"Old man!!!"
"Please make me stronger!!!"
Wrapped head to toe in bandages, Monkey D. Luffy knelt on the ground and pleaded with old Gick.
That complete disregard for dignity, along with the determination and sincerity in his eyes, genuinely moved Gick.
"Stronger, huh..."
At that moment, a trace of reminiscence flickered through old Gick's clouded eyes.
Once upon a time, he had carried that very same dream himself, to personally raise a monster who would dominate the seas.
Ozz was the most talented and terrifying monster he had ever seen.
Born with monstrous strength and innate Observation Haki, he had been a natural-born king who could never be replicated.
He had been destined to become a powerhouse capable of contending for the throne of the world, just like Captain Rocks.
But unfortunately, Roger had snatched him away halfway through.
So what about this kid in front of him, this one who did not look especially bright?
Even if he could never reach Ozz's level,
he could probably still grow into the kind of man who ruled the seas as an overlord.
That would be acceptable enough.
After thinking it over, Gick ultimately decided to keep Luffy by his side.
If Ozz becoming a king was just a coincidence, then it proved nothing about a real connection to old Gick.
But if Luffy also became a great pirate,
then it would no longer be a coincidence.
In that case, perhaps old Gick really could become a kingmaker.
"Come with me, brat."
With that thought settled, old Gick clasped his hands behind his back and led Luffy toward the open ground behind the palace.
"Since you took part in the Summit War, then you should already understand just how huge the gap is between yourself and the true monsters of the sea.
So tell me, where do you think that gap lies?"
Now making a serious effort to become a "master teacher," old Gick began explaining things to Luffy.
"What... what is it?"
"Could it be... Devil Fruits?"
Luffy frowned and thought hard before arriving at that answer.
After all, whether it was Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit that shattered the sea itself, or the nearly impossible Logia fruits of the despair-inducing Admirals, all of them had left him feeling helpless.
"Especially Uncle Ozz. His Devil Fruit ability feels like it can do anything. One alone was already ridiculously strong, but I never expected he could even make clones!!!"
"Devil Fruits, huh..."
Hearing that, Gick nodded.
"That is indeed one factor. The ones you mentioned are all among the very top Devil Fruits on this sea.
But Roger, Rayleigh, and your grandfather Garp can all contend with those monsters without having Devil Fruits."
"Right..."
Once Luffy thought about it, that was true.
"That is exactly what you lack right now, brat. People with powerful Devil Fruits might not be weak.
But the ones who truly stand at the summit of the sea are those who have trained all their power to the extreme, and that is Haki!!!"
Gick was gradually slipping deeper into the role of a famous master.
"Only Haki can stand above everything else!!!"
And so old Gick continued teaching him.
From time to time, he would also use some Haki of his own, not especially powerful, but enough to serve as practical examples for instruction.
Meanwhile, Luffy's injuries slowly began to heal.
Several days later, after one lesson ended, Luffy made a request to old Gick.
"Old man, I want to go to Marineford once. After that, I'll come back to find you."
"Hm?"
Luffy's expression was serious.
"I want to pay my respects to Uncle Whitebeard and the pirate comrades who died there. And I want to tell my crew...
right now, we're too weak. We have no way to face the monsters of the New World. We need to promise to meet again in two years!!!"
Hearing that, Gick's eyes went distant.
"Pay respects... and your crew, huh..."
Had he not also walked out of a buried age himself?
Back in the day, his comrades from the Rocks Pirates had died, grown old, fled, or vanished.
And now even Captain Newgate had...
"What a willful brat. Fine, go."
"Huh?"
Luffy was stunned.
But Gick simply kept his hands clasped behind his back.
"What is Marineford, really? I've fought in wars even more absurd than that. Marine Headquarters isn't anything to be afraid of."
"I just wonder where that damned brat Ozz has wandered off to now..."
...
Elsewhere,
after the Summit War ended, Ozz and the Seven Warlords stood at the harbor.
He instructed Jinbe,
"Take Straw Hat Luffy to Dulamos. The old man must be bored out of his mind, living alone in that empty nest."
Jinbe nodded at once.
"I understand, Mr. Ozz. Even if I have to stake my life on it, I'll deliver him there!!!"
"That doesn't need to be so dramatic..."
Ozz smiled and patted Jinbe on the shoulder, then watched as he swam away.
It was basically a home delivery for the old man.
At the same time, he also noticed Crocodile preparing to leave.
"Hey, Little Sand, where are you headed?!"
"To realize my ambitions. What, are you planning to fund me?"
Looking at Crocodile's sour expression, Ozz did not mind in the slightest. He knew she was still holding a grudge.
After all, he had not gone to Impel Down to get her out for a very long time.
Twice, in fact.
"Didn't I already give you money before? Baroque Works may have collapsed, but there should still be plenty left."
"Tch..."
Seeing that her attempt to squeeze money out of him had failed, Crocodile turned her face away and strode toward another harbor, tall and overbearing as ever, with Mr. 1 following behind her.
"What a bad-tempered crocodile, right?"
"Fufufufufu..."
Doflamingo left as well. He had thoroughly enjoyed the whole show.
"Little Kuma, you're leaving too?"
At that moment, Ozz spotted Kuma approaching with his wife. Ginny had reached middle age by now, but she had taken good care of herself.
"Yes, Mr. Ozz. We're going to look for Bonney. Ever since she left Sabaody, we haven't heard anything from her.
As for Kuma..."
Big Kuma took over the explanation himself.
"I'm going back to the laboratory. It's become even more dangerous there now."
"All right. Stay safe."
Just like that, the couple parted ways, one returning to work, the other going off to search for their troublesome child.
At the end, the only Warlords left were Mihawk and Hancock.
And neither of them seemed to have any intention of leaving.
Just as Ozz was about to say something, a squad of Marines approached, instantly drawing both of their attention.
But Ozz simply waved a hand, signaling for them to relax.
"Well, if it isn't Doll. Long time no see."
"Teacher Ozz..."
Doll had grown into a proper, mature beauty by now, with a cool, commanding aura and a perfectly developed figure.
Only when standing in front of Ozz did she reveal even the slightest trace of softness.
Even though the man before her was, in theory, now an enemy of the Marines, it was not against protocol for her to come negotiate. She was stationed at Sabaody, after all.
But because of where they now stood, she obviously could not act as intimately as before.
"If you return to Sabaody, and you need anything, you can come find me at the Marine branch base."
"All right."
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