As Tom steered their ship closer to the battle, Gustave finally got a clear view of the two vessels' situation.
The Marine ship was crewed primarily by young marines whose average combat ability far exceeded that of ordinary Marine personnel.
"Those marines look like marine candidates," Gustave observed, watching the sailors fight valiantly despite being pushed back steadily.
Focusing on the main battle aboard the ship, Gustave spotted a grotesquely obese pirate with golden hair braided into two massive plaits, a crescent-shaped mustache jutting upward, and garish overalls. The man wielded an enormous blade while pressing his attack against the Marine defenders.
His opponent was a tall marine wearing a purple suit and matching hair, his Justice cloak billowing behind him as he fought.
"Damn... that's Weevil and Zephyr!"
Gustave suddenly understood why the Marine crew consisted entirely of marine candidates. This was one of Zephyr's training ships for Marine recruits.
Under normal circumstances, Edward Weevil would be completely outmatched by former Admiral Zephyr. Unfortunately, these were far from normal circumstances.
Zephyr was suffering from a severe asthma attack. His breathing came in labored gasps, his face had turned pale, and his entire body trembled from the effort of simply remaining upright. Despite his weakened state, he forced himself to continue fighting to protect the students behind him.
This represented one of the most bewildering aspects of the One Piece world. Typically, fighters who reached such incredible power levels would transcend mundane ailments through their enhanced life force. Yet somehow, the strongest fighters in this world—the most famous example being Gol D. Roger—could still succumb to ordinary diseases.
Gustave found this setting completely absurd. Men capable of splitting continents and sinking islands in battle could be brought low by simple illness. It defied all logic.
Roger had terminal disease, and Zephyr suffered from asthma. Such was the peculiar nature of the One Piece world.
Zephyr hadn't yet aged to the decrepit state he would display when eventually confronting Luffy. Even accounting for his declining stamina due to age—preventing him from engaging in the ten-day battles that Aokiji and his peers could endure—he should still possess admiral-level combat power for at least three or four days of continuous fighting.
However, the asthma attack had reduced Zephyr's strength to barely one-tenth of his normal capacity. He could barely remain standing, let alone match Weevil in combat.
Among all the Marine's elite fighters, Gustave respected Zephyr most of all. Throughout his legendary career, he had defeated countless enemies yet had never once taken a pirate's life. He adhered to principles so rigid that Gustave couldn't fully comprehend the brand of justice that Zephyr embodied.
Yet this same refusal to kill had invited devastating retaliation from pirates, resulting in the tragic deaths of his wife and children. Even after stepping back from active duty, Zephyr continued dedicating his life to the Marine, personally training the organization's entire backbone—from his first disciples Kizaru and Akainu onward.
Such a man had been betrayed by the World Government, with his own former student eventually sent to eliminate him. Zephyr's life had been a series of heartbreaking tragedies.
Though Gustave couldn't understand Zephyr's refusal to kill, he absolutely wouldn't stand idle while a man of such unwavering conviction faced destruction.
Aboard the Marine training ship, heavy rain soaked everyone's clothing. The Marine recruits had been systematically overwhelmed by Weevil's assault. Zephyr's two strongest students from this class—Ain and Binz—had already fallen to Weevil's earlier attacks.
To protect his disciples, Zephyr dragged his half-crippled body into battle against Weevil despite his severe asthma attack.
After absorbing several devastating blows from Weevil, Zephyr coughed up blood and collapsed to one knee.
"Excellent work, my precious son! Finish off that old fool! Let Admiral Zephyr's death make you famous throughout the world!" screeched Miss Buckingham Stussy, Weevil's hideous mother.
"Yes, Mama! I'll kill him right now!" Weevil responded in his grating voice.
Thunder rumbled ominously overhead as Weevil raised his massive blade, preparing to deliver the killing blow to Zephyr.
"Dragon de Tonnerre ("Dragon of Thunder")"
At that moment, a thunder dragon roared down from the skies, carrying what seemed like the wrath of ancient gods. The brilliant lightning illuminated the entire world before striking Weevil with devastating force!
The electrical assault hit with such precision that Weevil began smoking instantly, every hair on his body burned away. Remarkably, despite its tremendous power, the lightning strike affected only Weevil, leaving everyone else completely unharmed.
With a resounding crash, Weevil toppled backward, black smoke pouring from his mouth.
"My son! My precious son, what happened to you!" Miss Buckingham shrieked, rushing toward Weevil's motionless form. Her voice revealed the obvious source of Weevil's own unpleasant vocal qualities.
Ain and Binz stood frozen, overwhelmed by the sudden shift in battlefield dynamics. Zephyr struggled to breathe while forcing his severely injured body upright.
The lightning that had struck Weevil slowly coalesced into human form before the astonished onlookers.
When Zephyr recognized the figure, he attempted to speak, but between his blood loss and severe asthma attack, he collapsed unconscious.
Gustave materialized from the dispersing electricity and immediately noticed Zephyr's condition.
"Hey! Hey!" Gustave rushed forward to catch the falling admiral, quickly realizing that Zephyr's asthma had reached critical levels.
There was no alternative. As always, when facing medical emergencies, there was only one solution.
"Tom! Help!" Gustave roared.
Moments later, Tom plummeted from the sky, still looking thoroughly confused. He distinctly remembered steering their ship when Gustave's cry for help reached him. Suddenly, he had found himself launched skyward as if massive invisible hands had hurled him through the air.
Before Tom could process what had happened, Gustave grabbed him and positioned him next to Zephyr.
Tom's medical instincts immediately activated. He produced a comprehensive medical kit from seemingly nowhere, then conjured a large umbrella to shield them from the heavy rain before beginning emergency treatment on Zephyr.
Meanwhile, the remarkably resilient Weevil suddenly opened his eyes and wailed: "Mama, it hurts so much!"
Weevil cried and screamed like an oversized child experiencing his first real pain.
Miss Buckingham comforted her son with exaggerated concern. After a few moments, Weevil abruptly stood up, retrieved his sword, and prepared for revenge.
"Look out!" Ain shouted as she saw Weevil draw his weapon.
But at that instant, a rotund black and white figure dropped from the sky, landing squarely on Weevil's back and driving him face-first into the deck. When Weevil attempted to resist, a wooden club materialized and knocked him unconscious.
Po had arrived with Luffy in tow. Since Luffy had insisted on joining the rescue mission, they'd left Ace to guard their ship while Po brought the enthusiastic young man as backup. However, when Luffy departed, he'd borrowed Tom's favorite club.
"You! How dare you treat my precious son like that!" Miss Buckingham shrieked after witnessing Po flatten Weevil with his rear end, followed by Luffy's club-based knockout blow. She began cursing like the worst kind of street harridan—which, in fact, she was.
"Lady, you're not just ugly—your voice is really unpleasant too!" Luffy said with his characteristic bluntness.
"You insolent brat! I'll make you pay for that!" Miss Buckingham continued her tirade.
But Luffy, who had stopped listening entirely, had somehow circled behind her during her rant. With practiced aim and fluid motion, Tom's club found another target.
In the future, the world would have one fewer person screaming about becoming Pirate King, but one more aspiring hero who specialized in knocking people unconscious with a wooden club.