Garp's Request

Gion drew Golden Scale. Its blade gleamed golden under the sunlight, like a sword of light.

Tsuru stood with her hands behind her back, smiling as she praised it. "What a beautiful sword. It's practically a work of art."

"Yes, I heard this sword had always been with Chief Instructor Zephyr. I never expected little Ain to actually get it from him. She must have put a lot of thought into it."

As she spoke, Gion sheathed the sword, took a deep breath, and stepped in front of Noki. She patted his shoulder hard, murder in her eyes and a heavy threat in her voice. "Little Ain has gone this far for you. If you dare let her down, big sis will cut that thing off and make sure you can never be a man again. Understand?"

Noki felt a chill between his legs and smiled helplessly. "Sis, you know me. If nothing else, I can definitely guarantee that."

"That's true. Every young girl at Marine Headquarters has chased after you, yet you've only ever had eyes for little Ain. That alone proves how loyal you are to her.

Besides, little Ain cares about you so much. She deserves that much."

Noki checked the time. "It'll be lunchtime soon. Why don't you and Sister Tsuru wait a little? I'll go make lunch."

"No, no, we still have official business. We were just passing by your place and decided to visit, so we won't stay long." Gion pinched Noki's cheek again.

Tsuru said, "Oh, right. We ran into Garp before coming here. He said he had something to discuss with you and would probably visit this afternoon. He asked me to let you know in advance."

Gion fumed. "Little Noki, if you don't want to see him, just tell me. Big sis will turn him away for you. He beat you black and blue back then, and it still makes me angry when I think about it."

"Vice Admiral Garp..."

Noki had an unpleasant history with Garp.

Back then, he had been young and fearless. He had wanted Garp to teach him boxing, and had even tried to threaten him with Ace's identity. The result was a vicious beating, followed by Garp threatening to kill him if he dared tell anyone!

At the time, they told everyone they had merely been sparring, and Garp had accidentally hit a little too hard.

Thinking about it now, Noki wondered how he had done something so stupid. The people Garp cared about most were Luffy and Ace.

He must have had a screw loose that day...

"No, I should still see him. Since Vice Admiral Garp is making a special trip to visit me, it wouldn't be appropriate for a junior like me to refuse."

Tsuru nodded approvingly. "Garp can be a little reckless sometimes, but he's a good man. If you two had misunderstandings before, this is a good chance to make up."

As a Marine from the same generation as Garp, Tsuru understood him completely.

She knew perfectly well that Garp was not the kind of man who lost control of his strength. There had to be a reason he had beaten Noki.

After Gion and Tsuru left.

Noki returned to the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, and took out the ingredients left over from yesterday. There was enough for a dinner for two.

His cooking was among the best at Marine Headquarters, and many Marine officers often came to his house to mooch meals.

It could be said that he had made quite a few friends by conquering people's stomachs.

If he wanted to ease his relationship with Garp, the best approach was through the kitchen.

"This afternoon..."

Noki realized there was still plenty of time. "There's bread in the fridge. I'll just make do for lunch and wait to have dinner with Garp tonight."

He waited until after four in the afternoon, but Garp still had not arrived.

Noki figured that either Garp was not coming at all, or he would be here any moment. So he entered the kitchen and began cooking.

Just as expected.

Noki had barely rested after finishing the dishes when a booming shout came from outside.

"Hahaha, Noki boy, this old man is here!"

Noki took a deep breath. Judging by Garp's tone, he seemed to be in a good mood.

"Vice Admiral Garp, long time no see. You're looking as impressive as ever." Noki greeted him with a smiling pleasantry.

Garp was built like a bull. He carried something in each huge hand and grinned broadly. "You're not bad yourself. You've become a rear admiral already. I brought tea and Senbei as congratulatory gifts."

Noki quietly wondered why the old man's attitude was so strange today. Whenever he had seen him before, Garp always looked ferocious.

Garp stretched his neck out and sniffed. "That food smells amazing. Noki boy, did you cook?"

"Yes. I figured you would arrive soon, so I prepared dinner especially for you. Shall we eat together?"

"That's exactly what this old man had in mind!"

Garp did not stand on ceremony at all. He strode into Noki's house. "The last time this old man came here, your father was still alive. Times have changed."

"Were you close with my father?"

