The Training Incident Ends

Thunderclouds still churned over the training grounds, electric serpents dancing madly through them, but Zephyr—the man who had been blasted to one knee—slowly rose to his feet.

Scorch marks from the lightning still smoked across his body, his skin blackened and mottled by the shocks, yet there was not the slightest hint of retreat in him.

Instead, the moment he raised his head, he seemed like a giant beast that had been thoroughly ignited.

"Hah—"

With that exhale, his fighting spirit became several times more intense than before, blazing skyward like fire and making the air hum.

High in the sky, Rock hovered amid the thunderclouds, his eyes and brows filled with excitement and delight.

Seeing Zephyr stand again, Rock grinned. "Just as expected of you."

He raised his right hand, and lightning immediately surged up his arm as the thunderclouds across the sky rumbled and shook violently.

That stance—

He was clearly preparing to summon Heavenly Punishment again!

The Marine soldiers below were still sprawled in every direction. They had only just recovered from their temporary blindness caused by the blinding lightning, and the ringing in their ears had not even faded when they saw Rock raise his hand again.

In an instant, everyone cried out in despair. "Hey, hey, hey, hey!! H-He's doing it again?! Again?!!"

"We have nowhere left to hide!!!"

"Is this still training?! This is the apocalypse!!!"

The training grounds were a complete mess now, as if they had just gone through a small war.

Yet Zephyr grinned amid the ruins.

Blood stained the corner of his mouth, and his eyes gleamed. "Kid, I haven't lost yet!"

He stomped down hard!

Crack—!!!

The ground shattered like a sand cake, cracks wildly spreading dozens of meters.

His fighting spirit shot into the heavens, echoing Rock's thunder from afar.

The two were like raging storms, one from the sky and one from the earth, about to collide head-on once more.

The air tightened, and at the height of the crisis—a flash of golden light exploded!

"Stop this at once! You two—!!!"

The earth trembled with that furious roar!

Blinding golden light burst between them with a Boom!!!, illuminating the entire training ground as brightly as day.

A massive golden Buddha descended from the sky!

—It was Sengoku in Buddha Form!!!

The golden Buddha's broad body landed firmly between Zephyr and Rock like a heavenly pillar, forcibly cutting off their fighting spirits.

The stunned Marine soldiers nearly thought another natural disaster had arrived.

Before they could react, Tsuru lightly landed beside Zephyr and patted his shoulder. "You hot-blooded idiot... you're about to tear Headquarters apart."

Her voice was gentle, but full of helplessness.

As soon as she spoke, Zephyr stiffened. Only then did he come back to his senses and look around—

Marine soldiers lay scattered everywhere. Thirty percent had fainted, while the remaining seventy percent were trembling.

The training ground had shattered, dozens of charred ravines carved through it.

The surrounding buildings had cracked as though an earthquake had struck.

And above them still hung a swirling thundercloud capable of destroying a city.

He froze for three seconds, and his fighting spirit vanished with a whoosh, leaving not even a shadow behind.

Zephyr's face fell. "Ah... Fleet Admiral Kong is going to chew me out..."

Sengoku remained in Buddha Form, golden light covering his body while his face was as dark as the bottom of a pot. "You two... did you take Headquarters for a battlefield in the New World?!"

At that moment, the thunder in the sky slowly faded as well.

Garp floated before Rock using Geppo, grinning mischievously. "Kid, if you strike one more time, Headquarters might collapse!"

Rock: "..."

He took a deep breath and helplessly lowered the hand he had raised to unleash Heavenly Punishment again.

"Sizzle—"

As his arm fell, the lightning slowly dispersed from his shoulder, wrist, and fingertips.

"Whoosh—"

The thunderclouds filling the sky seemed to receive a recall order, rapidly collapsing from the center, retreating and scattering in the wind into broken white clouds.

The instant they dispersed, the training ground seemed to be dragged back from hell into reality.

The next second, sunlight broke through gaps in the clouds.

Slanting golden rays fell across the training ground torn apart by thunder:

Charred cracks, shattered stone slabs, weapons blasted away, soldiers sprawled everywhere, Marine caps scattered across the ground... under the sunlight, everything seemed especially real.

As the sunlight spilled down, the Marine soldiers finally recovered from the thunderous pressure, aftershocks, and explosions.

