Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
The central plaza was unusually lively today. Every officer from the Headquarters was present, and the crowd surrounding the area was dense with spectators. A Den Den Mushi was set up, aimed directly at the central platform.
This year's graduation ceremony for the training camp was by far the most grandiose ever held. The reason? Kaito—someone whose strength had clearly surpassed that of any ordinary trainee. And after the Whitebeard Jr. incident, the number of remaining cadets had dropped significantly compared to previous years.
So, to fully thrust Kaito into the public eye—and to encourage and console the surviving cadets—the Marines decided to broadcast this year's graduation ceremony live to the world.
Sengoku appeared at the top of the platform, draped in his "Justice" coat. He swept his gaze over the crowd, cleared his throat through a microphone, and called for silence.
Instantly, the crowd quieted down. These were military men and women—obedience was etched into their bones.
Once the scene was under control, Sengoku gave a brief speech and stepped back, handing over the duty of conferring ranks to Zephyr. After all, they were all his students—and this class, more than any before, had truly experienced life and death at his side. There was no one more appropriate to conduct the ceremony than him.
One after another, the cadets stepped onto the stage to receive their ranks, with Ain leading the way.
Breach, Glefos, and Binz were awarded the rank of Commander. Ain, due to her exceptional performance in the battle against Weevil, was promoted to Captain on Zephyr's recommendation.
Most of the other trainees were promoted to Lieutenant or Lieutenant Commander.
When the final cadet received their rank, everyone present looked puzzled.
Where was Uchiha Kaito?
Everyone knew full well that the real star of today's ceremony was Uchiha Kaito. Just look at his accomplishments—injuring the Dark King Rayleigh, and killing Weevil. Either of those feats alone could easily earn someone the rank of Rear Admiral.
Since Kaito had only held the title of Commodore for less than a day, many people still didn't know he'd already been promoted. But even if they did, no one would find it strange anymore—no one saw Kaito as just a cadet in the Marines anymore.
At that moment, the man everyone was thinking about—Kaito—was backstage, being fussed over by Gion, who was tugging and straightening his uniform.
Kaito looked helplessly at her as she smoothed out his clothes for what felt like the hundredth time.
"Alright, that's enough. You're gonna wear holes into it at this rate."
Gion shot him a glare and gave his uniform a firm pat.
"Do you even know how many people are watching you today? Your appearance represents the entire Marine force. You can't afford even the tiniest flaw!"
"Okay, okay, I get it. I'll head out now. If I wait any longer, Fleet Admiral Sengoku might have a heart attack."
With that, Kaito vanished in a flash from where he stood. Gion let out a helpless sigh—she had been meaning to adjust his collar one last time.
...
Whoosh!
Kaito's figure suddenly appeared right beside Zephyr, startling everyone present.
Zephyr leaned in and scolded him in a hushed voice.
"Where the hell did you go? Do you realize how important today is?!"
"Uh… Sorry, Zephyr-sensei. Won't happen again, I promise!"
Seeing that Kaito was at least sincere, Zephyr didn't pursue the matter further. He took a brand new "Justice" coat from a nearby soldier and draped it over Kaito's shoulders.
This coat was a custom-made version. Most Vice Admirals wore a standard coat with deep red trim around the cuffs and common epaulettes. Only a select few—either exceptional Vice Admirals or higher-ranking Admirals—wore customized versions.
Kaito's coat, for example, featured purple cuffs to match his iconic Rinnegan. The epaulettes were rectangular with golden tassels, bordered in violet.
Everyone watching through the Den Den Mushi feed was stunned. As Marines themselves, they instantly recognized the uniqueness of the coat—this wasn't something a regular Rear Admiral could wear.
A suspicion began forming in their hearts—but none of them dared believe it. It was simply too outrageous.
Then, Zephyr's next words left them completely dumbfounded.
"Due to Uchiha Kaito's strength and accomplishments, the Headquarters has decided to promote him to the rank of Vice Admiral!"
The entire plaza erupted in chaos.
It wasn't just the crowd—Akainu and the other two Admirals were equally stunned. Even they hadn't heard this news in advance.
Sengoku stepped forward again.
"Quiet! Uchiha Kaito's promotion has already been reviewed and approved by the World Government. It is entirely legitimate!"
With even Fleet Admiral Sengoku saying that, everyone had no choice but to suppress their shock and start clapping.
No matter how unbelievable it was, having someone like Kaito within the Marines was undoubtedly a good thing.
The Marine higher-ups also silently approved the decision. If for no other reason, then simply because Kaito had saved Zephyr.
Almost every Vice Admiral and even some Admirals present had once been Zephyr's students. None of them wanted anything to happen to their teacher.
So even if some of them didn't know Kaito well, at the very least, they held no ill will toward him.
Seeing that no one raised any objections, Sengoku finally let out a breath of relief. Truth be told, Kaito's meteoric rise had even him feeling uneasy. He had expected some pushback.
But unexpectedly, everything had gone incredibly smoothly.
And so, before the eyes of all the Marines gathered at Headquarters—and through the Den Den Mushi feed, before the entire world—Kaito turned to face the crowd wearing his custom "Justice" coat, now as a full-fledged Vice Admiral.
...
Around the world, people tuning in to the broadcast were seeing the face of Marine Vice Admiral Uchiha Kaito for the very first time.
On the Moby Dick, Whitebeard squinted at the screen, studying Kaito closely. For the first time, he began to take this Marine rookie seriously.
The other three Yonko had their own reactions.
Big Mom: "What curious eyes. That Marine brat must belong to some strange race. Mamama~ Maybe I should have a child with him!"
Shanks: "So this is the Marine rookie who fought Rayleigh? He's grown at a terrifying speed."
Kaido smashed the Den Den Mushi in front of him with his club and snorted.
"Boring."
...
Nojiko and Nami: "Kaito is so cool!"
...
In Mary Geoise, Sharlia was watching the feed with fidgety feet, anxiously twisting her toes on the floor. Charlos looked at her, puzzled.
"Sis, what's up with you?"
"Ah… It's nothing. Don't you think this Uchiha Kaito guy looks kinda good?"
"Huh? Isn't he just a Marine?"
Charlos's dismissive tone irritated Sharlia. With a huff, she got up and stormed out, leaving Charlos sitting there, completely confused.
...
With the ceremony concluded, Kaito flew over to a nearby warship and looked it over.
The ship was even larger than Tsuru's, and its sails bore a unique insignia—just like Tsuru's bore her name. Kaito's bore the Uchiha clan's crest: a fan that resembled a ping pong paddle.
This was the personal warship the Headquarters had assigned to him following his promotion to Vice Admiral.
Its name: Six Paths of Reincarnation.
They couldn't call it Uchiha, after all—that would've been too pretentious.
Kaito looked it over and nodded to himself in satisfaction. From now on, he wouldn't have to fly everywhere personally.
Over a thousand soldiers were already lined up in formation near the dock, ready to board. Ain stood at the front of the formation. When she saw Kaito arrive, all the soldiers shouted in unison:
"Vice Admiral Kaito!"
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo