"I didn't expect it when it happened," Gonou says, with a slight tip of his head. "Some inmates do, it seems, some don't; and some think they're ready far before they graduate.

"But none of us go to the Admiral with proof to be graduated. It seems he makes those decisions on his own. It's likely safe to assume you're being observed on some level all the time."

His tone is slightly dry on that; he certainly doesn't appreciate the idea, but he can't see any other way that the Admiral would know.