Another Year, First Birthday

A month passed quickly. In fact, after just half a month, before they had even turned twenty, Ye Chen and the others had obtained what they wanted.

Clearly, Ye Chen was not the first person to come up with this idea. Otherwise, it would not have been made so quickly. After all, items that could hold such weight while remaining compact were rare. Otherwise, the Marines would have popularized them long ago.

This was only possible because of Zephyr. With someone else, they might not even have considered it.

First were four wristbands. They looked rather unique, silver-white in color, one for each limb. The second item resembled a vest and could be worn either outside or underneath clothing. Together, they weighed exactly five tons.

Five tons was ten thousand jin. Each part weighed two thousand jin, which was deliberately arranged by Zephyr because it provided balance and was the most effective setup.

Early in the morning, six half-grown children were on the training field, panting heavily and drenched in sweat as they walked.

That was right. From afar, it looked like they were merely taking a walk.

At the front, Ye Chen stood upright with his hands pressed tightly against his thighs. It was not that he did not want to raise them; he simply could not. Even taking what used to be a leisurely step now took several seconds, and it was taking longer and longer.

After only five or six steps, Ye Chen was already sweating profusely, his stamina draining several times faster than usual.

Vergo was beside him, not much better off than Ye Chen. His waist was slightly bent, and bulging veins covered his neck.

Behind them was Smoker. He was cursing furiously inside, nearly bent double, gritting his teeth as he inched forward like an ant, as though he might collapse at any moment.

Shu and the other two were walking alongside Smoker. Compared with Ye Chen's group, however, they looked much better. A ton of weight was just right for them. At least they could walk normally, though any other form of training was impossible.

"Smoker, hurry up. Chen and Vergo are already two meters ahead of you."

Very Good stood there without feeling any strain, sticking out his tongue like a lapdog as he watched the hunched-over Smoker with a snicker.

Without straightening up, Smoker continued bending over and cursed, "Very Good, you bastard. Trade with me if you have the guts."

"Forget it. I do not want to end up crawling on the ground."

"Hehe." Shu laughed from the side as well, and it sounded especially grating.

"You two bastards, after training, you are treating me tonight on Commercial Street."

"Why?" Shu and Very Good nearly jumped in outrage. They received monthly allowances, but they were only a little over a hundred thousand Beli. Worse still, they had huge appetites. One meal would cost them at least half of it.

"Sigh. Once training is over, I will have nothing to do. My hands have been feeling a little itchy."

Smoker suddenly said something completely unrelated, instantly darkening Shu and Very Good's faces.

"You win." Gritting his teeth, Very Good directly passed Smoker, clearly unwilling to keep talking to that bastard.

"Brother Ye Chen, Brother Vergo, Shu and Very Good are treating us tonight!"

Hina also passed Smoker and excitedly chattered beside Ye Chen and Vergo.

"Train." Ye Chen gave a simple reply, immediately cutting off whatever Hina had wanted to say next. She puffed out her cheeks and gave a cold snort.

After that, everyone buried themselves in training. By the time they had walked around the entire training field, dusk had already fallen. Just walking had taken Ye Chen and the others nearly the whole day.

The next day, Ye Chen and the others continued walking, first getting used to the five-ton weight properly.

By the fifth day, their walking had become somewhat normal.

By the twentieth day, they could run.

Two months later, they could begin trying push-ups.

By the fourth month, they began doing frog jumps.

The sixth month, the tenth month.

Before they knew it, a year had passed since Ye Chen and the others began carrying five tons.

The sweat they had shed that year could have filled a pool, but the rewards were equally unimaginable.

Nothing major happened that year. The same great pirate crews continued stirring up trouble in the New World.

Zephyr continued leaving and returning, as did the other Marine officers. Even Sakazuki and the others spent more time away than at Marineford.

Relatively speaking, it had been a peaceful year.

In Marineford's commercial district, on an open-air food street, Ye Chen and the others sat together. Before them were all kinds of delicious dishes and strong liquor.

"Cheers."

Hina's face was flushed. Wearing a pale red dress with her pink hair hanging loose, she smiled with crescent-shaped eyes and raised her glass.

Without realizing it, everyone had grown another year older. Hina had changed the most.

She had now fully blossomed into a beauty, curvy in all the right places. Countless people in the academy wanted to pursue her.

Most importantly, all of their strength had undergone earth-shaking changes. They were nowhere near their original counterparts anymore.

"Shu, happy birthday."

Everyone looked at the star of the evening and smiled.

"Hehe, thank you, everyone." Shu's eyes were slightly moist as he raised his glass and looked at his good friends, his heart filled with happiness.

That was right. Tonight was Shu's birthday. He had turned sixteen. Whenever someone had a birthday, they would gather for a celebration. Not long ago, they had held a birthday feast for Very Good, and now it was Shu's turn.

"The liquor at this place is still the best."

Very Good drained his glass in one gulp, let out a burp, and gave a foolish grin.

Rarely, Ye Chen did not keep a straight face. Instead, he smiled faintly.

"Everyone worked hard this year, but we succeeded. Let's have another drink."

Smoker's face was flushed with excitement. Each of them was carrying a different amount of weight, yet they could now eat, drink, and have fun as usual, as though the weights did not exist at all.

"Chen and I are paying tonight. Drink as much as you want." Vergo smiled, raised his glass, and clinked it heavily against Shu's.

"Cheers."

"Drink up. We are resting tonight, so do not think about all that messy training. Relax properly."

For a time, the atmosphere became blazing hot. Ye Chen's table became the sight of the whole street. Many middle-aged people and elderly people watched them with sighs, thinking how wonderful it was to be young. They too had once eaten meat by the mouthful and drunk liquor by the bowlful, but some of those people from back then were no longer around.

"Brother Ye Chen, when is your birthday? Brother Vergo, Smoker, Shu, and Very Good have all celebrated theirs, but we have never celebrated yours."

With her big eyes wide open, Hina looked curiously at Ye Chen as he drank glass after glass.

"Yeah. It seems like you have never mentioned your age, Chen. Even now, I do not know how old you are."

Smoker put down his glass, stunned. Aside from Ye Chen's name, they knew nothing about his past.

"I do not know how old I am."

It was true. Ye Chen really did not know his age. He had known it in his previous life, but how could Mr. 5, an orphan, possibly know his own age?

Everyone was slightly taken aback, but Vergo suddenly said, "Then today is also Ye Chen's birthday. It will be on the same day as Shu's. Cheers."

"Right, but Brother Ye Chen can count as sixteen. From now on, you have to call me Sister Hina." Hina made a joke. She really was one year older than Shu, so she deliberately teased him.

"Haha, sixteen is perfect."

That night, everyone drank happily and stayed out late.

Oddly enough, throughout the night and afterward, Hina still kept calling Ye Chen her brother.