Chapter 16: Signing Up to Be a Marine

On a secluded beach of Abandoned Ship Island, the morning sun cast its rays upon the sea's surface, creating ripples of golden light. A gentle sea breeze carried the scent of salt and whispers of adventure. After watching the Perfume Yuda disappear into the distant horizon, Sephiroth turned, his footsteps tracing the path back towards Water Seven. However, he hadn't walked far when Franky's distinct, boisterous voice shattered the morning's tranquility.

"Awesome! Mr. Tom, this newest locomotive we've finished is definitely going to run smoothly!" Franky shouted, his voice brimming with overflowing excitement.

Driven by curiosity, Sephiroth followed the sound. In an open space surrounded by piles of ship parts and scrap iron, stood the legendary shipwright, Tom—the imposing Fish-Man—with Franky and Iceburg beside him. Before them, a gleaming new silver train engine sparkled. Tom's booming laughter filled the air, deep and cheerful.

"Hey! Kid, are you interested in seeing the launch of our newly finished train?" Tom waved at Sephiroth. The young man didn't refuse, nodding in agreement with a faint smile on his lips.

Soon after, with Tom's extraordinary, seemingly effortless strength, the entire hundred-ton-plus engine was lifted with ease, then set onto its experimental track. This time, Franky was still impatient, offering to drive the train, his enthusiasm burning irrepressibly.

Bubu bubu...!

After a deafening roar from the engine, the train's iron wheels began to accelerate, speeding along the sea track, gliding incredibly fast, circling the sea track repeatedly. Franky stuck his head out of the engineer's cabin, his blue hair fluttering in the wind, and screamed wildly, "This is amazing, it's really running on the sea! It's amazing!!!"

"We did it! Mr. Tom!" Iceburg exclaimed excitedly, a wide smile gracing his usually calm face.

"Ahahaha! What a great vehicle!" Tom rubbed his round belly, his laughter echoing like a child weighing over five hundred pounds... Oh! No, over a thousand pounds! It was a peculiar yet amusing sight.

Suddenly!

Splash-!

A massive body, over twenty meters tall, suddenly emerged from the sea, creating a gigantic splash that surged high. A crimson figure loomed before them.

Iceburg saw the mountain-sized red crab and immediately shrieked in surprise, "It's a Sea King Crab!!! Run!!! Franky!!!"

"Help!!!" Franky, usually super brave, was now pale with fright. He immediately leaped from the train, plunging into the sea without a second thought, escaping a grim fate.

The next moment, the Sea King Crab waved its massive claw, snatched the sea train, and lifted it high into the air, ready to crush it.

"Let go of my masterpiece, you bastard!" Seeing this, Tom's eyes widened with fury, a strong aura of intimidation radiating from him. He roared, grabbed a broken ship mast over ten meters long from a pile of wreckage, and hurled it with both hands like a javelin. Whoosh!

Boom!

With devastating force, the mast shot through the Sea King Crab's body, causing it to fall straight backward with a loud thud, creating a huge wave that crashed onto the shore.

"Phew! That's good." After his burst of anger, Tom returned to his usual appearance: a friendly, kind smile. He reached out to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead, an action that made Sephiroth's mouth twitch repeatedly. Monster! You're even more terrifying than a Sea King... he muttered inwardly. However, on second thought, the Fish-Man race naturally possessed ten times the strength of normal humans. It seemed unsurprising to have such excessive explosive power.

Finally, Sephiroth sighed softly in his heart, I still have a long way to go to become a world-class expert!

Franky, the poor boy, after climbing onto land from the sea, breathless, unconsciously roared at Tom, "Mr. Tom, didn't you say the train's sound could drive away Sea Kings?! Why did that Sea King Crab suddenly appear!!!"

Hearing this, Tom could only laugh awkwardly, "Ahahaha! Because it's a new engine, I haven't had time to equip it with the necessary device..." Seeing Franky about to explode, Tom quickly added, "But don't worry, next time I'll definitely be ready!"

"Tch! Next time, let Iceburg go! I'm not coming," Franky pouted, looking displeased, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You were the one who rushed off..." Iceburg mumbled, a slight hint of sarcasm in his tone, though his eyes showed amusement.

"Kid, thank you! Thanks to your design blueprints, this sea train project is now several years ahead of schedule! Hahaha!" Tom looked at the young man, his eyes full of genuine appreciation.

"Alright! I only did what I could!" Sephiroth smiled, shrugging. "I hope this sea train can be completed soon, so this city can come alive again and no longer be as deserted as it is now..." After speaking, Sephiroth waved, turned, and walked away, leaving the three shipwrights to their project.

"What a cool guy!" Franky unconsciously touched his nose, which Sephiroth had broken. The initial displeasure he had felt towards Sephiroth had now completely vanished, replaced by genuine admiration.

Marine Water Seven Base

On the outskirts of Water Seven, a small Marine Base stood firmly, more like a logistics support point. In front of a building by the sea, two Marine soldiers stood guard at the entrance, dressed in their proud uniforms, holding rifles, and standing rigidly unmoving. Only about thirty Marines were stationed here, a specialized unit responsible for supplying and maintaining berthed warships.

