Chapter 71: What Do You Think?
After hanging Axel out on the clothesline, Tsuru did not rush back outside.
She first returned to her cabin, boiled water, and made herself a pot of tea. Then she sat down calmly, enjoyed a few snacks, and drank in quiet comfort, as though she had not just turned a boy into laundry and left him swaying in the sea breeze.
By the time she finally stepped out again, nearly an hour had passed.
Axel was still there.
His body remained bound by a strange, almost absolute rule. In theory, he could still use his powers. If he truly wanted to, he could probably force himself free. But the frightening part of Tsuru's ability was not the physical restraint. It was what it did to the heart.
No resentment rose within him.
No anger. No irritation. No rebellious urge to break free.
On the contrary, the longer he hung there, the calmer he became. His mind felt clean in a way that made leaving seem almost unnecessary. If that state lasted much longer, Axel suspected he might start contemplating philosophy.
Now he finally understood why Doflamingo treated Vice Admiral Tsuru as such a troublesome existence.
For a man like Doflamingo, death was not the cruelest punishment. Imprisonment was not the cruelest punishment either.
No, the true nightmare was cleansing.
If the evil within him was washed away, then what remained would no longer be Doflamingo. It would be someone else wearing his skin.
Tsuru stepped up to the clothesline and looked at him with mild interest.
"How do you feel, Axel?"
She unpinned him from the line, then released the effects of her Devil Fruit.
The instant he returned to normal, Axel landed on his feet and immediately patted himself down from head to toe, checking his arms, chest, face, and legs like a man who had just escaped being disassembled and reassembled.
Only after confirming that everything was where it should be did he let out a quiet breath.
Then he answered, "It was... fine."
That was putting it mildly.
More accurately, it had been horrifying.
Still, without anger in his heart, even complaining felt strangely difficult.
Tsuru seemed to understand the understatement, but she did not press it.
"As I told you before, I intend to train you properly," she said. "Before that, I need a clearer understanding of your ability. When I touched you just now, I felt a resistance. Explain it to me in detail."
Axel had already decided he would not hide the basic nature of his power from her.
So he gave her a concise explanation.
He spoke of controlling the direction of energy, of the passive defense surrounding him, of how [Reflection] rejected harmful forces, and of how his calculations determined what he could and could not manipulate.
Tsuru listened without interrupting.
She lowered her head in thought when he finished. Her expression did not change much, but her silence carried weight. It was the sort of silence that made one feel as if every word just spoken was being taken apart, sorted, and stored in the proper box.
She was not shocked by the ability itself.
In the world of Devil Fruits, strange powers were everywhere. Some sounded divine and ended up mediocre in battle. Others sounded ordinary and became monstrous in the right hands.
A power was only a tool. What mattered was the person using it.
At length, Tsuru said, "I will not rush to give you advice. First I want to verify something with my own eyes."
She turned and began walking.
"For now, come with me. I will show you the ship."
Axel blinked. "Aren't warships all basically the same?"
Tsuru replied without looking back, "No. This one is different. My ship is an all female unit. Aside from a handful of men necessary to keep the vessel running, nearly everyone aboard is a woman. That changes many things."
She showed him around personally.
There was no one else on deck right now besides the two of them and the cook. The rest of the crew had already been dismissed to rest, which left the warship unusually quiet.
Tsuru pointed out his room, the washroom, the bath, the toilet, and a few basic areas he would need to know. She moved without hurry, but never wasted a word. Every explanation was brief and practical.
Eventually, they reached the dining hall.
"This is the mess," Tsuru said. "If you want something to eat, tell Barkley. After that, come to my cabin."
She left without waiting for a reply.
The cook she had mentioned was a middle aged man in a Marine kitchen uniform with a blue scarf around his neck. He had a somewhat plump build, a broad nose, and the kind of smile that made him look simple and harmless.
He turned around when Axel entered, then did a visible double take.
"My name's Barkley," he said. "And you are?"
"Axel," he replied. Then, preemptively, "Also, just to be clear, I'm a boy."
Barkley's cheerful expression froze for a second.
He had absolutely taken Axel for a girl.
To be fair, it was not entirely his fault. This was Vice Admiral Tsuru's warship. Boys did not exactly appear here every day, especially not one who looked like this.
After a brief pause, Barkley coughed awkwardly and changed the subject.
"So... how did you end up aboard this ship?"
"To train."
That answer surprised Barkley even more.
He had seen promising newcomers assigned to ships before, but Axel was clearly very young, and Tsuru was known for being strict. For her to take him in personally meant there had to be something special about him.
Still, Barkley knew better than to ask too much.
"What would you like to eat?" he asked instead.
"Meat," Axel answered at once.
"Meat?"
"Yes. Delicious meat."
There was not a shred of hesitation in his voice.
Axel might appreciate complex techniques, combat systems, and survival strategies, but when it came to food, his tastes were brutally simple. Meat was good. Better meat was better. The end.
Barkley scratched his chin and gave the matter some serious thought.
Then he got to work.
He pulled ingredients from the cold storage and arranged them with practiced ease. He chose a tender cut of beef, fresh vegetables, and a pan seared preparation, aiming for something rich but clean, easy to enjoy, and satisfying after a strange morning.
Soon the aroma began to spread through the mess hall.
Axel sat still, but his nose twitched. He swallowed once, then again.
Barkley noticed and grinned.
When the dish was finally plated, he set it down in front of Axel with the air of a man presenting a masterpiece.
"How's that?" he said proudly. "Smells good, doesn't it?"
Axel did not bother answering. He grabbed the fork and dug in immediately.
Barkley laughed under his breath and turned to clean the counter, clearly pleased.
Nothing made a cook happier than a customer who attacked the food without politeness.
By the time Axel finished, the plate looked as though it had been professionally cleaned.
He leaned back in his chair, patted his stomach, and let out a satisfied breath.
Then he thanked Barkley and headed for Tsuru's cabin.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Come in," Tsuru's voice answered.
Axel pushed open the door and stepped inside, then closed it behind him.
Tsuru was seated at her desk, her posture composed but her expression thoughtful. One elbow rested on the tabletop while her hands supported her chin. The room itself was clean and orderly, much like the woman sitting in it.
Yet the look in her eyes suggested she had something heavier on her mind.
When she saw Axel enter, she let out a quiet sigh.
Then she asked, "Garp told me you were present when Zephyr caused a scene in Sengoku's office."
Axel's gaze sharpened slightly.
Tsuru folded her hands atop the desk and looked directly at him.
"What do you think?"
.....
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