In Dawn Island, at the small and quiet village known as Windmill, two young children could be seen running through the dense forest, their footsteps crunching against the fallen leaves, while several rocks flew past them.
The one throwing those rocks was not some enemy or troublemaker, but their father, a proud and somewhat insane Marine officer named Monkey D. Garp.
He was a man who, in the future, would be known as the Hero of the Marines, the man who cornered the Roger Pirates countless times, and would later become the grandfather of Monkey D. Luffy, one of the future Four Emperors. But that was still far ahead in time.
Right now, Garp was simply a father training his sons as brutally as he could, throwing rocks at them with the same intensity and force he would use when attacking pirates.
Each stone he threw felt like a cannonball, and each throw came with a booming laugh that echoed through the trees.
"Nii-chan, why don't we fight back? We could win, don't you think?" the younger brother shouted while panting, glancing nervously at the rocks coming their way.
"What's the fun in that? Besides, we can't win. He's literally the devil," the older brother replied with a grin, pulling his younger brother closer just as another rock smashed into the ground where the boy had been standing.
"What the hell, old man! Are you trying to kill us?" the older brother yelled, but Garp only laughed even louder, his massive frame shaking with amusement as he prepared to throw another one.
"If you die just from that, then it's your fault for being weak!" Garp shouted back, hurling another rock straight at his older son.
This continued for more than five hours. The younger brother was hit at least twice, but despite the bruises and pain, he refused to stay down.
His stubbornness earned him a glint of respect from Garp, who liked seeing that kind of spirit.
The older brother, however, eventually grew tired of being treated like a target and decided to fight back, exactly as Garp wanted him to.
He grabbed the massive axe strapped to his back, a weapon he had trained with for years, and charged forward. With all his strength, he swung the blade at Garp, who didn't even bother to dodge.
The axe connected with Garp's shoulder, but the Marine barely flinched before responding with a heavy punch straight to his son's head.
Their fight ended with Garp laughing once again, his voice booming throughout the forest. The younger brother was lying flat on the ground, groaning, while the older brother was still standing, though with two noticeable lumps on his head from Garp's punches.
Garp himself had a few scratches, but nothing serious enough to stop his laughter.
"You two are still too young to fight me," Garp said proudly, his grin wide as ever. "But it's good. You're growing stronger, both of you. You'll make fine Marine soldiers one day."
The younger brother looked at Garp with admiration, eyes shining with hope, clearly inspired by their father's words. The older brother, however, looked unimpressed, his lips curling into a smirk.
"What? Who says I'll be a Marine? I'm going to sail around the world as a free man. I'll fight anyone who tries to stop me, and I'll be the freest person alive," the older brother declared proudly, his voice steady and full of conviction.
Garp's smile quickly disappeared.
"Moron!" he shouted, slamming his fist down on his son's head once again. He knew his son could take it, but it was also his way of expressing both anger and worry.
"You're going to be a Marine. Both you and Dragon will be fine soldiers. You have to be," Garp said, his voice loud at first but quieter at the end, carrying a tone that his sons didn't quite understand yet.
He wasn't just being strict; he was trying to protect them, especially his older son, who had a very unique situation.
You see, Garp's older son, Darius, was not a normal human. He was the child of Garp and a woman belonging to the Buccaneer clan, something Garp didn't even know until after Darius was born.
The boy's mother confessed the truth before leaving him in Garp's care, knowing she would soon be hunted for her bloodline.
But Darius' circumstances went even deeper than that. He wasn't just half Buccaneer — he wasn't supposed to exist in this world at all.
Before his birth in this world, Darius had lived on Earth, bearing the same name and appearance. Back there, he had been an ordinary fan of the One Piece manga and anime.
He was completely caught up with the latest releases and was even rewatching the moment when Kuma punched Saturn, when suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck him inside his own house. It was an impossible event, yet it happened.
When he opened his eyes again, he was already three years old, holding a baby named Dragon in his arms, his old memories mixing with new ones.
It didn't take long for him to realize where he was — the world of One Piece — and who his new father was.
At first, he didn't panic. After all, he was Garp's son, and that alone meant he had powerful genes.
He was confident that as long as he trained properly and didn't waste his potential, he wouldn't be weak.
Then, something strange happened. One day, a vial appeared out of nowhere in his room. There was no sound or flash, just a sudden appearance.
Only Dragon was with him at the time. Curious, Darius picked it up and saw the name written on it — Essence of Barbarian.
He recognized it immediately, as he had once read a fanfiction where this very vial served as the protagonist's cheat item. Without thinking much, he drank it.
The effects were immediate. His body began to change, muscles tightening and energy flooding through his veins.
He felt like he could run endlessly without tiring, and his strength multiplied several times over.
That single moment sparked something in him — a desire to grow stronger, not for glory or power, but to see how far he could go in this new world.
Since then, he had trained daily in the forest, often from dawn till dusk, swinging his axe until his hands blistered and his body ached.
The axe became an extension of his arm, a weapon that suited the raw strength he now possessed.
Now, at the age of eight, Darius stood taller than Garp himself. His strength had already reached a level comparable to a future Warlord of the Sea, maybe even slightly beyond that.
He was not yet at the level of Mihawk or Doflamingo, but he was steadily closing the gap, and it was becoming clear just how terrifying Garp truly was to still overpower him so easily.
The only advantage Darius had over his father was his incredible recovery rate, something that allowed him to recover from fatigue and injuries much faster than normal.
It was an unnatural gift, but one he had come to rely on.
He was growing stronger each day, and even Garp could feel it. But for now, he was still just an eight-year-old boy training under the toughest man alive, slowly preparing himself for the unpredictable world waiting beyond Dawn Island.