Ace had no intention to hide anything from Luffy, so he told the younger boy everything about his real parents.
It was hard to say what kind of reaction Ace had expected, but as always, Luffy's way of thinking was simple.
The children had grown up without a real mother or father in their lives. To them, Dadan was probably the closest thing to a parent, having raised them since they were babies. Yet, none of the three ever called her "Mom."
Why?
The reason was quite simple.
Naru had always known that Dadan never intended to raise her as her own. The poor woman had been forced and threatened by Garp into taking care of a baby she never wanted in the first place.
Naru understood that better than anyone.
Even so, despite the circumstances, Dadan and the others had never treated her badly. In fact, their care and loyalty over the years had earned them Naru's genuine affection. From the moment she began to speak, Dadan's name was among the first words she said, something that had clearly surprised and secretly touched the woman, though she would never admit it out loud.
Ace and Luffy, who were especially close to Naru, learned everything from her, including how to address Dadan and the others.
For them, the words "Mom" and "Dad" were meaningless. They had never known parental affection, and Naru had always been the one to fill that void. By the time they were old enough to realize that most children had parents instead of mountain bandits raising them, they had already accepted their life as it was.
They were happy, were they not?
At least, that was exactly how Luffy saw it.
To him, Ace being someone else's child did not matter in the slightest. Ace was still his brother, the same person who grew up with him, played with him, slept beside him, and shared every adventure with him.
Naru had once told Luffy a little about Dragon. She only mentioned that he was still alive and that he was not a bad person. As for his reputation as a criminal, that was a topic for the future, which was something Luffy would understand better when he was older.
Being the curious child he was, Luffy often asked about Dragon's whereabouts and what he was doing. Naru would always answer with the same calm tone, "He's somewhere doing something. You don't have to worry about him. He's doing fine."
Luffy's reaction was always the same, a simple "Okay," before wandering off to bother Dadan again. Both Naru and Ace suspected that he did not really fully grasp the weight of what he had been told, but at least he tried to understand.
To be honest, Naru found that carefree attitude of his a little concerning. Luffy either had no worries at all or he simply did not understand how complex their lives really were. Naru quietly promised herself that she would teach him more about awareness as he grew older. Ignorance might make him happy now, but it would not protect him forever.
As for Garp, after that night, he acted no differently than usual. If anything, he became even fiercer when training them. He used every chance to motivate the boys, telling them to become strong fighters like him.
It seemed that he had already given up on convincing them to join the Marines, which was only natural. With their bloodlines and circumstances, that path was never meant for them. It was simply impossible.
Garp's vacation lasted for a full week before he had to return to the Grand Line. During that time, he did not just put his grandchildren through his usual torturous mountain training. He also took them to stay with him in Foosha Village for a few days.
The villagers were familiar with the children by now. Garp had never bothered to hide the fact that he had grandchildren living in the mountains under the care of some 'relatives'. Every time he came home, he would bring the children to the village, much to Ace and Luffy's delight.
When Garp finally left again, life returned to normal. The children went back to the mountains, back to their daily routines, and back to the wild, chaotic life that somehow felt like home.
.
.
.
That one morning, unlike most ordinary days, Naru did not head out to train as she usually did. Instead, she stayed in her room, surrounded by piles of handwritten notes and documents she had gathered over time.
Through reading countless newspapers, books gifted by her grandfather, and the intelligence collected by her clones dispatched across the island, Naru had grown considerably familiar with the world around her.
After the conversation she had with Garp and Ace the previous week, she had begun to seriously reflect on her future.
Thinking back to how she had once believed she could enjoy her second life in this world freely and without worry, Naru now felt as though she had been mocked by fate itself.
Now that she knew the truth about herself and her brothers, their origins and bloodlines, there was simply no way she could ignore the potential dangers that might one day descend upon them. The future was uncertain, a fog-covered path filled with pitfalls, and Naru wanted to be ready for whatever lay ahead.
One scenario that kept crossing her mind was an eventual clash with the World Government.
"This World Government is definitely going to be a problem," she muttered, flipping through a dossier filled with notes about the organization. "It would be best if they never found out about us… but if that day ever comes…"
"Why not build your own force to suppress them?" Kurama's voice suddenly echoed in her mind, thick with sarcasm. "You're not seriously planning to spend the rest of your life frolicking around and gawking at waterfalls, are you?"
Naru rolled her eyes, unimpressed. "I've already told you, haven't I? I have no intention of getting entangled in some global power struggle. and I don't plan on being used as a stepping stone by anyone."
