Chapter Summaries

Gern clashed with Whitebeard at sea, briefly damaging Murakumogiri before Whitebeard used Conqueror's Haki coating to overwhelm him. After Whitebeard departed, the Marines revered Gern for forcing the legendary pirate to get serious, while Gern collapsed, excited by what he had witnessed.

• Gern and Whitebeard's blades collided, unleashing a shock wave that erased a vast stretch of sea and sent seawater surging into the sky.
• Gern's vibration particles began eroding Whitebeard's power and cracked Murakumogiri, but Whitebeard noticed his ship was in danger and coated his weapon with Conqueror's Haki.
• Whitebeard's strike scattered Gern's vibration particles and hurled him back onto the Marine warship, leaving him gravely wounded.
• Whitebeard praised Gern for making him get serious, then left as Gern's vision faded from blood loss.
• The Marines admired Gern for standing against Whitebeard, and Gern said he had seen what he had been hoping for before collapsing.

After clashing with Gern, Whitebeard recognized the weapon in his hands as Rocks D. Zebek’s sword and wondered why a Marine possessed it. Three days later, Gern woke aboard his warship, resolved to use his newfound reputation as a stepping stone and eager to learn Haki.

• Marco questioned why Whitebeard had held back against Gern, and Whitebeard admitted he was impressed by the young Marine and wanted to make him his son.
• Whitebeard privately recognized Gern’s black blade as Rocks D. Zebek’s sword and wondered how it had come into a Marine’s possession.
• Three days later, Gern woke in the warship’s infirmary and heard Marines praising his three-round clash with Whitebeard.
• Gern wrapped Black Blade: Eight Desolations and decided that the battle had earned him a reputation he could use to advance in the Marines.
• Gern replayed Whitebeard’s final Haki-infused slash in his mind and eagerly anticipated learning Haki.

Gern Reginald Sigma arrived at Marine Headquarters after surviving a battle with Whitebeard, drawing the attention of the Marines gathered at the harbor. Zephyr planned to train him and correct his reliance on his Devil Fruit, and Gern announced his arrival before Zephyr and Garp.

• Zephyr and Garp waited at the Marineford harbor, where Garp revealed that Gern had fought Whitebeard and survived.
• Zephyr argued that Gern relied too heavily on his Devil Fruit and said Haki was the true path to strength.
• A battered West Blue warship arrived, and the Marines gathered to watch Gern disembark.
• Gern stepped ashore wounded, carrying the wrapped Black Blade: Eight Desolations, and announced his arrival to Marine Headquarters.

After returning to Marine Headquarters from his clash with Whitebeard, Gern recovered quickly and reported to Zephyr, who challenged him to explain what justice meant to him. The chapter left Gern facing the question in Zephyr’s office beneath the words “Justice without killing.”

• Garp praised Gern for making Whitebeard use Conqueror's Coating, while Zephyr ordered him to report after a medical checkup.
• Garp and Zephyr discussed the danger of Gern’s Logia Tremor-Tremor Fruit and Garp asked Zephyr to let him have Gern as a student.
• Gern was astonished that the headquarters medical team had healed his serious injuries so quickly, then went early to Zephyr’s office.
• Gern read Zephyr’s calligraphy, “Justice without killing,” and reflected on his own history of killing pirates.
• Zephyr reminded Gern of his claim that justice delayed was no justice and asked him what his justice looked like.

Gern admitted that he did not yet know what justice meant and recognized how much he relied on the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. Zephyr appointed him as his adjutant and promised to train him personally, leaving Gern to pursue his own answer to justice.

• Gern told Zephyr that his view of justice had changed and admitted Whitebeard could have killed him when he attacked.
• Zephyr challenged Gern to fight without using his fruit, then easily evaded his attacks and pointed out his lack of technique.
• Gern accepted that he relied too much on his fruit and asked Zephyr to teach him.
• Gern said he had joined the Marines to become stronger and find his own justice.
• Zephyr ordered Gern to serve as his adjutant from the next day and announced he would train him to become a Marine Admiral.
• Zephyr told Gern that justice was not slaughter, and Gern left after bowing to him.

