When Zephyr learned that one of the newly appointed Admirals wanted to speak with him, he was somewhat surprised.
Although he no longer held a position at Marine Headquarters and spent most of his time leading the pirate guerrilla force he had established to hunt pirates, it wasn't as though Zephyr knew nothing.
He knew that the World Government had launched the World Military Draft to expand the Marines' strength, and that the two new Admirals were civilian powerhouses who had emerged from the draft rather than being raised within the Marines.
In truth, Zephyr didn't approve of the World Military Draft.
He believed that appointing people who had made no contributions and whose character was unknown to important positions solely based on strength would have a greatly negative impact on the Marines.
Zephyr held a special affection for the Marines.
Even as a child, justice already existed in his heart.
Whenever he saw hooligans bullying girls, Zephyr would bravely step forward and drive them away.
At the age of fourteen, in order to fulfill the justice in his heart, Zephyr joined the Marines, beginning his long military career.
Throughout his service, Zephyr captured countless pirates but never killed a single enemy.
That was his justice.
Although those people had committed terrible crimes, he believed it wasn't his place to execute them personally.
They should be judged by the Marines and the World Government.
He became an Admiral at the age of thirty-eight.
At forty-two, after his family was murdered, he applied to resign, but his request was rejected.
Later, Zephyr retained his Admiral rank but transferred to become an instructor, training new Marine recruits.
He remained in that position for more than twenty years.
During that time, he trained countless outstanding Marines.
The original three Admirals—Aokiji, Akainu, and Kizaru—were all his students.
Many famous Headquarters Vice Admirals had also been taught by him.
It could be said that Zephyr had been the teacher of an entire generation of Marines.
Now that his family was gone, the only things Zephyr still cared about were "justice" and the Marines, where he had spent his entire life.
Standing aboard the warship and watching Marine Headquarters draw closer, countless thoughts filled Zephyr's mind.
"Teacher, how long are we staying this time?" Ain asked.
They rarely returned to Marine Headquarters, and even when they did, they never stayed for very long.
Most members of the Marine guerrilla force hated pirates so deeply that they wished to wipe every pirate from the world, so they worked especially diligently.
"About a week. You all should get some proper rest too after continuously hunting pirates for so many days," Zephyr replied with a smile.
His tragic experiences hadn't defeated him.
When spending time with his students, Zephyr still wore many warm smiles.
As Zephyr and Ain chatted, their ship officially arrived at Marine Headquarters.
What Zephyr hadn't expected was that this return wouldn't be a quiet one.
Both Garp and Sengoku had come to welcome him, along with a Marine he didn't recognize.
"Zephyr, it's been a long time. Hunting pirates out there must have been exhausting," Sengoku said with a smile as he patted Zephyr on the shoulder.
The two had joined during the same era and were old comrades.
"It's been a long time, Zephyr." Garp laughed heartily while patting his old friend's shoulder.
"You've aged quite a bit. The last time I saw you, your hair was still black. Now it's completely white," Zephyr sighed as he looked at Sengoku's graying hair and beard.
"That's why being Fleet Admiral isn't easy," Sengoku sighed.
The crushing defeat at the Summit War had practically turned his hair white overnight.
But Sengoku quickly smiled again.
Fortunately, being Fleet Admiral was no longer his problem.
"Come, let me introduce someone. This is Nagasawa, one of the newly appointed Marine Admirals," Sengoku introduced.
"Admiral Zephyr," Nagasawa greeted.
"Just call me Senior Zephyr. I'm no longer an Admiral," Zephyr replied with a friendly smile.
Although he didn't approve of the World Military Draft, with both Sengoku and Garp introducing him, Zephyr had a fairly favorable first impression of Nagasawa.
Nagasawa nodded before glancing at Ain and the other members of the Marine guerrilla force behind Zephyr.
"As expected of a force personally established by Senior Zephyr. They look like elite soldiers with tremendous combat strength."
No one disliked being praised unless it was obvious sarcasm.
Hearing those words, Zephyr smiled proudly.
Even Ain found the unfamiliar Admiral a little more pleasing to the eye.
Then Nagasawa suddenly sighed.
Zephyr couldn't understand why, but Sengoku laughed.
"Don't tell me you're about to complain again that you don't have any capable subordinates. Saying that to us old men won't help. You should tell Sakazuki instead," Sengoku laughed.
Nagasawa had repeatedly hinted, both openly and indirectly, that he lacked trustworthy subordinates and wanted several powerful Vice Admirals transferred under his command.
