Akainu, Kizaru, and Aokiji—much of their power comes from their Devil Fruit abilities. But Wood's strength is built more on his mastery of martial arts and swordsmanship.
According to Garp's report, the light that emanated from Wood's chest during battle led Sengoku to speculate that Wood might have consumed some kind of Devil Fruit. The exact nature of this fruit is unknown, but what's clear is that it greatly enhances Wood's physical abilities.
The current three admiral candidates are all Devil Fruit users, with particularly troublesome Logia abilities. Wood's Haki, especially his Armament Haki, is still relatively undeveloped, so injuring someone like Akainu, who can turn into magma, might not be easy. But given that Wood could hold his own against Garp, it's safe to say that defeating him would be no simple task for any of the admiral candidates either.
"I protest! You all said the undercover mission wouldn't be dangerous. That's the only reason I took it on. But first, I had to navigate a game of cat and mouse with the World Government and steal the Pluton blueprints, and now you want me to enter the New World with a 1 billion Berries bounty as a top-tier pirate…"
"Snore… snore…"
Before Wood could finish his rant, the sheep-headed Den Den Mushi in his hand had already fallen asleep, complete with a snot bubble growing from its nose.
"Damn it! As expected, those at the top are the same no matter where you go—they just exploit the workers at the bottom. They work you to the bone and never give you enough in return. What good is a promotion in rank? I'm now a pirate worth 1 billion Berries, so my Navy rank is completely useless!"
Even though Wood didn't manage to get his hands on the Pluton blueprints, there's no denying that he and Gion handled the mission flawlessly. As a result, Wood got another promotion—from Navy Lieutenant Commander straight to Navy Commander, skipping over the rank of Lieutenant entirely.
Of course, it's just a title—there's no pay raise to go with it. In fact, considering Wood's current situation, he can't even collect a paycheck at all. And while a Navy Commander's rank might seem impressive, it's utterly pointless for Wood, because only five people in the entire world know about his true identity. And those five? They're all admirals or vice admirals. A lowly commander like Wood doesn't even get to brag in front of them!
"Damn it, Sengoku! That old man played me again! How can he call this a reward? Doesn't he worry that I'll really quit and become a full-fledged pirate?"
Meanwhile, in the Fleet Admiral's office, Sengoku had just hung up the Den Den Mushi when Vice Admiral Gion, who had apparently been waiting for some time, entered the room.
"Aren't you being a bit too harsh on that boy? Don't forget, he's even younger than Gion, and much younger than Akainu and the others."
Gion had just learned about what happened at Enies Lobby, and it was clear to her that Gion had thrown herself into intense training as soon as she returned to headquarters, no doubt spurred on by Wood once again.
Without needing to think too hard, Gion knew that Wood had likely dealt another heavy blow to Gion's confidence.
"Sending a rookie pirate into the New World might be fraught with danger, but if it's that boy Wood, I'm not worried. If you hadn't reminded me, I would've forgotten that Wood is only about twenty years old. Whether it's his strength, talent, or his way of handling situations, he often seems far more mature than his age would suggest—almost like he's not a young man at all."
The way Wood had handled the Enies Lobby incident had completely surpassed Sengoku's expectations. Whether it was his ability to fight on par with Garp or his guidance in helping Gion deal with the situation, Sengoku found himself genuinely impressed.
If it weren't for the fact that the positions of admiral had already been set for Akainu, Kizaru, and Aokiji, and that Wood was now donning the disguise of a pirate, Sengoku might have even considered grooming Wood for a future admiral position.
"As for Wood's identity, it seems Garp is particularly interested. He left headquarters early this morning, saying he was going back to the East Blue and planning to visit Wood's birthplace on Maple Leaf Island along the way."
Hearing this, Sengoku's face involuntarily twitched. Garp had already left Marineford to return to the East Blue several times now. Sengoku was initially angry, but considering that Garp had contributed during the Enies Lobby incident, he lowered his raised fist in defeat.
"That old man returning to the East Blue is one thing, but what business does he have on Maple Leaf Island? Is he trying to pull a Zephyr and see if he can find another talented recruit?"
Out at sea, a Marine warship sailed through the first half of the Grand Line. On the deck, a large man wearing a dog-headed hat was fast asleep, snoring loudly.
"Vice Admiral Garp, our ship is approaching the Maple Leaf Island region. What are your orders?" The sound of his officer's voice burst Garp's snot bubble as he rubbed his sleepy eyes and sat up.
"Find a good place to dock and resupply. I'll head onto the island alone for a while."
The officer was clearly stunned by Garp's instructions, even double-checking, "Vice Admiral Garp, are you saying you specifically chose Maple Leaf Island just to resupply? But our ship's supplies are still ample, and Maple Leaf Island is only famous for its timber, which isn't exactly something we can eat…"
When they had set sail, Garp had specifically ordered them to head to Maple Leaf Island, making the Marines on board excitedly speculate that another big mission was at hand. But now, they couldn't believe that they had traveled all this way just to restock supplies.
Is the food on Maple Leaf Island really that good? Why had they only ever heard about its famous redwood before?
"Just go and do it! Why do you have so many questions? Think of it as a few days off!" Garp barked.
As soon as the ship docked, Garp vanished in a flash, leaving behind the officer and the rest of the crew with their questions unanswered.
Sengoku wasn't wrong—Garp's visit to Maple Leaf Island was partly to learn more about Wood's background and partly to see if there were any other promising recruits on the island.
After all, it didn't make sense that an island that produced a prodigy like Wood wouldn't have any other talented individuals. Garp had heard from Zephyr that Wood apparently had a younger sister. Zephyr had planned to visit Maple Leaf Island in a couple of years to check on her and see if she had any potential.
But once Garp heard that, he decided to get there first.
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P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 320+ at p@treon.com/Betek and change @ to a