Pons had no idea how long he had been at it.
All he could feel was that his entire body was screaming with soreness, especially his arms and legs, which had nearly gone completely numb.
By now, his punches and kicks had become purely mechanical motions, and his form had begun to degrade noticeably as fatigue set in.
‘Just how much longer was this supposed to go on?’ Pons felt that a considerable amount of time had already passed since he first started practicing these basic strikes.
Considering that the morning training session lasted three hours in total, he could not help but wonder…
was he really going to be doing nothing but this for the entire morning?
However, just as Pons felt he was on the verge of total collapse, Zephyr’s voice rang out toward him: “You…
take off your wrist weights and ankle weights, then go rest for a while.” Hearing those words, Pons felt as though he had been granted a reprieve from execution.
He mustered what little strength remained in his limbs, hastily unstrapped the weighted guards from his wrists and ankles, then withdrew to the side and slumped down onto the ground to catch his breath.
Another five minutes passed before Zephyr ordered everyone else to stop their drills, remove their training weights, and take a five-minute break as well.
Pons could only sigh to himself, ‘So my extra rest time had only been five minutes longer than everyone else’s.’ In fact, even those five extra minutes were probably Zephyr’s idea of generous special treatment.
Pons knew he would simply have to adapt.
When the rest period ended, Zephyr called everyone back into formation.
Pons dragged his heavy, leaden feet back into the ranks.
Zephyr shouted to the assembled group: “Next, we will conduct one-on-one sparring practice.
Each of you will find a partner and engage in combat.
If you are a Devil Fruit user, you are forbidden from using your abilities during this exercise…
only physical techniques are permitted.” ‘Sparring practice with Devil Fruits banned, huh?’ Pons could only pray silently that he would not end up getting completely beaten into the ground.
But perhaps out of reluctance to pick on a complete newcomer who had virtually no hand-to-hand combat experience, no one came forward to partner with Pons.
Since the number of participants in the drill was an odd figure, after everyone else had paired off, Pons was left standing alone, unchosen by anyone.
‘Did that mean I would be excused from the sparring session?’ Pons allowed himself a flicker of hopeful anticipation…
but he knew deep down that it was unlikely.
A bad feeling began to creep over him.
Sure enough, Zephyr turned to Pons and said: “So no one has chosen you, huh?
Very well, then I will be your opponent.” Pons was utterly dumbfounded, ‘Wait a minute…
Zephyr-sensei, are you serious?
With my current physique, there is no way I can take even one of your punches!’ “Rest assured,” Zephyr added, “I will control my strength.
I won’t injure you.” ‘That was not really the issue here, was it?
Even if you held back to the absolute minimum, one punch from you landing on me…
I still would not be able to withstand it!’ But Pons had no room to refuse.
He could only steel himself and accept the situation: “I humbly request your guidance, Zephyr-sensei.” Around them, the others had already begun their own sparring matches.
Given the limited space of the training ground, everyone took care to avoid making overly wide movements, focusing instead on close-quarters exchanges so as not to interfere with the other pairs.
Zephyr, too, commenced his spar with Pons.
At over three meters tall, Zephyr was the largest opponent Pons had ever faced.
Just standing before him was enough to press down on Pons with an overwhelming sense of pressure.
Zephyr raised his mechanical arm and threw a punch straight toward Pons’s face.
To be fair, the punch was not particularly fast…
even Pons could have dodged it with relative ease under normal circumstances.
But “normal circumstances” meant when he was fresh and full of energy.
After the grueling drills Zephyr had put him through, and with only a brief rest that had barely restored any of his stamina, Pons barely…
barely…
managed to sidestep that first punch by the narrowest of margins.
“Such slow reactions!
If you fight pirates like this, you’ll get hurt…
or even killed!” Zephyr barked as he threw a second punch, noticeably faster than the first.
Pons threw everything he had into dodging that one as well, but he still felt the wind of it graze his cheek.
A sharp, burning pain flared up on the right side of his face.
“Why are you only dodging and never counterattacking?
Do you think you can defeat an enemy by just running away in battle?!” Pons’s so-called “physical combat ability” consisted of nothing more than the basic punches and kicks he had been practicing for a short while.
Besides, his head only came up to Zephyr’s waist…
how was he supposed to strike back effectively?
But he had no choice.
Faced with Zephyr’s demand, Pons forced himself to throw a punch at the other man’s thigh.
Zephyr, however, made no attempt to dodge or block.
He simply let Pons’s fist strike his leg.
It was plain to see that Pons’s punch had done absolutely no damage whatsoever.
“What good does hitting someone’s thigh do in a real fight?
You need to target the enemy’s vital points!
Even if you’re shorter than I am, you should wait for the right moment to leap up and strike at my heart!” Pons had no choice but to follow the instruction.
He jumped up from where he stood and threw a punch toward Zephyr’s chest.
And at that very moment, Zephyr swept his leg out in a low kick, catching Pons squarely in the midsection.
Though the kick was not delivered with much force, it still sent Pons tumbling hard to the ground.
‘You were the one who told me to jump up and hit your heart…
so why did you kick me while I was mid-leap?
