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

However, the dragon stubbornly stood up and said...

“Professor Zephyr, I think Senior Giger is targeting someone personally. You should revoke his temporary management authority!”

Upon hearing this, all the students on the field turned their gazes toward Long as if he were an idiot. Huang Mu, standing to Long's left, was the first to jump out and attack at close range.

"You're such a troublemaker! If you're not happy, go back to the East China Sea!"

Long snorted coldly and said,

"You defeated opponent, I advise you to keep quiet!"

Huang Mu, whose main strength lay in his thick skin, immediately raised his chin and said with a disdainful expression,

"Who are you calling a defeated opponent? If Senior Gig hadn't stopped me that day, I would have beaten you half to death!"

The dragon gritted its teeth, and a vortex of energy began to appear at its feet. Huang Mu grew even more arrogant, saying...

"Oh ho, you want to fight, huh? I'm all for it! If you lose, you're my grandson!"

As he spoke, he looked at Long's bandaged hand with ill intent, his smug expression making one want to slap him.

Long thought so too, but the pain in his hand suppressed his impulse.

At this moment, Giger stepped forward and said,

"I'm sorry, Professor Zephyr, I went too far."

People are naturally biased, and Zefa naturally viewed his best student with a biased perspective, and he hadn't originally intended to blame Giger.

So, to the dragon's astonishment, Zephyr simply waved his hand casually and said,

"You were just doing your job, there's nothing to apologize for."

"Teacher Zefa!"

"Alright! Long, you should watch your temper. Your classmates aren't your enemies!"

Long stared at Zefa in disbelief, then looked at the other students' expressions of agreement, and suddenly felt like he was the target of everyone's criticism.

In his view, all of this was ultimately because he had offended Giger when he joined the army.

Dragon let his arms hang limply, a feeling of disappointment welling up in his heart towards the Navy.

He had hoped to find like-minded companions in the navy, but reality gave him a resounding slap in the face.

Isn't everything that's happening now the very injustice he despises?

He stopped defending himself and simply said in a low voice, "I understand," before falling silent in the group, unmoved by the provocative expressions that Aramu kept making at him.

Zephyr sighed silently, thinking to himself, "Garp, your son is really a headache!"

Giger narrowed his eyes, a barely perceptible smile playing on his lips.

His current actions are, frankly speaking, targeted; he's clearly looking for trouble with Long.

Of course, this was also because Long had delivered himself to the door first that day, giving him a reasonable reason to deal with him. From that day on, Long's emotions were brought out explosively by Jige.

His goal was to force Dragon to defect to the Navy, and the bigger the commotion, the better, so that he could give him a righteous trial.

At the very least, we can't let Dragon leave the Navy normally like in the original story and then quietly form the Revolutionary Army, only to find out too late by the time the World Government discovers it.

Your perspective is determined by your position. As a Celestial Dragon, Zig naturally cannot stand to see the Revolutionary Army grow stronger, since the World Government is essentially his power base!

Chapter 85 Graduation Exam

In the days that followed, Dragon, who was known as "Garp's son" and "Logia type," seemed to become invisible at school.

During the day, he trained alone. At night, he returned to his dormitory and listened to Aokiji and Aramaki's daily bickering, silently turning his head to the wall.

Only Zefa and Giger in the school still pay attention to him.

Zephyr's concern was overt, after all, he was the son of his old friend Garp, and his talent was indeed very good. He couldn't just leave Dragon unattended, both morally and logically.

Giggs, meanwhile, was observing the dragon's behavior, waiting for the right opportunity to strike.

However, since that day, Long has become much more disciplined. He trains very hard every day and focuses wholeheartedly on improving his strength.

Another year has passed in the blink of an eye, and Giger's school life is coming to an end.

The naval leadership has always attached great importance to this cohort of cadets, especially to the arrangements made for individuals like Giger.

However, before that, they need to arrange a graduation exam for Giger and the others.

The higher-ups all wanted to see just how powerful this generation of "monsters" really was.

The exam content is quite simple, consisting of two parts: a written test and a practical test. Of course, the written test is just a formality; it only accounts for a small part of the final score. Unless your theoretical knowledge is terribly lacking, it won't have a significant impact on your final grade.

The real-world test is the highlight of this exam. It will be conducted in the form of a competition, and the graduating students will be divided into groups and drawn by lot to determine their opponents.

The final grades will determine the job placement after graduation, with the highest possible rank being awarded to a major general!

