Feeling the weakness spreading through his body, Kai shook his head again and let out a helpless sigh.
He was still too weak.
After fighting a Marine Admiral for nearly forty minutes, he was already close to exhaustion.
The battle was over.
Zephyr stood before Kai and slowly withdrew his Armament Haki.
He looked down at Kai with a serious yet gratified expression.
"Let's end this battle here."
"This was the most exciting duel I have had with any student in decades."
"It was also the only one…"
"where I had to go all out and still failed to take my opponent down within half an hour."
Zephyr's gaze grew even deeper.
"And you, Kai, are the strongest student I have ever taught since founding this training camp."
"In the past, no student has ever forced me to fight seriously."
"Not even those brats Aokiji, Kizaru, and Akainu managed to do it back then."
"But you did."
"You accomplished something even those three monsters couldn't."
"Today, I, Zephyr, acknowledge you as the strongest student in the history of the training camp!"
As his words fell, Kai narrowed his eyes and looked up at Zephyr.
The strongest student in history?
Stronger than Aokiji, Kizaru, and Akainu when they were students?
At that thought, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
Although he had lost this battle, he had still measured his current strength.
Among Marine Vice Admirals, he was undoubtedly one of the strongest.
But compared to a true top-tier Admiral, he was still lacking.
Zephyr was considered one of the weaker Admirals, and yet even against him, Kai had felt an overwhelming pressure.
He could not break through.
He could not shake him.
And he certainly could not defeat him.
Today, Kai truly understood how terrifying a Marine Admiral was.
This was the peak combat power of the sea.
And Zephyr was still the weakest among the Admirals.
Compared to someone like Sengoku, Zephyr was clearly a step below.
"If I had faced Admiral Sengoku today…"
"I probably wouldn't have lasted even ten minutes before losing."
Kai thought silently.
He was already satisfied with the result.
From the beginning, he had never expected to defeat Zephyr.
After all, Zephyr was still a Marine Admiral. Although he had begun to decline from his peak, he was far from someone Kai could defeat at his current level.
"Give me a few more years…"
"I'll surpass Teacher Zephyr many times over."
Kai's eyes flashed.
He had confidence.
In a few years, he would stand far above Zephyr.
He would surpass Sengoku.
He would even surpass his grandfather, Garp, the Hero of the Marines.
"Kai, from today onward, you have graduated."
Zephyr's voice rang out again.
"You are the most terrifying student I have ever taught in decades."
"Your talent is the greatest I have ever seen."
"Unprecedented."
"From this day forward, I hope you continue advancing without fear or hesitation and become an even stronger Marine."
"As for this battle…"
"It ends in a draw."
Zephyr gave Kai his final blessing.
Just like with every other student, he declared the match a draw.
A duel between teacher and student did not need a victor.
A draw was the best ending.
It was Zephyr's final gift to each of his students.
But toward Kai, Zephyr's expectations were clearly different.
Only Kai allowed him to see the possibility of being surpassed.
In Kai, Zephyr saw limitless potential.
Terrifying talent.
Unimaginable promise.
As a teacher, how could Zephyr not be satisfied with such a student?
He believed it.
In a few more years…
he would no longer be Kai's opponent.
At only five years old, Kai had already fought him at full strength for half an hour without falling.
From that alone, Zephyr could conclude one thing.
In a few years, he would definitely be surpassed.
The boy before him was a true monster.
A freak whose growth speed could not be measured by common sense.
"I will remember your teachings, Teacher Zephyr."
Kai answered slowly.
Although Zephyr had not taught him many things directly, Kai's Observation Haki and Armament Haki had indeed come from Zephyr.
Besides, if Zephyr had not taken him to the science research institute and arranged that year-long electric-current stimulation training, Kai could never have grown to his current level.
Because of that, Kai respected Zephyr from the bottom of his heart.
This teacher…
he acknowledged him.
As a teacher, Zephyr was truly worthy of respect.
He had given everything to the Marines without complaint.
