Chapter 230: The Golden Lion Returns Loaded

With Zolo strengthened by the Gura Gura no Mi, the Golden Lion finally agreed to let Jack stay in Wano to train, and internally screamed at himself—

Never again will I bring a promising talent to Wano to show off; they'll just be kept by the captain under some excuse or another.

After finally succeeding in copying homework and picking a promising talent like Jack…

Sigh! Sigh! Sigh!

The Golden Lion felt: it was too hard for him—how could there be a sea emperor with no crew?

A smile doesn't vanish; it merely shifts.

As the Golden Lion sighed, he heard Jack's face already lit up with joy at being left behind in Wano by the captain.

"Thank you, boss."

Following the Sea Emperor is certainly prestigious, but serving my idol boss fulfills my dream, comes with a career path, and I don't have to worry about being wanted by the Marines.

Even a three-year-old knows what choice to make.

And Jack is already eight years old!

Jack's fanatical grin sparked a sudden insight in Saint Saint Saiwen, who immediately pulled out the Pink Dragon Fruit.

"This is a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit replicated by Vegapunk based on Kaido."

"I've got nothing better to give you—take this."

Not everyone gets the chance to receive a newcomer's gift,

and the reason he treated Jack so generously was because Jack was one of only three fanatics Saint Saint Saiwen knew of—equivalent to the second Yuzhi Xiliu of the Morning Star Corps.

His loyalty was unquestionable.

Worth cultivating vigorously.

Jack didn't refuse the newcomer's perk; he took the Pink Dragon Fruit and began gnawing on it noisily.

"Remember to eat it all."

Although the Pink Dragon Fruit, being Vegapunk's replication, likely couldn't awaken like a normal Mythical Zoan, what if it did?

Eating it all won't hurt.

After all, better safe than sorry.

Even if the Pink Dragon Fruit fails to awaken, it's still vastly superior to the ancient-type mammoth-form fruit Jack ate in the anime.

And since Jack will grow taller than Kaido as an adult, the Pink Dragon form will likely be even larger than the Blue Dragon form.

The interaction between idol and fan made the Golden Lion, after retracting his Gura Gura no Mi, walk away without looking back—staying longer would only make him more miserable.

Better to not see it than to suffer.

Returning Red-Nose Buggy was another pain in Saint Saint Saiwen's heart these past few days, second only to pure gold.

Buggy may be weak, but his luck is extraordinary.

Most importantly, compared to the captain's high-level pirate playstyle—plotting to control the entire world—Saint Saint Saiwen preferred Buggy's low-level pirate antics.

Too highbrow; it doesn't feel grounded.

Remember, pirates don't just rob other pirates or Celestial Dragons—they can also rob merchant ships and civilians.

Saint Saint Saiwen greatly admired Buggy's habit of robbing everything; that's what a pirate should do.

The more Saint Saint Saiwen thought about it, the more he felt cheated, and with a flicker in his eyes, he made his decision: to trick Buggy and Foxy into leaving.

To hell with what the World Government thinks.

Doesn't everyone know that the Golden Lion admires Luo Jie, and Buggy is publicly recognized as Luo Jie's son—isn't it natural for a senior to appreciate a junior?

"It's decided!"

"I can't keep getting screwed like this."

With Zolo, Buggy, and Foxy, the Sky Pirate Crew now had its core officer structure; later, Saint Saint Saiwen just needed to copy the captain's homework.

The Golden Lion flew openly to the quarry,

because he knew: sneaking around was useless before the captain's Kenbunshoku Haki; better to be open than caught.

In truth, Buggy had been slightly depressed lately.

Life in Wano was great: plenty to eat and drink, money to spare, no fear of being wanted by the Marines.

Everyone in Wano—including the Morning Star Corps—knew: Buggy was the son of the Pirate King Luo Jie, and a close brother of the Thunder God General.

But after living this comfortable life too long, he strangely missed the days at sea.

