Loa's desire to graduate was no whim. He had thought it through carefully.
He had learned Haki, mastered the Six Powers, and acquired Life Return. His combat experience had grown by leaps and bounds, and he had become a fighter capable of standing on his own!
If he wanted to achieve his dream of becoming the "World's Strongest"—the dream that had forced him to give up his first love, his ambition to become a master builder, and everything about his old life—
Then he had to leave.
No one could amount to much while sheltered from danger. They would be like flowers grown in a greenhouse: beautiful, but easily broken.
Sengoku, Garp, and the others had earned their present strength and standing one step at a time through countless life-and-death battles.
The name Iron Fist Garp was feared across the Four Blues, and much of that reputation came from the years he had spent chasing Roger from place to place. Pursuing Roger had been no easy task.
Zephyr's first instinct was to refuse Loa's request to graduate. But he suddenly realized there was nothing more Loa could learn from him.
Loa had learned everything he knew.
And anything he did not know, Kuzan could teach Loa when he returned.
As for real combat experience, sparring in the Elite Camp could not give Loa that.
Loa no longer had an opponent in the Elite Camp, for one thing. Comrades would always hold back against each other, and even on dangerous field missions, several Warships followed behind to protect them.
No matter how much Loa learned, that kind of experience would do him little good in a true fight to the death. Besides, he had already made progress with Haki and learned Life Return. He could make up for his lack of