This kind of simple and straightforward reward is really tempting for most students, but when they think of their classmates like Giger, they immediately lose their enthusiasm.

Especially Giger, in the past year or so, no one knows how much his strength has grown.

In their eyes, Kizaru, Akainu, and Kuma are already invincible, but in daily training, at least two of them are needed to barely put up a fight against Giger.

Although they were all students in the same cohort, over the past three years, the gap between them has not only not narrowed, but has widened, like an insurmountable chasm standing between them.

So when this notice came down, panic immediately gripped the school. Everyone had the same thought:

"What if I draw one of Giggs's characters?!"

It's not fair to blame them for being afraid of fighting; after all, the difference in strength is simply too great, and victory cannot be achieved by simply unleashing some fighting spirit and shouting slogans.

However, their worries vanished as soon as Zephyr announced something.

Zephyr said that Giggs, Kizaru, and Akainu would not be on the lottery list for the graduation exam, as the headquarters had other arrangements for their exams.

Although only four of the Navy Supernovas remain, this is good news for everyone.

Compared to the three Logia-type bosses, Bear usually appears quiet and gentle, giving off a kind of honest and simple feeling. This gives the flying squirrel and the others the illusion that even if they really face Bear, they are not without a chance of winning.

As for the remaining three, Lucia and her two companions, their strength seemed to be within most people's comprehension. Moreover, they were all great beauties. Many male students felt that encountering them wouldn't be a bad thing, at least they could feast their eyes on them.

The graduation exam was set, and in the remaining days, all the students who were going to take the exam trained like crazy.

This scene was very familiar to Giger. He remembered that when he was in college on Blue Star, he and his roommates would study like this in the days leading up to each final exam.

Furthermore, their dormitory has a tradition of praying to Jige the day before the final exam, because the pronunciation of his name sounds like "passing grade". That's how it is in college exams: don't aim for high scores, just aim to pass!

However, nowadays, Giger is a true "academic superstar," consistently ranking first, so he's not nervous at all. He continues to train as usual every day, eating and drinking as usual.

On the day of the exam, under Zephyr's leadership, all the naval academy cadets went to the exam venue set up by headquarters.

When Giger arrived, he discovered that the so-called exam venue was actually the huge open space from the Marineford War in the anime.

On the high platform where the three admirals were originally located, the Fleet Admiral was sitting in the very center, with Garp, Tsuru, and other high-ranking naval officers also present.

After Zefa explained the exam rules again, a soldier came over, saluted Zefa, and said...

"General Zephyr, please proceed to the stands!"

Zephyr nodded, and after the soldiers left, he spoke to Giggs, Akainu, and Kizaru.

"The three of you are already major generals. While the other cadets are taking their exams, you will come with me to the top to watch."

Upon hearing this, the trainees were immediately in an uproar, but upon reflection, it made sense, as those who could attend the spectator seats today were indeed officers of the rank of major general or above.

After all, the situation of the three of them, including Jige, was indeed too special. They were already major generals during their training period. Others who lived with them day and night were more likely to overlook their identities.

Only when this moment truly arrived did others deeply realize the gap between strength and status.

Amidst the complex gazes of the crowd, Giger and his two companions followed Zefa to the viewing area on the high platform.

The chairs placed here are the same ones that the three admirals sat on during the Marineford War, and the seats for Gigantomachia, Gigantomachia, and Gigantomachia have been deliberately separated, probably because the three of them are also "examinees".

Akainu and Kizaru sat on opposite sides, both tacitly agreeing to leave the center seat to Gigg.

Giger smiled slightly and sat down between the two. The three of them sat down in a surprisingly similar posture, all of them crossing their legs in a difficult way, with one leg crossed horizontally over the knee of the other.

The three of them sat there, and the students below, including their classmates and younger students, felt a sense of security.

The surrounding high-ranking officials were also observing the three of them. Tsuru leaned slightly towards Sengoku and said,

"Warring States Period, which of the three do you think will be the first to become a general?"

Sengoku was taken aback for a moment, then said with a mix of amusement and exasperation,

"He, why do you say that, it sounds like it was pre-arranged?"

The crane shook its head and said earnestly,

"It's just a matter of time."

"Um, okay, then I think it's Giger?"

"Me too."

After Tsuru finished speaking, she turned her gaze to Giger again. Giger also looked up at that moment, meeting Tsuru's eyes. Just then, the referee arrived at the center of the field and announced through a loudspeaker Den Den Mushi,

"The exam begins!"

Chapter 86: The Exam