One Piece: Mandala Swordsman

Chapter 195 You'll be my witness.

Borsalino's bad premonition came true.

Having just returned and caught his breath, he received orders from Sengoku.

He was put in charge of the science department.

The reason was extremely crude: he had a good relationship with Sentomaru, who was extremely close to Vegapunk.

This reason was also given to Sengoku by Roman.

The three generals were actually based on the characters for chicken, monkey, and dog.

The name Sentomaru comes from Kintaro and Momotaro in folk tales. They are well-known magical dolls with the same bib and watermelon head as Sentomaru.

This character's close companions are the three animals: chicken, monkey, and dog.

In other words, they already had a natural foundation for building a good relationship.

So logically speaking, Borsalino wouldn't refuse, because he genuinely enjoys teasing Sentomaru.

And they do indeed have a deep affection for each other.

Roman also genuinely believed that Sentomaru was a very amazing person.

That man, who's known as the world's most tight-lipped, is truly someone you can get along with. He'll answer any question you ask, but if you don't ask, he'll tell you everything.

Upon hearing that he would be paired with Sentomaru, Borsalino's heart was finally less resistant.

But he still had a bad feeling.

Was Sylvie Roman involved in this?

Sengoku answered quite decisively: "This is my order. You don't need to worry about whether it has anything to do with Syl Roman. The Science Department itself needs someone in charge, and you are a suitable candidate."

What he said made a lot of sense, but Borsalino just couldn't believe that it had nothing to do with Roman.

This was also his intuition.

"Mr. Sengoku, was Kuzan involved?"

"He was involved as well." Sengoku did not hide this fact.

Nasser Roman was 100% involved; even if not directly, she was definitely involved.

Once Kuzan's involvement was confirmed, Borsalino had a clear idea of ​​what was going on.

……

If Borsalino is to be involved, then he definitely wants to find out who is involved.

Although Sengoku might not tell Borsalino that it was his idea, once Borsalino knows that Kuzan is involved, he will definitely realize that he is also implicated.

Roman drank his juice and thought to himself slowly.

If this continues, he definitely won't pretend to be deaf and dumb like before.

……

If it's Syl Roman's real name, that's fine, but the name might also be fake.

Borsalino guessed so.

First, it can be confirmed that her combat talent is quite high, which may be inherited from both parents or one of them. Of course, it is also possible that she is naturally gifted.

Whether it's due to bloodline or sufficient personal ability, it's all plausible, after all, there are such examples in reality.

So where did she get this relevant knowledge?

Talent can indeed determine everything in many cases. Some people can achieve a certain level of proficiency in swordsmanship in just one year, while others can practice for ten years and still only have a superficial understanding.

The difference lies in the importance of talent.

But this only explains Roman's physical strength, not her intellect.

Borsalino suspected that Roman must have undergone a long period of high-pressure training, otherwise he would not have been able to keep up with Sakazuki's work pace, let alone be more than capable of doing so.

At the same time, he received systematic political theory education, ideological education, and basic military strategy education.

All of this can be felt from Roman's words and actions; she has decision-making ability and a sense of the big picture.

Borsalino didn't look down on Roman; it's just that these things can't be explained by talent alone, and she must have received considerable training.

This occurred before Roman joined the navy.

Even with the most conservative estimate, it should take several years, or even longer.

Theoretically, there is enough time, but that's only in theory.

But Roman had been a homeless man for a long time. How can you expect a homeless orphan to acquire this knowledge?

There are indeed many geniuses in the science department, but that takes a long time to learn and cannot be achieved overnight.

The Brain-Brain Fruit has already been eaten by Vegapunk.

What are the odds of having both high intelligence and martial arts talent, and Roman being under 15 years old?

So even if she is an orphan now, her previous education level was definitely not low.

The question then arises: what kind of person is eligible to receive this level of education?

……

Borsalino would have all sorts of conjectures, and might even put them into practice.

Although he had sealed his personal information for his own safety and had even risked his life to constantly change his face, making it difficult for others to notice, there are no secrets that cannot be kept forever. If Borsalino really didn't mind the trouble, he could still find some clues.

But is this a necessary process?

She is now a brigadier general.

As she continues to ascend, her basic information will have to be made known to the World Government.

Eventually, people will be curious about her background.

So why not take advantage of Borsalino instead?

Borsalino may be a lazy person, but he is also a meticulous one. Moreover, his prank that time had left a deep impression on him, so he wouldn't forget that story so easily.

……

Borsalino kept replaying Roman's words and actions in his mind.

Mature and composed, they always know how to evade the question when it matters most.

There is very little information about himself, or rather, Roman consciously avoids talking about himself.

When he tried to recall the past, the unpleasant memories also came back to him.

Suddenly he remembered the story Roman had told him.

The background is a story about a prevalent gangster society.

People's thoughts and consciousness are also related to their region. Roman had also solved gang problems before, and she also keenly remembered that Vergo had connections with gangs in the Beihai incident.

Could it be that they were born in the Western Sea?

That's why I have such a deep impression of gangsters.

Although Roman revealed that her family had been taken over by pirates, she didn't seem to harbor any obvious hatred or disgust towards them. Was it because her own country, like in that story, had been saved by pirates?

Thinking about it that way, it makes perfect sense.

If that's the case, then Syl Roman is most likely from the West Sea.

The country has had its share of troubles, but has remained largely peaceful and has areas with high levels of education.

If we think about it this way and use this method to investigate...

……

Although I don't know his specific thoughts, he probably can't help but investigate.

But it was an inevitable outcome, wasn't it? Roman thought about it carefully for a while.

It's better for Borsalino to find out the truth than for the World Government to find out the truth.

It seems there's a chance that the clues I left behind in the Flower Kingdom will see the light of day again.

Then I'll just wait and see what the final result will be.