Although Sengoku true intention for Garp was—
To observe the battle between Sherwin of the Hunter and the Dark King Rayleigh, then, when the moment was right, join forces with Sherwin to take down Rayleigh.
But for Garp, he couldn't be bothered to make things that complicated, and he never liked doing things that weren't straightforward or honorable anyway.
In truth, Fleet Admiral Sengoku also knew Garp most likely wouldn't follow orders, but it wasn't like… he had anyone else available to send!
Besides, since Garp was acquainted with Sherwin, Sengoku decided to send him anyway. The rest would depend on Garp judgment.
Hmm, he definitely wasn't just worried that Garp would finish off all the snacks he'd been hiding, and so used this as an excuse to send him away.
And since Garp was given full autonomy, he didn't bother hiding his presence at all, appearing directly in front of Rayleigh and Sherwin.
"Hahahahaha! Sherwin, boy, long time no see!"
The man Rayleigh called "old friend," Garp, instead greeted Sherwin first, quickly putting on a kindly, benevolent smile as he jogged over.
"Little Klee~ did you miss Grandpa?"
"Grandpa Garp, what are you doing here, meow?!" The little ragdoll leapt into Garp arms with a pounce, tugging on his mustache.
"You came to see Klee Meow, right?"
"Of course!" Garp replied without hesitation.
"There no way I'd make a special trip just for Sherwin, that brat!"
Sherwin naturally wouldn't get upset over something so trivial. Bringing the other Felynes along, he greeted Garp with a smile.
"It been over a year, hasn't it, old man Garp?"
"Long time no see, old man Garp, meow!"
Seijuro Meow, Huamei Meow, and Sanji Meow also stepped forward to greet him together.
"Sherwin dear, this old man is someone you know too, meow?" Sharmie, still perched on Sherwin shoulder, curiously eyed Garp.
"Why'd you stop fighting? I wasn't done playing, meow!" The still-excited Jinx grumbled in dissatisfaction, only to be effortlessly subdued by Huamei.
(=ω=)
"Old man Garp is a Marine whose strength rivals that of old man Rayleigh," Seijuro Meow explained to Link Meow.
"I once had the honor of facing him alongside Lord Sherwin and Princess Klee, but we were unable to claim victory."
"Hm? Why are there so many more little cats now?" Garp finally noticed that the number of Felynes wasn't quite right.
Realizing this a bit late, he squatted down and greeted the new ones with a big grin. "Hello there! I'm Monkey D. Garp. You can all just call me Grandpa Garp."
"I'm Purah Meow. Hello, Mr. Garp, meow! Check-it!"
(ゝω)~☆
"Hello, Grandpa Garp. I'm Haibara Meow, but you can just call me Ai, meow."
"I'm Odelia… meow."
Including Robin, all the Felynes came forward to greet Garp warmly.
"Hahahahaha! Good! You're all such good kids!" Surrounded by the Felynes, Garp laughed heartily, then patted his chest boldly.
"If that brat Sherwin or anyone else ever bullies you, come find me! I'll straighten them out for you!"
After saying that, Garp suddenly remembered why he had come in the first place.
"Oh, right! I came to ask why you guys started fighting that old geezer Rayleigh. I almost forgot completely!"
The long-ignored Rayleigh: "..."
...
Inside Shakky Rip-Off Bar.
After greeting everyone, Garp was happily eating the food prepared by Shakky and Sanji Meow while listening to Sherwin explain the whole story from beginning to end.
"Hahahahaha! You old geezer, you wanted to teach this kid Sherwin a lesson, didn't you? Looks like the young ones these days aren't so easy to push around!"
Garp slapped Rayleigh hard on the back, laughing so hard he nearly doubled over.
Rayleigh face darkened—he had no intention of replying.
If it were only that he failed to teach Sherwin a lesson, he wouldn't have cared that much. But the fact that Garp knew about it made it a complete headache.
He never imagined that Sherwin would actually know Garp, and even get along well with him.
That meant the embarrassing fact that he, an old master, had tried to bully a youngster only to end up getting completely outplayed, couldn't be hidden anymore.
After laughing for a while, Garp patted Rayleigh shoulder again and said, "You should be thanking me instead. If things had escalated to the point where little Klee started tossing her bombs, you'd be dealing with more than just a bit of burnt hair and torn clothes."
Recalling how Mount Colubo had been blasted into a crater-ridden mess by Klee Meow bombs, Garp sighed. "At the very least, this bar wouldn't have survived."
Shakky nodded. "In the information I gathered about Sherwin, there was indeed mention of a Felyne who skilled with explosives... Isn't that Klee Devil Fruit ability?"
"Of course not! Klee bombs are super powerful! It just that Brother Sherwin and Sister Huamei only allow Klee to use them when we're out at sea, meow!"
(=｀3=)
The little ragdoll Felyne pouted unhappily and mumbled under her breath.
"Mhm, in this matter, I think that kid Sherwin made the right call," Garp said.
The moment those words left his mouth, Rayleigh and Shakky, who hadn't paid much attention before, suddenly froze in horror.
They both knew Garp personality all too well — if even he spoke so cautiously about Klee Meow bombs, then just how terrifying could that little cat explosives really be?!
However, Garp didn't linger on the topic and casually shifted the conversation.
"Sherwin, brat, are you really planning to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea?"
Under Rayleigh and Shakky surprised gazes, Sherwin calmly shrugged. "You know how it is. I've always been collecting Devil Fruits and famed blades.
The World Government offered me three Fruits in exchange — I really don't have any reason to turn that down."
Garp shook his head and warned, "Those three Devil Fruits won't be so easy to get your hands on…"
But then he remembered Sherwin earlier fight with Rayleigh and immediately burst into laughter.
"Though, for a guy like you, that probably doesn't matter much. Looks like Sengoku little plan is doomed to fail, hahahaha!"
"So it a surprise' prepared just for me, huh…" Sherwin wasn't surprised.
It would've been strange if they simply handed over the three Devil Fruits without any strings attached.
He rubbed his chin and shamelessly asked, "So, what Sengoku planning to pull? Come on, tell me, old man."
"No can do," Garp replied, shaking his head — a man of some integrity, at least in certain matters.
"Anyway, with your strength, you'll handle it just fine… well, as long as nothing unexpected happens."
"So the new Warlord is you, then?" Shakky exhaled a ring of smoke, her eyes thoughtful.
"Makes sense. Recruiting you — the one who ruined Crocodile scheme — would help the World Government save a bit of face."
From her tone, it was clear she already knew that a new Warlord was about to be appointed.
And the only person capable of giving Shakky that kind of inside information… would be Boa Hancock.
Combining what Uncle Cuddy had once described about how the World Government "classified" him, along with the rather generous ten days they'd given, and the specific instruction forbidding him from entering Marineford ahead of time…
Sherwin seemed to have an idea of what was going on.
"That old man Sengoku… don't tell me he gathered the other Warlords and plans to have them 'test' me?"