The Dog-Head Warship docked.
A mooring line shot out with a whoosh, wound several times around a bollard, and gave a grating screech.
"Finally here..." Garp stood by the pier with Luffy, who was still rubbing his eyes, slung over his shoulder and let out a huge yawn.
Lorne followed him down the mountain path. Ace brought up the rear, hands in his pockets, his black hair tousled by the morning breeze.
Quite a few people were already standing on the pier.
Makino wore a clean white shirt and held a small basket stuffed with sandwiches wrapped in waxed paper. The village chief leaned on his cane, his graying beard bobbing in the wind.
Dadan had come too.
She stood well outside the crowd with a band of mountain bandits, her arms folded.
"Mr. Garp! Have a safe trip!" Makino walked up with a smile and handed over the basket.
"Oh! Makino's sandwiches!" Garp's eyes lit up. He snatched the basket, peeled back the waxed paper, and stuffed a sandwich into his mouth. "Mmm! Delicious!"
"Lord Garp, take good care of yourself on the journey." The village chief tottered over, looking reluctant to part.
"Don't worry! I'm fit as a fiddle!" Garp thumped his chest, his words muffled by the sandwich in his mouth.
Lorne looked away from the group and scanned the pier.
His beast ears twitched, picking up deliberately hushed breathing.
At the very edge of the crowd, half an orange cowboy hat peeked out from behind a crooked tree.
Its owner was desperately shrinking behind the trunk, leaving only one eye visible as he stared fixedly at the pier.
Lorne smiled.
He stepped toward the tree.
Ace visibly stiffened and tugged his hat brim lower, wishing he could squeeze his whole body into the tree.
"Come out." Lorne stopped in front of the tree, folded his arms, and looked down at the hat.
"...I'm not hiding." A muffled voice came from beneath it.
"You're practically plastered against the tree, and you say you're not hiding?"
"I was just... passing by!"
"Passing by?" Lorne bent down and flipped up Ace's hat brim.
Beneath it, his face was flushed crimson, his lips pressed tightly together, his black eyes full of stubbornness and resentment.
"What are you doing!" Ace slapped his hand away, stepped back, and quickly pulled the brim down again.
"Didn't you say you weren't coming to see me off?" Lorne leaned against the tree, amusement in his voice. "Who said last night, 'Who'd want to see that long-eared guy off'?"
"I never said that!"
"Yes, you did."
"Shut up!" Ace's face reddened further, his teeth grinding. "I just... happened to be going hunting, and I was passing by!"
"Hunting without a weapon?"
Ace looked down at his empty hands, and his expression froze.
Lorne stopped teasing him.
Without warning, he reached out, planted his hand on Ace's head, and gave it a vigorous rub.
He tousled Ace's short black hair into a bird's nest and nearly knocked his hat off.
"What are you-!"
"Listen up, Ace."
Lorne's hand rested on his head, his voice suddenly turning low.
Ace froze.
"If you're still this weak the next time we meet..." Lorne grinned, his beast ears standing straight up. "I won't go easy on you."
Ace's pupils abruptly contracted.
"I'll become stronger than anyone!!!"
"Stronger than you! Stronger than the old man! Stronger than everyone in this world!"
"Just you wait, Lorne! Next time we meet, I'll send you flying!"
His voice was so loud that the entire pier heard him, and everyone seeing them off turned to look.
Lorne didn't answer. He merely ruffled Ace's hair again, then turned and strode toward the pier.
"Hey! Stop rubbing my head! How many times do I have to tell you!"
Ace's exasperated shout came from behind him, but this time, Lorne didn't turn back.
On the pier, Garp had already demolished over half the basket of sandwiches and was chatting loudly with the village chief.
"All right, all right! It's not like I'm never coming back!" Garp waved impatiently. "I'll come see you on my next leave!"
"Lorne, get aboard!" Garp turned and called to him.
"Got it."
