The So-Called Admiral's Bearing Was Merely the Threshold to Behold Him

The next morning.

Not long after Rosen left the Navy dormitory, he ran into Gion and Tokikake, who were heading to the teaching building.

"Morning, Rosen."

Gion greeted him.

"Young Man, don't get complacent."

"To be honest, Gion and I mastered Observation Haki yesterday."

"If we fought again, you might not necessarily be able to defeat both Gion and me before your Haki ran out."

Even as Tokikake showed off, he did not forget to emphasize his strength in the most cowardly way possible.

"Is that so?"

"Then congratulations."

"And congratulations to Gion as well."

Hearing this, Rosen merely smiled and congratulated them on mastering Observation Haki.

"By the way, where are you going?"

Gion automatically filtered out Tokikake's words.

She knew perfectly well where she stood.

Forget mastering Observation Haki—even if she could foresee the future and mastered all four Armament Haki techniques, joining forces with Tokikake still might not be enough to exhaust Rosen's Haki.

"I'm not entirely sure either."

"Teacher Zefa said that yesterday afternoon's class was my last class at the Navy School."

"He told me to wait for him at the Military Academy gates this morning."

Rosen waved to the two of them.

"Your last class?"

"Y-you didn't graduate already, did you?"

Gion and Tokikake were instantly stunned.

"No."

"From the sound of it, there's nothing more for me to learn at the Navy School."

"He's probably planning to take me somewhere outside the school for further training."

Rosen explained.

"Only two days!"

"After four classes, there's already nothing left to learn at the Navy School?"

Rather than fading, Gion and Tokikake's shock only continued to deepen.

Even the Three Admirals had spent nearly a year at the Navy School back then. Only when they were close to graduation did they leave the Military Academy, board training warships, and accompany Teacher Zefa on field training.

But Rosen?

He had attended only four classes!

Yet he had already drained dry the Navy School overseen by former Navy Admiral Zefa.

"Could it be that he made another huge leap forward after yesterday afternoon's class?"

The thought that Rosen might have improved at an astonishing rate yet again made Tokikake feel that what he had just said was not cowardly enough.

"Let's leave it at that for now."

"If I'm late, Teacher Zefa will chew me out."

Without waiting for Gion and Tokikake to recover from their shock, Rosen lifted his foot and headed toward the Military Academy gates.

"Ever since I met Sister Tsuru, whether it was her, Vice Admiral Garp, or anyone else, they all said I was a monster, born with the bearing to become a Navy Admiral."

"But now, I feel like I'm just an ordinary person."

Watching Rosen's retreating back, Gion suddenly spoke.

"If monsters had ranks, then Rosen would definitely stand at the very top of them all."

"The so-called Admiral's Bearing is merely the threshold to behold him."

"That's all."

Tokikake shook his head.

As one of the witnesses who had personally watched Rosen grow, he knew better than anyone just how terrifying this man was.

After hearing that, Gion said nothing. She neither nodded nor refuted him.

Meanwhile.

After parting ways with Gion and Tokikake, Rosen walked all the way to the Military Academy gates.

Seeing that Zefa had yet to arrive, he stood where he was and waited.

Before long.

Zefa, draped in a Justice Coat, entered Rosen's field of vision and slowly walked toward him.

"Let's go."

Zefa called out to Rosen and took the lead.

"Teacher Zefa, where are we going?"

Rosen asked as he walked.

"I'm taking you to the classroom for your fifth lesson."

"A place that imprisons the evil of the world."

"Impel Down."

Zefa did not hide it from him.

"You want me to use the prisoners in Impel Down for practice?"

Hearing This, Rosen was briefly stunned before immediately realizing what Zefa meant.

"No."

"I want you to go kill the prisoners in Impel Down with the resolve to kill."

"Rosen, do you have that resolve?"

Without slowing his pace, Zefa said something astonishing.

"Why wouldn't I?"

Hearing This, Rosen answered with a question of his own.

"Even if they're prisoners, you'll still be killing people. Won't that weigh on you?"

Zefa seemed somewhat surprised by Rosen's reaction.

Could this student of his be like Sakazuki, adhering to absolute justice?

