Grand Line Kaigun'in
A One Piece Fan Fiction
By Sacred Sakura

Conceptualized/Written: 12/9 & 11/2006
Edited/Published: 12/16/2006

Rating: T
Genre: Action-Adventure/General/Angst?
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, its characters, concepts, settings, or anything else its author—Oda Eiichiro—has ever conceived or owned. This is simply a work of fiction that I have written just for fun—okay, you've probably most likely have already read all this by now, since you've most likely already read the previous chapters, so I won't suffer you to have to read it all over again. But still, please keep those things in mind as you read Grand Line Kaigun'in.

Dedication: To Mr. K., who assigned vocab homework, thereby inadvertently leading to the publication of this fic, which I have been wanting—though very much lacking in motivation and inspiration—to write for quite some time. Thanks a bunch!

A/N: Darn it, I still don't understand how Sei'i became the main character… Oh, well… At least it'll be fun watching her grow as a person….

Training Day Three: Hypocrisy

"Sir! Santōhei Tashikame Sei'i, reporting for training, sir!"

The idly smoking training officer glanced up at the brunette who saluted him. "Three days and two nights, eh? Not bad…"

"Sir! I would like to know what my orders are, sir!"

The sergeant major jabbed a callused thumb at the tented-over assemblage of tables behind him. "Just go over there and relax while we wait for the stragglers."

"Yes, sir!"

He grunted in reply. 'Damn it…not another one of those…'

Sei'i nodded, then strode over to the makeshift waiting spot and plopped down onto the nearest bench. "Three days, huh? Guess I didn't do too badly…"

She turned her head to see who else had arrived at the training base early. There was a serious-faced teen of perhaps eighteen, whose long, dark brown hair hung haphazardly before his intense dark green eyes. Another girl, she noted, had fallen asleep, auburn hair spilling across her tanned arms beneath her head. Two men—one blond, the other sandy-haired—spoke animatedly, their matching dark brown eyes giving away their blood-relation.

Eagerly, the brunette craned her neck in search of the dark-haired boy, certain he had arrived before her. '…Huh…? Where could he be…? He should have arrived ahead of me already…'

During the next few hours, the sergeant major went through an entire pack of cigarettes, his impatience building as no one else arrived at the training base. "Damn Headquarters," he muttered angrily. "Ordering me to train a bunch of lazy fools into becoming marines… So what if I disobeyed orders by going outside of my jurisdiction? Justice is justice, no matter how much the World Government tries to twist it."

He turned to get a good look at the recruits present. "Hmm…looks like these guys are the only competent ones of the entire group…. Maybe I should just curtail the rest of the time limit and keep going. Like I said before, the Marines don't tolerate slackers—and it seems to me only slackers need the entire week to get all the way here."

He snorted in derision. "'There is no room for weakness in the Marines.' What a load of shit. Those damn hypocrites…. And don't even get me started on their 'Absolute Justice'…"

As he continued to rant sotto voce, a ragged figure emerged from the forest. A splatter of blood adorned his soiled clothes. He breathed heavily, clutching an injured arm.

The sergeant major halted in his tirade. "What the hell happened to you?" he demanded.

"Got into a bit of a spat," the dark-haired boy muttered, wiping away a smear of blood from his forehead. "Sorry I couldn't present myself respectably, but I didn't pack an extra change of clothes."

The training officer narrowed his eyes at the young recruit, uncertain whether he was being sarcastic or blunt. He then sighed, annoyed. "Whatever. Just clean yourself up before we start training, which'll be in about half an hour. If you've got injuries due to your little scuffle, it ain't my problem. I'm not gonna go any easier on you because of your stupidity, so just deal with them. Got it?"

"Yes, sir." He trudged over to a nearby stream to wash off the blood.

"Damn kids, think they're so indestructible," the officer muttered, lighting another cigarette. "Can't stand the 'indignity' of being beaten. Cocky, indiscriminate fighting like that's gonna get them killed." He paused in thought. 'Gotta wonder, though… Who won?'

"Hey, kid." The auburn-haired woman grinned at Sei'i, finally awake. "So how's life as a Santōhei?"

"Okay so far, I guess." She held out her hand. "Name's Sei'i."

The woman took it. "Go by the name Akino. Twenty-four years old. Blood type B. Joined the Marines to do something with my life. You?"

"Huh? Oh…uh… I joined the Marines to prove to everyone at home that I can do whatever I put my mind to—to prove that I'm not some weak girl who always has to rely on the strength of men to get things done. In short, I'm here to prove that girls are just as strong and self-reliant as boys."

Akino grinned at Sei'i's determined look. "Nice goal. Better'n mine, I gotta say."

"N-no, it isn't…"

"Sure, kid. Sure." Akino's previously carefree expression turned serious. "You hear? They say the infamous master of espionage "Hitome no Wahei" (Wahei of the Single Glance) escaped incarceration again. And they say he was last seen in the Yasashii-Tonari Islands—only thirty kilometers from here. Could you imagine what would happen if he showed up on this island? It'd be like a bloodbath." She shook her head. "And his execution was supposed to make reparations between Supata and Asenzu. Man, sometimes you really gotta wonder whether everyone would have been better off if the Great Age of Piracy had never started…"

Sei'i, not knowing what to say, remained silent.

Akino continued. "Take the Kingdom of Eijiyas, where I come from. Right now the land's riddled with criminals, pirates, corrupt leaders, and rebellion, not to mention plenty of strife. Something's run rampant in our country—I wouldn't exactly say evil—but a sense of…I don't know…wickedness, I guess. Sure, these things existed before Gold Roger's execution, but somehow…somehow they seemed to worsen afterwards."

Sei'i possessed only a smattering of historical knowledge, yet she was almost certain she had heard of the travails of this kingdom. There was something else as well…something about the doings of one of its previous leaders that gave the kingdom such a malign reputation…but now she couldn't quite remember…

Akino suddenly laughed, almost as if in self-derision. "Look at me, talking like some misty-eyed bard about the problems of my country. Here I comfortably sit, away from the mess at home, while the mounting resentment of starving hundreds continues to grow, and all I do is worry about whether I'll make it as a marine. I'm such a hypocrite…a real perpetrator of the worst kind…." She laughed again. "So corruption of spirit really is inalienable, no matter the environment…."

Her sardonic smile gave way to a sad twist of the mouth. "Well, at least I still have the comfort of my oath. 'Once I become a marine, I will do my best to intercede in the terrible affairs of Eijiyas, and right the wrongs that have transpired and been committed against my country's people.' I was such a hopeful young girl back then. Innocent of the truth behind the workings of the world."

She turned to the now solemn-faced brunette sitting quietly before her. "Even after your eyes behold the dirt and corruption that is the world, please make sure you retain a portion—even a mere scrap—of your innocence." A tear slid down her cheek. "Believe me. It means all the world."