Come Back to Headquarters with Me Tomorrow

The fist shadows blotting out the sky were Garp's death ultimatum.

"You've got to be kidding!"

Faced with pressure powerful enough to flatten the entire mountain, Lorne advanced instead of retreating, roaring at the giant fist in the sky.

He whipped his head around and bellowed at Ace and Luffy, whose legs had already gone weak with fear behind him, "Both of you, get up! Do you want to die here?"

Ace clenched his teeth, his trembling legs refusing to obey him. Beneath that natural disaster of a fist, he tasted despair for the first time. Every thought of resistance was crushed to pieces.

"But... but... what the hell is that thing?!" Luffy shouted tearfully, tears and snot smeared across his face. "We're going to die! We're really going to die!"

"Shut up!" Lorne's voice exploded like thunder in their ears. "Until I say we're dying, neither of you is allowed to die!"

Under the extreme pressure, Lorne's mind raced.

"Ace! Luffy!"

"Follow my lead!"

"I'll take the center! I'll be your shield!"

Lorne planted his feet apart and lowered himself into the steadiest horse stance he could manage, every muscle bulging!

"Iron Body!"

He would be the core that bore all the pressure!

"Ace, take the left! Hit my left arm with all your strength. Don't hold anything back!"

"Luffy, take the right! Use Gum-Gum Gatling on my right arm. Throw every punch you've got at me!"

Ace and Luffy were both dumbfounded.

He wanted them to attack Lorne? What kind of order was that?

"Big brother?" Luffy asked in confusion.

"Don't ask! Just do it!" Lorne's animal ears stood straight up as he concentrated intensely. "This is our only chance to survive! Trust me!"

Trust me!

Those two words struck Ace's heart like a sledgehammer.

He looked at the figure standing in front of them, his back as dependable as a mountain, and scenes from the past few days flashed through his mind.

This was the man who had used his body to shield them from Grandpa's iron fists.

This was the man who had taught him what it meant to protect someone.

The fear and hesitation in Ace's eyes vanished, and an unprecedented resolve surged through his heart!

"Got it!" Ace roared, kicking off the ground and shooting toward Lorne's left side like a cannonball.

"Luffy!" Ace roared at Luffy as he charged. "Do what big brother said!"

"Oh... okay!"

Seeing Ace move, Luffy stopped hesitating. He sucked in a deep breath and stretched his arms backward to their limit.

"Gum-Gum..."

At that moment, Lorne moved.

He did not attack. Instead, he spread his arms as though embracing the destruction descending from the sky!

"Come on, old man!" Lorne threw back his head and laughed wildly. "Let me see just how heavy the fists of a Marine hero really are!"

"Hmph, you reckless brat!"

Garp's voice came from above the clouds as that enormous black fist shadow crashed down with the force to destroy everything!

Here it comes!

"Now!" Lorne let out an earth-shaking roar.

"Haaaaah!"

Ace burned through every last bit of his strength, gathering the power of his entire body into his right fist and slamming it into Lorne's guarding left arm!

"Gatling!!!"

Luffy's arms became a dense blur of afterimages, countless fists pouring onto Lorne's right arm like a raging storm!

With Lorne's body as their crucible, the three forces actually merged into one!

Lorne felt as though two mountains were about to crush his arms from either side, but he did not retreat. Instead, he guided that force, gathered it together, then thrust it upward!

BOOOOOM!!!

The pitch-black giant fist collided head-on in midair with the single point braced by their combined strength!

The indescribable crash made all of Mount Colubo tremble!

A terrifying energy storm raged outward from the point of impact in every direction, destroying swathes of forest and tearing up layer after layer of earth!

"Hold... the... line!!!"

Lorne's eyes were bloodshot, veins bulged from his neck to his temples, and every bone in his body groaned under the unbearable weight.

He felt as though he were holding up the entire sky!

Ace's fist remained pressed firmly against his left arm. He had clenched his teeth until his gums bled, and his legs had sunk deep into the soil.

Luffy was pouring in every ounce of strength he had, the muscles in his arms giving off scorching steam from overuse.

Their concentrated strength forcibly stopped Garp's fist shadow in midair!

It paused for only an instant, but it had undeniably stopped!

"These... these brats..."

High in the sky, genuine shock appeared on Garp's face for the first time.

He had imagined countless possibilities, but never that these three brats could actually withstand his attack head-on in this way!

