Instructor Zephyr

A couple years later (Rizu is 13)

Rizu POV

Being stationed in the North Blue for a couple of years. Training and working with Drake along with other marines. However with the years coming by, it was time for me to move or train with new instructors yet again.

After the mission on Minion Island, that night I had sent Rosi-san off, things went smoothly and the missing boat incident was covered up when some of the pirates that we had captured managed to get above deck and try to escape.

Though that was taken care of, I was dropped off at the station where I was before to train. Vice Admiral Tsuru and some of the marines, seeing that Drake had no where to go decided it would be best for him to become a marine instead of a pirate like his father. Small information like this was whispered and some told to me by Drake himself.

Training through the past years with Drake made us close. In the beginning, well it was awkward and strange talking or making small talk with each other at times. We were both on the quieter side where I enjoyed my own time since the only person who I really talked to was Garp which made me more talkative then before. Though having his company was nice. But slowly overtime, we became more comfortable with each other and fought against each other for training as well.

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I pack my stuff up in my two bags. One bag had my clothes and a couple of masks that I had made. While the other bag held medical supplies and my weapons, like the spear that Garp had gifted me.

I walk over to the mirror and look at myself. I see my longer black hair that goes past my shoulders now and my face still covered by my full mask that had the same design I had been using for the past years. My body had gotten bigger with more muscle and taller. I take off my mask to look at my face for a while. My hand traces over my face seeing that it resembled more like my mothers and my grey eyes piercing back at me.

I sigh out lightly and put my mask back on. 'Worry about him later. You probably won't see him and he won't come see you. I need to leave.' I told myself snapping out of my other thoughts that had clouded my brain.

I picked up my bags off the ground and took one last look around the room to see if I had everything and stopped seeing a picture frame on the desk. It was a small picture that held me in it with the men here at the base along with Drake. The photo commemorated the time celebrating the base and it's members. I smiled a little bit seeing that the men here were slightly better and warmed up to me. I let out a breath of air. "It was also different since Drake was here." I said to myself and picked it up and opened my bag.

I put the picture in my bag safely with my clothes and walked out of my room. I shut the door behind me and walk down the corridor making my way out of base and towards the ship where they are bringing in some more recruits and it will also take me back to marine HQ, where I'll be assigned a new location.

As I got outside I saw Drake standing off to the side where other marines were around the area as well getting ready to salute. I made my way over to stand next to Drake. "Hey." I said drawing in his attention. He looked down at me with a small smile. "Rizu, so I guess you are leaving and being assigned to a new base already." he said. I nodded and his face contorted back to a stern face. I stood there waiting for the captain of this base to come out at any second.

"Thanks for training with me. It was nice and here." I say pulling out a small keychain mask which had my design but changed up a bit to suit Drake's style. I lay it in his hands and he looks at me with a look. "A gift, for standing up for me against those guys back then." I chuckle lightly "And for being a good sparing partner." I say.

He takes it and looks at it in his hands. "Thanks, you made this right. But standing up against that thing is what a marine should be doing in the first place. But your sparing partner...Even though your younger than me, you always surprised me with your skills." Drake said as he put the keychain in his pocket. I smiled under my mask. "Well I'll be getting stronger Drake. So you better get stronger as well, cause there will be many more spares where I'll take you down." I say.

Drake scoffs lightly and has a small smile on his face. "I will definitely beat you and get stronger." he says and I nod my head. "I look forward to it." I say and soon after the captain comes out as the ship comes into view and comes closer.

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"I'll see you around Drake." I say as I wave my hand and walk towards the ship once the other soldiers have got off and the men going back to HQ line up. Drake nods at me as I walk away from him. "Rizu." he calls and I look back. "Take care." he says with a small smile and nods his head at me.

I chuckle lightly under my mask and nod my head. I fix my two bags on my shoulder and walk up onto the ship.

