Chapter 25: A Profound Sense of Dissonance! The Strange Behavior of Vergo!

Chapter 25: A Strong Sense of Dissonance! Vergo is Acting Strange!

This day.

Following the conclusion of the routine morning group exercises and breakfast, Cui Ze headed toward the shooting range, just as he had done for the past several days.

However, he was not looking to continue training to improve his marksmanship this time. Instead, there were things he wanted to ask the scarred instructor inside the shooting range.

Amidst the constant sound of gunfire in the range:

"A workshop for crafting weapons?"

The scarred instructor rubbed his chin, looking at Cui Ze with slight confusion.

"There is indeed such a place on the ship, specifically serving those naval soldiers who are accustomed to using unconventional weapons. You can have them prepare the materials, or you can bring your own. Why do you ask?"

"My current level of marksmanship has hit a bottleneck," Cui Ze said, suppressing his excitement and keeping his expression calm. "Standard-issue firearms no longer meet my needs, so I want to craft a more suitable long-range weapon."

Upon hearing this, the corners of the instructor's mouth couldn't help but twitch violently.

In total, it had been less than three days.

Right under his nose, Cui Ze had rapidly grown into a super sharpshooter who hit his mark almost every single time! Even if it was just in a professional training room, and even if it was just shooting at stationary targets, that was already terrifying!

But now it seemed that what was even more frightening was that this guy possessed a "heart" that was constantly striving for progress!

After a moment of thought, the scarred instructor said seriously, "At your current level, wanting to improve your shooting ability isn't just about relying on some 'suitable weapon'."

A flash of thoughtful light crossed Cui Ze's eyes.

"Perhaps you have already guessed it," the instructor said, keenly noticing this, which made him think even more highly of the talent standing before him. "That's right! [Haki] is the only path for a gunman to truly enter the hall of mastery!"

"But I haven't mastered Haki yet," Cui Ze said helplessly. "Neither Armament Haki nor Observation Haki."

"Training in Haki is not something that happens overnight; it requires a very long and arduous process," the instructor said calmly. "But your idea is correct. A more suitable, exclusive weapon will indeed help you continue to improve your shooting standards. Tell you what, I'll write you a permit. With it, you can go to the weapons workshop and apply to have the weapon you need crafted."

"Thank you, instructor!" Cui Ze said happily.

In reality, the true reason Cui Ze wanted to craft an "exclusive weapon" was not exactly what he had told the instructor, or at least that was only a small part of it.

The truth was—Smoker's next challenge was imminent.

Having fully absorbed the lessons from the previous challenge, the "Smoker" would never again be easily knocked down with a single punch like before!

Cui Ze, who had not yet mastered Armament Haki, could only rely on some "tactics" in advance to ensure his victory in this round of combat.

This as-yet-unborn "exclusive weapon" was one of the "tactics" Cui Ze had envisioned, and it was perfectly suited for the [Precision Shooting] ability tag he had just acquired.

***

I’ve got the bait for Smoker’s victory secured!

Before long, Cui Ze obtained the permit with the instructor's handwritten signature.

"By the way, instructor, if I want to practice on 'moving targets,' do you have any suggestions?"

"Moving targets?" The instructor pondered for a moment. "There are no conditions for practicing on moving targets in the shooting range. You might try using seagulls; there are news birds that bring newspapers every day... Never mind, that won't work! I remember there are some balloons left in the warship's inventory; you can try using those first."

A sharp light flashed in Cui Ze's eyes.

Balloons, huh...

...

Following the instructor's directions, Cui Ze took the permit to the deck where the weapons workshop was located.

The new recruit training camp for this year was already more than halfway through, and those naval recruits who had wanted to craft exclusive weapons had already applied and finished long ago.

At this stage, the workshop mainly handled simple weapon repairs and bullet crafting, so the environment inside was relatively quiet.

When Cui Ze entered, the person in charge of receiving him was a thin, elderly navy man with a white beard.

"Sir, this is the permit from the scarred instructor." Cui Ze didn't see the "Justice" coat behind the old man, so he used a polite address and handed over the permit with both hands. "I would like to apply to have a weapon crafted."

The old man took the permit, glanced at it briefly, set it aside, and began firing questions like a machine gun.

"What type of weapon do you want to craft? Are you providing your own materials, or do you intend to use the materials in the workshop? Do you have any special requirements?"

"I need two long-range weapons: a short-barreled pistol and a slingshot," Cui Ze said methodically, pulling out the materials he had collected in advance. "I didn't prepare materials for the pistol, but for the slingshot, I have collected many suitable fish bones in advance, as well as a tough ox tendon from a sea cow-type sea beast."

The "exclusive weapon" Cui Ze envisioned was a slingshot!

A toy-like weapon that "doesn't cause much damage, but is extremely insulting."

It would surely inflict significant psychological damage on Smoker!

Moreover, slingshots were easy to source and simple to make, making them even better suited for Cui Ze's overall plan.

Just defeating Smoker?

No!

That was not all Cui Ze wanted to do.

He wanted to break some of the "truths" that seemed like common sense in the eyes of ordinary people.

For example...

Logia-type Devil Fruits are invincible!

That, however, is a story for another time.

"It's always easier to communicate with some people!" The old man smiled with satisfaction upon seeing how well-prepared Cui Ze was. "A slingshot is very simple to make; you can come and get it tonight! As for the short-barreled pistol, do you have any ideas?"

"A standard short flintlock will do," Cui Ze didn't have many requirements for firearms. He just wanted a short gun because long flintlocks were very inconvenient to carry.

What pirate in their right mind doesn't tuck five or six flintlocks into their belt?

Huh?

"Both are simple!" The old man nodded. "Come back and get them both tonight!"

"Understood, thank you, sir."

Cui Ze set the time and bid him farewell.

With the two major goals of the day accomplished, Cui Ze's steps felt much lighter.

For the remainder of the morning, Cui Ze did not return to the shooting range, but instead stepped into the warship's combat training room for the first time.

The combat training room was a massive, comprehensive facility filled with a wide array of training equipment. Various combat arenas were set up in every corner for the marines to practice.

It might not have been the largest room on the warship, but it was definitely the most popular among the elite marines.

After all, on this sea...

Fists are the main currency!

In the bustling combat training room, Cui Ze took a quick look and saw many familiar faces, including but not limited to Smoker, Hina, Vergo, Sentomaru, and so on.

These elite marines spent a large amount of time practicing on their own in the combat training room every day.

Just as Cui Ze was about to start his own training, a strong sense of dissonance suddenly surged in his heart.

He stopped his movements and scanned the familiar faces in the room once more.

"Smoker... Hina... Vergo... That's him!"

"Vergo doesn't have any food scraps on his face today?!"

"This is just too strange!"