Light and shadow danced before his eyes, and the sacred cloak billowed in the fierce wind.
Kuzan stood there, stunned, staring at the towering figure before him. Something hot surged in his chest.
"Zephyr... sensei..."
The scene carried a kind of overwhelming, soul-stirring force—one that etched itself deep into his heart.
It wasn't until five seconds later that the blazing light finally faded.
The winds died down, and thick smoke began to roll up from the ground.
By now, the gathered Marines had all been knocked to the ground. They braced themselves with their sabers, rising shakily as they looked out across the training field, faces filled with shock.
The smoke clouded their vision.
"What happened?"
"Did they get out of the way?"
"What kind of power was that...?"
"He's one of us from the training camp!?"
"..."
Every face was filled with disbelief.
Soon, a breeze swept through, thinning the smoke and revealing the scene on the field.
Their eyes widened in horror.
A massive, charred trench split across the schoolyard. Flickering embers still glowed within it, stretching from Daren's feet all the way to the far end of their line of sight—stopping right in front of a massive figure.
"Zephyr-sensei..."
"It's Zephyr-sensei!!"
"He protected Kuzan!!"
"..."
The Marines shouted in relief, the heavy weight in their hearts finally lifting.
Zephyr stood in front of Kuzan like an immovable mountain, his presence commanding and unshakable. He held one hand aloft.
His index finger, covered in Armament Haki, was firmly pressed against a spinning coin.
The dark luster coating the coin gradually faded like melting liquid, and white wisps of smoke rose from the friction-heated metal.
"To think of wrapping Armament Haki around a coin... what a brilliant idea."
Zephyr caught the now-powerless coin as it fell, then looked up at the breathless, slightly pale Commodore. After a pause, a rare smile of admiration appeared on his face.
"Daren, how did you come up with that?"
Daren took a deep breath, steadying his labored breathing.
Every Devil Fruit ability, when activated, drains the user's physical strength.
That is an unbreakable law of the sea.
And his Jiki Jiki no Mi was no exception.
This move—what he called "Magnetic Overload"—worked by pushing his body to the limit. By burning through most of his stamina, he overloaded the magnetic field around a coin in an instant, amplifying it to a violent, near-uncontrollable state, achieving the destructive force of a railgun.
What truly caught him off guard, though, was how much more stamina it consumed after infusing the coin with Armament Haki—at least twice as much compared to when no Haki was used.
But judging from the power of that last strike, the concept was definitely sound.
Armament Haki could be coated and wrapped onto weapons, and even after leaving the user's body, it could linger for a short period.
As far as Daren knew, the female warriors of Amazon Lily used this same principle—infusing their arrows with Armament Haki to increase their penetrating power.
However, once the weapon left direct contact with the body, the infused Haki would begin to rapidly dissipate—until it eventually faded completely.
"It was just a shot in the dark—didn't expect it to actually work."
Daren wiped the sweat from his forehead and gave a relaxed smile.
With Zephyr present, he could go all out, even push past his limits, without needing to worry about seriously injuring Kuzan.
The name "Black Arm" Zephyr had once been the stuff of nightmares for countless pirates.
You could tell just by the way he stopped a Railgun with a single finger.
Zephyr chuckled at Daren's words.
What a lunatic...
He turned, patted the still-stunned Kuzan on the shoulder, and grinned.
"What's the matter, Kuzan? You alright?"
Snapped out of his daze by Zephyr's warm smile, Kuzan rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"I'm fine. Daren's just way too strong. I lost."
His gaze toward Daren was full of respect and awe.
That moment just now—facing the threat of death...
Kuzan knew there was no way he could have dodged that attack.
And if he couldn't dodge it?
A coin wrapped in Armament Haki... his body would've literally exploded on the spot.
Boom—like that.
"You're already more than good enough. Back then, even Sakazuki and Borsalino weren't any better than you," Zephyr said earnestly.
He glanced toward Daren as he spoke.
That wasn't to say Daren was currently stronger than Sakazuki and Borsalino. Those two had grown significantly since finishing training camp.
Right now, Daren was powerful—but still had a long way to go.
After all, Sakazuki and Borsalino had entered the program earlier than Daren and Kuzan.
Still, given enough time, there was no doubt Daren could catch up.
From what he'd just seen, Zephyr was confident that under his guidance, both Daren and Kuzan would make explosive progress during their time at the camp.
Kuzan's eyes lit up once again at Zephyr's praise.
"Hahaha! You hear that, Daren?"
"I may have lost this time, but I'll catch up soon enough!"
He gave a hearty thumbs-up.
"Don't get complacent!"
Daren smiled.
"Not a chance."
With a monster like you chasing me down, how could I afford to?
...
"Alright!!"
Zephyr beamed.
"All hands—assemble!!"
His voice rang out loud and clear.
At his call, every Marine quickly straightened their uniforms, expressions turning serious as they jogged into formation on the training field.
The golden sunlight poured down, illuminating their young, eager, and passionate faces, each one shining with energy.
Swish!
In perfect sync, they raised their hands in salute.
"Zephyr-sensei!"
A proud smile spread across Zephyr's face as he raised his voice.
"Then let me formally announce the top five placements in this year's Officer Elite Training Camp..."
"Fifth place: Yamakaji!"
"Fourth place: Tokikake!"
"Third place: Gion!"
"Second place: Kuzan!"
"And at the very top..."
He paused, eyes resting on the dark-haired Marine standing at the head of the crowd.
"—Rogers Daren!!"
"Let's all give our congratulations to Daren for earning this honor!"
Thunderous applause erupted. Everyone looked to Daren with admiration and respect.
He had earned it—no doubt about it.
"Well done..."
Zephyr waved his hand, and the applause slowly faded.
"Of course, these rankings are only temporary."
His gaze swept over every face in the crowd.
"During your time here at the camp, all of you will have the right to challenge the top five. If you win, you'll take their place—no exceptions."
"No complaints. That's life."
"This is true in the academy, and even more so out there in the real world. The moment you slack off, someone will overtake you."
"So..."
"Keep growing stronger!"
"Keep moving forward!"
"Keep fighting!"
"I'll always be behind you. No matter what you go on to achieve across the seas—whether you become pillars of the Marines or even rise to the rank of Admiral..."
Zephyr took a deep breath, his voice echoing like thunder.
"As long as you continue to fight for the justice in your hearts—I will always be proud of you."
He grinned.
"...my students."
...
And so, on that day...
The third Officer Elite Training Camp at Marine Headquarters officially began.
And the one who temporarily claimed the title of "Top of the Class"—
Was Rogers Daren, the Marine from the North Blue!
...
(60 Chapters Ahead)
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