The Marine Demon's War Diary

First practice of Rokushiki

POV Sergeant Koby D-6

The wake-up call was difficult for the young sergeant, the recent events, the announcements of the World Government, the scheduled execution of Portgas D. Ace, and the future war that was coming made Koby's nights very agitated.

Obviously, he was not the only one to be in this case, it was not even 6.00 a.m. to believe the big clock at the back of the dormitory that some of his comrades' beds were already empty. Some of the soldiers were sitting on their beds, staring at the floor or the ceiling, big dark circles under their eyes. The morale of the troops seemed to be declining as the day of execution approached.

After a long yawn, Koby looked down at the bed below him to see if its occupant was still there. The man with the long blond hair was sleeping soundly and nothing seemed to disturb his sleep.

Koby took a deep breath then blew, a little jealous of his comrade who managed to spend a good night. After climbing down the ladder that connected his bunk bed to the floor, Koby went to his closet to get ready for Vice Admiral Garp's training. The few days of rest he had following Lieutenant Degurechaff's arrival had allowed him to rest his body.

"I'm going to get sore again," Koby complained with a grimace.

Having finished his toilet and preparing himself, the young sergeant turned again towards his comrade who was still sleeping. In order not to be late, it was necessary at all costs that his comrade could wake up now. He then placed himself in front of the bed and whispered in Hermep's ear: "Hermep, Hermep, we have to wake up, we are going to arrive late to the training."

His comrade replied with a grunt before turning his back to continue his night's sleep.

Koby smiled mischievously before moving closer to Hermep again, trying to imitate the Vice-Admiral's voice as best he could: "Sergeant, you dare to be late for my training, I'm going to give you a taste of my fist of love.

The tactic seemed to work because his comrade got up suddenly in a panic on his bed, getting on his knees to beg his forgiveness.

"It's not funny Koby, I almost had a heart attack, you know very well that the Vice-Admiral's fists terrify me" Hermep complained while watching Koby laughing.

It was only after a few minutes of letting Hermep get ready that they left the dorms. Training started at 8 a.m. Getting up so early allowed the soldiers to go to breakfast and have a full stomach before starting Vice Admiral Garp's exercises.

One day, Hermep preferred to sleep rather than fill his stomach. The result was a trip to the infirmary in less than two hours. Since that day, he has not missed a single meal, even though waking up in the morning was difficult.

When they arrived at the dining hall, they noticed that many of the tables were already occupied by soldiers having lunch.

After collecting their food, the two sergeants sat down at the place they had found. During their meal, they discussed everything and anything. Until Hermep quietly approached in a low voice.

I didn't see her at first, but there's Lieutenant Degurechaff by the window behind you.

Turning around as quietly as possible, he spotted the Lieutenant sipping what appeared to be warm chocolate with a newspaper in her other hand. She seemed very focused on her reading.

"Anyway," Hermep continued, "she's been freaking me out since her evaluation. Did you know that Kram would be in the infirmary for at least a month? The injuries she would have inflicted on him were more serious than they looked. I feel sorry for the poor soldiers who will be under her command one day...