"Exactly my point. If you don't want to be used, then make sure you're the one calling the shots. What's even the point of building your own spy network if you're not going to build actual power to back it up?"
"You're awfully talkative today," she said dryly.
Since she had awakened in this world eight years ago, Kurama had mostly kept to himself. He would spend most of his time snoozing comfortably within the unlocked seal. Even if he was awake, he did not talk a lot and only gave a few random snide comments here and there from time to time.
"Think about it," he continued. "The information you've gathered shows that this World Government isn't just some small hidden village. It's a massive power that rules over most of the seas."
Naru fell silent.
Kurama was right.
Her brow furrowed as she pondered the thought. Would she really be dragged into this looming conflict no matter what?
The idea made her frown. Yet deep down, she knew that her quiet wish for a peaceful life was probably nothing more than a passing dream.
Her eyes gleamed with determination. If conflict was inevitable, then preparation had to begin now. With that thought in mind, she gathered her documents and locked them away in her drawer.
After tidying up her room, she stepped outside. The moment she did, she saw two figures, Soni and Gerald, hard at work fixing the door that had been broken by a certain someone the week before.
"Oh, Naru! Heading to the woods?" Gerald, the taller of the two, greeted her as she approached.
Naru shook her head. "Not today. I just came out to see if there's anything I can help with."
"In that case, I heard Magra say earlier that we're running low on rice and wheat flour," Soni replied. "You might want to find him."
"Got it," she said with a nod, and the pair stepped aside to let her pass. Once she was gone, they went back to hammering and adjusting the hinges.
The Dadan Family, despite the name, was not a small group. There were twenty-six people living under the same roof, counting the children. Before the kids arrived, there had been only one bedroom, occupied by the boss herself. Later, another room was built for Naru after she began to show signs of being a prodigious child. Eventually, she shared that room with her brothers.
Now that the children were growing up, especially Naru who was starting to lose her childish appearance, Dadan thought that it was better to build another room for the young lady soon. Of course, the orange-haired woman had not told the girl about her plan yet.
Anyway, since the family had many people, the cost of living was also quite high.
Dadan and her group were once bandits who made a living by robbing and stealing from others. Unfortunately, that ended the moment Garp entered their lives. From the day he brought Naru to them, the old man had made it very clear that if they ever returned to their old ways, he would personally throw them all into prison. Needless to say, none of them wanted to test that threat.
Fortunately, Garp was reasonable enough to provide them with some money for their living expenses. However, the money did not last long, especially with twenty six mouths to feed, and most of them had enormous appetites.
In the end, Dadan and the others had no choice but to become self-sufficient.
They began growing their own vegetables and hunting their own meat.
At first, the men could only catch small animals such as rabbits and pheasants from the nearby woods. But once Naru was old enough to walk and act on her own, everything changed. She quickly proved to be far more talented and resourceful than any of them when it came to hunting.
Since the age of five, most of the meat they ate came from her efforts. Every time she returned from the forest, she would drag back a wild animal twice or even three times her size. Sometimes, she brought along a fishing net, and after disappearing into the woods for hours, she would return with it filled to the brim with fish and other freshwater creatures.
It was not as though the adults had forced her to hunt for them, but she simply enjoyed the challenge of fighting beasts in the wild.
Later, once Ace grew older, she began taking him along. Years after that, Luffy joined them too.
Of course, the Dadan Family were not that useless to the point that they had to rely on the children they were raising for almost everything. Therefore, every week, a large group of them (along with the children) would go into the woods to hunt together, fish by the river, or on rare occasions, head to the sea to gather seafood in bulk.
Naru and the children were more than happy to be doing this sort of 'family outing' with them. These outings had become a kind of quirky family tradition.
Now, returning to the present.
Outside the house, Soni and Gerald were busy fixing the door, while the others carried out their own assigned tasks accordingly. Some could be found in the backyard planting rows of corn or tending to other crops. The rest were preparing the meat from yesterday's successful hunt, such as pheasants, crocodiles, rabbits, and several enormous freshwater creatures stored in a large wooden basin.
Part of the meat had already been eaten, while the rest would last for another week.
Although the house had a kitchen, it was too small to cook enough food for everyone at once. For that reason, the cooking was usually done outside in the front yard, beneath a simple shelter made of wooden beams and a roof for shade.
That spot was their official cooking site, and Magra was the one in charge of all cooking operations.
Dadan herself, the family's boss, was also occupied, as she was busy peeling onions beside Ace. In front of them sat a sack of onions and a large wooden basin to hold the peeled ones. Both wore goggles for obvious reasons.
