Sailing: I Open Treasure Chests in the Pirate World

Ian lifted the strangely shaped [Powerless Clay Fruit] and took a big bite.

All of a sudden.

An indescribable feeling of nausea spread from his mouth to every nerve cell in his body.

This is absolutely tasteless—no!

It tastes like chewing "rubber"!

Could it be that all Devil Fruits were created by the Sun God's hand?

Ian found joy even in hardship.

He devoured the Clay Fruit in just a few bites, leaving not a single piece of peel behind.

Looking at the other's ashen expression, Aokiji seemed to recall the scene when he ate the Ice-Ice Fruit.

"Ah la la."

Aokiji chuckled softly.

"I will never forget the taste of the Devil Fruit."

"Want to test your abilities, Ian?"

"Of course!"

Ian readily agreed—or rather, he had been waiting for this opportunity for a long time!

A lump of white clay appeared out of thin air in his palm, and then began to take on even more shapes and forms.

From the head, to the torso, to the tail, and those flat, broad wings...

Aokiji observed with great interest the plump, white clay creature in Ian's palm.

"Is this a penguin? Actually, I really like penguins too."

"penguin?"

Ian's lips twitched, almost as if he had been "awakened from his slumber".

"That's a dragon!"

Ian Adrian's dream is to own a dragon.

For now.

Ian can't raise dragons yet.

It's no problem to hand-roll a clay white dragon.

Although this little white dragon was a bit small, with a round belly, and you couldn't see any dragon scales or horns...

But surely it shouldn't be mistaken for a penguin?

Feeling mocked so closely, Ian felt a surge of malice.

Under his control, the small white dragon, about the size of a fist, slowly transformed into a chubby little chicken.

Do not!

This is not a fat chicken.

This is a "Tu" pheasant, a "Bai" pheasant, and an "Bing" pheasant.

Anyway, it's not "Aokiji".

"Cough cough."

Aokiji glanced at the little fat chicken that might be implying something, and coughed lightly.

Ian knew when to quit while he was ahead.

He clapped his hands, and the "little green pheasant" transformed into the "little Bian Que," before disappearing again.

"Sir! I'm willing to accept the undercover mission!"

Ian straightened his back and offered his advice enthusiastically.

"What I need to do now is become a pirate."

"So, I'm just going to defect from headquarters? And the charge is 'stealing a Devil Fruit'?"

No, why are you so enthusiastic?

Aokiji's eyes widened slightly.

And why do you speak of "defection" so fluently?

"No! There's no rush now!"

Aokiji quickly called for a stop, trying to dissuade Ian from his dangerous idea.

The Navy Headquarters established a sharp-edged force, carefully selecting promising young men with impeccable backgrounds, and even offering them the precious Devil Fruits.

We're not sending them straight to their deaths in the New World!

In Aokiji's view.

With Ian's current strength, going to the New World, the latter half of the Grand Line, would be suicide!

"You've only just eaten the Clay-Clay Fruit, and its power hasn't been fully developed yet."

Aokiji reassured him.

"Your current mission is to remain in the Navy and enhance your capabilities."

"Furthermore, it would take a suitable time for the Navy to degenerate into pirates."

"In short, everything is proceeding as planned."

Aokiji's phrase "following the steps" is correct.

The idea was to make Ian temporarily ignore the fact that he had joined the Blade Force.

He only saw himself as an ordinary naval soldier who had just graduated from basic training.

For this reason, Aokiji even asked a specific question.

"Ian, do you want to stay at headquarters, go to the G-Series branch, or the Four Seas in the future?"

There are essentially only these three "career paths" for naval soldiers.

Ian was aware of this as well.

His original plan was to go to an ordinary branch of one of the four major overseas branches.

The Naval Headquarters is a super elite group within the Navy.

The Navy Headquarters and the Outer Sea Branch are about three levels apart in terms of strength.

Ian could have become a "Naval Headquarters Lieutenant".

This means that once he chooses to go to the Four Seas Branch, he will immediately become a naval officer of the "field officer" rank.

In the Four Seas Branch, the naval colonel is almost the highest-ranking person in charge of the branch, possessing the greatest power over the branch base.

In three words: local tyrant.

Once Ian went to the Four Seas branch.

Not only can they obtain the maximum degree of autonomy.

It also facilitates the subsequent "money-making scheme"—a scheme to make money by purchasing a Devil Fruit.

But this was already part of the original plan.

Ian has now changed his mind!

"Sir! I request permission to go to Impel Down!"

The [System Treasure Chest] can only be obtained through battle.

Ian needs as many opponents as possible to improve his abilities in all aspects.

His current identity is that of a Marine, so the most suitable opponent is, of course, a pirate.

Looking at the entire ocean.

Regarding the two key indicators of the number and quality of pirates.

Nowhere can compare to Impel Down!

Even the New World, the base of the Emperor Pirates, is no good!

The prison is a stage for action; come and do whatever you need.

Chapter 7 Vice Admiral Garp, could you perform that again?

Impel Down?

Aokiji frowned; he had never considered this answer before.

Why do you want to go here?

"Because the number of pirates in Impel Down is like a swarm of locusts."

Ian answered in a very serious tone.

"I want to observe as many pirates as possible up close to prepare for my future undercover plan."

"In addition, Impel Down is 'boring' enough, making it suitable for focused training and improving one's strength."

Aokiji nodded slightly upon hearing this.

He disagreed with the first part of Ian's statement.

However, the second half of the sentence does make some sense.

Impel Down is located in the Calm Belt, making it extremely difficult to enter or leave.

The prison guards who worked in the city didn't have many leisure or entertainment options on a daily basis.

If we ignore the special nature of Impel Down.

This is indeed a good place to improve one's skills.

only.

A thought suddenly flashed through Aokiji's mind.

A prison.

And it's the world's number one prison.

Is there really a big difference between jailers and prisoners?

"Although the Navy and Impel Down are both government agencies, they are not part of the same system."

Aokiji pondered for a moment, then spoke slowly.

"It will take time to transfer you to Impel Down."

"At least three days, and at the latest no more than a week."

"Yes, sir!"

Ian gave a military salute and responded loudly.

"By the way, there's one more thing."

Aokiji suddenly thought of something.

"Besides you, another member of this year's recruit training camp received a recommendation to join the Sharp Blade Force."

A suspect had already formed in Ian's mind.

Before he could ask, Aokiji told him the answer.

"She is Grandma Crane's granddaughter, Peacock."

It really was that woman!

Ian gritted his teeth inwardly.

He knew it! How did Zephyr know that he was commenting on the Celestial Dragons in private?