At the port of the Navy G-3 Branch.
A group of Navy soldiers stood on the edge of the dock. Leading them was a blond lieutenant holding a roster in his hand.
"Corporal Kong Ming!"
"Here!"
"Corporal Dong Jieke!"
"Here!"
...
"Corporal Kang Xiao!"
"Here!"
"Sergeant Maynard!"
"Here!"
"Corporal Carl D. Sephiroth!"
"Here!"
"I wish you all good luck in your military careers. May you achieve more glorious results during your one-year advanced studies at the Marineford Military Academy!"
"Yes!" x10
Ten non-coms, including Sephiroth, saluted the blond lieutenant, picked up their luggage, and boarded the small warship along the gangway.
Sephiroth leaned on the railing of the ship with both hands, watching the Navy G-3 Branch gradually shrinking and moving away in his sight.
He recalled the days when he had been beaten by Garp every day in the past half month. A feeling of relief suddenly welled up in his heart.
"Hey! You're Carl D. Sephiroth, right?"
Hearing this, the silver-haired teenager withdrew his gaze, turned around, and looked at the burly man walking towards him.
This was a man who was two and a half meters tall, with well-developed muscles and a broad chest. Under his white Navy cap, his long black hair was tied into a ponytail. He had a beard on his face and a cigarette in his mouth.
"Ah! Yes, I am. What do you want?" Sephiroth asked, slightly puzzled.
"My name is Maynard. I'm the first-place finisher in the selection of the G-3 Branch this time.
I heard that you're a Devil Fruit user, so you didn't need to participate in the selection of the G-3 Branch and could directly get a spot and be sent to the Marineford Military Academy.
I'm really curious how strong you Devil Fruit user are."
As he spoke, Maynard also twisted his neck and cracked his knuckles with a "crack!" sound. He looked at the silver-haired teenager with a slightly provocative look in his eyes.
"Actually, I'm not that strong. I can only deal with some small fries," Sephiroth shrugged and said helplessly.
Seeing this, Kong Ming, who was standing beside them, was worried. He quickly stepped forward and explained:
"Sephiroth once killed a pirate with a bounty of 12 million berries when he just joined the Navy. I think... he got the chance to be sent to the academy because of his strong strength..."
Kong Ming's persuasion didn't make Maynard give up his idea of provoking Sephiroth. Instead, it made the fighting spirit in his eyes even stronger.
"Oh!? I, Maynard, once defeated a pirate with a bounty of 10 million berries...
Now I'm even more curious about how strong he really is.
Sephiroth, you're not afraid to have a spar with me, are you?"
"..."
The silver-haired teenager glanced around at the non-coms on the warship deck who were going to Marineford with him.
He found that almost everyone present was looking at them with an attitude of watching a good show.
Obviously, the non - coms were dissatisfied that Sephiroth was directly admitted to Marineford Military Academy without taking part in the selection. And Maynard chose to express it directly.
Among the non - coms present, the silver - haired teen actually recognized all of them...
They were the ones who would appear on the playground for extra training at four o'clock every morning.
Of course, there were also some soldiers he found familiar who didn't make it onto the warship bound for Marineford.
Presumably, they didn't make it into the top nine in the selection...
Some people worked their butts off, trained like crazy, and beat many opponents to get into the military academy. But others got the chance easily without doing anything.
So, it's no surprise that those non - coms gave him hostile looks.
The military is a place where strength reigns supreme. Only by showing his own strength can one gain others' respect.
Thinking of this, Sephiroth couldn't help but let out a soft sigh. He walked to the center of the warship's deck and waved at the burly man.
"Alright! Let's have a little fight, let's stop when one gets the upper hand."
"Alright! Let me see what you're really made of!"
Saying that, Maynard assumed a starting stance for free fighting. He hunched his body slightly and threw a right hook at Sephiroth's left cheek.
The fist whistled through the air, creating a sharp sound.
The silver - haired teen was only 1.73 meters tall and on the slender side, while the burly man was 2.5 meters tall with well - defined muscles. In terms of height and build, the two were simply incomparable.
However...
To Maynard's astonishment, his fist missed the silver - haired teen by a hair's breadth, hitting only the air.
Not believing it, he threw a series of left and right punches at the teen.
But to everyone's great surprise, Sephiroth's figure was as light as a willow catkin in the wind, swaying with the breeze. No matter how Maynard attacked, he couldn't land a single punch.
Sephiroth's incredibly flexible evasion skills were all thanks to the beatings from that old bastard, Garp.
After half a month of getting beaten, he still hadn't mastered Armament Haki, but his Observation Haki had improved a lot.
Unfortunately, even so, he still couldn't withstand most of Garp's punches...
Repeatedly punching thin air made Maynard extremely frustrated. He flicked the nearly burnt - out cigarette from his mouth into the sea. Looking at the silver - haired teen, he said hatefully:
"Damn it! If you've got the guts, stop dodging and take a punch from me head - on!"
"Alright! I won't dodge anymore."
Sephiroth calmly nodded. After having some fun, he was starting to lose interest.
With the help of Observation Haki and his superior speed, the other guy didn't stand a chance against him.
"Ha!"
Maynard stomped hard on the deck with his right foot. His figure lunged at the silver - haired teen like a wild beast pouncing on its prey...
Bang!
In everyone's shocked gazes, Sephiroth flashed and appeared in the path where Maynard was charging forward. He landed a crisp right hook, hitting the latter's chin hard and knocking him down on the deck.
Silence!
Shock!
Choking!
The result of this battle was actually... a one-move instant knockout!
Ignoring the shocked expressions of the crowd, Sephiroth picked up his suitcase and leisurely walked towards the cabin.
At the end, as if he remembered something, he said in a slightly playful tone:
"Actually! Before I joined the military, I took down a small-time pirate with a bounty of 30 million berries..."
Gulp!
The non-coms (naval petty officers) present were all elites of the G3 Branch. They had actually defeated pirates with bounties of millions. Like Maynard, he had even defeated a pirate with a bounty of 10 million berries. But they never expected that Sephiroth had actually killed a pirate with a bounty of 30 million berries...
"I told you so! The reason he got a direct admission to the military academy must be that he's strong enough," Kong Ming said proudly.
"Yeah! Sure thing! He got in through his strength..."
"That's right."
"Maybe Vice Admiral Garp and the others waived Sephiroth's selection test. They might be afraid we'd be demoralized."
"Makes sense!"
Everyone chattered, finally barely covering up the awkward atmosphere just now.
Maynard was dizzy for a while before he supported his chin and staggered to his feet from the deck. He cursed and said:
"Bah! Then you two bastards, why did you encourage me to pick a fight back then...?"
"Cough!"
Two of the seven naval soldiers had guilty expressions on their faces. They turned their heads and whistled, not daring to look at Maynard...