Gern settled into Marineford as Zephyr’s adjutant and practiced with Rocks’s Black Blade: Eight Desolations, resolving to combine his swordsmanship with Haki and Devil Fruit powers. He met Duolage, who asked about Gern’s remark on justice, but Gern’s awkward declaration that he was not into men left Duolage stunned.

• Gern arrived at Marineford and settled into a private courtyard house, reflecting on Zephyr’s promise to train him to become a Marine admiral.
• Gern practiced with Rocks’s Black Blade: Eight Desolations and resolved to combine his weapon, Haki, and Devil Fruit abilities into powerful attacks.
• Gern found a desk prepared for him inside Zephyr’s office and reviewed recruit assessments, pirate intelligence, and plans for the Elite Training Camp.
• Duolage entered to submit a G-5 Branch inspection report and asked Gern about his statement that justice arriving late was not justice.
• Gern blurted out that he was not into men, leaving Duolage shocked and confused.

Gern discussed justice with Dragon, arguing that flawed order did not erase the Marines’ core value of justice, while Dragon admitted he had no justice of his own. Zephyr praised Gern’s convictions and ordered him to meet at Training Ground One for a lesson in strength, forbidding him from bringing his sword.

• Dragon asked Gern whether he believed justice could arrive late and challenged the Marines’ role in preserving a twisted order.
• Gern argued that justice depended on whom the Marines served and how they acted, and that the World Government—not justice itself—was the problem.
• After Dragon left, Zephyr emerged from the window and said Gern’s answer had satisfied him.
• Zephyr gave Gern a document about troublesome pirates and arranged to teach him about strength at Training Ground One that afternoon.
• Zephyr forbade Gern from bringing Eight Desolations to the training, and Gern privately complained about losing his weapon.

Gern prepared for his afternoon spar with Zephyr while Kuzan joined him for lunch and probed him about his power. Their playful conversation drew more attention to Gern, leaving him expecting a large audience at the training ground.

• After Zephyr left, Garp announced that Gern and Zephyr would fight at Training Ground No. 1 that afternoon, and Marines began gathering to watch.
• Gern went to the mess hall and heard Marines gossiping about his clash with Whitebeard and his Tremor-Tremor powers.
• Kuzan sat with Gern, stole food from his tray, and asked whether Gern could really block Whitebeard's tremors.
• Kuzan warned that Zephyr was in a bad mood and would take Gern's challenge seriously, then praised Gern for blocking Whitebeard's blow.
• Kuzan left after promising to watch the fight, and Gern noticed frost on his glass and realized their conversation had made the other Marines even more curious about him.

Gern and Zephyr began a public training match at Marineford Naval Academy, where Zephyr demonstrated how powerful Haki could overcome Gern’s Logia form. Gern unleashed increasingly powerful tremor attacks, leaving the training ground devastated as the watching Marines struggled to contain the destruction.

• Gern arrived at the packed training ground and faced Zephyr while Garp and other Marines watched.
• Zephyr struck Gern with Armament Haki, sending him through the perimeter wall and teaching him that Haki could damage Logia users.
• Gern launched Eight Extremes Jade and charged Zephyr with Glide Rail, but Zephyr anticipated his attack with Observation Haki.
• Gern evaded Zephyr’s counterattack and struck him with Star-Shattering Fist, causing a shock wave that collapsed part of the training ground.
• Gern attacked from above with Thousand Light Wheels and Tremor Starfall, while Zephyr endured the blasts and Kuzan froze flying rubble.
• Dragon watched the destruction and remarked that Gern’s power seemed even more dangerous than Whitebeard’s Tremor-Tremor Fruit.

Gern fought Zephyr in a training-ground battle, pushing his Devil Fruit and stamina to their limits before conceding. Zephyr caught him when he collapsed and learned that Gern had exhausted himself and suffered extensive bruising.

• Zephyr overwhelmed Gern with Haki and powerful strikes, while Gern fought back with increasingly forceful quake attacks.
• Gern landed a high-frequency vibration strike that cracked Zephyr's sunglasses, prompting Zephyr to prepare a full-power attack.
• Gern surrendered when Zephyr stopped his Black Arm: Impact punch just short of his face, and Zephyr praised him before addressing the Marines.
• Gern collapsed after the battle, and Kuzan confirmed that he had exceeded his stamina limits and was covered in bruises from Zephyr's punches.
• Zephyr frowned at Gern's injuries, realizing the exhausted Gern had still insisted on landing one more hit.

