Kuzan

After Zephyr left, Gern stood alone in the office, his fingers tapping his desk unconsciously.

The Naval Academy cadets' synchronized training calls drifted in through the window, but farther away, an unusual commotion seemed to be spreading.

Then Garp's booming voice rang out!

"Hey! Gern's fighting Zephyr at Training Ground No. 1 this afternoon!!"

"Word's spread already?" Gern raised an eyebrow, walked over, and opened the window.

Sure enough, there on the training field was Zephyr, looking helplessly at Garp beside him.

Even outside the office, Marines were gathering in twos and threes and heading that way.

Although the corridor was some distance away, Gern could still clearly pick up their excited whispers.

"Vice Admiral Zephyr's taking on that newcomer, Gern!"

"The guy with the Heavenquake powers who fought Whitebeard?"

"I heard Instructor Zephyr's going to teach him what real strength is..."

Gern's mouth twitched. "Teach me, my ass. He just wants to use me as a punching bag."

Sunlight shone brightly outside. Gern stretched and decided to fill his stomach at the mess hall first.

After all, if he was going to get beaten up that afternoon, he couldn't do it on an empty stomach.

The Marine Headquarters mess hall was always bustling.

Gern had barely sat down with a tray piled with food half his own height when the conversations at the nearby tables went strangely quiet.

"Am I that scary?" Gern speared a piece of steak, surveying his surroundings out of the corner of his eye.

Several young Marines immediately lowered their heads and pretended to focus on eating, but plenty of others kept sneaking glances at him.

Gern could even hear hushed, excited conversations from farther away.

"That's Warrant Officer Gern!"

"I heard he blocked Whitebeard's attack all by himself..."

"They say his Tremor-Tremor Fruit is even stronger than Whitebeard's power..."

"Seriously? We're talking about Whitebeard."

"Of course! I saw it myself aboard the warship!"

"Enough talk. We'll get to see for ourselves this afternoon!"

"Their thirst for gossip is burning bright!" Gern shook his head and concentrated on the food before him.

Just as he was about to drink his soup, a tall figure sat down opposite him.

"Mind if I sit here?" a lazy voice asked.

Gern looked up at a young face that was both familiar and unfamiliar, framed by fluffy black curls and wearing a smile.

"Captain... Kuzan?" Gern asked tentatively.

The Three Admirals had all graduated straight into the rank of Headquarters captain, then advanced through the field officer ranks before becoming flag officers...

In short, the advantages offered by the academy at Marine Headquarters were unmatched anywhere else.

But the current Aokiji still believed in passionate justice, so his entire personality was completely different.

"Just call me Kuzan." The future Marine Admiral smiled.

Then, acting as though they were already close friends, he casually picked up some bread from Gern's tray and took a bite. "I hear Instructor Zephyr's going to beat you up this afternoon?"

Gern's eye twitched. "It's 'guidance,' not a beating."

"Same thing." Kuzan shrugged, then suddenly leaned closer and lowered his voice.

"Listen, you might want to wear a few steel plates under your clothes. Instructor Zephyr's fists are about as bad as Mr. Garp's..."

"Surely it's not that bad?" Gern's fork paused.

"Ha!" Kuzan grinned, showing his white teeth. "Just kidding. But Instructor Zephyr really is strict."

He casually swiped a piece of fried fish from Gern's tray as well.

"Anyway, can your Heavenquake power really block Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor?"

Watching his food rapidly disappear, Gern discreetly pulled his tray closer.

"Captain Kuzan, if you're so curious, why not test Whitebeard's strength yourself?"

"Don't be so stingy." Kuzan reached for Gern's steak again. "I'm on leave, you know, and besides..."

Gern's fork suddenly shot forward at an astonishing speed, driving into the tabletop directly in front of Kuzan's fingers just before they could reach their prize.

"Whoa!" Kuzan whistled. "Nice reflexes."

"Thanks for the compliment." Gern slowly withdrew his fork. "But I'd rather you complimented my table manners than my ability to defend myself."

Kuzan burst out laughing, drawing looks from the Marines at several nearby tables.

Unconcerned, he leaned back in his chair. "I like you, Gern.

"Most newcomers get so nervous around me they can't speak."

"Maybe because they've never seen you stealing someone else's food."

"Sharing is a virtue." Rather than feeling ashamed, Kuzan looked proud as he picked up Gern's spoon and tasted his soup.

"Mmm, the cream of mushroom soup's good today."

Gern sighed and simply pushed the entire bowl over to Kuzan. "Help yourself. Looks like my lunch has become our lunch."

"That's more like it." Kuzan nodded in satisfaction. "In return, I'll give you some inside information.

"Instructor Zephyr's in a bad mood today. He argued with the Fleet Admiral this morning over the recruit training plan."

Gern raised an eyebrow. "Is that good news or bad news?"

"Depends how you look at it." Kuzan licked the soup off the spoon.

"The bad news is he might be stricter. The good news is he'll take your challenge seriously and won't hold back."

"Wonderful news indeed!" Gern's smile didn't reach his eyes.

Kuzan suddenly turned serious. "Hey, don't sell yourself short.

"Not many people can block a blow from Whitebeard."

Gern was just about to object that it hadn't been a fluke when Kuzan slipped back into his lazy expression.

"But seriously, are you sure you don't need any steel plates? I could lend you a few."

"No." Gern waved him off, then glanced at Kuzan's heavily bandaged hands. "But I think you might."

"Huh? Hahahaha!" Catching his meaning, Kuzan couldn't help laughing.

"You're fun. I'll come watch you this afternoon. Don't let me down, my friend!"

Gern looked at his nearly empty tray, then at Kuzan's retreating figure, and shook his head helplessly. "At least leave the spoon..."

Without looking back, Kuzan waved. The spoon miraculously flew out of his sleeve, spun through the air, and landed squarely on Gern's tray.

Gern stared at the spoon for a few seconds before noticing that a thin layer of frost had formed on the surface of his drinking glass.

"Interesting."

Gern smiled and stood to get more food, only to realize that the atmosphere in the mess hall had changed again.

Now, the looks people gave him held not only awe, but also a measure of curiosity and envy.

Clearly, chatting so familiarly with Kuzan, one of the Marines' current three monstrous rookies, had made him seem even more mysterious in their eyes.

"Tsk. Looks like this afternoon's audience will be bigger than expected," Gern muttered to himself before filling another large plate with food.