"Oh."
Daren replied with a hint of regret.
"Don't be discouraged. Your strength is evident to all. Given time, you'll surely catch up to—and perhaps even surpass—me."
Zephyr smiled grandly, arms crossed over his chest.
"What about me? What about me?"
Tokikake darted out from the crowd again, his face full of excitement.
"You?"
Zephyr gave him a sidelong glance, took a deep breath, and slowly said,
"You're not bad either... very clever."
Tokikake: ...
Zephyr shook his head and began officially demonstrating the Rokushiki to the crowd.
He walked over to a heavy stone target.
"Shigan. You gather all your strength into a single point and unleash it through a hardened finger in an instant. The strike is fast as lightning, powerful enough to pierce stone—or even steel. Naturally, it can penetrate the human body as well, making it a lethal technique."
As he spoke, Zephyr lifted the large stone target with one hand and gently tossed it into the air.
"But the key point here is that Shigan training helps you master strength control and how to concentrate force."
With a sudden thrust of his index finger—
Bang!
A hole the width of a finger appeared in the floating stone target. A spray of dust burst from the back.
"Next is Rankyaku."
Zephyr casually kicked the stone target high into the air. His booted foot exploded with power, tearing through the air. In an instant, a deep green, crescent-shaped slash flew out, slicing the airborne target cleanly in two.
At the same time, Zephyr's low voice echoed across the schoolyard:
"As one of the Rokushiki 'foot techniques,' Rankyaku doesn't rely on the kick itself to attack. Instead, it creates a vacuum with high-speed, powerful leg movements to generate a mid-range slash."
"Training in Rankyaku helps improve your body's explosive power."
"And then comes Soru..."
The moment the words left his mouth, everyone saw a blur in front of their eyes.
Zephyr's figure suddenly appeared dozens of meters away like a ghost.
Daren's pupils narrowed slightly.
He'd clearly noticed—Zephyr's speed while using Soru was at least five times faster than his own!
And there was no visible stiffness or lag in his movement!
"In just an instant, you stomp the ground dozens of times in rapid succession, creating explosive recoil to move at high speed. The trick isn't in brute force, but frequency."
Zephyr explained crisply. As he stepped forward again, it was as if the air beneath his feet turned solid. In the blink of an eye, he was rising through the sky, stepping on air.
"This is Geppo. It's an advanced, extended form of Soru that requires even faster footwork and greater control of body balance."
"Whether it's Soru or Geppo, training these techniques will significantly improve your command over body rhythm and explosive movement."
Zephyr's voice echoed from above. Only now did the stone target, which had been split by Rankyaku, start falling under gravity's pull.
"Lastly, Kami-e."
Zephyr smiled as he caught up to the falling target. With a few midair steps, he twisted his waist and turned, striking the target with a spinning kick that shattered it into fragments.
In the next moment—
His figure vanished.
When he reappeared, he was already standing beneath the rain of falling stone shards.
A shocking scene unfolded. Debris fell like a storm of bullets.
Zephyr's large frame suddenly seemed to turn as soft as paper, fluttering like a willow leaf in a gale.
Countless stone fragments grazed past his now "pliable" body without causing a single scratch, slamming into the ground and leaving behind dozens of craters.
Everything fell silent.
Zephyr turned around and smiled at the group of students watching him with admiration.
"This is one of the defensive techniques of the Rokushiki. By releasing all the tension in your body and sensing changes in your opponent's air flow, you can make your body as light as paper and move with ease to dodge attacks."
"Training in Kami-e strengthens your ability to sense danger... and this particular practice clearly points toward the development of Observation Haki."
"It's no exaggeration to say that mastering Kami-e can be a shortcut to awakening the power of Observation Haki."
He brushed the dust off his hands and lit a cigar.
"This is the Marine Rokushiki—a structured set of techniques refined and developed over generations by powerful Marines. It's not just about close combat."
"Remember this well. Incorporate the Rokushiki into your daily training. It will be the key to unlocking greater strength—and a crucial part of your journey to becoming stronger."
Zephyr exhaled a long stream of smoke that curled like a dragon, his voice calm yet heavy with meaning.
As a teacher, he always wanted to pass on the best to his students, to help them avoid detours on the path to strength.
"Now I'll demonstrate the actual mechanics of power generation. Watch closely..."
As Zephyr explained with meticulous care, everyone focused intently on observing and copying his movements. Even Tokikake, usually a fool, was completely absorbed, his expression unusually serious.
Every single one of them understood deep down that joining the training camp and becoming Zephyr's student wasn't an honor for the Marines—it was the greatest stroke of luck in their lives.
A legendary Marine Admiral, one of the strongest men in the seas, teaching them personally—this was something money could never buy.
Even a single offhand comment or casual pointer from Zephyr might benefit them for the rest of their lives, or increase their chances of surviving on the battlefield.
Daren, too, trained with utmost dedication.
Though his body had already been honed to "superhuman" levels through sheer willpower and hellish training, he knew he was still far from being a true powerhouse.
Zephyr's deep yet easy-to-understand teachings gave him valuable insights. Combined with his own experience, he could grasp lessons more profoundly than the others.
At the same time, watching Zephyr's serious, focused expression as he taught, Daren couldn't help feeling deeply moved.
Only someone with Zephyr's selfless nature could take on the role of Marine Head Instructor.
If it had been Garp instead, he'd probably just give a quick demo, pick his nose, wander off to snack on rice crackers, and throw in a lazy comment like:
"Isn't this something you can do with your hands?"
Zephyr—a name that will never fade from Marine history.
The one who forged the legend of the Marines' "Golden Generation" with his own hands.
Maybe… he's the true greatest hero of the Marines.
...
(60 Chapters Ahead)
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