"But the defenses of the New World…"
The burly Marine whom Ain had been speaking with, Shuzo, hesitated before continuing.
"Pirate activity in the New World has become increasingly troublesome again."
"If you leave now, I'm not sure I'll be able to handle everything by myself."
Ain glanced at him calmly.
"I've already submitted my transfer request to Marine Headquarters."
"From this point onward, you'll have to handle the situation here."
Shuzo's expression stiffened.
"Ain…"
"You're really leaving?"
"Yes."
Ain looked toward the distant sea.
"I've spent five years in the New World."
"I'm tired of staying here."
"Besides, we're both Marine Headquarters Captains."
"Whether one of us remains here or not won't change the overall situation."
"The Marines still lack the strength to launch a full-scale counteroffensive against the major pirate forces dominating the New World."
Shuzo fell silent.
He understood what she meant.
The New World was fundamentally different from the four Blues.
The seas beyond the Red Line were dominated by powerful pirates, enormous territories, and crews whose strength far exceeded that of ordinary pirate bands.
The Marines could maintain bases, protect important routes, and conduct operations when necessary.
But completely suppressing the New World was another matter entirely.
"…"
Shuzo stared at Ain.
He had a strange expression on his face.
"So why did you even ask what I thought?"
Ain gave him a flat look.
"I was being polite."
Shuzo's mouth twitched.
"Right…"
Ain turned away.
She had already made her decision.
However, Shuzo suddenly remembered something.
"Ain."
She stopped.
"Are you still thinking about what happened back then?"
Ain's expression changed slightly.
Shuzo had seen the aftermath of the tragedy involving Zephyr and his students.
He knew how deeply it had affected her.
"You've been stationed in the New World for five years."
"You rarely return to Marine Headquarters."
"And now you suddenly want to go back."
"Are you still carrying that memory with you?"
Ain shook her head.
"No."
"That isn't why I want to return."
Shuzo looked at her.
"Then what is it?"
"I'm worried about Professor Zephyr."
Ain's voice softened.
She had always regarded Zephyr as more than simply an instructor.
To her, he was a mentor, a teacher, and one of the people who had shaped her understanding of what it meant to be a Marine.
She admired him deeply.
"I'm worried about Teacher Zephyr."
"He's the one who suffered the most."
Shuzo's expression became solemn.
He understood immediately.
Among all the people affected by the tragedy, Zephyr had carried perhaps the greatest burden.
His students had been placed in danger.
Many had been killed or wounded.
For a man who had dedicated his life to training Marines, watching his students die was a wound that never truly healed.
"Yeah."
"Teacher Zephyr probably suffered more than anyone."
Shuzo sighed.
Then he looked toward Ain.
"All right."
"I won't object to your transfer."
"You should go back."
"Seeing Teacher Zephyr again might be good for you too."
Ain nodded.
"Thank you, Shuzo."
"Just make sure you don't get yourself killed while I'm gone."
Shuzo laughed.
"Don't worry."
"I'm not planning on dying anytime soon."
Ain smiled faintly.
After five years in the New World, she was finally going back to Marine Headquarters.
And she had no idea that her return would coincide with the beginning of a new chapter in the lives of several young Marines.
…
MarinefordNightThe Special Training Camp had finally quieted down.
After an exhausting first assessment, the surviving candidates had been assigned to their respective dormitories.
Kuina carried her belongings through the dim corridor until she reached the room indicated by the instructor.
She opened the door.
The room was almost completely dark.
Someone was already sitting on one of the beds.
Kuina looked toward the figure.
"Excuse me."
"Is this the lower bunk assigned to me?"
The person on the bed immediately moved.
"I'm sorry!"
"I'm really sorry!"
"I was just…"
Tashigi's voice was weak.
"I'm too tired to climb to the upper bunk."
Kuina paused.
Tashigi looked completely exhausted.
Her arms were still trembling from the previous day's physical assessment.
She looked as though even lifting herself onto the upper bunk would require more strength than she currently possessed.
Kuina quickly shook her head.
"It's fine."