Lorne walked onto the jetty. The warship's gangplank was already down, and Marine soldiers stood ramrod straight on either side.
Just as he set one foot on the gangplank-
"Wait!"
As though remembering something, Garp turned and shouted into the distance.
"Ace! Luffy! You two brats listen up!"
"Train hard at Dadan's place! Once you're grown, I'll come take you to Marine Headquarters! You're going to be Marines!"
At those words, the entire pier erupted.
"I don't want to be any stupid Marine!"
A voice exploded from the crowd!
Everyone looked toward it.
At some point, Luffy had run to the very front of the pier. He stood with his hands on his hips and his little chest puffed out, a huge smile on his face.
He drew a breath, puffed out his cheeks, and then-
Pulled an unbelievably ugly face at Garp on the deck!
His tongue stretched to his chin, his hands pulled at the corners of his eyes, and his nostrils pointed skyward!
Then, with every ounce of strength in his body, he let out a roar that rang throughout Foosha Village!
"I'm going to be-the Pirate King!!!"
The force of his voice nearly lifted the waves!
The entire pier fell deathly silent.
Everyone froze in place.
Makino's hands stopped in midair around the empty basket, and the smile froze on her lips.
The village chief's cane slipped from his hand and clattered onto the planks. The old man's mouth hung so wide open that an apple could almost have fit inside.
Dadan covered her face with both hands, a despairing voice squeezing through her fingers. "It's over... it's all over..." Behind her, the mountain bandits collectively turned to stone.
Standing on the gangplank, Lorne's beast ears shot upright, then drooped helplessly.
He turned his stiff neck to look up at the deck.
Garp's towering figure stood motionless beside the railing.
A vein bulged at his temple.
"Heh... heh heh..."
Garp let out a frighteningly low, dry chuckle.
Even the temperature on the pier seemed to drop several degrees.
"Pirate... King..."
Luffy hadn't noticed the danger at all and was still bouncing around on the pier, waving up at the deck.
"Shanks said it! Whoever finds the One Piece is the Pirate King! I'll definitely find it!"
"Enough!!!"
Garp's furious roar tore through the morning peace!
He leaped straight off the deck, more than ten meters above the ground!
His Marine coat flared in midair as he descended with world-shattering force, hurtling straight toward Luffy on the pier!
His right fist rose high, its knuckles cracking!
"Fist of Love!!!"
"W-wait! Grandpa! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry-!"
Luffy finally sensed the shadow of death overhead. His face instantly turned pale, but his legs felt rooted in lead and wouldn't move!
Too late.
BOOOOOM!!!!!!
A tremendous crash!
The pier's wooden planks shook wildly from the impact!
Luffy's piercing scream rang throughout Foosha Village, even frightening the seagulls on the sea into flapping away!
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH-!!!"
The dust cleared.
Luffy lay spread-eagled, embedded snugly in the beach beside the pier, with only his limbs and head sticking out.
A lump larger than his head had risen on his skull, puffing white steam and standing out starkly in the sunlight.
Luffy's eyes rolled back, bubbles gurgling from his mouth as he hovered halfway into unconsciousness.
Not a soul on the pier dared make a sound.
The village chief bent to retrieve his cane, but his hand shook so badly that he couldn't grasp it.
Makino still wore her smile, but a bead of cold sweat had appeared at her temple.
Dadan buried her face completely in her hands, her shoulders shaking, whether from laughter or tears was unclear.
Standing on the gangplank, Lorne looked at the smoking lump on the beach, the corner of his mouth twitching.
"Every single time..." He shook his head, his beast ears drooping listlessly.
Having vented his anger, Garp's chest was still heaving, and veins still throbbed on his darkened face.
He took several deep breaths, then abruptly turned toward the crooked tree outside the crowd.
"Ace!"
Garp's gaze was like a blade, locking precisely onto the orange hat behind the tree.
"What about you? Do you want to be a pirate too!!!"
