The dog-headed warship under Vice Admiral Garp cut steadily across the sea, its massive hull riding the waves with effortless stability. The White Gull had already been escorted away by other Marines, sent toward the nearest branch base.
"Hahahaha!" Garp's booming laughter echoed across the deck as he slapped Gern Reginald Sigmar hard on the shoulder."You little brat, you've been working pretty hard this past week, haven't you? When I came to pick you up, this pirate-infested stretch of sea didn't even have a single pirate ship in sight! Not one!"
He leaned closer, grinning broadly."So? Did you go and find yourself some incredible troublemaker again? Aren't you going to introduce him to this old man?"
Watching the clearly aging Garp, Gern smiled helplessly."Vice Admiral Garp, you can stop pretending. Others might not have noticed, but I clearly saw you coat yourself in Armament Haki the instant you charged in."
As he spoke, Gern glanced at Enel, who was still sprawled unconscious on the deck."He's a Logia-type, after all. If you hadn't used Haki, there's no way he would've gone down that easily."
"So you noticed, huh?" Garp scratched the back of his head, not bothering to deny it in the slightest."Well, I was just curious! After all, you've got two new faces around you now."
As he spoke, Garp's gaze casually drifted toward Snake Princess, who stood a short distance away—while several Marines nearby were sneaking glances at her.
Sensing the attention, Snake Princess snorted coldly. Her flame-orange hair fluttered in the sea breeze, her eyes filled with disdain and pride. At the same time, the blade at her waist slid slightly from its sheath, flashing with cold light. The Marines who had been staring instantly dropped their heads, pretending to be busy with anything at all.
"This is Toritoma, the 'Snake Princess' of Amazon Lily," Gern introduced simply. "She's under my command now."
"Oh?" Garp raised an eyebrow, a trace of amusement flashing in his eyes."I know the Snake Princess. After all, she's the only great swordsman on Kuja Island. But she was a pirate. Fleet Admiral Sengoku might—"
"Anyone who turns over a new leaf is a good kid," Gern said with a faint smile. "Fleet Admiral Sengoku won't mind."
Seeing that smile, Garp's eyes darkened for a brief instant—then he laughed and waved it off."Forget it! Hahaha! Still, I never thought even the famous Snake Princess would get dragged into your camp!"
"Pot, meet kettle." Snake Princess curled her red lips into a lazy, razor-edged smile."I've seen plenty of the Marine Hero's fists back when I was aboard Lady Gloriosa's ship."
"Ha! That temper really is pure Kuja!"Garp laughed heartily, then turned his gaze back to the figure lying on the deck."So what about this young man?"
Gern's lips curved slightly."His name's Enel. He calls himself a 'god.'"
"A god?" Garp froze for a moment—then burst out laughing even harder."Interesting! Kids these days just keep getting more entertaining!"
At that moment, Enel's finger twitched.
The next instant, his eyes flew open. With a sharp motion, he sprang up from the deck in a clean kip-up, golden staff raised and pointed straight at Garp, his expression razor-sharp with vigilance.
The last thing he remembered before blacking out was… something pitch-black smashing into him—and then nothing.
"You old man!" Enel snarled. "Did you just sneak-attack me?! A god will not forgive such insolence lightly!"
"Oh?" Garp's grin didn't fade in the slightest—if anything, it grew brighter."Young man, you recovered pretty fast!"
"Enel," Gern said calmly. "This is Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp of the Marines. The Hero of the Marines. One of my teachers."
"Hero?" Enel snorted."In front of a god, a so-called 'hero' is nothing more than a mortal's pathetic self-consolation!"
"Hahaha! Now that's funny—full-blown chuuni, too!" Garp laughed, completely unbothered."Gern, where do you even find all these weirdos?"
"Enough," Gern sighed, seeing where this was heading. He reached out and pressed a hand on Enel's shoulder."Vice Admiral Garp's strength is far beyond you right now."
"Hmph!" Enel shook Gern's hand off, defiance blazing in his eyes."That was just carelessness. A mere mortal—this time—"
Before he could finish, a single phrase rang out beside his ear.
