough to be heard by anyone else, cursing his luck. "I was just trying to get answers Zephyr-sensei."
At the honorific, Issei snapped his head in the direction of the newcomer. The chance of seeing the man who trained the antagonistic marine, who was undeniably strong, wasn't something he would miss.
When his eyes landed on his "savior", they widened so much that for a second he thought that they would fall off.
If Sakuzuki was one of the tallest person's Issei had seen up-close, then Zephyr was a giant for the boy. Not only that but even with his purple suit - which Issei found funny as it matched his hair color- it was easy to see he was more than physically apt, as his suit almost hugged his body.
Zephyr's defined jaw clenched, not satisfied with the Vice Admiral's actions in the least. His clear blue eyes were boring at Sakazuki, waiting to see if he would say anything else.
He threw a glance to Sakazuki's hand firmly wrapped around the boys arm. "Of course you were."
He applied more strength in his grip. Sakazuki narrowed his eyes, holding back a grimace at the pressure and released Issei's arm, Zephyr following suit afterwards.
"Go on ahead. The others are probably already there." He ordered
Sakazuki despite being clearly unsatisfied with this turn of events obeyed and marched off.
"I swear, out of all of them, those three are the most troublesome." Zephyr sighed before turning to the boy
Issei was momentarily distracted, as he was rubbing his arm in the place where he was held, trying to shake off the numbness that overcame it. Zephyr eyes softened at the sight and decided to kneel, attempting to look less intimidating to the boy.
"Sorry about that, that one is quite rough around the edges. Did he hurt you?"
Issei broke out of his musing at that. "N-not really, he did surprise me though."
He glanced at the now fading red imprint left on his arm. Zephyr frowned at that.
"I'm sure he did." He gave Issei a smile. "You're Sengoku's grandson aren't you?"
"How did you know?"
Zephyr gave a hearty laugh at Issei's shocked expression and ruffled his hair.
"Tsuru told about her encounter with you yesterday. You really left a good impression on her you know?
"Really?" Issei beamed
Zephyr nodded. "She spoke with an amused smile about you, something quite rare for her."
"You were trying to peek at the marines training again weren't you?" He questioned with a knowing smile
Issei bashfully confirmed.
Zephyr's smile grew a bit. "Then how about coming with me? There will be a lot of 'awesome moves' for you to marvel at." He quoted the boy
"Can I?" He wondered
Zephyr shrugged "Or I could just take you back to Sengoku..."
"No way! I definitely want to go with you!"
Zephyr laughed again before picking Issei up and plopping him on his shoulder. "Then let's go. Don't want to keep the others waiting for long."
\\
They soon reached an outdoor area, with a small group. Zephyr had told him along the way that when he found the boy and Sakazuki, he was heading to a training area to oversee how the men were fairing as they practiced.
The moment Issei's eyes landed on the men that were waiting, he thought that the training here would be worlds apart from what he had seen in the other patio. For one, most if not all of those present were dressed in a similar fashion to Tsuru, Garp and Sengoku, so the chances of they being high up on the food chain were good. The other factor was that, even for the nine years old boy, it was clear as day that all of them were battle hardened, some with scars to prove.
Amidst the sea of strangers, thanks to his temporary boost in height, Issei was able to spot some familiar faces. Sakazuki, still scowling; the one with ice, Kuzan with a bored look on his face and the "shiny man" as he dubbed him, since he didn't know his real name, with a mild curious expression as he regarded Issei. It was the last face that he recognized that he waved at, the one that greeted him when he arrived.
Momonga had been a pleasant surprise for the boy. When he first had seen the marine, even with his hair set in a mohawk that reminded Issei of a cockscomb and his pronounced mustache, it didn't diminished the man's serious demeanor, his sharps eyes staring at him as he traversed the docks in his direction while the marine personnel got off the warship. So it came as a surprise when the strictly business looking man casually asked Issei if he had enjoyed the trip in the warship and other trivial things as he took the shortest path to the headquarters, towards Sengoku's office. So by that small interaction, him alongside Tsuru, Zephyr and Garp were on Issei's "nice people" list, so to say.
