The training ground fell into complete silence.
Only the sound of wind and swirling sand drifted through the still air.
Daren's fist was still pressed against Zephyr's abdomen. Zephyr stood frozen, body stiff, the corner of his eye twitching slightly. Neither of them moved.
"Um… Zephyr-sensei, are you alright?"
Daren blinked and looked innocently at Zephyr's frozen expression. He slowly withdrew his fist, the Seastone shackles on his wrists jingling with a crisp clatter.
Zephyr's expression shifted as if he were suppressing something. Blood vessels faintly surfaced around his eyes.
He suddenly took a deep breath and looked at the Marine Commodore before him with a deeply aggrieved stare, his voice low and quiet.
"Seastone… doesn't affect you?"
Daren scratched his head, looking a little confused.
"When Kaidou captured me, his subordinate, 'The Plague' Queen, used Seastone shackles to restrain me. I used that time to train for Seastone resistance."
"While I couldn't use my Devil Fruit abilities, I could still move normally and maintain decent combat strength."
He gave the shackles on his wrists a little shake and added with a bit of regret,
"But that said, the purity of the Seastone shackles we use in the Marines seems a bit lacking…"
Zephyr: "…"
His chest rose and fell sharply as he clenched and unclenched his fists again and again.
He cursed furiously in his heart.
Of course the Marine HQ shackles aren't pure—what do you expect?
It's not like the Marines rely on these things to catch pirates!
High-purity Seastone shackles do exist, but most of them are reserved for Impel Down!
Zephyr stared at Daren, face unreadable.
"Why… didn't you say anything earlier?"
Daren spread his hands innocently.
"I was just about to, but you kept cutting me off and told me to hit you."
"I mean, what could I do? I've never heard such a weird request before, but it was your order, Zephyr-sensei. And as a Marine, it's my duty to follow orders."
He straightened his posture, looking every bit the model soldier.
"Besides, with your strength, Zephyr-sensei, I figured even without the shackles, I wouldn't be able to hurt you. So I just went ahead with it."
Zephyr: "…"
He pressed his lips together, his voice hoarse as he mumbled,
"Yeah… you did well."
"I was careless. I didn't expect you'd trained to resist Seastone."
"That's… good."
Daren nodded, then asked,
"So, Zephyr-sensei, what did you think of the punch?"
"Even though the Seastone was suppressing me and I felt weak, I used the punching technique Vice Admiral Garp taught me for that one."
"...Though I know I'm still far from meeting his standards."
Zephyr: "…"
He opened his mouth, voice dry as he said,
"Mm… not bad."
Only then did Daren let out a relieved breath and smile.
"Thank you, Zephyr-sensei. So, are we starting training now?"
"Yeah. Just… give me a moment."
Zephyr replied flatly, turning around and walking slowly to the edge of the training ground.
He stopped there.
Then bent forward…
Planted both hands on his knees…
And moved in one swift, practiced motion.
"Ugh!!"
A splash of thick yellow and white liquid hit the ground.
Zephyr, still facing away from Daren, wiped his mouth, then turned around and walked back with a calm expression.
"The food at the training camp might not be all that fresh."
Daren: "…"
"Get ready. Training starts now."
Zephyr's voice was hoarse, but for some reason, Daren sensed something off in his tone. A dangerous feeling crept up his spine.
Then he watched as Zephyr pulled out a military Den Den Mushi from his coat and spoke in a deep voice,
"Gion, bring everyone to the training ground."
Less than thirty seconds later, Gion and the other recruits had assembled. They looked between Zephyr and Daren with puzzled expressions.
"Hey, Daren, why are you wearing shackles?"
Kuzan waved cheerfully.
"Is this some kind of new training method?"
When he spotted the Seastone shackles on Daren's wrists, his eyes lit up with excitement.
"That's seriously cool!!"
Zephyr swept his eyes across the group and spoke in a stern voice.
"Daren is currently wearing Seastone shackles. He can't use his Devil Fruit powers, and his strength is heavily suppressed."
"Now, I'm giving you a task. No matter what method you use, no matter how you do it—as long as you land a hit on Daren, you earn one credit. These credits will directly impact your final graduation evaluation."
"If you don't earn any credits, your training for the next ten days will be doubled."
With that, Zephyr stepped aside with his hands behind his back, gritting his teeth as he muttered under his breath,
"Beat him to a pulp!"
Daren: ???
"Wait, Zephyr-sensei—"
Before he could finish, he felt countless pairs of wolfish eyes lock onto him.
A chill ran down his spine. He stiffly turned his head, forcing a smile.
"Uh… we're all classmates, comrades-in-arms here…"
"Hehehe… I never thought I'd see you like this," Tokikake chuckled creepily, cracking his knuckles.
Kuzan's eyes burned with fiery excitement.
"This is great! I've been dying to go at it with you again!"
Daren's mouth twitched. He instinctively looked toward Gion for help.
"Gion…"
Gion paused for a moment, then slowly drew the long sword at her waist. She smiled sweetly.
"To be honest, I've been wanting to do this for a while."
Daren: …
He turned to Yamakaji.
The big guy gave him a sheepish laugh.
"Sorry, this is Zephyr-sensei's order."
The rest gave Daren apologetic looks—then promptly drew their swords with wild excitement gleaming in their eyes, their fighting spirits soaring.
Maybe it was just his imagination, but Daren could swear he saw sheer glee in their gazes.
They had waited far too long for this moment!
Daren's strength had long been etched in their minds, a monster towering high above them.
Many of them had been "abused" by him during training.
Now, with a golden opportunity to beat him up—without consequences—they couldn't resist the temptation.
"Hey, hey, hey, you're not seriously going through with this… Dammit!!"
Daren's face twitched as he watched the mob advance with vicious grins. He instinctively took a combat stance.
The next moment—
They all charged in at once!
...
A short distance away, under a parasol at the edge of the training ground, Zephyr sat back, listening to Daren's screams echoing in the air. A satisfied smile crept onto his face.
He happily lit a cigar, squinted at the scene, and muttered with a chuckle,
"Daren, this is for your own good."
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / PinkSnake