Meanwhile…
Inside the Marine Headquarters office, the highest-ranking brass had gathered—led by Fleet Admiral Sengoku himself.
Faced with the sudden alarm and the deafening shockwaves moments earlier, every face in the room turned tense.
"Someone report! What just happened?! Is there some brazen pirate out there bold enough to attack Marine Headquarters?!"Sengoku leapt to his feet, roaring with fury.
"Who dares to be so reckless? Do they really think Marineford is undefended? Was it Kaido who came to throw his life away?!"
In this vast sea, very few had ever dared assault Marineford.
The most infamous case was the execution of Gol D. Roger, when the rampaging Golden Lion Shiki left half the city in ruins.
More recently, the lunatic Kaido, drunk and bent on suicide, had made a scene on the shores.
So now, faced with such a catastrophic shockwave, Sengoku's first suspect was naturally that madman.
Every Marine officer in the room tensed up instinctively as a panicked courier rushed in.
"F-Fleet Admiral Sengoku! It was Chief Instructor Zephyr. Someone just saw him get blown away by a single punch—thousands of meters—into the Headquarters building. That's what caused the quake. It wasn't an enemy attack—just a misunderstanding!"
"The situation has been clarified. The alert has been lifted, and everyone is standing down."
For a moment, the entire room fell into stunned bewilderment.
What…?
This explanation couldn't have been further from what anyone expected.
Sengoku's expression froze. "You're saying Zephyr was sent flying thousands of meters by a punch—and he was what crashed into HQ? Are you joking?"
The courier looked miserable, shaking his head like a rattle.
With seven or eight Vice Admirals gathered, along with three Admirals and the Fleet Admiral himself—joking here would be akin to gambling with one's life.
"Ha! Sengoku, I figured you wouldn't believe it, so I came to explain in person."
Garp shoved the door open and strode in with his usual swagger, clutching a box of rice crackers.
Sengoku's expression darkened, his eyelid twitching.
"Garp... don't tell me you were the one who sent Zephyr flying again?!"
"If this is another one of your disasters, I swear I'm docking whatever's left of your retirement pay!"
"You're not leaving this office until I get a satisfactory explanation!"
Beside him, Vice Admiral Tsuru pressed her temples with a weary sigh.
After all, Zephyr had stepped down from the Admiral post years ago.
To be sent flying by one punch—other than Garp, who else could possibly manage such a feat?
"Ha! Sengoku, it wasn't me this time. Don't touch my poor, dwindling pension—I still need it to pay overtime to that brat. Here, take a look at this instead."
Garp dropped into a chair with a thud and slapped a pristine file onto the table, his oil-stained hand leaving prints on the cover.
BAM!
Everyone's eyes shot toward the file. As they scanned the contents, several pupils contracted sharply.
"This is your recruit recommendation?" Sengoku asked, stunned.
"You're claiming he has the makings of an Admiral?"
He paused—then a thunderbolt of realization struck him. He slapped a hand down on the dossier.
"Garp! Don't tell me he's the one who sent Zephyr flying?!"
A collective gasp swept through the office.
Even Akainu's expression shifted, his eyes narrowing as he locked onto Garp.
If the "Admiral potential" claim hadn't already sounded outrageous, this revelation shattered all their doubts in one blow.
"Sengoku, you guessed it right. I did underestimate that brat,"
Zephyr's voice came from the open glass window, as his dust-covered figure casually climbed back inside.
Normally, as Chief Instructor—the Marine Corps' paragon of discipline—Zephyr would never have broken protocol like that.
But today's battle had stirred something in him. His long-dormant fighting spirit had flared back to life.
Facing Sengoku and the stunned high-ranking officers, Zephyr couldn't hide the faint grin tugging at his face.
"Sengoku, I know this is hard to believe. But that kid's only been learning martial arts under Garp for a year."
"Not only did he take my 4,000-doriki punch without a scratch, he's mastered the Six Powers, and at the last moment, used a Six Powers Secret Technique to blow me away."
"You won't believe this is a joke anymore, will you?"
"That boy really does have the bearing of an Admiral!"
"As Chief Instructor of the Naval Academy, I formally recommend Luo Yu as a candidate for Admiral!"
CRACK!
The teacup in Akainu's hand shattered instantly.
His molten-hot stare was filled with disbelief.
No—everyone present wore expressions of utter shock.
A rookie—freshly summoned to Marineford and reporting for duty on his first day—was now being put forward as an Admiral candidate?
This was insane!
Had anyone else made such a claim, they'd have dismissed it as nonsense.
But it had come from Zephyr—the man who had trained the current three Admirals, and who held the same nomination authority as the Fleet Admiral himself.
Only with dual nominations—from the Fleet Admiral and Chief Instructor—could a candidate be presented to the Five Elders.
Only with their approval could one ascend to the position of Admiral.
At this moment, Luo Yu, once a nameless recruit, had been thrust forward as an Admiral candidate.
"Zephyr-sensei… are you joking?" Akainu asked coldly. Magma swirled in his palm, melting the broken shards of porcelain.
"Everyone here has been striving for the Admiral rank."
"That post demands more than just potential. It requires strength, military merit, and service record. None of these can be overlooked."
"If you do this, Zephyr-sensei—you'll crush the hopes of many others!"
Zephyr's expression faltered slightly. The fire in his blood, stirred by battle, was partially doused by Akainu's cold logic.
Luo Yu's strength had exceeded expectations. His potential indeed fit the mold of "Admiral material."
If one had to compare, he could stand shoulder to shoulder with Rob Lucci—the so-called once-in-800-years weapon of war.
Yet Akainu's criticism wasn't without merit.
A leap this massive—from new recruit to Admiral nominee—would stir unrest across the ranks.
Not only in Marineford.
But across the seas… no one would accept it.
And yet—
To watch such a prodigy be buried under rules and silence—
Zephyr couldn't bear it either.