In a certain sea area of the East Blue, two warships approached each other from opposite directions.
Finn stood on the deck of one ship. His warship bore no special markings, but the other ship sailing toward him displayed something unmistakable: a massive dog-head figurehead.
Therefore, Finn recognized it from a distance as Vice Admiral Garp's ship.
After all, only one man in the entire Marine had a dog head hanging on his warship.
As the two ships drew close, Garp suddenly jumped directly from his distant deck, clutching a baby against his chest.
Looking at the broken planks where the man had launched himself, Finn felt a pang of distress.
"You already have a child, yet you're still this impatient?" Finn complained. "We're literally two steps from the dock. Just wait for the warships to land properly."
Vice Admiral Garp, who had just hopped onto Finn's deck, scowled. "Oi, what's with that phrasing? 'Someone who already has a kid'? Watch your mouth."
Finn pointed lazily at the bundle in Garp's arms. "What, isn't that a child you're carrying?"
Garp clicked his tongue. "Hmph. Other people might be fooled, but you, you brat—you know exactly what the situation is."
The two hadn't seen each other for almost two years.
When Finn had been organizing G-7, Garp had been stationed almost exclusively in the South Blue, handling the aftermath of Roger's surrender and Rouge's situation. Few people occupied the deck, so Finn didn't hesitate. He walked over to examine the baby more closely.
"Roger's bloodline..." Finn said with some emotion. "Come to think of it, he entrusted his wife and child to your care, and then she still died?"
Garp's face darkened. Why did this bastard always speak so harshly?
But soon, he shook his head helplessly. "She couldn't be saved."
His words were quiet, but Finn could understand perfectly.
Garp didn't know what Finn knew — that he had privately made arrangements with CP to seal the truth of Roger's lover and unborn child. That Stussy, acting on Finn's request, had already fed the World Government a false narrative.
But Garp and Rouge never learned that.
Back then, Garp believed the Government was still desperately hunting for any trace of Roger's bloodline. And Rouge believed the same. So the two of them, one Marine and one woman carrying the Pirate King's child, clung to the only idea they thought could work:
Hide the child within the mother.
Delay the birth.
Endure.
Rouge came up with it herself, hoping to buy time. Garp accepted that burden, thinking there was no other way.
Rouge's death wasn't Garp's fault. It was the greatest effort she had made as a mother, holding her pregnancy for twenty months to protect her child from the World Government's search. Her body simply couldn't endure any longer.
Without responding directly, Finn reached out and poked the baby sleeping in Garp's arms. A smile crossed his face. "Don't be fooled by Roger's big and strong appearance. This little guy is really cute."
"Like his mother," Garp said, his voice carrying unexpected tenderness.
Finn felt a chill run through his body. He had the sudden uncomfortable sensation that Roger was dead and somehow still being cuckolded from beyond the grave.
"By the way, the child's name is Ace. Portgas D. Ace," Garp suddenly seemed to remember something important.
"I see." Finn nodded, but didn't say much more. Instead, he asked, "How did we happen to meet here? Not long ago, when I was at Headquarters, I heard from Admiral Sengoku that you were returning to Marineford. By the way, what do you think about your son's situation?"
The first two questions were fine, but when Dragon was mentioned, Garp felt a toothache coming on. He looked at Finn with some annoyance. Did this bastard do it on purpose?
From the moment he'd boarded until now, every single word Finn said had made him uncomfortable. Didn't he just step on your deck and damage it slightly?
Can't I just compensate you for it?
"I've been stationed in South Blue for two years," Garp grumbled. "Even an old workhorse like me deserves a break now and then. I'm going back to my hometown in Windmill Village. I'll leave Ace with a trusted friend there. I can't raise a baby at Headquarters — you know how that place is. Rumors spread fast, and politics are messy." He snorted. "Not that I give a damn about saving face. I just won't let this kid become ammunition for those idiots to use against the Marines."
Finn nodded in understanding. That's true enough.
There were already exaggerated rumors circulating about Garp. If he brought a child back to Marineford, he'd never be able to clear his name. It wouldn't be good for either him or Ace.
Of course, leaving Ace in Windmill Village and neglecting his upbringing, allowing him to think too much and hear too many things he shouldn't have heard, would ultimately lead him down the path of piracy. But that wasn't a good outcome either.
However, this matter had nothing to do with Finn for the time being. After all, Roger had entrusted his son to Garp, not to him.
"So what do you think about Dragon's situation?" Finn asked again, unable to resist poking at the sore spot.
"You're not done yet, you bastard? Can't you see I don't want to answer? Do you want to fight?" Garp cursed angrily.
"Hahahahahaha! It's been a long time since I've bullied you. I couldn't help myself." Finn laughed openly.
Seeing Finn laughing so arrogantly, Garp snorted coldly. "Are you in contact with that guy?"
"What do you mean?" Finn glanced at Garp.
"Just intuition," Garp shook his head.
"Not really, but I did meet him a few times. He tried to recruit me." Finn's expression turned righteous. "Of course, as a candidate for Admiral, I have a bright future ahead of me. I'm about to become your boss. How could I possibly run away at a time like this? So for the sake of justice in my heart, I rejected him without hesitation."
Garp had no intention of believing that sanitized version. He muttered, "Next time you see that guy, help me beat him up."
"Okay, no problem." Finn said with a smile, already imagining the absurdity of that encounter.
After a brief pause, Finn looked at Ace again. "So, what is your relationship with this little guy now?"
As Finn finished speaking, Garp finally smiled genuinely. "I plan to make Ace my adopted grandson and train him to become a Marine. I can't let him follow that bastard Roger's path."