Are you setting me up on purpose?!’ As if reading Pons’s internal complaint, Zephyr said to him: “I told you to ‘wait for the right moment to leap.’ I did not tell you to jump up recklessly without any thought.” ‘That was a bit unreasonable, was it not?
You are a top-tier powerhouse…
in front of you, what kind of “right moment” could I possibly have?!’ “Enough.
That kick of mine was very light.
How much longer are you going to lie on the ground?
Get up and keep fighting!” Left with no alternative, Pons climbed back to his feet and, with his utterly exhausted body, charged at Zephyr once more…
An unknown amount of time passed.
Pons felt as though the very last shred of his strength had been completely drained.
His whole body was swaying, and he could barely even stand upright.
Still, he figured he must have gained something from all of this.
After all, he had been fighting under Zephyr’s direct guidance, personally experiencing real combat.
That had to count for something in terms of building experience.
Just then, Zephyr called out to one of his subordinates, a man named Shuza: “Shuza, take Pons to the hospital.
Have Mia give him proper treatment.
Do not let him fall behind in this afternoon’s training.” Pons blinked in surprise, ‘Had the three-hour morning session already come to an end?’ Judging by the fact that Zephyr had not dismissed the others, it seemed the session was still ongoing.
It appeared that he was simply being allowed to leave early…
another form of special consideration.
But the moment he remembered that there were still two more hours of training in the afternoon, an oppressive weight settled over him.
Still, this was the path he had chosen.
If he did not seize every opportunity to grow stronger, how could he ever hope to survive in a world teeming with formidable fighters?
Shuza had also been engaged in sparring with a Vice Admiral who could use Haki.
The two of them had been trading blows infused with Haki, and their match had been the most spectacular of all the pairs on the training ground.
Upon hearing Zephyr’s call, Shuza broke off his bout, walked over to Zephyr, and without ceremony hoisted Pons up onto his shoulder.
Shuza was well over two and a half meters tall, so carrying the one-meter-eighty Pons was no effort at all.
Pons had not expected to be lifted up so casually, and he felt a bit embarrassed.
But he truly could not muster even an ounce of energy to move on his own, so being carried was fine by him…
at least it saved him the trouble of walking.
After Shuza withdrew, the Vice Admiral who had been his sparring partner was left without an opponent.
Zephyr walked up to him and said: “I will take over and exchange a few moves with you.
However, you are already somewhat of a renowned fighter, so do not expect me to go as easy on you as I did on the newcomer.” The Vice Admiral swallowed hard, suddenly feeling the weight of immense pressure bearing down on him.
Meanwhile, Shuza, with Pons slung over his shoulder, strode out of the training ground and made his way toward the naval hospital.
The hospital was quite sizable, as it had to be…
it was responsible for the health and well-being of over ten thousand Marine personnel, making its duties critically important.
Shuza carried Pons straight into the hospital without bothering to register or fill out any paperwork.
He simply addressed the receptionist nurse at the front desk: “Arrange a bed for me.
Also, is Nurse Mia available right now?” The receptionist flipped through a ledger, then replied: “I’ll put you in the empty bed in Ward 103.
As for Mia, she happens to be free at the moment.
I’ll call her over for you.
Just wait in Ward 103.” So Shuza carried Pons to Ward 103 and laid him down on an empty hospital bed.
Pons glanced around.
Most of the other beds were occupied by naval soldiers who appeared to have been wounded in engagements with pirates and were now hospitalized for treatment.
About two minutes later, Mia entered the ward: “Who is it that needs me?” Her voice was sweet and soft, quite pleasant to the ear.
Pons turned his head toward the sound and saw Mia…
a girl who seemed to be around his age, roughly one meter and sixty-five centimeters tall, with fluffy pink curls and a cute, sweet face that was very easy on the eyes.
The moment she stepped into the ward, practically every bedridden sailor turned to look at her.
“Mia-chan, when I’m all healed up, will you go on a date with me?” someone called out to her.
“This is a hospital ward.
Please keep your voices down,” Mia said gently.
But her gentle admonition did not seem to have much effect.
Another voice piped up: “Mia-chan, my legs are feeling sore…
could you give them a rub for me?” “Um…
well…
that’s…” Mia looked flustered, unsure of how to respond.
“QUIET!” Shuza had had enough.
He raised his voice at the crowd: “You are all soldiers of Marine Headquarters.
Even as rank-and-file members, you represent the face of the Marine to the outside world!
And look at you…
acting like a bunch of lovesick fools!
What kind of example is this?!
If you have the energy to chase after girls, then you’re clearly recovered enough.
So what are you still doing lying around in the hospital?
Get up and go train!” Shuza was tall and powerful, held the rank of Vice Admiral, and his reprimands carried considerable weight.
His booming voice instantly cowed the sailors into silence.
Then Shuza pointed at Pons and said to Mia: “I’ll leave this young man in your care, Miss Mia.
Please restore his stamina so he can participate in this afternoon’s training session.” Mia looked at Pons and asked Shuza: “May I ask what injuries he has sustained?” “He is not injured…
merely exhausted after his first day of training.
His stamina is completely depleted.” “I understand.
I will do my best to help him recover his energy.” “Good.
Then I’ll take my leave.
This young man is in your hands.” With that, Shuza exited the ward.