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"What to do? What to do? What to do?"
After returning to their temporary residence, Ace scratched his head in frustration.
"Rouge is wary of us now. How am I supposed to secretly follow her and protect her in the future…?"
Ikki, who was debating whether to use the two characters he had drawn earlier, glanced at Ace with a deadpan expression.
"If you can't follow her secretly, then just follow her openly… Do you have to be a creepy stalker?"
Ace's eyes lit up at the suggestion, but his excitement quickly faded.
"No… I can't mess up the original timeline…"
"Tch… So you do get it!" Ikki scoffed. "Then stop overthinking it. As long as we don't interfere, Rouge will be safe. Once she gives birth to you, all we have to do is step in and rescue her."
"Yeah!" Ace nodded, then sat on the ground, shifting his thoughts to other matters.
After a moment of silence, Ikki hesitated before asking cautiously, "I gotta ask… You really don't want to see Roger one last time?"
He knew bringing up Roger in front of Ace was risky, but still… There were misunderstandings between father and son. If Ace didn't see Roger now, he might regret it once he learned the truth.
Ace looked up at Ikki, shook his head, and said, "His execution is tomorrow. We won't make it in time…"
"Nope," Ikki smirked, shaking his finger. "I can fly you there. With the Rabbit Talisman, the distance is nothing."
—
In the end, Ace decided to take one last look at that man… though he insisted it was for his mother's sake.
With the power of the Rabbit Talisman, the journey from the South Blue to the East Blue was a breeze.
The execution was set for noon, but Ikki and Ace arrived in Loguetown early in the morning.
The town was bustling—if one looked closely, they could spot many major figures who would become infamous in the next twenty years.
Among them were Shanks, Buggy, Doflamingo, Mihawk, Crocodile, and Gecko Moria. Even the future leader of the Revolutionary Army, Monkey D. Dragon, was there.
There were also future high-ranking Marines present—Sakazuki, Borsalino, Garp, Sengoku, and Tsuru.
To Ace's surprise, he even spotted his big brother, Marco.
Marco had come on behalf of Whitebeard to see Roger off.
The execution of the Pirate King was indeed a grand spectacle.
Perhaps as a show of force, or to intimidate future pirates, the Marines did not arrest those gathered in Loguetown. Instead, they allowed them to move freely… or maybe they were simply waiting for Roger's execution before making their move.
—
After flying all the way from the South Blue, Ikki and Ace were starving. They decided to stop by a restaurant.
As the two masked figures entered, they immediately drew the attention of many inside.
Especially… among all the familiar faces in Loguetown, there was one particularly troublesome acquaintance—Garp.
Garp, who was enjoying a hearty meal, suddenly froze when he noticed two masked figures entering the restaurant. Then, a wide grin spread across his face.
"Boy… I finally found you!"
Ikki and Ace fell silent.
"Haha… Mr. Garp, what a coincidence…" Ikki greeted awkwardly.
Without hesitation, Garp plopped down at their table, acting as if they were old friends catching up. Along the way, he casually transferred the food he had ordered onto their table.
The surrounding diners, seeing the Marine Hero Garp casually chatting with the two masked strangers, averted their gazes.
—
"You two… I've been looking for you for years," Garp said with a grin, stuffing food into his mouth.
"Uh… Mr. Garp, you don't hold grudges that badly, do you?" Ikki asked cautiously.
Garp waved a hand dismissively. "Of course not! Besides, you know what day it is. I'm not about to cause a scene today."
He took another big bite before continuing, "I've been tracking you down all these years, and I see you haven't caused any trouble on the seas. Honestly, I just wanted to find you so that little guy could wrestle me again! I wanna see if he can still throw me."
Ikki: …
Ace: …
Ikki hadn't expected Garp's main concern to be a wrestling rematch.
"Sure, sure, but can we wait until after the execution?"
Garp nodded in agreement, then patted Ikki's shoulder with his large, greasy hand, smearing oil on his clothes. "Alright then, it's a deal, my great nephew!"
With that, Garp stood up and strolled out of the restaurant.
Ikki watched him leave, then sighed when he noticed something.
"…Did that old man just walk out without paying?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, the restaurant owner approached with the bill.
"You two, Mr. Garp's total came to 38,500 beri. I'll round it down to 38,000 for you!"
"Oi! Why do I have to pay for his meal?!" Ikki exclaimed.
The owner raised an eyebrow. "Huh? Didn't Mr. Garp just call you his great nephew?"
Ikki: …
"What a cunning old man…"
Though it wasn't a huge amount, Ikki still felt robbed. But considering a direct hit from Garp would probably cost him way more in medical bills, he sighed and paid up.
With that settled, he and Ace finally got to enjoy their meal.
After eating, they remained in the restaurant for a while, only heading out when noon approached.
—
On the main street of Loguetown, Gol D. Roger walked toward the execution platform, a wide smile on his face.
He didn't look like a man marching toward his death—if anything, he looked like someone stepping onto a grand stage.
People on both sides of the street watched him with mixed expressions. Because Roger's reputation wasn't entirely villainous at this point, many looked at him with admiration rather than hatred.
After all, this was the only man to have conquered the Grand Line, the one who had acquired the greatest treasure in the world.
—
Ikki and Ace stood among the crowd, watching him.
Seeing Roger in person like this… even Ikki had to admit—his presence was overwhelming. Even bound in shackles, his kingly aura was undeniable.
Just as Ikki was observing him, he suddenly felt a strong push.
Turning around, he spotted a white-haired kid trying to shove his way forward.
"This kid? Isn't that Smoker?"
Seeing an old acquaintance, Ikki couldn't help but mess with him.
He placed a hand on Smoker's head and smirked. "Hey, kid… can't you just watch the execution like a normal person?"
Smoker scowled, swatting Ikki's hand away. "Don't touch my head! I'm not short! And—why shouldn't I watch the execution?"
"Oh? You don't know?" Ikki raised an eyebrow. "If you watch an execution before turning fifteen…"
Smoker swallowed. "…What happens?" he asked cautiously.
Ikki smirked. "Your dick will shrink."
Smoker: …
A look of absolute horror crossed the boy's face before he quickly shook his head. "I-I don't believe you!"
"Oh? Suit yourself. You'll find out soon enough," Ikki teased, turning away.
At that moment, Roger had reached the execution platform.