c14: The Depressed Flying Squirrel
Carl exhaled a breath of relief expression blank and fatigued.
With Busoshoku Haki reinforcing his strike, and the enhanced speed granted by the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi, his twin swords slashed across Ace's chest carving a deep, burning cross-cut wound through the flames!
"You... you used a sneak attack?!"
Ace stared at him in disbelief his face frozen in shock.
Carl gave a faint grin, stepping up to the fallen Ace, whose flames were flickering and unstable after the direct hit, and chuckled calmly.
"Sneak attack or not, doesn't matter only victory counts."
Without hesitation, Carl grabbed Ace by the collar, lifting his head slightly and turning toward Vice Admiral Flying Squirrel.
"Vice Admiral, you brought a pair of seastone cuffs, right?"
"Do I look new to this? Of course I did!"
Flying Squirrel rolled his eyes, already pulling out the Kairoseki handcuffs from his coat and fastening them on Ace's wrists nullifying his Mera Mera no Mi powers completely.
With the handcuffs secured, Ace collapsed fully no longer able to summon flames or maintain his Logia intangibility.
Thus, Carl and Flying Squirrel managed to subdue and detain one of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division Commander with relative success.
Just as Carl stood up, the system chimed in his ears at the perfect moment.
'Ding! Mission complete. Tricolor Haki proficiency increased by 1 level!'
Back aboard the warship, Carl wasted no time he grabbed a full spread of food and began devouring it at an alarming pace to replenish his depleted stamina.
The fight with Ace had left him battered.
In order to stop Ace from escaping, Carl had pushed his abilities to the limit combining both fruit techniques and raw combat force.
Although the clash ended in what appeared to be a draw, with both sides wounded Ace had mainly lost stamina, while Carl had taken real injuries.
After all, a Logia-type user like Ace doesn't suffer damage without Haki so most of Carl's earlier blows had little effect until the very end.
Carl, however, had suffered burns, impacts, and exhaustion his fight wasn't just strenuous, it was the toughest he'd faced so far.
Once full, he slumped back and finally allowed himself to fall asleep his body demanding rest after such an intense showdown.
This battle had pushed him harder than any previous encounter.
More importantly it exposed the limit of his current strength.
He might be formidable on the open sea, strong enough to take on mid-level pirates or rookies but against high-level threats like Ace or worse, his strength was still not enough.
That realization gnawed at him.
While chewing on his grilled fish and rice earlier, Carl had been thinking deeply what else could he do to grow stronger besides waiting on the system?
He thought, and thought but no answer came.
So for now, he tabled the question.
Still—he had confidence in one thing.
That last move the cross-slash imbued with Haki and boosted by his cyclone technique was his own invention.
He'd developed it over the past few days during sparring drills, and even though it wasn't fully refined, it had huge potential.
With practice, it could become a signature finishing move one that blended swordsmanship, Devil Fruit mastery, and Haki.
That comforting thought stayed with Carl as his consciousness slipped away and he entered a deep, well-earned sleep.
---
At the same time
Inside the holding chamber aboard the ship's brig
Two prisoners sat chained in opposite corners separated by iron bars, but within sight of each other.
Portgas D. Ace leaned against the cold wall, arms bound in seastone.
Monkey D. Luffy captured during a separate incident sat across from him, equally bound, eyes locked on his brother.
They didn't speak but their eyes said everything.
Both were thinking the same thing.
They had to get out.
But for now they waited.
Flying Squirrel had already contacted Fleet Admiral Sengoku, and after learning that Ace was Luffy's sworn brother, he was completely stunned.
He hadn't expected that Portgas D. Ace was also connected to Monkey D. Garp by blood!
In one unexpected outing, he had managed to capture both of Garp's grandsons this made Vice Admiral Flying Squirrel feel utterly miserable.
Even worse, the two brothers showed no signs of realizing the seriousness of their arrest.
With Carl not on the ship, Luffy became lively again, bouncing around and talking to Ace like nothing had happened—his usual carefree spirit in full display.
Ace, although shackled with Kairoseki, didn't seem tense either—he just smiled at Luffy and chatted casually, not showing even a hint of concern.
Watching these two treat their imprisonment like a friendly gathering, Flying Squirrel's morale plummeted further.
