Nine o'clock the next morning.
Tsuru and Zephyr's battleship passed through the massive metal gates of Justice Gate, engraved with the World Government's crossed-globe emblem.
Riding the special whirlpool current, they arrived at Marine Headquarters—Marineford.
From a distance, Conrad saw a towering fortress. Classical buildings with double-eaved roofs crowned it, while its sturdy gray-stone foundation was plain and solid, painted with the two black characters for "Navy."
At the island's Crescent Bay harbor, battleships were lined up side by side in their designated berths. Thousands of Marines were constantly moving about, coming ashore or setting sail.
Conrad wasn't a Marine yet. He was an outsider with no identity.
Zephyr treated everyone equally and had no intention of giving him special treatment. As soon as the battleship docked, he had Smoker take him to the Marine orphans' center to register.
Drake was with him. Although he'd spent many years as a pirate alongside his father, he was softhearted and had no record of wrongdoing, so he was also being treated as a war orphan.
The three of them passed through the city gate and circled around to the main street of the back quarter. The houses were all built of gray-blue brick, with identical two-story designs.
Smoker puffed on his cigar and said, "Marine families live here. If none of your relatives come to claim you, you'll be staying here for a while."
"Do you have any money?" Conrad suddenly asked.
"No," Smoker answered automatically. But as he looked at the food stalls lining the street, he slowly furrowed his brow, thinking he ought to be more generous in front of the children. "What do you want to eat?"
"Nothing." Conrad shook his head. "I was going to ask to borrow some money from you. Never mind if you don't have any."
Smoker's brows drew together even more. "What does a kid like you need money for?"
"Clothes, food. You need money just to stay alive." Conrad sighed. "I saw all those cigars hanging from your shoulder strap and thought you were rich."
Smoker fell silent. His salary wasn't low, but he often damaged civilians' property during missions and had to pay for it.
So even when he smoked cigars, one-tenth of the smoke came from the cigars and nine-tenths from himself.
Still, he slipped a hand into his pocket and felt for his wallet. "How much do you need?"
Conrad was sharp-eyed enough to see through the man's stubbornness at a glance, and waved him off sympathetically. "No, no, it's fine."
"Just tell me how much you need!" Smoker raised his brows and bared his teeth. He even pulled a fresh cigar from his shoulder strap and cut it open. Smoking two at once when he wasn't in combat—now that was extravagant.
"I'm not sure what things cost." Conrad's expression turned solemn. He understood the other man's intentions now, and pointed at the newspapers displayed in front of a general store. "How much is one?"
"One hundred Beli." Smoker could certainly afford that much, so he started toward the shop to buy one.
"Then lend me two million," Conrad said.
Smoker stopped in his tracks. His brows twitched, and the hand on his wallet quietly let go. He pulled a five-hundred-Beli coin from his breast pocket and tossed it to Conrad.
He turned his head, puffed on his cigar, and gazed at the sky. "Go buy it."
"Thanks." Conrad caught the coin.
In his mind, a newspaper cost a dollar. By that exchange rate, borrowing twenty thousand dollars shouldn't be unreasonable.
He glanced at Smoker's lieutenant's epaulets and went to buy the paper, resolving that he'd never become a poor Marine.
Drake followed the two of them. He envied how easily Conrad could talk to Lieutenant Smoker. The lieutenant looked so fierce and had such a deep voice that every time he called Drake's name, Drake shuddered all over.
Conrad bought a copy of the World Economic News.
When he opened it, the first thing he saw was the front-page headline, featuring the profile of a young woman with a black hime cut and a pair of golden snake earrings.
It was a wanted poster. There was a long string of zeros beneath it. Counting from the right, Conrad found there were eighty million Beli.
The headline read: "Empress of the Amazon Lily Kingdom and captain of the Kuja Pirates, Boa Hancock, joins the World Government as a Shichibukai!"
"So she just became a Shichibukai." Conrad remembered that the empress was supposed to be eighteen that year. If he had the chance to meet the world's most beautiful woman along the way, he wanted to see her.
After all, heroes had always struggled to resist beautiful women. He wanted to put a hero's weakness to the test. Conrad was completely confident in his ability to resist temptation.
The orphan center had three service windows. Most of the people waiting in the seats were mothers with children; a few were grandparents with their grandchildren.
They were all there to collect compensation and allowances for food and lodging.
But one group stood out: all teenagers, either alone or in clusters of siblings who looked alike.
Drake was a little nervous. While Smoker went to get in line for a number, he stayed close beside Conrad, who was reading the paper.
"The infamous Red Hair Pirates have left the Grand Line! Captain Shanks keeps appearing in the East Blue! What is he planning?"
Conrad keenly sensed that this might be the beginning of fate. Shanks was going to seize the Gum-Gum Fruit.
But the story hadn't revealed the specific details or location.
Bang!
A young man with a pink buzz cut and a Marine cap planted his foot on the stool between Drake's legs and asked with a cocky grin, "Hey, kid! I haven't seen you before. Who are you with?"
Drake opened his mouth, then stopped. He couldn't bring himself to say that his father was a pirate captain who had defected from the Marines.
"Look at you, such a wimp. Why don't you follow me from now on? I'm Fullbody, and I'll protect you!"
The pink-haired young man had a loud voice, as if he were deliberately trying to attract the attention of those around him. Every so often, his eyes darted toward the girls among the orphans.
"I'm about to take the entrance exam for the next elite training camp! When I graduate, I'll become a Marine major right away!"
Drake had been bullied by his father and the pirates for too long. He was timid by nature, and when faced with someone who was louder and more imposing than he was, he didn't know how to fight back.
All he could do was look to Conrad for help, even though Conrad was clearly much younger and shorter than he was.
Conrad closed the newspaper and glanced at Fullbody. The other man was at least six feet tall, more than half a head taller than him.
He thought he'd better eat more and work out so he could grow faster. He felt as though he was falling whenever he slept, which meant his bones still had plenty of room to grow.
"Hit him."
"Huh?" Drake realized that Conrad wasn't stepping in to protect him. Instead, he was looking at Drake. His gaze was calm, but it felt like two knives stabbing into Drake's eyes, making him lower his head without thinking.
Fullbody's grin grew even more arrogant. He'd been watching Drake ever since he came in. The kid had arrived with that lunkhead Smoker, which clearly meant he had no family or connections.
He sat there fidgeting, looking like he'd never seen the world. His eyes were darting everywhere. Definitely an easy target.
Just right for him to pick on, show off his name, and make a scene.
"Hold your head up!" Conrad suddenly roared. "Hit him!"
Fullbody's face flushed with anger. He tugged at his sergeant's epaulets and clenched his fist, which was fitted with brass knuckles. "If you weren't so young and injured, I'd have to teach you a proper lesson on behalf of your parents! Teach you how the child of a soldier ought to survive!"
Conrad sprang to his feet. "Damn it, Drake! Hit him! If you won't, I'll do it myself!"
"Yaaaah!!!"
Drake closed his eyes and imitated the Haki shout Conrad had let out that day.
He swung his right hand like a dinosaur swinging its claws and slapped Fullbody across the left cheek.
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