At that very moment—
Inside the Fleet Admiral’s office at Marine Headquarters.
Sengoku occupied the seat at the head of the conference room while the highest-ranking officers of the Marines gathered around him.
The sudden alarm and the tremendous impact that had just shaken Marineford instantly put everyone on edge.
"What happened?"
Sengoku shot to his feet and barked,
"Did some foolhardy pirates actually dare attack Marine Headquarters?"
"Who has the guts to do something like this?"
"Don’t tell me Kaido came here looking to die again!"
Throughout its history, Marineford had only been attacked a handful of times.
The most infamous incident was during Gol D. Roger’s execution, when the Golden Lion, Shiki, rampaged through Marineford, leaving half the island in ruins.
The most recent incident involved Kaido, one of the Four Emperors, drunkenly attempting one of his suicidal stunts.
Given the current state of the seas, Kaido was naturally the first suspect to come to Sengoku’s mind.
The Marine officers gathered in the room all tensed as they watched a messenger rush inside.
"F-Fleet Admiral Sengoku!"
The messenger hurriedly saluted.
"It wasn’t an enemy attack."
"Chief Instructor Zephyr... was punched several kilometers through the air."
"He crashed into the Marine Headquarters building, causing the impact that everyone mistook for an attack."
"The situation has already been clarified."
"The personnel responding to the alarm have all stood down."
Silence.
Everyone in the office stared blankly at him.
That... was not even close to what they had expected.
Sengoku looked equally stunned.
"You’re saying..."
"Zephyr was punched several kilometers away and smashed into Headquarters?"
"And that’s what caused all this?"
"You’re certain you’re not joking?"
The messenger immediately shook his head so hard it was almost a blur.
There were seven or eight Vice Admirals in this room.
Three Admirals.
A Fleet Admiral.
Making a joke here was practically gambling with his life.
"Hahaha!"
"I figured you wouldn’t believe it, Sengoku."
"So I came to explain it myself."
The office door swung open as Garp walked in with a bag of rice crackers in hand.
Sengoku’s face darkened.
"...Garp."
"Don’t tell me you were the one who punched Zephyr."
"If this is another mess you caused..."
"I’d like to see whether there’s any retirement pension left for me to deduct."
"If you don’t give me a satisfactory explanation today..."
"Don’t even think about leaving this office."
Tsuru rubbed her aching temples beside him.
In her eyes, Zephyr had long since stepped down from the position of Admiral.
Among everyone present...
The only person likely capable of punching Zephyr that far was Garp.
"Hahaha!"
"It wasn’t me."
Garp waved his hand.
"So don’t touch my already pitiful pension."
"I still need it to pay that brat’s overtime."
"Take a look at this first."
He casually dropped into a chair.
Bang!
His greasy hand slapped a brand-new recommendation file onto Sengoku’s desk.
Everyone’s attention was immediately drawn to it.
When they read its contents—
Several pairs of eyes widened.
"Garp..."
Sengoku frowned.
"This is the recruit you recommended?"
"’Has the potential to become an Admiral’?"
A shocking thought suddenly crossed his mind.
His eyes snapped open.
"...Don’t tell me..."
"He’s the one who sent Zephyr flying."
The office echoed with sharp intakes of breath.
Even Sakazuki’s expression changed as he stared directly at Garp.
The phrase ’potential to become an Admiral’ had already sounded unbelievable.
But this...
This completely shattered any lingering doubt.
"You guessed correctly, Sengoku."
Before Garp could answer—
A familiar voice came from outside.
"I underestimated that brat myself."
"My blood is still boiling from that punch."
"If I hadn’t coated my arms with Armament Haki in time..."
"My Iron Body: Steel alone wouldn’t have stopped it."
The floor-to-ceiling window slid open.
Covered in dust, Zephyr climbed inside through the broken frame.
Under normal circumstances, the Marine Academy’s strict Chief Instructor would never enter a room like that.
But after the battle he had just experienced...
The exhilaration still lingered in his heart.
Seeing the disbelief on Sengoku’s face—and on every Marine officer present—
Zephyr smiled.
"I know it’s hard to believe."
"But if I told you that this kid only trained under Garp for one year..."
"That he casually stopped the force of a 4,000 Douriki strike..."
"Mastered the Six Powers..."
"And finally used the ultimate mastery of the Six Powers to send me flying..."
"Then none of you would think Garp was joking."
"That kid..."
"Truly possesses the potential to become an Admiral."
"As Chief Instructor of the Marine Academy..."
"I, Zephyr..."
"Officially recommend Recruit Lucas as a candidate eligible for nomination as an Admiral."
Crack!
The teacup in Sakazuki’s hand shattered.
Molten magma flowed from his palm, instantly melting the fragments into slag.
He stared at Zephyr in complete disbelief.
No—
Everyone in the room was equally stunned.
A recruit who had only just arrived at Marine Headquarters...
On his very first day...
Was already being declared eligible for nomination as an Admiral.
It was simply unprecedented.
Had anyone else said those words, they would have dismissed them as a joke.
But this was Zephyr—
The man who had trained the current three Admirals.
As Chief Instructor of the Marine Academy, he possessed the same authority as the Fleet Admiral to recommend future Admirals.
Only after receiving nominations from figures of that standing would a candidate’s name be submitted to the Five Elders.
If approved by the World Government, they could officially assume the position of Admiral.
In other words—
Lucas had leapt directly from an ordinary recruit to an Admiral candidate.
"Teacher Zephyr."
Sakazuki’s face darkened.
Magma rolled across his hand as he spoke in a solemn voice.
"Everyone in this room has worked toward the position of Admiral."
"Potential alone isn’t enough."
"It also requires strength..."
"Military achievements..."
"And an impeccable record."
"None of those can be omitted."
"If you do this..."
"It will discourage many of your students."
Zephyr’s expression stiffened.
The excitement from moments ago cooled considerably.
Lucas’s performance had completely satisfied him.
His potential undeniably matched Garp’s assessment.
If Zephyr had to compare him to someone—
Lucas could easily be regarded as another Rob Lucci, a once-in-a-generation combat prodigy.
Yet Sakazuki wasn’t wrong.
Allowing a brand-new recruit to jump directly into the ranks of Admiral nominees...
Would be an enormous leap.
If news spread—
Not only would Marine Headquarters object.
Even the entire world would find it difficult to accept.
But at the same time...
Watching a once-in-a-generation genius be buried beneath bureaucracy...
Was something Zephyr simply couldn’t bear to do.