Setting out

Lofan took the flask of fine wine Ain had prepared for him to Zephyr's residence. He could hear Garp's booming laughter from far away.

The two had operated together back when they were ordinary Marines, partly because both excelled at hand-to-hand combat and sparred with each other.

Zephyr's temperament and resolve also earned Garp's respect, so the two shared a deep bond.

"Teacher, Vice Admiral Garp."

Lofan greeted them politely, then invited them to share a flask of wine in the glorious sunshine and sea breeze.

Garp had been quite a drinker in his younger days.

He had simply grown more fond of tea in his old age, while Zephyr remained rather fond of drinking, with a strong air of drowning his sorrows.

"Boy, you're injured, so you can't drink to your heart's content. Let's keep it moderate."

Garp rarely acted like an irreverent old fool in front of Zephyr.

But paired with the finger picking his nose and the great expanses of white showing in his eyes, that was hardly convincing.

Lofan had come to cheer Zephyr up, so he did not disturb the two any further.

After proposing to Zephyr in Garp's presence that they help Ain train, he left the flask and took his leave.

"That boy's a crafty one. That look of his made me uncomfortable all over."

Garp grabbed a rice cracker, but it tasted utterly bland to him.

"Can't you do me this little favor?

You did teach him a thing or two back then. Whatever else, you still count as his teacher.

Your own student's in trouble, and you're just going to ignore him?"

Zephyr knew how Garp operated these days.

If he wanted to get involved, he would. If he did not, well-

Above him were the Three Admirals and the Fleet Admiral, and below him were all sorts of Admiral candidates and Vice Admirals. He was practically retired without actually retiring.

Besides, with how formidable he was in battle, nobody wanted things to get serious enough to require Garp to act.

That might well mean the Marines were facing utter destruction.

"It's just teaching a little girl. I'll treat it as a way to pass the time."

Lofan had already given Ain her instructions: stay at headquarters for a month of special training and wait for him to return.

With the Return-Return Fruit combined with overwhelming hand-to-hand combat skills, who would not be intimidated when she went out into the world?

Lofan himself simply could not help. He could still offer suggestions on developing her Devil Fruit.

But he was still exploring and refining everything else himself, with nothing presentable to offer.

The central theme of Lofan's three years of training had been one thing: honing his body.

Then came supplementary training in Haki.

As Kong put it, learning those techniques now would be a waste for him.

Because all he needed was an immensely powerful body.

He knew none of the hand-to-hand techniques such as the Six Powers, and his swordsmanship relied entirely on brute-force output through spiritual pressure and Haki.

As for combat techniques, he had been forced to learn quite a few over those three years of tempering.

But those only suited him personally. They were not universal principles he could share with everyone.

Yet Kong's assessment had hit the mark only because this was Lofan.

For a genius who had learned Haki in the space of a breath, building a solid foundation was countless times more important than learning anything else.

It was precisely because Zephyr had felt he could not teach at that level that he had specifically informed Kong, leading to everything that followed.

No one would be able to track me if I walked through the air, but that would be too deliberate. I'll take a ship out to sea first, then slip away midway.

His first objective was to head to Totto Land.

Marineford was currently located in the middle of the Grand Line, so Totto Land, toward its far end, was not all that distant.

Most importantly, the deal with Big Mom was the point where all his plans converged. It had to take priority.

Though he was wrapped in bandages, he was merely putting on a show of weakness.

Lofan had already had Ain use her Devil Fruit ability on him, in case Big Mom entertained any other ideas.

Most people had not anticipated how swiftly the Big Mom Pirates, the crew of one of the Four Emperors, would move this time.

By the time some pirates reacted, Wano Country had already fallen under Big Mom's rule.

Although the newspapers carried no news of Kaido, that only strengthened Big Mom's belief that his chances were grim.

If he had been captured alive, the Marines would have publicized it extensively to build their prestige.

If he had escaped, the Marines would at least have offered some mocking remarks about his defeat and flight.

But no matter how she thought about it, Big Mom could not imagine how Kaido could have survived under those circumstances.

After Perospero returned, she had her child describe the situation to her in person.

There was no way Kaido could have survived and escaped.

Even when Lofan was outright announced as the fourth Admiral, the news about Kaido still went no further than his defeat.

Big Mom was convinced. Kaido was probably truly dead.

To be honest, Big Mom regarded Kaido as a younger brother.

After all, she had carried quite a few children fathered by those powerful men aboard Rocks's ship.

The very reason she had never had Kaido's child was that she had long considered him family.

But even family could fall out, let alone when faced with a lifelong dream.

Lofan flew toward Whole Cake Island, stepping through the air.

Through a Den Den Mushi, he informed Perospero that he would personally visit Big Mom in the coming days.

Perospero immediately called Katakuri over to discuss it. The man's power had truly sunk into his very bones.

Now he had become an Admiral, yet they still could not figure out what this prospective partner wanted.

"There's no rush. Since he's coming, we'll naturally negotiate according to the terms of the deal."

Katakuri calmly reassured his younger brother.

From his younger brother's fear, he felt as though he could already sense the strength of that Admiral, Lofan.

"This has to be kept secret. Besides, this is a good thing for us.

Whatever his objective is, once his cooperation with pirates is exposed, the Marines will no longer tolerate him."

"But Mama wants him to marry one of the family's sisters. How could that possibly happen?"

Perospero was clearly considering a different angle.

His only fear was that Mama would cause relations between the two sides to sour, leading to war.

The man was certainly injured and unable to fight at full strength.

But the battlefield would be Totto Land. A fight in their own home, and one on the level of the Four Emperors at that, would be no different from a war.

"Mama has her own plans. We just need to adapt as things unfold.

Go prepare to welcome this Cloud Gull Admiral first. I'll make the other arrangements."

Perospero immediately felt the burden lift and hurried off to wait on Whole Cake Island.

As Katakuri made arrangements for his siblings, he pondered how to broach the matter with Mama.

As someone with the most perfect image, he had to resolve this unexpected incident in the most perfect manner.

When Lofan met Perospero,

the man did not conjure up a flashy collection of candy slides and the like as he had in the original story.

Instead, he quickly led Lofan to the Charlotte Family's sitting room with a somewhat ingratiating air.

"I wonder if you would be willing to tell me what exactly happened to Kaido, Admiral Cloud Gull?"

"He lost. What else could have happened? You've even taken his home. Do you need to ask me?"

"Heh, well, weren't you the one who killed Kaido yourself?

Although I saw the outcome from a distance, I'd still like to get confirmation from a new legend such as yourself."

"I didn't ask about the details either. After all, I was completely exhausted at the time.

Nobody volunteered to tell me afterward, and I didn't particularly care.

If you're really that concerned, how about I give you a Den Den Mushi, and you ask that old man Sengoku yourself?"