One Piece: Blue Scale Admiral

Luo Xia felt completely relaxed, both mentally and physically. He leaned comfortably against the protruding dragon horns behind him, embracing the soft, fragrant lark, enjoying the breeze, and watching the sea of ​​clouds and the golden sunset. Suddenly, he felt a sense of detachment from worldly desires.

After cooking a sumptuous meal together with Hibari, the two enjoyed a sweet and cozy lunch. They changed into light and casual clothes and then sat together on the flying Kirin, not thinking about anything else.

"Brother Rorschach, I want to see what this planet looks like."

The lark tilted its little face up and looked at Rorschach expectantly.

Luo Xia looked down at Yun Que's rosy face and couldn't help but kiss her fair forehead.

Yun Que blushed, and Luo Xia lifted her up with one arm. With a light step, the two of them flew off the Qilin.

"Okay, then I'll show you what this world is like."

Luo Xia grabbed Yun Que's slender waist and tossed her petite body into the air.

Immediately, his body began to expand and enlarge rapidly.

Countless azure scales reflecting sunlight spread across its undulating body, its towering hooves tread upon the sky thousands of meters above, and its broad, mountain-like back arches high, perfectly catching the lark falling from the sky.

"Hold on tight, let's go see something higher."

The majestic dragon head of the Qilin beast raised its head, opened its mouth wide, and emitted a thunderous sound.

The lark looked at the hundred-meter-tall beast she was riding, her eyes sparkling as if little stars were popping out, and her pink face was full of excitement.

"Charge!"

She reached out and grasped the long mane on the giant beast's back, like a noble knight riding the mythical creature Qilin, riding the wind and thunder, and flying towards the higher heavens.

As the altitude gradually increases, the air temperature decreases.

The wind was strong, but under the control of the giant Qilin beast, it couldn't blow the lark on its back even a little bit.

Her body was surrounded by a compressed air barrier that did not obstruct her view, protecting her from the cold air, as well as the fierce winds, ice shards, and water vapor from the sky.

The Qilin beast was very fast. In just over ten minutes, the altitude of the two of them rose by more than 10,000 meters, reaching an altitude of 30,000 meters.

The Kirin was being controlled by Luo Xia, floating a thousand meters away from where the two were.

Upon reaching this height, the giant beast that Rorschach had transformed into stopped ascending and hovered above the endless sea of ​​clouds, carrying the curious lark, looking down at the vast and boundless celestial body below.

The lark's small beak was slightly open as it stared blankly at the planet below.

At that moment, she realized that the strange knowledge that Rorschach had mentioned before was not just nonsense.

The world they lived in was indeed a gigantic sphere.

Although this altitude is far from revealing the entire planet, it does allow us to see the enormous curvature of the world before us.

Through the clouds that spread out in the sky like fish scales, you can see the boundless sea below.

As far as the eye can see, more than 90 percent of the world is covered by azure waters.

Those earthen-yellow islands and landmasses occupy only a negligible small portion of the area.

On the endless sea, only the towering red earth continent stands out, like a huge red ribbon dividing the sea in two.

This was the first time the lark had seen the world from this height, and its young heart was unconsciously overwhelmed by the magnificent sight before it.

Back when we were on the Sky Island, we were at roughly the same altitude as we are now.

However, beneath the sky island where Bai Bai Hai is located, there is a thick cloud of clouds, as heavy as a curtain of the sky, completely separating the sky island from the sea area of ​​Mogu Town below, making it impossible to see through the thick cloud sea.

This is why the Sky Island, which is right above Magic Valley Town, has existed for hundreds of years without being discovered by many people.

Now, the sky is clear and the world before my eyes is crystal clear, with nothing obstructing my view.

Even the Qilin beast that Luo Xia had transformed into showed a hint of shock in its eyes.

Looking down from here, this vast, blue world is so beautiful and expansive.

But precisely because they live on it, among the incredibly small intelligent races relative to the entire planet, there is an abundance of scheming, power struggles, and countless other desires.

The world is so vast that even the most powerful individual among humankind could unleash a catastrophe that would be nothing more than a minor ailment to the magnificent natural world.

"Skylark, shall we go to Water Seven, to Alabasta?"

Suddenly, Rorschach spoke up and made a suggestion.

Hibari snapped out of her reverie and wanted to agree, but when she thought of the Den Den Mushi she had received from the Sengoku period on the Kirin, she hesitated.

“But, Brother Rorschach, you just got out, shouldn’t you go back to Marineford to resume your post? Grandpa Sengoku said…”

"What did you say? Tell them to go stand aside and let's go! Let's go play, let's go on a trip, let's go find Weiwei and the others."

Luo Xia snorted, his massive body rapidly descended, shrank, and returned to human form. He embraced Yun Que and landed at the bow of the Qilin, steering the multi-powered warship towards the endless sea below.

"Okay! I'll do whatever Brother Luo Xia says!"

