Training Days

Although Zephyr said "targeted adjustment" with a pleased tone, Ron shivered as he walked through the passage behind the fortress. He wasn't afraid of his special condition being discovered by Garp and the others. After all, this was the One Piece World, where ordinary humans could grow to three or four meters tall, so anything was possible.

However, one thing exceeded Ron's expectations: his self-healing ability was nowhere near as fast on Earth. Minor scrapes and cuts were fine, but any significant tissue damage would only recover a week or two faster than an ordinary person. This time, even a scorched arm healed within a single night. The only reason Ron could find for this was that as his physique strengthened, the mysterious energy within him used for self-healing had also increased, thus accelerating his recovery speed.

"There are always peasants trying to harm me!"

After the shiver, Ron stopped, his mind filled with suspicion. He looked around like a thief, drawing the attention of patrolling soldiers who took a closer look at him before realizing.

"Oh, it's this kid..."

The ordinary soldiers didn't know the specifics of what happened last night, but they knew Vice Admiral Garp had been thrown in jail with someone else for breaking regulations. Fleet Admiral Sengoku had announced this during his routine morning address, emphasizing discipline while thoroughly embarrassing Garp. Who knew what was going through their minds when they heard Garp was locked up!

As the Hero of the Marines, Garp's influence at Marine Headquarters was immense, and even Ron, a mere newcomer, was remembered by many.

"But... shouldn't he be in his cell? How did he get out?!"

Did he escape?!

The patrolling soldiers' eyes immediately turned serious. They exchanged glances, nodded, and said, "You over there... yes, you, come here!"

"Me?"

Ron curiously scratched the back of his head. Just as he was about to approach, someone else called out to him.

"New recruit Ron! Instructor Shuzuo wants you to report to the New Recruit Camp immediately... uh, what's going on?"

It was the Colonel who had tested him yesterday. As he got closer and saw the soldiers standing at attention, he paused in surprise before realizing.

"You don't need to worry about it. He's been pardoned by the Fleet Admiral."

"So that's how it is!"

The patrol team breathed a sigh of relief...

The Colonel had been stationed at the New Recruit Camp for many years, and several of the patrol soldiers had trained under him. Since he vouched for Ron, they just needed to confirm with the jail. They immediately saluted and continued their patrol.

After dealing with that, the Colonel patted Ron's shoulder and said with a smile, "Let's go! Don't keep Instructor Shuzuo waiting..."

Shuzuo...

Ron snapped back to reality, almost forgetting about it. Yesterday, he had narrowly defeated Shuzuo using Elementalization and lightning. The man surely wouldn't let it go, but now he had to train under Shuzuo. What would the outcome be...

Ron twitched the corner of his mouth speechlessly and looked up at the sky.

This time, he was doomed again!

Rounding the testing grounds, the two arrived at the main building of the New Recruit Camp, in front of a wide-open space.

It was already crowded with people. New recruits, led by their respective instructors, were exercising on the vast training ground.

It was clear that the New Recruit Camp practiced teaching according to aptitude. Those running marathons in formation clearly had less robust physiques than those hitting sandbags. Swordsmanship experts faced off against each other, swinging unsharpened iron swords to hone their skills. A few Devil Fruit users were assigned to another open area, constantly releasing their abilities, sweating profusely... One Zoan user, switching frequently between their half-beast and human forms, looked quite comical.

Despite these differences, everyone had one thing in common.

Even the most ordinary runner among them was full of vigor! Because they could feel themselves getting noticeably stronger through these seemingly ordinary exercises!

This is the life I want!

Ron suppressed the excitement in his heart and followed the Colonel into the building behind the training ground, stopping in a spacious classroom without any seats.

"Report! Instructor Shuzuo, New Recruit Ron has arrived!"

"Mm, thank you for your trouble..."

Shuzuo, with his back to them, nodded upon hearing this. "Team Seven is short one person for supervision during the combat training. You can go over there first..."

"Uh..."

The Colonel glanced at Ron, giving him a "Good luck" look. "Yes!"

With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.

Ron remained in place, swallowing dryly. He looked left and right, searching for an escape route. But just then, Shuzuo, who had been observing him with Observation Haki, spoke, "No need to look... As an important building of Marine Headquarters, the walls and iron doors of the New Recruit Camp have Seastone powder mixed into their layers. Your lightning won't break them."

Shuzuo then turned around, glaring at Ron with a murderous look, and sneered, "And this glass is specially made, incredibly strong... It can even withstand my punch!"

Gulp...

"Hahaha, Instructor Shuzuo, what are you talking about? I don't understand!"

"Hmph! Stop playing dumb!"

Seeing Ron laugh, Shuzuo was instantly reminded of the face he saw through the steel gaps before he lost consciousness yesterday, and he gritted his teeth in anger. But he quickly sighed and waved his hand dismissively, "Don't overthink it, Ron. I'm not petty. Losing is losing, there's nothing to complain about..."

The characteristic of a soldier is to look at results, not the process!

Excuses and reasons are the weakest words in the military.

Of course, being defeated by a rookie, one whose Power Level was tens of times lower than his own, was a hurdle that a Brigadier General serving at Headquarters like Shuzuo would never overcome. He could only say he didn't care, not think about it, and yet be unable to let it go.

Shuzuo's expression seemed genuine. This villain, who only appeared in a movie in the original work, had a carefree demeanor that momentarily stunned Ron.

"Uh... Brigadier General Shuzuo? Are you serious?"

Seeing Ron's bewildered look, Shuzuo's eyelids twitched violently. He almost couldn't resist lunging forward to punch him. Fortunately, he knew his current status; Zephyr would tear him apart if he beat someone privately. He immediately pulled out a form and threw it at Ron.

"Nonsense! Take this... and get lost!"

Seeing Shuzuo's anger, Ron quickly picked up the form and slipped out. He didn't want to stay with this monster who could smash a three-meter thick iron ball with his bare fists. Noticing Ron's panicked escape, Shuzuo's expression shifted.

There was speechlessness, anger, and anticipation...

Recalling Zephyr handing him the form with his reading glasses on last night, Shuzuo lowered his head and muttered to himself, "Don't disappoint Teacher, Ron..."

As the Marine Headquarters' New Recruit Camp, which practiced "teaching according to aptitude," each new recruit's curriculum was different and not fixed, adjusted gradually based on actual circumstances. The form Shuzuo gave Ron was the training course schedule he would be undertaking in the coming days.

Marathon, weighted running, 100-meter sprint, push-ups, sit-ups... At a glance, it was all physical fitness enhancement training.

A strong sense of being a sports school student!

Ron gave this accurate assessment.

However, he also knew that compared to humans native to the One Piece World, he, from Earth, was inherently physically inferior. Even with special talents and amazing self-healing abilities, it couldn't change the fact that he was weak.

He honestly went to the first location according to the schedule. The drill instructor immediately threw a pile of weights at him, veins bulging on his neck, and roared, "You have thirty seconds to put these on, soldier! Then run!"

So scary!

Ron's hands and feet moved quickly to put on the weights. When the marathon group passed by, he pushed off and joined them.

Thank you to book friend ~Song Wenci~ for the 500 reward!

The character names in yesterday's chapter were misspelled and have now been corrected. Legitimate users can simply re-add this book to their bookshelf. As for pirated users... there's nothing I can do.