One Piece: Only for Me

### Chapter 74: The Boiling Situation

In the Headquarters building, Garp lay back in his office chair, snoring with bubbles forming at his nose—clearly asleep.

The Marine sent by Zephyr knocked on the door repeatedly but received no response. If not for the sound of Garp's snoring, he would have assumed the office was empty.

Out of options, the Marine knocked harder. Finally, Garp stirred, rubbing his sleepy eyes.

"Who is it? Come in."

The visitor entered, saluted, and reported,

"Vice Admiral Garp, your son is at the recruitment office. Admiral Zephyr requests your presence."

"Oh, I see... Nani!?"

---

At the recruitment office, Dragon narrowed his eyes as a strong wind swirled around him. Taking a few steps forward, he stood inches from Carl and said lightly,

"Senior Carl, can you let me experience what you call power?"

Carl stretched his shoulders and neck, looking at Dragon with a half-smile.

"You want to fight me? Sure. I'll help Teacher Zephyr test your strength."

He then turned to Zephyr.

"Teacher, what do you think?"

Zephyr considered it briefly before nodding. He found Dragon too self-righteous. Having a personal sense of justice was fine, but coming here and lecturing others?

Carl had already faced the Whitebeard Pirates and defeated a division commander. His experience was invaluable. Dragon had no right to challenge his justice.

Zephyr decided this fight would serve a purpose—not just to gauge Dragon's strength, but to show him that there were levels beyond his.

Carl losing? That thought never crossed Zephyr's mind. He knew Carl's abilities well.

Still, since Dragon was Garp's son, Zephyr made one adjustment.

"Alright, let Aramaki and Kuzan join as well. Carl, that shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Carl smiled.

"Of course not. I'd be happy to spar with my juniors. But should we start here? All three of them are Logia users."

Zephyr waved dismissively.

"Stay here. I'm not worried about them—you should be the one careful with your moves!"

The recruitment office had a large open space meant for testing new recruits. However, Carl and the others had been "specially recruited" and had skipped this step.

Besides, this wasn't Zephyr's Marine school. Even if things got out of hand, it would be Sengoku's problem, not his.

As Zephyr approved the match, Aramaki rolled his eyes at Dragon.

*Where did this guy even come from?*

There was no way he would fight against Carl. Absolutely not.

Just as he was about to refuse, Aokiji grabbed him and pulled him forward excitedly.

"Come on! I never expected to get a chance to fight Senior Carl. This is great!"

"..."

Dragon said nothing more. His body transformed into a gust of wind, and in an instant, he shot toward the center of the open space.

At the same time, Carl's figure twisted, vanishing into a dark vortex behind him. He arrived at the battlefield one step ahead of Dragon.

Aokiji dragged Aramaki along, though Aramaki's reluctance was written all over his face.

---

The match had yet to begin, but word spread fast. Soon, Marines gathered to watch.

Everyone had heard that three new Logia users had joined today. But the real reason they came?

Carl.

The 17-year-old Rear Admiral.

Even for a Logia user, his rise seemed too fast. Many suspected the newspapers had exaggerated his achievements to promote the Marines.

After all, aside from Zephyr, Garp, and Tsuru, few had seen Carl fight. To most, he was still just the "strongest student."

But that perception was about to change.

The growing commotion caught the attention of the highest-ranking officers.

Kizaru, Garp, Tsuru, and Sengoku all arrived at the scene.

Zephyr raised an eyebrow.

"Why are you three here?"

Garp glanced at Dragon, about to speak, but Zephyr cut him off.

"You don't need to say it—I know you're here for your son."

"..."

Sengoku and Tsuru exchanged glances.

Sengoku folded his arms.

"I also want to see our youngest Rear Admiral in action. And with three promising recruits, it's worth watching."

Tsuru nodded in agreement.

Zephyr sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"With this many people, the venue is getting cramped. I didn't prepare seats for you."

Sengoku chuckled, pointing at the gathered Marines.

"It's fine. Let's just stand and watch. No need to be formal."

Before Zephyr could respond, another group arrived.

Zephyr looked over—it was Ginny, leading a crowd of students.

The moment Ginny spotted Zephyr, she ran over with a bright smile.

"Teacher Zephyr! Everyone wants to watch Brother Carl fight! This isn't skipping class, right~?"

Zephyr had expected this. He waved his hand.

"If you want to watch, go ahead. Just don't make it a habit."

The students cheered, squeezing into the audience. The generals didn't mind, giving them space.

The female students in particular were allowed to move to the front row.

Ginny looked at Carl and called out excitedly,

"Brother Carl, you got this!"

Seeing her confidence, the other girls followed suit. Even the usually reserved Lucia cheered for her cousin.

Not wanting to be left behind, the male students shouted as well.

"Boss! Show these new recruits the power of our Marine school!"

---

+65 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg

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