Meanwhile, three-year-old Luffy sat nearby, completely captivated by the roaring fire beneath the stew pot.
"When can I add more firewood?" Luffy asked Magra, his eyes wide and full of excitement.
"If we add more now, the fire will get too strong," Magra replied gently.
"But isn't that a good thing? A strong fire cooks faster, right?"
"Yes… but it can also burn the food, and then it won't taste good anymore. You want the stew to be yummy later, don't you?"
Luffy nodded, his eyes sparkling with determination.
"Then let's keep the fire like this."
The delicious aroma rising from the pot made Luffy drool. The family usually cooked only once a day, since preparing enough food for everyone took half a day. Lunch was part of the dinner preparation, and breakfast was usually whatever one could manage for themselves.
When Naru stepped outside, Dadan and Ace noticed her first. Like Gerald, they assumed she was heading for her beloved woods, which had practically become her second home.
"Nope. Not going to the woods today," Naru said, giving Dadan a small, amused smile.
"Skipping training? Now that is shocking," Dadan remarked but returned to her onion pile without pressing further.
Ace glanced up at her briefly before returning to peeling onions after receiving a gentle, affectionate pat on the head.
"Nee-chan!" Luffy waved enthusiastically the moment he saw her.
Naru approached Luffy and Magra.
"Don't get too close to the fire," she warned. The boy nodded and shuffled a bit farther away from the flames. Pleased with his obedience, Naru ruffled his already wild hair and then turned to Magra.
"I heard from Soni that we're running low on rice and wheat flour?"
"Oh, yes. I'm making meat stew today and thought we could have it with rice tonight, but we have less than half a barrel left. At first, I thought it would be fine to switch rice for bread, but then I realized we are out of wheat flour too." Magra sighed, cupping his face with one hand. As the one in charge of food preparation, he looked genuinely troubled by the shortage.
"Then I will head into town to buy some. Will three sacks of rice be enough, or should I get some flour too? How about three sacks of rice and three sacks of flour?"
"Do you think you can carry all that by yourself? If not, one sack of rice and one sack of flour should be enough for today," Magra replied with concern.
"Bah! That girl can carry beasts five times her size. Why would groceries be a problem? Do you think she is weak?" Dadan interjected from her spot. Her tone was rough, but there was no real bite behind it.
"Boss, that's not it! I never thought Naru was weak!" Magra said, waving his hands nervously. In this household, the strongest person was clearly the little girl. If she could wrestle down a wild animal three times her size, carrying groceries should be nothing.
"You are right. This is just a small matter that I can handle," Naru said with a smile. "Then I might as well add another two sacks of each."
"Then I want to come with you," Ace said suddenly.
"Me too," Luffy added immediately. If their sister and brother were going, there was no way he would let himself be left behind.
Naru raised an eyebrow at them. "Aren't you both busy?"
Ace looked toward Dadan with a questioning expression.
"Sure, go ahead." The older woman waved him off, then turned to look at the others. "Oi, someone over there, come help me peel these onions!"
"Yes, boss!" someone shouted, stepping in to take over Ace's task. He removed his goggles and walked toward Naru.
As for Luffy, he exclaimed, "Magra said I don't need to make the fire stronger anymore," clinging to Naru's shirt.
Magra let out a resigned sigh. "Luffy, that is not exactly what I said… but yes, you can go too."
"Well then, since neither of you is busy anymore, you are allowed to tag along," Naru said with mock sternness. "But listen, no wandering off on your own without my permission. Got it?"
"Got it!" both boys said in unison, nodding enthusiastically.
"Good," Naru said, satisfied.
Luffy spoke up again. "Nee-chan, can I bring my shopping bag?"
He figured he might find something interesting or a little trinket to stash away.
"I want to bring mine too," Ace added.
"Go ahead. Oh, and bring mine as well," Naru said.
"Alright!" The boys ran off to grab all three bags and returned quickly, each with a bag slung over their shoulder.
Ace, carrying the extra bag, promptly handed it to Naru.
The so-called shopping bag was a simple sling bag made of coarse cloth, crafted by Dadan herself. Each bag had the first letter of its owner's name stitched carefully in the bottom right corner.
"Alright then, we are heading out now," Naru announced.
"Be careful on the way!"
"Come back before it gets dark!"
"Got it!" they called in unison.
The trio set off and gradually disappeared down the path.
"They really like those bags you made for them, boss," Magra said with a chuckle.
"Oh, shut it!" Dadan barked, tossing a half-peeled onion at him. Her gruffness barely hid the pleased smile tugging at her lips.