Sengoku's smile froze, his face twitching slightly.
Hey, hey, hey, Zephyr, you old bastard, that rejection was way too quick.
Can't you at least show a little respect for this Marine Admiral?
"Don't think I don't know what that cunning brain of yours is scheming. Daren is my adjutant…"
Zephyr lit a cigar at a leisurely pace, narrowing his eyes at Sengoku.
"You already have Borsalino."
At those words, Sengoku nearly choked on his own spit. He gritted his teeth and snapped,
"Don't even mention that guy to me!!"
He took a deep breath, forcing down his irritation.
"Zephyr, this emergency mission has nothing to do with who becomes his adjutant. In the end, it's Daren's own choice. But this mission—this one—we really need his help."
Zephyr exhaled a puff of smoke and glanced at Sengoku. Seeing the seriousness in his expression, he frowned.
"Is there really something you can't handle on your end? There are so many high-ranking officers at headquarters—why does it have to be Daren?"
"Sengoku... you know better than anyone that the training camp is a critical period for elite officers to rapidly grow stronger. It's especially important for their long-term development..."
"If it's just about needing manpower, wouldn't Sakazuki, Dragon, or Borsalino be better options? They've already matured, and their strength is close to the level of an Admiral."
"But Daren is still in the midst of his rapid growth phase. Sending him on a dangerous mission now... it's just not appropriate."
Zephyr shook his head firmly as he spoke.
Though the training camp isn't a sealed-off system and doesn't restrict student movement—
After all, these aren't clueless rookies, but elite Marines carefully selected from across the world, and it's not uncommon for them to be dispatched on missions—
After a month of observation, Zephyr had been shocked by just how fast Daren was progressing.
He was like an endless sponge, soaking up everything Zephyr taught—knowledge, techniques, combat training. His strength had skyrocketed since the day he first set foot in the camp!
Zephyr had only seen this kind of explosive growth in Sakazuki and Borsalino before. And truth be told, Daren might even be surpassing them.
It was clear that Daren had laid a solid foundation back in the North Blue. Under Zephyr's guidance at the headquarters training camp, all that accumulated potential had finally exploded, resulting in an outrageous leap in power.
It was the classic case of long preparation yielding sudden breakthroughs.
Naturally, Zephyr didn't want to disrupt this perfect growth period.
There would be plenty of opportunities for pirate-hunting missions in the future—no need to rush it now.
Dragging him into Marine operations at this point would undermine the very purpose of the training camp.
As Daren's teacher, Zephyr was determined to protect his best interests.
"Zephyr, I've thought about your concerns too. But this mission is particularly tricky,"
Sengoku said seriously.
"And you know as well as I do—strength doesn't just come from training. Real combat experience is crucial."
Seeing Zephyr still frowning, he added,
"How about we ask Daren for his opinion first, and decide after that? He knows his own situation better than anyone."
Hearing that, Zephyr could only sigh and nod.
He could still forcefully say no, but Sengoku was, after all, the Admiral of Headquarters.
Since he'd gone this far, he had to give him some face.
'If worst comes to worst, I'll just talk Daren out of it myself,' Zephyr muttered inwardly.
...
On the training grounds.
The scorching sun stabbed into the skin like blades, searing with pain.
Beads of sweat dripped onto the ground, only to vanish instantly into the parched soil.
Bang!
A thick iron chain crashed down, kicking up dirt and gravel.
Daren was gasping for air, his chest heaving like a bellows, rasping with each breath.
Yet his face showed nothing but satisfaction and enjoyment.
The past month had been incredibly fulfilling. It had been a long time since he'd experienced such peaceful days.
No endless military duties, no tiresome social obligations, no hollow political games—just training, sweat, and the quiet camaraderie of classmates competing while encouraging each other with genuine smiles.
Free from the distractions of official affairs and trivial socializing, Daren had fully immersed himself in personal cultivation.
To his surprise, under Zephyr's guidance and a deeper understanding of the training methods, his strength had finally made a breakthrough.
Though his progress with Observation Haki had yet to improve, his physical stats had risen noticeably.
Physique: 69.335
Strength: 66.331
Speed: 66.591
Fruit: 76.111
Armament Haki: 28.319
Development in physique, strength, speed, and Devil Fruit control—all four had increased by at least two points, some even more, over the past month of intensive training!
It was a staggering leap.
On the panel, a two-point gain might not look like much, but taken together, that meant a near ten-point increase across the board.
In actual combat terms, that equated to a boost of over 20% in personal combat effectiveness.
Of course, Daren knew well that as he adapted to the intensity of this training and the new methods, the pace of his growth would inevitably slow down.
And over the past two or three days, that slowdown had become increasingly apparent.
Still, beyond the rise in his base stats—
Thanks to Zephyr's guidance and a clearer breakdown of the theory, Daren had gained a more precise understanding of Armament Haki.
Based on that understanding, and after careful measurement and evaluation, a benchmark for the strength of Armament Haki had been established.
Thinking of this, Daren looked down at his rough, callused, and blistered palms.
Then he shouted in a low voice,
"Armament!"
Swish!
A visible black sheen spread across his arm like liquid, covering his entire hand in a dense, cold, metallic gloss.
If 100 points was the standard benchmark, then by rough estimation, Zephyr-sensei's Armament Haki strength hovered around 90 points.
His own... was 28.
That might not seem impressive next to Zephyr, but considering it had only been a month since he first grasped the concept to now being able to use it proficiently, Daren knew this progress was already enough to put most people to shame.
What made it even more intriguing was that he had personally witnessed two Marine legends—Garp and Sengoku—fighting at full strength.
By his estimation, Sengoku's Armament Haki likely fell somewhere between 80 and 85 points, while Garp was about equal with Zephyr.
However, Garp had the added bonus of Conqueror's Haki, which made his actual combat output superior to Zephyr's.
At that moment, a figure ran up from the edge of the training field.
He snapped a salute at Daren.
"Commodore Daren, Zephyr-sama requests your presence!"
...
(70 Chapters Ahead)
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