Duel?

Inside the Fleet Admiral's office, Sengoku finally snapped when he saw Garp dig out the last bag of rice crackers and toss them into his mouth with a loud crunch. Cursing furiously, he drove Garp out.

After greeting Sengoku, Zhong Hao followed after him.

On the street, Garp led Zhong Hao toward the Marine Headquarters recruit training camp. In his words, after taking in such an outstanding disciple, how could he not show off to an old friend?

At the recruit training camp, squads of recruits shouted as they lined up for long-distance running drills. Dozens more sparred in pairs, while others sweated away on all kinds of training equipment.

Some of the recruits spotted Garp, stopped what they were doing, and lit up with excitement.

"Look, look! It's the Hero of the Marines! The Hero of the Marines came to see us!"

"Awesome! I finally get to see the Hero of the Marines in person! I joined the Marines because of his exploits!"

Garp strode forward proudly, grinning. "Zhong Hao, look at that. This old man has admirers too. These are all the future of the Marines."

Zhong Hao rubbed his forehead and said dryly, "Yeah, yeah. Let's just hope they never learn what you're really like. Having their illusions shattered won't feel good."

As the two walked toward the center of the training camp under the gazes of countless recruits, a tall, burly man with short purple hair approached them. He wore black sunglasses over the bridge of his nose. Several young men and women dressed differently from ordinary recruits followed behind him. The most eye-catching among them were a white-haired delinquent-looking youth with a cigar in his mouth and a girl with a head full of pink hair.

"Ha ha ha! Garp, didn't you go back to your hometown to retire and hold your grandkids? What brings you here?" the burly man asked mockingly.

"Wahahaha! Zephyr, this old man came to see the future of the Marines—and to check whether you're dead yet," Garp shot back without giving an inch.

Zephyr, a former Marine Admiral, was a powerful Marine from the same era as Garp, Sengoku, and Tsuru. After retiring, he had taken charge of training the Headquarters recruits.

"Even if you die, I won't, Garp. Let me see whether you've gotten too old to throw a punch. Hah!" Zephyr raised his right hand, his fist turning jet-black as he smashed it toward Garp.

At this point in time, Zephyr had not yet lost his arm.

"Wahahaha! This old man can keep fighting for another hundred years!" Garp raised his right hand as well, meeting the blow with his own blackened fist.

The two fists collided with a thunderous boom. A shockwave swept through the area, forcing the watching recruits to raise their arms against the fierce wind and stagger back again and again.

In the end, Garp did not budge, while Zephyr took a step back.

"Teacher Zephyr!" several recruits cried out worriedly as they rushed forward.

Zephyr raised a hand to stop them. "Garp, your fists are still as hard as ever."

Garp waved Zhong Hao over and introduced him to Zephyr. "This is the disciple this old man took in from the East Blue. His strength will absolutely surpass mine someday. Now even this old man is better than you at taking in disciples! Wahahahaha!"

Zephyr looked Zhong Hao up and down, then said dismissively, "Tch, he's just a brat. Surpass you? Garp, you really have gotten old."

Garp glared at him furiously. "Bullshit! My disciple can eat an entire Sea King in one meal. Can your disciples do that?"

Slap.

Zhong Hao smacked a hand against his forehead. Hearing Garp say something like that gave him an odd sense of shame.

Zephyr's disciples were speechless too. So the impressive thing the old man was talking about was having an enormous appetite? Then they really could not compare.

However, Zephyr was utterly shocked by Garp's words. His disciples were ignorant and shallow, but with his mastery of physical combat, how could he not understand what it meant to eat an entire Sea King in one meal? It meant a future monster of physical prowess. Shattering an island with one punch would not be mere fantasy.

At that thought, Zephyr felt an uncontrollable heat rise within him. Among his disciples, the best were the current three Admirals. Yet what had made them the Marines' greatest fighting force was not the physical combat he had taught them, but their powerful Logia Devil Fruits. That had always left him feeling inexplicably stifled.

Now that such a monstrous brat had appeared before him, his excitement was easy to imagine.

Rubbing his hands together, Zephyr said to Garp, "He's a Marine recruit, right? He came to the recruit training camp for special training, right? Great, great! Don't worry, I guarantee I'll teach him one-on-one. I definitely won't hold him back."

Picking his nose, Garp glanced at him sideways. "No way. This old man brought him here to show off, not to become your student."

Zephyr froze. "Show... show off? What do you mean? Why isn't he joining the training camp? Don't tell me he's going to the battlefield at that age?"

Garp flicked the booger in his hand away without caring where it landed and said, "Don't let my disciple's age fool you. He acts like an adult most of the time and has more complicated ideas than you do. Besides, Sengoku has other arrangements for him, so stop trying to poach him."

When Zephyr heard that Sengoku had other arrangements, he let out a dejected sigh and ground his teeth in frustration.

As the two spoke, Zhong Hao was surrounded by Zephyr's disciples.

