"..."
Noah silently moved the receiver a little farther away and said irritably:
"It's me, old man Garp. Sooner or later, you're going to deafen me. I only arrived in the East Blue a couple of days ago. How did you know... Oh, Gion told you while you were mooching a meal?"
Over the past two years, he had only met with his wife and daughters a handful of times, but they had kept in constant contact through "video" calls.
Garp dropped by his family home every few days to drink with his father and mooch off his mother's cooking, so it was only natural that he had found out so quickly.
"Hehe..."
An awkward laugh came from the other end of the line, practically an admission. "Never mind that. Are you free these days? I have a small matter I'd like to ask you to handle. If you're as busy as before, then forget it. Important work comes first."
"I've got around half a month."
As Noah led Zoro toward the dojo, he chuckled. "Being idle is boring anyway. I can spare some time for you. Go on, what is it?"
"Isn't it that brat Luffy!"
Garp sighed. "I took some leave and went back to the East Blue to see him recently. While I was training the little punk, he got tired halfway through and secretly ran back to the village. Then he started yelling about how he didn't want to be a Marine anymore and wanted to become a pirate."
"I was so angry that I beat the little brat up on the spot. Then Marine Headquarters had an urgent matter, and Sengoku kept urging me to return. Early the next morning, I left without saying a word."
"Thinking about it now, I still feel bad for