"You can rest there for now."
"You don't need to apologize."
Tashigi lowered her head.
"Thank you…"
Kuina reached for the light.
Click.
The room suddenly illuminated.
The two girls looked at each other.
And then both froze.
Kuina stared.
Tashigi stared.
For several seconds, neither of them said anything.
Their facial features were almost identical.
Their black hair framed their faces in nearly the same way.
Their eyes were similar.
Their height was close.
Even their expressions were strangely alike.
The only obvious difference was the pair of glasses resting on Tashigi's face.
Kuina's mouth opened slightly.
"You…"
Tashigi adjusted her glasses.
"Yes?"
"You look a lot like me."
Tashigi stared at her.
"Now that you mention it…"
She looked at Kuina more carefully.
"It's true."
The two girls continued staring at each other.
Neither knew what to say.
It was one thing to be told that someone resembled you.
It was another thing to stand directly in front of someone who looked almost like your reflection.
Finally, Kuina broke the silence.
"This is strange."
Tashigi nodded.
"Very strange."
Neither of them knew it yet, but this bizarre coincidence would eventually become one of the strangest encounters in their Marine careers.
…
To My FatherFather,
It has been a long time.
How have you been?
Your daughter has become a Marine officer.
I've been doing very well in the Marines, and my master has taken excellent care of me.
I have to say, Father, my master is one of the greatest teachers in the world.
I've also continued practicing swordsmanship every day.
Recently, I finally reached the point where I can cut through solid iron.
I think I'm finally beginning to understand what it truly means to be a swordsman.
I will continue training until I reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship.
I, Kuina, will become stronger.
There is also something I need to ask you.
Father, do I have a twin sister?
I met a girl here in the Marines who looks remarkably similar to me.
She is around my age, and the resemblance is so extraordinary that we could almost be looking into a mirror.
I know this sounds strange, but I want to confirm it with you.
Her name is Tashigi.
Please tell me if you know anything about her.
There is also a message for Roronoa Zoro.
Please pass it to him for me, Father.
Zoro.
I wonder how your swordsmanship is progressing.
If you still intend to become the world's greatest swordsman, then come to the Grand Line.
I'll be waiting for you here.
Kuina
Kuina finished writing.
She carefully folded the letter and placed it inside an envelope.
She then took out the seal she had prepared beforehand and closed the envelope.
After placing it safely inside a drawer, she decided that she would mail it back to the East Blue after completing the Special Training Camp assessment.
When she turned around, Tashigi was already lying on the bed.
"Tashigi."
"Yes?"
"The written examination is tomorrow."
"Are you prepared?"
Tashigi immediately sat up.
"Yes!"
"I've studied Marine regulations extensively."
"The written examination shouldn't be difficult."
Kuina smiled.
"You sound very confident."
Tashigi pushed her glasses up.
"I am."
"For a Marine, understanding the regulations is important."
Kuina nodded.
"That's true."
The two girls looked at each other again.
Kuina suddenly laughed.
"If you weren't wearing those glasses…"
Tashigi tilted her head.
"What?"
"I'd probably feel like I was looking into a mirror."
Tashigi laughed awkwardly.
"I was thinking the same thing."
The coincidence was unbelievable.
Two girls who looked almost identical had somehow entered the same organization.
Then, by an even greater coincidence, they had been assigned to the same dormitory.
Perhaps it was simply fate.
Neither girl could have known how important that coincidence would become.
…
The Following MorningThe Special Training Camp was already awake before sunrise.
The surviving candidates assembled at the examination grounds.
An instructor stepped onto the platform.
"Candidates!"
"Prepare yourselves for the second assessment!"
"This examination will test your theoretical knowledge."
"You will have two hours."
"No talking."
"No exchanging answers."
"No unauthorized materials."
"Anyone caught violating the rules will be immediately disqualified."
"Yes, sir!"
The candidates took their seats.
The examination papers were distributed.
Kuina received hers.
She glanced at the first page.
Her expression slowly changed.
"What…?"
She looked at the questions again.