At first, Momonga merely arched an eyebrow at the small bundle frantically waving in Zephyr's shoulder, only a moment later to realizing that not only it was aimed at him, but that he knew who it was. He cracked a small smile and gave the boy a slow nod, acknowledging his greeting.
Issei gave a smile of his own in response.
"Alright kid, soon everyone will be here and I'll speak a few words before they get started. Go sit on one of those benches by the corners of the courtyard to enjoy the show." Zephyr instructed
"Okay!" Issei replied, not really paying attention
As soon as he was dropped on the floor, he ran towards his acquaintance, completely ignoring what was said to him seconds ago.
Zephyr entertained the idea of calling him briefly, but discarded the thought. He had quickly caught on that the boy was going in Momonga's direction and having spent so much time with him during both his growth as a marine and a person, he was able to easily see traces of amusement in the stern looking man's expression.
"Heh, he really acts nothing like his grandfather." Zephyr mused
Until they started, he saw no problem with Issei speaking with one his pupils.
"Momonga-san!" Issei called as he approached said man
"Good morning." Greeted Momonga as he looked down at Issei. "Enjoying your stay, I hope?"
Issei nodded enthusiastically. "I've met some cool people!"
"Did you know?"
"Yep! Yesterday I've met Tsuru-chan and her subordinates, Garp-san and today Zephyr-san!" He listed while counting with his fingers to further express the amount
Momonga stroked his mustache as he took in what Issei said. "You certainly seem to like to interact with influential figures. Although, given who you're related to it shouldn't come as a surprise."
"Zephyr-san is as well known as Gramps?" Issei asked
He had already figured that the giant of a man had some pull, given how he dealt with Sakazuki and that he was here to observe the others, but he didn't think that it extended so far.
"He didn't say anything?" Momonga asked, surprised. "Zephyr-sensei has the same rank as your grandfather. He's one of the strongest in our organization, an Admiral."
Issei's mind halted at the news and as it tried to reboot, the information kept echoing in his mind. He was sitting moments ago on the shoulders of one of the Greatest Military Powers. Not like it was a first, since he had done the same with Gramps- but that didn't count! Gramps was… well, Gramps.
Momonga chuckled seeing Issei come to grips with this new piece of information.
"Alright, it seems we're good to go." Zephyr powerful voice declared
Barely a heartbeat later, every conversation ended, Zephyr receiving the full attention of those present. Even Momonga after ruffling Issei's hair turned towards the Admiral.
"It's good to that you're still all alive and kicking. Seems that you lot didn't slacked during my lessons as much as I initially thought." He said, half joking and half serious
"However, as I've said countless times and will repeat as much as I deem necessary, never and I do mean never, take your strength for granted. In our world it only takes one small slip to find yourself facing the sharp end of a blade. There's always someone stronger than you out there, so keep honing your skills." He lectured and everyone, including an awed Issei, listened with rapt attention
Even if for most of them it was nothing new.
"To prove a point, we'll have a small demonstration before we begin." Zephyr stated when he saw that the men before him thought he was done
Well, not this time.
The group as a whole froze in their tracks. Some shuffled their feet; Issei could hear some muttering like "Oh shit", "Fuck me sideways" and so on. Curious, Issei glanced at Momonga at his side, who uncharacteristically looked unnerved, his hand resting in the handle of his katana that was sheathed and resting in his waist.
"W-what's wrong Momonga-san? Why is everyone acting like this?" He inquired, slightly worried
Said marine gave an exasperated sigh. "From the very first time we trained under his tutelage when he had the time to spare, he always started with this speech, a few changes here and there each time, but the core message was the same nevertheless. A demonstration however… I can't even remember the last time he did one."
"But one thing I clearly remember. Zephyr-sensei was never one to hold back, so whoever he picked to assist him had a taste of one of the Navy's finest prowess at first hand. It was enlightening, yes, but also boarded on fatal."