Some clutched their chests and gasped for air.

Some touched their faces with trembling hands, confirming that they were still alive.

More simply stared blankly at the sky.

"We... we survived..."

"I thought I was going to be vaporized..."

"For a moment, I even saw my great-grandmother..."

The voices came in fragments, wavering around the training grounds like aftershocks.

They watched the figure slowly descend, bathed in a faint golden glow beneath the sunlight.

The man who had covered the entire island in thunderclouds, driven Zephyr back with a Thunder Dragon, and shaken Marine Headquarters with thunder—the true embodiment of a "natural disaster."

Respect.

Fear.

Worship.

In that sunlit moment, those feelings seemed to be carved into the hearts of every Marine soldier.

Even though he was only a boy who had just joined the Marines.

Even though he did not yet hold a rank.

Even though he had yet to put on a proper Marine uniform.

But everyone knew it: the Marines had welcomed a monster capable of changing the era.

Though the disturbance had settled, Marineford still bore charred thunder marks and signs of explosions, as if it had endured a war.

Sengoku and the other two had stopped the battle in time, yet the expected severe punishment never came during the meeting afterward.

Fleet Admiral Kong instead sat in his chair and laughed loudly. "This kid is excellent!"

"The Marines need monsters like him who can suppress the entire field!!"

He even stated clearly that Rock's extraordinary combat power was a valuable asset to the Marines.

Rather than feeling resentful, the Headquarters soldiers' admiration surged. That showed their fighting spirit had been thoroughly stirred up by him.

Sengoku rubbed his forehead. "Fleet Admiral Kong, are you praising them or indulging them?"

Kong said, "Both! Hahahaha!"

To maintain "military discipline," the two were symbolically punished—

They had to repair the Headquarters buildings they had blown up themselves.

The sunset was as red as blood, gilding the half-collapsed rooftops.

Beside the training ground, two highly conspicuous figures stood atop a building damaged by the impact of the Thunder Dragon.

Zephyr was bare-chested, holding a wooden plank in one hand and swinging a hammer with the other.

Thunk—thunk—thunk!!

His movements were steady and precise, every nail seeming to ring with his iron-blooded resolve.

Rock stood on the other side and casually raised a hand.

"Sizzle—"

Pale blue arcs danced over his fingertips, and tiny lightning needles automatically pierced through the planks, driving nails into their fixed points in an instant.

Snap—snap—snap—

He was so fast that the Marine soldiers beside him could not keep up with the rhythm.

Zephyr glared at him from the corner of his eye, his face as dark as Armament Haki. "Can you... stop using lightning to hammer nails?!"

Rock raised a brow. "But it's faster this way."

Zephyr's mouth twitched. "This... this is punishment labor, not a chance to show off!!"

Rock nodded seriously. "I'm not showing off. I'm just working hard to complete the task."

"..."

Zephyr said nothing and silently hammered three more nails.

When he glanced at Rock's side again, Rock had already repaired the entire roof.

Tap.

The nail in Zephyr's hand nearly bent beneath his grip.

He muttered under his breath, "It's just... a flashy ability... hmph."

The Marine soldiers volunteering to help nearby had to hold their stomachs to keep from laughing.

"Senior Rock! I'll help carry the materials!"

"Vice Admiral Zephyr! I'll secure this side!"

"Mr. Rock's Thunder Dragon was so cool! Please let me serve under you!!!"

The entire repair site was as lively as a celebration banquet.

Watching soldiers all over the place call him "Lord Rock" and "Senior Rock," the veins on Zephyr's forehead throbbed.

"Hey, kid, he's still a rookie! Why are you all calling him lord and senior?!"

The setting sun slanted across their backs.

Zephyr hammered down the final nail and sighed. "Honestly... how did I end up losing to a monster like you?"

Rock stood at the edge of the roof, the wind brushing across his face. "We can have another fight later."

Zephyr glared fiercely. "No! At least wait until Headquarters is repaired!!"

Rock said, "Then I'll practice my Armament Haki first."

Zephyr said, "Why does that sound even more dangerous!?"

In the distance, Garp leaned against a pillar, munching on rice crackers as he watched them.

"Wahahaha!! Being young is great—!!!"