After the Marineford incident, there was a big power shift within the Marines. Akainu became the new fleet Admiral, while Aokiji resigned from the Marines entirely, leaving Kizaru as the only remaining Admiral. In order to fill the vacuum left by Akainu and Aokiji, two Marines were promoted to be the new Admirals.
They are the blind swordsman Fujitora and the plant man Ryokugyu. It doesn’t take a long time, however, to realize that the two new Admirals, along with Kizaru, couldn't be more different from each other. This difference in personality and perspective resulted in a unique dynamic between the three Marine Admirals.
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Kizaru The Professional
Kizaru is somebody who treats being a Marine as nothing more than a career path. He started from the bottom and slowly worked his way up to the top. He knows his responsibility as a Marine Admiral, so he won’t let personal feelings get in the way of his mission. As long as an order comes from the top, he will execute it to the best of his ability, no matter what the order is.
Just like any other devoted employee who put the needs of his company above the customers, Kizaru’s loyalty also lies in the institution known as The Marines, rather than to the people. That means he won’t hesitate to wreak havoc and kill numerous innocent people for the sake of his mission, which is exactly what he has done in the Sabaody Archipelago. This also means he will hunt and kill anybody if the Marine asks him to, even if that person is somebody that he considers a long-time friend, which is what currently happens to Dr. Vegapunk.
That said, Kizaru is a laid-back man who hates doing anything unless the people up top ask him to do it. He prefers lazing around while drinking a nice cup of tea in his room. And while he has known the other Admirals, including Akainu, for decades, he only considers them as colleagues. He won’t go out of his way to help them in their time of need. On the contrary, he will fight them if their superiors ask him to. He will feel bad about it, but he will still execute the mission to the best of his ability.
Fujitora The Rebel
In more ways than one, Fujitora is the complete opposite of Kizaru. To Fujitora, being a Marine literally means being a Public Servant. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the Marines, especially the Admirals, to do whatever they can to ensure the safety and prosperity of the citizens of the world. In his mind, the good of the people takes precedence over anything, and he is merely a humble servant who is given the chance and power to serve the people.
This kind of idealistic view often leads to clashes with his superiors and his fellow Admirals. After all, in order to do what he considers to be the best for the people, he won’t hesitate to abandon his original mission or even ignore a direct order from his superiors. This is precisely what happened in Dressrosa when he let the Straw Hats go, or when he purposely feigned ignorance when the revolutionary army freed the slaves from the holy land of Marie Geoise.
Fujitora truly uses the power and influence of being a Marine Admiral to pursue his brand of justice, which is often misaligned to what the World Government wants to do. Needless to say, this stubbornness and rebellious nature often caused a lengthy argument between him and the Fleet Admiral Akainu. As for his relationship with the other Admirals, he rarely talks to Kizaru, but Fujitora will occasionally have a light conversation with Ryokugyu. And unlike Kizaru, he will definitely refuse any order to kill his fellow Admirals, unless they become a threat to the people.
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Ryokugyu The Fanatic
If Kizaru merely follows orders while Fujitora only does his own thing, Ryokugyu is the type of person who always tries to do more than necessary. He will strive to exceed the expectations of his superior on every mission given to him. This overenthusiastic nature doesn’t stem from his desire to do the best job he could like Kizaru, or a higher sense of purpose like Fujitora. It springs from a much simpler reason. Ryokugyu idolizes the Fleet Admiral Akainu.
In Ryokugyu’s mind, Akainu is the perfect representation of what a Marine should be. A Stoic, straightforward, and ruthless person who would do anything to catch the bad guy. Because of this over-the-top admiration, Ryokugyu will do anything he can to impress Akainu. He even goes as far as doing something without being ordered to do so, such as that time when he attacked the newly liberated Wano Country in order to catch the Straw Hats pirates, which he thought would greatly please Akainu.
Ryokugyu’s admiration towards Akainu is already borderline fanaticism at this point. His loyalty doesn’t really lie in the Marines, but rather in the current Fleet Admiral. He would do anything to receive praise from the man that he admires so much. That makes Ryokugyu the most dangerous Admirals out of the three. It’s safe to assume that he would even kill his fellow admirals if Akainu asked him to. It’s not that he hates the other two Admirals. On the contrary, he is quite close to Fujitora, and he has nothing but respect for Kizaru. But one word from Akainu, and he will gladly take them out.
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