A friendship drifting apart

"Long time no see, Sengoku!"

River raised his head, gazed at the sea ahead, and spoke with a soft chuckle.

Behind him, Crocodile and Foxy both turned their eyes toward him, their expressions grave.

"After leaving Impel Down, why didn't you report to headquarters? Why not come see old friends like me, Garp, and Zephyr?"

Sengoku spoke in a low voice.

Across from him, Garp blinked and tossed a doughnut into his mouth, crunching away as he pricked up his ears and listened closely.

Twenty years ago, Sengoku, Garp, Zephyr, and River had been the pillars of the Marines, holding positions much like the current Three Admirals—Aokiji, Akainu, and Kizaru.

They had not only been colleagues, but friends who could talk about anything in private.

"Heh. Enter Marine Headquarters as a Marine Intern? I doubt I could even get through the Gate of Justice!"

After a brief silence, River's voice came through with a hint of mockery.

Both Sengoku and Garp froze, their gazes growing complicated.

He had once been an admiral standing high above others. Now, even the rank of Marine Intern was his ceiling, and the course of the rest of his life was almost painfully clear.

Anyone in his position would probably have found that hard to stomach.

"If you have time, come see your old friends!"

Sengoku sighed softly, a wistful note in his words.

"We'll see. I'm enjoying this free life right now."

River replied.

"You fought Doflamingo?"

Sengoku felt they could not keep making small talk. Their respective positions made things awkward, so he decided to get straight to the point.

"It seems the Marines' intelligence travels faster than I expected!"

River said with a laugh.

"Getting into a dispute with one of the Shichibukai isn't a good thing, River."

"Especially someone with a sensitive background like Doflamingo."

Sengoku's words carried an implication.

River naturally understood what he meant. He smiled. "I merely saved an innocent civilian who nearly died under his foot."

"As for anything else, Fleet Admiral, neither you nor those people who keep watching me from the shadows should let your imaginations run wild."

Sengoku fell silent.

He was famous for his intelligence, but River was no less sharp.

Clearly, both men had deeper meanings behind their words.

He was addressing River's contact with Doflamingo, while River was telling him that he had long since noticed the eyes watching him from the shadows.

"River, let's be frank. We can leave everything else aside, but I hope you'll be mindful of your actions from here on."

"As an old friend, I truly don't want what happened twenty years ago to happen again."

After a moment, Sengoku spoke with a sigh.

"Of course it won't. I've never been someone who likes stirring up trouble. Quite the opposite-I hate hassle."

River said with a smile.

"Good!"

Sengoku nodded.

Then the Den Den Mushi call ended.

After twenty years apart, their conversation had seemed far stiffer and more distant.

"Ah..."

Sengoku let out a sigh, his expression complicated.

"I feel as though he's drifting further and further away from us, Garp!"

Across from him, Garp paused at those words, then laughed. "You're too sensitive, Sengoku."

Meanwhile, at the bow of the warship.

Facing the sea breeze, River's calm face took on a complicated expression, and he, too, let out a soft sigh.

"Ah..."

Time and experience were powerful things, capable of changing everything about people, including their feelings for one another.

Twenty years was a long time in a human life, enough to change a great deal.

Just like Sengoku, River had sensed the distance between them growing.

He had vaguely felt it from the moment he walked out of Impel Down. Now, with their conversation over, he was finally certain.

Twenty years ago, Sengoku would have cursed him out over something like this, rather than using such a veiled, reproachful tone.

Once a friendship became cautious, distance had already crept in.

"Just as well!"

"After all, what I'm going to do before long..."

"...will set me on a different path from everyone in the Marines."

River murmured.

Looking at the island faintly emerging ahead, he pulled himself together again.

Rampo Town was a town on a nameless little island not far from Mock Town. Because the island had no name, it did not appear on maps.

It could only be reached by stumbling across it at sea or knowing its exact location.

In truth, islands like this were far from rare on the sea. There were many of them.

As the island ahead grew clearer, a smile gradually appeared on River's lips.

He had very few relatives in this world.

Rouge was one, and Ace was another.

Though he loathed that fellow Roger, he dearly loved his nephew and his older sister.

The warship soon reached the island's shore.

To his surprise, Rampo Town was bustling. People came and went along the streets, and it was even more prosperous than Mock Town.

The angel statue in the town center gave the little town a sacred, artistic air.

With less cursing and fighting, Rampo Town also seemed far more peaceful and harmonious.

"Sir, please come with me."

As he walked the streets searching, a figure suddenly hurried up to him and spoke in a low voice.

"Hm?"

River was puzzled.

"Lord Doflamingo ordered me to wait here for you!"

The man said.

River understood, and his eyes lit up.

With someone to help him, finding his way around this sizable town would naturally be much easier.

"Fire Fist Ace arrived in this town yesterday evening. He seems to be looking for someone."

"He's been wandering around town all day. Right now, he's at a little restaurant on the east side."

"Well, he has quite an appetite."

The man followed beside River, speaking quickly and quietly as he filled him in on Ace.

As River listened to these trivial details, the smile on his face grew wider.

They walked quickly, and in no time, they reached the little restaurant on the east side that the man had mentioned.

The entrance looked rather quiet, and the interior was visible at a glance.

A handful of customers sat scattered around. Black-haired Ace was slumped face-down at a table, snoring, a snot bubble swelling and shrinking at his nose. A tall stack of plates stood beside him.

"Well, he's fallen asleep."

The man delivering the information looked at Ace, seeming somewhat embarrassed.

Only moments ago, the fellow had been eating and drinking with boundless energy. Who could have known he would fall asleep in the blink of an eye?

"You can leave now."

River said with a smile, then walked toward Ace.

The man stared in surprise and was about to say something else, but Crocodile had already reached out and shoved him outside. Foxy also drew the flintlock pistol at his waist, a fierce look on his face.

"Didn't you hear him? The boss told you to leave!"

Anger first crossed the man's face. Then, as though remembering something, he looked afraid, turned, and ran off.

He could not afford to cross Joker's people. One careless move could get him killed.

River slowly walked over to the seat opposite the snoring, black-haired young man with freckles on his face, then gently sat down.

Crocodile and Foxy followed him inside. He gave a light wave of his hand, and the two understood, finding somewhere else to sit.

No one disturbed Ace. For a while, the only sound in the restaurant was his soft snoring.

"We finally meet, Ace!"

With a complicated look in his eyes, River quietly studied the young man before him.