War

For this operation against the Beasts Pirates, the Marines had deployed two Admirals: Akainu and Kizaru.

Five Vice Admirals: Momonga, Dalmatian, Onigumo, Momousagi, and Doberman.

Four Seastone warships carried more than eight hundred other Marines in total.

An operation of this magnitude surpassed even a Buster Call.

This operation had to establish the Marines' prestige in a single stroke and intimidate every sinister force in the New World.

They had to know that the Marines were not to be trifled with.

The Beasts Pirates, meanwhile, had deployed almost their entire fighting force.

The All-Stars:

King the Wildfire, with a bounty of 1.39 billion Beli.

Queen the Plague, with a bounty of 1.32 billion Beli.

And the imprisoned Jack the Drought.

All of the Flying Six had mobilized, along with the Shinuchi, Gifters, and others-more than fifteen hundred people aboard twelve pirate ships in total.

The two sides were locked in fierce combat. One warship had sunk, and half the pirate ships had been destroyed.

Yet neither side's strongest fighters had secured a victory.

The sounds of violent combat stirred the sea into surging waves, and the battle cries frightened even the Sea Kings away.

Apart from the Paramount War years later, the conflict sparked by this attempt to rescue Jack was enough to shock the entire world.

Yet the central figure in this war, Lofan,

was taking a stroll with Ain on a small island far from the G-11 Marine branch.

"Vice Admiral Lofan, a report just came through the Den Den Mushi. Kaido has been sighted. Based on the calculations, he should arrive this afternoon."

Ain carried out her work meticulously.

But she still remembered to reach up from time to time to adjust the Justice Coat draped over her.

The island was covered in rainforest, with countless flying insects, mosquitoes, and ants.

Lofan had draped his own Justice Coat over Ain to shield her from them.

"Mm, then let's settle on this place. It's far from the branch, and there are no civilians living nearby.

Ain, you've found an excellent spot."

At Lofan's reply, Ain immediately saluted.

"Yes, sir."

Ever since she had begun following Lofan, Ain had remained meticulous and rigorous from start to finish.

Afraid that her actions might reflect poorly on her teacher, she refused to make even the slightest mistake.

This constant mental strain had left her face considerably paler.

"Ain."

"Yes, sir!"

Lofan smiled gently. "Admiration is the emotion furthest from understanding. Do you understand?"

Ain lowered her saluting hand, somewhat puzzled.

"As my adjutant, I hope you can understand me.

The old man didn't entrust you two to me simply because he hoped you would achieve something in the Marines.

I think he hoped even more that you could have different lives.

So I hope you can understand him, too.

Not just as a student. I think the old man sees you as his own daughter."

"I don't understand..."

Ain was bewildered. She slipped her right hand slightly behind her back and gripped the hem of the coat.

Had I done something wrong? Or had I failed to understand Vice Admiral Lofan's intentions?

She was nervous, and afraid of what Lofan would say next.

She did not want to disappoint Lofan and thereby hurt Zephyr.

"We're all our teacher's students. We inherited not only his skills, but were also deeply influenced by him.

But that doesn't mean we'll become Zephyr, the Never-Kill Admiral."

"You are you, I am me, and Binz is Binz.

We've inherited some of our teacher's spirit, but we also have to seek meaning in our own lives.

I'm not Zephyr, and I won't become Zephyr."

They had spent many days together.

Because Ain was skilled at clerical work, Lofan had handed his own clerical duties straight over to her and promoted her to adjutant.

Binz, meanwhile, had only endured clerical work for their teacher's sake.

Once freed from that constraint, he refused to do it again, no matter what.

But Ain had shown no reaction at all.

Whatever Lofan asked her to do, she completed meticulously.

There were no complaints, and no joy.

A subordinate like that was useful, but Lofan was, after all, a flesh-and-blood human being.

Even if he tried his best to imitate Aizen, he was ultimately unwilling to become Aizen.

Besides, Ain was the old man's favorite student. He knew he ought to offer whatever help he could.

"I originally decided to kill that so-called Edward myself, but now I've changed my mind.

Ain, you should be the one to take revenge on him!"

Lofan turned, rested both hands on Ain's slender shoulders, and gazed firmly into her red eyes.

"But... our teacher is the Never-Kill Admiral! He's a hero! I don't want to go against his teachings!"

Tears spilled from Ain's eyes, and her frail body began to tremble slightly as she cried.

She covered her face with her delicate hands.

Everyone knew that Zephyr had lost many beloved students in that attack.

But of the two survivors, Ain was still a girl.

After facing such a horrific reality,

she had not even had time to emerge from those tragic memories before she had to support her beloved teacher.

Her strength and courage had made people overlook the fact that she, too, was only a vulnerable person.

Likewise, although the two of them had supported Zephyr without hesitation, they had still been unable to truly soothe his heart.

Only when Lofan returned had Zephyr truly found a way out of his inner torment.

Admiration was the emotion furthest from understanding.

Without understanding, even giving everything would ultimately be futile.

"You've never gone against the old man's teachings. You haven't slaughtered innocents. You're only punishing evil and upholding good.

A student who inherits his teachings but follows her own path-that's what he wants to see.

Not someone who keeps accommodating him at her own expense."

Lofan drew the coat tighter around Ain and stood before her, stroking her dark blue hair.

He quietly listened to her heart-wrenching sobs.

King had already transformed into his beast form: pteranodon form.

Only in this form could he use his high-speed flight to barely hold his own against Kizaru.

After a single exchange, the two pulled far apart and readied themselves again.

The fighting had already lasted several hours, and the Beasts Pirates were at a disadvantage overall.

Among their strongest fighters, Queen was completely suppressed by Akainu, while King could not attack freely either.

Down below, their members had also begun retreating steadily before the forces the Marines had deployed, losing the momentum they had possessed at the start.

But King had actually accounted for all of this. Their opponents were the Marines, after all.

They were the most prominent of the World Government's three armed services. Expecting the Beasts Pirates alone to fight them to a standstill was wishful thinking.

His real plan was to wait for his captain to kill that rising Marine star, then join forces and confront the Marines together.

Not only was he utterly loyal to Kaido, he also understood his boss's strength very well.

That young man named Lofan certainly had some tricks, but King had spent years at Kaido's side and knew his captain's strength well.

King did not believe that a newcomer who had only just made his debut could stop Kaido.

How many men like Garp the Hero could there be in the world, making their names by defeating Rocks outright?

If that were really so common, the Marines would have long since ruled the world.

Why would they have to put up with sharing the New World with the Four Emperors, and even introduce the Shichibukai policy?

So Lofan was destined to die. That was the price of humiliating one of the Four Emperors!