Meanwhile,
when they saw Kai slowly step out of the crowd and walk toward Zephyr,
Fleet Admiral Kong's eyelid twitched and his attention sharpened immediately.
"It's starting."
"Kai isn't some ordinary kid."
"If Zephyr tries to deal with him the same way he handled the other cadets, I can guarantee he'll suffer for it."
Even though Kong had never personally seen Kai's full combat ability,
he believed without question that a boy who had single-handedly captured someone like Whitebeard Jr. could not possibly be ordinary.
Even on the scale of the entire sea,
Kai stood among the top-tier monsters.
"By my guess…"
"Zephyr's finally going to have to get serious."
"If he doesn't, he may not be able to suppress Kai at all."
Sengoku analyzed calmly.
If Zephyr refused to use his Haki…
then who would win and who would lose was genuinely difficult to say.
Because…
Kai was not a soft target.
He was a complete monster.
Even Whitebeard Jr., a pirate of terrifying caliber, had been defeated and captured by him.
That alone was enough to show how strong Kai truly was.
Even as a Marine Admiral, Zephyr might very well suffer if he let his guard down.
"The Whitebeard Jr. that Kai captured…"
"was rumored to possess the monstrous strength Whitebeard himself had in his youth."
"For Kai to have brought down someone like that…"
"he's bound to give us all a huge surprise today."
Tsuru's eyes sharpened, fixed on the field.
"My grandson would never be ordinary."
"Just keep watching."
"My grandson is absolutely going to surprise you all."
"If Zephyr keeps underestimating him…"
"he might get beaten into a sorry state by Kai."
At the side, Garp burst into loud laughter.
At the same time,
Sakazuki, Kuzan, and Borsalino all watched the field with keen anticipation.
The battle they had been waiting for was finally here.
On one side stood the current Marine Admiral.
On the other stood the strongest naval genius of the new era.
Kai was the greatest Marine prodigy of this generation—
and the most terrifying monster this sea had seen in years.
And now,
he was facing one of the Navy's highest combat powers.
Zephyr did not dare underestimate him.
Kai did not dare underestimate Zephyr either.
The two stood only a few meters apart,
an invisible edge of tension stretching between them.
Neither of them moved first.
But the pressure radiating from both men steadily rose higher and higher, becoming more and more terrifying.
A surging wave of force spread outward,
immense and oppressive,
bearing down on everything around them.
Under that pressure, even the cadets watching from the field—Smoker, Tina, and all the others—could not help retreating several steps, their faces tense as they stared at Kai and Zephyr.
Even beyond the training ground, Kong, Garp, and the rest could feel the terrifying collision of their auras.
"What incredible pressure."
Sengoku could not help exclaiming.
"If Zephyr gives off that kind of pressure, I can understand it."
"But…"
"Kai, that little monster…"
"is actually producing something that feels almost comparable."
"What a terrifying younger generation."
Kong praised sincerely.
The clash of their pressure alone was enough to move even the highest ranks of the Navy.
"As expected of my grandson!"
"This is exactly how it should be!"
Garp threw his head back and laughed.
Nearby,
Sakazuki, Kuzan, and Borsalino all narrowed their eyes.
Their gazes fell on Kai in surprise.
After a moment, Borsalino finally spoke.
"Well, well… is this for real?"
"At that age, he's already carrying pressure like that?"
"That brat Kai…"
"is even more frightening than I imagined."
"Are young people these days all such monsters?"
At his side,
Kuzan and Sakazuki said nothing.
But Borsalino's words echoed exactly what they themselves were thinking.
Kai's overwhelming aura had caught even them off guard.
At the same time,
with the pressure between the two continuing to collide…
it became clear that the battle was about to erupt at any second.
"Armament Haki—activate!"
Kai did not hesitate for even a moment.
Facing a Marine Admiral,
he had no intention of testing the waters first.
The instant the battle began,
he intended to go all out.
As that thought fell,
a powerful surge of strength erupted through his body.
A dark liquid, black as ink, swiftly spread over both of his arms.
Then the liquid hardened.
His arms seemed to be wrapped in black armor.
Sharp.
Solid.
Terrifying.
The black Armament coating looked as hard as obsidian, and the pressure radiating from Kai only grew more intense.
As he clenched his fists,
he could feel earth-shattering power condensed within them.
Like a volcano on the verge of eruption—
and once it erupted, the result would be heaven-shaking.
With his Armament Haki activated, Kai could feel the endless power surging through his body.
His battle spirit rose with it.
Then—
"Observation Haki—activate!"
After bringing out Armament, Kai immediately released Observation as well.
A rippling, invisible wave spread outward from him.
In an instant,
his Observation Haki covered a radius of three hundred meters.
Everything within that range—
every movement, every shift—
fell within his perception.
Even the slightest stir of wind became magnified countless times and laid itself bare in his mind.
His fists were wrapped in black Armament.
His Observation extended across the field.
With both forms of Haki active at once, Kai had already entered his peak battle state.
Then he rolled one shoulder, flexed his arm—
and raised his right hand to his collar.
The next moment,
he yanked downward.
Rip—
The sharp sound tore through the air.
His shirt shredded apart instantly,
falling in countless pieces around his feet.
Under the golden light of the sun,
his upper body was revealed—
muscles so perfectly defined they looked sculpted.
Veins bulged like coiled serpents over his body, making him look far more savage than his age suggested.
Every muscle seemed to contain monstrous force.
And on his back—
that demonic, terrifying ghostly pattern,
like the mark of some infernal beast.
His Ghost Back made his already fearsome presence explode to another level.
It was hideous.
Powerful.
Overwhelming.
"Instructor Zephyr…"
Kai grinned.
"I'm getting serious now."
"So from here on…"
"you'd better be careful."
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