Despite being the last to enter the fray, Nao Natsuya swept through the battlefield and single-handedly defeated "Giant Bear" Sano, securing the undisputed first place.
The crowd cast envious and admiring glances his way. Although Nao had anticipated this outcome, hearing it officially announced by Zephyr felt different.
He couldn't help but grin with joy.
Second place went to Shiryu, who had taken down a notorious half-fishman pirate with a bounty second only to Sano's.
The third to fifth positions were filled by other formidable contenders, as expected. However, the sixth place came as a surprise to Nao—it was Shia.
After their parting that early morning, she hadn't withdrawn. Instead, she continued to fight alongside her two companions, taking down two pirate officers, each with bounties exceeding ten million.
Her sixth-place ranking was well-deserved.
Instinctively, Nao glanced at the blue-haired girl in the crowd. She seemed to sense his gaze, turning slightly to offer him a gentle smile.
Her eyes sparkled with uncontainable joy, and her smile mirrored the tenderness of that night she confessed.
Nao felt a sudden flutter in his heart. He quickly turned his head back, focusing on Zephyr, who continued to announce the rankings, and took a deep breath, rubbing his face vigorously.
"Can't be a playboy. Definitely can't be a womanizer. Can't be a playboy. Definitely can't be a womanizer..."
He repeated this mantra in his mind, over and over, as if brainwashing himself, until he regained his composure.
As his charm grew, girls like Shia, who were infatuated with him, would undoubtedly increase. But as long as there were no romantic entanglements, having admirers wasn't a problem.
—His true affections were solely for Gion and Bellemere. Absolutely, positively, no one else!
As for liking two people at once, does that make him a playboy...?
He, Nao Natsuya, a dual-wielding swordsman, finding two warm and fitting scabbards—that's perfectly reasonable, right?
Just then, Zephyr announced Rosinante's ranking, diverting Nao's attention.
Twelfth place
A slight improvement from last time, but still short of Rosinante's goal of making the top ten. Nao glanced at his fair-haired friend, who had his head down, visibly disappointed.
Nao patted his friend's shoulder, unsure of what to say.
—He had little experience comforting girls, even less with guys.
Shiryu, noticing this, flicked a cigar towards them.
"A smoke is always a man's first choice to ease loneliness and sorrow."
Seeing Rosinante's confused look, Shiryu bit down on his cigar, exhaling a large puff of smoke with flair.
Just the naive thoughts of a single guy.
Nao scoffed at this.
Meanwhile, after announcing the assessment results, Zephyr encouraged the trainees and generously granted them a three-day break.
It had been two months since their last vacation, and after such a grueling assessment, it was time for the new recruits to rest.
"Oh yeah, this is awesome!"
"Long live Instructor Zephyr!"
Amidst the cheers, Zephyr, chewing on a toothpick, smiled and left the training ground's platform.
He was in high spirits, not only because of the excellent overall performance in the assessment but also due to his prized student, Aokiji.
After half a month, seeing Aokiji again, Zephyr clearly felt that the previous gloom surrounding him had lifted, replaced by a rekindled fighting spirit.
Just like nine years ago, when this young man, full of enthusiasm, joined the elite camp at Marineford.
Zephyr was unaware of Nao's conversation with Aokiji, thinking the latter had come to terms on his own, but that didn't diminish his satisfaction.
That's how it should be. In their twenties, they should be full of vigor.
If everyone were like his other underachieving student, lazy and unmotivated, acting like a salary thief, what future would the Marines have?
Back at the long-missed headquarters.
Walking down the familiar tree-lined avenue, the maple trees on both sides lush and full, still adorned with morning dew as in every past morning and evening.
Nao walked alone down the center of the path, casting one last glance towards the port, his expression wistful.
Not long ago, he had bid farewell to Gion there. She had received an urgent mission from headquarters and had to depart immediately for the New World.
Their parting was simple, a few words exchanged before they smiled and waved goodbye.
After all, they were just friends for now, with significant differences in status and strength. If not for a twist of fate, they might never have met.
"Gotta step up my game!"
Thinking of Gion already undertaking missions in the New World while he remained a recruit in the elite camp, a sense of urgency to grow stronger weighed heavily on Nao.
One of his dreams was for Gion to confess to him publicly...
Whether he'd push her into the sea afterward was another matter.
—But before that, he needed to surpass her in rank and strength; otherwise, what would that say about him?
"Three days of vacation..."
He pondered, "We're on break, so Instructor Zephyr should be free. Maybe I should get a good night's sleep and seek his guidance on Armament Haki tomorrow morning..."
After three days and nights of intense training, he'd rest well and dive into the next round of daily training. A perfect plan.
"Too bad this week's item refresh was a letdown."
Nao suddenly recalled the new items in the system shop refreshed early yesterday morning and sighed.
He had hoped his luck would yield something like a Haki training acceleration card.
But perhaps he'd used up his luck last week; this week's random items were mostly junk. Busy with training, he had only glanced at them before closing the panel in disappointment.
"Still, there were one or two somewhat useful ones."
Now with some free time, he reopened the system shop, muttering, "Might as well buy them."
3D Maneuver Gear (Permanent): 2000 points
Advanced Drawing Skill Scroll: 300 points
XX Senbei Promotional Pack (Consumable): 50 points
Jo Family Cola (Trash): 10 points
Advanced Firearms Proficiency Scroll: 2000 points
Take-copter (Consumable): 300 points
—Shia's Diary—
Day 331 of liking Nao, sunny.
Back at headquarters. That woman must have parted ways with Nao, right?
Feels so good.
The Devil Fruit tasted as awful as rumored. Thankfully, only a small bite was needed; I fed the rest to the red puppy that often visits the training camp.
For some reason, it seems to like the taste.
First time trying out the ability, a bit clumsy. But seeing "him" in the mirror, I stared blankly for a long time before snapping out of it.
Even though the Nao I transformed into only had his appearance, lacking his aura, far from his actual charm.
Damn it… I really, really, really like this guy way too much!!
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin