"Michael! You've been holed up in your room for three days now!"
"Even Stella takes the initiative to train her body!"
"You're the youngest Marine Lieutenant Commander! But do you know what people call you behind your back? 'The Navy Headquarters' Most Nepotistic Officer'!"
At nine in the morning, just before Sengoku left for work, the scolding began promptly.
When college students return home for vacation, parental affection lasts exactly three days.
The same goes for Marine Lieutenant Commanders.
By Michael third day back, Sengoku had already transitioned from tearful joy and pride to outright annoyance.
To make matters worse, Stella was enthusiastically undergoing rookie training on her own and Rosinante had already begun learning the Rokushiki under the tutelage of the Marines' elite.
When there's only one lazy person in the house, that person becomes particularly noticeable.
And Michael was that lazy person.
When parents forcibly kick them out, they evolve into their next form...
A loafer.
Thus, with hands in his pockets, Michael found himself wandering near the Marine training grounds.
The Marine Headquarters training field was sunken, over three times the size of Sabaody Archipelago.
Year-round, Marine officers would take turns serving as instructors here.
Who you'd encounter depended entirely on luck.
From his vantage point, Michael quickly spotted the only female recruit in the field.
Stella was sweating profusely as she struggled through push-ups at the tail end of a Marine squad.
Though giving it her all, she was still half as fast as the other Marines.
Michael stroked his chin.
Tonight, he should continue using holy light to heal Stella... Three days ago, she could barely do a single push-up, let alone keep up with training.
After all, how healthy could a wandering singer really be?
But now, most of Stella chronic ailments and aftereffects had been cured by the holy light.
"Well, well, if it isn't Sengoku cocky little brat? Finally decided to return to Marineford?"
Just as Michael was deep in thought, a boisterous old man voice rang out behind him.
Accompanying the voice...
Was the whistling sound of a fist cutting through air.
Every alarm in Michael mind went off as he pushed his body to its limits.
He jerked his head and torso sharply to the right as a fist grazed past his hair. While the punch wouldn't have seriously hurt him, nobody enjoys being hit for no reason.
Having dodged, Michael turned to see... A burly old man nearly three meters tall with graying hair.
Missing his punch, the old man didn't pursue but leaned against the nearby railing instead.
Recognizing the old man, Michael couldn't help rolling his eyes.
"Old Man Garp, of course it's you."
"Only you would go around testing Marine officers with your fists."
"I worry for your descendants... oh wait, even Dragon couldn't stand you - joined the Marines then quit."
Garp mimicked Michael by rolling his eyes too.
"None of your business, you little punk!"
"But I will say - your reflexes have improved tremendously in two years."
"It seems you've been doing well under that girl Gion... But I'm stronger than Gion. How about switching sides and becoming my adjutant?"
"No thanks" Michael refused Garp recruitment without hesitation. "Besides, if Bogard heard you say that, he'd be heartbroken."
"Impossible!" Garp waved off seriously. "Bogard would be thrilled if I got a new adjutant."
"...Why do you sound so proud of that!?"
"Bwahahaha!" Garp scratched his hair boisterously, dropping the subject.
Instead, he pointed his large hand toward Stella below.
"Heard you rescued this little girl from a slave ship?"
"Right" Michael nodded. "She got lucky. I happened to confiscate a Devil Fruit not listed in the encyclopedia—could've been either Paramecia or Logia based on appearance, so I let her eat it."
"Now confirmed—it's the Logia-class Cloud Cloud Fruit."
"What was that?" Garp spun around abruptly. "A Logia fruit?"
Michael grinned.
Knew this old man wouldn't stay seated.
Logia types were always rare treasures.
Kizaru, Akainu, and Aokiji were earmarked as the next Admirals precisely because they were Logia users.
The biggest gap between them and other Admiral candidates lay in this.
In this era before the three Admirals reached their peak, judging purely by physical Skills and Charms, any one of them might not be significantly stronger than Chaton or Momousagi.
In fact, Kizaru often got scolded by Zephyr for over-relying on his fruit powers.
"Now you've got me interested in this girl you brought back" Garp eyes gleamed as he slung an arm around Michael shoulders.
"Michael, since Gion just rotated to guard Sabaody Archipelago, she'll likely be stationed there for years."
"Yeah? Not everyone can laze around like you Vice Admiral, dumping branch duties on Bogard to cruise the seas in a battleship."
Sometimes Michael really didn't want to call out this old geezer.
Apart from fighting pirates, Garp dodged every responsibility possible.
His slacking skills were nearly on par with Michael own.
The pressure was real!
"My point is—Gion has to manage the chaos of Sabaody. She can't properly train both you and the girl" Garp thumped his chest emphatically.
"But I'm different! You said it yourself—I'm free! I can train you both!"
Michael actually considered Garp proposal seriously.
Despite the old man eccentric thought process and unconventional ways... In mentoring newcomers, only Zephyr surpassed Garp in the entire Marines.
Their greatest common trait was...
Both had reached Admiral-level prowess purely through Physical skills and Haki.
For building foundational skills, they were second to none.
Because no matter how powerful a Devil Fruit was, it still relied on physical prowess.
Just like how Ace combat skills fell far short of Blackbeard, take away his devil fruit ability and it lead to his swift defeat.
"Old man Garp... gotta admit, that's actually a solid proposal."
Michael strength had recently reached a bottleneck, urgently needing a breakthrough.
Garp was indeed one of the most suitable candidates.
Just as Michael and Garp reached an agreement, the bright sunny sky unexpectedly began to darken, Gradually obscuring the sunlight.
When Michael looked up, an unusually large shadow had already spread across the horizon.
Within it...
Lurked a destructive killing intent.
As if a natural disaster was about to descend.