1529, Age of the Sea Calendar
Grand Line — Marineford, Main Training Grounds
By the time the training session finally ended, Tenjin felt like his soul had been boiled, flattened, and left out under the sun to dry.
His breathing was ragged.
His legs were trembling.
And his entire body felt as though Vice Admiral Gion had personally reached inside him and removed all remaining dignity.
He came around the final bend of the training ground at a pace that could no longer honestly be called running. His steps were long gone from disciplined strides into the ugly, desperate shuffle of a man whose body had entered open rebellion hours ago.
Dust clung to his boots, his trousers, his sleeves, his hair.
Sweat dripped from his chin in steady streams.
His chest rose and fell violently.
And yet—
Vice Admiral Gion, who stood near the center of the field with her arms folded, still managed to look faintly unimpressed.
Tenjin crossed the invisible line that seemed to mark the end of his punishment and nearly collapsed on the spot. He caught himself only by planting both hands on his knees and bowing forward, sucking in air like a drowning man who had just remembered breathing existed.
For several seconds, all he could hear was the pounding of his own heartbeat.
Somewhere nearby, Helmeppo let out a low whistle.
"That looked awful."
Koby shot him a look. "Helmeppo."
"What?" Helmeppo said. "It did."
Hibari, who had been stretching her arms after the end of drills, looked over with open concern.
"Captain Tenjin," she said gently, "are you alright?"
Tenjin did not answer immediately.
Because at that exact moment, he was not entirely sure.
Eventually, he lifted a shaky hand and gave a weak thumbs-up without looking up.
"I'm alive," he said hoarsely.
Kujaku laughed from a short distance away, one hand at her hip.
"That's a surprisingly high bar for your first day."
Tenjin slowly straightened and looked toward her with the flat, exhausted glare of someone who had mentally filed away several revenge plans and intended to revisit them later.
"This," he said, voice still rough from exertion, "is your fault."
Kujaku smiled brightly.
"I know."
Prince Grus, who had long since recovered from the earlier exchange and now looked annoyingly composed again, clicked his tongue.
"You overslept and got punished for it. Taking responsibility clearly isn't one of your strengths."
Tenjin turned his head toward him.
Normally, he might have answered.
Might have said something smug.
But right now, he simply stared at Prince Grus for a long second before speaking with complete sincerity.
"I'm too tired to hate on you properly."
That actually made Hibari laugh.
Even Koby let out a small smile.
Helmeppo, who had his arms folded, looked like he was trying very hard not to find that funny and failing anyway.
Vice Admiral Gion, meanwhile, gave the group one last long look before turning away.
"That concludes today's session," she said. "You will all return tomorrow before sunrise. Early is on time. On time is late. And late…"
She turned her head just enough for her eyes to land on Tenjin.
"…is a personal insult."
Tenjin gave her a tired nod.
"Understood."
Gion said nothing more. She simply walked away, leaving behind a silence that lasted only until she was comfortably out of earshot.
Then the mood shifted all at once.
The crushing tension that had hung over the field all day loosened.
Bodies relaxed.
Shoulders dropped.
And for the first time since morning, the trainees looked less like soldiers under judgment and more like a group of young people who had just survived something miserable together.
Hibari clapped her hands softly.
"Well then," she said with a warm smile, "since we all survived… would anyone like to get some food together?"
That got everyone's attention.
She looked from one face to the next and added, "My treat."
A beat passed.
Then Helmeppo raised a finger.
"I'm in."
Koby nodded quickly. "Me too."
Kujaku smiled. "Free food? I'd be offended if I said no."
Prince Grus folded his arms and gave a small shrug, as if accepting generosity were beneath him and yet somehow still happening.
"I suppose I can tolerate a meal."
Then everyone looked at Tenjin.
Tenjin was still standing there like a man who had just crawled out of a war zone.
He stared at Hibari.
At the mention of food, something returned to his eyes.
Life.
"Please," he said.
---
Marineford — Main Cafeteria
The Marineford cafeteria was enormous.
Rows of long tables stretched across the wide hall, filled with Marines of every rank and age. The place was loud in the way only military cafeterias could be loud. Trays clattering, chairs scraping, voices rising and falling over one another, laughter in one corner, arguments in another, and the constant, comforting smell of hot food hanging in the air.
