It was nothing more than an ordinary straight punch.
A basic attack.
Leon did not even use any real strength.
And then—
His right fist struck the Doriki measuring device head-on.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, the instant his knuckles made contact—
Boom!
An overwhelming force erupted from Leon’s fist like a volcano.
The destructive power surged into the machine, crushing everything in its path.
Leon had barely tried.
Yet with the strongest physique in the world, even his most casual punch contained unimaginable power.
That ordinary right straight alone would have been enough to instantly defeat many rear admiral-level officers.
The violent force exploded into a shock wave as it struck the tester.
A deafening roar swept across the training grounds, sounding as though the sky itself had been torn apart.
The blast could be heard for miles.
The entire Marine Branch shook.
The ground trembled beneath everyone’s feet.
Leon’s fist had moved fast enough to produce a sharp sonic boom.
A small Doriki measuring device had no chance of enduring the force behind it.
The machine’s display shattered instantly.
Crack!
Crack!
Fractures spread across the entire device before the remaining structure burst apart.
Metal and debris scattered through the air.
Even the ground beneath the tester collapsed under the residual force.
The earth split open.
Within a radius of roughly ten meters in front of Leon, the training field sank nearly half a meter.
A crater appeared as though a meteor had struck the ground.
Rumble!
The branch buildings shook slightly, while the training grounds felt as though they had been caught in an earthquake.
Dust and fragments of the destroyed machine filled the air.
The Doriki tester that had stood before Leon was gone.
A single punch had reduced it to debris.
Silence.
The entire training ground fell deathly quiet.
Leon’s punch had rendered everyone speechless.
Even Caron, who already possessed some understanding of Leon’s strength, was shaken by the sight.
“This is…”
“Isn’t this a little too much?”
Caron swallowed, staring blankly at the crater.
He knew Leon was powerful.
But he had not expected him to destroy the measuring device with one punch.
What kind of explosive strength was that?
If even Caron reacted so strongly, Modsen was in a far worse state.
He had never known Leon’s true strength.
The sight of the machine exploding beneath a casual punch left him completely stunned.
“What…?”
“He’s that strong?”
His mind went blank.
Now, as he stared at the destroyed tester, he finally realized how absurd that assumption had been.
The 180 recruits were equally motionless.
Shock and disbelief covered every face.
Those who had already witnessed Leon’s strength were still astonished.
“We already knew Captain Leon was powerful, but who could have imagined this?”
“He destroyed the Doriki tester!”
“That’s far beyond anything reasonable!”
“Could Captain Caron do that?”
“Are you trying to get Captain Caron in trouble?”
“The last time we encountered a Sea King, someone nearly got himself killed.
I won’t say who.”
“Watch your mouth!
Tomorrow, you’ll be dismissed for entering the branch with your right foot first!”
The recruits who had traveled with Leon stared at his back with renewed awe.
The recruits who had never seen him fight were even more shaken.
“What kind of monster is he?”
“Our sixteen-year-old captain destroyed the entire machine with one punch!”
“Who was the idiot claiming Captain Leon only received his rank through connections?”
“Step forward.
I want to see who was brave enough to say that.”
Leon paid no attention to the shock he had caused.
He yawned and brushed a few fragments of the tester from his hand.
Then he turned around.
“If that’s all, I’m leaving.”
“You can handle the recruits’ training yourselves.
There’s no need to consult me.”
Without giving anyone time to respond, Leon walked out of the training grounds alone.
Only after he disappeared from sight did the atmosphere erupt.
The entire field descended into excited discussion.
“It looks like the Mushroom Town Marine Branch has gained an unbelievable monster!”
“He joined at the same time as us, but Headquarters made him a captain because he genuinely possesses terrifying strength.”
“It had nothing to do with connections.”
One recruit cautiously approached the still-stunned Modsen.
“Commander Modsen…”
“What is the maximum value that machine can measure?”
Modsen opened his mouth and answered almost automatically.
“Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine Doriki.”
The instant those words left his mouth, all 180 recruits drew a sharp breath.
“Then Captain Leon’s punch exceeded ten thousand Doriki?”
“He destroyed the machine itself!”
The recruits stared at the crater in disbelief.
Their own scores ranged from five to fifteen.
Even someone as powerful as Modsen had reached only 409.
They could not begin to understand what it meant to possess more than ten thousand Doriki.
And ten thousand was clearly not Leon’s limit.
The machine had been destroyed before it could measure him.
Its maximum range was nowhere near enough to evaluate his strength.
“So this is the monster who became a captain at sixteen?” Visit g.com for the full chapter.
“That’s terrifying.”
The recruits who had accompanied Caron proudly straightened their backs, as though they had personally destroyed the machine.
“Captain Leon knocked out a huge Sea King that even Captain Caron couldn’t defeat.”
“He also sank two pirate ships with one attack and wiped out several hundred criminals.”
“You only believed those rumors about favoritism because you had never witnessed Captain Leon’s strength.”
They began recounting everything that had happened during the voyage to Mushroom Town.
The other recruits listened in amazement, their expressions gradually turning to admiration.
Not far away, Modsen slowly recovered from his shock.
Every description of Leon’s previous feats felt like an invisible slap across his face.
“So…”
Modsen drew a deep breath and looked resentfully at his old friend.
“You already knew Captain Leon was a monster?”
Caron gave an awkward smile.
“Would you have listened if I told you?”
“You were already blinded by anger.”
“No matter how much I explained, you would have assumed I was making excuses for Captain Leon.”
Modsen froze.
He had no response.
Caron’s expression became serious.
“After what happened today, you should have some idea of how powerful Captain Leon truly is.”
“Take my advice.”
“Do not provoke him again.”
“He is a genuine monster of the seas.”
“You may have remained a commander for years, but your experience is not shallow.”
“You’ve surely heard that certain monsters on these seas can wield a power called Haki.”
Modsen’s pupils contracted.
“You mean…”
Caron nodded.
“Captain Leon is one of those monsters.”
“And even among them, he possesses the rarest kind of power.”
“Captain Leon has Conqueror’s Haki.”
“He is one of those legendary individuals born with the disposition of a supreme ruler.”
“Why else do you think Headquarters promoted him to captain at sixteen?”
“Did you honestly believe it was merely because of his connections?”
“I’m not exaggerating when I say that even if a hundred people like you and me joined forces, we would still be no match for him.”
Modsen’s heart shook.
His eyes widened in horror.
“Conqueror’s Haki?”
“The legendary power that only the greatest monsters and natural rulers can awaken?”
Caron nodded solemnly.
Modsen shuddered.
Just what kind of terrifying existence had he provoked?
That same day, astonishing news from the training grounds spread throughout the Mushroom Town Marine Branch.
It did not take long for every Marine at the base to hear what had happened.
Those who had previously criticized Leon’s promotion immediately fell silent.
“We were too narrow-minded.”
“A sixteen-year-old who received an exceptional promotion to Marine Captain…”
“He was never someone who reached that position merely through his family background.”
“A monster of that level possesses more than enough strength to justify special treatment from Headquarters.”