As soon as all of the marines are boarded and we are ready to leave. I lean against the edge of the boat and look at the marines that are left on the base. I smiled fondly under my mask seeing Drake saluting still and looking towards the ship as we leave. 'A friend of mine....a friend.' I thought as I walked away from the ledge and sat down somewhere open on the ship until they commanded something to do.

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"Ready and salute!" the commander of the ship shouted to us as we docked and came down from the boat seeing some vice admirals walk past us. I saluted as well but stayed towards the back.

As soon as we unloaded stuff and got the ship fully situated, the marines were sent to the training grounds where they had announced that the marine instructor Z was here to pick on new recruits at HQ along with others that he had saw from other bases.

I lined up along with the rest of the men in lines, but obviously was over shadowed by them towering over me. As a 13 year old, I was a little taller but was still small for a young girl.

"Men! Salute!!" a commander yelled once instructor Z had entered the premises. "Yes Sir!" we went and Instructor Zephyr walked to the front and stood before us. "Men, I am Instructor Zephyr. Today I will choose a select few to come and train under me as I have quite the few already. But to choose the men, I will be watching you spare and undergo some training regimen that I have assigned to my students before. If you pass my expectations than we'll go from there." he announced. "Sir!" we responded back to him.

"Good." Instructor Z said with a smirk. "I want you men to run 10 times around this training ground and to that building over there. After that I'll have you, spare against each other and we'll go from here and I'll tell you more for the rest of the day." he said and some men around me started sweating and looked around.

"Begin!" Zephyr yelled and the men frantically got out of line and started running. I joined in the run and paced myself. 'Remember Rizu, pace yourself but keep a good pace.' I told myself remembering the training and stuff that I still need to work on to get stronger. 'Stronger. To prove myself. I need to get stronger. You won't be able to do what I want if I stay weak.' I thought as I picked up my pace a bit and started heading over to the building.

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3rd POV

As soon as multiple laps were being finished, men started dropping down or panting with sweat coming down their faces. Some stopped to catch their breathes while some continued to run with just sweat decorating their faces. A young girl was among these men and many of these marines wondered why there was a young girl wearing a navy uniform and saluting with them.

Some of the marines thought it was cute and weird that a girl was wearing a mask as well. Some also thought it was just someone's daughter spending some time with them. But as the laps continued the girl continued to run at the same pace as she did in the beginning, running with sweat accumulating on her shirt but continued to run with her full mask.

But soon enough the laps were completed with men coming in slowly after their laps. Having the girl be one of the first to finish. Of course the girl had caught the eye of Instructor Z and on looking admirals, higher ups and marines that were passing by. Z had raised his brow in the beginning seeing this girl run with the full grown men. He had not noticed her before when she was among the lines of men.

"We will begin the spare! So as soon as you come in, I will choose your opponent." Z announced to the men running and those who were coming in. He looked towards the girl who breathed in air as she lifted her mask so you could see her mouth. Z looked towards another man who had came in and pointed to another soldier. "You two will start off the match. Begin as soon as you are ready. You may use a weapon of choose." he said motioning to a rack of swords, spears, and a bunch of different hand weapons. The two nodded and saluted. "Yes!" they shouted.

As the two men walked away and to the rack of weapons, Z walked over to the girl. "Child, will you be participating in this for real? Or are you just in here for games or did someone assign you here. This is no place for children." he said sternly as he looked down at the girl.

Rizu POV

I looked up at the instructor as he addressed me. I breathed in more air without my mask covering my face. "Sir, I am participating in this for real. I had ran the 10 laps that you had assigned. I do not find this as a joke or a game, sir. I suppose you could say I was assigned to become a marine and train under different people and at different bases. But regardless of my age and size, I do plan on sparing with the other men like I had before." I said seriously to the man with no hints of fooling around.

Z raised an eyebrow at me and looked me down. "Girl what is your name?" he asked. "Rizu." I said and he nodded. "I see then. I shall have you face that man over there." He said pointing to a marine who had just come in from his run and I nodded. "Soldier, after this fight, I want you to face this girl." Z told him and the soldier saluted and looked at me with a weird look.