But he didn't dare to vent his frustration.
Because both of these men were unaffordable problems for someone like him to provoke.
At the same time
In a hidden corner of the Sabaody Archipelago, Marshall D. Teach, also known as Blackbeard, stood shrouded in shadows with a wicked smile on his face.
"Zehahaha... I didn't expect this new Navy upstart to be so capable. Even Ace got taken down."
He narrowed his eyes as he recalled Carl's technique.
"But that power... it feels familiar. Could it be the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi? The same fruit that belonged to the Golden Lion Shiki?"
"If that really is the Fuwa Fuwa fruit... then maybe I should shift my target."
"The ability to make anything float and manipulate air itself... it's not inferior to Whitebeard's Gura Gura no Mi at all!"
"Zehahahahaha!"
Blackbeard's deep, ominous laugh echoed through the alleyway as his ambition began to stir again.
---
But far from this chaos, in Marineford, inside the Fleet Admiral's office, Garp sat stiffly in front of Sengoku his face unusually grim.
The Vice Admiral was famous for laughing off anything, but this time he was tight-lipped and brooding.
He had never imagined that both Ace and Luffy would be captured and by the same person, no less!
What was even more alarming was Ace's reason for being in Sabaody Archipelago he must have had a mission from Whitebeard. There was no way a commander would casually leave the New World.
But even that wasn't the most pressing issue.
Luffy getting arrested well, Garp could probably pull strings to get him released. After all, he was a Navy hero, and he still had influence.
But Ace was different.
Ace wasn't just a pirate he was a Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates and had already made a name for himself across the seas.
Letting him go could be considered a dereliction of duty. Worse if Ace's true identity was exposed...
The world would descend into chaos.
So Garp was stuck between his duty as a Vice Admiral and his role as a grandfather.
Should he use his standing to save them?
"Garp..." Sengoku finally spoke, arms crossed, eyebrows twitching. "I never thought I'd see the day when you, of all people, would look so conflicted."
"If you want my advice, just leave them in Impel Down. Maybe a couple years of reflection will knock some sense into those two brats."
"Heh... maybe you're right." Garp scratched his head, exhaling sharply. "If I can't get them both out, then I'd rather neither of them be released. At least they'll have each other."
"But listen carefully if they're going to be imprisoned, I want them held in separate cells, and no torture, no starvation, nothing like that!"
"My two grandsons, they don't care about rules or ranks but they sure as hell care about food. If they go hungry, Sengoku, I'm coming for you!"
Garp's sudden burst of seriousness made Sengoku raise his brows but then he smiled and patted Garp on the shoulder.
"Don't worry. I'll give the order personally."
"Thanks, Sengoku..."
"You old fool, what's with the formal tone? If you really want to thank me, hand over the donuts. That was my last bag!"
"Hmph! No way! I had to sneak those from the kitchen I'm not returning them now!"
"You damn thief! So it WAS you who stole them!"
Sengoku's mustache bristled as he glared at Garp, who was already munching smugly on another donut.
The two legendary Marines bickered like children but just for a moment.
Then silence returned.
Garp chewed thoughtfully, face darkening once more.
"When Carl gets back... I'll have a few words with him. He needs to understand who he messed with."
"Hahaha, no objections from me." Sengoku chuckled, then added, "By the way, Flying Squirrel recommends promoting Carl's rank. What do you think?"
"You asking me? Tch, talk to Tsuru about it. I'm leaving I'm too annoyed for this crap!"
As Garp stomped out of the office grumbling, Sengoku's smile slowly faded.
His expression turned quiet... thoughtful.
"Garp... you really think I don't know?"
He looked at the files spread across his desk, his fingers tapping a photo of Ace.
"Luffy is one thing... but Ace? Did you really think I wouldn't uncover his real parentage?"
"Still... a promise is a promise. I'll keep your secret."
"But tomorrow, when you discipline Carl... please, don't kill him. That boy might be rough around the edges, but he's promising."
"We don't have many like him in the Navy anymore..."
Sighing, Sengoku opened his desk drawer and smirked.
Inside was another hidden bag of donuts.
"Hah! You think I'd leave my sweets unguarded? They don't call me the 'Strategic General' for nothing!"
---