Among the dorm's residents, the youngest—Zephyr—was now clenching his fists, his heart far from calm."I thought Klein was the weakest one in our dorm, but now..."
"I'm the weakest!"
Zephyr's talent couldn't compare to Garp or Sengoku. Among the recruits, he wasn't anything special.
Completely average.
With a four-to-five-year age gap from Garp and Sengoku, Zephyr knew very well how far behind he was. Still, he worked hard—
Very hard.
He wanted to grow stronger. To gain the strength to become the 'hero' everyone looked up to.
"I have to try even harder! I will become a Marine hero!"Although his talent hadn't fully bloomed yet and he couldn't match Sengoku or Garp at the moment—
His will, his inner strength, was something no ordinary person could rival.
At the same time...
Among the trainees, Tsuru wore a serious expression, feeling a strong sense of crisis.
Even as a female recruit—
Tsuru's physical training exceeded that of most men. She consistently ranked near the top of the class.
Previously, she was far ahead of Klein.
But now...
Klein had overtaken her. His test results were nipping at her heels, threatening to surpass her.
She felt threatened. But what concerned her more was why.
Furrowing her brows, she thought deeply:"Klein had been hiding his strength all along. He made Berries sparring with other trainees, plus giving massages..."
"Over this past month, that guy made at least over a million Berries off the others."
"If he kept hiding his power, he could've kept farming them for money. So why reveal it today...?"
She sank into contemplation, certain Klein must have a reason.
After all—
That guy wasn't like Garp: all brawn and no brains.
"Klein…" The instructor stared at him in surprise and pulled out his notes.
A month ago, the notes clearly read:
Klein, Age: 18Physical Ability: C+Willpower: BPotential: Tentatively B−
Without hesitation, the instructor grabbed his pen and revised:
Klein, Age: 18Physical Ability: AWillpower: BPotential: Tentatively A−
A smile crept onto the instructor's face."This batch of recruits is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers. Yet another promising seedling. With physical stats like that... definitely A-class."
"At 18 years old, this kid's a Vice Admiral prospect!"
Clap clap clap—
The instructor clapped, praising Klein while also reprimanding him:"Klein, your strength is impressive. But as an instructor, I don't appreciate trainees hiding their true abilities. In this place…"
"My job is to make all of you stronger. Better. True Marines!"
"Only by understanding you can I create the best training plans!"
In the following speed and reaction tests, Klein's results ranked near the top.
This made the trainees he had swindled grind their teeth in frustration.
"If I spar with Klein again, I'm a damn dog!"
Plenty were fuming, vowing never to fall for Klein's schemes again. It wasn't just being tricked—each loss cost them 10,000 Berries.
The few wins they managed? All because Klein let them win.
He was acting.
A clown—the ultimate clown!
As for Garp and Sengoku, those two absolutely dominated the rankings.
Garp held the lead in raw strength.
Sengoku, meanwhile, was first in speed and reflexes.
Garp grumbled, "You damn puffball, there's still the Doriki test left! This time, I'm taking the win!"
If he lost the Doriki test too, Sengoku would have taken first in all three categories.
Final test: Doriki.
Klein's result was a bit over 200 Doriki. He was very satisfied."Over 200? Man, the pay-to-win grind is really paying off. In just one month, I've more than doubled my strength."
"Back then, hitting 100 Doriki was a miracle. Now I'm breaking 200 like it's nothing. It'll only go up from here."
Meanwhile, Garp and Sengoku completely blew past the rest—each with 500+ Doriki...
Miles ahead!
"They're still way ahead of me. Catching up won't be easy. In the end, it comes down to money. If I had more, I'd already be buying a Gold Substitute to train swordsmanship. By now, I'd probably be decent with a blade…"
In the world of One Piece, the strongest fighting styles were martial arts, swordsmanship, and Devil Fruit abilities.
And swordsmanship—
No matter the world, it had universal appeal. Naturally, Klein wasn't immune.
Mainly because...
Swords are just... cool.
They had a flair that fists and martial arts simply couldn't match. Even though in the One Piece world "sword" and "blade" were used interchangeably...
It was quite different from how Klein defined a 'sword' back in his previous life on Blue Star.
But hey—it's a Japanese manga. What did you expect?
Plus, Klein knew he had a game system. He could develop across the board and become a perfectly balanced hexagon-type fighter.
The only cost?
Spending more money!
Klein had already mentally prepared for that.
With testing complete—
The instructor began his speech:"For those of you who scored over 200 Doriki, combat technique training will begin. Those who didn't, focus on improving your physical fitness."
Then he dismissed the rest. Today was considered a break for them. Only the over-200 Doriki recruits remained.
"From now on, in addition to your daily physical training, you'll receive combat technique lessons. There are two courses—swordsmanship and martial arts. You may choose both or just one."
"…"
Klein felt a bit disappointed upon hearing this. He'd hoped that passing the test would let him start Rokushiki training immediately.
But apparently, they had to start with basic sword and martial arts training first.
Soon after—
The instructor continued, "Once you've finished the basic combat training, you'll gain access to deeper, stronger techniques. As long as you master them…"
"You can become superhuman!"
Shoulder to shoulder with the sun?
Klein quickly signed up for both the swordsmanship and martial arts classes. Meanwhile, Garp and the others all picked martial arts only.
Choosing just one was what most people did. After all, energy and time were limited. Specializing in one thing made sense.
Which is why the instructor, who had high hopes for Klein, gave him a gentle warning:
"Klein, don't bite off more than you can chew. As your instructor, I advise you to pick one. That way, you'll master the basics faster and move on to the advanced techniques sooner."
Klein appreciated the advice. He smiled in response—but stuck to his decision.
Only kids make choices.
I, Klein, am not the type to choose.
Martial arts, swordsmanship—I'm taking both!