Daily Life (2)

"Captured? You, Dawn?"

The words that fell from Dawn's lips immediately piqued Hina's curiosity.

As for the origins of this companion of hers, Dawn, all she knew was that Aokiji and Yukimura had brought him back from an uninhabited island after a mission.

Beyond that, she knew nothing at all.

"Yeah. Before I ended up on that little island, I was almost taken by pirates to be sold as a slave," Dawn said. "Uncle Yukimura saved me after that, but then the forces behind the Slave Catchers retaliated, and that's how I wound up stranded on a deserted island."

Dawn chuckled and continued, "Back when I was captured, there was a navigator among the prisoners. Once he revealed his identity and started giving orders on the ship, he immediately became a full member of the pirate crew."

"No way??" Hina's mouth fell open, her face a mask of shock—whether from the revelation that Dawn had once been captured, or from just how important a navigator really was, she wasn't sure.

But Dawn knew that if you had an exceptionally skilled navigator, even if their combat ability was lacking, they would still wield considerable influence aboard a ship.

Even if you were unlucky enough to be taken prisoner by another pirate crew, your chances of survival would be far higher than anyone else's. At worst, you'd be sold off at a high price as a valuable talent.

That was the importance of a navigator. The profession demanded vast knowledge, experience, and even natural talent to become truly excellent.

And an excellent navigator was a rare and precious asset.

Otherwise, why would Golden Lion have targeted the Straw Hat Pirates? Wasn't it because Nami was a navigator of that caliber?

Otherwise, even if Golden Lion was old, it wasn't like he couldn't find another navigator.

Elsewhere.

In the office of Fleet Admiral Kong, a Video Den Den Mushi was projecting battles from the training ground onto the wall.

For some reason, the future Fleet Admiral Sengoku, along with Garp, Aokiji, and the others, weren't busy with work. Instead, they were gathered in this room watching the "live broadcast."

When all the fights ended, Sengoku turned to Aokiji and asked, "Aokiji, I recall you mentioning that the kid you brought back before has joined the Advanced Training Camp. Why didn't I see him?"

"Crunch, crunch."

Garp sat on the sofa, munching away on rice crackers, his words muffled as he chewed: "Haha, you mean the brat Aokiji brought back from the Boin Archipelago? I'm pretty interested in that kid too!"

After the two big shots spoke, they waited for Aokiji's reply, but after a long pause, none came.

Looking closely... they saw Aokiji curled up in the sofa, an eye mask pulled down over his eyes—he had actually fallen asleep...

"You little brat, sleeping in the Fleet Admiral's office!" Garp walked over to Aokiji's sofa and punched him right on his afro.

"Ow! Mr. Garp, why'd you hit me?" Aokiji yawned helplessly.

Used to Aokiji's personality by now, Sengoku repeated his earlier question. Aokiji yawned again and said lazily:

"Dawn's navigation class conflicted with training today, so he should be in the classroom studying navigation. But I'd be interested in seeing how much he's improved lately if he were to fight."

With that, Aokiji pushed his eye mask up to his forehead, forced himself up from the soft sofa, and yawned lazily, trying to shake off his drowsiness.

The Advanced Training Camp was where trainees learned the Marine Six Powers. Generally, only older trainees were admitted to begin studying them.

These marines were the elite of their cohort, the fresh blood and future pillars of the Marines, which was why they could continue their studies and learn the Six Powers directly without needing military merit.

Navigation was also a required subject for these young marines.

Scheduling navigation classes after training sessions was a deliberate choice by Sengoku and the others. They knew most kids would rather rest after training, but they did it anyway.

Because it was also a form of test and observation.

If a trainee could still easily focus on academic subjects like navigation after a training session, it proved they had mastered the training with room to spare—a promising candidate worth further development.

And if they could settle down to study, it showed a relatively steady temperament. Even if they weren't both scholarly and martial, at least they weren't hotheaded grunts.

Such candidates, after further training, could graduate and serve as base commanders at various branches.

Those who couldn't focus on studying but had a fiery temper and talent could be developed purely as combatants, following officers on missions to hunt pirates.

And those who lagged in strength but still persisted in studying navigation and other academic subjects?

After completing basic training, their path would depend on their talent and choice—whether to develop as a navigator or a staff officer.

In such roles, even if their combat ability was lacking, it didn't matter. What mattered was their ability to apply what they'd learned.

For example, navigating at sea, or serving as a secretary to assist a commanding officer with branch affairs.

In terms of talent screening, Marine Headquarters did an excellent job, ensuring everyone found their proper role.

After all, a massive organization couldn't function on brute force alone, without the wisdom of staff officers to keep it running.

Once they graduated from the training camp and honed their skills under officers, they would officially become marines, receiving ranks based on their strength and achievements.

And the Advanced Training Camp wasn't just for kids like Hina. It accepted recommended talents from Marine branches worldwide, covering all age groups under thirty.

As for the training camp Hina and Dawn had been in before, it was basically Marine Headquarters' equivalent of kindergarten or elementary school—mostly children of marines, or kids like Dawn who had joined for various reasons and showed exceptional talent.

It was only after arriving here that Dawn realized Marine Headquarters had so much information that hadn't been revealed in his past life. But that was normal—after all, the anime's perspective was limited to Luffy's crew.

Here, this was the complete, real world.

As for Dawn, he had just used his quick thinking to convince Hina to study navigation seriously and was about to help her catch up on previous lessons.

Suddenly, the academic teacher appeared and informed Dawn that he needed to report to the training camp for testing.

Hearing the teacher's notice, Hina let out a cheer, declaring, "Hina is happy!" Then she eagerly grabbed Dawn and dragged him toward the training ground.

Watching Hina's delight at escaping class because of Dawn's test, Dawn smiled helplessly.

Still just a kid. Even though she was willing to study seriously, she'd still be overjoyed at any excuse to skip it.

If you find this book enjoyable, to avoid losing track next time, please remember to add it to your bookshelf.