"Conqueror's Haki is really hard to control..." Ryuen sighed with a hint of frustration on his face.
Ever since his Phoenix Flame Devil Fruit had been reborn, his Conqueror's Haki had also awakened. However, after six years, he'd only managed to release it in a targeted manner.
As for using it in full control, he wasn't at that level yet...
He stopped releasing his aura, and when he looked at Smoker, he saw that the man's face had turned as dark as the bottom of a pot...
Smoker was feeling terrible. His attack just now, while not full strength, was still no joke. But Ryuen had reacted as if it had no effect at all...
In fact, Ryuen seemed to be disapproving of his power...
Smoker was really angry now, but at the same time, he felt a bit down.
Now he understood why Vice Admiral Garp valued this young man so much. To have this kind of strength at such a young age, it was truly impressive!
Without saying a word, Smoker walked toward his office. He needed time to calm down.
At the edge of the training ground, Tashigi was completely stunned. In her eyes, the unbeatable Loguetown natural system had no effect on Ryuen at all...
"That's... way too strong..." Tashigi muttered to herself.
"Eyeglasses, after that fight, I'm hungry. Where's the Marine cafeteria?" Ryuen waved his hand in front of Tashigi.
"Uh... please follow me..." Tashigi still hadn't fully recovered, and she led Ryuen and his friends to the cafeteria.
"Ryuen, are we really eating at the Marine cafeteria?" Daisy asked, a little confused.
"Yeah, the portions here are big, and the best part is it's free, so don't hold back!" Ryuen said boldly.
It was as if the base's cafeteria belonged to him!
Hearing it was free, everyone got excited right away. Over the years, they had trained themselves to have big appetites!
Not to mention, they also had Seimei Kikan!
Tashigi led Ryuen and his group to the cafeteria, gave some instructions to the chefs, and left. She needed to check on Captain Smoker.
"What... would you like to eat? As long as you can name it, we can make it!" the cafeteria chef said proudly.
The seven of them exchanged glances, already understanding each other's thoughts. Without hesitation, they ordered a massive amount of food.
Soon, the entire Marine cafeteria was in full swing. It looked like a factory assembly line, continuously producing food, but they still struggled to keep up with how fast Ryuen's group was eating.
"Give it your all! We can't let these seven youngsters look down on us!" The head chef, his face flushed, shouted.
The chefs refused to admit defeat. Despite over a dozen of them cooking together, they still couldn't keep up.
This was practically an insult to their skills!
Determined, the chefs sped up. Dish after dish of delicious food barely hit the table before it disappeared into Ryuen's group's stomachs!
In the base commander's office, Captain Smoker seemed to have made up his mind—he needed to train his body.
What happened on the training grounds earlier had truly embarrassed him. A proud Logia-type Devil Fruit user, losing to a young man who had just started his journey...
"Captain Smoker, are you okay?" Tashigi asked the moment she stepped inside. Googlᴇ search ɴo(v)elFɪre.ɴet
"I'm fine, Tashigi. Why are you back already? Where are they? Did they leave?" Smoker asked softly, masking his emotions.
"They didn't leave. Ryuen said they were hungry after a fight, so I took them to the Marine cafeteria..." Tashigi began to realize something odd.
Hungry after a fight?
But... he hadn't even fought back earlier, only taking Smoker's harmless punch...
Smoker's eye twitched. Hungry after a fight? This guy probably just wanted free food!
"Whatever... We haven't eaten much today either. Let's go eat too." Smoker stood up and headed toward the cafeteria.
"Yes, Captain Smoker!" Tashigi saluted and followed him.
Before they even reached the cafeteria, they noticed something strange. A crowd had gathered at the entrance.
"What's going on?" Smoker asked coldly.
"Captain Smoker, you... you'd better see for yourself..."
The gathered Marines hesitated before stepping aside to clear a path for Smoker and Tashigi.
Confused, the two entered the cafeteria, only to be stunned by the sight.
The chefs looked like they were fighting a battle, frantically preparing food for Ryuen's group while shouting slogans.
Meanwhile, Ryuen's group was eating so much their bellies were round, yet they showed no sign of stopping!
"Are you trying to eat all the food in my base's cafeteria?!" Smoker yelled angrily.
Smoker's outburst brought everything to a halt.
Ryuen's group stopped because they were almost full. The chefs stopped because they were nearly out of food!
It was the first time they'd faced opponents this terrifying.
"Hic... Oh! Captain Smoker, you're here. Want to join us for a bite?"
"Burp~~~" Ryuen greeted enthusiastically.
Smoker's face immediately darkened at those words. These guys clearly didn't see themselves as outsiders! And they haven't even joined the Marines yet!
"Um~~~ Captain Smoker, the food in the warehouse is all gone. What should we do~~~?" At that moment, the head chef nervously approached Smoker.
"Are you saying they ate all the food at our base?!" Smoker asked in a deep voice.
"Ah~~~ about that~~~" The head chef wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and answered.
But these were Captain Smoker's friends, right? He was just warmly entertaining them. That shouldn't be wrong, right? the chef thought to himself.
"I'm stuffed~~~" Ryuen stood up, patting his now round and full belly.
"I'm full too, hee hee~~~" Nami followed suit, also standing up.
"Then let's get going~~~" With that, Ryuen was the first to step out of the cafeteria.
The other six, all rubbing their round stomachs, followed closely behind.
"Um~~~ Captain Smoker, thanks for the hospitality. We'll be leaving now~~~ Burp~~~" At the door, Ryuen bowed slightly to Smoker in thanks.
"Thank you, Captain Smoker, for the hospitality!"
The seven of them walked past Smoker and out of the cafeteria~~~
At this moment, Tashigi finally came to her senses. Did she just mess up somehow?
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