At this time, Fleet Admiral Kong, Admiral Sengoku, and Vice Admiral Tsuru were standing before the monitor in the control room, completely stunned by Kuzan's display of strength.
"Are all young people this incredible nowadays?"
Fleet Admiral Kong sighed in disbelief.
"Kuzan's potential… It's even higher than Borsalino's or Sakazuki's," Sengoku said, equally impressed.
"In terms of how far he's developed his Devil Fruit ability, Kuzan's definitely remarkable," Tsuru added thoughtfully. "But he still needs time. He hasn't learned Armament Haki yet."
"Then let him train under Zephyr," Kong decided firmly. "He's still young. If we nurture him right, he could become the Navy's secret weapon — and a force that shakes this chaotic world."
Meanwhile, Gion was wandering the training grounds.
She now fully believed everything Kuzan had said before. It wasn't boasting — she had simply been too naive to understand his level. Remembering her earlier doubts, she couldn't help but feel embarrassed and guilty. Her cheeks flushed red, a mix of shame and admiration for his strength.
Kuzan, on the other hand, was reclining in the infirmary, clearly enjoying himself as a beautiful nurse wrapped bandages around his injuries. The battle had been fierce — a few ribs broken, bruises everywhere — yet his grin hadn't faded for a second.
Covered head to toe in bandages like a mummy, he still joked and laughed, making the nurses giggle as they worked.
Zephyr had already left after granting him a week of medical leave. Since then, Kuzan had discovered that he rather liked the hospital — especially because all the nurses were cheerful, kind, and, well, easy on the eyes.
He spent his days chatting them up, throwing out shameless jokes that made even the most composed nurses blush.
"Back in my hometown," Kuzan was boasting now, grinning, "I was considered quite the heartthrob. Girls lined up just to talk to me! If I hadn't been careful, there'd be a whole generation of little me's running around!"
The nurses laughed and tried to hide their smiles — right as a familiar voice cut in.
"Well, well! Look at you, Mr. Heartthrob. Didn't expect so many girls to be dying to have your kids!"
Kuzan froze. He thought it was one of the nurses joking back, so he replied lazily without looking up.
"Of course! Who do you think I am? The most handsome man in the entire South Blue!"
Then he turned — and froze stiff when he saw Gion standing in the doorway.
He immediately coughed, trying to recover his composure. "Ahem! Skipping class during training hours, huh? That's not good, cadet!"
Gion crossed her arms, smirking. "Oh, I'm just fine. You, on the other hand, seem to have plenty of energy for someone who's supposed to be bedridden."
"…Fine, you win," Kuzan muttered, flustered. "I'll get back to resting. See you later."
He hurried toward his bed, pretending nothing had happened.
"I don't get it," Gion teased, following him. "Didn't you just say you were a big shot? Why so quiet now?"
Kuzan ignored her and collapsed onto the bed, shutting his eyes dramatically as if already asleep.
The nurses nearby exchanged puzzled looks. They'd just been arguing, and now they were walking off together like nothing happened.
Gion raised an eyebrow. "Relax, I'm just here to check on you — on behalf of the whole class. We wanted to see if Instructor Zephyr actually beat you to death."
Kuzan cracked one eye open, rolled it, then closed it again without a word.
After a moment, seeing he was alive and clearly fine, Gion sighed and left.
Only then did Kuzan let out a long breath, turning his face toward the window with a small smile before drifting into sleep.
The following days passed quietly. After suffering that massive social embarrassment, Kuzan stopped flirting with the nurses altogether and focused on recovery.
He spent his downtime analyzing the battle with Zephyr — breaking down every weakness he'd exposed and planning how to fix them.
Right now, his power was close to that of a Vice Admiral, but he lacked combat experience and, more importantly, Haki mastery. He knew he'd have to devote the coming years to training hard under Zephyr's guidance.
He was confident that with Zephyr teaching him personally, his growth would soon skyrocket — and when that time came, he'd finally have the strength to roam the seas freely.
During his recovery, Gion visited him several more times. Each meeting turned into an argument almost immediately, yet somehow neither of them seemed to mind. It became their normal rhythm — if they went a couple of days without bickering, it felt strange.
Sometimes she brought food, even homemade meals filled with care. Kuzan noticed — and though he didn't say it aloud, he remembered it deeply.
He promised himself that the next time Gion got hurt, he'd return the favor and take care of her just the same.
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