"Vice Admiral Garp… actually did that…"
On the deck of the 'Oak Dragon', T. Penn still hadn't come back to his senses. His heart was shaken. Even though he had personally witnessed it and heard every word, it was still difficult to accept.
That was Garp the Fist—a living legend of the Marines!
The very man who struck down the Rocks Pirates alongside Roger, who fought Gol D. Roger to a standstill on multiple occasions, who crushed countless pirate crews in his prime—and the hero who helped usher in the Great Pirate Era's order from chaos.
And now, that very Marine Hero had allowed pirates—his own grandson included—to escape with his own hands.
"What's so surprising about that?" said Yamato, leaning against the rail, her mace resting on her shoulder. "Didn't you say earlier? That's his own grandson."
"Is that really enough of a reason…" T. Penn's voice was hollow, conflicted.
"Well, maybe it's not just that," Yamato tapped her chin, her thoughts drifting to her own complicated father. "Parents and children… it's not always simple."
Carl, sprawled lazily in a reclining chair, exhaled a puff of smoke. His tone was calm, almost indifferent. "It's not strength that fades… it's resolve."
Was Garp still powerful? Without a doubt.
Had time dulled his strength? No—his fists still shattered mountains, and he remained one of the most formidable warriors alive. But what age does dull… is the edge of a man's convictions. His will.
The "Hero of the Marines" was only one facet of Garp. The other part of him—perhaps the deeper part—was the grandfather of Luffy, Ace, and Sabo.
Otherwise, back during the Summit War at Marineford, he wouldn't have trembled with rage and grief when Akainu killed Ace—so much so that he nearly attacked a fellow Admiral, only to be stopped by Sengoku himself.
Garp's brand of justice had always leaned toward the personal. He raised Luffy with his own fists, tried to mold Ace into a Marine, and yet let both walk their own paths.
With age, the balance within him shifted. Once, his sense of justice weighed heavier than anything. Now, that scale had tilted—family was no longer something he could push aside.
That's why he let Luffy go.
"Old age, huh?" Yamato murmured, eyes softening. "That makes sense…"
The Marine warships continued their steady voyage.
—Meanwhile, on the open sea, somewhere between Impel Down and the calm belt—
A lone Marine battleship floated quietly.
On its deck, Monkey D. Garp stood motionless, his cape fluttering in the breeze like a relic of the past.
"Garp! You… you senile old bastard!" Sengoku stood beside him, his voice tight with suppressed fury. But even as he cursed, his words lacked weight—there was pain beneath them. The words came from his throat, but his heart held no conviction.
In the end, Sengoku could only scowl bitterly.
"What are you just standing there for?! Turn the damn ship around! Chase after those brats!" he barked at the officer beside him.
"Ah—yes, yes sir!" The Marine scrambled to obey.
"Damn it…" Sengoku rubbed his temples in frustration.
But moments later, the officer returned, looking bewildered.
"Report, Inspector Sengoku!"
"What now?!" Sengoku snapped, already losing patience. "Didn't I tell you to follow the Straw Hat Pirates?!"
"Well, sir…" The officer scratched his head awkwardly, "Which direction should we pursue?"
The sea stretched endlessly in every direction—an empty canvas of blue.
The Straw Hats had escaped on one of the escape boats taken from the Marine vessel. Without a clear heading, tracking them was like chasing shadows.
Slam!
Sengoku smacked his forehead with his palm. "This old man's losing it too…"
He scanned the endless waters, a deep sigh escaping his lungs. "Forget it. We're too late."
Garp had already given them a significant head start. At this point, any hope of catching them was practically nil.
Besides, the damage was done. The report was already sent to Marine Headquarters, and the repercussions were now inevitable.
Sengoku turned back toward Garp, eyes narrowing. "You old lunatic… you're really going to report this yourself?"
He wasn't exaggerating. It was Garp himself who used the Den Den Mushi to report to Headquarters—directly to Fleet Admiral Sakazuki (Akainu).
Calm as ever, Garp had raised the receiver and said, "Sakazuki. I released the pirates brought in by Vice Admiral of the Oak Dragon."
The other side went dead silent.
Sakazuki, caught completely off guard, had no words—before he could respond, Garp ended the call.
Stunned and incensed, Sakazuki immediately contacted Sengoku.
At that time, Sengoku had been resting in his quarters. When he answered the call and heard what had happened, he rushed out in disbelief and confronted Garp for confirmation.
And then—furious and unable to comprehend what just occurred—he had to make another call… this time to Carl.
Back on the deck, Sengoku glanced once again at his old comrade.
"Garp… You know what this means, right?"
