No one had expected that the cold and stoic Vice Admiral Dragon
had once been a trainee of the Marine Training Camp himself.
And the so-called "Three Monsters" of that class—
Sakazuki, Borsalino, and Dragon—
had now all grown into Vice Admirals, giants of Marine Headquarters.
Which naturally made people wonder—
What will the three monsters of their generation become ten years from now?
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku approved an entire year of leave for you.
To see you return this early is… unexpected,"
Dragon said calmly, completely unfazed by Kuzan's earlier reveal.
"Things of the past are just that—past.
It was my own choice.
No reason to dwell on regrets," Kuzan replied casually.
"…Let's hope so."
Their cryptic exchange left the surrounding recruits completely lost.
Only Longinus faintly grasped the meaning.
So that's it… Half a year ago during the Ohara Incident,
Kuzan had personally executed his own friend—Vice Admiral Saul.
Sengoku was worried about the impact on him, so he gave him a year of rest?
"Enough depressing talk," Kuzan waved a hand,
then looked toward Longinus.
"You must be the hero Vice Admiral Garp praised so highly—Longinus, right?"
"I've merely done what a Marine should do.
Vice Admiral Garp is the one who truly deserves to be called a Marine Hero."
"Ah la la…
Recruits these days really are getting stronger and stronger.
Give it a little time,
and you'll probably be standing on the same level as me."
"Hsss—!"
The recruits around them nearly swallowed their tongues.
The youngest Vice Admiral in Marine HQ—praising a newcomer he just met?!
Longinus simply waited calmly.
He did not believe Kuzan came here by coincidence.
Just as expected—
"Like the Black-Coat Pirates I was preparing to arrest," Kuzan said lazily,
"but before I even made my move, you'd already wiped them out."
Longinus's eyes narrowed slightly.
Here comes the real reason.
"Well, they were quite lucky then," Longinus said lightly.
"Being sent to prison early is better than meeting Vice Admiral Kuzan.
That would truly be a nightmare."
"Am I really that scary?" Kuzan laughed,
then his tone turned serious.
"But there was someone dangerous aboard their ship."
Longinus sighed inwardly.
So he really is here for Robin.
"Felix's fruit ability is troublesome,
but I doubt he's someone Vice Admiral Kuzan would pay special attention to,"
Longinus asked, feigning confusion.
"I'm not talking about him," Kuzan shook his head,
"but about a child among the slaves he captured—
a little girl who could use a Devil Fruit ability."
"I do recall a young girl who had eaten a fruit," Longinus replied.
"I freed her along with the others,
but she reacted differently—panicked, then fled.
I wanted to check on her, but I had to escort the freed slaves back first.
When I returned, she was already gone."
"Is that so?
Then she's… very fortunate," Kuzan murmured with an unreadable expression.
"Vice Admiral Kuzan, does that child have a problem?"
"A few, but nothing major.
Anyway—let's eat.
Otherwise Dragon-senpai will blame me for delaying your schedule."
"You know me well," Dragon said coldly from the side.
"Ah la la…
Dragon-senpai is as cold as ever."
Transferring guilt from Saul onto Robin, huh?
What a complicated man,
Longinus thought silently.
Zephyr sat on the sofa, flipping through a stack of evaluation reports.
His face grew more satisfied with each page.
"Excellent.
You completed the entire first year of limit training in just three days.
Body, willpower, combat instinct, technique—
you surpass your peers in every category by a massive margin."
Realizing he was showing too much favoritism, Zephyr cleared his throat.
"Ahem.
You two did well too.
To make up your shortcomings and catch up to Longinus in just a week—
that is… admirable."
Gion and Kake exchanged helpless looks.
So we're just the bonus extras now, huh?
Once, they had been the "children of other people"—the top of their branches.
Now they were reduced to being mentioned as an aside.
But thinking of Longinus's monstrous performance,
they had no rebuttal.
They truly were behind in every metric.
"Dragon was right," Zephyr continued.
"It's time to move you to the next phase."
"The Rokushiki?" Kake asked, eyes shining.
"Yes—the Marine Rokushiki," Zephyr nodded.
"Six techniques that surpass the physical limits of humanity.
A stepping stone from human… to superhuman."
"However, precisely because they transcend human limits,
they are extremely difficult.
Very few Marines have mastered all six.
Most only specialize in two or three."
"For example—
Animal-type users generally excel at Tekkai and Shigan.
But Kake, your Zoan is… unique.
So in addition to those two,
I recommend you train Life Return."
"As for Gion—your attack power is already sufficient.
What you lack is maneuverability and survivability.
So you'll focus on Moonwalk, Soru,
and Paper Art to help you evade danger."
Then Zephyr turned toward Longinus,
expression turning solemn.
"As for you—
my expectation is for you to master all six
and integrate them fully."
"Integrate… all six Rokushiki?"
Longinus murmured, absorbing the meaning.
"Many will tell you the Rokushiki are merely the key to awakening Haki.
And because of that,
many officers shift their focus to Haki the moment they awaken it."
"But hear me clearly—
the Rokushiki are not just a key.
They are the collective refinement of countless generations of Marines.
Their potential… is far greater than people give them credit for."
"The six forms are only the foundation—
each one can evolve further."
"For instance, most users cannot move while using Tekkai.
But a true specialist can maintain Tekkai while moving at high speed.
Combine overwhelming power with extreme velocity…
and a defensive technique becomes devastatingly offensive."
"And more than evolution—
the Rokushiki can combine."
"Soru with Tekkai.
Tekkai with Shigan.
Kami-e with Rankyaku…"
"Mastering these combinations can raise your combat power
by several whole tiers."
"Even I," Zephyr admitted,
"cannot claim to have fully mastered all six."
Longinus drew a deep breath.
Even Zephyr held the Rokushiki in such high regard?
He realized then that he had underestimated them—
assuming they were merely transitional techniques before Haki.
But that was based on memories from another world—
a world where the Admirals relied on Logia powers,
and pure martial artists like Zephyr and Garp had few recorded feats.
"…Thank you, Instructor Zephyr.
I will master all six."
"I'm confident you will," Zephyr said warmly.
"Someone who unlocked Life Return on his own
will learn the Rokushiki—
it's only a matter of time."
Then Zephyr paused—then panicked slightly.
"Ah—
but that is also the minimum expectation for you two as well!"
he added quickly.
"If possible, I hope you two will also strive
to fully master the Rokushiki."
Gion & Kake.
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