"Of course. That brat Rogers was even bolder than you. Everyone in Marine Headquarters knew him."

"Oh, I see."

Noki had heard similar things from many others. His father, whom he had never met, truly had been a prominent figure back then.

Garp was a foodie. He had always heard that Noki was a good cook, and today he finally had the chance to taste it.

"Potato shreds can taste this good? Sweet and sour, and pretty delicious too."

"This diced chicken is good too. It's sweet and spicy at the same time. You really are a genius, kid."

"..."

Garp praised his cooking endlessly.

Noki felt quite pleased, but he did not dare let down his guard in the slightest. He was afraid that if he said the wrong thing, the old man would get up and beat him again.

Getting beaten once had not been a big deal before.

But now that he had eaten the Dark-Dark Fruit and "enjoyed" double the pain, facing Garp's high-intensity beating for the first time was something he truly could not endure.

Strength!

One day, I'll make this old man too scared to hit me again.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill.

Garp picked his teeth with a wooden toothpick.

Noki smiled and asked, "Vice Admiral Garp, didn't you say you had something to discuss with me?"

"I do, kid. I remember that you wanted to learn boxing and Haki from this old man, right?

Now this old man will give you a chance. As long as you help me accomplish one thing, I guarantee I'll teach you everything I know."

"What is it?" Noki was extremely curious.

"Every Marine who graduates from the recruit camp is assigned away from Headquarters for a period of training, to gain combat experience and earn merits.

Right now, the Marine base in Loguetown in East Blue happens to be short a base commander. This old man hopes you'll voluntarily apply to take over the post."

"I'm afraid it isn't that simple."

"Heh heh, learning this old man's true teachings certainly won't be simple. But it won't be difficult for you either.

Although this old man doesn't know how you found out Ace's whereabouts, things have come to this, and I can't exactly kill you to silence you. As long as you promise not to tell anyone, that will be enough.

Among the entire Marine force, the only people who know Ace's whereabouts are probably you and me.

That brat Ace will be seventeen soon, and he's been shouting that he'll go to sea as a pirate at seventeen.

I hope you can stop him in East Blue and keep him from entering the Grand Line. It would be best if you could persuade him to become a Marine. If that doesn't work, then teach him more skills for me, such as Haki or the Six Powers. If he can reach your level, this old man will be more at ease."

Noki asked, "Why don't you stop him yourself?"

"Hmph. This old man raised him from childhood, so he stopped seeing me as an opponent long ago. Even if I stop him, he'll find a way to run off again.

And with that rebellious personality of his, he definitely won't want to learn how to fight from this old man. Teaching him would be pointless.

You're different. You're around his age, so you can surely awaken his fighting spirit. As long as he makes up his mind not to leave East Blue until he defeats you, this old man's goal will naturally be achieved."

"That does make some sense..."

"Kid, the opportunity is right in front of you. This old man always keeps his word. Are you willing to accept my proposal?"

"Allow me a few days to consider it."

"Do you know how many people want this old man to teach them? I'm giving you a chance, and you still need to think about it?"

Noki smiled. "After all, there are quite a few people in the Marines who are skilled in martial arts. While you are unquestionably the strongest, you are also the only one making demands.

If I settle for the next best option and ask Chief Instructor Zephyr or someone else to teach me martial arts and higher levels of Haki, they would definitely be willing to teach me for free."

"You little brat... That actually sounds reasonable!"

Garp slapped his forehead. "Then how about this old man adds another reward? Besides guaranteeing that I'll teach you Haki and boxing, I'm also willing to be your sparring partner whenever you need one. No matter what you train in later, I'll definitely come whenever you call."

"Is that true?"

"This old man's word is final."

"Then... I'll think about it some more."

"Why are you still thinking about it?"

"Because finding a sparring partner is easy for me too. Admiral Akainu would love for me to spend every day at the training grounds. If I took the initiative to ask, he would definitely agree to be my sparring partner.

There's also Admiral Kuzan and plenty of others. They're everywhere."

"What will it take for you to agree?" Garp glared with his round eyes.

"On top of what you just promised, agree to two more conditions for me."

"What conditions?"

"I haven't thought of them yet. I'll tell you once I have. But don't worry, I definitely won't make you betray the Marines or hurt your family."

Garp gritted his teeth. For the sake of his beloved grandson, he went all in. "Fine, this old man agrees!"

