"Nothing can stop it now!" Garp sighed.
"I wanted you and Luffy to become outstanding Marines, but now..."
Jinbe, standing nearby, grew more and more shocked as he listened. Ace was actually the son of Pirate King Roger.
And the Straw Hat, Luffy, who had been making waves lately by attacking Enies Lobby and assaulting Celestial Dragons on Sabaody Archipelago, was actually the grandson of the marine hero Garp and the son of the revolutionary Monkey D. Dragon!
"My only father is Whitebeard!"
Gathering all his strength, Ace growled out the words with firm resolve.
Garp stared at Ace for a long time before slowly saying:
"Not long after Luffy set sail, I returned to Foosha Village once and met a kid there..."
"Taro!" Ace uttered a name.
Garp was taken aback. "Oh? You know him?"
Seeing Ace remain silent, he sighed again. "If only you brothers could be as worry-free as that kid Taro."
"You probably don't know, but that kid has gained a title now..."
Garp sat on the ground, talking to himself for a long while, but Ace gave no response. The only sound in the entire sixth level of Impel Down was Garp's incessant chatter...
Finally, Garp finished with a loud burst of laughter, stood up, took one last look at Ace, and said, "This old man is leaving!"
Then he left with a carefree air.
The night was already deep. Taro, who had been asleep, suddenly felt a sense of foreboding. He sprang up from his bed in one swift motion, his body instantly encased in the dark blue-black of Armament Haki.
"Boom!"
A loud crash sounded, but in the next second, his body was sent flying by a punch, tumbling several times in the air before crashing heavily to the ground.
Taro shook his slightly dazed head, quickly scrambled to his feet, and was about to enter "Second Gear" when he realized the one who had attacked him was actually Garp.
"Vice Admiral Garp, what are you doing?"
Having landed a successful hit, Garp did not pursue further. He calmly tore open a pack of senbei, tossed one into his mouth, and only then spoke: "Armament Haki? And high-level at that?"
"You, kid, I never saw you train much normally. But after not seeing you for a few days, you've improved quite a bit."
Taro then remembered that Garp must have just returned from Impel Down. His expression darkened. Thinking of the old man about to bury his own grandson, he couldn't bring himself to be angry.
Looking at the composed Garp, he also felt somewhat relieved. "My little improvement is nothing. Wasn't I still knocked flat on the ground by your single punch?"
"Hahahahaha!"
Garp laughed heartily, and Taro joined in.
Laughing along, Taro soon noticed something was off. His cheeks were starting to ache from laughing, yet Garp continued to roar with laughter beside him.
"Vice Admiral Garp, are you alright?" Taro moved closer and asked softly.
Then, under the moonlight, he saw tears streaming down Garp's face. Taro's mood instantly plummeted. No matter how optimistic one was, the one about to be executed was, after all, Ace.
He was the child entrusted to Garp's care by Pirate King Roger before his execution.
He was the Bloodline his mother fought desperately to preserve.
He was the swaddled infant Garp had personally received into his arms.
Taro looked at the tear-streaked Garp, feeling infinite sorrow. "Vice Admiral Garp, what if... I go and rescue Ace..."
"Boom!"
Garp's heavy fist came at him. Before Taro could react, he was blasted away again, crashing straight through two large holes in the wall, flying out of the yard before finally stopping.
"You damn brat! Do you have any idea what you're saying?"
Garp looked at Taro slowly rising from the wreckage and roared in anger.
"If you dare do that, I'll beat you to death right now!"
The loud crash in the quiet night was earth-shattering. Instantly, lights came on in the Marine officers' residential area, and many Marine officers rushed out.
They looked at Taro, who had been beaten until he spat blood, and for a moment were filled with doubt and confusion, their eyes wide with surprise.
Having been heavily punched by Garp, Taro wasn't angry. The mere thought of Ace's death made his heart ache, so of course he understood the pain in Garp's heart even more.
Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, Taro shouted at the nearby gathering Marine officers.
"What are you all looking at? Never seen a fight before?"
We've seen fights, but we've never seen you beaten until you spit blood!
The assembled Marine officers thought to themselves, the flames of gossip rapidly churning in their eyes.
Seeing they still weren't moving, Taro grew even more irritable.
"Don't you need to sleep in the middle of the night? Get lost, all of you!"
How are we supposed to sleep with you two fighting so enthusiastically?
The Marine officers thought this with a detached look, but seeing Taro's imposing Aura and extreme fury, they exchanged glances and finally scattered noisily.
Only then did Taro take a deep breath, circulate his Internal Skill to calm his frenzied emotions, and walk back into the house.
After punching Taro away, Garp also felt some regret. Seeing Taro enter, he said in a low voice, "Taro, this old man..."
Taro waved his hand, cutting Garp off, and revealed a smile. "It's fine, Vice Admiral Garp. I can take a beating!"
Garp's eyes flickered, and he sighed.
"Kid, we are Marines. I want you to remember the stance of a Marine. If you dare..."
Garp wisely fell silent at that point. Taro stared at Garp for a long time before nodding.
"Vice Admiral Garp, you were the one who brought me into the Marines. Regardless of my original intentions, I've always remembered the kindness you showed me."
"If you don't want me to do that, then I won't do it."
Garp also stared at Taro. Hearing this, a faint smile finally appeared on his face.
"The thing I'm most proud of in my life was unintentionally bringing you into the Marines."
"The one I poured my heart into became a pirate. The one I brought in without a thought became an outstanding Marine. My life, really..."
Garp ended with a sigh.
Taro felt a pang of sadness. 'You can't make a flower bloom by trying, but a willow will grow even if you don't intend it.' How fickle fate is!
"If I wanted to do that, I could do it myself. What would I need you for?"
After a long silence between the two, Garp spoke again.
Taro was stunned for a moment. That's right. With Garp's strength, if he wanted to, rescuing Ace wouldn't be difficult.
"Vice Admiral Garp, I haven't been in the Marines for long. If I did it, even if in the end I were to be..."
Taro only got halfway through his sentence when he saw Garp raise his fist. He immediately shrank his neck, not daring to continue.
"I'm only telling you this so you know to focus on being a good Marine." Garp put his fist away and said to Taro solemnly, "Don't even think about this matter anymore."
Taro could only nod helplessly. "Yes."
"I heard you've gained a title now, 'ink dragon,' right?"
After a moment of silence, Garp suddenly brought this up, leaving Taro momentarily stunned.
He rubbed his head in frustration. "That... it's just nonsense people are spreading."
"Hahahaha, that nickname is pretty good. You should use it from now on." Garp laughed heartily. "'ink dragon' Taro. Very good!"
Taro looked at Garp, who had suddenly started laughing again, unsure how much of that laughter was genuine. He still felt a bit sad inside.
"If you say it's good, then it's good. I'll listen to you."
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