Marine Headquarters. Marineford.
The Marine Academy at Marineford was known as the cradle of future officers. The man who currently held the position of Chief Instructor was Zephyr, the former Marine Admiral known as Black Arm Zephyr, who had stepped down from active duty.
Over the years of his teaching, Zephyr had trained a roster of outstanding Marines who were now active on the front lines, including Sakazuki, Borsalino, and Kuzan.
Today, however, Chief Instructor Zephyr found himself dealing with an old friend who was giving him a headache.
"Ha ha ha ha!"
"Zephyr, I'm leaving this kid in your care!"
"The Roger Pirates have entered the New World. I've got no time to babysit right now, so this guy's yours."
"Here, I brought some fresh tea from the East Blue. Hurry up and get your rice crackers, so we can try it together!"
In Zephyr's office, the Chief Instructor was in the middle of drafting the training schedule for tomorrow's cadets when Garp burst in without even knocking. Trailing behind him was a red-haired boy whom Garp pushed forward as he cheerfully greeted Zephyr.
Zephyr turned in his chair and spotted Garp, who had one hand resting on the boy's shoulder and the other holding a small pouch of tea leaves as he strode into the office.
Zephyr's eyes fell on the pouch of tea in Garp's hand. It really was only a tiny pouch.
"As if I'd have rice crackers lying around. I'm not a child," Zephyr said, putting down his pen, crossing his arms, and facing Garp with a smile. His eyes, however, soon shifted to the red-haired youth standing beside Garp.
"Ah?!"
"Haha!"
"No problem. I brought my own. Go make some tea."
Garp casually tossed the pouch of tea to the boy beside him and pulled a bag of rice crackers from inside his coat, grabbing a handful and stuffing them into his mouth.
The boy standing beside Garp was none other than Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
The day he was knocked out on Dragon Roar Island, he became Garp's "trophy of war." When he woke up, he'd already been taken aboard Garp's ship, leaving Dragon Roar Island behind.
After Garp's men searched Dragon Roar Island, they naturally discovered Yoriichi's "temporary dwelling." From the cave's environment and Yoriichi's primitive clothing, Garp quickly conjured up a story in his mind.
A young prodigy, abandoned and raised in the wilderness, who unleashed an unimaginable power after witnessing the cruelty of pirates.
As for the other suspicious details about Yoriichi his swordsmanship, his finely crafted katana Garp simply brushed them aside.
There were countless people out on the seas with family styles of swordsmanship, and plenty of gifted individuals. Garp was long accustomed to such anomalies.
But the most important thing was that this extraordinarily talented youth did not seem opposed to joining the Marines. That, to Garp, mattered far more. And besides, Yoriichi didn't even seem particularly bothered by Garp's sudden punch that had knocked him unconscious. Compared to the benefits Garp might offer, a little humiliation was a small price to pay.
He was an adult now, after all. His standards for judging things were no longer ruled purely by personal likes and dislikes, though he was still a bit annoyed at Garp's reckless style.
The tea pouch landed in Yoriichi's hands. He glanced at Garp beside him in exasperation, then turned his gaze toward Zephyr.
Given that Garp was planning to introduce him into the Marines, Yoriichi had long since set aside any grudge about the punch. Over the past few days, he'd become somewhat familiar with Garp, and he didn't mind being occasionally "ordered around" by the older man.
Still, this was Zephyr's turf. Yoriichi wasn't so clueless as to ignore proper etiquette.
"The hot water's over there," said Zephyr, noticing Yoriichi's gaze. He smiled and pointed to a tea table near his desk. As Yoriichi stepped past him to prepare the tea, Zephyr carefully studied him from head to toe, then turned to Garp.
"So this is the kid you brought back from the East Blue?"
The incident at Dragon Roar Island had been no small matter. After all, an entire Marine unit had been wiped out. Although the Navy had kept the story under wraps, the event still had significant impact within Marine ranks.