"I would feel something about killing people. But not about killing animals."

Meeting Zefa's gaze, Rosen spoke calmly.

What kind of people did Impel Down hold?

Animals.

Ever since Monkey D. Luffy set sail, the one thing he could truly be criticized for was releasing the death row inmates imprisoned in Impel Down.

After the okama prisoners of Newkama Land escaped, Emporio Ivankov kept watch over them and settled them all in the Kamabakka Kingdom—but what about the other prisoners?

To say nothing else.

Buggy the Clown and the group of prisoners he brought out—how many of them could still be called human?

"Hahahaha."

"What a coincidence. That's exactly what I think too."

"So when we reach Impel Down, don't entertain any thoughts of mercy, pity, or forgiveness. They do not deserve the Marines' compassion or mercy."

Zefa laughed as he reminded him.

"Forgiveness is God's business. My job is to send them to meet God."

Rosen shrugged.

"That's the right attitude. Once we reach Impel Down, all you need to do is fight, eat, improve, and sleep."

"Use battle to nourish battle. Integrate everything you have learned and created into a unified whole, while raising the strength of your Haki."

"Rather than letting the prisoners on Impel Down's Sixth Layer continue wasting the Marines' rice and the Grand Line's air, they might as well become materials for your training. At least then they can serve some purpose."

Zefa nodded in satisfaction.

He was neither bloodthirsty nor compassionate toward pirates.

If he had been like Rosen back then, perhaps his family would not have suffered the tragedy of being slaughtered by pirates.

"Which layer's prisoners will I be fighting?"

Following Zefa to the Marine Headquarters docks, Rosen saw steel warships lined up before him, each one heavily armored and bristling with cannons.

Like terrifying ferocious beasts crouching upon the sea, ready at any moment to open their bloody maws toward the pirates of these waters.

"The Sixth Layer."

Zefa led Rosen aboard a self-propelled Buster Call Warship.

"Monsters erased from history?"

Hearing This, Rosen felt no fear. Instead, anticipation stirred within him.

After four lessons at the Military Academy, he also wanted to see just how high his combat power could reach if he went all out.

As for accidentally killing a death row inmate from Level 6.

That was a good thing!

Taking out a member of the Blackbeard Pirates ahead of time was not only a contribution to the Navy, but also to the long-term peace and stability of these seas.

"Meeting again."

"Junior."

The moment Rosen stepped onto the warship, a familiar figure entered his sight and walked toward him.

"Vice Admiral Kizaru."

"Hello."

Seeing that it was Borsalino, Rosen greeted him as well, while also wondering why Borsalino was aboard the warship.

After all, Borsalino and Zefa were famously on bad terms.

"No need to be surprised."

"Considering that Teacher Zefa's training plan tailored specifically for you is far too insane, and that the prisoners held on Level 6 are far more vicious than you imagine, Sengoku asked me to accompany you to the Infinite Hell in case those prisoners, after being released from their cells, refuse to cooperate and start entertaining thoughts they shouldn't."

"Just pretend your senior isn't here and focus wholeheartedly on fighting the prisoners."

As Borsalino spoke, he took two small notebooks from the pocket of his Justice Coat and handed them to Rosen.

"What are these?"

Rosen nodded.

They were Level 6 prisoners, after all. Of course there would be risks in releasing them from prison.

Not to mention that if the prisoners, especially some Paramecia Ability users, were released and chose not to fight him but instead focused on escaping or wreaking havoc throughout Impel Down—particularly by destroying the cells holding other prisoners—the situation would become serious.

Although Zefa was a former Navy Admiral, and his strength had not yet declined to the point where Edward Weevil could sever one of his arms, he had been retired for many years and suffered from asthma. If something unexpected happened, he might not necessarily be able to keep the situation under control.

Borsalino was different.

His physical skills, Haki, Swordsmanship, and Paramecia Ability had all reached the pinnacle, and he was currently at the absolute peak of his strength.

With an Admiral Candidate who had eaten the Glint-Glint Fruit, Zefa the former Navy Admiral, and Impel Down's other combat forces, As Long As they did not release two prisoners whose strength rivaled that of Navy Admirals at the same time, Impel Down would not descend into chaos.

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