"Besides, you're too greedy. All the people you want are Vice Admirals like Aramaki and Smoker. Forget Sakazuki—even I wouldn't agree," Sengoku advised.
Nagasawa responded with an awkward but polite smile.
After all, it didn't hurt to try.
Who knew?
Maybe they'd actually agree.
Then he could happily collect more Devil Fruits.
He could also try influencing them and gradually bring them over to the Revolutionary Army's side.
Actually, Nagasawa also wanted Ain's Devil Fruit.
Her power was truly extraordinary.
The Return-Return Fruit could even reverse time itself.
After hearing Sengoku's explanation, Zephyr understood Nagasawa's difficulty.
Thinking about it, it was only natural.
Jumping directly into the position of Admiral certainly had its drawbacks.
Zephyr dismissed Ain and the others for the time being while he chatted with Garp, Sengoku, and Nagasawa.
After they finished reminiscing and everyone prepared to leave, Nagasawa stopped Zephyr and invited him to his office.
Nagasawa was incredibly enthusiastic, praising him nonstop.
He generously called Zephyr things like "the teacher of the entire Marine generation."
Unable to refuse such enthusiasm, Zephyr followed Nagasawa to his office.
However, upon entering, Zephyr noticed a familiar figure on a piece of paper lying atop Nagasawa's desk.
He froze.
Even now, Zephyr had never forgotten that day eight years ago.
He had taken his students out for field training, only for them to be attacked by pirates.
Those lovely students...
Those students who had made him proud...
He watched them die before his very eyes.
Only Ain and Binz had survived.
Even Zephyr himself had lost an arm.
His calm demeanor instantly disappeared.
He hurried over, grabbed the portrait from Nagasawa's desk, stared at it intently, and asked,
"Admiral Nagasawa... this is?"
"That pirate? He's one of my recent targets. Since I've become a Marine Admiral, I should accomplish something," Nagasawa explained.
Zephyr clenched his fist before slowly relaxing it, trying not to reveal his emotional turmoil.
Taking a deep breath, he asked,
"Nagasawa... I want to join you in hunting this pirate."
"Of course. I'd be glad to have Senior Zephyr's help," Nagasawa readily agreed, saying he would immediately notify Zephyr as soon as there was news about Edward Weevil.
"Forcing two Admirals to hunt him down... he's getting better treatment than he deserves," Nagasawa remarked.
Zephyr said nothing.
At that moment, far too many thoughts filled his heart.
...
The incident involving the murdered Celestial Dragon also caused a tremendous storm within the Revolutionary Army.
Everyone was delighted.
Regardless of who had done it, the death of a Celestial Dragon was a severe blow to both the World Government and the Celestial Dragons.
For generations, the Celestial Dragons had proclaimed themselves descendants of the Creator, inherently noble beings entitled to every privilege.
But through his actions, White Devil had shown everyone that Celestial Dragons were nothing more than ordinary people.
They could still be killed.
At the same time, the Revolutionary Army was deeply puzzled.
Who exactly was this White Devil, who dared kill a Celestial Dragon outright and still escaped an Admiral?
Why had no one heard of him before?
He seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.
Someone with the courage to kill a Celestial Dragon shouldn't have remained completely unknown.
It was under these circumstances that Revolutionary Army officer Koala received a message from Shakky.
The message was extremely brief.
Someone wants to join the Revolutionary Army.
That person is White Devil, the one who killed the Celestial Dragon.
After receiving the message, Koala immediately reported it to Dragon.
The matter was clearly beyond what she could handle herself.
Dragon was also quite surprised upon hearing it.
Based on his own deductions, White Devil should have been a hidden powerhouse who happened to pass through Sabaody Archipelago, found the Celestial Dragon unpleasant to look at, attacked him, and would then continue living in seclusion.
After all, if someone of that level truly wished to hide, even the World Government would have great difficulty finding them.
Dragon had never expected such good fortune.
Without doing anything at all, an incredibly powerful individual had voluntarily requested to join the Revolutionary Army.
He treated the matter very seriously.
White Devil had dared strike against an evil Celestial Dragon and possessed overwhelming strength.
He was perfectly suited for the Revolutionary Army.
"Can we be certain this information is accurate?" Dragon asked.
Although pleased, he didn't lower his guard.
He had to consider whether this was a trap set by the Marines or the World Government.
After all, even during this era where countless powerful figures rose across the seas, the person the World Government called the World's Worst Criminal wasn't one of the Four Emperors.
It was Dragon, leader of the Revolutionary Army.
