Talk with Zephyr and Dragon

(Kairo's POV)

The atmosphere was tense.

No, it wasn't that. I was just nervous.

In all of the minor interactions I've had with Zephyr, he'd never addressed me directly.

And now, I'm with Dragon in his office.

Dragon looked confused like I did.

Undoubtedly, he was in the middle of training when Zephyr called him.

He looked at me with a confused gaze, asking what's happening through eye contact.

I did not know.

It could be because I crippled two of his students.

It could be because he's curious about the technique I used.

Heck, it could even be because he wants to know more about me.

As the atmosphere grew tenser for me, Zephyr broke the silence and bluntly asked, "Would you two like to be my personal students?"

Dragon looked surprised, and I must've too.

"You two have tremendous potential. Dragon, you are the son of Garp, which explains your strength because Garp must've trained you. Kairo, you are a training maniac that will become a pillar of the Marines in the future, and you have a lot of potential, which is why I asked you."

He was confident that we'd be a pillar of the Marine, but that wasn't meant to be.

'I'm the son of Rocks. D Xebec, the man who wants to conquer the world, while Dragon is the future leader of the Revolution Army.'

We could never be a pillar of the Marine.

He might think that now, we'd grow up to become a pillar of the Marine.

Dragon will grow up to be their greatest enemy.

While I am the son of Rocks D. Xebec. If they figure out my heritage, they'd execute me like Ace.

There's no point staying in the Marine if I will have to live in fear.

I'll accept his offer.

I'll stay in the Marine for as long as I can.

I'll have access to precious resources that ordinary pirates wouldn't.

Sea-stone, Devil Fruits, Rokushiki, and even training in Haki.

I'd even be able to have my own ship to explore the Grand Line.

Once I get everything I need, I'll throw the Marine away.

I opened my mouth to say, "I'll accept your offer", and so did Dragon.

Zephyr looked pleased that we accepted his offer, "Good. We'll start training now. I'll give you two 4 months to master the Rokushiki, then I'll teach you something new."

Dragon and I did not respond to his ridiculous time limit because we were confident.

Some soldiers wouldn't be able to master the Rokushiki even if they dedicate their whole lives to it.

But I, the son of Rocks D. Xebec, and Dragon, the son of Monkey D. Garp, will be able to do it.

We have a lot more talent and potential after all.

...

I and Dragon walked side-by-side as we headed to the training site.

After we left Zephyr's office, Dragon proposed a spar to test our abilities.

I happily agreed because after all, how often would you get to spar with the future

leader of the Revolution Army?

A lot.

(2-month time skip)

After our first spar, we've been sparring together every day.

We also learned some other forms of the Rokushiki, like Rankyaku.

We got closer in the time that we've been sparring together.

He even opened up to me!

"My father hits me too hard!"

"He trains me under the guise of abuse! I mean, what kind of father throws their children off a cliff when they're 8?"

"That old man's Iron Fist of Love hurts a lot!"

He'd often complain about things like that to me.

I guess you can say that he's my first friend in this world.

As we reached the training site, we prepared to spar with each other.

He got into a stance that I vaguely remember, while I got into the stance of Flowing Star Instinct

Dragon charged at me and shouted, [Ryusoken: Ryu no Kagizume!]

A/N: That's the attack Sabo used against Burgess

I was surprised that he already developed a fighting style, but I responded with [Redirection].

Dragon noticed that I used [Redirection], and he was wary of the technique.

The first time we spared, he unleashed a barrage of punches towards me, but I absorbed the force behind his attacked and redirected them to him using [Redirection].

His arm broke that time.

Although his arm was healed, he was wary of the techniques I've used since then.

This time, he redirected my [Redirection].

I was surprised at his action, and my [Redirection] hit a large boulder.

It shattered.

Dragon used the opportunity that he created after redirecting my [Redirection], and aimed a claw attack towards me.

I leaned back, barely dodging his claw and it ended up grazing me.

I kicked off the ground and repositioned myself using Geppo, then I used my new technique, [Rokushiki: Rankyaku Gattling Gun]

Although the name sounds powerful, there's a huge drawback to the technique if you're not used to it.

To use Rankyaku, you need to kick at a super-fast speed to create an air blade, which means that to use [Rokushiki: Rankyaku Gattling Gun], you need to kick at a super-fast speed multiple times in one sitting.

I tore my leg muscles the first time I used it.

I gradually got used to using [Rokushiki: Rankyaku Gattling Gun], but I'd only use it when I have a clear opportunity for a head-on hit or to force my opponent to respond and clash with their own attack. It would also leave my legs sore every time I used it.

I'd win almost every clash with [Rankyaku Gattling Gun].

Anyways, Dragon dashed backward to dodge as many of the air blades possible, but eventually, he had to respond to them with his own attack.

"[Ryu no Kagizume]!," Dragon used the attack to destroy my air blades, and then he used, "[Ryu no Ibuki]!" to destroy the ground of the training sites, creating a dust storm to block my vision.

After he blocked my vision, I stopped using Geppo to keep myself in the air and fell. I got into the stance of Flowing Star Instinct and created a 'zone'.

In the area of my zone, I hone my instincts to the maximum. The moment anything enters my zone, I would be able to tell their exact location.

The downside to this ability is I must stay still, and if they attack from outside the zone, I wouldn't be able to feel the attack until it reached my zone.

The current range of my zone 8 m, so I would have plenty of time to respond to Dragon's close-ranged attacks.

Dragon stepped inside my zone and gathered up energy for his final attack, and I prepared mine as well.

"[RYU NO KAGIZUME!]"

"[REDIRECTING STAR]"

I partially absorbed the force behind his attack to fuel my own, then my fist collided with his claw.

The ground cracked from the air pressure created with our clash, then we flew backward, me into a boulder, and Dragon into a forest.

Recruits across the camp gathered up to see what caused such a loud explosion and saw a human imprint on a boulder, and broken trees in the forest.

"You little sh*ts... DO YOU KNOW WHO'S THE ONE PAYING FOR THE DAMAGE?", a loud voice boomed as instructor Zephyr walked out from a crowd of recruits.

"IF I TELL GARP TO PAY THE DAMAGE, HE WILL LAUGH AND IGNORE IT, AND I CAN'T JUST TELL AN ORPHAN OR MY SUBORDINATES TO PAY IT!"

"Goddamit...I'm gonna 'educate' you two after you heal up."

A/N: Would you guys prefer me using the translated name for the attacks, or keep using the Japanese names?