His tone became slightly melancholic as he continued. "Although neither you nor I believe that bloodlines are guilty, the world's hatred of Roger will always involve innocent people. I don't know how long I can protect this child. After thinking it over carefully, I feel that the Marines are his only true path to survival. As long as he joins the Marines and becomes a leader, then even if his identity is exposed one day, the Marines will be able to protect him."
"That's right, the idea is sound, but at that time, there will definitely be conflicts with the higher-ups. After all, they don't care about..." Finn was stunned mid-sentence.
If Ace joined the Marines, for Garp's sake, he'd definitely become the nephew or adopted family member of senior Marine officers like Garp, Zephyr, and Tsuru. They'd all call him grandpa when they met. Familial bonds would definitely develop.
Although Finn wouldn't become villainous and plan anything malicious because of this, what if one day the World Government discovered something? Wouldn't that be an important opportunity for Ace to further sever the relationship between the Marines and the World Government?
But Finn quickly swept this thought out of his mind.
There was no need to rush about this matter. He could think about it slowly and assess the situation later.
Garp wasn't worried at all. He waved his hand dismissively. "It might be risky, but it's the safest way, isn't it?"
"Hahahaha, yes." Finn nodded in agreement.
Then, before Garp could speak, Finn grinned mischievously. "So you have quite a lot of resentment toward Roger..."
"What are you talking about?" Garp frowned in confusion.
"Ace is Roger's son, and you want to be his grandfather. Roger is dead, but you're still taking advantage of him. You're worthy of being you!" Finn laughed.
To be honest, Garp hadn't thought so deeply about it initially. He'd just considered the matter from the perspective of age and propriety. After all, his son had already started a revolution, so there was no need to adopt someone as a son, right? Making Ace a grandson made more sense.
He hadn't thought about the other implications afterward. But now that Finn had mentioned it, realization dawned.
Realization struck, and Garp suddenly threw his head back and roared with laughter.
"Right! When you say it like that—I've basically become that bastard Roger's father! Hahahahahaha!"
Finn stared at him for a moment, completely losing the desire to continue teasing.
"…Your shamelessness is invincible," he sighed, waving his hand. "No wonder our Marines have the world's toughest reputation."
After Garp hugged Ace and laughed for a while, he finally asked, "Speaking of which, why did you come to the East Blue? Do you want to come back to my hometown with me?"
The two of them had met by chance on this vast ocean, having never arranged to meet beforehand. It was truly special fate.
Finn took out a cigar from his pocket, lit it, and exhaled a puff of smoke. "You knew that Shiki died, didn't you?"
Garp was stunned for a moment, then nodded. "I know. That guy was trying to escape from Impel Down and happened to run into you..."
"Anyway, I gave him my Sōzai, hoping he wouldn't be lonely on his journey to hell. Now I don't have a sword. I heard that a demon sword is about to appear in the East Blue, so I came here to look for it." Finn said with a casual smile.
"I see," Garp nodded.
Garp didn't care at all about whether the sword was cursed or whether it was appropriate for a Marine officer to use such a blade. It could even be said that nobody really cared about such superstitions.
Despite how ominous the title sounded, "demon sword" simply described the blade's properties. It didn't make the weapon itself evil. One of the Five Elders was said to carry the Supreme Grade Shodai Kitetsu, perhaps the most feared cursed blade in existence—and not a single voice in the world had ever questioned it.
"Well, I'm on break for a while anyway," Garp said, scratching his head. "Since we ran into each other, I might as well come along. After you grab that sword, come visit my place for a bit."
Finn stroked his chin thoughtfully, then nodded. "Okay, it seems you've really been holding it in for a while."
"That's right. Two years. Do you know how I spent these two years?" Garp said suddenly, emotion heavy in his voice.
Finn felt a moment of alarm, he worried Garp was about to say something absurd like: "Roger died, you took the title, I took his son, and even God couldn't stop us."
But looking at Garp's slightly melancholic expression, Finn understood.
In the past two years, Garp had been under tremendous pressure protecting Rouge and managing Roger's final wishes, but he couldn't tell anyone about it. After finally meeting his "accomplice" who knew the full truth, he couldn't stop himself from wanting to express his feelings. That was normal enough.
Finn remained silent, allowing Garp his moment. Garp didn't dwell on it long. After a few words of lamentation, he suddenly burst into hearty laughter. "Hahahaha, where are you going to get that demon sword? I know this East Blue very well!"
"The Asuka Kingdom," Finn didn't hide anything.
"Are you going to find Shindoku-tō?" Garp said after a moment of surprise.
So even Garp knew about Shindoku-tō?
"Have you heard of this sword?" Finn asked with genuine surprise.
"Of course. Anyone who grew up in the East Blue has heard the story of Shindoku-tō, a blade so cursed it nearly destroyed the Asuka Kingdom," Garp said, his eyes briefly distant with old memory. But the seriousness didn't last; he broke into a grin and waved it off. "Still, you're a tough kid. You won't die just because of some curse. In the end, no matter how mysterious the legends sound, it's just a sword. Don't take it too seriously."
"I wasn't taking them seriously..." Finn complained.
After a brief pause, Finn suddenly seemed to recall something. A wicked grin spread across his face. "By the way, did you know that your son has found a wife? I met him once in Loguetown, and he mentioned at the time that he wanted to have a child..."
Garp's cheerful expression vanished, replaced by a face darker than burnt charcoal.
Finn, the culprit who'd dropped this bombshell, turned around and walked away with visible satisfaction.
As expected, bullying Garp never gets old. Hahahaha.
"You dare hide this from me, your father!? Have you no shame DRAGOM!?" Garp's voice thundered behind him.
Then his loud voice woke little Ace, who started crying loudly. Garp scrambled to comfort the infant, his earlier anger evaporating into frantic paternal instinct.
The deck suddenly became lively, and the air was filled with a peculiarly happy atmosphere despite the chaos.