The sky gradually darkened. Night settled over sea and sky, hiding the Sea beneath it. Lights flickering on the water looked like the Sea's eyes.
At the bow, a bandaged young man had stood for a long time, the sea breeze tousling the hair across his forehead.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
A tall old man approached the bow without his Justice Coat. He looked like any elderly neighbor, but the explosive power in his body made even his ordinary footsteps ring clearly through the quiet night.
When he reached the bow, the bandaged young man turned and started to salute, only to see the old man shake his head.
Garp stood beside him, looking out at the dark sea, listening to the waves and feeling the cool breeze.
The Marines on watch gave the old man no more than a glance. At the entrance to a cabin, a door slowly opened.
Creak!
The door opened only a crack. Bright light spilled through, then was almost blocked as a small head squeezed out. A little girl's wide eyes watched the old man and the young man on deck.
A moment later, another head appeared above hers. A pair of eyes peered out at the two of them.
"Wuli, you did well."
The old man's deep voice caught Wuli off guard. He was surprised, and more than a little puzzled.
Garp kept gazing into the distance, at the four brightest stars in the night sky. As if looking past the years, he saw several boys in Marine uniforms standing beneath them.
"Z and I—Zephyr, I mean—have known each other for decades. When we were young, he entered the Marine academy alongside me, Sengoku, and Tsuru. We trained together and lived together."
The old man's face softened with memory. "Then we started seeing real