"But aren't you guys like, super strong now?" Asked a confused Issei, he failed to see why they were nervous
The experienced marine chuckled, amused with Issei's comment. "I think in this situation it would more correct to say that Zephyr-sensei is super-strong while the rest is just strong. And that is not enough, trust me, even Sengoku-san would have a hard time against him."
Issei gaped at that, but didn't have time to verbalize it.
"Sakazuki, come over here to help me out." Zephyr spoke
Many relaxed knowing that they wouldn't be on the receiving end of the Admiral's demonstration.
On the other hand, at sight of the red shirted man, he unconsciously began to rub his arm where he had been held earlier, watching apprehensively Sakazuki as he walked towards Zephyr.
His reaction was something that Momonga did not miss. He eyed his superior, whose eyes were intently following Sakazuki.
"I see." He murmured
Now things were making more sense. Zephyr was just using an excuse to give Sakazuki a thrashing.
Seeing the Vice Admiral stopping a good distance away from him, Zephyr spoke. "Now then, the main point here is about Devil Fruits. Always remember that no matter how impressive the power it gives to the user, it does not make you invincible." He then turned to the man in front of him. "Logias included."
Sakazuki scoffed at the subtle reprimand, arms folded over his chest. As teacher and student stared at each other, tension and anticipation grew in spades, though the only one to demonstrate being bothered by it was Issei, as the marines schooled their expression, calmly waiting.
"Are you ready?" Zephyr inquired
"Whenever you're up t-GAH!"
Issei had to blink multiple times to give time to his brain caught up with what had transpired before his eyes.
At one second Sakazuki was talking, then the moment he blinked not only he heard grunting but Sakazuki was skidding in the air before hitting the floor and brusquely rolling on it as Zephyr stood in his previous spot, with a fist raised in front of his chest.
Issei was shocked and confused. How could all this happen in the spam of a second?!
"I'm pretty sure that one of my lessons was to never let your guard down. Do I need to go through everything again with you, as if it were your first day in the Navy?" The Admiral admonished
Sakazuki slowly rose from the ground with a hand resting over his solar plexus as he regained his breath. He didn't say anything and merely ignored the attempt to get a rise out of him. His pride was already wounded by the punch he took like rookie moments ago, now it was essential for him to keep a tight leash over his emotions.
"It seems that some lessons you do remember. Good." Zephyr commented
"I remember more than a few." Sakazuki added dryly
"Now that's a relief."
The Vice Admiral scoffed once more. He then rushed towards his mentor and fired a barrage of both punches and kicks at him, not wanting to give him breathing room. While many would have difficulty to keep up with the sheer speed and strength that came with each of Sakazuki's moves, Zephyr clearly was an exception as he stood still, only moving his arms to stop the incoming attacks from various angles thrown at him, his own speed easily matching that of his attacker.
Despite the ferocity of the barrage, Sakazuki was leaving openings after each move, albeit for a very short period of time, but long enough to Zephyr notice and be able to act on it. As soon as he blocked one a punch, there was a small frame of time where the arm was retracting itself and left the torso unguarded, something Zephyr took advantage of.
The Vice Admiral gritted his teeth as he felt a fist burying itself on his navel. His well defined abdominal muscles doing little to cushion the blow, for a second he thought that it would power through and reach his spine. Fortunately, it stopped at one point, but only to push the marine back.
However, unlike last time, Sakazuki didn't double over in the air; his feet remained on the ground, dragging them as he tried to fight back the impetus created by the blow, damaging the tiles that passed under his feet.
"You're slacking with your Haki training." Zephyr stated, sounding disappointed
Sakazuki glared at his mentor, his eyes livid. Being accused of doing something that was typical of Kuzan's behavior was the last thing that he wanted. He forced himself to calm down. As bitter as it may be to admit, he didn't have the same mastery as Zephyr in Haki. Since that was the case, he needs to level the playing field with other means.