To Tenjin, it smelled like salvation.
By the time the group reached the serving area, he had somehow regained just enough strength to look human again, though only barely. His body still felt heavy, his muscles hot and sore from the endless running, but the sight of actual food placed within reachable distance had improved his attitude considerably.
They grabbed trays and moved down the line.
Rice.
Soup.
Meat.
Vegetables.
Bread.
Fish.
And several portions of things Tenjin did not even ask the names of because he was too busy piling them onto his tray.
Kujaku noticed immediately.
"Are you feeding yourself or a small village?"
Tenjin didn't look at her. "Shut up."
Hibari laughed softly and paid for everyone before anyone else could protest. Koby tried anyway, as expected.
"You really don't have to—"
"It's alright," Hibari said. "I invited everyone."
Koby hesitated, then gave her a grateful smile. "Thank you."
Helmeppo looked down at his tray and muttered, "This class has dangerous women in it."
Kujaku heard him.
"And weak men too."
Helmeppo looked up immediately. "I am not weak."
Prince Grus, carrying his tray with the posture of someone entering a royal banquet instead of a Marine cafeteria, said dryly, "Compared to whom?"
Helmeppo's eye twitched.
Tenjin, meanwhile, had already found a seat and was halfway through his food by the time the others sat down.
Hibari blinked.
"…You started without us."
Tenjin swallowed. "Did I?."
"It's understandable."
"What I survived was cruel and unusual punishment."
Koby sat down beside him, still smiling faintly. "You did oversleep."
Tenjin pointed his chopsticks toward Kujaku without pausing his eating.
"She's the villain here."
Kujaku rested her chin against her hand and smiled. "And yet I feel no guilt."
They settled around the table naturally after that.
Hibari.
Kujaku.
Koby.
Helmeppo.
Prince Grus.
Tenjin.
For the first few moments, they simply ate.
The rhythm of conversation came slowly at first, shaped by exhaustion and hunger, but once it started, it came easier.
Hibari, true to her nature, was the first to steer it.
"Well," she said, "we should probably introduce ourselves properly. We were all too busy getting yelled at this morning."
Koby nodded quickly. "That's a good idea."
He straightened a little, always the earnest one.
"My name is Koby," he said. "I'm from the East Blue."
Helmeppo spoke next, though with much less humility.
"Helmeppo," he said. "Also East Blue. Formerly unfortunate. Currently improving."
Kujaku gave him a long look.
"That was almost charming."
He frowned. "Almost?"
Hibari laughed, then placed a hand lightly against her chest.
"Hibari," she said. "Pleased to meet all of you."
Prince Grus leaned back in his chair.
"Prince Grus," he said. "West Blue."
He said nothing more, as though his name should have been enough.
Kujaku rolled her eyes fondly before speaking herself.
"Kujaku," she said. "Commander General. And apparently," she added, glancing toward Tenjin, "roommate to the class's most dramatic sleeper."
Tenjin kept eating.
He looked up only after finishing another mouthful.
"Tenjin," he said. "North Blue."
Koby smiled. "We already knew that part."
Tenjin nodded. "Good. Then that saves me time"
That got a small laugh from Hibari.
Even Prince Grus's mouth shifted very slightly, though whether from amusement or dismissal was impossible to say.
As the meal continued, the mood lightened further.
Koby and Hibari spoke easily. Helmeppo complained about the drills with more intensity than accuracy. Kujaku teased everyone at least once. Prince Grus continued behaving like a man who had been born expecting a private audience and was now being forced to adapt to company. Tenjin ate enough for it to become genuinely concerning.
At one point, Hibari watched him take another serving from his tray and blinked.
"You're still hungry?"
Tenjin looked at her.
"I ran for an entire training session."
"Is that the only excuse you have?"
"Yes."
Kujaku laughed so suddenly she had to put down her cup.
For a brief stretch of time, it was easy.
The sort of rare peace that comes only after shared exhaustion has worn down everyone's rougher edges.
And then—
The cafeteria changed.
Voices quieted.
