The ensign examiner confirmed Morito's Doriki score once again. The commotion in the testing area gradually quieted, but the doubts in everyone's minds remained.
"There must be something wrong with the machine! This is impossible!"
A loud shout suddenly rang out in the now-silent testing area.
Everyone turned toward the voice. It was Onigumo!
Onigumo usually earned excellent grades and had a calm temperament. Though he wasn't good at getting along with people, he met every standard for an outstanding student at the Naval Academy.
Naturally, such a promising student, both talented and well-behaved, was well liked by the instructors.
But this was an important event before all of Marineford. How could Onigumo dare to publicly question the Naval Academy?
The examiner in charge of the Doriki test frowned slightly.
He wasn't merely an ensign. He stood here as the representative of the Naval Academy!
"Do you have a problem?"
The examiner looked coldly at Onigumo as he asked.
Onigumo couldn't believe that a weakling could turn into a powerhouse after just a few days away.
He'd fought Morito just two days ago. The kid had been so frail that the gust from the force of Onigumo's punch had knocked him over.
And someone like that could produce a Doriki score of 999?
Even a pig couldn't grow that fast!
"Everyone knows how strong Ōtsutsuki Morito is. No matter how well he did on the written exam, he's still a useless weakling!"
Onigumo respected Garp, but he was the sort of person who couldn't tolerate even a grain of sand in his eye.
His words were blunt. He might as well have pointed at the examiner and accused him of rigging the results.
At that, everyone's expressions shifted.
The murmuring gradually grew louder.
"Yeah, it makes no sense for someone who's always at the bottom to suddenly come in first."
"I heard that kid Morito was brought back by Vice Admiral Garp a few years ago. He's come in last at the Training Camp's annual exams every time!"
"Vice Admiral Garp? Well, that makes it hard to say."
The onlookers buzzed among themselves. Though none of them said it outright, they all thought of the same explanation!
The Naval Academy was saving face for Vice Admiral Garp!
Morito must be too weak!
If someone who always came in first suddenly placed second, you could say he'd performed poorly or fallen below his usual standard.
But when someone who always came in last suddenly came in first—and left the runner-up far behind—there was no way to explain it!
The examiner was an ensign, not deaf. Of course he could hear the comments around him.
He looked at Onigumo with a chill in his eyes.
"Are you questioning me?"
"I wouldn't dare. I just think the machine might be malfunctioning. Even the strongest people get sick, and even the most precise machines can have problems."
Onigumo refused to back down.
The examiner's gaze shifted from cold to disappointed. So this was one of the Training Camp's so-called top three?
There was no shame in failure.
The shame was in being unable to accept and face it.
To become strong, you had to have a strong heart: admit when you were inferior, remember the failure, and then surpass the other person. That was what a strong person should do.
Not keep belittling and questioning your opponent just to make yourself look better.
Facing the countless doubtful stares and voices, Morito remained calm, standing silently like a bystander.
Did he think he could turn things around just by saying, "I don't believe it" and "I refuse to accept it"?
He wasn't the protagonist!
The more stubbornly Onigumo held his ground now, the more humiliating the outcome would be for him in a moment.
The examiner grinned, though there was a chill in his smile.
"Since you haven't taken the Doriki test yet, come up and take it now."
"So many eyes are watching. Ever since Morito finished his test, no one has touched the machine. I only gave it a quick visual inspection myself."
The examiner had merely walked around the testing machine, checking the connections between the wires and the steel plate with his eyes. He hadn't touched a single data cable.
Every student present and every onlooker in the crowd had watched closely.
He might fool one person, but he couldn't fool everyone.
At this, Onigumo's eyes narrowed, and he strode forward without hesitation. If that blind fool could score 999 Doriki—
Then Onigumo should be able to break ten thousand at the very least!
"Are you ready?"
The examiner stepped aside, moving a good five or six paces away from Onigumo. He hadn't stood this far away during the first test.
He didn't want Onigumo making excuses later, claiming he'd underperformed because the examiner was standing too close!
Better to keep his distance and avoid getting dragged into trouble!
"Phew."
Onigumo slowly drew a breath and brought himself into peak condition. His specialty was swordsmanship, so he chose a sword for the Doriki test!
He gripped a standard-issue Marine saber.
His aura surged higher and higher.
Then Onigumo let out a roar, stepped forward, and swung his greatsword with all his strength.
Crack!
The ground directly in front of him shattered. Half his foot sank into it as he lunged forward and swung his blade.
"Drawing Slash!"
Clang!!
The metallic clash rang out as Onigumo's long blade scraped across the steel plate, throwing off a fleeting spark.
His powerful strike sent force through the steel plate and along the data cables into the machine, which displayed the final result!
"Onigumo, Doriki: 286. Pass!"
Though the examiner was displeased by Onigumo's repeated accusations, he still announced the score loudly.
It was an excellent result!
Anyone with more than 500 Doriki was superhuman.
For someone as young as Onigumo to score 286 showed just how talented he was. The Training Camp's years of investment in him hadn't gone to waste.
But after Morito's earlier score of 999 Doriki, Onigumo's result seemed unimpressive.
The plaza fell silent at first. Apart from Morito, 286 was the best score, a full twice as high as the third-place student's!
But the onlookers' reaction was rather subdued.
"The Training Camp's top three seem kind of weak! That guy Morito scored more than three times as much as him!"
"They tested one right after the other. There's no way the machine malfunctioned, is there?"
"Top three? That's it?"
Comparison made the difference all the more striking.
Aside from a few powerful Marine officers, the onlookers didn't understand what Doriki really meant.
To someone who always scored in the double digits, whether they were looking at a genius who got a perfect 750, a top student with 650, or even someone who scored 450, 350, or 250, they were all impressive.
They didn't understand the Doriki scale, but they could recognize which number was bigger!
999 ≈ 286 × 3.5
"I never expected that so-called Training Camp top three Onigumo would be all reputation and no substance!"
"Isn't the Training Camp age limit under eighteen? That Onigumo looks like he's at least in his thirties!"
"Could he be the one who got in through connections?"
The comments around him reached Onigumo's ears, and his expression darkened.
You're the one who's thirty! Your whole family is thirty!
I'm not even eighteen yet!
"Do you have any other questions?" The examiner glanced sideways at Onigumo and asked.
Onigumo turned around and walked off the platform without a word.
He paused on the steps, then looked toward Morito in the crowd. "You haven't forgotten our agreement, have you?"
"I hope you'll still be able to smile then!"
Just then, all the written exam scores were ready. Each paper had been graded by at least three examiners, who marked them independently.
Zephyr and Garp had personally reviewed the papers of the top candidates to confirm that the scores were correct.
The results were broadcast throughout the Naval Academy.
"For this Training Camp exam, the first-place written score goes to—"
"Ōtsutsuki Morito!"
Before you continue