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Garp's sudden appearance sent Rapanui and the others tumbling to the ground.
There was no other reason—Garp's presence was simply too overwhelming.
This wasn't the Garp of fifty years later. This was twenty-six-year-old Garp, brimming with energy, unrestrained and unrefined. Unlike his older self, who had learned to hold back a little, this Garp was still in his prime, radiating an intimidating aura that made people freeze in fear—especially after the superhuman display of strength he had just shown.
"I... we... we were captured by pirates but managed to escape and ended up here..." Rapanui stammered, saying the words he had rehearsed in his mind.
"So, pirates, huh..." Garp muttered.
In the jungle, Ikki was utterly shocked.
Of all the things that could happen during time travel, meeting a young Garp was not on his bingo card.
Meanwhile, Ace was visibly shaking.
He knew just how terrifying Garp was—he and Luffy had been on the receiving end of his fists since childhood. But what truly horrified him was realizing that his already irritable grandfather seemed even more hot-tempered in his youth.
Just as Ikki and Ace were observing Garp, the vice admiral suddenly narrowed his eyes.
"Who's there? Come out!"
'Shit... we got caught.'
Ace felt his stomach drop. He already knew that when facing Garp, his combat power would plummet—the same way Luffy's did. No matter how strong they were, when it came to Garp, they were helpless.
Since there was no use hiding anymore, the two reluctantly stepped out. But before doing so, Ikki quickly pulled out two masks and handed one to Ace.
As soon as they emerged, Garp didn't say a word. Instead, he shifted his gaze toward Rapanui.
Seeing this, Rapanui's mind went into overdrive—thinking of a way to keep Ikki and Ace out of trouble.
Then, in a move that made both of them want to strangle him, he pointed at them and declared:
"Mr. Marine, they… they're the pirates chasing us!"
He even gave Ikki and Ace a confident nod, as if to say: 'I believe in you guys! You can totally beat this Marine!'
"Nod your ass! I should've given you a Sunflower Manual!" Ikki cursed internally. (T/N: Let's see who knows about it)
But before he could say anything, a crushing pressure descended on him and Ace.
A monstrous aura.
It felt as if they had been sucked into a quagmire, their bodies frozen under an immense force.
"Wait, wait! This is all a misunderstanding!" Ikki blurted out, scrambling for a solution.
Thinking fast, he pulled out a huge bag of senbei and held it up like a peace offering.
"Mr. Marine! Here—have some snacks! Let's talk this out. No need for violence, right?"
Garp's gaze shifted to the bag of snacks.
"...What's this?" he asked, intrigued.
"Huh? You don't know what senbei is?" Ikki blinked, momentarily confused.
"Senbei? That's a great name!" Garp grinned.
Without hesitation—without even worrying about poison—he snatched the bag, grabbed a piece, and popped it into his mouth.
As he chewed, his eyes widened in delight.
"Damn! This is delicious!"
"Give me the recipe for this thing," Garp said, grinning as he cracked his knuckles.
Ikki, who had an entire encyclopedia of snacks, didn't hesitate. He had recipes for hundreds of treats, including various flavors of senbei. Since Garp was so easy to satisfy, he handed over the recipes without a second thought.
Fighting Garp? It wasn't like Ikki hadn't considered it, but… yeah, he wasn't suicidal.
Teaming up with Ace? Not happening. Just looking at Ace trembling in front of his grandfather told him everything—he wouldn't be much help in a fight.
And soon, Ikki was even more relieved about his choice.
Because now, stepping off the arriving warship were two more powerhouses.
An unmistakable afro. A cloak of justice draped over his shoulders. Sengoku.
And beside him, an elegant but intimidating presence—Tsuru.
Three future Marine legends stood in front of him.
Yeah. Fighting was not an option.
"Uh… Mr. Marine! I gave you the recipe, so we'll be leaving now!"
Ikki turned around, grabbing Ace to walk away.
"Wait a minute. Who said you could leave?"
Garp's voice stopped them in their tracks.
"...But you said you wanted the recipe…"
Ikki trailed off.
Garp never actually promised to let them go.
Before he could argue, Garp spoke again.
"Fight me. If you win, you can leave. If you lose…"
He didn't finish his sentence.
But the message was clear—if they lost, they were getting arrested.
Ikki glanced at Ace and whispered, "Be ready. I'll take us out of here in a second."
But Ace didn't respond.
Ikki frowned. "Ace?"
Ace suddenly spoke up.
"I'm not leaving. I want to fight Sengoku over there!"
Ikki: ...
"...Are you stupid?"
If Luffy had been standing here and said he wanted to fight Sengoku, Ikki wouldn't have been surprised. But Ace? Ace wasn't dumb.
He knew exactly how strong Sengoku was.
Even though this was Sengoku in his younger days, he was still in his prime—a man in his thirties, at full general-level strength.
Ace had no chance.
Ace clenched his fists. "I know I can't win. But if I run away every time I see a strong opponent, how can I ever protect the Whitebeard Pirates? Didn't you tell me before—becoming stronger is my only option?"
Ikki wanted to say, 'Haven't you already learned that lesson?'
After all, Ace had been beaten down by Whitebeard countless times.
But seeing the fire in Ace's eyes, he swallowed his words.
Meanwhile, Garp and Sengoku were… fighting over the bag of senbei.
Completely ignoring Ikki and Ace's discussion.
They didn't see them as a threat—just two kids.
Whether they were pirates or not could be figured out after they were captured.
Besides… if they could make such delicious senbei, maybe they had even more tasty treats.
Arresting them might actually be a win-win.
Ace suddenly stepped forward, pointing at Sengoku.
"I want to fight this gentleman!"
Sengoku, still chewing on senbei, burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! Garp, this kid's looking down on you!"
Garp scowled, but before he could say anything, Ikki stepped up.
"Then I'll be your opponent, Garp!"
His lips curled into a grin.
'Ah Fuck it! I also want to see just how big the gap is between me and the strongest men in the world.'