After a while, Momonga and Yamakaji left to get back to their own business. Kuzan had already wrapped up all of Sengoku's work for the day, so he stayed behind to chat with Diarmuid. Before Diarmuid came along, Kuzan was truly lacking a friend like him at headquarters.
He didn't have much to talk about with Borsalino. As for Sakazuki, there was nothing at all. Gion was a woman and was pursued by many Marines, so Kuzan didn't want to get too close to her and cause trouble. And Dragon was too serious. When they met, he'd always tell Kuzan not to be so lazy. So, even though Kuzan had a good relationship with a lot of people, there wasn't much to talk about.
But ever since Diarmuid arrived, the two of them often hung out and talked nonsense, and their friendship progressed quickly. Also, Diarmuid was doing well himself. He quickly became one of the top elite rookies of the new generation of Marines, so there was no status gap between him and Kuzan. They could talk as equals, and it was a lot of fun.
Rosinante was peeling fruit for his "Big Brother" Diarmuid while Diarmuid and Kuzan chatted. After a bit, Diarmuid suddenly asked, "By the way, Kuzan, there's something I need to ask you."
"What is it?" Kuzan replied casually, picking up an apple and eating it.
"After you became a Devil Fruit user, do you ever feel a strong… thirst?" Diarmuid asked.
Kuzan's eyes lit up. He looked Diarmuid up and down and said with a sigh, "You've reached that age, huh? But Diarmuid, you're still not healed yet. You shouldn't be thinking about those kinds of things. Besides, I'm no good at that stuff. When you get better, I'll take you to Tokikake. He may be ugly, but he's really popular. He's a pro at the Red Light District."
Diarmuid froze for a second, his face immediately darkening. "What are you talking about? Your mind is so filthy!"
"Didn't you ask me about feeling a thirst?" Kuzan said, looking at him with a confused expression.
"Is that the only thing 'thirst' means to you? So that's what you're like, Kuzan. One of these days, I'm going to use you as inspiration and write a biography about you," Diarmuid said, rolling his eyes.
"I'm a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral. Due to confidentiality, you can't write anything about me. Do you want to go to a court-martial?" Kuzan said, glaring at Diarmuid.
"Don't worry, I won't write anything classified. I'll give you some dignity, okay? I'll call you 'Ice Boy' in the book. The title will be 'The Adventures of Ice Boy.' It'll go great with your Devil Fruit power," Diarmuid shot back.
After joking around, Diarmuid's face became serious. "Seriously, have you ever felt it? That kind of… sensation, like something's missing?"
Ever since he ate the Gravity-Gravity Fruit, Diarmuid would get this feeling from time to time. He didn't know why. He had asked his sensei Zephyr, but since Zephyr wasn't a Devil Fruit user and their side effects were so strange, he couldn't give Diarmuid a good explanation. Diarmuid had just thought of it now, so he asked Kuzan.
Kuzan frowned and thought for a moment. "No… I haven't."
"Is that so? Maybe I'm just overthinking it. Maybe it has nothing to do with the power," Diarmuid said, nodding.
Kuzan thought about it again. "Maybe it's a side effect of your Devil Fruit power? You'll probably get used to it over time and learn to control it."
After a brief pause, Kuzan continued, "A Devil Fruit's side effects aren't just being hated by the sea and becoming a hammer. The immense power that each ability gives you also comes with a flaw. Take Shiki's Float-Float Fruit. He's afraid of storms and other natural disasters. In a storm, he becomes weaker than the average person. Or take me, for example. When I ate the Ice-Ice Fruit, I often felt tired, which is why I developed this lazy personality."
"I have a feeling you're just making excuses for yourself…" Diarmuid said, looking at Kuzan with a hint of suspicion. But it was just a joke. Kuzan's lazy demeanor was indeed a bit affected by his Devil Fruit power. His body temperature was very low, so he always seemed to lack motivation.
"A side effect, huh?" Diarmuid muttered. He temporarily settled on that explanation. He had also wondered if there was something special about his body that he hadn't discovered, but his hospital checkups had all been normal.
"Once you develop your ability and gain a deeper mastery of it, the situation will probably improve. Most Devil Fruit users are like that," Kuzan said calmly.
"I hope so," Diarmuid said with a smile. Although what Kuzan said made sense, he still felt that the truth might be something else.
Two weeks later, Diarmuid was fully recovered. After checking out of the hospital, he immediately rushed to Chief of Staff Tsuru's office to report for duty.
After being in Marineford for so long, he was finally joining an official division! It was the first time he had been officially assigned a position!
He was wearing the black suit his sensei Zephyr had given him for the first time in a while, with the Justice coat draped over his shoulders. He looked handsome and dashing, like a promising young man.
