Work Hard

Rizu POV

"Huff Huff" I pant out as I finished my assigned workout and soon to spare with the others. I wipe the sweat that is accumulating on my chin.

______-

It's been a couple of months since I have been here at this new base. Talk or whispers are heard here as well that are directed towards me. I don't really talk to many of the people here except some talk with Chase when he decides to bother me or Hina when she's around. But most of the time she is hanging out or with the white haired smoke man, I had caught his name, Smoker.

I thought it was quite ironic how his name match his devil fruit powers. But I never got the chance to really talk to him. Otherwise my time here would be spent on training till sunrise and waking up early in the morning to train with Z or with the other marines. Z would do individual training with each of his students at times and do group training after.

Though once the sun goes down and the training grounds are mostly empty. In the middle of the night I would go out to practice and train more for an hour or two then go back to bed. It has been a routine where I would practice extra to refine some skills or go over what was taught during the day.

_______

"Rizu, good job." Z says to me patting my head as he stood in front of me. I nodded my head and looked up at him. "Try using what I just taught you in our spares later on today." Z continued on as he looked at me and I nodded my head. "Yes, sir." I reply back with and he nods at me. "Dismissed." he says and walks away.

As soon as he walks away I start walking to the marine sleeping quarters. 'Techniques....The use of the body and spiritual energy...Haki..." I thought going over what Z had told me when we first started our training. We had continued it and he went to show we different types of haki. 'Kenbunshoku haki, Busoshoku haki, Haoshoku haki. Each one has there own specialty to them and the haki affects Devil fruit users, so instead of having the weapons go through logia types it physically affects them.' I remind myself thinking of Smoker when he went up against the weaker soldiers who didn't know haki vs when he went against the stronger ones who knew haki.

As I walked into my room and changed my clothes into another pair of marine outfit I thought of the last haki form, Haoshoku Haki, one that is rarely ever found. 'The use of Haki is in everybody but it's the matter of whether you can awaken it, you need immense training or extreme shock....They are all very useful...' I concluded and took off my mask as I layed on my bed for a little while till I had to go back out to the training grounds in 30 minutes.

"I have to work harder if I want to achieve haki." I tell myself as I stare up at the ceiling and the image of my father pops up in my mind. I close my eyes and shake my head. "Just focus on getting stronger with the group." I mumble.

As I lay there staring up at my ceiling for the rest of thirty minutes I turn over on my bed and grab my new mask since my other one from yesterday broke again. I got up and put the mask on looking at myself in the mirror before leaving.

As I leave the building I enter the training ground where some of the group is there already and are getting lined up. I soon get in line and stand among the rest of them.

Soon enough the rest of the group arrives and Z comes to us. "Today we'll be doing team fights. Make use of the topics that we have been going over recently and use your full strength." Z says as he looks at each one of us. "Yes, sir." he say back and he nods.

"We'll be splitting up in four groups." Instructor Z says as he walks towards us and motions for each of us to go to a different spot separating and making groups. "These will be the groups. We'll have Smoker's team and Hina go against each other first." Z said and the two groups nodded making their way to the center and Z moved off to the side over seeing.

While the two groups who were not fighting stepped back and out of the way. "Use your skills to lead your group. Work together as you are a team fighting against pirates. If you don't cooperate and have each other's back as well as your own strength you'll get devoured by the pirates." Z instructed as each marine grabbed their desired weapon.

"You may begin!" Z announced.

As soon as he said that Smoker and Hina ran towards each other colliding their weapons against each other.

I stood make and made notes to myself on the fight. 'Take every bit of information and use it. Watch on what not or what to do' I thought remembering words that Garp and another instructor had said.

___________

"That's enough!" Z yelled to the groups. The marines stopped attacking as most of them were all bruised and some were bleeding. "Take notes on your opponent and how they fight. Sone of you have noticed from working together already. You must also know your comrades as well, making up for their weaknesses as well as their strengths. On the battlefield you must not only worry for your well being but those in need and your surroundings." Z lectured to us and waved his hand telling them to get off.

The two groups nodded and went to the side. "The other two groups get out there. Remember my words and fight like you mean it." he reminds and we nod. "Sir!"

As walk along with my group of marines as the men in mine ignore me. As we make it to the front I grab a spear and look at my opponents and I glance around my group for one last time and stop seeing Chase walking towards me. "We're in the same group, kid." Chase says as he smirks at me and swings around his pole. I nod my head at him. "So it seems." I reply back with.

"Don't hold me back." He says and I nod my head. "I won't, but we might as well work together." I say and he tches as me. "I know that." he replies back with and walks away.

"Begin!" Z yells to us and I stay behind some of them as my group rushes forward and collides with our opponents. As I come around my team mates for this training, I use the back of my spear and jab it at my opponent making him stagger into his teammate who's facing off my teammate.

This disrupts the opponent and allows my teammate to hit him. I use a guy who charges at me as a jump pad and swing my spear down at him and it grazes his body leaving a cut. He jumps back and trows a punch at me hitting my side and I stumble back. I lean down on my knee and three opponents approach me. I tighten my grip around my spear and hear running footsteps coming my way. I quickly get up and rush at the on coming two who are running at me ready to attack and swipe at their legs with the spear.

This makes them fall and I jump up to avoid the back attack which causes me to land on the two on the ground. "Opps...." I mumble seeing that I landed near their privates. "Oi how back handed." Chase says to the opponent who attack from behind me and hit him. "Dang Rizu, you sure smashed them." Chase comments seeing that I was standing on them and their faces held pain and moved their hands to the spot where I landed. "I'm sorry." I say with a quick bow to them and hit an opponent that was standing by me with the back of the spear.

Chase snickered a little bit and didn't see someone approaching him and I jumped up deflecting this attack from behind him. Chase turned around seeing this and jumped up in the air over us and kicked this guys in his side sending him a few feet away. "I could have handled it." Chase says and I hum at that.

He grows a little irked and runs towards the guy to beat him up and I look to my right seeing a person running at me and I collide my weapon with his.

This continues on for a good while till Z announces us to stop. As he yells at us we stop and lower our weapons. "That is enough! Put the weapons back and line up you all!" Z yells and everybody nods our heads to put the weapons back and head back in line.

Z walked to the front and looked at all of us. "Many of you are still lacking, some of you failed to focus in working or even knowing your subordinates. While some of you were unaware of your surroundings causing mishaps. That's why you need to train! Kenbunshoku haki is a way to allow this from happening." A lectured us and called a couple of the men to attack him showing us an example of it.

I watched intently and nodded my head. Z continued to give us some words and we continued on with training.

_______________

Though for me training didn't end when Z had dismissed us. I continued throughout the night for a good hour or two. I reviewed the lectures and examples and training during the day. As well as the training I received from Garp or others that I had been taught over the years refreshing them or going over them.

I slashed and did routines with my spear as I pretended to attack someone in front of me. Using strength and force as well as technique. I also used some rokushiki on my moves to elevate them some more

I panted as I wiped my sweat that was on my chin. I looked up at the sky seeing the moon peaking out from behind the clouds. The nice cold breeze blew and ruffled my hair as it cooled me down. I sighed out and made the converted the spear smaller as a dagger size. As I did that I turned around and started walking back into the sleeping quarters. I walked down the halls and finally made my way into my room. I closed the door and grabbed a towel to wipe off my sweat after taking off my mask.

I grabbed my pjs and changed into them. After that I went back into my bed and pulled the covers up. 'I still need to get stronger. I'll make the most out of the years to come.' i told myself as I soon started to drift off into my sleep due to exhaustion.