The written assessment did not focus on advanced battlefield tactics.
Instead, it examined Marine regulations, the duties of Marine personnel, military discipline, organizational structure, basic physical conditioning, and the principles governing Marine conduct.
The purpose was simple.
The Special Training Camp was not merely looking for physically powerful Marines.
It needed candidates capable of understanding orders, following regulations, protecting civilians, and functioning as disciplined members of the organization.
Kuina stared at the paper.
She knew every word.
Unfortunately, knowing the words and knowing the answers were two entirely different things.
She bit the end of her pen.
"What is the one-hundred-and-eightieth article of the Marine regulations?"
Kuina's eyes widened.
"How would I know that?"
She had never memorized every article of the Marine code.
Zeff had assured her that her physical abilities and swordsmanship would give her an excellent chance of entering the Special Training Camp.
Because of that, she had concentrated most of her preparation on combat.
She had not expected the written examination to be so detailed.
Kuina lowered her head.
"I recognize every word…"
"But together, they make no sense!"
She reluctantly continued.
Meanwhile, Tashigi was progressing through the examination at a completely different pace.
She had spent considerable time studying Marine regulations.
For her, the objective questions were comparatively simple.
She answered one question after another.
Eventually, she reached the final section.
Then she stopped.
There was only one question.
Unlike the others, it had no multiple-choice answers.
No reference material.
No regulation number.
No predetermined response.
Only four words.
What is justice?
Tashigi stared at the question.
Around the examination hall, several candidates had similarly frozen.
Even those who had confidently answered the previous questions were suddenly struggling.
The question was deceptively simple.
Anyone could define justice.
But explaining what justice truly meant was another matter.
There was no single answer written in a Marine manual.
There was no article that could provide the correct response.
The candidates had to think for themselves.
One candidate lowered his pen.
Another frowned deeply.
A third simply stared at the page.
The examiners watched in silence.
They wanted to see what the candidates truly believed.
Riva looked at the question for a long moment.
His answer was simple.
Justice means refusing to stand by while innocent people suffer.
He began writing.
Kuina thought carefully.
Her hand moved across the paper.
Justice means protecting innocent people and refusing to abuse those who are weaker than yourself.
She paused.
Then continued writing.
Tashigi remained silent for several seconds.
She had always believed that the Marines existed to protect people.
But was that enough to define justice?
After careful consideration, she wrote:
Justice is a shared belief that gives people the courage to protect others, even when doing so is difficult.
Her answer was different from Kuina's.
But neither was necessarily wrong.
That was the entire purpose of the question.
The examination continued.
Two hours passed quickly.
"Time!"
"Put your pens down!"
The candidates immediately stopped writing.
The examiners began collecting the papers.
Kuina was among the first to submit hers.
She looked at her paper with a complicated expression.
The objective questions were almost a disaster.
She had left many of them unanswered.
But she had completed the subjective section.
She could only hope that her performance in the physical assessment would compensate for her poor theoretical knowledge.
Tashigi, meanwhile, handed in her paper with considerably more confidence.
She had answered almost everything.
Riva had also completed his examination.
The examiners gathered the papers and began sorting them.
Among thousands of candidates, their answers to a single question had already revealed something important.
Physical strength could be measured.
Swordsmanship could be tested.
Endurance could be quantified.
But conviction was different.
And for the first time, the Special Training Camp had asked its candidates to reveal what kind of Marines they intended to become.
✦ [SYSTEM] ✦
[Second Assessment Completed.]
[Physical endurance: Evaluated.]
[Theoretical knowledge: Evaluated.]
[Conviction: Under evaluation.]
[Special Assessment Question: "What is justice?"]
[No single standardized answer detected.]
[Evaluation will prioritize reasoning, conviction, consistency, and the candidate's willingness to protect others.]
The examination hall gradually emptied.
Outside, the Marine flag continued to fly above Marineford.
And beneath that flag, hundreds of young Marines were beginning to discover that becoming strong was only one part of the path ahead.
The far more difficult question was what they would choose to do with that strength.