One Piece : Glory To The Fleet Admiral

The Marines' worldwide recruitment drive drew countless justice-seeking youths like moths to a flame.

Many capable individuals chose to head straight for Marine Headquarters, while others, due to various circumstances, opted for the nearest Marine bases instead.

In just ten days, the number of recruits across the Four Seas and Grand Line branches exceeded one million—far surpassing Orion's initial plan to expand the force by six hundred thousand.

Headquarters alone saw an influx of two hundred thousand.

Faced with this relentless tide of aspiring recruits, officers handling enlistment were swamped from dawn till dusk.

Even Orion, the Fleet Admiral himself, was so busy that he ended up sleeping in his office.

*****

As the new day arrived, Gion, the busiest officer at Headquarters, hurried into the Fleet Admiral's office with an armful of documents.

Her vision partially blocked by the towering stack of files, she didn't fully take in the scene inside as she entered and immediately spoke up.

"Fleet Admiral, another ten thousand-plus recruits arrived this morning. This recruitment has already far exceeded our budget—we must..."

Halfway through the conversation, Gion noticed that Orion had fallen asleep without her realizing it.

She blinked in surprise before turning her gaze towards a corner of the office.

In the lounge area, Hina and several other officers were quietly organizing the mountain of documents piled on the coffee table.

Seeing this, Gion picked up the files in her hands and walked over, lowering her voice as she asked Hina.

"How long has the Fleet Admiral been asleep?"

"Just a short while" Hina replied, glancing at the figure slumped back in his chair at the desk.

"About ten minutes or so."

After a brief pause, a hint of confusion flickered in Hina's eyes as she subtly shifted the topic.

"Admiral Gion, according to the numbers reported by the branches, the recruitment count is already close to double the original target. Why hasn't the Fleet Admiral ordered a halt? If this continues, the budget for this recruitment will be severely exceeded. Does Headquarters even have the funds for this? Hina is confused!"

Gion nodded. "For now, it's manageable. But we can't just think about the present. Once this recruitment ends, the soldiers' salaries alone will become a major challenge. Still, since the Fleet Admiral hasn't called for a stop, I trust he has a solution."

Without missing a beat, Gion changed the subject.

"Among the recruits coming to Headquarters, were there any particularly outstanding newcomers?"

"There was!"

Hina pulled out a file from the stack and handed it to Gion. "This is the profile of a recruit named Issho."

Gion said nothing as she took the file and opened it.

Inside was the record of a recruit who had already passed all interviews and medical examinations.

The name on the document read "Issho," with his birthplace listed as a country in the first half of the Grand Line, Paradise.

When Gion saw that Issho was already forty-nine years old, she couldn't help but pause in surprise.

But immediately, her pupils contracted slightly as she read his ability.

"Paramecia, the Zushi Zushi no Mi ?"

Confirming she hadn't misread, Gion snapped her head up to look at Hina.

"You interviewed him?"

Hina shook her head. "Not me—Vice Admiral Garp did. No need to doubt it. He's definitely a Gravity Fruit user. More importantly, he's not only mastered the fruit to its limits, but his Observation Haki is also exceptional—especially since he's blind."

Hearing this, Gion suppressed her excitement and asked, "Was a background check done?"

"Yes. Aside from his fondness for gambling, everything checks out."

"Perfect. This is an Admiral candidate material!" Gion picked up the file for another look before setting it aside deliberately.

Trying to sound composed, she asked, "Any others?"

"There is." Hina handed her another file.

Gion skimmed through it quickly.

When she saw the name "Aramaki" and the ability column labeled "Logia, Mori Mori no Mi (Forest-Forest Fruit)" she could no longer suppress her grin.

"I'd love to see the Fleet Admiral's reaction when he sees the results of this recruitment—"

"Hmm?"

Before Gion could finish, a familiar yet slightly drowsy voice suddenly cut in.

"Oh, Gion's here."

The voice belonged to Orion, who had just woken from his short nap and was now stretching as he stood up.

Rubbing his slightly reddened eyes, he glanced at them.

"Hina's here too?"

Hearing this, Hina immediately had a huge question mark pop up in her mind.

The reason she and several other officers were here was because they had received orders from the Fleet Admiral to help organize documents.

Most importantly, they had all pulled an all-nighter here!

Before Hina could react, Gion picked up the files on Aramaki and Issho, stood up, and walked over to the desk, speaking excitedly.

"Fleet Admiral, would you like to see the results of this Marine Headquarters recruitment drive?"

"Any surprises?" Orion took the files and opened them without hesitation.

"Issho?"

The moment he opened the first file and saw the name 'Issho' in the personnel column, Orion's eyes lit up.

"Has the wheel of fate started turning ahead of schedule?"

"Huh?"

Gion blinked in confusion and tentatively asked, "Does the Fleet Admiral know this person?"

Instead of answering directly, Orion casually handed both files back to Gion.

"If I'm not mistaken, the other file should be about Aramaki, the forest man with the powers of the Logia-type Mori Mori no Mi!"

"What?"

Gion's beautiful eyes widened in shock as Orion guessed the contents of the other file without even looking at it.

"Fleet Admiral, how... how did you know?"

Orion shrugged slightly and smiled. "Your Fleet Admiral knows everything."

After a brief pause, Orion straightened his expression and said seriously, "I'll freshen up first. Go and summon those two to my office."

With that, Orion headed straight for the restroom.

By the time he emerged, two new figures had already appeared in the office—Issho and Aramaki, who had officially become Marine soldiers after passing their interviews.

"Fleet Admiral!"

The moment Orion stepped out, Aramaki immediately turned to face him, saluting with fervent enthusiasm and shouting.

"Loyalty!"

"I never expected this recruitment drive to attract such top-tier talents hidden among the civilians. Truly something to celebrate."

Orion gestured for them to relax, paying special attention to Issho.

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