Even as Zephyr seethed with anger, Kizaru showed no sign of stopping. He continued, his tone laced with challenge: "Take that Smoker kid, for example. He clearly defeated that little girl using his own strength. Yet, Teacher Zephyr, instead of praising him, you criticized him…"
"Meanwhile, that frail, sickly little girl who only knows how to cry—you praised her. Is this really your method of teaching?" Kizaru's words carried a faint edge of mockery.
Hearing this, Smoker's resolve to admit his mistakes vanished. The more he thought about it, the more wronged he felt, and he immediately abandoned the idea of owning up.
As for the little girl, Ann, her eyes welled up with tears, and she pressed her hands to her mouth to stop herself from crying. At only five or six years old, her emotional resilience was fragile.
"Hold on, don't cry," a hand gently rested on her shoulder, comforting her. "He doesn't necessarily speak the truth. Why are you upset?"
The one comforting Ann was Leike.
Originally, he had been watching with detached curiosity, merely enjoying the spectacle. He found Kizaru a little too pushy, but he had no personal stake in Zephyr or Kizaru's conflict, so he had no reason to intervene.
However, Kizaru's unreasonable criticism of Ann's performance threatened to wound the little girl's pride. That was unacceptable to Leike.
He wasn't a hero, but he wasn't cowardly either. If someone was being insulted without cause before his eyes, and he did nothing, that would be truly shameful. So, after comforting Ann, he stepped forward without hesitation.
"I believe Teacher Zephyr is right. That fight just now clearly exposed Smoker's incompetence. Even if he's a Logia user, a lazy fool who only relies on his powers is still a fool." Leike said, a cold smile on his face.
Huh?
Both Zephyr and Kizaru immediately turned their attention to the unexpected voice.
Even Dalmatiya and the other students looked at Leike in surprise. No one had expected a student to speak out at that moment. And yet, he was not mediating; he was adding fuel to the fire, outright siding with Zephyr and challenging Kizaru!
Smoker was being used by Kizaru as evidence to prove Zephyr wrong. Leike's ruthless criticism of Smoker was a direct rebuke of Kizaru's words.
A mere student daring to confront Kizaru—the man was a top-tier Logia user and a rising candidate for Fleet Admiral. Such boldness was unthinkable.
"Has Leike lost his mind? How dare he speak to a Marine Admiral?" the students whispered among themselves.
"Even if he wants to curry favor with Teacher Zephyr, this is not the way. Zephyr may be a former Admiral, but Kizaru could become a future Fleet Admiral. This is reckless!"
Among them, Leike's roommate, Berry Good, looked deeply worried. Drake was equally shocked, unable to find words.
"Leike!" Little Ann was panicked. She had never expected him to step forward and openly confront Smoker. She understood his motives—he was defending her—but it only made her more anxious, fearing he would be punished.
In truth, she knew Kizaru would not act against Leike. Leike's father was Admiral Sengoku, true, but Leike himself was not a Fleet Admiral. Even if he showed disrespect to a superior without reason, he would suffer the consequences, but it wouldn't be catastrophic.
"Leike, now is not the time to show off. Go back!" Dalmatiya's face darkened as he scolded Leike.
He knew Kizaru appeared lazy and harmless on the surface, but in reality, the man was ruthless and vengeful. Even the smallest slight could trigger retaliation, especially against someone Zephyr had previously used as an example.
Yet Leike ignored Dalmatiya's warning. He had no intention of retreating. His eyes fixed firmly on Kizaru as he spoke to himself:
"Am I wrong? I completely agree with Teacher Zephyr. A fool like Smoker, who only relies on his Logia powers, is no better than a worthless person. If Admiral Kizaru thinks I'm wrong, he can have Smoker fight me. I'm not a Devil Fruit user, I've only trained for a month, and I'm his peer. If he beats me, I'll admit my mistake and accept the punishment. But if he loses—loses to me, a non-Devil Fruit user with only one month of training and equal age—then it proves Zephyr was right to criticize him."
Leike paused, locking eyes with Kizaru on the second floor. "I don't know what you think, Admiral. Do you agree with this simple approach?"
Kizaru narrowed his eyes, silently staring at Leike. The intensity of his gaze sent chills down Leike's spine.
After what felt like an eternity, Kizaru finally smiled.
"Very well, then. We'll do it your way."