Especially Lorne, directing them from the center!

He had bound two completely immature forces into one!

He had used his own monstrous body as both the vessel and the fulcrum for their combined strength!

"M-monsters!" Garp could not keep his mouth from spreading into a grin, admiration practically overflowing from his eyes. "Three incredible monsters!"

The stalemate lasted only three seconds.

After three seconds, the fist shadow's power erupted!

Their defense collapsed in an instant. The violent blast sent them flying like kites with severed strings, tracing three arcs through the air before they slammed into the ground.

Dust obscured everything.

At last, the world fell quiet.

A long while later, the dust dispersed.

A crater more than fifty meters across had appeared in the clearing.

At its center, Lorne, Ace, and Luffy lay piled on top of one another, exhausted and covered in injuries, unable to move so much as a finger.

But they were all still alive.

Garp's towering figure slowly descended from the sky and landed at the crater's edge. As he looked at the three brats at the bottom, his face showed greater satisfaction than ever before.

He said nothing, simply watching them in silence.

"Cough... cough, cough..."

Luffy was the first to make a sound. He struggled to lift his head, looked at Ace, then at Lorne lying on top, and suddenly broke into a goofy grin.

"We... survived..."

Ace stirred as well. He felt as though every bone in his body had fallen apart, yet as he looked at the sky overhead, its clouds scattered by the impact, a surge of pride rose in his heart.

"Yeah... we survived..."

Lorne lay on top. He could feel that the strength within him had been completely drained, yet an unprecedented sense of relief spread through every limb and bone.

He clearly heard a sharp crack from within his body! It was as though some invisible shackle had been forcibly broken!

A warm current spread through every limb and bone, and greater strength emerged within his drained body!

His physique had broken through!

The three exchanged glances, taking in one another's sorry states. Suddenly, without knowing who had started it, they all burst into uncontrollable laughter.

"Haha... hahahaha..."

"Gahahahaha!"

Their laughter echoed through the empty crater, filled with the joy of surviving disaster and an exhilarating sense of release.

Watching them, Garp joined in, laughing louder than all three of them combined.

"Gahahahahahaha! Good! All three of you did well!"

Garp leaped down from the crater's edge, walked up to the three, and solemnly announced:

"As of today, your special training is successfully completed!"

Hearing that, the three laughed even more happily.

Just then, Ace struggled into a sitting position.

He looked neither at Garp nor at Luffy, staring fixedly at Lorne alone. An unprecedented light shone in his black eyes.

It was a mixture of admiration, gratitude, and complete acceptance.

He took a deep breath and, in front of Garp and Luffy, used every ounce of his strength to shout at Lorne from the bottom of his heart:

"Big brother Lorne!!!"

His shout was incredibly loud and utterly sincere.

After shouting, Ace seemed to have spent all his strength. His cheeks flushed slightly, and he turned his head away in embarrassment.

Lorne froze.

Luffy froze too, then grinned even more broadly. "Ace! You're finally willing to call him big brother!"

Lorne looked at Ace and his stubborn, awkward expression, feeling the weight of the trust and loyalty in his words. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

He knew that only from this moment onward had the ASL brotherhood truly been established. And he was the undisputed eldest brother of this new family.

Garp watched it all with satisfaction, his smile full of gratification.

He walked over to Lorne, crouched down, and patted his shoulder, but his expression suddenly turned serious.

"Kid, you've had about enough fun."

Garp's voice lowered. "Pack your things. Tomorrow morning, you're coming back to Marine Headquarters with me."

The happy atmosphere came to an abrupt halt.

The smile disappeared from Lorne's face.

Ace and Luffy stopped laughing too. Both jerked their heads up to look at Garp, their eyes full of shock.

"Back to Headquarters?" Ace's voice was a little dry. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean?" Garp stood up, planted his hands on his hips, and spoke as though it were only natural. "This kid is my future Marine Admiral! Of course I'm taking him back to Headquarters for the most proper training! And you two, once you're old enough, don't think either of you can get away. You're both becoming Marines!"

The sorrow of parting instantly settled over the three.

Yet, just as that sorrowful atmosphere was about to reach its peak...

"No!!!"

Luffy suddenly sprang up from the ground and shouted at Garp:

"I'm not becoming a Marine! I'm going to be the Pirate King someday! I already promised Shanks!"