Departure: Target Hana!

Winter. Dawn was just breaking. Even at Marine Headquarters, few figures could be seen. Most soldiers were just getting up, finishing their morning routines, and preparing for their usual drills.

Held on Garp's shoulder, Ron struggled with all his might, only to find Garp's grip as unyielding as steel. The dense Armament Haki prevented him from using Elementalization to break free, leaving him no choice but to be carried.

Even more outrageous, Garp stomped his foot and then retracted it, clearly using Geppo to propel himself through the air, bypassing the winding paths.

"Where exactly are you taking me?"

Ron shouted into the howling wind.

"No need to rush! We're here!"

"Huh?"

Ron looked up. In just over ten seconds, they had crossed the wide plaza in front of the fortress and arrived at the port facing its main entrance. At the harbor's edge, Traine had been waiting for a long time.

Spotting the two, he waved with a smile, "Long time no see, Ron! How have you been lately?"

Splat!

Thrown from Garp's shoulder, Ron felt his stomach churn.

So, in response to Traine's question, he twitched the corner of his mouth and said, clutching his stomach, "Rear Admiral Traine, can't you tell if I'm doing well or not?"

Traine: "..."

"Well... seeing you still have the energy to retort means you're doing alright. If that's the case, then let's get on the ship!"

Ron blinked, "Now?!"

Setting sail in the dead of winter, in the early morning?

"Less talk, get on board!"

Thump!

Garp brushed a crease from his cape and kicked, sending the unsuspecting Ron flying over ten meters into the air before he landed on the deck.

Then, he and Traine returned to the deck using Geppo and issued a command.

"All hands, prepare for departure!"

Toot!!!

The ship's whistle blared, and the engines whirred. Lying dazed on the deck, Ron felt the "War Beast" beneath him disengage from the port, and his mood plummeted.

Are we seriously setting sail?

What's the reason?

What am I even here for?

"Wait a minute, I'm a bit confused, let me sort this out."

Ron got up, sat down cross-legged, and muttered to himself.

"I didn't sleep all night. The first thing I did after waking up was find Teacher Zephyr to ask about the Marine Six Powers, and then I ran into the old bastard... After the teacher had me sign, the old bastard dragged me onto his ship, and now the old bastard's ship is sailing..."

Ron's repeated use of "old bastard" made Garp's face turn green.

However, before he could lay a hand on Ron, Ron preemptively asked, "So!!! What am I here for?! What does your mission have to do with me!"

Ron stared at Garp, utterly bewildered.

"Hmph! There's a reason I called you here! You just need to obey orders, understand?!"

Garp's expression was unusually serious, his eyes radiating authority without anger.

Ron frowned slightly, recalling how Garp had used Geppo to travel. He quickly became thoughtful.

"I see... We avoided the patrol? I bet no one knows where I'm going except for the people on this ship and Teacher Zephyr... So it's a secret mission?"

Ron quickly understood, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

Since I'm here, I'll make the best of it. After all, fighting... I definitely can't win!

And if it's a mission, then the rewards...

With that, a slight smile curved Ron's lips. He stood up, saluted, and replied loudly, "Understood! Vice Admiral Garp!"

Hiss... This little brat's brain really works well!

Seeing the clarity in Ron's eyes, Garp would bet his ten-day supply of donuts that Ron had figured something out. But he didn't say it outright; instead, he played along with Ron's performance. He knew very well that there were things he didn't know that needed to be kept secret for now.

Comparing Ron to his own dull-witted grandson, Luffy, and his son Dragon, who had already rebelled and whose whereabouts were unknown, Garp sighed.

"They're all someone else's children!"

The vast, azure sea stretched boundlessly.

A massive warship unfurled its sails, catching the wind like a white dragon, slicing through the ocean, which resembled a sheet of blue paper. Gulls circled above the warship, squawking at each other, waiting for an opportunity to snatch bread... the soldiers' lunch.

These little fellows looked pure white and holy, but in reality, they were unadulterated bandits!

Just like the sea before them, beauty was merely the surface; danger was its true nature.

A few minutes later...

BANG!!

A colossal wave crashed down, deafening.

Even the immense "War Beast" swayed precariously before the vast ocean. Nature's might was truly terrifying!

The Grand Line's weather was notoriously fickle; sunny moments before, now completely overcast. Some compared it to a young girl in love, moods ever-changing. Ron, however, thought... it was just plain crazy!!!