A happy smile appeared on Lark's face.

Chapter 581 What? You're not coming back?

Five days later, Marineford.

Sengoku and Garp stared at each other, wide-eyed.

Kizaru, who had just returned from the New World, sat on the sofa with his legs crossed, clipping his nails.

Aokiji rode his bicycle out.

"What about people?"

The Warring States period was a bit confused.

Three days have passed, and Rorschach, who came out of Impel Down, still hasn't returned to Marineford to resume his post.

On the first day, he wanted to call the bug to ask, but Garp said that the young couple was enjoying their honeymoon and calling now would be like being a third wheel and making things difficult for the young people. Sengoku agreed, so he didn't call.

The next day, Sengoku estimated that Rorschach and Hibari's warships should be arriving at Marineford soon, and he was eagerly waiting for Rorschach to send a request to open the Gates of Justice.

As a result, not only did they not make any requests, but they didn't even send a single message.

On the third day, Rorschach, who had left Impel Down, and Hibari, who had gone to pick him up, seemed to have vanished without a trace.

This almost made Sengoku think that he, like Shuzo and Ain, had secretly run off to the New World and joined the new navy created by Zephyr.

Fortunately, the intelligence agents in the New World did not send him the message that would cause him to have a heart attack.

Five days have passed by now.

All signs indicate that Rorschach simply doesn't want to return to Marine Headquarters, and who knows where he's taken Akainu's precious daughter for a stroll.

Damn it, they're not answering the Den Den Mushi either.

This sounds like someone's trying to quit!

The thought of this most likely outcome made the Warring States period a little anxious.

If Rorschach is really determined not to be a Marine anymore, then who will lead the new generation of Marines?

Could it be that Garp is really going to let those two new brats he recruited take over?

Moreover, if Rorschach were to leave the Navy, the Navy would lose more than just Rorschach.

Those fierce guys in G5, who have caught up with and even surpassed most vice admirals, are completely subservient to Rorschach.

Once Luo Xia leaves, those people will definitely follow him; Sengoku has no doubt about that.

Thinking of this, Sengoku couldn't sit still any longer and looked at Kizaru on the sofa.

"Borsalino! Go out and bring him back!"

Kizaru squinted and looked up, pouting, "Are you serious, Fleet Admiral Sengoku? I don't even know where he is. This world is so big, where am I supposed to find him? Besides, I just went to the New World to fight the Neo Marines. That old man is a real pain, I even got injured."

"Don't try that on me! A year ago you went to Dressrosa, but you didn't get anything done. You shamelessly used the excuse of recuperating from injuries to stay in bed for a full six months. Anyone who didn't know better would think you went to jail with that brat Rorschach."

"Six months ago, I sent you to the New World to oversee the naval branch, but you were always either in the wind or in the rain, spending all your time loitering on Egg Point Island."

"I sent you to deal with that bastard Zephyr the other day, and you said you were seriously injured. Can't you have any shame? This isn't how a Marine Admiral behaves. At least do something useful for me, you idiot!"

Zhan Guo was furious.

Suddenly, Garp, who was fiddling with the Den Den Mushi, exclaimed in surprise.

"Huh? Rorschach's Den Den Mushi got through!"

"Really? Give it to me now!"

Sengoku, ignoring the reckless Kizaru, impatiently kicked open the desk in front of him, rushed to Garp, and snatched the Den Den Mushi from his hand.

When he saw Rorschach's familiar face quickly simulated by the Den Den Mushi, Sengoku suddenly felt an urge to cry.

"Rorschach! You bastard, you finally answered my Den Den Mushi? Five days! Do you know how I've spent these five days?"

"Yes, I'm listening. Go ahead."

Rorschach's languid voice came through the Den Den Mushi.

Sengoku also heard the skylark's happy cheers and some noisy hawking sounds coming from inside.

The three older men in the office could all hear the perfunctory tone in Luo Xia's voice.

A vein bulged on Sengoku's forehead; he really wanted to glare at Rorschach and rebuke him.

However, the words that came out were transformed into a gentle inquiry.

"Rorschach, look, you've been playing around for so many days now. When are you coming back to headquarters? I'll reinstate you. I'll also tell you about the changes in the world's landscape over the past year, and the Navy's plans for the next few years."

"I won't be going back for now."

"what?"

Zhan Guo's eyes widened, his lips trembled, and he stammered, "Don't talk nonsense! What do you mean you're not coming back? You...where are you now?"

"I'm in Phuket, the food city, where a grand food festival is being held. Hmm, there's lots of delicious food, and I'm having a great time."

Luo Xia said calmly.

A light, silvery laugh, like that of a lark, came through the Den Den Mushi at just the right moment.

It's clear that Rorschach is having a really good time.

However, while he was having fun, things were going terribly wrong for the Sengoku region.

If Rorschach doesn't come back, who will take charge of G5?