He had also poured everything into nurturing his students.
He had hidden nothing.
Everything he could teach, he taught.
A teacher like that…
who wouldn't respect him?
Perhaps that was why Zephyr possessed such prestige within the Marines.
"How are your injuries?" Zephyr asked. "Nothing serious?"
"Minor wounds."
Although Kai had taken a direct punch covered in Zephyr's Armament Haki, his body was strong enough that it would recover with time.
It would not affect him much.
Of course, he knew the truth.
When his condition had started to decline earlier, Zephyr had also gradually begun holding back.
Otherwise…
Kai might have been seriously injured.
"Did you gain anything from this fight?" Zephyr asked with a smile.
"A great deal."
Kai nodded.
"This battle made me realize how weak I still am."
"I'm still far too weak."
Hearing that, Zephyr's mouth twitched.
For a moment, he was speechless.
Weak?
This brat had fought a Marine Admiral for half an hour without falling.
And he called that weak?
Kai clearly had a massive misunderstanding of the word "weak."
If strength like his could be called weak…
then there would be almost no strong people left in the sea.
"You brat…"
"If those words spread, countless people would cough blood from anger."
"If even you are weak, then there are only a few strong people in the entire Marine force."
Zephyr rolled his eyes and couldn't help but complain.
The battle was over.
But for everyone watching, it was impossible to recover immediately.
Especially the students led by Smoker and Tina.
At that moment, they were staring blankly at Kai and Zephyr.
"Too strong…"
"That monster Kai actually fought Teacher Zephyr for nearly an hour!"
"He held out for half an hour against Teacher Zephyr after forcing him to go all out."
"I think Kai can truly be called the strongest student in the history of the training camp!"
"Only he could fight Teacher Zephyr to this extent."
"Only after half an hour did his condition begin to decline."
"In other words…"
"Even if Teacher Zephyr went all out, he couldn't defeat Kai within half an hour. At full strength, Kai can already hold his own against a Marine Admiral for a short period!"
"Is he really only five years old?"
"He's a monster!"
The students were shaken to their core.
The battle between Kai and Zephyr had carved itself into their minds.
They would probably never forget what they had seen today.
They were certain of one thing.
Since the founding of the Marine training camp, there had never been a monster like Kai.
A student challenging his teacher…
and holding out for half an hour against a Marine Admiral.
Within that half hour, he had fought Zephyr almost evenly.
It was simply too shocking.
"Didn't you hear what Teacher Zephyr said?"
"Kai has the strength of the strongest student in training camp history!"
"Even Aokiji, Akainu, and Kizaru weren't this strong during their own graduation trials."
"That means…"
"Kai really is the strongest student this training camp has ever produced!"
"Only he could reach such an unbelievable level in such a short time."
The students continued speaking in shock.
At that moment, Smoker's pupils shrank. He exhaled heavily and added,
"You're all forgetting something."
"Kai only joined the training camp a year ago."
"He isn't like us."
"We joined when the training camp recruited students. Kai joined midway."
"In other words…"
"That monster only used one year to train himself to this level!"
The moment those words fell, the entire place went silent.
Every student froze.
Their faces filled with shock and horror.
Thinking about it carefully…
it was true.
Kai had only joined the training camp for one year.
He was a transfer student.
He was not from the same original batch as them.
"My god…"
"Only one year…"
"And he became this strong?"
"So strong that even Admiral Zephyr couldn't suppress him within half an hour?"
"Kai really is a monster!"
"As expected of…"
"the strongest genius in Marine history!"
Everyone present was deeply shaken.
Including Tina.
One by one, the students looked at Kai's back with shock, awe, and worship.
They had thought that once Zephyr became serious, he would quickly defeat Kai.
But none of them had expected Kai to be so powerful that even Zephyr, fighting at full strength, could not easily take him down.
Kai had already gained the terrifying strength to clash head-on with a Marine Admiral.
And that was almost impossible to imagine.
Because…
he was only five years old.
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