Instructor Z looked back down at me. "Well Rizu, show me what you got and that your not just all talk." he told me with a small smile on his face. I nodded at the man and saluted. "Sir." I said and stood there watching the fight.

Z walked away from me and went back to his spot to assign the next opponents as they came in and watched the two men spare having another soldier that came with him to oversee the fight and announce winners or just how it went.

Soon enough the two men who started the spare stopped, being stopped by the overseer marine. One marine got off the ground and limped as he was out of breath and sore. While the other was tired and out of breath as he returned the weapon. Z nodded his head at the two. "For those here now watching and those who are running still, this match will be stopped when that man over there decides the winner. You will have a certain amount of time during this match to get through everyone." Z announced and the men nodded.

"Next you two." Z motioned to me and my opponent. I nodded and placed my mask down correctly on my face. My opponent looked at Z, "Sir, but-"

"Soldier, do as I say. I already spoke to the girl. If needed I will or he will stop the fight." Z said motioning to the referee and I walked over to the rack to pick my weapon. I scanned over the swords and sticks. I stopped at the spears and picked up one and inspected it. 'It feels the same as the ones at the other base. This one seems in pretty decent shape.' I thought and walked away with it as my opponent walked over soon after and chose a sword.

The men who finished watched with smirks or with a raised eyebrow. I walked over to the center where the referee was and waited for my opponent to come over.

Once he was ready I nodded to the referee and he did the same, looking over at me with a look. My opponent looked at me up and down. "Girl this is no place for games. I will hold back but I'll show you this is where grown men are supposed to be not little girls." he said matter of factly. I sighed lightly under my mask and narrowed my eyes at him under my mask.

"Sir, I do know this is no place for games. This is the marines and marine HQ. But I do not want you to hold back. I would like to see my increase of strength." I say and get into a stance and ready my weapon. The man grows a bit irked and scoffs. "Whatever you say." he says.

"Begin!!" the referee shouts.

I sprint at the man and his eyes widen seeing that I'm coming right at him and he lifts his sword to be met with my spear. I push down at the spear and he pushes back. I look down at his stance and see that his legs are still weak from the run. I let back on my power and jump back letting him stubble forward.

The man regains himself and looks at me irritated. He comes charging at me this time with the sword and swings down at me. I move to the side to escape his swing and maneuver around him hitting him with the stick of the spear. I send him down into the ground. "Ack!" he says and his back makes a crack sound.

I jump back and watch him slowly struggle to get up and holds his back. "My back....why you!" he yells at me this time irritated even more. He comes back to charge and my straight on and I deflect him with my spear as the two metals scratch against each other. He staggers past me and comes right back again and I take the spear and hit him with it on the back side. I hit him in the gut and the sides.

As he comes back to attack me I shove my spear into the ground and he smirks at me. I stand in front of the spear and right as he goes right in front of me, I jump and land on the bottom of the spear. I balance on it and he widens his eyes and looks up. I jump again and land on the ground.

I kick his sword out of his hand and grab the spear and motion myself to spin around it kicking my opponent a few feet away. I land on my feet and take the spear out of the ground. I twirl it in my hand and look at my opponent who lays in the dirt a few feet away from my covered in bruises and a foot print on his face.

"I-it's over! She wins this match!" the referee yells and motions over to me. I nod my head and look at instructor Z seeing that he has slightly wide eyes but slowly a smile makes its way on his face. I turn away and walk to the racks to place the spear back in it's place.

After that Z brings back the other men together and tells the next two to go and begin their match. I walk off to the side and watch the next match begin, while some other men dragged my opponent away.

As I watched I could feel looks and glances from other men and the instructor. I turned my head to the group of marine soldiers who stared at me. Some of them flinched when I turned my head towards them. I sighed lightly under my mask and saw instructor Z looking at me and turned his attention back to the fight. 'I'm taking this seriously. I'm going to get stronger.'