The End, the Shadow Under Moonlight

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Although Ye Chen's draw with Sakazuki disappointed many people, it was undeniable that Ye Chen possessed the strength to fight Sakazuki. The title of monster had now been thoroughly proven.

Next were the contestants who had not made the top ten. In truth, these contestants were all quite strong and evenly matched with some of the top ten; they had merely been unlucky and lost by a few moves.

Therefore, Kong raised the number of graduation slots from ten to fifteen. In other words, the top fifteen trainees could graduate, while the rest would have to continue their studies and wait for another chance.

Regrettably, Hina and Shu still failed to make it in the end. Very Good had made it, but he chose to stay behind. Many people did not know why; perhaps only he himself understood.

Just like that, the duels were suspended for a week to allow the injured trainees to recover. A week later, the final battles would take place.

Seven days passed in the blink of an eye, and Ye Chen had not wasted them. He continued training. By now, he could cover his entire body with the Bomb-Bomb Fruit's power, but its might was not as impressive as he had imagined.

Thus, his current goals were physical training, Haki, and developing the Devil Fruit's external applications, striving to raise the power of his explosions by several levels.

If nothing unexpected happened, today would bring this graduation ceremony to a close.

In the first match, Vergo took the stage, defeated his opponent, and firmly secured his position.

"The second match: Ye Chen versus Kuzan."

Of the former three monsters, Ye Chen had fought two. Only Kuzan remained. As long as he defeated Kuzan, Ye Chen would definitely enter the top four.

However, today was destined to surprise everyone.

Walking to the center of the arena, Ye Chen watched that lazy fellow slowly make his way over.

Just as Ye Chen prepared to attack, Kuzan actually yawned and said sleepily, "I lose."

The entire roaring venue fell silent in an instant.

A faint breeze swept up dust, carrying a trace of desolation.

Ye Chen's expression immediately turned cold. Kuzan's face carried a strong sense of disdain, as though he looked down on Ye Chen and had not given him the respect he deserved.

"Hey! Don't misunderstand. After seeing your battles with Borsalino and Sakazuki, I don't think I have the ability to defeat you. Rather than waste time, we might as well end this early and go back for an afternoon nap. I don't mean anything else by it."

Seeing Ye Chen's cold expression, Kuzan patted his head, straightened his face, and solemnly explained himself.

"A draw."

His expression easing slightly, Ye Chen glanced at Kuzan. He had never arrogantly believed he could defeat this lazy fellow, so a draw was the best outcome.

"Whatever. Rankings aren't important anyway." Kuzan rubbed his eyes. From the look of it, he did not take graduation seriously at all. If he had a choice, he would definitely be willing to remain at the academy forever, but circumstances did not allow it.

This duel was even more perfunctory, leaving all the spectators gaping as they cursed inwardly.

On the elevated platform, Zephyr and the others shook their heads and smiled. They were not particularly surprised by this result.

"That brat is so lazy. Looks like he misses the Fist of Love."

Garp grinned, staring at Kuzan as he kneaded his fists. After all, he had been the one to bring Kuzan into the Marines.

In the arena, Kuzan suddenly shivered. Turning to look at Garp's charming smile, his expression changed.

"Next match: Smoker."

The following battles proceeded steadily. From time to time, someone challenged a higher-ranked trainee. Only Sakazuki, Borsalino, Kuzan, and Ye Chen sat firmly at the top, with no one daring to challenge them.

As dusk approached, this graduation ceremony finally came to an end.

At that moment, on the battered, cratered field, many trainees stood together in straight lines, whether they were injured or not.

Some had swollen, bruised faces and grimaced as they wiped away nosebleeds, looking rather comical.

"Very good. Many trainees have given me surprises during this ceremony."

At the very front, Kong stood with his hands clasped behind his back, looking at the energetic trainees. A rare smile appeared on his stern, imposing face.

"I won't say much more. In one week, at the main square and before all the Marines at Headquarters, I will personally present your awards. Rest well during this week!"

Seeing the miserable state of the group, Kong said nothing else and dismissed them directly, since many trainees needed treatment.

Once Kong, Sengoku, and the others left, the trainees who had been solemn and serious immediately erupted in cheers. Not only could they graduate this time, but they would also receive awards personally from Fleet Admiral Kong. Many were too excited to contain themselves.

That night, the streets were brightly lit, and the entire commercial district was filled with laughter and cheerful voices. The trainees made up the largest share of the crowd.

They would have a week-long vacation. During that week, they did not need to train and could play as much as they wanted. For a time, the taverns on the commercial street saw business boom.

Vergo and the others were no exception. Ye Chen had originally intended to train, but Hina and the others dragged him along.

Today was a day worth celebrating. Of the six of them, three could graduate, and all had ranked quite highly.

"Cheers."

The six raised their large mugs and clinked them together. Perhaps gatherings like this would become fewer and fewer in the future.

"Chen, Vergo, Smoker, once you graduate, you'll be able to go out to sea. When you come back, make sure to tell us about the outside world."

Very Good let out a burp, his face flushed red.

"Don't worry! Hahaha!"

"Cheers!"

"But once Ye Chen and the others go out to sea, Hina will feel very lonely. Gatherings like this will definitely become rarer and rarer."

Hina puffed out her cheeks, looking somewhat unhappy.

"How could that be? As long as you keep working hard for a while, graduating will be easy, won't it? Then you can play however you want." Smoker patted Hina on the head.

"That's not what I mean. I mean, once we all graduate, we'll definitely have missions. Then we'll spend more time apart than together, and we won't have chances to be together like this."

Brushing away Smoker's teasing hand, Hina looked deeply dejected.

"It's not like we're being separated by life and death. The Marines have vacations too." Everyone became somewhat gloomy, because Hina was right. Perhaps in the future, gatherings like this would only become more infrequent.

"Forget it, let's not think about it. We'll talk about it when the time comes! As long as we want to get together, we can do it anytime! At worst, we'll skip work!"

"That's true, hahaha!"

In an instant, the gloomy atmosphere dissipated.

That night, everyone drank a great deal. Once again, Ye Chen and Vergo carried the others back to the dormitories; otherwise, they would have stubbornly refused to leave the tavern.

Hina even became a wild drunk, with a temper so fiery that she was practically the complete opposite of her usual self.

Vergo supported Smoker and Very Good, while Ye Chen carried Hina on his back and held Shu in his right hand like a chicken.

Fortunately, none of them wore their weighted gear. Otherwise, with Hina weighing three tons, Shu weighing three tons, and Ye Chen weighing ten tons, it would have taken quite a bit of effort.

On his comfortable back, Hina wrapped her arms around Ye Chen's neck as though she were having a wonderful dream. From time to time, she smacked her lips, and drool soaked Ye Chen's neck.

"Big Brother Ye Chen, hit him."

She muttered dreamily, her words impossible to make out clearly. Hina nuzzled Ye Chen's cheek, and Ye Chen suddenly stiffened before returning to normal the next moment.

And so, the sober and the drunk walked quietly down the road, their shadows stretching long beneath the moonlight.

Whether the pure friendship of these six could continue like this forever remained a mystery!