Of course, Orion didn't like the eighth set of broadcast exercises.
Even if Hancock, the world most beautiful woman, performed it for him, he couldn't appreciate it.
You see, back in his middle and high school days before he crossed over, every time he heard the school broadcast play the music for the eighth set of exercises, his head would buzz.
Especially during morning exercises, he would avoid it if he could, and if he couldn't, he would stand in the middle of the student lines pondering life.
Having endured the rain of the eighth set of broadcast exercises himself, he decided to let the Shichibukai experience it too.
Since there was still some time before lunch, Orion didn't go home but instead headed straight to the marshal's office on the top floor of the headquarters building.
Before Orion could even sit down after entering the office, Mihawk strode in with swift steps. Without waiting for Orion to react, Mihawk got straight to the point.
"Orion, I want to quit! I'll continue to participate, but I can't do the eighth set of broadcast exercises anymore!"
"Huh?"
Standing in front of the desk, Orion blinked and asked.
"Is it too hard? Can't you learn it?"
"It's not about whether it's hard or if I can learn it!"
Mihawk waved his hand and continued. "It's just that I can't accept it!"
"Don't get worked up, please don't get worked up!"
Orion took a bag of walnuts from the drawer, walked over to the coffee table, and sat down, then said.
"Sit down and have a few walnuts, we'll talk while eating!"
After saying this, Orion placed a few walnuts on the coffee table, looked around for a moment, and realizing there was no tool to crack the walnuts, he immediately stood up, walked to the right wall, took down the Supreme Grade Sword hanging there, and then raised the back of the blade to decisively crack the walnuts!
"Hey, hey, hey, is that the Supreme Grade Sword you subdued?"
Seeing Orion actually use the Supreme Grade Sword to crack walnuts, Mihawk eyelids twitched uncontrollably, and he quickly walked over to the coffee table, exclaiming emotionally.
"As a swordsman, how can you use your sword to crack walnuts? This is disrespectful to the sword!"
"Look how anxious you are."
Orion picked up the crushed walnut, extracted the kernel, and tossed it into his mouth, casually remarking.
"To you, a sword might be your second life, but to me, a blade is just a tool!"
"Mihawk, do you know why your swordsmanship hasn't made much progress? It's because you rely too much on whether you have a sword or not, and you place excessive importance on the blade itself. Your understanding of the way of the sword is still at a beginner level—you've only just barely earned the qualification to meet me."
"In my view, the ultimate essence of the way of the sword is this: if you have a sword in your heart, then everything in the world can become a sword!"
Mihawk expression shifted slightly as he stared intently at Orion, momentarily forgetting about the fact that Orion had used a supreme-grade sword to crack walnuts.
He pondered thoughtfully. "If you have a sword in your heart, then everything can become a sword?"
Orion nodded with a smile, "This is the true romance of a swordsman!"
"Go and figure it out on your own. From now on, you don't have to attend the ideological re-education sessions, but you must train those sword officers who are clamoring to take you down."
Upon hearing that he no longer had to attend the ideological re-education, Mihawk eyes immediately lit up.
However, he didn't show it too obviously.
He walked straight over and sat down opposite Orion, picked up a few walnuts, and crushed them in his hand. As if showing off, he placed the walnut shells on the coffee table closer to Orion.
Orion pretended not to notice and continued to use the Supreme Grade Great Blade to crack walnuts. Seeing this, although Mihawk strongly agreed with Orion 'Ultimate Swordsmanship Theory,' he couldn't help but tense up.
After all, the Supreme Grade Great Blade Orion was using to crack walnuts was once wielded by the Pirate King Roger as he roamed the Grand Line!
Although the Conqueror's Haki stored within the blade by Roger had been suppressed by Orion, and the lingering aura of its previous owner had been completely erased when Orion straightened the blade, it was still a Supreme Grade Great Blade!
Many swordsmen spend their entire lives unable to master a Supreme Grade Great Blade, which is why the Twelve Supreme Grade Blades are treasured by all swordsmen.
Yet, in Orion hands, it was just a tool!!!
"Don't feel bad~"
Orion, as if knowing what Mihawk was thinking, spoke lightly.
"Not just Roger blade, but also Whitebeard Murakumogiri, Shanks' Gryphon, Kaido Hassaikai, and the other Twelve and Twenty-One Supreme Grade Blades will gradually hang on the walls of this office."
Hearing this, Mihawk instinctively wanted to protect his own Supreme Grade Great Blade.
At that moment, the office door suddenly swung open. Gion quickly walked up to Orion, her expression grave.
"Marshal—"
"What's happened?"
Orion picked up two more walnuts and continued.
"Speak freely. Mihawk is no outsider, he's now the swordsmanship instructor of the headquarters."
Hearing this, Gion no longer hesitated and got straight to the point.
"We've just received news from the East Blue. Captian Stock, who was assigned as the base commander of the 16th Branch, was ambushed by the Arlong Pirates during a pirate eradication operation."
Here, Gion paused slightly, her eyes dimming as she lowered her head, not daring to look at Orion, and whispered.
"All the officers and crew… none survived."
Crack—
The sound of walnuts being crushed suddenly echoed through the room. The two walnuts in Orion hand turned to dust, drifting out from between his fingers.
As the walnuts turned to dust, the office fell into an oppressive silence.
Neither Mihawk nor Gion dared to make a sound.
Especially Gion, because she knew Orion well. She knew how much Orion cared for his subordinates, especially the veterans who had been by his side for years.
He treated them like family, like brothers. And Captain Stock was one of them.
After several dozen seconds of silence, Orion suddenly stood up and walked toward the door without a word.
After taking a few steps, Orion seemed to remember something and turned back, his voice hoarse as he spoke.
"Gion… I… I think I've lost something. Help me find it."
Upon hearing this, Gion quickly picked up the Supreme Grade Sword, Justice, from the coffee table and held it tightly in her arms.
"Yes, yes, my sword!"
Orion nodded, his voice still hoarse.
"Let's go, to the East Blue."
... ...
At the Seven Warlords' dormitory.
Doflamingo, carrying a lunchbox he had fetched from the cafeteria, pushed open the dormitory door with an arrogant stride, his words tinged with excitement.
"I heard some news in the cafeteria. Captain Stock of the East Blue 16th Branch was attacked by the Arlong Pirates during a pirate eradication operation. All the officers and soldiers, including Captain Stock, were killed!"
Before he could finish, his gaze swept over Crocodile and Moria, finally settling on Jinbei.
"Jinbei, if I recall correctly, you have a subordinate named Arlong, a shark fishman, right? Coincidentally, the captain of the Arlong Pirates is also named Arlong, and he's a shark fishman too!"
"Oh, and I also heard that Captain Stock was personally sent to the East Blue by Marshal Orion, and he was one of the earlier officers who followed Marshal Orion!"
"Guess how Marshal Orion will react when he hears this news?"
"Fufufufufu~"
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