One Piece: Starting with God Valley, intercepting the Dark-Dark Fruit

Saint Vochuli snorted coldly and said,

"Of course we can't let him appear in the newspapers. For a Celestial Dragon to join the Marines is already a demotion, and to be mixed up with the Bakania people would be a huge scandal if it got out!"

The other three did not immediately express their opinions after hearing this. Only Satan Saint glanced at him and was about to say something when the door of the council hall suddenly opened, and Garin Saint, dressed in a black robe, slowly walked in.

Saint Vochuli frowned and said,

"Garin Sei? What are you doing here?"

Garin ignored him and went to sit down at the end of the table, crossing his legs and facing the Five Elders.

Anger flashed across Saint Vochuli's old face as he stared at Saint Garin and spoke again.

"Saint Garin, shouldn't you discipline your nephew? Has he forgotten his place?"

Garin looked up at him and said calmly,

"What did Giger do wrong this time? Does being a qualified Celestial Dragon mean wasting all your energy on eating, drinking, and having fun like some other people?"

"you!"

Sacred Vochuli was taken aback, and he stood up angrily, demanding an explanation.

"Then how come he's mingling with the Bakania people?"

Garin crossed his arms and said,

"Mixed together? You're quick to label my nephew like that. Let me tell you, this bear is Gigg's slave. What's wrong with someone from the Figarando family having a slave by their side?"

"What? Why didn't I know about this beforehand? You were...?"

hum!

An extremely domineering aura erupted from Saint Garin. Garin looked directly into Saint Vochuli's eyes and said, word by word,

"When did it become your place to criticize the Figarando family?"

Under the oppressive aura of Garin, Sacred Vochuli's expression changed drastically. His intuition told him that if he said another word, Garin would immediately draw his sword.

As the "God of Law Enforcement," he had always been critical of Garin, who possessed special law enforcement powers. So he wanted to take this opportunity to annoy Garin. But when he actually angered Garin, he became a little hesitant.

Saint Satan glanced around and said,

"Alright, I think Saint Garin has made himself clear. Since this Bakania is Gigg's slave, I think we should just let things take their course."

Chapter 71 Major General

The rewards for Giger and the others were quickly announced at headquarters, and people were utterly astonished when they saw the contents of the rewards.

The three female cadets, led by Lucia, were all awarded the rank of colonel, while the four male cadets, led by Gigg, were even more outrageous, with the lowest rank they were awarded being brigadier general.

The remaining Giggs, Akainu, and Kizaru were all awarded the rank of Major General, but Giggs, who made the greatest contribution, was given a special distinction.

Since they are still trainees, this military rank is essentially a temporary appointment; they are not yet able to have their own fleet or subordinates.

But Giger was different. The naval high command gave him a special privilege: he had the authority to mobilize a portion of the military, and he could go to sea whenever he wanted, and he could wait until he returned to submit a report.

Therefore, at present, only Giger is a true rear admiral of the Marine Headquarters.

Of course, even nominal positions like Akainu's, which lack real power, are enough to make many Marines who have been working for decades without reaching the captain rank extremely envious. Not to mention that Gig and his group of trainees start as captains, and from headquarters at that.

There's a saying on Earth, "Officials in Beijing are three ranks higher than those in the capital," and that applies equally to the navy.

While it's not as dramatic as having a commander from the headquarters transferred to a branch, in terms of rank, aside from branches starting with G on the Grand Line, those from headquarters completely outclass branches from the other seas in both strength and rank.

Don't be fooled by the seemingly insignificant appearance of a Rear Admiral in anime; it's a position that many naval officers strive for their entire lives to achieve.

On the wall of the four-person dormitory of Giger, there are four navy overcoats of varying sizes, which were just issued to the four of them and are uniforms with the shoulder insignia of general officers.

The colors are gray, black, red, and yellow, corresponding to their Devil Fruit abilities.

Incidentally, naval officers of the rank of colonel and above can have their uniforms designed and made by the logistics department according to their own preferences. Higher-ranking officers can even choose to go shirtless, like Admiral Green Bull later on.

However, apart from trying on the coats when they were first handed out, the four of them don't usually wear them, since wearing a coat to training would seem a bit pretentious.

But when the four of them reappeared on the training field, the way the trainees looked at them was completely different from before.

In the past, no matter how extraordinary their talents were, as long as they were in school, they were all students.

Now things are different. The four of them, including Giger, are already naval officers with official ranks, and all of them are admirals. In the eyes of all the trainees, they are already considered "big shots".

Some people are even starting to call Giger and his men "commanders."

On the girls' side, Lucia and her two companions received the same treatment as Giger and his group. Lucia didn't mind at all; she was the third captain of the Figarando family, a position no less important than a naval colonel.

Gion, because of the crane, didn't care much about such things.

