Everyone present knew what a swordsman represented.
"Am I seeing things? Was that a flying slash?"
"That means… this new recruit is actually a swordsman?"
"Also, did you see his speed just now? That's one of the Six Styles—Soru, right? I've been in the elite camp for a year and still haven't mastered Soru, but this new recruit can already use it so skillfully?"
"That's not Soru—it's a different kind of footwork!"
"Is he a Devil Fruit user?"
"No, he doesn't seem like one!"
The veterans around them erupted in discussion, shocked by Yuno's performance.
However, upon seeing Zephyr, everyone immediately saluted and shouted, "Instructor Zephyr!"
From a distance, Roy's eyes widened as he watched Yuno wielding a dagger.
Was he… going to surpass such a monster?
He felt a wave of regret—he had been far too confident before...
Zephyr nodded lightly, returned the salutes, and then looked at Yuno with admiration.
"Not bad. There are only a few in the world who can deliver a flying slash at your age."
"In the Navy, I've only seen that girl Momosagi do that at your age. You're quite good."
After a brief pause, Zephyr continued,
"It's a pity—your physique is still too weak. It's holding back your swordsmanship."
From the way the others addressed him, and from memories of his past life, Yuno recognized the man before him—
The former Navy Admiral, the future "Z"—Black Arm Zephyr!
Zephyr may have stepped down, but he was no less capable. He was still a true admiral, with insight sharper than anyone else's.
He saw Yuno's weakness at a glance—
Physical strength.
Yuno calmly sheathed his dagger, bowed respectfully to the purple-haired middle-aged man, and said:
"Yes, Instructor Zephyr. I'm aware of my shortcomings. That's why I came to the training camp—to strengthen myself. I'd appreciate your guidance."
"Not bad. You're not arrogant—promising," Zephyr thought to himself, nodding.
"Since you're here, I'll naturally train you well. I treat all students equally."
Then he looked around and shouted,
"Everyone, assemble!"
Clatter—
Everyone quickly gathered into formation in front of Zephyr.
Yuno handed the dagger back to Ain, smiling.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome," Ain replied, her curious eyes still observing him closely.
The others also couldn't help casting intrigued glances at Yuno.
This new recruit was far from ordinary.
Zephyr surveyed the crowd—especially the two new recruits—and spoke calmly:
"Remember this: this is the Marine Elite Battalion—the place where we train future commanders of the Navy! Compared to boot camps elsewhere, the training here is a hundred times tougher. I hope you all persevere."
These words were clearly directed at the two new recruits.
Zephyr continued,
"The Navy is full of talented individuals. Don't think that just because you've entered the Elite Battalion, you can afford to slack off. If you don't work hard, others will surpass you. When that time comes, I hope you'll still be able to stand here with pride."
At those words, several people in the crowd looked embarrassed—clearly feeling targeted.
After all, they'd already trained here for over two years and still hadn't met the graduation requirements...
If they couldn't graduate soon, they'd be discharged, forced to start from the bottom ranks without officer status.
After the short speech, Zephyr swept his gaze across the group and barked:
"Everyone, listen up! Today's training begins!
Start with three hundred laps around the field—with weights!"
"Yes, sir!" everyone responded in unison, then dispersed.
A day of intense training had begun.
Watching the trainees depart, Zephyr murmured to himself:
"I just hope… you all survive the real combat trials in three months."
Meanwhile—
Yuno's main body continued his grueling training in the elite camp.
But his Quincy alias was also active.
North Blue, Swallow Island.
A small island—
ruled by two gangs.
An illegal zone.
Those who lived there were either gang members, pirate assassins, bounty hunters…
In short—chaos.
In a bar that catered to thugs and criminals, Yuno sat quietly in the farthest corner, his figure shrouded in shadows. A black-and-white mask concealed his face, making him blend seamlessly into the dim and chaotic surroundings.
Silently, Yuno opened his system dashboard:
[Host: Yuno]
[Achievement Points: 886]
[Slash]: Swordsmanship (Proficiency 86)
[Punch]: Hakuda(Proficiency 70)
…
After a period of consistent use, the proficiency of all his combat skills had increased slightly.
More importantly, he'd recently discovered a crucial detail: the physical fitness of his clone was also gradually improving. This led Yuno to an astonishing realization—his physical stats were shared between his main body and his clone, just like the system interface itself.
In other words, Yuno's growth was doubled.
Unbelievable.
Two bodies cultivating at the same time meant twice the gains—whether in raw physical strength or in skill proficiency. It was equivalent to having two Yunos stacked together!
The only downside was the considerable energy consumption.
Fortunately, the situation was manageable. As long as both bodies weren't engaged in high-intensity combat simultaneously, Yuno could effectively control and minimize the drain.
Bars like this were the best places to gather information.
Villains of all sorts gathered here, boasting and gossiping freely. Useful intel often slipped through their lips—though one had to filter through a mess of nonsense first.
Luckily, Yuno's perception was sharp. He could isolate valuable fragments from the noise with ease.
"Hey, did you hear? That pirate, the guy with the 20 million berry bounty—he's being hunted down and apparently fled to this island!"
"Yeah! I heard it's that new bounty hunter, the one called The Quincy! He's the one chasing him, right?"
The bar was noisy and chaotic, but Yuno caught exactly what he was looking for.
'So he really did come to this island...'
Yuno smiled beneath his mask.
He had come to this island to hunt down a pirate group—not because of some grand mission, but because one of their crew members had dared to fire at his ship.
That was a death sentence.
Crash—!
Suddenly, a loud commotion erupted from the table next to Yuno.
"Y-You…! You're the Quincy! The bounty hunter!"
A terrified shout broke through the din, turning every head in the bar toward its source.
The voice came from a pirate—red headscarf, pistol at his waist—now slumped on the floor, hand trembling as he pointed directly at Yuno.
When the others followed the direction of his finger, they saw a masked figure with a sheathed blade at his waist—
All eyes locked onto Yuno.
And the bar fell dead silent.