Chapter 1

"Ryuen, step forward."

A stern voice echoed across the Marine Headquarters training ground, and Ryuen, the protagonist, stood there with a bewildered look on his face.

It wasn't until a shadow loomed over him that Ryuen realized something was wrong.

"Ryuen, were you daydreaming again during training?"

Zeff, dressed in a Marine officer's uniform, looked sternly at the Marine soldier before him, and the wound on his arm began to throb.

A year ago, he not only lost his arm but also the lives of his students. This happened because he was too kind and too lenient with his students.

If he had been stricter with them, perhaps they could have escaped.

But only Ein and Bins survived.

So, to make up for his mistake and to prevent such tragedies from happening again, he had to train his students more strictly.

And the student before him was daydreaming during training, which could potentially lead to fatal consequences in the future.

"Ryuen is in trouble. He actually dared to daydream during Zeff instructor's training. He's in for a rough time now."

The other soldiers standing nearby murmured in sympathy.

Zeff was already extremely strict during training, and Ryuen's daydreaming would likely result in even harsher punishment.

Hearing his comrades' words, Ryuen felt even more depressed.

He had just been sleeping at home, and the next thing he knew, he was in the world of pirates, and even worse, at the Marine Headquarters.

The worst part was that he was in the middle of training.

And this wasn't just ordinary military training; it was the kind of training that would prepare them to face real pirates.

But that wasn't the most important thing. The most important thing was that he had been caught daydreaming while receiving the memories of his new body.

From the memories of his original self, he knew that Zeff had become even stricter after losing his arm.

And he had unfortunately been caught at the worst possible time, so he could only imagine the severe punishment he would receive.

"Silent? Then I'll take it as an admission of guilt." Zeff looked at Ryuen, who was hanging his head, and said, "Run ten laps around the training ground. Come back when you're done."

"Don't even think about slacking off. If I catch you, you'll run twenty laps."

Ryuen's face turned grim at these words.

He knew he couldn't try to explain himself; if he did, the punishment would immediately double to twenty laps.

"Yes, sir."

Ryuen nodded and turned to start running around the training ground.

The training ground at Marine Headquarters in Marineford was not small.

Zeff had ordered him to run ten laps around the outermost track, which was at least ten kilometers. This would surely exhaust him.

"What are you all doing? Enjoying the show?"

"Want to join him?"

As the soldiers turned to watch Ryuen's departing back, Zeff's voice rang out again.

Instantly, all the soldiers turned their heads and stared straight ahead.

Joining Ryuen in running? That would mean their legs wouldn't be their own after the run. They had no intention of doing that.

"Attention." Zeff shouted.

The soldiers immediately stood at attention, their chests out and their gazes fixed straight ahead, as stiff as flagpoles.

"Why is it always me who gets the short end of the stick?"

Ryuen grumbled as he ran. This year, his luck was truly bad. The blind man at the bridge was right; he should have given him a hundred dollars for the incense money.

If he had, he might not have ended up in this place.

Thinking about his home, where he had a house and land, and a life full of joy, and his father's plan to find him a beautiful bride for the New Year, he felt even more depressed.

Now, after a single night's sleep, he had nothing left. He had become a soldier, and not just any soldier, but a soldier in the world of pirates.

What did being a soldier in the world of pirates mean? It meant being cannon fodder.

Even the higher-ranking officers were treated as units of measurement.

Being mysteriously transported to such a dangerous place, Ryuen felt his life was in jeopardy.

He could only hope that the Devil Fruit he had eaten, the Ant Devil Fruit, would be powerful enough.

To be honest, Ryuen was quite happy that the original owner had eaten a Devil Fruit. While Zoan Devil Fruits weren't as powerful as Logia or Paramecia, they were the fastest way to enhance one's strength. Once eaten, one would immediately gain the resilience and recovery ability to stand up even after being knocked down multiple times.

So, even running ten laps around the training ground was just tiring for him, and wouldn't cause any other problems.

If it were any other soldier, they would likely be unable to get up the next day.

Looking at the other soldiers being trained, Ryuen felt he was relatively lucky.

At least he had the chance to become stronger by eating a Devil Fruit, while the other soldiers were just ordinary people.

A single gunshot could end their lives.

The sun moved across the training ground, and by the time Ryuen, drenched in sweat, completed his ten laps, it was almost dark.

"Reporting, sir, I have completed ten laps," Ryuen said, his face flushed and breathing heavily.

"Hmm." Zeff nodded without looking at Ryuen and said, "Go rest for a moment. Then prepare to do five hundred push-ups, five hundred frog jumps, and five hundred pull-ups."

"Huh?"

Ryuen, who thought he could return to the ranks, was stunned.

Wasn't his punishment just running ten laps? Why was there more? Was the instructor bullying him?

"What's wrong? Do you have a problem?" Zeff turned his head and asked.

"N-no," Ryuen stammered, shaking his head. He wasn't saying this out of fear but because he was a good soldier who followed orders.

"Teacher seems to have high hopes for Ryuen."

In a corner of the training ground, Ein, wearing a blue cloak, spoke up.

"Probably because he's a Zoan Devil Fruit user," Bins, dressed as a ninja, said, glancing at Ryuen. The fact that he was a Devil Fruit user was no longer a secret in the Marine Headquarters. Why would the teacher deliberately make things difficult for a new recruit?

This was to help him unlock the potential of his Devil Fruit.

After all, Zoan Devil Fruits were not as difficult to develop as Logia or Paramecia. With strict training, one could quickly enhance their strength.

"One, two, three..."

Ryuen bent down, his hands on the ground, and began to do push-ups.

He couldn't understand why the Marines in the world of pirates used this method to train soldiers. Were push-ups the foundation of soldier training?

Fortunately, he was a Devil Fruit user, or his original body wouldn't have been able to do more than twenty push-ups before collapsing.

But even so, the tasks ahead were still heavy.

He should have known better than to daydream. He didn't realize the consequences would be so severe.

"Poor guy."

The other soldiers, seeing Ryuen's miserable state, couldn't help but think the same thing.

They trained even more diligently to avoid following in his footsteps. After all, they were not Devil Fruit users, and they would likely be unable to get up the next morning after such training.