On the outskirts of the new Ohara, the air still crackled from the pillar of lightning that had pierced the sea of clouds. A strong smell of ozone filled the area.
Smoker paced back and forth irritably. From time to time, he looked up at the giant hole in the clouds that had not fully closed yet. He had bitten the cigar in his mouth so much that it was badly bent out of shape.
"That guy... where the hell did he go?!"
He felt both irritated and uneasy. Aiden had suddenly vanished, and then a huge hole had been blasted open in the sky. Even Smoker found it unsettling.
Just as Smoker was starting to get suspicious, the hair on his arms suddenly stood up!
A strong wave of static filled the air. Even his Marine uniform stuck to his skin.
"Zzz, crack-crack-crack!!"
With a sharp screech, a blinding flash of blue lightning fell from the sky!
Boom!
The lightning struck the empty ground right in front of Smoker. It blasted a small scorched pit into the earth.
"What?!" Smoker instinctively jumped back and raised his arm to shield his eyes.
The blinding blue light slowly faded. In the dust, a tall figure stood there quietly.
It was Aiden.
He was wearing the same clothes, but he looked completely different now. His black hair stood slightly on end, and tiny blue arcs of electricity crackled around his body. He slowly opened his eyes. There was a faint trace of lightning in them.
The cigar in Smoker's mouth dropped to the ground with a thud.
He was not stupid. He looked up at the hole in the clouds that had not closed yet, then at Aiden standing there covered in electricity. An absurd but obvious answer came to mind.
"Just now... that..." Smoker's voice came out a little dry. "That thing that blasted a huge hole through the sea of clouds... you did that?!"
Aiden calmly raised his right hand and opened his palm.
Zing.
A ball of blue lightning crackled in his palm.
"Yeah, I got lucky," Aiden said in his usual flat tone. "I found a Logia fruit, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit."
"..."
Smoker's expression froze completely.
He subconsciously raised his own hand and focused.
Poof.
A harmless puff of white smoke came out of his palm.
Smoker stared blankly at the smoke in his hand. Then he slowly turned to look at the lightning in Aiden's hand, which gave off pure destructive power.
A bitter mix of frustration and jealousy rushed straight to his head.
Are you kidding me?!
Why him?!
We are both Logia users. So why am I stuck with smoke? At best, I make people cough, block their vision, or tie them up.
But you?!
You skipped straight to lightning itself?!
That was the kind of power people talked about in legends. Pure destruction.
Smoker felt like his head was about to split open.
This was not even the same level anymore! How were they supposed to keep hanging around together after this?!
"Tch..."
Smoker's face darkened as he pulled two more cigars from his pocket and lit them aggressively. He took a deep drag, and even the smoke he blew out seemed full of resentment.
"Flashy nonsense..." he muttered under his breath. "Don't think... don't think you're all that just because you can glow!"
Aiden looked at Smoker's frustrated, jealous expression and smiled. He pulled the lightning back into his palm.
"Let's go. It's time to head back. We need to say goodbye to the professors."
Back at the new Ohara camp, the professors were hard at work rebuilding everything.
When Aiden and Smoker returned, Professor Clover immediately came over to meet them.
"Mr. Aiden, Mr. Smoker... are you two leaving?"
"Professor," Aiden nodded. "It's time for us to go. This place is completely safe now. The rest is up to you."
Professor Clover's eyes were full of gratitude. He bowed deeply to them again, along with all the other professors. "Ohara will always remember your kindness."
From the back of the crowd, Robin held Olvia's hand and ran over.
"Aiden!" Robin looked up at him, her big eyes full of sadness. "Are... are you leaving?"
Aiden knelt down and reached out to rub her head again.
"Robin, this will be your real home from now on," he said with a smile. "Study hard and grow up well. From now on, no one will be able to hurt you or your mother again."
"Then... will you come back to see us?" Robin asked softly.
"Of course." Aiden stood up and looked at Olvia, whose expression was gentle. "Next time, I'll bring you the best cake."
"Okay!" Robin nodded hard.
Finally, the two found Saul. He was using a giant log to build the frame for the library.
"Saul, we're leaving," Aiden said, looking up at him.
"Gahaha..." Saul put down the log and scratched his head. "Leaving so soon?"
"What about you?" Aiden asked. "Even though you've left the Marines, someone with your strength could live well anywhere."
Hearing that, Saul shook his head.
He looked at Robin chatting with her mother nearby, then at the professors working hard to rebuild their home.
"No, I'm not leaving yet."
Saul's voice was steady and firm. "The professors are safe now, but rebuilding Ohara won't be easy. They still need me."
He patted the giant log beside him and grinned, showing his white teeth.
"I'm staying here until Ohara's Tree of Knowledge grows again on this Endless Vearth. After that, I'll think about going back home to Elbaf."
Aiden and Smoker looked at each other.
They both saw the same deep respect in each other's eyes for this honest giant. This was the kind of responsibility and justice only a real man could carry.
"Take care," Aiden said, not trying to change his mind.
"Gahaha... you too!"
After saying goodbye to everyone, Aiden and Smoker returned to the edge of the sea of clouds at Apayado.
Ten thousand meters below them were endless clouds and the distant Blue Sea.
Smoker stood at the edge of the cliff. He looked at the escape ship they had left for the professors, then at the endless clouds, and frowned deeply.
"Hey, Aiden. How are the two of us supposed to get down?"
He rubbed his hair irritably. "We can't tie a rope and climb all the way down, can we?"
"Climb down?" Aiden walked to the very edge of the cliff. The wild wind whipped at his clothes. "No, that would take too long."
"Then what are you going to..."
"Smoker," Aiden suddenly cut him off.
"What?"
"Don't forget what we are."
Smoker was stunned. "What?"
"We're both Logia users." Aiden slowly turned around. A wild grin spread across his face.
Before Smoker could understand what he meant, Aiden's right arm turned into a bolt of blue lightning. In a flash, he grabbed Smoker by the shoulder!
"Hold on tight! Don't fall apart in midair!"
"Hey! You lunatic, what do you think you're..."
"Waaaaaaaah!!!"
With Smoker's scream going completely off-key from pure terror, Aiden grabbed him and jumped!