"The information came from Aunt Shakky," Koala replied.
"If it's from her, there shouldn't be a problem. Tell her this—I'll personally meet White Devil to discuss the details," Dragon said calmly.
The Revolutionary Army was a unique organization.
Its members didn't gather for wealth.
Nor for power.
They came together for the nations and people oppressed by the World Government throughout the world.
Dragon needed to personally determine exactly what kind of person White Devil was before allowing him to join.
After all, this wasn't an ordinary individual.
When Nagasawa received the message, he gladly agreed.
He said the Revolutionary Army could choose the meeting location, and he would simply go there.
In the end, the meeting place was set on an uninhabited island not far from Sabaody Archipelago in the first half of the Grand Line.
Because of Shakky's earlier message, Rayleigh temporarily ended Luffy's training, though it had nearly been completed anyway.
After obtaining both Nagasawa's and the Revolutionary Army's approval, Rayleigh and Shakky also accompanied Nagasawa to the island.
As for why they came...
Rayleigh simply said that since he had nothing better to do, he might as well meet Luffy's father.
Shakky came because Rayleigh was interested.
Besides, there was nothing to worry about.
With the Dark King Rayleigh, the World's Worst Criminal Dragon, and White Devil all present, even if three Admirals arrived, they still wouldn't be able to win.
Shakky and Rayleigh acted as spectators.
They remained silent while watching Nagasawa meet with the Revolutionary Army.
Besides himself, Dragon had brought two people.
One was Revolutionary Army Chief of Staff Sabo.
The other was Revolutionary Army officer Koala.
"I'm White Devil. You can also call me by my name—Tobirama Senju... or Nagasawa."
The moment Nagasawa spoke, he dropped a bombshell that stunned everyone.
Facing the Revolutionary Army he had intended to join from the very beginning, Nagasawa had no intention of hiding anything.
His disguise was meant for outsiders.
"Nagasawa...? Isn't that the name of the Marines' new Admiral?" Koala exclaimed in confusion.
"Don't tell me you just happen to have the same name as the new Admiral?" Shakky couldn't help asking.
After all, this white-haired man looked nothing like Admiral Nagasawa.
The Admiral had black hair.
She couldn't believe they were the same person.
One was a Marine Admiral.
The other had killed a Celestial Dragon and wanted to join the Revolutionary Army.
How could they possibly be the same person?
Not only Shakky.
Even Dragon and the others were thoroughly confused by what White Devil was saying.
"This is simply one of my abilities."
Nagasawa smiled before canceling his Transformation Technique and returning to his original appearance.
"Actually, becoming a Marine Admiral was just an accident. I originally wanted to find the Revolutionary Army, but..."
Nagasawa then recounted everything that had happened after arriving in the world of One Piece.
"And that's how I became an Admiral."
He spread his hands helplessly.
Shakky was completely speechless.
What kind of person was this?
He wanted to become a Revolutionary, got lost, encountered pirates, then the Marines, met Garp and Sengoku, happened to arrive during the World Military Draft...
...and somehow became an Admiral at lightning speed.
The guy who wanted to join the Revolutionary Army had ended up becoming a Marine Admiral because he couldn't find the way?
"Amazing."
Sabo gave a thumbs-up.
"My own experiences don't even come close to being this outrageous."
"The younger generation truly shouldn't be underestimated," Rayleigh sighed.
"Although I became an Admiral, I only accepted the position because I believed that identity could help the Revolutionary Army. So I continued searching for the Revolutionary Army afterward," Nagasawa continued.
At that moment, Dragon didn't know how to describe what he was feeling.
If he absolutely had to compare it to something...
It was like reaching into the pocket of a pair of pants he hadn't worn in years and finding a piece of paper.
If it turned out to be a banknote, you'd already be delighted.
But instead...
It was a large-value check.
A pleasant surprise became an even greater one.
"But if you're away from Marine Headquarters for so long, won't the Marines become suspicious?" Koala asked.
"Of course not. Because my real body is still at Marine Headquarters. The one speaking with you right now is only my clone."
Nagasawa dropped another bombshell.
Shakky no longer knew how many times she had been shocked.
So this was only Nagasawa's clone?
A mere clone had been able to fight Kizaru so effortlessly.
If both the clone and the original fought together...
Wouldn't that be equivalent to having two Admirals?
Even Rayleigh couldn't remain calm anymore.
Someone as powerful as Nagasawa...
...was only a clone?
If Dragon had barely been able to describe his feelings before...
Now he couldn't describe them at all.