After Gern’s battle with Zephyr devastated Training Ground No. 1, Garp and Zephyr reflected on the danger of Gern’s Logia powers, and Fleet Admiral Kong ordered Sengoku to be blamed for the damage through Garp. Two months later, Gern recovered from his injuries and received Zephyr’s order to meet him at the docks for training.

• Garp and Zephyr surveyed the ruined training ground, joked about blaming Garp for the destruction, and recognized how dangerous Gern’s Tremor-Tremor Fruit had become.
• Fleet Admiral Kong reviewed the battle report, confirmed Gern’s Logia ability, and told an aide to show Sengoku the damaged training ground and blame Garp.
• Two months later, Gern left the infirmary after recovering from his injuries and learned that his sword had been sent to his office.
• Gern opened Zephyr’s note and found an order to meet him at the docks at four the next morning or face ten times as much training.

Zephyr brought Gern to a deserted island to begin Haki training, explaining the three types and arranging for Garp to teach him through brutal physical combat. Gern embraced both instructors’ opposing philosophies and declared he would forge his own path, but Garp knocked him unconscious with an Armament Haki punch.

• Zephyr took Gern to an island and told him to turn its central crater into a basin within a month.
• Zephyr explained that Haki came from presence, will, spiritual strength, and conviction, and described its three types.
• Garp burst through a rock face, and Zephyr revealed that he would teach theory while Garp put Gern through dangerous physical training.
• Gern welcomed Zephyr’s defensive ideals and Garp’s Iron Fist, declaring that he would create a Haki path of his own.
• Garp struck Gern with an Armament Haki punch, knocking him unconscious as Zephyr reproached him.

Gern endured brutal Haki training under Garp and Zephyr, awakening and refining his Armament Haki while learning to use Observation Haki. After months of punishing drills, Garp explained that Haki helped a fighter keep moving through pain and anticipate attacks.

• Garp chained Gern and threw him into the sea, where a Sea King’s attack forced him to awaken Armament Haki after seventeen days of training.
• Garp pushed Gern through harsh strength drills on Volcano Island, repeatedly blasting and punching him while he tried to control his unstable Haki.
• Zephyr taught Gern to focus his Armament Haki precisely, and Gern sliced through a steel shield with a wooden sword.
• Months later, Garp made blindfolded Gern traverse a spiked passage while dodging cannonballs, forcing him to use Armament and Observation Haki.
• Gern knocked away the final cannonball, and Garp told him that Haki helped fighters endure pain and anticipate attacks.

Gern trained his fists by punching through a battleship’s armor, then endured Kuzan’s freezing attacks to practice defending against Logia powers with Armament Haki. He passed Zephyr’s test after reaching the threshold of Ryuo, but was left utterly exhausted.

• Gern completed twenty thousand full-strength punches against battleship armor and blasted through the ship with his final punch.
• Garp praised Gern’s progress and told him that true iron fist united Haki with willpower.
• Zephyr instructed Gern to use Armament Haki to withstand Kuzan’s freezing powers, and Gern learned to circulate his Haki through his body.
• Gern endured Kuzan’s attacks for over twenty-five minutes and showed a dark-red sheen over his Armament Haki, prompting Kuzan to recognize the beginnings of Ryuo.
• Kuzan unleashed Ice Age for Zephyr’s final thirty seconds, and Gern repeatedly froze and broke free until Zephyr called time and declared that he had passed.

Gern had dinner with Zephyr and Lina, sharing laughter as he learned how they met and saw their affection for each other. After leaving, Gern vowed to prevent Zephyr’s future suffering, while Zephyr told Lina he hoped to marry her once he became an Admiral.

