Impel Down.
Located in the Calm Belt of the Grand Line, it was the greatest prison in the world, a fortress rising from the sea itself.
The most dangerous criminals on the ocean were imprisoned here, all of them infamous figures whose escape would be enough to threaten the entire world.
Yet aside from the legendary pirate, Golden Lion Shiki, no one had ever managed to break through Impel Down's defenses and escape alive.
That was because Impel Down had six levels in total.
Each level was filled with deadly mechanisms and brutal environments, and Sea-Prism Stone was embedded everywhere. Trying to escape from such a place was as difficult as climbing to heaven.
Naturally, the deeper one went, the more vicious and dangerous the prisoners became.
At this moment, on Level Six, the Hero of the Marines, Garp, was carrying an oil lamp as he walked step by step into the depths.
He did not stop until he arrived outside an isolated cell.
When the guards saw Garp, they hurriedly saluted, then shut the door and withdrew, leaving Garp alone inside the prison chamber.
A thought rose unbidden in Garp's heart.
'This should be the third time now, shouldn't it?'
'The third time i had stood outside a prison cell and looked at the person inside.'
Words from the past seemed to echo by his ears.
"Old man, I'm not becoming a Marine. In fact, I look down on you!"
"Garp, the child is innocent. I know you'll do it… so protect her… I'm leaving my child to you."
Holding the oil lamp, Garp slowly walked toward the iron bars at the very back.
His gaze fell on the person inside the cell, and he spoke.
"It feels like it's been a long time, Ace."
Ace lifted his eyes and looked at Garp seriously.
"You shouldn't have come here, old man."
His hands were bound in Sea-Prism Stone shackles and fixed against the wall.
Wounds of varying severity covered his body, and he sat cross-legged on the cold floor.
Garp let out a quiet sigh.
"Yeah. As a Marine, I really shouldn't have come to see you at a time like this."
As he spoke, he set down the oil lamp, untied the Marine coat of Justice from his back, and placed it on the ground.
Then he sat down cross-legged and said in a low voice,
"But I still came. Because as your grandfather… even if it means breaking Marine regulations, I had to see you now."
A bitter smile tugged at Garp's face, and his voice carried a helpless edge.
"You've heard about what Luffy's been up to lately, haven't you? That brat really caused one hell of a mess. Bwahahaha."
"That doesn't matter anymore." Ace spoke directly.
It was clear he already knew that the Marines intended to use him as bait against the Whitebeard Pirates.
"You might as well kill me now and end the war before it begins."
If he died now, this coming disaster would be brought to an end.
Garp's emotions flared instantly.
His eyes reddened, and he shouted, "WHAT KIND OF STUPID NONSENSE ARE YOU SPOUTING?! I DIDN'T RAISE YOU TO BE LIKE THIS!"
With red eyes, Garp gripped the bars tightly and roared.
"ARE YOU TRYING TO MAKE ME, YOUR GRANDFATHER, KILL MY OWN GRANDSON WITH MY OWN HANDS?!"
All this time, Garp had refused to come see Ace because he had never known what identity, what state of mind, he should use to face his grandson.
It was the same whether he faced Luffy, Ace, or Cain.
Garp had sunk deep into self-reproach.
After all, aside from Morgans spreading the news far and wide and Blackbeard secretly leaking information, he himself was also one of the reasons Ace had ended up in this situation.
In the end, it was because he, as a grandfather, had failed to protect Ace, his grandson.
Now, hearing Ace's words, Garp could no longer suppress the emotions in his heart.
He shouted at the man inside the cell.
"I KNOW YOU DON'T WANT TO BECOME THE BAIT THE MARINES USE TO LURE IN THE WHITEBEARD PIRATES! BUT YOU STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND! YOUR LIFE DOESN'T BELONG ONLY TO WHITEBEARD!"
Ace could see Garp's pain.
He deliberately said hurtful words, wanting only to ease the old man's guilt.
"Tch. That's different, you stupid old man. The blood of a criminal runs through my veins. It has nothing to do with you, a Marine…"
"SO WHAT IF IT DOES?!"
Garp roared back, his voice full of grief.
"I RAISED A WORLD-CLASS CRIMINAL TOO! AND BESIDES, IS BLOOD REALLY THAT IMPORTANT? MAYBE IT WAS BECAUSE I NEGLECTED TO TAKE CARE OF YOU PROPERLY THAT YOU CAME TO SEE THINGS THIS WAY."
His tone shifted, softening slightly as he continued,
"Then what about Cain? That child doesn't share a single drop of blood with me either. But even so…"
"He was still willing to call me Grandpa. I know you hate Roger, but are you now planning to throw away even the bond you have with us as family?"
Ace opened his mouth, but only one hoarse word came out.
"I…"
Garp looked at Ace, his eyes filled with regret and sorrow.
