There's Only One Requirement

Cold, the most primal fear of life; the dread of surviving the winter is a habit ingrained in almost every living creature.

The speed at which one is eliminated by low temperatures even surpasses that of combat. After all, defeat in battle only requires a sudden, critical strike, whereas long-term endurance is often unbearable.

Conrad, however, has his own insights. When enduring the bitter winter, he never tenses his muscles to fight the cold; he simply recites the Heart-Freezing Art.

He is always relaxed, letting the cold wind pass through his body, imagining himself as a part of nature, observing his body's sensations like an outsider.

He always has a way to face discomfort as comfortably as possible.

When the number of people on the ice peak reached two hundred, spiraling crystal ice slides connected the ten peaks, leading directly to the oath-taking platform in front of Aokiji.

Although the frost had not yet lifted, the temperature had risen rapidly, and the warmth of the sunlight could be clearly felt.

"From now on, I am your commanding officer." Aokiji's expression shifted from lazy to slightly serious. "I have only one requirement for you: complete the assigned mission."

"Do we get eliminated if the mission fails?" The questioner was Binz, with his pink octopus-style hair, looking quite comical.

Aokiji scanned the marines present and shook his head. "No, if you fail, you die. Surviving until the end is the only way to pass."

"Gather at Port 1 in three days at ten o'clock." After speaking, his long, thin legs bent like steel bars, and relying purely on physical strength, he leaped over a hundred meters out of the training grounds.

Conrad also tried a standing jump, but he barely cleared five meters, scratching his head in helplessness.

The gap between the lower and upper limits of humans in this world is truly vast, though he was satisfied enough; at least he could jump higher than his former self.

Effort brings progress, and progress brings feedback; this is already a very fortunate thing, and a sign of innate talent.

"Eh?" Conrad mimicked the movement, and before landing, he tapped his right foot against the air, actually bouncing up a few centimeters out of thin air.

Dorm 108.

Bling Bling was sneezing and running a nose, soaking in a bucket of hot water, his face pale and purple.

Drake paced back and forth. He had yearned for the Navy since he was a child, always secretly wearing his father's marine cap, but he hadn't expected the first mission to be so dangerous.

It wasn't fear, but unease—a sense of loss from having no understanding of what was about to happen.

Conrad slept soundly; to him, nothing was more important than waking up the next day full of energy. Staying up late made him sleepy and affected his growth.

Thus, the dorm looked exactly the same when he opened his eyes as it did before he went to sleep, because one of his roommates was wasting time in internal friction, and the other was sick.

He had already slept enough to be refreshed. The sky was just beginning to brighten, the dark blue firmament still stained with gray, the drowsiness not yet lifted.

"Morning run, coming?" Conrad jumped up with a swish, squeezed toothpaste, and while brushing his teeth, used one hand to aim into the toilet.

"Let's go!" Drake and Bling Bling said in unison.

The three of them stepped onto the blue-brick streets of Marineford; most people here had the habit of morning runs, so they weren't considered special.

As the sun rose over the sea, the world brightened bit by bit. Conrad also felt a sense of awakening; most people love the light, which is why there is the saying about absorbing the vitality of the morning sun.

He arrived outside the guard post of the officer's residential district. The guard already recognized him and pointed in a direction.

Baby-5, in a red dress, was waiting inside the steel fence, holding an insulated lunch box.

Conrad walked over, and Baby-5 opened the box to take out bread.

He reached through the fence to take it and started munching, while Baby-5 took out a bowl of noodles, soup, and seasonings, and began to mix them.

By the time he finished the bread, he could just eat the steaming hot noodle soup.

Only then did Baby-5 speak her first sentence, "Kujaku said you are going on a very dangerous mission?"

"Not dangerous, she's just talking nonsense." Conrad chewed with a mouthful of noodles, smiling and waving his chopsticks.

"I'm going with you." Baby-5's statement was clearly a declaration, not asking if Conrad needed her or not.

"Then let's go ask together." Conrad naturally wanted to go with Baby-5, so regardless of whether they would agree, he decided to ask first.

Baby-5 beamed with joy. "Okay! Then hurry up and eat!"

Conrad said in surprise, "You're actually rushing me."

"Ah?" Baby-5 looked nervous. "I didn't..."

"It's fine." Conrad opened his mouth and, as if expanding, gulped down half a bowl of noodles, then walked toward the guard. "Could you please help me call Vice Admiral Tsuru's house?"

One cannot simply enter the officer's residential area; it requires the permission and consent of the residents.

The guard was an old man with a handlebar mustache, possessing very spirited eyes and a large build that filled out his uniform jacket. He picked up the Den Den Mushi receiver and dialed.

The other side answered quickly; it was Kujaku's voice. The guard put down the receiver, smiled kindly, took the key, and opened the iron gate, saying, "Go on in."

Conrad could actually clear the gate with a single flip, but he was held back purely by this old man.

The landscaping in the residential area was well done, and the air was filled with the fragrance of plants. The space was large, and each house was spaced far apart with gardens, unlike the tightly packed row houses of the dorms.

Conrad and Baby-5 knocked on Vice Admiral Tsuru's door. Kujaku opened it; she had just woken up and hadn't put on her hat yet, her blonde hair a messy tangle.

The old lady was eating breakfast in the living room, still sitting upright, chewing slowly and swallowing carefully.

"Grandma Tsuru." Conrad called out, then sat on the sofa with Baby-5.

Tsuru didn't speak until she finished eating and wiped her mouth clean with a napkin. "I'll leave Kujaku to your care."

"Grandma! It's me who's supposed to be taking care of him!" Kujaku threw herself against Tsuru's stomach, shaking her arm to express her dissatisfaction.

"Fine, I will." Conrad nodded, "There is something I would like to ask..."

"Take Baby-5 with you." Tsuru ruffled Kujaku's golden hair; her own hair had been a deep blue in her youth. "Bring her back when you return to Marineford. Remember, this is a promise."

Conrad was startled for a moment, but immediately agreed: "Very well."

On Baby-5's flushed face, joy was impossible to contain as she tugged at the corner of Conrad's coat and said, "Thank you, Grandma Tsuru."

Tsuru hunched her back and asked, "Is there anything else?"

Conrad shook his head, "Then I shall take her and be on my way."

"Mm, go on then." Tsuru took Kujaku's hand and turned toward the washroom, smiling warmly, "Time to wash your hair."

"Again?"

Kujaku's slender 1.67-meter frame stood beneath the two-meter-tall Tsuru, who bent down to rest her hand on the girl's head, "By the time you grow any taller, I'm afraid I won't be able to reach."

"Then I won't grow any taller, I'll stay shorter than Grandma so you can keep washing it for me forever." Kujaku twisted her waist playfully and laughed.

Conrad and Baby-5 walked out of the residence hand-in-hand, closing the door behind them.

This was the first time they had walked side-by-side in a free and safe environment; Baby-5's face was burning hot. Without the constant surveillance, she didn't know how to act around Conrad, feeling a lifelong sense of restraint.

Conrad, however, was different. He looked toward the lookout pavilion on the mountaintop and said, "I definitely can't stay in the barracks with you around, I need to find some money for a hotel or to rent a place."

Baby-5 didn't speak, only feeling a warmth in her chest. She leaned in closer, shoulder-to-shoulder, and said in a soft, sweet voice, "I can work too. I know how to be a maid, I can clean..."

Although she had always just stolen money back when she was a pirate, she was a Marine's girlfriend now, so she couldn't steal anymore—Grandma Tsuru reminded her of that every single day.