Caesar was certain that Vegapunk's "gift" was not intended for him, but for Rear Admiral Rowen. This made him furious. He had just secured Rear Admiral Rowen's favor, and now he was going to be outdone by Vegapunk again.
But then, Caesar remembered something and narrowed his eyes.
"Hey, Vegapunk, I don't suppose you have much time for vacation?"
"Hmm?" Vegapunk gave him a strange look, then seemed to realize something and explained with a smile on his face. "Don't worry about running out of time, minus the round trip, one month is enough for me to complete this."
The omission of "you" in Vegapunk's statement suggests that he does not have high expectations for Caesar and believes that he will inevitably lose the competition.
But this time, Caesar didn't show a "wicked" glare, instead, he was expressionless as he raised his head and pointed his chin at Vegapunk, and said in a stretched tone "Oh… I see…"
"Let's do it then!" Caesar immediately ordered the soldiers to bring in the equipment and left without looking back.
As he walked away, Caesar couldn't help but almost laugh to himself.
…
Marine Headquarters, Recruit Camp Building.
"Oh… I see…" Rear Admiral Rowen took the list given to him by Ain and said in a stretched tone: "I never knew there were so many people in the recruit camp. This is like the island training scale of hell!"
The number of participants in the actual combat training is all 477 recruits in the recruit camp. The team will be led by Zephyr, Ain, Shuzo, and the non-staff Rowen. Binz had to set off for a mission immediately after coming back for a few days and would not be with them.
However, this number only includes the recruits, who will only assist in combat. When counting ordinary soldiers, navigation crews, chefs, and other support personnel, the number of people going to the sea this time is quite large.
All these people belong to the recruit camp alone, and they are large enough to fight a small war!
Furthermore, the recruit camp actually has a War Behemoth as a training ship! In the past, the recruits in the camp would be divided into several teams and they would take some ordinary Battleship to perform the actual combat mission separately, and Zephyr would lead a team alone.
But because of the Edward Weevil incident, the recruit camp got a War Behemoth, and all the crew would gather together. Even if there are fanatics who want to attack them, the firepower of War Behemoth is enough to crush everything!
"Do you have to do that on a weekday? Although you don't care about the Recruit Camp but Sensei is getting older and is busy with a lot of things," Ain said while rolling her eyes.
She was really speechless for her Junior Brother. He is indeed very powerful and his strength is reassuring, but he just entered the Recruit Camp and caused trouble, Rowen's habit of encountering trouble when there is none and making trouble where there is no need makes people feel uneasy.
"I'm busy too, I need to be stationed at the G-10 Branch! Today… Ah, Achoo!!" Rowen suddenly sneezed.
He rubbed his nose and said seriously: "I have a feeling that someone is talking about me behind my back. Let me listen…"
Ain looked shocked, looked around, and asked, "Listen to what?"
"I will monitor the Headquarters! I am a Humanoid self-walking Den Den Mushi!" Rowen exclaimed with a crafty smile on his face.
Ain: "…"
"Stop! You are just a Rear Admiral, do you know how many things you're not allowed to know?!" Shuzo said with a furious expression on his face.
"Tch! Why are you ruining my fun…" Rowen's mouth twitched silently and he stopped.
Zephyr sat in the chair and he watched his disciples communicate with a smile on his face.
The past may have been sad and heavy, but as long as they were there, there was hope for the future.
…
The following day, the weather was good. Marine Headquarters, Bay Port.
The Marine flag fluttered in the wind, hunting in the wind. A War Behemoth was docked at the Bay Port, on the Blue Sea.
The deck recruits were arranging themselves in queues, looking forward to the arrival of the instructors.
"Hey, have you heard? Rear Admiral Rowen will be going with us this time!"
"Rear Admiral Rowen? You mean… the senior who graduated last year?!!!"
"Yes, it's him!"
"Great, we will be fine with him!"
There were a lot of discussions among the recruits, and many people were looking forward to meeting Rowen, who they had never met.
Because Rowen's life is a biography for them. He is a genius who continued to write the legend which surpassed the legend of the three Admirals!
Even the three Admirals weren't that much of a Monster when they were in the Recruit Camp!
As a recruit, he single-handedly defeated the Hell Island Crab, earning an immediate promotion to Rear Admiral. He also successfully dealt with a Pirate invasion on Pucci and personally apprehended the rogue Shichibukai Crocodile.
Rowen's achievements in such a short period of time have earned him great respect and admiration among his peers. His impressive strength as well as the increase in his strength which was only "50" Doriki when he first entered the Recruit Camp has turned this respect into near-worship.
However, Rowen emphasizes that it is not just raw power that leads to success, but hard work and determination. He uses his own experience as an example, showing that anyone can overcome their weaknesses and accomplish great things with effort and perseverance.
The power of a strong role model is limitless, and Rowen serves as an inspiration to all recruits.
In the current recruit camp, the most highly regarded figure among the recruits is not the former Admiral Zephyr, who is seen as a god-like figure, but rather Rear Admiral Rowen, who is more relatable and approachable.
Rowen serves as a shining example of what can be achieved through hard work and determination, and his rapid rise through the ranks serves as inspiration for all the recruits. He is a symbol of hope and a reminder that anyone can achieve great things if they set their minds to it.
Naturally, if they know that Rowen will soon become the Base Head of the G-10 branch then it can be imagined that this worship will dissipate and Rowen will become someone who is as respected as Zephyr.
After all, in past history, which one will not be the final place after accumulating Military Merits for a long time?
After all, in the past history, which one of the Marine figures had not taken a long time to polish the seniority and accumulate enough Military Merits to reach their current position?
But Rowen only took less than a year to do that!
The gap between him and others and the strength shown by Rowen is sufficient to dispel the "sense of familiarity" with his "rise from humble beginnings."
"Be quiet!"
An Instructor, seeing the commotion of the recruiting team, shouted: "Don't think that just because you have Rear Admiral Rowen with you, you're safe! If he defeats the enemy for you then you won't have a chance. Get back to your positions!"
The Instructor spoke with a serious expression on his face, indicating that the consequences of not complying will be severe.
The recruits, now subdued, still have fierce and intense expectations in their eyes.
…
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