"Tekkai — Savage Charge!"
Kake's blood roared through his veins as his body swelled into a massive inverted-triangle shape, radiating brute force.
He barreled toward Longinus like a living battering ram.
"Soru — Flash Sever!"
Gion fused Soru seamlessly into her swordsmanship—
speed and attack becoming one.
The golden blade, Kimpira, carved out a slash sharp enough to cleave space itself.
"Kami-e — Soft Clay."
Faced with their combined assault, Longinus flattened his entire body like a sheet of paper, slipping past the two of them with impossible precision.
Neither Gion nor Kake had expected him to use Kami-e to such an extreme.
Unable to pull back in time, their momentum carried them straight past him.
The instant all three aligned in a straight line,
Longinus' body snapped back to normal.
Both index fingers shot out left and right—
strong enough to make the air crack with sonic booms.
"Shigan — Tekkai Ball!"
Kake's bulky frame and Gion's slim figure were launched in opposite directions—
one smashed into a mountainside,
the other plunged straight into the sea.
"Guh… cough, cough…"
Gion burst from the waves, choking on seawater, half discouraged and half admiring.
"I lost again… Longinus, you really were born strong.
I wonder when I'll ever catch up to you…"
"That's enough for today."
Longinus turned—then froze for half a heartbeat.
Gion's clothes, soaked through, clung tightly to her body, outlining a delicate silhouette, pale skin faintly visible through the fabric…
The sight was… distracting.
"…Put this on."
He slipped off his coat and handed it to her.
"Ah? Th-thank you…"
Gion hesitated, then accepted it with both hands.
Her ears flushed red as she wrapped herself in the large coat, whispering gratitude too soft to hear.
On the other side, Kake crawled out of the collapsed rock wall, his ugly face showing genuine gratitude.
"Boss Longinus, it's thanks to you I managed to fully grasp Tekkai this fast!"
"That's your own effort," Longinus replied calmly.
"I just sparred with you a few times.
Besides, fighting you two is also a good way for me to patch my own gaps."
Kake shook his head vigorously.
"Gregory's right—there are plenty of hardworking people, so why would I be the one who succeeds?
It's because I'm lucky!
Lucky to get your guidance, Boss!
Only because of you did I master Tekkai so quickly—
I even managed to get the basics of Life Return!"
Longinus gave up debating with him.
Ever since meeting Penn, Kake had latched onto the G-2 "brotherhood" like a lost soul finding his tribe—
and Gregory's brainwashing had taken full effect.
"…Think whatever you want."
Longinus waved his hand and turned away.
"Training ends here. Same time tomorrow."
"Whew… I wonder if Penn's group is done training yet.
Gion, you—"
Kake turned to ask—
then froze solid.
Gion was wearing Longinus's coat.
"…Why are you wearing the boss's clothes?"
"Ah?! N-nothing! I—I just remembered something! I—I'm leaving!"
Gion bolted like a frightened rabbit, clutching the coat and fleeing without looking back.
Kake sighed dramatically.
"Women really are mysterious creatures."
Then his eyes lit up with sudden enlightenment.
"But I think… I've gained a deeper understanding of Gregory's teachings.
Only men can truly understand men's pain… and men's persistence!"
"Marine Calendar 1500, nearing the end of the year…
A whole year gone already."
As Longinus walked along the return path, quietly muttering to himself—
A surge of killing intent erupted.
Instinctively—without time to think why danger could appear inside Headquarters—
Longinus ignited every ounce of blood and qi in his body.
"Tekkai — Steel!"
He was launched like a kicked cannonball—
blasting through half a dozen mountains before skidding to a stop over a thousand meters away.
He staggered to his feet, suppressing the intense pain.
The second strike was already descending.
"…Vice Admiral Garp," Longinus sighed,
"did I offend you somehow?"
A massive fist stopped inches from his face,
wind pressure alone sharp enough to slice skin.
"Ahahahaha! You figured it out already?
Your Observation Haki really is sharp!"
Garp showed not a shred of shame.
He slapped Longinus's shoulder cheerfully.
"So?
How'd you like my Fist of Love!?"
Most people would call him insane—if not to his face, then behind his back—
but Longinus calmly replayed the pain across his body, then spoke honestly:
"Hurt.
Pain.
Every cell is screaming those two words.
But strangely… I don't actually have many injuries."
"Painful, but not damaging.
A blow that teaches through pain—
that's the secret of Vice Admiral Garp's Fist of Love, isn't it?"
Garp blinked—
then burst into wild laughter.
"BAHAHAHAHAHA! Kid, you really aren't like the dull-brained rookies!
One punch and you already saw through it!"
"Those idiots kept accusing me of bullying them!
Me! A Marine Hero!
As if I'd ever do something irresponsible!"
Longinus silently thought:
Sneak-attacking trainees outside the base sounds exactly irresponsible…
"Longinus!"
Garp leaned in, shady smile like a suspicious old man offering candy.
"What do you think of my Fist of Love's power?"
"Very strong," Longinus said honestly.
"A strike infused with conviction is far stronger than a normal punch.
Just like the difference between a true swordsman with sword aura… and an ordinary blade swinger."
Garp puffed up proudly.
"And I suppose…" Longinus continued,
"if there's a Fist of Love, there must also be a Fist of Anger…
and a Fist of Justice, right?"
"Good kid! Knows how to extrapolate!"
Garp grinned.
"So—want to train under me?"
Longinus hesitated only a moment—
Then politely declined.
"I appreciate your offer, Vice Admiral Garp,
but Zephyr-sensei still needs me for training…"
Garp waved him off, annoyed.
"Exactly what that old blockhead predicted… Fine!
I'll tell you the truth—"
He jabbed a thumb toward his chest.
"Zephyr asked me to come train you!
Said you already mastered nearly all of Rokushiki,
and you've hit a bottleneck."
Garp smirked triumphantly.
"So!
No excuses now!"
Longinus blinked.
Zephyr-sensei… personally asked Garp to "train" me?
The same Zephyr who preached "Beware of fires, thieves, and Garp"?
…Had he really decided Longinus needed to get punched closer to death to break through?
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