Bane strolled into the Loguetown Marine Base like he was coming home. The guards at the gate didn't question him at all—just gave a quick nod, helped register his entry, and let him through without a fuss.
Clearly, that 200 million Berries donation he'd made earlier had not gone to waste. Around here, they treated him like one of their own.
Before long, Bane reached Smoker's office. He gave the door a few knocks, and a voice inside called out in response.
Bane pushed the door open with a bright smile."Surprised to see me—huh!?"
Inside, Smoker was at his desk, cleaning his Seastone jitte, but on the guest couch sat someone Bane hadn't expected at all—
Vice Admiral Garp, the legendary Hero of the Marines, was shoveling rice crackers into his mouth with no regard for manners.
Both men turned to look at Bane, equally surprised.
"What are you doing here!?" Smoker sprang to his feet in shock.
Bane blinked, slightly confused by the overreaction."I'm about to leave the East Blue, so I thought I'd stop by, say goodbye, and see if you've got a spare Log Pose lying around."
"Damn it!" Garp suddenly slapped his rice crackers onto the table. "Smoker, sound the alarm! Evacuate the civilians from Loguetown immediately!"
That caught Bane completely off guard."What the hell's going on?"
"Portgas D. Ace, Whitebeard's Second Division Commander, is in Loguetown," Smoker explained, rubbing his temples. "We were planning to surround him tonight. Your sudden appearance is going to mess everything up."
As it turned out, when Ace and Teach landed in Loguetown, Smoker caught wind of it immediately—this was his turf, after all. His eyes and ears were everywhere in town.
Ace, being the showy guy he was, had strolled in proudly bearing the Whitebeard Jolly Roger tattooed on his back. Naturally, he'd been spotted the moment he stepped foot in town.
Bane's arrival should've been reported too, but since he ran into Tashigi before disembarking, and everyone assumed she had things under control, it never got escalated—until now.
"And we figured Ace would come here looking for information on you," Smoker added. "Now that you're here, he's probably already noticed—and might charge in any moment."
As he spoke, Smoker reached for the Den Den Mushi, planning to issue an evacuation warning across the city. But before he could dial—
"BAAAANE!!!"
A thunderous voice roared outside—no mistaking it, that was Ace.
In the next instant, a searing flaming fist exploded through the gates of the Marine base, unleashing a torrent of fire down the corridor like a blazing tunnel nearly a hundred meters long.
"That brat's still as reckless as ever!" Garp snarled, glaring toward the window.
Honestly, if it were just Bane and Smoker here, Ace and Teach might've been too much to handle. Bane would likely have been forced to flee.
But with Garp—the living legend—right here, ready and waiting, Bane actually started to feel a bit hopeful.
Maybe... just maybe, this was their chance to take Ace and Teach down for good.
From within the blaze, two figures emerged—Ace in the lead, followed by a man few paid attention to: Marshall D. Teach.
"Watch out for the guy behind Ace," Bane warned quickly. "His name's Marshall D. Teach. He's extremely dangerous. He once fought Red-Haired Shanks to a draw!"
That immediately got Garp and Smoker's attention. Until now, they'd been focused entirely on Ace.
"He fought Red-Hair to a standstill?" Garp's expression hardened. "That's no small feat…"
"Exactly. That scar over Shanks' eye? Teach gave it to him."
Now Garp was convinced. His face grew serious."I figured he was just a nobody, but he's the real deal. We'll need to be on guard."
Neither Ace nor Teach had any idea that Garp was in town. The newspapers had reported him departing Marine Base 153, supposedly parting ways with Smoker—Ace had assumed his grandfather went looking for Luffy.
He had no clue that Garp had secretly doubled back—laying a trap for him all along.
Stepping through the inferno, Ace shouted loudly,"BANE! I saw you go inside! Come out here, you coward! I'll make you pay for killing Thatch!"
Inside the office, Bane raised a brow and turned to Smoker."Is he always this loud? Just barges into Marine bases and starts yelling?"
"How should I know? I barely know the guy," Smoker shrugged. "Right, Vice Admiral Garp?"
Garp scowled, embarrassed. "I'll deal with that brat myself!"
He crouched slightly—and crack! The tile beneath his feet shattered from the sheer force of his stance.
Smoker flinched, heart aching for his flooring. Before he could say a word—boom!
Garp's massive frame blasted through the window like a human cannonball, hurling himself into the sky.
"AAAAAAACE!!!" he roared mid-air.
Ace and Teach both jumped.
"GRANDPA!?" Ace gasped in horror. "What the hell are you doing here!?"
Teach's expression turned to pure panic.
This wasn't just a bad situation—it was a nightmare.
Fight Garp?! YOU WANT ME TO FIGHT GARP?!
Hovering mid-air, Garp began charging up. His Haki surged around him like a storm, lightning flashing in the sky as his eyes turned red.
"You want to know why I'm here, brat? It's to beat some damn sense into you!!"
With that, Garp released a massive wave of Conqueror's Haki—blanketing all of Loguetown in crushing pressure. Even Bane felt his chest tighten under the weight.
"What is this power…?" he gasped, looking skyward.
Garp's aura was like a tidal wave, all of it converging into his fist.
Smoker ran to the shattered window, shouting,"Vice Admiral! Sir! This is still a Marine base—!"
Too late.
"Fist of Impact!" Garp bellowed.
A blinding flash filled the sky. A shockwave of pure force, saturated with Haki, erupted from his fist like a thunderclap from the gods—tearing through the air and slamming down toward the base like a meteor.
The first thing Bane saw was Ace and Teach's terrified expressions.
The second was the buildings of the Marine base disintegrating like matchsticks in a hurricane.
The third was the wave of destruction hurtling straight toward him.
He didn't even get the chance to curse.
BOOM.
Bane and Smoker were both blown off their feet, smashed through the office wall as the entire base collapsed under the force of the attack.
Loguetown shook like it had been hit by an earthquake. Several blocks around the Marine base were reduced to rubble in an instant.