{Side Arc – Elyndra I}
The G-4 base was situated on a hilly island in the middle of Paradise, surrounded by deep blue sea and towering walls of natural stone. The fortress served as a critical stronghold for the Navy in the early part of the Grand Line. On one side of the island, a dense training forest stretched wide — the grounds where young recruits honed their skills under the watchful eyes of seasoned veterans.
That was where Elyndra stood.
"Elyndra, your stance is too open!" shouted Gion, swinging her wooden sword swiftly toward her student.
The crack of clashing wood echoed in the morning air. Elyndra blocked the strike but stumbled back several steps. Her palms reddened from the shock of the vice-admiral's blow.
"Again," Gion said calmly, her sharp eyes analyzing every movement.
The girl stood up. Her jet-black hair was tied back, her breath ragged. Her training uniform clung to her skin, soaked with sweat. But her gaze remained fierce — the gaze of someone who had refused to become a victim ever again.
Two years had passed since that night...
---
Flashes of fire. Screams. A one-eyed old man laughing atop an auction stage. Children locked in cages like animals.
Elyndra would never forget the moment she clutched her unmoving younger brother. Her cries had no sound, only a small, trembling body frozen in horror. Her body wanted to flee, but her legs refused to move.
Then a white light split the sky. A blade struck the floor, splitting it wide open. The auctioneer and his guards fell instantly.
A tall woman with a sheathed sword stood amidst the ruin.
"Why didn't you fight back?" Gion had asked then, her piercing eyes staring straight into Elyndra's wounds.
She hadn't answered. She couldn't. Only shame and humiliation bound her tongue and limbs.
---
"HAAH!" Present-day Elyndra launched a flurry of slashes, her feet gliding across the ground, attempting a technique she'd drilled for days.
Gion blocked every strike with minimal movement, though this time, a faint smile curved her lips.
"Slightly better," she said. "But your anger is still controlling your technique."
Elyndra clenched her fists. "I can't erase it. I don't want to erase it."
"I'm not asking you to forget," Gion replied. "But you must direct it. Don't let the fire consume you."
Gion then stepped closer, lowering herself into a defensive stance.
"Now, use everything you've learned. I won't hold back."
Elyndra gritted her teeth, took a deep breath, and lunged forward. She attacked with a series of horizontal and vertical slashes, then spun for a thrust aimed at Gion's left side.
Gion blocked and countered with lightning-fast movements, forcing Elyndra to retreat. The girl leaped back and unleashed a circular slash that generated a faint pressure wave.
"Don't just rely on strength. Use your feet, use your mind!" Gion barked.
Elyndra repositioned herself, trying to strike from a blind spot. She jumped to Gion's right and slashed low — but it was parried and countered instantly.
Gion's wooden blade struck her shoulder, sending her tumbling to the ground.
"Again. Get up."
Elyndra winced, gripping her aching shoulder — but she rose without complaint.
"I'm not done yet!" she shouted.
She charged again, this time with more precision. She feinted her slash, causing Gion to shift, then struck upward with a quick thrust from below.
Gion blocked — now with a bit more seriousness.
"Good. That's improvement. But don't forget: technique is a tool. Your intent decides its purpose."
After the session, Elyndra sat alone on the rear dock of the base. Her teenage legs dangled above the calm surface of the sea. There was no Tsuru today. Only the waves and sunlight dancing upon the water.
She gazed at the sky.
"I will burn them all. Every last one who laughed at our suffering. Every pirate who calls pain the price of freedom."
The rage within her was no longer a flickering spark. It had become a bonfire that refused to die.
Behind her, the sound of footsteps echoed on the wooden planks.
"You know," said Gion in a calm voice, "I once carried the same anger."
Elyndra turned to look.
"But I chose justice over vengeance. Because if I fell into that hole, then I'd be no different from them."
Elyndra stared into her eyes. Gion wasn't preaching. She was offering a choice.
"I won't forgive them," Elyndra whispered.
"You don't have to," Gion replied. "But fight in a way that ensures no other girl like you ever suffers again."
A gentle breeze swept across the dock, carrying the scent of salt and steel. In the sky above Paradise, the sun tilted westward.
Elyndra stood up.
She wasn't finished. Not until the world understood the pain that the black-haired girl had buried deep inside.
And under the guidance of Vice Admiral Gion, she would forge her vengeance into a weapon of justice.