Little Luffy stood there, his brain buzzing, his small hands clenched into fists.
"Yeah… I don't really want to be a pirate."
"Everything I want—I can have it without being a pirate."
"Shanks never told me that I could be a Marine."
"Why… why can't I be a Marine?"
Luffy muttered to himself, his thoughts spiraling as he unraveled the truth.
For the first time, he was thinking about another way—a way that didn't involve becoming a pirate.
And he wasn't just considering it.
He was seriously thinking about becoming a Marine.
That was the brilliance of Robert's words.
He never forced Luffy to accept anything.
He never said, "Pirates are bad, Marines are good."
Instead, he simply asked the right questions.
And Luffy…
Luffy had come to the answer on his own.
That was the true power of a political commissar.
The original world was stunned.
Even the pirates watching the broadcast began to question themselves.
"Damn, why did I even become a pirate?"
"Maybe if I had met someone like Robert, I wouldn't be running from the Marines every day."
"I just wanted to see the world. I never actually wanted to rob people."
"I got on a pirate ship just to escape my old life… I never thought there were other ways."
Suddenly, dozens of pirates were having an existential crisis.
For years, they had believed that being a pirate was the only way to be free.
Now, Robert had shattered that illusion with just a simple conversation.
Sengoku from the original world felt his heart skip a beat.
"This man…"
"This political commissar…"
"He's terrifying."
"(Original) Sengoku: Garp! How did you raise your grandson so terribly? Why did it take just one conversation with Robert to fix him?"
"(Original) Garp: I TRIED! I SPENT YEARS TEACHING HIM!"
"(Original) Sengoku: How did you teach him?"
"(Original) Garp: If he didn't listen, I punched him."
"(Original) Sengoku: …No wonder he ran straight to the pirates."
"(Present) Garp: That's the problem! You can't beat answers into kids. That's what Commissar Robert taught me!"
"(Original) Garp: Impossible! My teaching method is perfect!"
"(Original) Luffy: I still want to be the Pirate King!"
"(Present) Luffy: You are beyond saving."
"(Present) Garp: I was so wise."
Garp in the present world sighed in relief.
"Thank god I invited Robert to talk to Luffy."
"If I had waited even one more day, that brat would've been completely led astray by Shanks."
"I can't even imagine having a grandson like that other Luffy. It'd be too embarrassing!"
Garp felt a newfound respect for Robert.
He had never really considered how different things would be without him.
But now…
Now, after seeing the original world, it was horrifying to think about.
He had an anti-government son.
A pirate grandson.
A Vice Admiral with zero ambition.
What a miserable life that would have been.
Garp gave himself a thumbs-up.
"I made the right choice!"
Little Luffy, standing in front of Robert, suddenly beamed with excitement.
"I figured it out!"
His voice was filled with energy.
"I don't want to be a pirate!"
"I just want to go on adventures with my friends!"
"I want freedom!"
"I want to find treasure!"
"And I can do all of that as a Marine!"
"And I won't have to hide from anyone!"
Luffy grinned proudly.
In his mind, he had just come up with this brilliant answer all by himself.
He had no idea that Robert had been guiding him the entire time.
Garp clapped his hands together in excitement.
"HAHAHAHA!"
"My grandson is finally on the right path!"
He had never felt so happy.
His grandson was finally going to be a Marine!
But then—
Robert's voice cut through the celebration like a knife.
"But you already rejected my invitation."
His tone was calm, but the words struck like thunder.
"I can't let you join the Marines now."
Silence.
Luffy's grin vanished.
Garp's smile froze.
"H-Huh?"
Luffy's face fell.
"W-Wait!"
He stammered.
"I-I did say no before, but… but I changed my mind!"
Robert simply shook his head.
"A Marine needs conviction."
"You can't just change your mind whenever you feel like it."
Luffy's heart pounded.
He looked at Garp in panic.
"Grandpa! Help me! I really want to be a Marine!"
Garp was just as shocked.
He looked at Robert and started winking like crazy.
"Come on, Robert! Say yes! What are you doing?!"
He was terrified that Luffy might change his mind again.
Garp turned to Sengoku in the original world, desperate.
"(Original) Garp: WHY IS ROBERT REJECTING HIM?!"
"(Original) Sengoku: You fool! This is psychology!"
"(Original) Garp: What? What kind of psychology is this?!"
"(Original) Sengoku: If you make something difficult to obtain, it becomes MORE desirable."
"(Original) Garp: Wait… So Luffy is going to start begging to be a Marine?"
"(Original) Sengoku: Just wait."
In the video.
Luffy's face turned red.
His fists shook.
His voice rose in desperation.
"I WANT to be a Marine!"
"Please, let me be a Marine!"
Robert smiled.
"No."
"Why not?! Please!!"
"No."
Luffy grabbed Garp's pants and shook him violently.
"GRANDPA! HELP ME!"
"I REALLY REALLY REALLY WANT TO BE A MARINE!"
Garp almost burst into tears.
His grandson—
His own flesh and blood—
Was BEGGING to become a Marine.
The Garp in the original world looked like he was about to die of jealousy.
He had never seen Luffy so desperate to be a Marine before.
He had spent years forcing the idea onto him.
Yet one conversation with Robert had changed everything.
End of the Chapter.