"It's a deal."

Thinking that the Marine hero Garp would owe him a favor and be an on-call sparring partner in the future, Noki knew this trip to East Blue would absolutely not be a loss!

He had just been promoted to rear admiral and did not yet have his own team. He could take this chance to develop in East Blue and build a solid foundation.

"Since we've settled it, hurry up and ask Kuzan to transfer you to Loguetown. Otherwise, he might assign someone else there."

"It's too late today. I'll go tomorrow."

"Mm, fine."

Although Garp had gotten what he wanted, the price he had paid was far greater than expected. Feeling somewhat upset, he stormed off angrily.

"I'm going to East Blue..."

That night, Noki lay alone in his soft bed, thinking things over.

"Even if I ask Kuzan for a transfer tomorrow, it'll still take several days before I leave Marineford. I should use that time to find Borsalino and test my abilities.

And Ain... I'm going to East Blue, but she has duties here and definitely can't come with me. I'll probably need to spend some time comforting her..."

As he thought, Noki gradually fell asleep.

The next morning.

Ain had a key to Noki's house. After buying breakfast, she came over.

"Noki, the sun's already shining on your butt. Time to get up."

"Ain?"

Noki rubbed his sleepy eyes, stretched, and climbed out of bed.

At the dining table.

Ain blinked and asked, "Noki, Admiral Sakazuki didn't give you a hard time yesterday, did he?"

"No. He just gave me a few appropriate words of advice. It wasn't a big deal."

"Oh."

Ain lowered her head and sipped her soup in small mouthfuls.

Noki took half a sandwich in one bite and spoke while chewing. "I'll be leaving Marineford for a while in a few days."

Ain thought for a moment. "Are you being assigned elsewhere?"

"Yeah. No matter how high my rank is, as someone who just graduated from the recruit camp, I'm supposed to go out and gain experience for a while."

Disappointment was hard to hide in Ain's eyes. "Looks like I won't be able to see you every day for some time."

"Even if we can't see each other, we can still keep in touch through Den Den Mushi. How about I promise to call you every day?"

Ain nodded gently. "Have you decided where you're going?"

"I'm planning to go to Loguetown in East Blue. I heard they need a Marine base commander there, and I'm pretty interested."

"With your strength, shouldn't you at least go to Sabaody Archipelago or a branch somewhere in the Grand Line? Wouldn't going to a place like East Blue be a waste of your talents?

And it's so far from Headquarters. I wouldn't even be able to visit you..."

Noki said, "Although East Blue is the weakest sea, it is still one of the Four Blues. The people there still suffer under pirates and criminal forces. I want to start with something simple, protect the peace of one place, then try to protect more places, and eventually the whole world."

This was the explanation Noki had prepared last night. After all, he could not let anyone know about Ace, and he could not simply head to Loguetown without any reason. He needed a pretext.

However, Ain was the person he trusted most. Noki simplified the details that might raise suspicion and still told her the truth.

He only said that Garp had asked him for help, not mentioning a single word about knowing Ace's identity.

After all, he and Ain had grown up together, and she knew everything about him. It would be easy to arouse unnecessary suspicion.

"Vice Admiral Garp's grandson wants to become a pirate?" Ain was extremely surprised after hearing Noki's explanation.

"Yeah. He believes I'm trustworthy, so he asked me to go to East Blue and stop his grandson."

"So you're going to East Blue so you can learn Vice Admiral Garp's boxing?"

"Yeah. I want to become stronger—strong enough that no one dares bully my family, strong enough that no one can stop us from doing what we want."

"Family..."

A flush spread across Ain's cheeks. "Noki, even though I don't want to leave you, as your girlfriend and future wife, I can't hinder your growth. So... go. I'll wait for you to come back in Marineford."

"Ain, meeting you has been the greatest stroke of luck in my life."

"It's good that you know that. When I'm not around, you can't go flirting with other women. Stay far, far away from those bad women.

I trust your character, but when women turn bad, there's nothing they won't do. You have to be careful, careful, and even more careful."

Noki smiled faintly. "I know my little Ain gets jealous, so every time I meet a woman, I'll report it to you through Den Den Mushi and put your mind at ease. How does that sound?"

"The way you put it makes me sound like some strict, overbearing wife who won't give her husband any freedom. I'm not like that!"