• Zephyr brought Gern to his home, where Lina welcomed him and served him dinner.
• Lina and Zephyr teased each other as they told Gern about their childhood meeting and Zephyr’s old claim to be a hero of justice.
• Gern helped clean up, accepted pastries from Lina, and resolved to keep Zephyr’s gentle smile from disappearing in the future.
• After Gern left, Lina reassured Zephyr that Gern was a good student, and Zephyr said he saw his younger self in him.
• Zephyr promised Lina he would marry her once he became an Admiral, and she told him she had waited a long time.

In 1488, Gern had become a skilled Marine officer under Zephyr’s command, but his willingness to kill captured pirates clashed with Zephyr’s non-killing justice. Sengoku persuaded Zephyr to let Gern lead an independent mission, and the two chose the Rupture Pirates as his first assignment.

• Over two years of training, Gern developed sharp Observation Haki and strong Logia combat abilities, rose to Headquarters Captain, and earned a reputation for killing pirates even when they surrendered.
• Zephyr told Sengoku that Gern’s uncompromising killing reminded him of Sakazuki, while Sengoku pointed out that Gern had never commanded a mission independently.
• Zephyr agreed to let Gern choose his own path and define his justice through an independent mission.
• Sengoku presented Zephyr with an intelligence report on the Rupture Pirates, led by the 300,060,000-Beli captain Doger the Island-Splitter.

Gern learned that he had been appointed a lieutenant reporting directly to Marine Headquarters and would begin taking independent missions. When Zephyr confronted him about killing surrendered pirates, Gern reminded him that he had joined the Marines to find his own justice.

• Gern met Kuzan in a Marineford tavern, where Kuzan told him that he was now known as the Beheading Demon.
• Gern explained that he was ready to leave Zephyr's protection and take the next step in his career.
• Kuzan told Gern that Fleet Admiral Kong had appointed him a lieutenant who reported directly to Headquarters, ending his role as Zephyr's adjutant.
• Gern returned home and found Zephyr waiting outside his door.
• Zephyr asked why Gern had killed pirates who surrendered, and Gern answered that he was searching for his own justice.

Gern defended his belief that killing villains could protect civilians while admitting he was still searching for his own justice. Zephyr sent him on his first independent mission, and Gern sailed toward the New World to hunt Doger.

• Gern told Zephyr that he did not believe in repentance and that dead villains could never commit evil again.
• Zephyr gave Gern a mission dossier for Doger, a pirate with a 360 million bounty, and warned him not to lose himself.
• Three days later, Gern reviewed Doger's Split-Split Fruit abilities aboard a warship at Marineford.
• Gern declined the new weapons and equipment prepared by Sengoku and saluted Zephyr, who watched from the fortress.
• Gern ordered the crew to sail for the waters around the G-2 base in the New World, while Zephyr worried that he might let him down.

Marine Captain Gern confronted the Rupture Pirates as they planned to join Golden Lion Shiki’s Flying Pirates. Gern struck Captain Doger with a powerful vibration-enhanced kick, leaving Doger shocked by the Marine’s strength.

• Captain Doger told the Rupture Pirates that joining Golden Lion Shiki was their best chance to survive in the New World.
• Gern learned the crew’s location, ordered his Marines to prepare to take prisoners, and flew alone toward the island.
• Gern landed before Doger’s crew and revealed that he knew they intended to join the Flying Pirates.
• Gern drew the Black Blade: Eight Desolations and used Tremor Flash: Glide Rail to rush Doger.
• Doger blocked Gern’s kick with Armament Haki, but the impact shattered the ground and left him bleeding and horrified.

Gern defeated Doger, a Split-Split Fruit user, and captured him alive for the Marines. As the warship headed back to Marineford, Gern planned to use the successful capture to strengthen his record and justify working independently.

• Doger attacked Gern with fragments of split rock, but Gern blocked them with a vibration barrier and rushed in to strike.
• Doger tried to disintegrate Eight Desolations, but Gern’s Haki protected the blade and injured Doger’s arms.
• Gern used Black Tremor: Star-Shatter to shatter Doger’s defense and leave him gravely wounded.
• The Marines reached shore and arrested the Rupture Pirates, finding Doger alive and binding him with Seastone Handcuffs.
• Gern told Doger to thank him for his mercy, then ordered the warship to return to Marineford with the captured pirate.