Officially, it was Iron Fist Garp who had dealt with the culprits behind the Dragon Roar Island massacre. But a handful of higher-ups knew the truth the one who had annihilated that pirate crew was the red-haired youth now standing before them.
Zephyr was one of those in the know. The night before, Fleet Admiral Kong had already briefed him about it.
"Yeah! That's the kid," Garp replied.
"His name's Yoriichi Tsugikuni."
"Come on, kid. Say hello to your future teacher, Admiral Zephyr!"
As Garp introduced him, he waved Yoriichi over. By then, Yoriichi had finished brewing the tea and was carrying the tray back to Zephyr and Garp.
He placed two cups on opposite sides of the desk, stood up straight, and introduced himself.
"Hello, Teacher Zephyr. My name is Yoriichi Tsugikuni. Please take care of me."
At that moment, Yoriichi was dressed in a standard Marine seaman's uniform. A long sword hung at his waist, and his posture was tall and poised. Across his handsome face stretched a flame-shaped birthmark.
Zephyr studied him, one hand resting on his teacup, the other tapping lightly on the table as though deep in thought.
Seeing Zephyr's pensive look, Garp suddenly shouted at Yoriichi.
"Hey, kid! Speak up!"
"I can't hear you!"
"How do you expect to command a battleship talking in that tiny voice?!"
Garp's words made Yoriichi turn to look at him, not because of Garp's booming voice, but simply because something about Garp's scolding felt oddly familiar like something he'd once seen online. For a split second, he wondered if he was surfing the internet again.
"Hello, Teacher Zephyr. My name is Yoriichi Tsugikuni."
Snapping back to reality, Yoriichi repeated himself in a clearer, firmer voice.
It was only then that Zephyr seemed to make up his mind. He nodded slightly and took a delicate sip of tea.
"Hey!"
"Zephyr, I'm leaving this kid to you."
"Hey, kid, when I come back, I'll let you try my fists again. Don't disappoint me!"
"Zephyr, I've got things to do. I'm off."
"Here, that tea and what's left of these rice crackers are my thanks."
Garp said all this, leaving behind the half-eaten bag of rice crackers on Zephyr's desk, then grabbed his teacup and strode out of the office without looking back.
"…."
Zephyr stared at the half-empty bag of rice crackers, the tiny pouch of tea on the tea tray, and the tea set now missing a cup. The veins in his forehead began to bulge.
After a long silence, Zephyr finally turned to Yoriichi, his expression softening.
"From today on, you're my disciple."
"And from today on, you're officially part of the Marines."
"I don't care what you were doing before or what your past might have been. Now that you've joined the Marines and become my disciple…"
"…your goal is to become an excellent Marine officer."
"How old are you?"
Zephyr gazed into Yoriichi's eyes, momentarily struck by the youth and earnestness of the face in front of him.
"About… thirteen, I think."
For reasons even he couldn't fully explain, Yoriichi's grasp of his own age felt strangely uncertain.
"Hmm."
Zephyr studied his face for another moment, then nodded and continued.
"You're still far too young. Right now, it's not suitable for you to enter the Marine Academy proper."
"The people training there are all mature recruits the elite drawn from the four seas."
"And in our Marine ranks, we do not send children your age onto the battlefield."
Hearing Zephyr's words, a trace of surprise flickered across Yoriichi's face. From Zephyr and Garp's conversation earlier, he'd assumed that Zephyr was fully aware of his abilities.
Not to brag, but over the past few days in Marineford, Yoriichi had used his Transparent World to roughly gauge the strength of many Marine officers. If one excluded the factors of Haki and Devil Fruit powers, he was confident he was far stronger than many so-called "elite" Marines.
Yet according to Zephyr, the reason he couldn't enter the Marine Academy… was because he was too young?!
"Don't give me that look," Zephyr said.
"No matter how strong you are, you're still just a child."
"Until you come of age, you'll stay by my side. I'll train you personally."
"From today on, you're my disciple, Yoriichi!"