Suddenly, Issei felt as if the temperature around him was rising. It didn't take long for him to remember a similar situation that he went through, and more importantly, who was with him in it.
Issei watched Sakazuki's arm color change to a dark shade of red than that of his shirt. Just like the first time he had seen the marine, his arm morphed into something else, but this time he was close enough to see what it was.
As waves of the red liquid kept rippling throughout his arm, some of it fell of his clenched hand in a thin line. What made the boy catch on what it was when it hit the ground, it made a hissing sound and left a scorched mark with a small hole to complement.
Issei's eyes sparkled in realization. Magma; the man was controlling magma! How cool was that?!
However, his excitement was short lived and instantly replaced by unease. "Wait… was he going to use magma on me earlier?"
What the hell?! Not cool at all! He really liked having both arms! He wasn't allowed to this kind of thing… was he?
Unbeknownst of the boy's musings, Zephyr gazed at his student, who by now had both arms coated with magma, his hand now were several times bigger, with small waves dancing over it; its visage alone was menacing.
"There it is; your pride and joy." Zephyr said, cracking a grin
The reply he got was a literal fist of magma thrown at him, closing on him faster than a bullet fired from a gun. Despite the incredible speed, Zephyr still dodged it with ease by moving his shoulder out of its trajectory. The magma fist hit the ground a few meters away from the Admiral, melting the spot that it landed.
Sakazuki pressed on the assault, hurling more magma fists at Zephyr, their speed growing at each attack. Even then, the Admiral continued to nimbly dodge every single one of the fists despite his humongous physique.
As the fistfuls of magma continued to fly, Sakazuki punched the ground in front of him and left his arm there for a while. While Zephyr kept evading the flying fists, he picked up a new source of imminent danger- too immediate for his comfort- and hastily jumped sideways. Barely a second later, from where he jumped erupted from the ground a pillar of lava that showed no sign of ending.
From the waist down, Sakazuki transformed his body in a puddle of endless lava and as soon as he saw his mentor dealing with his latest move, he launched the upper part of his body in the air, the puddle remaining in the same place as a bridge of sorts of the incandescent red substance connected it with the Vice Admiral's mid section.
He cocked his arm back just when Zephyr turned to face him, aiming his enlarged fist at his mentor's head.
"DAI FUNKA!" Sakazuki roared
The same time his rocket size arm began to move towards its target, through the puddle he left above the hole he had created with his punch earlier, he manipulated the lava pillar, changing its tip to that of dog's head that also swiftly homed in Zephyr's direction, baring his fangs at his back.
The Admiral could feel the intense heat that was radiating from his pupil due to his close proximity. A few more seconds and both attacks would connect.
Just when it seemed that Zephyr would take both hits, his left shot backwards in a blur, hitting the hellhound with the back of his hand. The blow was strong to the point that it destroyed the lava construct, the remaining bits fell to the ground and left a mark.
Sakazuki didn't had the time to react to this development as Zephyr's right arm shot forward just as fast as the left one, his knuckles meeting the several times bigger ones in front of him. In this punch, however, he added a little more strength on it, so the result was slightly different.
Firstly, when Zephyr's arm finished its move, it created a massive wind pressure that sent Sakazuki flying and was strong enough to reach where Issei was standing and would push him back as well if he hadn't grabbed onto Momonga's leg for support. Secondly, similar to the hellhound, Sakazuki's arm was demolished by the blow, but it didn't stopped there; along with the arm, both his shoulder and a good chunk of his chest were gone, stopping close to his neck.
Sakazuki rose from the ground after changing his body back to normal, trying to balance himself with only one arm. He looked at his body, the hole now that stood in place of his right size, as lava leaked off of it while it began to rebuild what was decimated.
"Letting your guard down once again?"
Without him notice, Zephyr was already in front of him, with one of his leg raised above his head. An ominous feeling spread in his chest, and he couldn't but think that he was being sentenced to the guillotine as he looked at the leg.
