One Piece: I Weave the Pirate Codex with My Zanpakuto

Hopefully, Lance can hold out until Barrett's teacher arrives...

……

Wolfsburg, Port Hospital

Drip...drip...drip...

Outside the private ward at the highest point, Barrett stood in front of the viewing window, gazing at the man lying on the hospital bed.

His left arm was severed at the root, and both legs were in casts.

His entire body was wrapped in bandages, even his head.

Barrett.

Upon hearing that familiar voice, for some reason, Barrett's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled back into his chest.

"Teacher, you've finally arrived!"

Seeing that Barrett had rarely yielded, Ross urged the Nakushiki to fly for several days and nights before finally arriving at this godforsaken place.

They eat, drink, and relieve themselves all on the back of the ray.

Ross opened the door and entered the room. After a brief look around, the green light in the corridor lit up.

A few minutes later—

"Tsk, too slow."

"Get out of the way, Barrett."

Rose gathered his domineering aura to the surface of his fist, and after a brief moment of charging, he swung his fist fiercely at the wall where the window was located.

With a deafening roar.

Most of the wall was broken, revealing the harbor and the sky.

"What happened!?"

"Was it an explosion?! This is a VIP ward, how could an explosion happen here?!"

"Ignore them, everyone leave."

Barrett walked out onto the long corridor and stopped the security guards and doctors who were about to approach.

“But…yes, Lord Barrett.”

The doctor wanted to say something, but seeing the expressionless face of the new king, he could only give up and tell everyone to return the way they came.

Ross drew his knife and threw it into the air outside, beginning to dissect the flesh.

Then he grabbed Lance from the hospital bed and threw him into the mouth of the one-eyed manta ray.

"Teacher, his left arm."

Barrett re-entered the room and stood beside the teacher, watching the ray chewing incessantly.

(①~): Chewing

"What about the severed arm?"

"It's gone. It was destroyed by artillery fire."

Perhaps out of concern, Barrett asked if the man had survived.

"Barrett, what exactly happened during this time? Why are you asking such an irrational question?"

Ross's gaze remained fixed on the ray, his flesh-crushing life senses allowing him to more clearly perceive the changes in its life force.

Barrett remained silent for a long time, rehearsing his words before finally recounting the events of that period.

This includes the story of the secluded mountain villa.

"I hope someone can change this hell, at least make it a little more humane."

Footsteps sounded behind them, but neither Ross nor Barrett paid any attention to Dragon's arrival.

"Like those super soldiers say, we're beyond saving, but the next generation of kids who haven't been born yet shouldn't end up like us."

“Lance, I acknowledge his integrity and conviction.”

Barrett took the money pouch out of his pocket; it was the Bailey that Lance had asked them to give to the mountain brat in the arena's infirmary.

Not much; including some loose coins, it only amounted to 1,905 Berries.

They can't even afford a bowl of ramen.

"I hope he can become a dandelion that changes the endless war in this country."

"Whether it's ten or twenty years from now, the seeds he sowed will surely take root and sprout."

"The little devils he raised will surely inherit his will and then completely change this country."

bang~

A large, red-glowing bump grew on Barrett's head.

"Don't keep calling me a little brat, you're a ten-year-old brat too!"

Ross retracted his fist and laughed, "I'm cursing!"

"You're so young but act all old-fashioned. I don't remember ever teaching you to be like this."

"A different kind of teacher."

Barrett sighed and pressed the large bump on his head back down.

“You can’t compare my age to that of kids outside. I went to the battlefield at the age of 5, and at the age of 6 I was called a monster by them because of the explosives. Then I was betrayed by my most trusted comrade.”

"If it weren't for good luck, I would have died long ago."

"I'm not a brat."

Seeing the teacher raise his fist again, this time imbued with Armament Haki, Barrett quickly changed his tune.

"I'm a very special kid!"

"Humph."

Ross gave a soft snort.

