I've Seen Ace

"I didn't recognize who she was."

After quickly reviewing the response he had just devised, Noah put on a stunned expression. "Didn't you reveal it yourself back then?"

"Hm?"

Shizi froze for a moment and realized that did seem to be the case. Puzzled, she asked, "Then what were you trying to say when you were holding that photograph?"

"It looked familiar," Noah said honestly. "Like I'd seen it somewhere before, especially those eyes."

"..." Shizi's gaze sharpened slightly. "What do you mean? Where?"

"I can't remember right now." Noah scratched his head, feeling as if his acting had improved again. "More importantly, Rear Admiral Shizi, may I ask you a question?"

"Don't change the subject." Shizi frowned, but still allowed it. "...Go on. What is it?"

"Why exactly are you and Mr. Garp..." Noah noticed Shizi's expression darken and hurriedly sped up. "You see, Mr. Garp is not only a hero I admire, but also the person who recommended me for the Marine Headquarters Elite Training Camp."

"Logically, as comrades who fought together for many years, the two of you should have been very close. Why did things become like this? Why can't you even bear to hear Mr. Garp's name anymore?"

"Is that really so important?" Shizi asked in return.

"Yes." Noah nodded seriously. "Please tell me. It might help me remember who those eyes belonged to."

"..."

Shizi gave Noah a meaningful look, then suddenly lowered her head and softly said to Hina, "Go upstairs and sleep, Hina. It's getting late. If you don't rest now, you won't be able to get up tomorrow morning."

"No, I'm not going."

Though Hina was already very sleepy, her attitude was unexpectedly firm this time. "I'm not a little kid anymore. Now that I've heard this much, does Grandma Shizi still want to keep everything from me?"

Shizi stroked her little head. After hesitating for a while, she sighed and stopped insisting. Letting Hina remain in her arms, she looked up at Noah and said:

"You think the reason I left Marineford three years ago had something to do with that man, Garp?"

"Just a small guess."

Noah did not deny it.

"Then you guessed right."

Shizi said flatly, "The reason my relationship with Garp fell apart, and the reason I resigned from Marine Headquarters, were both the same: Rouge's death three years ago."

"I told you before, didn't I? After Pirate King Roger was executed, Marine Headquarters launched a hunt for his family and descendants. That was when I learned that Rouge was Roger's wife."

"When I learned of it, I voluntarily asked Marine Headquarters to put me in charge of the matter. Perhaps it truly was for selfish reasons, but no matter what, as Rouge's only family in this world, I couldn't just watch the Marines capture her and let her meet the same fate as trash like Roger!"

"However, Shiki had just caused havoc at Marine Headquarters. Half of Marineford had been destroyed, and there were countless reconstruction matters to deal with. Sister Tsuru was overwhelmed, so I had no choice but to focus my energy there first."

Noah nodded silently. Of course, he knew about that incident.

After Roger turned himself in, Shiki could not believe that Roger, whom he regarded as his rival, had been captured. So he stormed Marine Headquarters alone to demand answers.

Though he was ultimately defeated by Garp and Sengoku working together and sent to Impel Down, he still dealt unprecedented devastation to Marineford.

"And when I finally caught my breath and had time to take over the hunt for Rouge."

As Shizi reached this point, her emotions became unstable. Her small body trembled slightly. "I heard that Rouge had already been discovered in the South Blue, and Garp had led a fleet there to surround and capture her."

Understandingly, Hina wrapped her arms around Shizi's waist and pressed her face tightly to her chest. Only then did Shizi feel somewhat better, gradually calming down.

"You're young, so perhaps you don't understand the grudge between Garp and Roger. He hated that man beyond measure, especially after Roger's final words ushered in the chaotic Great Pirate Era and brought endless trouble to the Marines."

"So, after learning of Roger's pregnant wife, he did not even stay at Marine Headquarters to recover from his injuries. He personally set out to snuff out the Pirate King's bloodline before it could take root."

"He succeeded." Shizi looked despondent. "Only two days later, Marine Headquarters received his report. Rouge had fallen into the deep sea in a panic while fleeing his pursuit and died, while the Pirate King's unborn son died with her in the womb."

"And that is the answer you wanted."

Looking at the silent Noah, she laughed at herself. "Of course Garp did nothing wrong. From the Marines' standpoint, if it had been me, I would not have easily let a descendant of trash like Roger go either. At the very least, I would have taken them into custody and raised them under strict Marine surveillance."

"But no matter what, Rouge died at his hands. I knew I could no longer face Garp as I once had, yet I had no grounds to blame him for anything. So I could only endure it, avoid seeing him, leave Marine Headquarters, and return to my hometown to escape everything."

"So." She glanced at the disconnected Den Den Mushi and shook her head. "You should understand now just how unrealistic it is for you or Gion to complete the task assigned by Marine Headquarters and persuade me to return to Marineford, shouldn't you?"

"..."

Noah, who had quietly listened to Shizi's account without interrupting, finally raised his head and looked directly into her eyes.

"Do you truly think Vice Admiral Garp is that kind of person?"

"What? The kind who hunts down pirates' families?"

Shizi shook her head. "Normally, Garp would never do such a thing. But Rouge's situation was far too special. She was Pirate King Roger's..."

"Even so, I don't believe Vice Admiral Garp would do it. You served alongside him for so many years. You should know his character better than I do."

Noah cut her off. "Also, did Vice Admiral Garp know about your relationship with Rouge?"

"No. Zephyr and Sengoku didn't know either. I never mentioned it at Marine Headquarters."

Shizi's voice was dry, and her eyes were somewhat lost. "Perhaps I should have let him know beforehand. If I had, then Rouge wouldn't have..."

"What if Rouge never died?"

Noah suddenly said, "Don't you think that whole series of actions from Mr. Garp was strange? He completed the hunt in only two days? And he said Rouge died at sea, yet didn't bring back a body? Could it be that he deliberately staged all of it to protect Rouge..."

"I considered that too."

Shizi said coldly, "But unfortunately, little one, that's impossible. My private number has never changed. If Rouge were still alive, she couldn't possibly have gone all these years without calling me even once."

That was because Rouge, that great mother, had forcibly delayed her delivery by more than a year to protect her son, and only died from utter exhaustion after giving birth to Ace...

Noah sighed inwardly. But he could not reveal that as well; there was simply no way to explain where he had gotten the information. So, facing Shizi's gaze, he shifted the topic back and dropped the depth charge he had long prepared.

"I said earlier that Rouge's childhood photo looked familiar to me, especially her eyes. I felt as though I'd seen them somewhere before."

"Hm?" Shizi narrowed her eyes slightly.

"Now I remember."

Noah took a deep breath and calmly said, "A year ago, when I traveled from the East Blue to Marine Headquarters aboard Mr. Garp's ship, I once stopped with him at an island and personally saw him hand an infant only a few months old over to local residents to be raised."

"That baby was very well-behaved and never cried or fussed, so I remember him clearly."

Seeing Shizi's expression abruptly change, Noah smiled. "And he looked very much like Miss Rouge, especially his eyes. They were practically carved from the same mold."

Second update. Please vote. PS: The protagonist was not lying. All the information he gave Shizi can be verified, and there would be no problem even if she confronted Garp about it. The foreshadowing in the timeline was planted from the very first chapter, so everyone needn't worry about whether it makes sense.