Only a handful of people in the entire Marine Headquarters could enter Garp's room without knocking.
Tsuru, with her gray-white hair and face full of wrinkles, was one of them.
She entered the room and closed the door behind her.
Garp hurriedly flipped the newspaper over and pressed it against the table. His attempt to hide it was so obvious that he might as well have written "Nothing happened" across his face.
Although Garp had moved quickly, Tsuru still saw the photo and name listed in the newspaper's top headline.
"Portgas D. Ace, a rising pirate who's recently emerged—and one who bears the name 'D.' at that. What relation does he have to you?"
Tsuru walked to the table and looked at Garp scrutinizingly.
"Little Tsuru..."
Garp smiled awkwardly, but in his haste, he had no idea how to respond.
Regarding the secret of Ace's origins, he had not even dared let Sengoku know. Yet now, he had carelessly allowed Tsuru to notice something.
Under that scrutinizing gaze, it seemed as though nothing could be hidden.
"Do you want a doughnut?"
Garp picked up a doughnut from the plate, making a clumsy attempt to change the subject.
Tsuru did not even spare the doughnut a glance. Calmly, she said, "If you don't want to talk, I won't press you for an answer."
"Ha ha!"
Garp breathed a sigh of relief and casually tossed the doughnut into his mouth.
Looking at the carefree Garp, Tsuru shook her head helplessly before getting straight to the point. "We received a message from Gion's side."
"Hm?!"
Garp's expression turned serious. He swallowed the doughnut in a few bites, naturally straightened his back, and asked, "About Ghost Gun?"
"Mm."
Tsuru nodded. "According to our informant, although the time still isn't quite right, there is a