The white-haired youth with the cigar had the face of a delinquent and an equally arrogant attitude. "Brat, I'm Smoker. Vice Admiral Garp says you're strong—stronger than all of us. So, how about a little spar?"

"Yeah, let's spar! Let's see whether you're really that strong," the people beside him chimed in.

Garp was indeed the Hero of the Marines, and he was indeed their idol. But seeing their own teacher exchange fists with Garp head-on and get knocked back a step left them unhappy. They did not dare attack Garp, nor did they dare complain about him, but if they could teach this smug brat a lesson, they could at least win back some face.

"Smoker, you're trying to bully such a little kid. Hina can't ignore this," the pink-haired girl said. Women were more compassionate, after all.

"Hina, stay out of this. Vice Admiral Garp says he's strong enough to eat a Sea King in one meal, but I don't believe it. If we don't spar, how will we know whether he's bragging?" Smoker insisted.

Zhong Hao had not wanted to pay them any attention, but the moment they dragged Garp into it, things changed. Could a disciple allow others to insult his master like that? Zhong Hao's answer was no.

Zhong Hao stepped forward, pulled Hina aside, and said to Smoker, "You got what you wanted. Come on, white hair. Let me see what you're made of."

Then he winked at Hina. "Your name is Hina? Hmm, your hair color is very pretty."

Hina covered her reddened face and said shyly, "Oh my! Hina is being flirted with by a little brat..."

Zephyr noticed the commotion but did not stop it. He wanted to see whether Garp's words were true as well.

Garp burst into laughter. "Zhong Hao, beat him up good!"

With a duel happening and both Garp and Zephyr present, the training camp's instructors and recruits were drawn over, forming a large circle around them.

Inside the circle, the two stood facing each other as white smoke rose from Smoker's hand.

Zhong Hao narrowed his eyes, inwardly cursing. This is troublesome. I didn't expect this guy to have already eaten the Smoke-Smoke Fruit. I don't have Armament Haki.

His right hand gripped the hilt of his sword as he focused warily.

The moment Zephyr saw Zhong Hao draw a sword, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He punched Garp on the head, knocking him stumbling sideways, and roared, "You idiot! You actually let a monster like this practice swordsmanship! What a waste of talent!"

Garp scratched the spot where he had been hit. "He likes swords, so he learns swords. Shouldn't a person choose their own path to becoming strong? Besides, when this old man first met him, he already had a foundation in swordsmanship. He couldn't just give that up."

Zephyr no longer had the strength to complain. All he felt was envy and jealousy.

Iaijutsu: Iai Slash

Zhong Hao moved first. In an instant, he drew his blade and passed by Smoker. The white-haired youth was cut in two, yet none of the onlookers cried out in alarm, as though they had already grown used to it.

Just as I thought. It's like cutting air.

Zhong Hao sheathed his sword. Under these circumstances, the blade was useless.

"Hahahaha! Surprised? I'm a smoke man who ate the Logia Smoke-Smoke Fruit. My body can turn into smoke, making me completely immune to physical attacks!" Smoker laughed arrogantly around his cigar.

"Smoke man, smoking is bad for your health..." Zhong Hao muttered.

"Smoke... smoke man? What kind of name is that, bastard?!" Smoker instantly bristled at the nickname, flying into a rage.

"Smoke man. That's a nice name. It's decided—Hina will call him that too from now on. Hee hee," Hina added, twisting the knife and setting the tone.

"Smoke man, beat up that brat and show him how formidable the recruit training camp is!"

"Shouldn't a little brat like him be wetting himself and playing in the mud? Smoke man, teach him what a real man is and what real fighting is!"

"Yeah, yeah! Smoke man, kick his butt!"

The onlookers laughed and officially settled on the nickname.

"So noisy." Zhong Hao frowned and cursed under his breath.

"Damn it! Take this—White Fist!" Enraged by his comrades' words, Smoker threw a punch through the air at Zhong Hao. White smoke extended from his arm and blasted toward him.

Kami-e

Zhong Hao kept his lower body still while his upper body bent to one side, allowing the White Fist to pass by his cheek.

"Rokushiki? Hmph, you'll never hit my body. All you can do is dodge. White Fist Barrage!" Smoker threw three punches in succession, sending three streams of white smoke shooting toward Zhong Hao like high-pressure cannons.

Damn it, I really can only dodge. Kami-e! Relying on Kami-e's evasive ability, Zhong Hao narrowly slipped past all three smoke attacks.

"Huh? I dodged them? Has my Kami-e improved?" Only after avoiding the attacks did Zhong Hao realize that his Kami-e, which had always been grazed at the edges, had actually evaded three attacks in a row.

Garp's voice came from nearby. "Wahahahaha! Zhong Hao, real combat is the best way to grow!"

So that's how it is. Zhong Hao understood. No matter how the white-haired youth attacked, he used only Kami-e to evade, treating it as training.

But this battle concerned Garp's honor. Perhaps Garp did not care about winning or losing, but Zhong Hao absolutely could not lose. Still, how was he supposed to win?

Seawater—there was none here. Seastone—he did not have any either. What should he do...