Several days later, the Warhammer finally returned to Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
The first thing Hammer did upon returning was naturally to send word to old man Sengoku: Fleet Admiral's office. Meeting now.
"Lance, come with me to see old man Kong and Sengoku."
"Shirley, arrange the Warhammer's resupply work. Don't unload the Sky Island Dials and Iron Clouds. I estimate we'll be setting sail again within a few days."
"Gion, Tokikake, I'll ask old man Kong about your next assignments, whether you continue following me or get reassigned elsewhere."
After speaking, Hammer dragged Lance straight toward headquarters.
None of the others found it strange that Hammer was bringing Lance to meet the higher-ups.
After all, Lance was now the user of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.
Reporting this would greatly benefit his future Marine career.
But Hammer's thoughts were entirely different.
Arriving at the Fleet Admiral's office, Hammer pushed the door open and walked straight in.
"Old man Kong, old man Sengoku, I'm back."
"Oh? Staff Officer Tsuru is here too."
"As expected, the old trio gathered together again."
Looking at the three Marine higher-ups inside the office, Hammer casually walked over to the sofa and plopped himself down.
Meanwhile, Lance behind him immediately stood straight and formally saluted all three senior officers one by one.
"Commander Lance, no need to be so formal."
Old man Kong waved his hand, signaling Lance to relax before turning toward Hammer with visible displeasure.
"Hammer, you urgently summoned us all together. What major matter do you have to discuss?"
Hammer couldn't care less about Kong's attitude.
Who knew whether the old man was having another late-life menopause episode?
Hammer certainly wasn't going to provoke him.
"There are two matters this time."
"The first one, well, it's Lance."
The moment they heard the matter involved Hammer's subordinate, the old trio revealed puzzled expressions.
They immediately began examining Lance carefully, unable to understand what issue this vice-captain of Hammer's could possibly have.
"Lance, stop standing there like a block of wood. Show them."
Seeing Lance standing stiffly in place, Hammer urged him impatiently.
'There were still other matters to discuss afterward.'
'Why was this guy so clueless?'
Lance nodded.
Then he slowly raised his right hand.
The next second, electric light exploded forth.
His entire arm transformed into blue lightning.
Crackle.
Kong: "!!!"
Sengoku: "!!!"
Tsuru: "!!!"
"The Rumble-Rumble Fruit!"
The three simultaneously shot to their feet and shouted in unison.
Lance slowly withdrew his powers.
The eyes of the three senior Marines were now filled with shock.
They naturally knew Lance.
Although he had been part of the first elite training camp, his strength back then wasn't particularly exceptional.
Otherwise he wouldn't have been assigned as Hammer's adjutant.
After all, under the monstrous brilliance of Sakazuki, Borsalino, and Hammer, the rest of the trainees simply couldn't compare.
Yet after only a few years, he had suddenly become a Logia user.
And not just any Logia, but the terrifyingly powerful Rumble-Rumble Fruit.
Without exaggeration, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit absolutely stood at the pinnacle of Logia Devil Fruits.
Speed. Attack power. Control.
A nearly perfect Devil Fruit.
"Hammer, where exactly did you go during this period?"
"You actually found the Rumble-Rumble Fruit?"
Sengoku and Tsuru immediately shifted their gaze toward Hammer.
Sengoku voiced the question first.
After all, Lance definitely hadn't eaten a Devil Fruit before.
Only after returning from this voyage with Hammer had he suddenly transformed into a Logia user.
If Hammer hadn't played a major role in this, Sengoku would shave off his afro on the spot.
"Old man Sengoku, why are you so certain Lance eating the fruit has something to do with me?"
"Couldn't he have just randomly found it on the roadside like Monkey-boy?"
Hammer wore an incredibly smug expression, making Sengoku desperately want to blast a shockwave directly into his face.
"Hurry up and explain, Hammer!"
Even old man Kong couldn't help but speak up at this point.
"Skypiea."
"I led the crew to Skypiea during this period."
The moment the words "Skypiea" were spoken, the old trio instantly became serious.
"No wonder I couldn't contact you."
"So you went to the heavens."
"And the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was discovered there too?"
Facing Sengoku's questioning, Hammer nodded.
"Not only that."
"I also got slashed twice by Roger."
"Though honestly, I should thank Roger. Without him, I probably wouldn't have found the Rumble-Rumble Fruit."
Hammer then recounted his encounter with the Roger Pirates and explained how he eventually obtained the Rumble-Rumble Fruit afterward.
"Hmph. That damned Roger Pirates crew actually went to Skypiea."
"Speaking of which, Hammer…"
"How did it feel facing Roger's Conqueror's Haki coating head-on?"
Sengoku's expression shifted from anger to amusement as he looked teasingly at Hammer.
The moment Hammer recalled the world-destroying Divine Departure slash infused with supreme Conqueror's Haki, his entire body trembled.
If possible, he never wanted to face that kind of attack ever again.
"Old man Sengoku, stop mocking me."
"I'm telling you, in terms of Conqueror's Haki coating, you're no match for Roger."
"Look at his Divine Departure, then look at your glowing shockwaves."
"You seriously call that Conqueror's Haki?"
Who was Hammer?
A man whose mouth was tougher than steel itself.
Faced with Sengoku's teasing, he retaliated mercilessly.
"Cough cough cough!"
"You brat, let's go!"
"Forget talking, we're fighting right now!"
"I'll show you whether my Conqueror's Haki can beat the shit out of you!"
Sengoku was absolutely furious.
That damned Hammer actually dared to look down on him.
Unforgivable!
"Hmph! I'm not fighting you."
"Hurry up already."
"Shouldn't Lance get promoted under these circumstances?"
"He's got the Rumble-Rumble Fruit now."
"Isn't the rank of Commander a little too low?"
Yes.
Hammer had specifically come to demand a promotion for Lance.
After all, Lance had followed him for many years now.
Of course Hammer needed to look after him.
"Hmm. Promote him then."
"For now, appoint him as a Rear Admiral."
"After all, Lance has accumulated plenty of military achievements while following you these years."
"Whatever. As long as he gets promoted."
"But Lance still remains my vice-captain. Don't you dare transfer him away."
Promotion was one thing.
Losing his vice-captain was another.
Hammer absolutely refused to let him go.
"You bastard Hammer!"
"A Rumble-Rumble Fruit user is just going to keep playing sidekick behind you?!"
"Do you have any shame?!"
Sengoku exploded instantly.
In his eyes, as long as Lance worked hard and didn't slack off, he would at minimum become a top-tier Vice Admiral-level combatant.
How could such talent remain stuck behind Hammer forever?
He should be out at sea combating evil and sharpening his strength!
"Hmph, what's wrong with following behind me?"
"I'm telling you, I plan to forge Lance, Shirley, and Hina into an ironclad force."
"Lightning."
"Shield."
"Spear."
"And me, Hammer himself!"
"My god!"
"Just imagining it sounds awesome!"
Wasn't this basically Sindbad Warrior Thor?!
In the future they'd slaughter gods and demons alike!
'I'll just transform into the hammer, Lance can handle the fighting!'
Perfect logic!
Sengoku became so angry he nearly stopped breathing.
He felt like his lungs were about to explode.
"Relax, old man Sengoku. Don't get angry."
"I'm telling you, I already have ideas for your exclusive weapon."
"And I obtained plenty of treasures from Sky Island too."
"Be careful not to die from anger."
"Otherwise your exclusive weapon might end up in Monkey's hands instead."
Originally Sengoku had been furious beyond reason.
But the instant he heard the words "exclusive weapon".
All his anger vanished immediately.
An excited smile instantly appeared across his face.