When Daren saw the list, he was undeniably a little surprised.
He knew that in the original timeline, most of the Navy's talented individuals had already graduated from the Officer Training Camp.
The first and second classes of the Marine Headquarters' Officer Training Camp were the ones with the highest caliber of students.
They included the "monsters" from the original story—the three Admirals of the Navy, Monkey D. Dragon who later founded the Revolutionary Army, and several elite generals of the "Golden Generation."
He had originally thought that after becoming a special instructor, the quality of the training camp's students would be pretty average, but he hadn't expected there would still be quite a few "slip-ups" left!
Seeing several familiar names on the list, Daren suddenly felt that agreeing to Zephyr's offer to become a special instructor had been the right decision!
T Bone!
Nicknamed the "Ship Cutter," he first appeared on the eve of the Enies Lobby incident in the original story.
He had been tasked with escorting Nico Robin and briefly fought Zoro. Although defeated, he displayed the heart of an unyielding warrior!
Filled with a strong sense of justice and genuine care for his subordinates, two years after the end of the Summit War, his strength surged and he was promoted to Vice Admiral, entrusted with overseeing the security of the Reverie.
Unfortunately, he was later killed by civilians hoping to claim the bounty placed by Buggy's Cross Guild.
Shuzo!
In the original story, he was portrayed as a radical and tough Marine, a favored protégé of Zephyr, the former Admiral of the Headquarters.
Even after Zephyr left the Marines, Shuzo remained loyally by his side, helping him establish the Neo Marines and becoming his right-hand man.
He was highly skilled in Armament Haki and Rokushiki, making him a formidable force.
Vergo!
There was no need for much introduction.
Daren was very familiar with him—he was the mole that his useless godson had planted within the Marines.
Vergo had infiltrated the Marines for twenty years, rising to the rank of Vice Admiral, and eventually taking command of the G5 Branch in the New World as its Base Commander.
Doll!
The name was a little unfamiliar.
Daren couldn't recall much about her, only that she was a Vice Admiral of the Marine Headquarters and the Base Commander of the G-14 Branch.
As for the final name... that was an unexpected delight.
Magellan!
The future "iron wall" of Impel Down, the Warden of the deep-sea prison, known as "the strongest man in the prison," and the man who once "Single-handedly wiped out three Yonkōs!"
His Paramecia-type Doku Doku no Mi ability was near invincible, producing potent toxins that could paralyze nerves, induce pain or hallucinations, and even kill.
His poison was strong enough to melt stone with a single touch.
Those who were poisoned needed Magellan's antidote to survive.
In any other environment, it might be different, but within the confined space of Impel Down, Magellan's Devil Fruit power made him a true admiral-level fighter!
And unlike others, Daren understood Magellan's personality well.
He was the stubborn type who would immediately resort to seppuku if things went wrong.
With that kind of character, Magellan would undoubtedly treat him with the utmost respect and sincerely address him as "sensei."
Without exaggeration, while this list couldn't quite match the first and second classes, it still represented a gathering of shining stars.
"Well, Daren... did you find any students you like?"
Zephyr chuckled as he watched Daren seriously considering the list.
That was the joy of being a teacher—
When you discovered a promising student, you couldn't help but look forward to seeing just how far they could go and how brightly they could shine under your guidance.
In Zephyr's eyes, the sense of accomplishment from training a brilliant student even surpassed defeating a notorious pirate.
"I can't tell yet, but I'll do my best, Zephyr-sensei."
Daren snapped back to reality, pulled his gaze from the list, and replied with a smile.
Zephyr smiled and patted him on the shoulder.
"Don't put too much pressure on yourself."
"Alright, the entrance ceremony for the new recruits is in ten days. Show up then and give a brief introduction to the freshmen. It'll help you get a feel for them too."
As he spoke, he seemed to remember something, his expression turning a little strange as he added:
"And don't go overboard this time."
He couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth at the memory of this brat's outrageous declaration during the last graduation ceremony.
...
Zephyr left after giving a few brief instructions.
The new training camp was about to begin, and various matters at the military academy were piling up, waiting for him to return and deal with them.
Daren sat quietly in the courtyard and finished a cigar. Just as he was about to go back inside to check on Toki, a slow voice suddenly rang out behind him.
"You're really taking it easy, Vice Admiral Daren."
Daren smiled, turned around, and looked at Borsalino, who was leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets. He smiled slightly.
"I'm on legal leave right now, Vice Admiral Borsalino."
After the Buster Call incident involving Douglas Bullet, Sengoku had given Daren a month's vacation, partly to compensate for the pressure of frequent missions over the past two or three months, and partly to give Daren enough time to spend with Amatsuki Toki.
Borsalino said helplessly,
"I really envy you... But I'm sorry, your vacation is over."
"Oh? What's going on this time?"
Daren asked with interest.
Borsalino sighed.
"It's about the candidates for the Shichibukai... The list of candidates for the Shichibukai has been leaked, which isn't a big deal in itself."
"But for some reason, over the past half month, the candidates on the list have been killed one after another, and we can't even find out who did it."
"Of the original dozen or so candidates, only two or three lucky ones are still alive..."
"So... now the government is furious and has ordered us at Marine Headquarters to thoroughly investigate this matter and find the killer as soon as possible. Admiral Sengoku is busy dealing with this matter..."
"Sakazuki has already been dispatched, but the government is pressing hard, so the military needs to send more forces to thoroughly investigate this matter."
"Admiral Sengoku asked me to come and tell you to go to the Fleet Admiral's office. I guess you're going to be assigned a mission."
At this point, Borsalino glanced at Daren with a half-smile.
"But Daren... you don't happen to know who did this, do you?"
Daren's eyes flickered slightly, and he raised his hands in surrender with a look of surprise on his face.
"How could that be possible?"
"I haven't left headquarters in the past half month, so how could I know about this?"
Borsalino met Daren's gaze.
"That's true."
He nodded, and then the two men looked at each other and laughed at the same time.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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