Postures straightened.
The hum of conversation dropped by a full layer as Marines noticed someone entering.
Tenjin felt it before he looked.
Then he did.
And saw him.
Admiral Sakazuki.
Akainu.
He walked through the cafeteria like a moving pressure front, broad shoulders squared, cap low, expression as hard as forged steel. Even among Marines, there were presences that instinctively made others sit straighter and think more carefully before speaking.
Akainu was one of them.
No—
He was the standard by which such men were measured.
Tenjin's spine straightened on instinct.
So did Koby's.
Helmeppo did the same half a second later.
Even Prince Grus's expression grew more serious.
Hibari was the only one at the table whose first reaction wasn't awe.
It was warmth.
"Father," she said.
Akainu's gaze shifted.
The hard edge in his face softened, though only slightly, as he looked at her.
"Hibari."
He stopped by the table.
"How was training?"
Hibari smiled. "Difficult. Vice Admiral Gion was just as strict as everyone said."
Akainu gave a small grunt that might have been approval.
"That means it was a useful session."
"Yes."
He looked at her for another moment, then at the rest of the table.
Everyone there, including Tenjin, regarded him with the natural respect due to one of the strongest Marines in the world.
Akainu noticed.
"Marineford doesn't produce soldiers through comfort," he said, voice deep and absolute. "If you're here, then earn your place. Weakness has no value on the front lines. Resolve does."
Koby listened intently.
Helmeppo straightened even more.
Hibari gave a quiet nod.
Even Prince Grus looked attentive.
Akainu's words carried the kind of weight that made people want to stand taller just from hearing them.
Then his gaze moved further down the table.
And landed on Tenjin.
The shift was immediate.
The warmth, if one could call it that left his expression.
His eyes hardened.
Tenjin felt it like a change in weather.
Around the table, the others noticed too.
Akainu looked at him for a long second before speaking.
"So," he said. "You're the boy."
Tenjin met his gaze.
"Yes, sir."
"The one who struck a Celestial Dragon."
Nobody at the table moved.
Tenjin held his posture.
"Yes."
Akainu's eyes narrowed.
"There is justice," he said, "and then there is reckless arrogance dressed in its uniform."
The cafeteria around them had gone nearly silent.
Tenjin didn't lower his eyes.
"With all due respect, Admiral," he said evenly, "I don't think protecting people from a man trying to enslave a child is arrogance."
That made the air around the table feel colder.
Akainu's expression darkened.
"And I don't think carrying the Marine banner gives you the right to decide which laws matter."
Tenjin's jaw tightened.
"Then maybe some laws deserve to be questioned."
Koby's breath caught.
Helmeppo looked as though every survival instinct in his body had just activated at once.
Prince Grus stared openly now.
Kujaku, for once, was not smiling.
Hibari looked between her father and Tenjin with rising alarm.
Akainu took one slow step closer.
Tenjin did not back down.
There was no fear in his face.
Only steadiness.
Only that infuriating North Blue certainty that had already caused so much trouble.
The tension drew tighter.
And tighter.
Until—
"Father."
Hibari stood.
Akainu's eyes shifted to her.
Hibari took a breath.
"This is the cafeteria," she said quietly. "And he's my classmate."
Akainu looked at her.
Then at Tenjin.
Then back to the rest of the table.
Finally, he gave a single grunt and stepped back.
"This conversation is not over."
His words were directed at Tenjin.
Tenjin nodded once. "I didn't think it was."
Akainu turned and walked away without another word.
Only after he was gone did the sound in the cafeteria gradually return.
A dozen held breaths released at once.
Helmeppo slumped in his seat.
Prince Grus leaned back slowly, expression unreadable.
Kujaku picked up her cup again, though her eyes were still on Tenjin.
Hibari sat back down last.
For a moment, she said nothing.
Then she turned to Tenjin.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly. "For that."
Tenjin looked at her.
He shook his head once.
"You didn't do anything wrong."
Hibari still looked troubled.
"That doesn't mean I liked it."
Tenjin's expression softened just slightly.
"Neither did I."
That got the smallest smile out of her.
Around them, the meal resumed in fragments.
---
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