Promoted to Vice Admiral Before Graduation! An Unprecedented First

Borsalino shook his head as he spoke. Mu Chen had stunned him yet again. Spandine, meanwhile, returned to his warship grinding his teeth with hatred. Mu Chen, I'll remember you!

He had thoroughly embarrassed himself, but Mu Chen's strength was undeniable. He had no choice but to report what happened truthfully. That left Kong with a headache. Kong had known CP9 was going to cause trouble for the Marines and Mu Chen, with the Five Elders' tacit approval. He had not expected Spandine to come away humiliated—or Mu Chen to possess Conqueror's Haki. The news both shocked and delighted him.

Kong's loyalties still lay with the Marines, and he had promised Garp and Zephyr that he would protect Mu Chen. He gave the Five Elders a lengthy explanation in his report, and they stopped paying attention to Mu Chen for the time being.

The Five Elders did say that once Mu Chen grew stronger, they wanted to meet him. They would straighten him out, make him an admiral, and have him serve the Celestial Dragons.

The Five Elders also knew that someone with Conqueror's Haki becoming an admiral was only a matter of time.

Back in the Fleet Admiral's Office at Marineford, Sengoku summoned Mu Chen as soon as he returned. Everyone discussed what had just happened, but Sengoku did not blame Mu Chen in the slightest. CP9 had deliberately stirred up trouble, and Sengoku was no fool. He understood that the World Government wanted to put him and the Marines in their place now that he had become Fleet Admiral. What mattered was that the incident was over. "Still, Mu Chen, I never expected you to grow this strong so quickly—or to possess Conqueror's Haki." Sengoku possessed it himself, but he had never expected another Marine to emerge with