The setting sun cast its lingering glow over the Marineford residential area, and a warm atmosphere permeated the yard of Zephyr’s home.
Laughter echoed from inside the house, where Libo was having a blast playing with Zephyr’s wife, Lina, and their four-year-old son.
“Libo, again!” The little boy, with purple hair just like Zephyr’s, excitedly bounced around, tugging on Libo’s hand, his eyes full of admiration.
“Alright!” Libo chuckled, bending down and placing her hands on the ground, then executed a perfect backflip, landing steadily, her drooping ears swaying gently with the movement. “How was that? Pretty cool, right?”
“Wow! Amazing!” The little boy clapped and cheered, then turned to his mother. “Mama, I want to learn too!”
Lina gently ruffled her son’s hair and smiled, saying, “When you’re a bit older, your Papa can teach you.”
“Papa is always so busy…” The little boy pouted, but quickly brightened up again. “But now I have Libo to play with!”
Libo squatted down and pinched his little cheek. “Don’t worry, Libo will come play with you often from now on!”
In stark contrast to the joyful laughter inside the house, outside in the yard,
Zephyr and Gern sat opposite each other at a stone table, with the transfer document placed between them. The atmosphere was slightly heavy.
Zephyr’s brows were tightly furrowed, and his fingers tapped incessantly on the tabletop, clearly finding the arrangement unbelievable.
“No, what in the world is Fleet Admiral Kong thinking?” Zephyr finally couldn’t help but speak, his voice laced with unconcealed confusion.
“Transferring you to Sakazuki? Having you two handle the Gold Lion Flying Pirates’ forces together?”
Seeing Zephyr’s expression, Gern shrugged, took a sip of tea, and said calmly, “Zephyr, are you doubting my abilities?”
“It’s not about ability.” Zephyr abruptly stood up and paced back and forth. “It’s because I know you too well!”
“Perhaps the Fleet Admiral thinks we can create some ‘sparks’?”
“Sparks?” Zephyr snorted. “I’d say it’s an explosion!”
With that, Zephyr picked up the document again and rubbed his temples.
“Sakazuki, despite his stubbornness, at least follows direct orders from headquarters.
But you…” He stopped pacing, his gaze fixed on Gern.
“What about me?” Gern raised an eyebrow, looking innocent. “I’m a well-behaved good boy, alright!”
“Heh heh, you, well-behaved?” Zephyr glared at Gern and sneered.
“On the surface, you look lazy, but deep down, you’re crazier than anyone!
I can’t imagine putting you two together.”
“Zephyr, you have too little faith in me, don’t you?”
“This isn’t about faith at all; it’s that you’re simply a lawless fellow (a pot-stirrer)!”
Seeing Zephyr’s complete disbelief, Gern’s lips curved into a helpless smile.
“Teacher, your words really hurt your disciple’s feelings.”
“Heh heh.” Zephyr snorted, sat back down, and gripped the document.
“In short, putting you two extremes together is absolutely not a choice that should be implemented.”
This was a direct order from the Fleet Admiral, so Zephyr could only grumble.
Gern didn’t respond further, instead taking another sip of his tea.
Then, he turned his head and looked at Zephyr, saying, “Actually, I still have a question.
That is, logically, shouldn’t Vice Admiral Garp be responsible for the Golden Lion’s affairs?
Although that sea area is directly under G-3, shouldn’t the Admiral-level combat power responsible for support be under his jurisdiction?”
“Garp…” At the mention of Garp, Zephyr’s expression stiffened slightly.
After a moment of silence, he slowly began, “Garp… his situation is special right now.”
“Oh?” Gern became interested. “What happened?”
Zephyr gazed deeply at Gern, seemingly choosing his words carefully.
“Dragoon left the Marine last month, and even fought Garp in the East Blue.”
“What?” Gern was stunned, clearly not expecting this development. “Garp fought his own son?”
“That’s right.” Zephyr sighed, a hint of helplessness in his voice. “Dragoon said something about ‘not finding justice in the Marine’ when he resigned.
Heh, he’s clearly a lawless scoundrel himself, and now he’s started some ‘Freedom Army’.” Zephyr shook his head as he spoke.
“In any case, Garp is very unstable emotionally right now. The Fleet Admiral has him focusing all his efforts on capturing Roger, which is a way to let him vent.”
“No wonder.” Gern nodded thoughtfully.
He roughly understood the current situation within the Marine.
Garp was preoccupied with family issues, Sengoku and Tsuru were handling other matters,
and Kong evidently intended to use Sakazuki’s “discipline” to rein in his own “unstable element.”
“So…” Gern chuckled softly. “Is Fleet Admiral Kong really planning to use Sakazuki to ‘suppress’ me?”
“Suppress you?” Zephyr scoffed. “He’s playing with fire!
Sakazuki’s extremism and your recklessness, put together, will only explode!”
“In any case, when you go to G-3, rein it in a bit. Don’t cause too much of a stir.”
Gern grinned. “I’ll try.”
Zephyr glared at him. “Not ‘try,’ you must!”
Gern simply pretended not to hear, his gaze once again turning towards the house.
This time, Libo seemed to sense his gaze, turned her head, and waved at him, her smile as bright as sunshine.
...
Suddenly, the wind in the courtyard grew quiet.
Zephyr heard his wife Lina’s laughter from inside the house, along with his son’s excited shouts, interspersed with Libo’s light footsteps.
He turned his head and, through the half-open window, saw Libo standing on one leg on the coffee table,
her other leg raised high, maintaining perfect balance, while the little boy clumsily mimicked her movements,
only to lose his balance and fall directly into Lina’s arms, causing the mother and son to burst into laughter.
Witnessing this heartwarming scene, Zephyr’s lips unconsciously curved upward, his stern features softening somewhat.
Gern followed his gaze and chuckled softly. “Zephyr, Libo’s talent must be pretty good, right?”
Zephyr withdrew his gaze and snorted. “A perfect candidate for martial arts.
Plus, her Devil Fruit ability is supportive, so she has great potential.”
At this, he paused, his tone suddenly becoming disdainful, “But being your subordinate would be a waste.”
“Huh?” Gern raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean, a waste?!”
Zephyr snorted and crossed his arms. “Although you’re my disciple, you don’t follow my martial arts path at all, always messing around with those vibration tricks.”
He glanced inside the house, and Libo smiled slightly. “But Libo is different. As a Mink Tribe member, whether it’s her physical coordination, explosive power,
or even her combat intuition, she’s very suitable for traditional martial arts training.”
Gern’s mouth twitched. “So?”
“So, during your time at headquarters, I will personally train Libo.” Zephyr declared, his tone leaving no room for argument.
“It’ll be good for her to build a solid foundation, so you don’t lead her astray.”
Gern opened his mouth, but ultimately could only shake his head helplessly. “You yourself said before that I shouldn’t get a furry subordinate, and now…”
“Now what?” Zephyr narrowed his eyes, his tone dangerous.
“Haha, nothing.” Gern immediately raised his hands, an innocent smile on his face.
“You’re a famous Chief Instructor in the Marine now. Libo will definitely make rapid progress learning from you.”
“That’s more like it.” Zephyr finally nodded with satisfaction and turned to walk into the house, muttering,
“That girl learns quickly. She’ll probably master the basics in no time, and with the Mink Tribe’s characteristics, her future achievements…”
Gern watched his retreating back and couldn’t help but chuckle softly. “A stubborn old man who says one thing and means another…”
Inside the house, Libo was twirling the little boy around. She looked up and saw Zephyr enter, immediately waving excitedly.
“Zephyr, Gern!
Come quick, Lina baked delicious cookies!”