"Fist of Love."
...
"Hey, kid."Garp squatted down, rapping his knuckles lightly against Enel's forehead."You still alive?"
Enel's eyelids trembled. A weak groan escaped his throat. His long earlobes drooped limply, and a massive bump swelled on the top of his head.
"Vice Admiral Garp… you really didn't hold back," Gern said helplessly as he bent down to help Enel up."This 'god' wasn't exactly easy for me to recruit."
"I was just curious!" Garp raised his brows and casually picked his nose."Didn't expect him not to know Haki at all!"
At that, Enel's pupils shrank violently. He struggled to steady himself as faint arcs of lightning flickered around his body."What… happened just now…?"
"Enel," Gern said kindly, "I've heard that blacking out more than three times in a single day can cause memory loss."
"Hero of the Marines…"Enel's gaze flickered, the lightning slowly dissipating.
He might be arrogant—but he wasn't stupid.
That punch—completely undetectable, instantly knocking him unconscious—made one thing painfully clear: the old man in front of him was anything but ordinary.
"Hahaha! You've got backbone, kid!"Garp laughed and slapped Enel on the back, nearly sending him face-first into the deck again."Come on! Walk it off—have some senbei with me!"
Enel was dragged toward the cabin by Garp, turning his head back in a daze, eyes full of desperate pleas toward Gern.
Gern shrugged and gave him a look that clearly said good luck.
"Vice Admiral Gern."At that moment, Tesoro stepped up beside him and lowered his voice."Why did Vice Admiral Garp suddenly come to pick us up? I remember the message was sent to a nearby branch for a ship transfer."
"Who knows?" Gern replied, gazing toward the distant horizon."Probably Fleet Admiral Sengoku's arrangement."
Just then, a lazy voice drifted over from behind."Hey, Gern."
Snake Princess leaned against the railing, her orange-red hair dancing in the wind. She tilted her chin slightly, signaling him to look to the other side.
Several Marines were sneaking glances over, their eyes shamelessly roaming over her.
"Your colleagues seem very interested in me, this 'new crewmate' of yours," she said with a dangerous smile.
Gern sighed."Just don't kill anyone."
"Relax~"Snake Princess chuckled softly, fingers brushing the hilt of her sword as she strode toward the Marines with elegant steps. Her high heels clicked crisply against the deck.
The soldiers' expressions shifted from awe to sheer terror.
Because they could clearly feel it—
The killing intent radiating from this beautiful woman was almost tangible.
"Uh… miss…?" one particularly brave Marine tried to speak.
"Hm?"Snake Princess tilted her head slightly, her gaze sharp as a blade.
The soldier froze instantly. Cold sweat poured down his forehead. He had no doubt that if he said one more word, he'd lose his head the next second.
"That's enough, Snake Princess," Gern said at just the right moment."Scaring them a little is fine."
She snorted softly and turned back toward him, leaving the Marines collapsing to the deck in relief as if spared from execution.
"Gern!"Just then, Lip bounced out of the cabin, senbei clenched in her mouth."Vice Admiral Garp gave this to me! He said—"
She imitated Garp's rough voice perfectly:"Bring some to that brat too! Don't let him starve!"
"Haha."Gern smiled as he accepted the senbei."Vice Admiral Garp really hasn't changed."
"Oh, right!" Lip suddenly remembered something and leaned close to whisper."Vice Admiral Garp made Enel drink a bunch of weird stuff! He's really not okay now!"
"Weird stuff?"Gern froze—then realization dawned."Don't tell me…"
At that moment, a loud crash erupted from inside the cabin.
Immediately afterward came Enel's heart-wrenching scream:"What in the world is this?!"
Gern pressed a hand to his forehead."Of course…"
"I'll go check."He hurried into the cabin and pushed the door open.
Inside, Enel was slumped in a chair, face deathly pale, traces of suspicious green liquid still clinging to the corner of his mouth.
Beside him, Garp laughed with immense satisfaction.
Wait.
Something about this scene was very wrong.
No—not just wrong.
It was wrong on a deep, fundamental, one-hundred-percent level.