If it had been Carl who let the Straw Hats go, no one would bat an eye. He was a Vice Admiral from a special operations unit—he had the freedom to act on his own initiative. Even Smoker or Koby could've done it without shaking the foundations of Marine authority.
But Garp… was different.
He was Garp the Fist—the hero who stood as a symbol of Marine righteousness, the bane of pirates, the man whose name inspired generations of justice.
To the world, he was the embodiment of what it meant to be a Marine.
And yet now… he had turned his back on all that. He let pirates—his own grandson—go free.
It didn't matter how small the act itself was.
The ripple effect it would cause within the Marines… among the World Government, among the public, and within the pirate world… would be catastrophic.
The Marine's spiritual pillar had just cracked.
Therefore, sweeping such a matter under the rug wasn't feasible—at least not completely.
"But it's fine for now," Sengoku said with a sigh of emotion. "Very few people even know the details."
If word got out that Vice Admiral Garp, the Marine Hero who once cornered the Pirate King, had protected and released the Straw Hat Pirates—led by his own grandson—it would throw the entire Marine system into disrepute. It wasn't far-fetched to say Garp could be stripped of his title and sent straight to Impel Down as a political prisoner of the World Government.
Fortunately, the event had just happened. No intelligence leaks yet. Only a handful of high-ranking officers were aware, which gave the upper echelon one logical choice: suppress the information, seal the files, and shape public narrative. Garp's punishment would be obscured by a "formal reassignment."
After all, Garp was more than just a soldier—he was the face of Marine justice to an entire generation. Unless absolutely necessary, the Government wouldn't allow such an iconic symbol to collapse publicly.
So, in truth, there would be no handcuffs or jail cell. The most they would do—reassign him to a backwater position to remove him from the public eye.
Sengoku, having worked alongside the World Government for decades, understood the game better than anyone.
The two men stood quietly on the deck of a mid-sized Marine vessel.
After a few silent minutes, the shadow of a massive ship appeared over the horizon.
"There it is," Sengoku narrowed his eyes.
The colossal warship Oak Dragon, Carl's personal vessel equipped with advanced propulsion and reinforced seastone plating, cut across the waters like a beast of myth.
Finally, Garp stirred. He slowly opened his eyes and looked ahead.
Thud—thud—
The Oak Dragon stopped directly in front of them, casting a towering shadow over their ship.
Step by step, Solomon Carl walked to the bow, a cigar clamped between his lips, looking down calmly at Garp.
Garp looked up, meeting Carl's gaze.
In the overwhelming presence of the Oak Dragon, the ship they were on seemed no larger than a raft.
"Hmph—" Carl exhaled slowly. "Old man, I warned you."
"He's my grandson," Garp finally broke his silence, his voice carrying a rare weight. "The last one I have left."
One of his grandsons—Portgas D. Ace—had already died at Marineford. He couldn't bear to lose Monkey D. Luffy as well.
"He's a pirate," Carl said coldly. "Most pirates don't get a happy ending. Honestly, being locked away in Impel Down isn't the worst fate. At least he'd still be alive."
"And you, as a grandfather, could visit from time to time. That's more than most can hope for."
After all, had Carl gone in with killing intent from the beginning, the Straw Hat Crew would have been annihilated—no miracle rescues, no second chances.
One Piece? Pirates die.
For pirates, death was a constant companion, and rarely did anyone escape it.
Not everyone had the luck—or backing—of someone like Luffy.
"You're right…" Garp murmured, his eyes drifting toward the sky. "That was my first thought too."
He looked tired. "But he's chasing freedom… not shackled in a prison. Let him die out there if that's how it ends. At least he dies chasing his dream."
That was the only thing Garp could still give his grandson.
"Freedom?" Carl nearly scoffed but kept his voice even. "Forget it. There's no point talking ideals with you old man."
Different generations, different values. There was no use arguing over something so deeply ingrained.
Carl turned to Sengoku.
"Inspector Sengoku. You haven't moved your ship… You know where they escaped to, don't you?"
The ship's idle state, Sengoku's inaction—it all pointed to something being held back.
Sengoku scratched his cheek with a wry smile. "By the time I realized it, they were long gone…"
"Tch, I figured." Carl sighed and activated the den den mushi on his wrist.
"Hello? Carl?" the transponder snail morphed into Fleet Admiral Sakazuki's gruff face.
"It's me. Garp's under control," Carl said, glancing down at the unresisting old man who stood tall despite the storm around him.
"But the Straw Hat Crew's trail is cold. They've vanished."
"…Understood," Sakazuki said, his tone hard. "Vice Admiral Carl, return to Marine Headquarters with Garp. And there's a strategic session pending. You're needed."
"Got it," Carl replied, shutting the den den mushi.
He raised an eyebrow slightly.
Another meeting? Just what were they planning now?
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