The three monsters were all individuals who owned up to their actions.
Faced with Zephyr's questioning, they straightforwardly admitted they had been successfully sneak-attacked by Hamr.
This left Zephyr speechless.
"Hmph! Seems like after eating your Devil Fruits, you all slacked off on physical training. I've warned you before—Devil Fruits are powerful, yes, but they're ultimately external aids. True strength cos from your own body. Only when your physique, Haki, and techniques are in harmony will you reach the pinnacle."
"Do you understand now? Having a Devil Fruit ability without a physique strong enough to match it is utterly useless!"
He was clearly frustrated, like a teacher angry at underperforming students. The three responded in their own way.
Dragon was fast asleep, snoring loudly.
Sakazuki frowned deeply.
Borsalino stared blankly at the sky.
"Damn you, Dragon! How dare you fall asleep!"
*BONK!*
"Huh? Is it lunch ti already?"
"I—@#!@￥#!%..."
...
"Hamr, regarding your forging situation, Sengoku and the old man Kong have co up with a preliminary plan."
"From now on, anything you forge will be exclusively reclaid by Headquarters. The compensation won't match what you could get outside, so prepare yourself for that."
"But of course, with loss cos gain. The headquarters' scientific research division has already started preparations. Any new weapons or equipnt developed there, you'll have priority access and authority to use and allocate them."
"As for forging materials, Sengoku has specially approved a requisition permit. Here, with this, you can directly withdraw materials from the Navy's inventory without spending military credits or Beri."
After giving Dragon a thorough beating, Zephyr walked over to Hamr and spoke to him earnestly.
Hamr was montarily stunned.
Until now, his forging had been solely to fulfill the needs of those around him—like Zephyr, Sakazuki, and the others.
All for the sake of building relationships.
After all, he was new to this dangerous pirate-infested world. Without soone to lean on, he wouldn't last.
But he had overlooked the significance of his own value.
Though his abilities weren't yet widely applicable, the top brass had already acknowledged and defined his importance.
Well, the exploitation hadn't stopped either, to be fair.
Still, Zephyr's words filled Hamr with joy.
"So I can take rare ores too?"
"Yes."
"And famous swords or treasure weapons?"
"Yes."
"Even Seastone?"
"Yes."
"What about Sengoku's goat or Garp's iron ball?"
"Yes... Wait, hell no!"
Zephyr nearly choked on his words.
"You brat! If Sengoku's goat could be taken, it would've been mine first. I've wanted to roast that thing for ages! As for Garp's iron ball, go ahead, if you're ready to be turned into a frying pan by his 'Fist of Love'!"
A terrifying image flashed in Hamr's mind
So point in the future, so poor pointy-headed guy is getting his skull flattened by a booger-picking man.
'Yikes... absolutely horrifying!'
"Thank you, Teacher Zephyr. With this policy, I'll be even more motivated to forge!"
Zephyr looked at the excited Hamr, feeling a surge of warmth.
"Truthfully, we old-tirs have been too harsh on you lately."
"Whether it's Sengoku, Tsuru, or even the old man Kong, Headquarters always cos first for them."
"Your abilities are remarkable, but compared to the Navy's needs, they're just a drop in the ocean. Don't bla them, if you must bla anyone, bla this old fool."
Hamr froze again.
Zephyr was currently in his pri, at the peak of his life.
But the loss of his family had cast a shadow over this iron-willed man, dimming even his fiery spirit.
How could Hamr possibly resent him?
Besides, when he first arrived at Marineford, a stranger in a strange land, just a nobody from another world.
Without Zephyr's protection, he would've been dragged off by that old bastard Sengoku to slave away in the weapons factory.
Hamr was well aware of everything Zephyr had done for him.
Sengoku: "...So I'm the villain here, huh?"
"Teacher Zephyr, don't say that. I could never bla any of you."
"If anything, I should be grateful you didn't toss into the factory for 24-hour shifts."
"Marineford is my ho now, and you're like family."
"Where I co from, we say: 'A teacher for a day is a father for life.' By that logic, you're my dad!"
"Dad! Please accept this bow from your son, Hamr!"
Hamr bent forward at a perfect 90-degree angle.
A faint smile of contentnt appeared on Zephyr's face.
Hamr's words had struck a chord deep in the warrior's heart.
Even Dragon and the others felt Hamr radiate an almost heroic aura.
"How terrifying~ Hamr calling Zephyr 'dad' feels... off, sohow?"
The monkey adjusted his glasses, staring intently at Hamr.
His instincts scread that this gesture was anything but innocent.
But he was overthinking it.
Hamr's bow ca straight from the heart, with no ulterior motives.
"You damn monkey! I was being genuine! Take this, my ultimate treasure!"
Enraged at having the mont ruined, Hamr whipped out a cylindrical object, a rocket launcher.
The monkey's face stiffened as he imdiately began to glow.
"Monkey! Don't you dare run! Eat my fireworks!"
"BOOM!"
Thick black smoke erupted from the launcher, engulfing the glowing Borsalino, along with Dragon and Sakazuki.
"...Isn't that a rocket launcher? Why is it spewing smoke?"
Zephyr was dumbfounded, staring into the black haze.
"Oh, this? A new creation. Also a failure. I tried modifying a rocket launcher, but the attribute activation was lackluster."
"See, this launcher's trait is 'Black Smoke.' The original ammunition doesn't work anymore, it just fires clouds of smoke. Blocks vision and stains people black. Pretty useless."
As he spoke, Hamr cheerfully continued releasing smoke.
Zephyr: "...So why the hell did you make it? Just to piss people off???"
"Cough cough... HURRICANE!"
With coughing ca a sudden, powerful whirlwind that sucked all the smoke into the sky.
"Holy shit, Dragon! You're polluting the air!"
"You... cough... bastard... Hamr!"
"How terrifying~ Sakazuki, Dragon, you've turned into black n..."
Sakazuki: "..."
Dragon: "..."
"Hamr prepare to DIE!"
"GREAT ERUPTION!"
Sakazuki, now covered head-to-toe in soot, finally snapped.
"Yo! The Four Charcoal Brothers!"
Borsalino "..."
"YASAKANI NO MAGATAMA"
"A black man in a green cloak... tsk tsk."
Dragon: "..."
"DRAGON CLAW FIST!"
Hamr: "..."
"Who the hell won't shut up???"
The bouncing and hopping Gion quickly covered her mouth.
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