Without any hesitation, the leg dropped in an axe kick, hitting Sakazuki in his collarbone. He gritted his teeth as his knees tried to withstand the insane pressure, cobwebs like fissures forming under his feet. However, it was a losing battle and his knees eventually gave in, allowing Zephyr leg to slam the marine on the ground hard. Very hard.
"AGH!" It was all the Vice Admiral managed to say before he was left breathless on the ground
By now, Sakazuki's body had been able to regenerate most of what was blown away by the punch, only his arm needing more time to heal, as it now was only a stump. He tried to once more raise himself off the ground but this time he was awarded with unbearable need to cough.
And as he did so, not only specks of saliva fell; to his shock, there was also blood.
"It's been since the last time you've seen blood hasn't it? Yours, that is." Zephyr guessed
"Well, that's enough for the demonstration. I think we've proven what I stated before." He boomed "You all know what to do next so get to it."
The group quickly spread throughout the patio, splitting themselves in pairs for the most part.
"That's our cue." Momonga spoke. "Take care of yourself Issei-san, until next time."
Issei waved him off as the marine walked towards one of his colleagues. Issei searched for Zephyr amidst the crowd that had formed and easily enough spotted a mop of purple towering most of the adults.
"Sakazuki, why did you join the Navy?" Issei heard the Admiral's question as he neared the man
He stopped in his tracks. The question that his grandfather asked him the other night ringed in his head. Issei stood still, intending on quietly listening on the two.
Sakazuki's face scrunched up, he eyed his mentor with mild irritation. "To uphold justice against all that oppose our world's order." He stated matter-of-factly
"And nothing else?"Zephyr pressed
The Vice Admiral's creases deepened. "There's nothing else that matters."
His tone gave the impression that this wasn't the first time that he had been asked something like that, and judging by his countenance, he didn't enjoyed one bit.
Zephyr didn't looked pleased at all with the answer- it seems to be a recurrent trend with these two-, but didn't voiced his feelings on the subject, contented with letting the man go join the others with a wave of his hand.
Issei approached the purple haired man. "Why the long face Zephyr-san? Is something wrong?"
Said man gave a tired sigh before resting one hand in his forehead and massaging.
"That brat's answer, I don't like it." He said bluntly
Issei was shocked by the answer. He didn't saw anything wrong with what Sakazuki said.
"Why? Isn't the Navy job to go after the bad guys?" He asked innocently
For a moment, Zephyr didn't say a thing. Thinking on how to explain in a way that a nine years old would understand.
"That's the job description alright. That's what's asked and demanded of everyone who enlists the Navy." He agreed
Issei's frowned, confused. "Then wha-"
"But what is the reason that the Navy exists?" Zephyr interrupted
Issei pondered on the question. He never really stopped to question that; for him it was almost as if asking why do people need to sleep. "To… catch the bad guys?"
"Are you telling me that or asking?" He quirked an brow in amusement
"Telling?" Issei said, not really sure of himself
That earned him a chuckle from the purple haired marine. "No, that would be our objective, our mission."
"Hmm, I don't know then." The boy shrugged
"We exist with the purpose of helping and defending those that can't do that by themselves. That encompasses you, the families that reside in this island and the whole Grand Line. We exist to fight back the evil that threatens the lives of the innocent." He explain
Zephyr now had wholeheartedly grabbed the boy's attention. "That's so cool!"
The man gave him a smile. "Right?" He rubbed the back of his neck.
"(sigh) This is more of my personal feelings on the matter; but I don't think that solely focusing on our objective is enough. If the Navy is to fight against the looming evil in our world, that wouldn't be enough. What we need is to inspire people, be something that they can depend and rely on without a shred of doubt when things get rough and I don't believe that this frigid and rigid way of thinking will be the answer. Nothing's black and white. When I joined, I believed that the Navy could be more than a simple military force and I still do. It's one reason why I keep fighting each day."
"Also, there are two persons that I want nothing more than to see them living in a better world. They make all the struggle worth it."