Soldiers immediately abandoned their meals. Under the command of their captains, they furled the sails and secured supplies. Soaked through, it was impossible to tell if it was seawater or sweat.

On Garp's ship, slacking off was out of the question!

Ron's task was to clean the deck, but with the current situation, it seemed unlikely he'd need to. Casually watching the busy soldiers on deck, Ron's body lit up with a faint blue glow as he sat down to eat.

This month, besides sailing and practicing Kami-e, Ron had also taken Kizaru's words, "Electromagnetism development and extension," to heart. He wasn't a scientist and didn't understand electricity or magnetism, but they were inseparable. As a Lightning Person, he had a natural advantage and plenty of ways to figure it out. This electromagnetic barrier was his initial application of electromagnetism.

The world was vast, but eating was paramount!

Using the electromagnetic defense field to block the rain, Ron ate rapidly.

"MOOO!!!"

Accompanying the downpour was a sea beast, terrifying to ordinary eyes, its senses dulled by the churning waters. A blackish-brown sea bull with a ferocious bovine head burst from the water to breathe, immediately spotting the warship drifting in the storm.

CRASH!

This behemoth, over a hundred meters long, had eyeballs the size of houses. Its sheer size, only slightly smaller than the War Beast, churned up a tidal wave that engulfed everything! Caught off guard, tons of water slammed down, shattering the defensive barrier Ron had erected solely to block the rain.

"Holy crap!"

With half a bun in his mouth, Ron, knocked down by the wave, stared at his now-mushy food and felt utterly miserable. The last time he hadn't eaten enough and raided the cafeteria's pantry, Garp had beaten him half to death. This time... he hadn't eaten at all!

Ron's eyes instantly turned red.

"Form ranks! Prepare to fire! 3... 2..."

Rear Admiral Traine drew his weapon and shouted into the wind and rain. The next moment, Ron leaped up...

"It's mine!!"

His eyes burning crimson, Ron, wielding lightning, instantly moved from the deck to the sea beast's head. Witnessing this, Traine's mouth twitched, unable to utter the "1" that was on the tip of his tongue.

To the "War Beast," this sea beast, capable of capsizing merchant ships and sending sailors to a watery grave, was a minor nuisance. Not only Garp, but even he himself wasn't interested in intervening; it was a good opportunity for training.

But now Ron had acted, and the outcome was the same as if they had intervened...

Watching Ron appear above the sea beast with a clap of thunder, the soldiers looked up, swallowing hard.

"It's Private Ron!"

"That's great!! With him on it, there's no problem!"

"Go, Ron! Take it down!"

The soldiers trusted Ron implicitly. Within the Marines, Ron now had a bit of a reputation. In the ship's cabin, through the window, Garp glanced at the lightning flashing through the gloomy rain, shaking his head with a smile.

"This kid!"

The Minotaur Sea Beast found it incredibly strange how this human had appeared above its head. Ron's exaggerated speed left it wide-eyed and dazed. But soon, it opened its massive maw, intending to swallow Ron whole.

However, before it could, Ron struck decisively!

He clenched his fist, a murderous intent on his face, his muscles bulging and swelling as he gathered power into his punch.

"Die... for me!!!"

BOOM!!!

CRUNCH... SPLAT!!

A thunderous roar, like the sky collapsing, echoed across the sea. Under the soldiers' terrified gaze, the Minotaur Sea Beast's eyeballs exploded from its head, trailing long streams of blood into the ocean on the other side of the warship. Its head, which had seemed somewhat small on its round body, was completely caved into its neck, like a deflated ball.

Without a single scream, the sea beast, whose arrival was heralded by wind and rain, had its head so easily punched into its body by Ron that it couldn't have been deader!

SPLASH!

Great swathes of blood rained down, a thick curtain of gore even larger than the downpour, a horrifying sight!

Traine knew that Ron detested trouble... and now the deck was horribly foul-smelling, and he'd be the one cleaning it up. For him to abandon his lightning abilities and resort to brute force to kill the sea beast must have had a deeper purpose.

For example...

THUD!

Ron landed back on the deck, crackling with electricity, his face contorted in a snarl. "Can this sea beast... be eaten?!"

SPLISH SPLASH...

The soldiers, now covered in blood, were already terrified. Hearing this question, several of them promptly fainted...

"He's scared them witless!"

Traine glanced towards the ship's cabin, his gaze lingering for a second on a window where a sturdy dark silhouette was faintly visible. He let out a wry smile and then ordered, "Enough talk! Clean up the deck! We're almost at Hana!"