"Is this the Marine Headquarters, Marineford?" Ryu stood at the port of Marineford, gazing at the magnificent Marine Headquarters, and asked in amazement.
"Ha ha, kid! Take it all in; this will be your new home!" Garp clapped Ryu on the shoulder and laughed.
"So, Vice Admiral, what should I do now?" Ryu turned and asked, feeling somewhat helpless.
Yes, after arriving at Marineford, the soldiers had dispersed to their own duties, leaving Ryu alone, unsure of where to go.
"First, head to the new recruit registration office. Someone there will tell you what to do next!" The aloof swordsman appeared behind Ryu and pointed to a small building in the distance.
Ryu shrugged, said goodbye to Garp and the aloof swordsman, and walked towards the registration office.
Soon, after Ryu registered his information, he was issued four sets of Third Class Marine uniforms—two for summer and two for winter—and was assigned to a six-person dormitory.
"You'll do morning exercises at six every day. In the morning, new recruits will study the Marine handbook; in the afternoon, there will be physical training, and the evenings are for rest. The mess hall is over there; meal times are fixed, so don't miss them, or you'll go hungry! Also, over there is the family area of the Navy; don't go there unless you have business. There's a small town where you can buy what you need!" An old Marine explained some basic information as they walked to the dormitory.
"How can I go out to capture pirates?" Ryu pondered for a moment and asked.
"New recruits can't go out to sea. Once you pass the probation period, you'll be able to go. There are two ways: one is an assignment from above, which is according to regulations; it's a task that must be completed. About four times a year, they'll assign you when officers go out to sea and need soldiers. The other way is to sign up at the supply office; that way, when officers have missions, they'll take you along!" The old soldier glanced at Ryu curiously.
"What rank do you need to go out and catch pirates at will? How does promotion work in the Navy?" Ryu thought for a moment and asked.
"Do you really want to go out that badly? It's not that simple. To go out with a warship, besides rank, you also need strength! As for promotion, we have a merit system in the Marine. As a soldier, you earn merits every time you go out, and excellent performance is another way to gain merits. You'll learn more about it over time!" The old soldier smiled at Ryu.
In his view, Ryu was just a dreamer, but the Navy needed such fresh energy to continue growing.
After sending Ryu to the dormitory, the old soldier left. At this point, Ryu was alone in the dormitory, while the other Marines were likely still training.
"Character attributes!" Ryu silently thought.
Nickname: Murasaki Ryu
Race: Human
Health: 1080/1080
Energy: 103/103
Strength: 92
Speed: 89
Skills: Intermediate Body Refinement Level 1, Intermediate Meditation Skill Level 2, Beginner Movement Technique Level 3
Experience: 10234/50000
Combat Power: 806
Overall Evaluation: You're quite the little superhuman now.
Level: 10
Diamonds: 2200
Skill Points: 0
Closing the character attributes, he opened his bag again. Besides a novice uniform, a white longsword, and the unusable Purple Mist Divine Art Manual, he had some personal items. After tidying up, he found a chicken leg in his bag that could restore some health—a reward from a lottery after completing a mission.
Yes, that lottery was a reward for capturing Ace, and he had drawn a chicken leg worth 10 diamonds, nearly causing Ryu to drop his jaw in surprise. Therefore, he hadn't dared to continue drawing with the over 2000 diamonds he had on him.
He planned to save up to 9900 diamonds for a ten-time draw, a new feature unlocked after reaching level 10. Based on his guess, the ten-time draw likely had a safety net; at worst, he would get something decent. Plus, the chance of getting good items on the first ten-time draw was significant, which is why he hadn't bought even the Intermediate Movement Technique manual, waiting to save up for the draw.
However, from the information he had now, he estimated he would be staying at the Marine Headquarters for quite some time before having a chance to go out to sea. This meant, aside from system tasks, he had no way to earn more diamonds, so he considered whether to max out his foundational three skills so that he wouldn't be unable to learn any manuals in the future.
During this time, staring at the Purple Mist Divine Art in his bag was tormenting him; being able to see it but not use it was almost worse than having nothing at all.
The next morning, after getting dressed, Ryu set off with his dorm mates to do morning exercises. After a simple and slightly boring day passed, he found a secluded spot to begin cultivating his inner energy, as his proficiency was about to reach the maximum.