Issei stared at man before him with widened eyes. The sheer passion behind each words; words that surprised the boy, and stirred something inside him. He never had thought about what the Navy meant, but this ideal; it felt so… right to him, as if there was no other possible explanation for the matter in discussion.
He wasn't looking at a man, much less a marine, no.
He was standing in front of a living example of a hero.
\\
The rest of the day went by fairly uneventful, minus when Sengoku found Issei, he gave his grandson quite the tongue lashing for going off on his own again. Issei didn't tell him about his encounter with Sakazuki, not wanting to worry his grandfather anymore than he already had. Sengoku did seem to calm down a bit when he heard that the boy was with Zephyr for most of the time he went missing.
It was nighttime now as the two plus the goat made their way back home. Sengoku would every once in awhile glance at his back, since Issei was following him a few steps behind, his face showing a contemplative expression.
He didn't ask him what was bothering him. If it was something that he felt it was necessary for him to know then he will eventually speak up. Let the kid sort his thoughts alone first.
"Hey Gramps." Issei called
They had just arrived at the house and were leaving their shoes by the entrance.
"Yes?" Sengoku asked while loosening the tie around his neck
"I… I think I know why I want to become a marine."
*RIP*
Sengoku stared at what remained of his tie on his hands, an unfortunate accident due to his surprise. He calmly looked back in his grandson's direction, silently urging him to continue.
"I do want to be as strong as Mom- wait! I'm not finished!" He exclaimed in panic when he saw Sengoku raising a fist
He took a deep breath before speaking. "I don't want to be strong just for that anymore. I want to be strong so that I can help those that need it."
"Like some sort of hero from fantasies?"Sengoku asked, his tone not giving any of his thoughts
"A hero for whoever needs." Issei declared
The Admiral stared long and hard at Issei, who didn't avert his gaze for even a second but rather stared at his grandfather with a sharpness that he had never showed before. It reminded him a lot of her, with that piercing gaze of hers…
He could see it, the conviction behind his words brimming there.
"Good. I'll be looking forward to see how that plays out." He said, the approval evident in his tone
Issei smiled at his grandfather's words, happy that he acknowledged his aim. It was a short lived smile, because it was quickly replaced by a puzzled look as he watched Sengoku head for the staircase.
"Gramps what about dinner?" He asked, not having a good feeling about the answer
"You didn't think that I'd let you scot free after what you pulled today again did you?"
Issei face fell at that. "EH?! You're leaving me without dinner? What about you, won't you eat anything?!"
Sengoku smirked at that. "Oh I've taken care of that in the headquarters cafeteria. And I didn't forbid you from eating; I just won't be doing any of the cooking tonight."
"But I don't know how to cook anything!" He exclaimed
"A marine must always know at least the basic of the basic when it comes to food if they want to survive out in the sea." Sengoku said with a small smirk
"Is this some form of training?"
The smirk fell off immediately. "What? No, I said it was your punish-"
"Alright! I won't fail you Gramps! I'll cook dinner for myself!"
Issei then ran towards the kitchen, with his grandfather hot on his heels.
"Wait! Don't blow up the house!"
-Dai Funka: Great Eruption
A/N: Hyia there folks! It's been quite a while and I'm back with a new story. I'm really sorry for those that are waiting until now for updates on my other stories is just that when I found the time to sit down and write, the idea for this story came to me and wouldn't stop nagging me until I wrote it down. I'm deeply sorry for my long absence.
Now, a few points regarding this crossover:
. Issei won't be the only DxD character to appear on the story. However, it will take a while until the others appear so I ask of you a little bit of patience on this matter.
. Some events that happened before Luffy's story starts will not happen in the same chronological order in here, they will be tweaked a bit to fit Issei's story but fear not, it will all (most of it XD) will end up in the same place as in canon when the Strawhat begins his adventure. One event that has been changed might be already noticed in this chapter, but who knows.
Aside from that, thank you very much for reading, I hope you enjoy it and that you're looking forward to the next chapter. If possible, please consider leaving a review, it is always good to know the readers thoughts on the story. I hope to see you on the next one and have a good day.