Ginny seemed a little lost, but thankfully her best friend Jessica treated her the same as always, which made her feel much more at ease.

About half a year later, on this day, Jig was doing physical training on the training ground as usual.

Because the gap between their strength and that of the others was too great, and ordinary physical training was no longer enough for them, the four of them engaged in physical combat to improve their strength, apart from developing their abilities.

Akainu really enjoys fighting Kuma, probably because both of them are the type who aren't good with words. Their fights are brutal and realistic, showcasing a clash between two tough guys.

This makes things unfortunate for Kizaru, as his opponent is always the strongest, Gigg, because he likes to wield the Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi.

Clang clang!

The demon sword village was constantly clashing with the Ama-no-Murakumo sword, and the scattered sword energy plowed the grass on the surrounding ground again and again.

In this training, Kizaru is the only one who is allowed to use his abilities by default, because his weapon is a lightsaber that he creates using his abilities.

Anyone who has played the game "Sky Village and Softies" on Blue Star knows that dual swords are not considered colorless.

To prevent the Muramasa sword from absorbing Kizaru's lightsaber directly, Giger had to deliberately control the Muramasa. Even so, Kizaru was still struggling to fight. The light of the Ama no Kusanagi sword dimmed several times, as if it was about to collapse at any moment.

Giger dodged to create distance, and a wisp of red gas gradually wrapped around the blade of the Muramasa demon sword. Kizaru's pupils contracted upon seeing this, and he immediately stretched out a hand and shouted,

"Qiaodou Maldives!"

"..."

Gigg was preparing to unleash his sword technique, Uchihachi, with a serious expression when he heard Kizaru call to stop. His Conqueror's Haki, which had just been gathered on Muramasa, instantly dissipated into the air.

The battle between Akainu and Kuma came to an abrupt end. Akainu wiped the sweat from his brow, looked at Kizaru with some confusion, and said...

"Borsalino, what's the matter? You're already calling a halt? Are you slacking off just because Teacher Zeff isn't here?"

Kizaru pouted, looking somewhat like a wronged young wife, and said with a wronged expression,

"Sakazuki, you're having a lot of fun, aren't you? Did you even consider how I feel?"

"?"

The straightforward Akainu wore a bewildered expression, while Kuma stood silently to the side, not uttering a word.

Giger reluctantly withdrew the Muramasa and looked at Kizaru, saying...

"Okay, okay, I was a bit too rough that day, but I really didn't mean to!"

A few days ago, Gige also used the "Goku" technique on Kizaru. It was the first time Kizaru had experienced this kind of swordsmanship. Lacking experience, he was pierced through by the invisible sword energy of the "Goku" and knelt down on the spot.

Even Kizaru, who has a thick skin, felt incredibly embarrassed when he thought about it, so much so that today, as soon as he saw Giggs's starting stance, he immediately called for a pause.

After all, his only privilege in physical training is wielding a lightsaber. Using photon transformation to dodge is a foul, so he really has no choice but to take the hit head-on. While his willpower isn't weak, it's still inferior to Akainu's.

So in addition to his Devil Fruit powers, Giggs has another move specifically designed to counter Kizaru: the Ultimate Sword Technique.

After Kizaru went on strike, Giger and the other two also stopped. The four of them simply sat on the ground. After a while, Lucia and Ginny came over after finishing their training and sat on either side of Giger.

Akainu and his two companions were already used to this situation. The four boys chatted casually, and Ginny would occasionally join in.

Only Lucia knelt quietly beside Giger. When Giger looked at her, she would smile gently, a smile that captivated many male students who secretly admired her.

Until the "messenger," the flying squirrel, hurriedly ran over and said,

"Gig, Teacher Zefa is at the recruitment office; he wants you to come over!"

Chapter 72 Three Natural Systems

As the flying squirrel spoke, it gave a military salute to Gigg and the others. Gigg waved his hand and said...

"Flying Squirrel, didn't I tell you? We were classmates in school, there's no need for this."

The flying squirrel maintained its salute and said,

"I'll be graduating in a little over a year, so I'm getting used to it in advance."

As graduation approaches, many students realize the importance of resources.

For most relatively mediocre students, whose abilities are roughly the same, getting better treatment after graduation depends on resources, or connections.

In any world, people naturally aspire to higher positions, which is undeniable. While "justice" is important, it cannot put food on the table.

As for the Navy Supernovas like Giger, they are resources that are readily available. The fact that they can get close to the Momonga and others is something that many students envy. Anyone with a bit of intelligence knows that they should cherish this relationship.

Giger reached out and patted the flying squirrel on the shoulder, saying,

"Flying Squirrel, to be honest, I really think highly of you. You'll at least be a lieutenant general someday."

The flying squirrel paused for a moment, then asked excitedly,

"Huh? Giger... are you serious?"