Louis tensed, cold sweat running down his back, soaking his shirt.
*Krr!* Wade's hand on Dylan's shoulder tightened even more, causing Dylan's face to contort in pain.
However, the seemingly always sensitive Wade was completely indifferent to what was happening this time. He only looked at the assembled instructors until his muscles began to tremble slightly, which symbolized that he was warming up.
At the same time, Louis, after the panic he had experienced, quickly pulled himself together. He understood that by deciding to demonstrate his mastery of the Seimei Kikan, he had not committed a rash act, as it might seem at first glance. He was a genius, that was a fact, and he was not afraid of investigations.
"But, unfortunately..." the instructor sighed: "Three monsters have appeared in the Marine Patrol. Their future for the next twenty to thirty years is already secured, but our organization, unfortunately, is lagging behind a bit."
Louis knew exactly who the instructor was referring to. These three Marines had started the golden age of their organization.
By this time, people like Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru had already proven themselves, and Sengoku and Garp were in their prime. Which was a good sign for the Marines. However, even so, the chaos at sea would not decrease in the future, and might even increase...
"So, Louis, tell me," the instructor looked deep into Louis' eyes, "Are you really a genius?"
"Yes," Louis answered confidently, "I think I've demonstrated my abilities sufficiently over the past year."
Despite his young age, Louis's learning speed was undeniably the best in the camp. He was the first to master what he was taught so quickly and the only one to use the knowledge he had acquired in such a multifaceted way.
"To tell the truth, as you said, I know about your origin, and your talent is undeniable," the instructor nodded, and a smile appeared on his face: "It will be sad if you die here."
He then turned his gaze to Wade, "Especially if your death will bring even more unexpected losses... Well, fine, let CP9 handle this matter."
"Louis, CP9!" he said in a tone as if he were reading the defendant's sentence.
"Yes!!!" - Dylan almost jumped with joy. And just at that moment he noticed the pain coming from the shoulder that Wade was squeezing: "Damn!!! How painful! Wade, you're going to break it now!!!"
"Oh, sorry," Wade pulled his hand away with a smile, "I didn't think you were such a weakling, Dylan."
"Hey!!" - anyway, the distribution was over. And all the cadets who had completed their training had to go to new positions to start their professional careers.
However, before they could get to work, there was one more stage to go through – introductory training. The instructor gave Louis a meaningful look, lingering on him for about a minute, and then left the place with a satisfied expression on his face. As for his look, it remained a mystery to Louis and his friends.
Thus ended life at the South Blue training camp. Tomorrow the ships will take the cadets to their new posts, which means that it is time to say goodbye...
"Why did you spare him, Louis? Frank, he clearly wanted to kill you! Why did you let him go?" - During dinner, Dylan could not contain his displeasure and said everything directly.
He had just seen Frank, wounded and covered in blood, being carried away on a stretcher towards the hospital. In a camp with such a high mortality rate as this one, hospitals with outstanding doctors were not just a semblance - they saved lives every day. Which meant that despite Frank's terrible condition - he would survive.
"I already told you," Louis answered calmly. And slowly chewing his food, swallowing a piece, he added: "Duels are forbidden here, and murder is even more so. Following the rules will clearly not be a bad decision for me."
"But you let him go so easily? Why, Louis?" Dylan was in complete despair: "That bastard tried to kill you!"
"That's enough, Dylan," Wade said with a smile, "Frank was seriously injured, wasn't he?"
"So what?! They're just scratches!" Dylan clearly couldn't accept this outcome.
"No, Dylan, those aren't scratches at all," Wade said, smiling at Louis.
"What?" Dylan was confused.
"Yes," Louis nodded, knowing that if Frank was his enemy, he couldn't just leave him alone.
Although Frank had hit CP8, Louis was not about to let him continue to grow in strength: "With the last blow, I pierced his chest, and 'changed' him a little inside. And now, even if he survives, his lungs will not be able to work at full capacity."
"What does that mean?" Dylan blinked a few times, trying to process what he had heard.
"It means," Louis continued with a smile, "that in the future he will choke from the slightest physical exertion."
"Um..." Dylan froze, then asked, "So what?"
"Don't you really realize how stupid you are?" Wade laughed and patted Dylan on the shoulder. "Think about it: would the government support such a useless cripple?"
"Huh...? AAA!!! SO THAT'S WHAT IT IS!!!" Dylan finally realized.
In essence, Louis had Frank out of the way. Spies, with their wealth of sensitive information and skills acquired through rigorous training, were valuable resources. But cripples like Frank were of no value to the government. And it was unlikely that anyone would waste resources on keeping agents as worthless as he was.
"I was very merciful," Louis added, emphasizing that, despite this, he spared Frank.
"You're a cruel guy! Listen, stay away from me!" Dylan exclaimed dramatically.
"Don't worry, I'm leaving for CP9 tomorrow. It'll definitely be far enough," Louis chuckled.
"Um..." Dylan suddenly realized that this was their last dinner before parting.
"Keep training Tekkai and Shigan," Louis spoke with concern, like a father giving his son instructions before his first journey, "You'll definitely need this in CP5. Use these techniques to avoid becoming cannon fodder."
Unlike Louis and Wade, Dylan did not have the opportunity to learn the full range of Rokushiki techniques.
"If anyone asks how you learned them," Wade added, "Tell them we taught you. I'm sure no one will dare bother you after that."
Even the CP5 commanders didn't have the same weighty position as full-fledged members of CP9, let alone CP0.
"I will teach you the rest of the techniques when I master them myself," Louis continued.
One of the advantages of CP9 was that they had access to all the Rokushiki techniques, so Louis no longer needed lessons from Wade. Which was strictly forbidden in the camp: "Try to master the Seimei Kikan. But the main thing: don't get ahead of everyone, but also don't get left behind. The tasks are secondary, the main thing is to stay alive."
"Exactly," Wade nodded.
"Hey! That's enough already!" Dylan slammed the table. "Wade is understandable, but you, Louis! Do you really think I'm your little brother?"
"No," Louis shook his head.
"That's better!" Dylan grumbled contentedly.
"I rather consider you my student. And isn't it natural for a teacher to care for his student?" Louis chuckled.
"Bastard!!!" Dylan jumped over the table, trying to shut Louis up. But anyway, this was their last meeting before a long separation...