As he walked, Marines would look at Diarmuid and then whisper to their companions. At first, Diarmuid thought his good looks were attracting them. But as he kept walking, he started to hear their whispers.
"Did you see that? That's Commodore Diarmuid. I heard he's about to become a Rear Admiral soon. The Chief of the sixth class of the Marine Officer Training Camp. He's really something."
"Of course he is! He's the man who beat up the Fleet Admiral!"
"Shhh, keep your voice down. Don't let him hear you."
Diarmuid's face went completely dark. I already heard you, dammit!
Does everyone in Marineford know that I beat up the Fleet Admiral now?! How am I supposed to continue my career in the Marines?!
For a moment, Diarmuid even wondered if it was too late to become a pirate. He felt like his bright future in the Marines, which he had worked on for two or three years, had been completely ruined by that bastard Garp!
He could only hope that the Fleet Admiral would be forgiving. After all, Kong would be the Fleet Admiral for another ten years. If Garp's mouth had gotten him into trouble, Diarmuid might be stuck as a Rear Admiral for the next ten years. That would be a truly miserable fate!
Tsuru's office was on the third floor of the Marine Headquarters, the Justice Fortress, and it was also where the Intelligence Division was located.
Diarmuid walked, thinking about his dark future in the Marines, and without realizing it, he arrived at the office door. He was about to knock when he realized the door was slightly ajar. He then heard a hearty laugh.
"Hahahaha! Tsuru-chan, please help me out. Find some more information about that guy, Roger. He's been missing on the sea lately…"
It was Garp!
In an instant, Diarmuid was filled with rage. He didn't even care about his refined image anymore. He kicked the door wide open. The commotion surprised both Tsuru and Garp inside the office.
"Diarmuid?" Tsuru said in surprise. She looked at Diarmuid in confusion. What's going on? Is he really kicking his superior's office door on his first day of reporting for duty?
"Garp! You bastard! I'm going to kill you!" Diarmuid drew his Nagasone Kotetsu from his waist and, without a word, swung it down at Garp, who was sitting on the sofa.
Garp was startled. He instinctively dodged and rolled off the sofa. Right after he got out of the way, Diarmuid cut the sofa in half with a single slash.
"What the hell?! Diarmuid, I didn't do anything to you!" Garp yelled. The man was a character. He didn't use his rank to pressure Diarmuid. He just looked very panicked.
"You have the nerve to ask?! The entire Marineford knows that I, Diarmuid, a Commodore, beat up our Fleet Admiral! How am I supposed to show my face to people now?! How am I supposed to face the Fleet Admiral?! I'll kill you, you bastard!" Diarmuid roared. He then kicked the sliced sofa aside and charged at Garp, swinging his sword.
Garp let out a shriek. As he ran, he tried to explain, "I just thought you looked so cool! Can't a guy say that?"
"Cool, my ass!" Diarmuid yelled.
Garp couldn't take it anymore. He was honestly a little rattled. With his strength, he could have easily subdued Diarmuid, but his guilty conscience stopped him from even thinking about it.
Diarmuid was blocking the door, so in a moment of panic, Garp smashed the window of Tsuru's office and jumped out from the third floor of the Justice Fortress.
Losing all sense of reason, Diarmuid put his foot on the windowsill and was about to go after him with his sword raised when Tsuru grabbed his wrist. She activated her power and said in a tone that was both amused and helpless, "Diarmuid, you've had your moment."
Tsuru was the user of the Wash-Wash Fruit, which was said to be able to wash away all evil, filth, and all sorts of other nasty things. Her power, combined with her words, quickly calmed Diarmuid down.
"I'm sorry, Chief, I…" Diarmuid said quickly.
Tsuru didn't mind at all, even though Diarmuid had cut her sofa in half. Perhaps after being comrades with Garp for so many years, she was used to it? She wasn't angry at all; in fact, she found it a bit funny. "Garp needed a lesson. Otherwise, he'll just keep doing whatever he wants…"
After a short pause, she glanced out the window and said with an amused look, "But it seems you're going to be even more famous. After beating up the Marine Fleet Admiral, you forced the Marine Hero to jump out of a window…"
Diarmuid froze. He looked down and saw Garp running away like crazy without looking back, yelling as he went, "Diarmuid, let's talk about this when you've calmed down!"
At the same time, a crowd of gawking Marines was looking up at the broken window on the third floor with expressions of shock on their faces.
It's true! The Commodore who dared to hit the Fleet Admiral is something else! As soon as he gets out of the hospital, he forces Marine Hero Vice Admiral Garp to jump out a window?! Impressive!
Diarmuid's vision went black. He almost fainted.
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