"Bang!"
Another shot missed its mark, and Luffy watched with dismay as the white cue ball tumbled into the pocket. His expression darkening, he turned abruptly and tossed the cue stick aside, abandoning the ga entirely.
Nami exhaled a sigh of relief at this developnt. To preserve this man's dignity, she had deliberately missed countless easy shots during their match!
Luffy seed to detect her thoughts, shooting her a dissatisfied glare.
Nami returned his look with an irritated expression of her own.
"What are you staring at?" she challenged. "Have sothing to say, oh defeated Admiral?"
Luffy remained silent, his mouth pressed into a thin line.
Having just suffered a humiliating defeat at the billiards table, he clearly lacked any grounds to offer a rebuttal.
After clearing his throat lightly, he decisively changed the subject, his voice taking on a petulant tone:
"I don't understand what Fleet Admiral Sengoku is thinking. I hold the prestigious rank of Admiral in the Marines, yet beyond this empty title, he's granted no substantial privileges. I've been planning to test the Buster Call once I received the Golden Den Den Mushi."
"You have quite the imagination," Nami remarked dryly.
Both she and Reiju were visibly taken aback by his casual statent.
One had accompanied Luffy for years, while the other was a princess from an allied nation with exceptional connections—both won imdiately recognized the significance of the "Golden Den Den Mushi" he had ntioned so casually.
This was no trivial matter—the device served as the "key" for initiating the Buster Call, a devastating military operation. A simple activation could obliterate an entire kingdom of supposed wrongdoers.
Yet in Luffy's casual discussion, this weapon of mass destruction sounded like so novel toy he wished to experint with.
What exactly went through this man's mind?
Luffy's frustration was genuine, however. While his authority as commander of the G66 branch certainly exceeded that of most Marine officers, he lacked the power to issue the Buster Call—a privilege extended to other Admirals—and this disparity clearly bothered him.
"What's the aning of this differential treatnt?" he grumbled.
After her initial surprise subsided, Reiju composed herself and offered a rational analysis:
"Technically, as an Admiral, you should indeed possess this authority," she acknowledged. "However, don't overlook your age—you're not even eighteen yet, still legally a minor. If I were responsible for distributing a weapon as devastating as the Buster Call, I too would exercise caution in your case."
Nami nodded emphatically, expressing complete agreent with Reiju's assessnt.
Luffy frowned uncomfortably, clearly dissatisfied with what he perceived as Sengoku's age discrimination. Unfortunately, his complaints carried little weight. During a previous call to Sengoku where he had attempted to argue his case, the old man had simply retorted with "I am the Fleet Admiral"—a response that had nearly driven Luffy to apoplexy.
Perhaps sensing the depth of Luffy's resentnt, Reiju stood, approached him, and gently patted his head.
"You'll have access to such responsibilities when you're older," she assured him with a slight smile. "We're nearly at our destination—let's inform the rest of the crew about our arrival."
With these parting words, Reiju exited the recreation room, leaving Luffy and Nami alone, staring at each other in bewildernt.
Luffy touched his hair, his expression incredulous.
"Did she... just treat like a child?" he asked, seemingly unable to process what had transpired.
Nami silently rose from her seat and moved to his side, extending her hand to mimic Reiju's head pat.
Her attempt was imdiately halted by Luffy's withering glare.
"Hmph! You have absolutely no respect for your superiors!" he snapped.
With an indignant snort, Luffy stord out, determined to teach the pink-haired woman a lesson in proper respect.
Nami raised her hands in surrender, waiting until everyone had departed before stamping her foot in frustration and muttering angrily:
"What a petty, thin-skinned man!"
After this brief outburst, she hastily followed the Admiral.
anwhile, at Onigashima in Wano Country, Marine officers who had received advance notice of the Admiral's return had been assembled in formation for quite so ti.
Nurous Wano civilians and foreign tourists, having heard about the Admiral's imminent arrival, had gathered to witness the spectacle and admire the legendary Marine's presence firsthand.
At the forefront of the crowd stood dozens of exceptionally beautiful won, each possessing extraordinary beauty, poise, and dignity—truly one-in-a-million specins of feminine grace.
Many onlookers who had originally intended to glimpse the Admiral found themselves captivated by these stunning won, their attention diverted regardless of gender.
Particularly notable was a tall woman with flowing black hair who appeared to be the leader of this extraordinary gathering. Her frosty deanor, cold elegance, and stern countenance had captured the admiration of countless young n and won in the crowd.
What these admirers found regrettable was their goddess's complete indifference to their attention. Even now, her thoughts were entirely consud by another man.
"That bastard Luffy," she fud silently. "He abandoned us here while gallivanting around with other won for over half a year. Just wait until he returns—I'll show him precisely how I deal with such disloyalty!"
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