Garp had always hoped his two grandsons, Ace and Luffy, would become Marines. One had already gone to sea and become a pirate, while the other went around all day proclaiming, "I'm the man who will become the Pirate King!" No matter how Garp tried to teach them, he just couldn't get through to them.
If Garp remembered correctly, Leiyin was even a little older than Ace. Leiyin's strength was already limitless in potential, and seeing him steadily become a Marine filled Garp with a faint sense of relief.
"This kid isn't just powerful—he's got plenty of guts, too. He's right up my alley. He'll definitely become a powerful Marine warrior in the future." Looking at Leiyin's back, Garp thought to himself.
Although Leiyin appeared careless on the surface, perhaps he no longer regarded Garp as an outsider either. In the days that followed, Leiyin kept calling Garp "Old Man," while Garp called Leiyin "Brat." Perhaps in Leiyin's heart, he had already come to see Garp as his grandfather.
When they reached his residence, Leiyin realized that Garp had truly gone to great lengths for him. His house was not particularly large, perhaps eighty or ninety square meters, but it had a spacious courtyard filled with all kinds of equipment for physical training, along with the usual items needed for cultivation.
Garp's intention was for Leiyin to devote himself to training, becoming a pillar of the Marines in the future and taking over Garp's position—or even becoming a Navy Admiral, a marshal, or perhaps the Commander-in-Chief of the entire military.
Leiyin was not the type to show off either. As soon as he arrived at his residence and saw the spacious courtyard, which was perfect for training, his hands began to itch. He had always wanted to develop that S-rank ninjutsu, so he gathered [Rasengan] in his hand and infused it with elemental chakra.
"Hey, did you hear? I heard a particularly beautiful girl joined the Training Camp yesterday."
Just as Leiyin focused his attention, he was drawn to the voices outside. It turned out that several Marine soldiers had happened to pass by the entrance to his courtyard and were chatting.
"Yeah, yeah, I heard that, too. Apparently, she only hasn't learned [Kami-e] from the [Six Powers]. She hasn't joined the Training Camp yet, and Headquarters sent a colonel to personally instruct her."
"A beautiful girl? Is she prettier than Sister Hina?"
"I've seen her. She really is prettier than Hina."
"No way. Stop spouting nonsense. Didn't the two of us see her together yesterday? She's beautiful, sure, but she's still not as pretty as Hina."
"You're the one talking nonsense. That girl is definitely better-looking."
"Actually, I think Ain from the Training Camp is the prettiest."
"Haha, plenty of the guys in our squad have a crush on her, too."
"Ah, I'm so jealous of those male trainees in the Training Camp. They're surrounded by so many young, beautiful girls. Unlike us, stuck standing guard every day like miserable fools—and when a battle breaks out, we still have to charge into the fray."
"Ah, comparing people really is infuriating."
Although the soldiers complained, they still hummed little tunes as they walked away.
Marineford was the Marines' central residential area. It was as large as a country and housed a huge number of Marines. Nearly all the world's elite Marines were gathered there, so one could usually run into a group of Marines just by stepping outside. Not only that, many Marine families had settled there as well.
The men Leiyin had just overheard belonged to a Marine squad. Just as they had said, the Training Camp was essentially an academy—a cradle for future Marine officers. Its lifestyle was something ordinary soldiers, who had to slowly build up seniority and battle achievements, could never compare with. After joining the Training Camp, not only did the trainees have bright futures ahead of them, many also got to enjoy the best years of their youth there.
As Leiyin thought about it, the [Rasengan] in his hand gradually dissipated.
The next day, as the sky was just beginning to lighten, Leiyin went to report to the Training Camp.
The Training Camp was essentially an academy for cultivating Marine officers. Leiyin had originally thought it would be very large, but when he arrived, he discovered that it was even bigger than he had imagined.
What Leiyin had not expected was that, as soon as he arrived, he would be met with mocking laughter from some of the others.
What was going on?
His clothes had given him away.
It turned out that Marines of different ranks and positions wore different uniforms.
Anyone below First Class Seaman wore the basic Marine uniform and cap.
After being promoted to Corporal, or reaching the noncommissioned officer ranks of Sergeant and Staff Sergeant, they could choose from various ways of dressing and could even wear civilian clothes, though clothing unsuitable for the Marine image was still forbidden.
Those at the rank of Second Lieutenant and above could wear a coat with "Justice" written on the back, paired with the standard uniform.
Those of higher Field Officer and General Officer ranks could wear the "Justice" coat with civilian clothes.
The reason Leiyin was being mocked was that he was still dressed in the lowest-ranking uniform: the Marines' most basic uniform and cap. At a glance, he was unmistakably a Seaman Recruit.
Since it was Leiyin's first day reporting in and he had arrived rather late, most of the trainees had already formed up by the time he got there.
"Seaman Recruit trainee Leiyin, three minutes late. After morning exercises, run thirty laps as punishment!" the instructor ordered.
When they heard the words "Seaman Recruit," some trainees acted as though they had just heard the funniest joke in the world. They covered their mouths, doing their best not to laugh aloud, while one of them laughed even more loudly, his laughter reaching everyone's ears.
"Beligood! Is it really that funny? You're just like him. After morning exercises, you'll run thirty laps as punishment, too!" the instructor shouted.
At those words, the smile on Beligood's face immediately fell.
Hearing that, everyone else stopped laughing at once.
Was it really that funny?
It turned out that the trainees in the Training Camp were either Devil Fruit users, people who had mastered the Six Powers, or children of high-ranking Marine officers.
The lowest rank among the trainees was Corporal, and even they were called oddballs by some of the more mischievous trainees who enjoyed bullying the weak.
Now, Leiyin had arrived.
If Corporals were oddballs, then Leiyin, a Seaman Recruit, was an outsider among oddballs.
This was going to be a real source of amusement.
Several Corporal trainees in the formation looked at Leiyin with secret delight.
Now that he's here, we're not at the bottom anymore.
Leiyin paid little attention to everyone's jeers. What caught his attention instead was the instructor who had just reprimanded him.
The instructor was a mature, sexy beauty.
She wore the Marines' "Justice" coat over an extremely short pair of shorts, exposing two dazzlingly fair, strikingly long legs. A famous sword named [Konpira] hung at her waist, and the whole look seemed perfectly natural.
She was known as [Sexy Dynamite]. Several years later, she would become a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral. She would also be pursued one hundred times by an infatuated man who was likewise a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral, yet she rejected him every single time without exception.
Later on, she would become a candidate for Navy Admiral.
Even Leiyin could not help glancing at her twice.
This was
Before you continue