Major General

Marineford, one week later, the Grand Plaza was packed with Marines and their families who had gathered to watch the excitement.

Today, Fleet Admiral Kong would award several cadets their graduation ranks. It was a tremendous honor, after all. Kong was the Fleet Admiral, and both his status and strength spoke for themselves. Such an opportunity was rare.

It was like an ordinary student meeting a national leader. And that leader would personally present the awards, even allowing them to get close. It was impossible not to be excited.

Supreme Commander Kong, Admiral Sengoku, Zephyr, Marine Hero Garp, Staff Officer Tsuru.

Many high-ranking Marine officers sat nearby. This award ceremony was somewhat overly grand, but the graduating cadets deserved it.

The ceremony was hosted by a rear admiral, and a Marine Headquarters rear admiral at that. Even the lowest-ranking among them had to possess Haki and were true officers with real authority.

As soon as he stepped up, the rear admiral gave a brief speech. It was still the usual official talk about the Marines, justice, and so on.

"The graduation ceremony for this class now officially begins. Sakazuki, Ye Chen, Borsalino, Kuzan, Vergo, please come up."

Holding a list, the young rear admiral called out the names one by one. These were the top five, without any ranking. The strengths of four of them were too evenly matched, and it was difficult to determine a winner in a short time, so there was no ranking.

In other words, four people shared first place.

Vergo was slightly behind them, making him second place—or fifth overall.

Today, Ye Chen and the other four were dressed formally, but they were missing one item of clothing, making them seem as though something was lacking.

"Please welcome the Fleet Admiral to present the five graduates with their ranks."

Standing straight on the stage, Ye Chen looked out at the densely packed Marines and residents who had come to watch. His eyes remained calm, but faint ripples stirred in his heart.

He was no longer the insignificant ant he had been two years ago.

Kong stepped down from the seat of honor, followed by five Marines. Each carried a coat and a badge.

Starting from the left, Kong stopped.

The first was Sakazuki. Despite his usual expressionless face, he could barely suppress his excitement now, and his body trembled slightly.

Taking a Marine rear admiral's coat from the Marine behind him, Kong personally draped it over Sakazuki's shoulders, then personally pinned on his rear admiral badge.

"Congratulations, Rear Admiral Sakazuki."

Once he was properly dressed, Kong gave Sakazuki a solemn military salute.

"Thank you, Fleet Admiral. Everything is for justice."

Standing ramrod straight, Sakazuki kept a stern face as he returned the salute and shouted resolutely.

Then, following the same procedure, Kong draped rear admiral coats over Ye Chen, Borsalino, Kuzan, and Vergo, pinned on their badges, and saluted each of them.

The awards ceremony ended. On the high platform, five young men stood draped in coats of justice, the badges on their chests gleaming as they radiated fiery youthful vigor.

From today onward, the five of them were Marine Headquarters rear admirals, genuine holders of authority.

At the same time, thunderous applause erupted throughout the Grand Plaza, because everyone knew these five rear admirals would not stop here.

Many had already recognized the potential of Ye Chen and the others and intended to send gifts in order to get acquainted with them. There were countless such people.

"Next, Chaton, Onigumo, Hōshō, Momonga, Smoker, please come up."

After the rear admiral awards came the commodore awards.

However, Kong would no longer present the commodore awards. Sengoku took his place, but even so, the crowd was still thrilled. After all, this was a Marine admiral!

The award ceremony lasted nearly an hour.

In one stroke, Marine Headquarters gained many new commodores. And this was only the beginning, because anyone with eyes could see the future awaiting Onigumo and the others.

With these rising talents, the Marines' future would become even stronger. This was something everyone was happy to see.

Likewise, some outside forces had taken notice of the Marines' grand occasion.

Ye Chen and the other five, who had graduated directly as rear admirals, were investigated especially thoroughly.

After the ceremony ended, there were still many things to do, such as moving house. Becoming a rear admiral came with generous rewards, including a villa, Beli, and various other things.

Most importantly, they had to choose their subordinates and familiarize themselves with the authority and duties of a rear admiral.

In the Marine officers' residential district, exquisite villas stood among flowers and trees, creating a breathtaking sight.

After packing up simply, Ye Chen stood outside the villa in silence.

"Wow! It's so beautiful! Brother Ye Chen, hurry and go in!"

Behind him, Hina's eyes sparkled as she looked at the neatly trimmed plants in the courtyard and the various flowers within. She impatiently pushed Ye Chen, urging him to open the door.

Clearly, these villas were maintained by dedicated staff and could be moved into at any time.

The key turned in the lock. Ye Chen opened the courtyard gate, and Hina, Shu, and the others rushed into the villa in a stream, shouting excitedly.

"It's so beautiful!"

"It's actually this big!"

"It has three floors!"

Watching the noisy trio of Hina and the others, Vergo and the rest, who were still standing where they were, shook their heads.

"My villa is right next door. Looks like we'll be neighbors from now on." Vergo pointed at the identical villa beside it and smiled.

Smoker also had a villa, but it was not in this area. Comparatively speaking, it was somewhat farther from the center.

"Then I can't be bothered going back. I'll live here from now on."

Without even thinking about it, Smoker made his decision. His villa was still somewhat inferior compared to Ye Chen's and Vergo's.

"Tomorrow, the two of you will go choose your subordinates. Commodores get fifty, and rear admirals get one hundred. I never thought that one day, I'd have fifty subordinates too. Ahahaha!"

Smoker was still excited. Just thinking that he would have fifty subordinates from tomorrow onward made him so thrilled he could go mad.

This was rising straight to the top. As long as someone had talent and potential, they could take countless fewer steps than others.

"You two can go tomorrow. I don't want any subordinates for the time being."

Walking into the courtyard and looking at the carefully pruned potted plants and ornamental greenery, Ye Chen was in a very good mood.

From today onward, this would temporarily be his home.

"Ah?" Smoker stared at Ye Chen in surprise. Even Vergo looked puzzled.

"My goal is different from yours." Ye Chen smiled indifferently.

"We'll stay at Brother Ye Chen's place tonight. There are plenty of rooms on the second and third floors, so we're throwing a party tonight."

Hopping excitedly, Hina ran down from the second floor. She had plainly already treated this place as her own home.

"Can I refuse?" Ye Chen's face darkened.

"Shu, Very Good, let's go buy supplies. We're having barbecue tonight!"

With a snort, Hina completely ignored Ye Chen, grabbed Shu and Very Good, and rushed outside in a flurry.

"Looks like you won't have much peace and quiet in the future."

Smoker walked into the house, his eyes lighting up when he saw the sofa in the living room. He immediately lay down on it.

"Not bad." Vergo sat on the sofa opposite him, propped his feet on the glass table in the middle, and narrowed his eyes contentedly.

"Your villa is right next door. You have one too."

Setting down his backpack, Ye Chen gave the living room a rough look. It was quite nice, and there was also a courtyard in the back. It seemed he would need to prepare some training equipment.

"What are your plans from now on?" Smoker lay on his side on the sofa, looking at Ye Chen and Vergo.

"We'll see. Tomorrow, I'll pick a few subordinates, then head out to sea first."

Vergo drew himself in and thought for a moment.

"What about Chen?"

Smoker shifted his gaze to Ye Chen.

"I still have some things to take care of!"