At the dining table.
Hamr sat down, exhausted, his chest practically stuck to his back.
"Seriously, how long has it been since you guys last ate? You went through this much food already?"
"Now I get it, not only are the higher-ups in the Marines a bunch of weirdos, their appetites are monstrous too!"
Hamr wasn't exaggerating. Not even ntioning the ingredients Zephyr had delivered, just the Sea King at that Garp brought alone was enough to feed several people.
Now, only bones remained, and all the food had long been devoured by the group.
This is what I especially saved for you. If it were up to Kong or that bastard Garp, even this would've been gone," Zephyr said, sliding a plate of food toward Hamr.
"Hamr! Your cooking is amazing! I've decided, from now on, I'm mooching off your als every day!"
Hamr: "…"
"By the way, Garp, you actually did sothing decent this ti. This guy Kuzan's got real talent, a Logia-type Ice Fruit, very good."
Zephyr took a sip of sherry, clearly satisfied.
"Tch. I ran into this brat while chasing Roger in the South Blue. He was full of passion and insisted on joining the Marines with , so I reluctantly took him in."
Zephyr: '…Tsk. I let my guard down! I forgot this guy has zero sha!'
"Oh? Kuzan, right? Zephyr and Garp speak highly of you. So, tell , what is your concept of justice?"
"Reporting, Fleet Admiral Kong! My justice… I define it as: Burning Justice!"
"My blood, my passion, all of it will beco my justice!"
Everyone present looked very pleased by his words. Their expressions softened as they looked at Kuzan.
"Hamr, look at him… and now look at yourself."
"Ugh."
Zephyr sighed deeply, watching Hamr stuff food into his mouth.
Hamr: ??????
A month passed quickly for the second batch of elite training camp assessnts.
"Very good. Although there's no monster like Sakazuki this ti, the overall strength is solid and impressive."
Zephyr looked at the 89 candidates before him with satisfaction.
Out of all trainees, 89 successfully passed the assessnt, while 11 did not, but all returned safely to HQ.
That result was already far better than the first batch.
"Now, I'll announce the assessnt rankings."
"First place: Gion. Captured a criminal with a bounty totaling 77 million Berries."
"Second place: Onigumo. Captured bounties worth 74.5 million Berries."
"Third place: Doberman. Captured bounties totaling 71 million Berries."
"The rest of you also did well. I hope once you graduate, you'll continue to give it your all on the seas!"
Despite Zephyr's speech, the formation stayed disciplined and orderly.
Gion stepped forward alone and stood before Zephyr.
"Hmm? Gion, what is it?" Zephyr asked.
"Teacher Zephyr, although I passed the assessnt, I still have one more test for myself."
That piqued Zephyr's curiosity.
"What kind of test?"
"I want to fight Rear Admiral Hamr again!"
"Oh? Why?"
"I want to see how much closer I've gotten after 10 months of hard training!"
Gion's firm voice left Zephyr stunned.
" too, Teacher Zephyr! I want a rematch with Hamr!"
"Count in!"
"And , of course!"
"Yes! I'm in too!"
One by one, several figures stepped forward, all requesting a rematch against Hamr.
Zephyr felt even more satisfied with this batch of students.
"Very well!"
"ssenger! Go summon Hamr!"
At the Armory
After the explosion at the old armory, a new one was constructed under the joint supervision of Hamr and Vice Admiral Lisk and was completed days ago.
The new armory even had a reinforced private chamber just for Hamr.
Its walls were covered in 20 cm-thick steel plates, clearly to prevent another explosion.
At the mont, Hamr was busy sketching blueprints.
"Done!"
Finishing the final stroke, Hamr looked proudly at his blueprint.
It was a design of the legendary weapon, the Fangtian Huaji (a type of halberd).
"Fangtian Huaji, a weapon of unparalleled combat prowess."
"Seastone, Flaweave stone, paired with mithril and refined iron…"
"Hamr! Hamr! Co out quick!"
Hamr: "…"
The shout startled him so much that his hand slipped, nearly dropping the Flaweave stone he was holding.
He scrambled to catch it and carefully placed it on the workbench.
Then he scowled.
"Which bastard is wailing out there?!"
"I'll send you to the underworld with one hamr strike!"
'This was infuriating. They always interrupt him at critical monts!'
"Hamr, quit dawdling! Chief Instructor Zephyr sent word, you're needed at the training camp!"
"Not going! I'm in the middle of sothing important!"
The one shouting was Vice Admiral Lisk, head of the armory.
"Hamr, hurry up! Or I'll shut off your forge fire!"
Lisk had no other choice. Dealing with Hamr was always a headache, but the man was the Marines' top blacksmith, a priceless asset.
But when Zephyr personally called for him, he had no choice but to press on.
Hamr: "…"
"What is it now? What's so urgent?"
"Seems the second batch of trainees is back. Admiral Zephyr specifically nad you."
"Ugh, annoying. That old Zephyr always calls on when I'm busy."
Reluctantly, Hamr put down all his materials and walked out of the forge, covered in soot.
"Teacher Zephyr, I'm begging you. Can you not summon every ti sothing cos up?"
"I'm in the middle of forging! Or do I have to blow up another armory just to get so peace?"
In a rush to get back to work, Hamr used Shave Moonwalk and flew straight to the training grounds.
"Uhh… Right, I'll keep that in mind next ti," Zephyr said awkwardly, seeing how filthy Hamr looked.
"So, what am I here for?"
Hamr didn't think his tone was inappropriate at all.
"Well, these guys all insisted on fighting you again."
"They were so adamant, I had no choice but to call you."
Hamr: …
Looking at the stage, seeing those familiar faces burning with fighting spirit, Hamr knew he wasn't getting out of this easily.
"Alright, alright. You guys really have nothing better to do, huh?"
"Wanna fight? Fine. I'll fight you all!"
He was genuinely pissed. As a blacksmith, the thing that angered him the most was being dragged away from his forge.
Last ti, it was only because Zephyr had scheduled it ahead of ti that he agreed.
But this ti, they dragged him out just for a sparring match?
Infuriating!
"Gion, Onigumo, Doberman…"
"Momonga, Tokikake, Dalmatian…"
"Strawberry, Shirley, Yamanakaji…"
"You nine, right?"
Hamr looked at the nine standing before him, and for once, a spark of battle lust lit in his eyes.
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