As Sephiroth was about to enter the door, the two soldiers raised their rifles, forming a cross to block him. One of the young, mustached Marine soldiers asked in a flat tone, "Kid, which part of the base do you want to enter?"

"I want to enlist in the Marines."

The mustached soldier first observed Sephiroth from head to toe, as if evaluating him, before asking, "How old are you?"

"Fourteen, almost fifteen."

"Your age barely meets the standard... Alright! Go inside, turn right on the second floor, third room. First, register for enlistment, then undergo a physical examination." The mustached soldier lowered his rifle, opening the way for the young man, and gave him directions.

"Thank you!" Sephiroth nodded, stepped inside the building, and arrived at the registration room. There, a young bearded man with the rank of Lieutenant on his shoulder sat behind a desk.

"I want to enlist in the Marines," Sephiroth said bluntly.

"Can you read?" the bearded man asked, expressionless, as if speaking to a robot.

"Yes."

"Take this and fill it out." The bearded man pulled a form from a folder on the desk and handed him the pen on the table.

Sephiroth looked at it. It was just a conventional information survey: name, home address, relatives, and family members. However, in the last column, there was a different item.

"Do you have a Devil Fruit? Type... Species...," Sephiroth muttered softly, his eyebrows slightly raised, noticing the oddity of the question.

Hearing this, the bearded man chuckled faintly and shook his head. "Devil Fruits are treasures of the sea. They're something you can't find anywhere, kid, so don't think too much about it. If you're lucky enough to eat one, as long as its ability isn't too useless, you'll basically be given priority training by us Marines. Your rank in the future will be at least a Colonel..."

"Oh! What about priority training?" Sephiroth asked with great interest, his voice shifting slightly.

"At least guaranteed entry to Marineford Academy, that's for sure..." The bearded man stopped talking midway, apparently not wanting to discuss so many hypotheticals with the young man. "Why are you asking so many questions? Anyway, you don't have one..."

If Devil Fruits were that easy to get, he wouldn't have to work hard, train in the Navy for several years, and only at the age of thirty, by accumulating seniority and giving gifts, he finally became a Lieutenant, serving as commander in this small, dilapidated supply station. Sephiroth could read the Lieutenant's thoughts from his expression.

"Who says I don't!" Sephiroth interrupted, a faint smile playing on his lips. "I happened to eat a strange fruit. It should be a Vampire-type Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, right?"

As he spoke, Sephiroth's body suddenly transformed. His height immediately increased, fleshy wings grew on his broad back, his ears elongated until they looked sharp, and his hands grew pointed claws. He transformed into a hybrid vampire form, showing his power without hesitation. Sephiroth felt there was no harm in voluntarily revealing that he had eaten a Devil Fruit. After all, it would be revealed sooner or later. If he hid it, and when military training required him to fight at sea, would he jump, or not jump...? Therefore, it was beneficial for him to show his extraordinary ability early on and obtain prioritized training opportunities.

"Gulp!" The bearded man unconsciously swallowed, his eyes wide, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead. In truth, he had only ever heard of Devil Fruit users, but had never seen one with his own eyes. He hadn't expected to actually encounter one now, a young man who had just been before him.

The bearded man reached out to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead and said with a wry smile, "Alright! Once you're done filling it out, follow the process and get a physical examination. If my investigation and review show no problems with your personal information, you'll be sent to G3 Branch with other recruits for basic training in about seven days."

Sephiroth immediately filled out the form and, following the bearded man's instructions, went to the physical examination area in the building. He wasn't too worried about the background check. Although he had been in contact with the Boa Sisters, the three girls weren't that well-known now, and he had never openly interacted with the Kuja Pirates. The Marines shouldn't be able to find them... The Marines can even allow Vergo, a member of the Donquixote Family gang, to become a Vice Admiral. It should be fine for me to go to the Marine Academy and gain a little experience, right? At worst, if I get caught later, I'll pack up and leave... he thought, smirking slightly.

The Marine physical examination was simple, and they also conducted several physical fitness tests, which allowed Sephiroth to know his current physical condition.

Normal condition: height 165 cm, weight 50 kg, weightlifting 187 kg, grip strength 98 kg, 200 meters in 19 seconds.

Hybrid form: height 198 cm, weight 70 kg, weightlifting 373 kg, grip strength 220 kg, 200 meters in 13 seconds.

Overall, in his normal state, he was slightly stronger than the average adult. Only when he transformed into his vampire form did he surpass the level of normal humans. However, there were too many superhumans in the One Piece World.

Even Don Krieg, the 'Pirate Fleet' who Luffy defeated when he first sailed in the East Blue, could easily swing a one-ton weapon with one hand.

In the later stages, when Zoro trained daily, his barbell weight was calculated in tons, continuously increasing by one ton after another. Thinking this way, it seemed he had only slightly improved above the level of an ordinary soldier... becoming an elite soldier!

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