A terrifying pressure in his voice bore down on Ace!
Even the air felt thick and sticky. Behind the tree, Ace felt as though an invisible hand had pinned him down, and cold sweat instantly soaked his back.
His legs trembled, his teeth grinding.
Two voices fought inside his head.
Say it! Tell him you want to be a pirate too!
Don't! You'll die!
Ace's lips moved, and finally-
"I..."
"We're leaving!"
A voice interrupted Ace.
At some point, Lorne had walked down the gangplank and reached the middle of the pier. He lifted his chin toward Ace behind the tree.
"Remember what you just said."
"Get stronger. Then come find me."
Ace paused and met Lorne's gaze.
There was no pity in those eyes, no worry, only an expectation that seemed perfectly natural.
As though saying: I know you'll come.
Ace gritted his teeth and gave a sharp nod, then rushed to the beach and grabbed Luffy's arm.
"Hey! Get up! Run!"
"Waaah... it hurts... Grandpa's a demon..." Snot and tears covered Luffy's face as Ace forcibly hauled him out of the hole in the sand.
"Quit talking! If we don't run, he'll hit us again!"
Supporting the half-dead Luffy, Ace took off at a sprint toward the forest.
"Get back here-!" Garp was about to give chase.
"Lord Garp! It's time to set sail!" His adjutant, Bogard, called loudly from the deck.
"...Tch!" Garp angrily pulled his foot back, pointed at the two boys fleeing farther away, and roared, "Just you two wait! Next time I come back, I'll string you up and beat you for three days and nights!"
In the distance, the two small figures had already plunged into the forest.
Luffy's wails and Ace's teeth-gritted curses could still faintly be heard, growing ever more distant.
Garp glared in that direction for a long while, snorted two heavy breaths through his nose, then finally flicked his sleeve, turned, and strode up the gangplank.
"Hmph! Useless little brats!"
Despite his words, his steps noticeably paused as he passed Lorne.
Lorne saw it.
The fleeting smile at the corner of Garp's mouth.
"Get aboard! Set sail!" Garp stood on the deck and swept his hand out.
"Yes, Vice Admiral Garp!"
The Marine soldiers answered in unison and began hauling in the mooring lines and gangplank.
Lorne took one last look at Foosha Village.
Makino waved from the pier, her smile gentle.
The village chief finally picked up his cane and shakily raised his hand as well.
Dadan finally took her hands away from her face. Her eyes were red, and she was still cursing, but she held her arm higher than anyone else.
At the edge of the distant jungle, two small figures appeared again.
Luffy stood on a large rock, waving his arms with all his might and shouting something. The sea breeze scattered his voice, but Lorne's beast ears clearly caught every word.
"Big bro-! You have to come visit us-!"
Beside him, Ace stood with his back to the pier, his hands in his pockets and his hat brim pulled low.
The warship's whistle sounded again, low and long.
The enormous dog-headed prow turned, cleaving through the sea as it headed into the distance.
The propellers churned the seawater, leaving a long trail of white foam behind the stern.
Lorne walked to the stern and leaned against the railing.
Foosha Village grew smaller and smaller. The figures on the pier became tiny black dots, then vanished from sight altogether.
His beast ears swayed gently in the sea breeze.
He could no longer hear Luffy's shouts.
Ahead lay an endless expanse of blue.
Golden sunlight struck the sea, shattering into a spread of golden light.
"Marine Headquarters..." Lorne clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking crisply.
"I wonder if the people there can take a beating."
"Bwahahahaha!" Garp's laughter came from the wheelhouse. "Don't worry! Those guys are a lot tougher than the ones in the East Blue! You'll have plenty to fight!"
Lorne's beast ears shot straight up, and he could not hide the excitement in his eyes.
The warship charged ahead at full speed, cutting through the waves.
Foosha Village, Mount Colubo, Ace, and Luffy were all left behind.
Before you continue