"My original intention was to raise all of you into proper Marines. But things never went the way I wanted. That boy named Sabo died under cannon fire. You were desperate to prove yourself and insisted on going out to sea as a pirate. Then there's Luffy, who was poisoned by Red-Hair and now thinks of nothing but becoming the King of the Pirates…"
Garp went on, the corner of his mouth lifting into a faint, gratified smile.
"You still don't know, do you? After you went out to sea, I personally went to question Luffy and asked why he didn't stop you."
"But Cain stood in front of Luffy. He didn't offer a single excuse, he stepped forward on his own and apologized to me, then even volunteered to become a Marine."
Garp smiled.
"Oh right, I even have a photo of it."
As he spoke, he took a photograph from his coat and held it up in front of the cell door.
Ace's pupils shrank sharply as he stared at the photograph in shock.
"That's—?!"
In the photograph, Cain was still young.
Garp had one hand pressed down on his head, making the sight both ridiculous and adorable.
On Cain's head was a strange dog-headed cap, and he was wearing an ill-fitting Marine uniform that made him look especially funny.
Under normal circumstances, Ace would definitely have burst out laughing.
But right now, it was clearly not the time.
Garp's smile faded, and his tone became incomparably serious.
"In short, although that child said he became a Marine of his own free will, I know the truth. Cain did it all for you and me, Ace."
"He didn't want me to blame you for going out to sea without permission, and he wanted to consider my feelings. That's why he was willing to stay in the Marines."
Garp sighed softly and continued,
"One after another, all of you wanted to become pirates. Luffy was like that, and so were you. Cain never said what he truly wanted to do, but every day I worried that he might someday abandon everything and go out to sea to find you."
Ace remained stubborn, putting on a cold and rejecting attitude.
"What does that have to do with me? That was clearly a choice he made himself."
Yet no matter how harsh his words were, deep down, he had still been shaken by what Cain had done.
Garp let out a cold laugh and stared at Ace with burning eyes.
Then he asked, word by word, "Heh. So now you're even going to throw away your bond as brothers? Ace, have you never thought about why Cain appeared on Luffy's ship? He was serving as a Marine under me, with a bright future ahead of him. Why would he abandon his position in the Marines and become a pirate?"
Garp's voice rose sharply, each word striking straight at Ace's heart.
"Although there were certain unavoidable circumstances involved, from the very beginning, the real reason he chose to become a pirate was always for you, and for me!"
Garp stared hard at Ace and asked in a deep voice.
"Cain can ignore the so-called blood realation and call me Grandpa. So what about you, Ace? In your eyes, is Roger's blood really that important?"
"I… I…"
Ace choked on his words, completely falling into struggle and confusion.
He had never imagined that from the moment he had gone out to sea, Cain had already done so much for him, had silently sacrificed so much, all the way until today.
Garp looked at Ace and slowly said,
"That child has been so sensible since he was little that it hurts. This war… it's almost as if he predicted it long ago. He knew that as a Marine carrying the burden of justice, I would inevitably be forced into a painful and difficult choice in this matter. So he chose the most correct answer in my place."
Garp's next words were firm, each one ringing with conviction.
"You don't need to worry about Whitebeard either. This war will be an unprecedented battle, the likes of which the world has never seen."
Garp stood up, lifted the coat of Justice from the ground, and draped it over his shoulders once more.
Then he bent down, picked up the oil lamp, and slowly turned his head to look at Ace inside the cell.
"Cain will take part in this war as the representative of my familial love, doing everything in his power to rescue you. And I, as a representative of the Marines' justice, will do everything I can to stop this war."
Garp looked at Ace, his gaze filled with expectation and pleading.
"This way, we, grandfather and grandsons, will have nothing left to worry about."
"No matter what the result of this war may be, this is the choice we have made together as family."
"So do your best to survive, Ace."
By now, Ace was already sobbing uncontrollably.
His head hung low, and broken words forced their way through his choked throat.
"Grandpa… Luffy… Cain…"
...
Meanwhile, on Cain's side—
Shouts of battle thundered behind him.
"CATCH THEM! DON'T LET THEM TAKE THE YOUNG MASTER AWAY!"
"BASTARDS! GIVE US BACK THE YOUNG MASTER!"
"YOU THIEVES, ROBBERS, PIRATES!"
With the unconscious Doflamingo on his back, Cain moved swiftly, dodging the Donquixote Family's pursuit.
When Yamato heard them call her a pirate, she turned back with great interest and waved.
"Thanks for the compliment!"
Katakuri, however, frowned and said,
"Wouldn't it solve everything if we simply dealt with all of them?"
Without looking back, Cain explained,
"I still need to ask him for a favor. If we actually fight them seriously, that would be rude. And if Doflamingo gets too angry and I end up making him die of rage, then we'll really be in trouble."
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