Especially the journey of the Buggy Pirates from the East Blue to the Hive Island—dangerous, thrilling, full of hope and longing.

As Buggy and Foxy comforted each other, the Golden Lion appeared before them like a savior.

Their eyes met—they'd found the right person.

"Go?" Saint Saint Saiwen raised an eyebrow.

"Go!" Buggy clenched his fist.

"Aren't you going to tell the captain?"

"Saint Saint Saiwen will understand me!"

Between men—especially men who share the same ideals—no words are needed.

The Golden Lion grabbed each by the scruff and flew toward the Floating Lion, hovering above Wano: since the captain didn't stop him, he must have approved.

Thus, the Golden Lion returned, fully loaded.

The Sky Pirate Crew's officer structure was now preliminarily complete; the next step was to sail the Four Seas and copy the captain's homework.

I don't need to match the crew the captain recruited—even one tier below would do.

Sensing Buggy's departure with the Golden Lion, Saint Saint Saiwen sighed; this life of accumulating strength and waiting for opportunity truly wasn't suited to Buggy.

Buggy longed for the traditional pirate way of life.

Neither Saint Saint Saiwen nor Shanks nor anyone else was better suited to inherit the title of Pirate King than Buggy.

Shanks inherited Luo Jie's will, while Saint Saint Saiwen step by step realized the dreams of his childhood and those boasts he once made.

On the contrary, Buggy remained firm in his convictions.

Putting aside his wandering thoughts, Saint Saint Saiwen looked at Jack, who was switching back and forth between dragon form and human form.

"Let's go, I'll take you to find a master."

Since the beloved old master Kaido was not around, Saint Saint Saiwen could only seek another master, Lei Li, to teach Jack.

"Thank you, Boss."

Jack suddenly knelt on the ground and knocked his head three times loudly against the floor before Saint Saint Saiwen.

From childhood to adulthood, Jack had never met anyone who treated him so well, giving him a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit and finding him a master to teach him.

If the Boss weren't so young, Jack would have shouted: "Righteous Father above, please accept this son's bow."

"Get up, don't let it happen again."

"In Inazuma, there is no custom of kneeling; Inazuma wants every person to stand up."

Saint Saint Saiwen had always shouted this slogan, and of course, he had always implemented it: the resolution to make every citizen of Inazuma stand up.

"I remember, Boss."

Jack understood: he must keep respect for the Boss in his heart; any villain who dares to soil the Boss's will, he would surely capture and bring them to await punishment.

Saint Saint Saiwen led Jack to the military camp located outside the capital of Hanami.

Since returning with Pure Gold, Lei Li and Barret had been carrying out the task of training soldiers together.

Barret was responsible for military discipline, Lei Li was responsible for instructing Armament Haki and Observation Haki, while Master Tenghu and Mihawk occasionally came over to teach swordsmanship.

The entire Inazuma, under the leadership of the Morning Star Crew and the Morning Star Grand Fleet, was flourishing.

Agriculture was bountiful, resources were abundant, and the Sea Prism Stone trade made Inazuma incredibly wealthy.

Every bit of profit, besides being converted into Inazuma's strength, was used to build supporting infrastructure and improve the quality of life for the citizens.

In short,

although this leader Saint Saint Saiwen was mostly a hands-off ruler, he was deeply loved by the citizens.

Even if Momonosuke had not died,

even if Momonosuke returned to Inazuma at this moment, he would be accused by the citizens of being a remnant of the former regime and captured for secret execution.

Actually, Saint Saint Saiwen did not do much; he simply ensured that the citizens of Inazuma no longer went hungry and that life had more hope...

Even so,

after Saint Saint Saiwen became the Raiden Shogun of Inazuma, the series of policies he issued could be called the rule of a wise monarch rarely seen in eight hundred years in the world of pirates.

Who else but the fact that the lower limit of the pirate world is so low.