Today marked his first day in the Navy, so he kept a low profile, gathering intelligence while waiting for his Intermediate Meditation Skill to reach max level to learn the Purple Mist Divine Art.
A few days later, when the system notified him that his Intermediate Meditation Skill had reached Level 3, Ryu was nearly jumping for joy.
During this time, he had been practicing whenever he had free time, and now he could finally cultivate the Purple Mist Divine Art. Quickly, he opened his bag, selected the manual, and clicked to use it.
After using it, Ryu felt his inner energy shrink significantly, with the energy cultivated from the Intermediate Meditation Skill being transformed into a kind of inner energy that had a hint of purple mist.
"The power of this is worthy of an Intermediate cultivation manual!" Ryu eagerly tested the inner energy of the Purple Mist Divine Art. Indeed, just a trace of inner energy matched what used to be a small amount before, and now his inner energy felt incredibly resilient, flowing continuously even without any learned techniques, resembling clouds and mist. He found it much easier to control.
That afternoon, during physical training, Ryu directly challenged the training instructor and defeated him in a single move, causing quite a stir.
"Who is this person? I've never seen him before, but he's so strong! How did he suddenly become this powerful?"
"His strength is probably enough to go to the new recruit training camp, right?"
"What do you know? The new recruit training camp only lets in those with strength? Without a certain status, it's impossible to get in!"
"Hmph~ I think you're the one who doesn't know. I heard he was personally brought back from the East Blue by Vice Admiral Garp!"
"Oh, so he's Garp's guy. That makes sense!"
As Ryu returned to the dormitory amid the discussions, he had deliberately provoked the instructor earlier, challenging him under the pretext of not participating in physical training. Now he had achieved his goal—avoiding training and making a name for himself.
However, unbeknownst to him, news of his victory over the new recruit instructor had already begun to spread through Marineford, albeit with significant embellishments. The most popular rumor claimed that Ryu had defeated the instructor in a surprise attack and used this as an excuse to refuse training. There were even tales that he was a Devil Fruit user, possibly a rare Logia type, declaring he intended to defeat several admirals and take their place.
**Marineford, Medical Room.**
"Sir!" The defeated new recruit instructor struggled to sit up in the medical bed.
"It's okay, just rest if you're injured. I came to ask about the situation!" A man dressed in a Navy lieutenant's uniform approached and patted the instructor's shoulder with a smile.
"To be honest, I'm quite embarrassed. I didn't even take one of Ryu's moves before I lost!" The instructor said, his face turning red.
"Hmm? What exactly happened?" The lieutenant frowned and asked.
Before coming, he had heard about a new recruit who defeated the instructor in a sneak attack, and since the instructor was previously his subordinate, he came to inquire.
The instructor let out a bitter laugh and said, "I've heard the rumors outside, but Ryu did challenge me and used not attending training as a wager before launching his attack. The entire battle was above board; I just lost."
"Hmm, since you were outmatched, there's nothing to say. But a new recruit must participate in training; even you don't have the right to agree to that! Don't worry; I'll handle this!" The lieutenant nodded, his expression serious.
Watching the lieutenant leave, the instructor opened his mouth but swallowed the words back down. Deep down, he believed that even if the lieutenant acted personally, he wouldn't be Ryu's match, but he didn't dare voice it.
At that moment, Ryu had just finished his training and was preparing to go to the mess hall for dinner. If he missed the meal time, he'd have to fend for himself, and as his strength increased, his food consumption also grew.
"Are you Ryu?" A lieutenant stood at the door of the new recruit dormitory, blocking his path.
"Hello, sir. I am the new recruit Ryu. May I ask what the matter is?" Ryu inquired after saluting.
The lieutenant, secretly nodding, was Lieutenant Tarin, who had come to find Ryu on behalf of the new recruit instructor.
Initially, after hearing the rumors, he had a very negative impression of Ryu. However, after speaking with the new recruit instructor, he realized he had misunderstood. Now that he met Ryu in person, he immediately had a better impression of this polite young man. It was undeniable that Ryu, having cultivated the Purple Mist Divine Art, gave off an air of righteousness.
However, since there had never been an exception in the new recruit camp for skipping physical training, the subordinate's error must be corrected by him. So, Lieutenant Tarin directly stated, "I heard you defeated your instructor this afternoon?"
..............
Started editing the chapters now ^^
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