"Regarding that Sentomaru kid..."
Sengoku pressed his finger firmly on the document, indenting the paper beneath his fingertip.
His gaze remained fixed on the file.
His voice shed its earlier impatience, replaced by heavy astonishment.
"At just twelve years old, without any systematic physical training, he independently mastered the defensive technique 'Ashigara Dokkoi' within Dr. Vegapunk's Science Unit. That is an advanced application of Busoshoku Haki that even elite Marine Headquarters Rear Admirals struggle to learn."
Tension immediately gripped the conference room.
"Ashigara... Dokkoi?"
A Vice Admiral in charge of recruiting gasped, instinctively reaching for the saber at his waist.
He knew exactly what the term meant.
It was an advanced form of Busoshoku Haki emission, capable of both defense and striking targets from a distance.
A twelve-year-old child accomplishing such a feat pushed him past the realm of genius straight into the category of monsters.
"Furthermore," Chief of Staff Tsuru interjected, a rare hint of admiration coloring her usually unflappable tone.
"According to reports from Borsalino, the boy is incredibly tight-lipped and possesses the potential to become the ultimate defense. Given time, he could very well become the core defensive force of the Science Unit, and perhaps the entire Navy."
"Yeees, he is certainly a troublesome little guy..." Kizaru muttered.
He pursed his lips, recalling the chubby kid who lugged around a giant axe and called him 'Uncle' all day long.
"However, as a candidate for captain of the Science Unit, we should expect this level of talent, right?"
Kizaru's tone remained light and teasing, yet everyone present sensed the weight behind his words.
Sentomaru's emergence sent a shockwave through the long-stagnant upper echelons of the Navy.
A twelve-year-old master of Busoshoku Haki meant the Navy would inevitably gain another Admiral-level combatant within twenty years.
"Good! That's excellent!"
Sengoku took a deep breath.
His tense expression finally softened, his eyes gleaming with renewed vigor behind his glasses.
In the Great Pirate Era, discovering a future top-tier combatant brought unparalleled exhilaration.
His good mood lasted exactly three seconds.
Sengoku's gaze inadvertently swept across the East Blue branch inspection report lying in the corner of his desk.
The fire he had just suppressed flared up again immediately.
"Look at this! Just look at this!"
Sengoku snatched up the report and slammed it onto the desk. "The Science Unit quietly trained a monster like Sentomaru! Meanwhile, the so called hero of the Navy, the legendary Garp the Fist... what has he accomplished?!"
"Every year, he goes on patrol in the East Blue. Every time, he swears he will find promising recruits! And what is the result? He generates an ever-growing expense report filled with donut and rice cracker receipts. Has he ever brought back a single decent talent? We would even settle for a Head Petty Officer at this point!"
Sengoku's roar shook the chandelier overhead.
A young adjutant cowered in the corner, trembling in fear.
"You know Garp's personality better than anyone," Tsuru said, rubbing her temples wearily to calm her old comrade's fury.
"The East Blue is the Weakest Sea. It provides a comfortable environment. Finding strong individuals forged in the crucible of life-and-death situations is incredibly difficult there. He likely just wanted an excuse to visit his grandson."
"Visit his grandson?! Then let him stay in the East Blue and look after his grandson forever! He does not need to return!" Sengoku's beard trembled with rage as he reached for the Den Den Mushi.
"I will inform him right now. All his vacation time is canceled! He is to head straight to the Goth Kingdom and capture that Carnival Baron!"
Just as Sengoku's finger was about to touch the snail...
Buru buru buru... Buru buru buru...
An urgent ringing shattered the silence of the conference room.
All eyes instantly focused on the silver Den Den Mushi at Sengoku's side. Its distinctive dog-head emblem marked it as Garp's private line.
Sengoku froze momentarily, veins bulging on his forehead.
He snatched up the receiver, looking ready to crawl through the signal line and bite the caller.
"Garp you fool! How dare you call—"
"Bwahahaha! Sengoku! Guess what? I have found a true treasure this time!"
The voice on the other end completely ignored Sengoku's fury.
The crisp crunching of rice crackers accompanied his words, and smugness practically oozed from the receiver.
"Was Tsuru still making excuses for my trips, saying the East Blue cannot produce monsters? Tell her she is dead wrong!"
Sengoku paused.
He knew his old comrade well.
Garp often acted unreliable, yet he never joked about assessing true strength.
"What have you dug up now? Don't tell me it is some village chef who is good at grilling meat," Sengoku demanded coldly, barely containing his anger.
"A chef? Hardly."
Garp's voice lowered slightly, barely concealing a tremor of excitement.
"Sengoku, listen carefully. I've discovered a boy in Foosha Village. He is sixteen years old and completely self-taught. He figured everything out entirely on his own."
Garp deliberately paused on the other end of the line.
"Just now, right in front of me, this kid... with a single strike..."
"A single strike what? Chopped down a tree?" Akainu scoffed, exhaling a thick smoke ring.
"A single strike. Using the flying slash of his blade, he shattered the cerebral nerves of a sea king from a distance." Garp's voice cut through with unnatural clarity.
Each word landed like a hammer blow on the conference table.
"Furthermore, the attack was infused with Haoshoku Haki."
"Oh, and the kid has not eaten a Devil Fruit yet. He relies on pure physical prowess. He possesses mastery of two types of Haki and has awakened Haoshoku Haki. He is a sixteen-year-old Master Swordsman."
A deathly silence descended.
The admirals had spent the morning marveling at Sentomaru's twelve-year-old mastery of Busoshoku Haki.
Now, they wore expressions as if collectively frozen in time.
Teacups in their hands, cigars between their fingers, and pens poised mid-stroke all hung motionless.
Sentomaru's talent was certainly remarkable.
A sixteen-year-old prodigy possessing Haoshoku Haki and the skills of a Master Swordsman operated on an entirely different plane of existence!
Haoshoku Haki appears somewhat frequently in the New World.
In the East Blue, however, it remains virtually unheard of.
Discovering it in a sixteen-year-old who can already infuse his swordsmanship with it defied all logic.
It violated the very principles of growth on the high seas.
"What did you just say?" Sengoku's fingers gripped the Den Den Mushi so tightly they drained of blood. His throat suddenly felt dry.
"Haoshoku Haki...? Are you absolutely certain you did not misperceive it?"
"Do you think I am joking?! That brat's shockwave swelled my face!" Garp roared over the line.
His voice carried a strange mix of pride and absolute urgency.
"Sengoku! Send me the finest warship immediately! No, scrap that! Draw up a letter of recommendation for Admiral candidacy! This kid has Admiral-level potential. He might even surpass us entirely! He is a real monster!"
Oppressive tension hung heavy in Marineford's highest-level conference room.
Moments ago, they had discussed Sentomaru as the future hope of the Navy.
Now, under the dazzling light of a sixteen-year-old Haoshoku Haki Master Swordsman, Sentomaru's name seemed entirely insignificant.
The Admirals seated at the lower end of the table wore expressions of intense complexity.
Akainu's perpetually grim eyes, revealed astonishment and doubt.
Kizaru's ever-present catchphrase, "Terrifying," caught in his throat and failed to escape his lips.
Even Aokiji, who habitually dozed during these meetings, slowly raised his sleep mask.
His eyes filled with unprecedented solemnity.
They all realized one truth.
An unknown youth from the East Blue was about to shatter the balance of power on the seas!