"You're smart enough to act all high and mighty in front of me again. I'll make sure you grow a gourd on your head."

"So, Barrett."

At this moment, Dragon suddenly spoke up:

"You bet on him, right? Just like I bet on Professor Ross."

Barrett hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

Indeed, just as the teacher bets on others, and Dragon bets on the teacher, he bets on Lance as well.

Barrett's thoughts drifted as he gazed at the still-chewing meat sashimi.

On the day he returned to the land of endless war, he originally intended to turn the country into a purgatory in his own way.

I just don't know when, but this idea changed quietly.

He hoped Lance could accomplish what he couldn't do in the short term, using his gentler methods.

This change may not be effective until the next generation, or even the generation after that.

After realizing this idea, Barrett suddenly felt less anxious.

Especially when the teacher arrives at your side.

He just wanted to see how far Lance could go.

Will the child raised by that man possess a peace philosophy that he himself lacks?

"Before you become the strongest, you always need someone to play the good cop or the bad cop."

Barrett's thoughts were interrupted by the teacher's voice, and he subconsciously turned his gaze towards the teacher.

“Barrett, if you’re sure he’ll be the bad cop, then you’ll have to take on the role of the bad cop.”

"In the near future, such behavior is very likely to make everyone remember Lance, rather than you who worked hard to defeat the tyrannical king."

Ross probably guessed what Barrett was planning, especially after hearing about the distant mountain villa.

This speculation is now much more credible.

"It's ok."

Ross glanced sideways and caught Barrett's unconsciously cheerful smile.

'Indeed, resentment ends in longing.'

"Everyone complains about how stinky their upbringing is, but they always come back here when they have real power and change it."

"They are not atoning for their sins, but simply trying to save the version of themselves that was once lost in this homeland."

"Those brats that Lance saved were also his past that he had missed."

"He keeps saying it's to atone for his sins, but is it really just that simple?"

Barrett remained silent, his smile unchanged.

The teacher was right, but he no longer cared about the truth.

All he knew was that the endless war seemed to be over and the sun, which had been out of sight for so long, had finally appeared on the land.

For the next generation of this land, Lance may become the sun they see now.

As for myself~

For a brand new world, both the sun and the moon are indispensable.

His personality wasn't suited to be the sun; he wasn't Professor Ross, and he couldn't spread his light to everyone.

Instead of forcing himself to do something he's not good at, it's better to make the most of his strengths.

Kill all the gloom that hinders the sunrise!

"Teacher, we who are born on this land are destined to be sinful from the moment we are born."

"Joining the army at an age when you know nothing, and using your brainwashed, petite body to kill one life after another."

"No one in this place, in this country, is innocent."

"In that case, let all the guilty die and let the Immaculate take over the country again."

Chapter 141 Zanpakuto: Amaterasu

(①·3): Pshaw~

The one-eyed manta ray spat several times, expelling the bandages, plaster fragments, and the man from its mouth.

Lance, who was fast asleep at the time, was completely unharmed except for his left arm.

At least that's how Ross sees it.

[Current resonance level: 88%]

Dorag raised his hand in the air, summoning several wisps of breeze to enter and carry Lance back to his hospital bed.

"Thank you very much, teacher."

Barrett thanked Ross earnestly.

"I rarely see you like this. It seems you are quite satisfied with what he has done."

Ross ruffled the kid's golden hair, glanced one last time at Lance, whose face was serene and even had a hint of a smile, and then turned and left.

"I will not interfere in matters concerning this place; this was agreed upon from the beginning."

"So what this place will become in the future depends entirely on you and him, but there's no need to worry too much."

"If you really can't clean up this mess, I'll probably soften and help you in the end."

Barrett personally escorted Ross and Dragon downstairs, standing at the hospital entrance.

"Thank you very much for taking the time to make this trip. I will get everything sorted out as soon as possible and take the troops back to provide support."

"Teacher, this fruit is for you."