In Windmill Village, the bandit Dadan stood with a cigarette dangling from her mouth, looking at Garp holding baby Ace in his arms and Finn standing beside him. Her expression was pure shock.
"Keep your voice down!" Garp hissed quickly.
Dadan was almost driven to madness by Garp's outrageous actions. She grabbed him by the collar. "Hey, Garp, do you know what you're doing? This is... this is a capital crime!"
"You, a bandit, lecturing me about crimes?" Garp shook off Dadan's grip dismissively.
Then he looked down at Ace in his arms and spoke quietly. "That bastard Roger was guilty, absolutely. But he's already dead. Should this little one be convicted just because he carries Roger's bloodline? Should he, Dadan?"
Dadan listened to Garp's words, then looked at Ace cradled in his arms. Suddenly, as if realizing something critical, she threw the cigarette from her mouth to the ground and stomped it out forcefully. She rushed to the window and threw it open to ventilate the room.
Watching this, Finn couldn't help but smile.
As expected, a bandit with a good heart.
On the journey here, Finn had also heard about Dadan from Garp. She was a childhood friend who'd grown up with him. Later, Garp joined the Marines, while Dadan remained in Windmill Village.
Due to various circumstances, Dadan had become a bandit. However, in reality, although she called herself a bandit and commanded a sizable group of followers, Dadan and her gang had never done anything truly evil.
On the contrary, after becoming "bandits" and claiming Windmill Village as their territory, their actual purpose was protecting the village. There were several gangs of genuine bandits operating in the Goa Kingdom's territory. Dadan and her people were bandits in name only. In practice, they functioned as Windmill Village's security force.
On ordinary days, they farmed on the mountain and helped villagers clear out dangerous wild animals. They rarely descended to the village below except when they needed drinks or supplies.
The two sides had always maintained a tacit understanding and lived harmoniously.
Finn didn't think there was anything wrong with Garp's explanation. Finn himself felt it was impossible for Garp to have any genuine connection with truly evil bandits. Even though he'd adopted Roger's bloodline, he hadn't lost his fundamental principles.
After struggling internally for a while, Dadan carefully took the sleeping Ace from Garp's hands. "So what's the story here, old man? Why are you adopting Roger's child?"
"It's a request from someone important," Garp shook his head.
Then, with a bright smile appearing on his face, he patted Dadan's shoulder enthusiastically. "Ahahaha, thank goodness you're here, Dadan!"
"What do you mean, 'thank goodness I'm here'?" Dadan asked suspiciously.
"I'm going to leave Ace with you. Please help me take care of him!" Garp said without any hesitation or politeness.
Dadan was completely stunned. She quickly protested, "This is a bandit's den! You want to keep Ace here with me? For what purpose? Are you trying to kill me? If anyone finds out, the whole village will be doomed!"
"No, nobody knows about this. I've already made all the necessary arrangements. Just treat him as an ordinary child. When I have time, I'll come visit often," Garp said confidently.
Upon hearing this, Dadan wanted to refuse again.
But at that moment, Ace suddenly woke up. He reached out and grabbed Dadan's clothes, grinning with pure infantile joy.
That smile was genuinely adorable.
Just with that single smile, Dadan couldn't force out the words of rejection stuck in her throat.
"Oh, if I die, it'll definitely be because of you, you bastard..." Dadan couldn't help but complain.
Garp laughed when he heard this. He knew that Dadan's complaint meant she'd already agreed.
Then Dadan glanced nervously at Finn. "Who is this?"
"Ah, don't worry. I was dragged into this mess by this bastard too," Garp said carelessly, patting Finn's shoulder. "Back then, he found Roger in the South Blue and blockaded him on Baterilla Island. As a result, he reached some kind of agreement with Roger and tricked me into taking over the Ace situation. So he and I are accomplices. Don't worry about him."
"Blockaded on Baterilla Island..." Dadan was stunned for a moment, then said in shock, "You're Rodriguez Finn? The man who captured the Pirate King? Vice Admiral Finn?"
Finn smiled and nodded. "That's me."
"I can't believe there's such a story behind this. You captured Roger, and then helped Garp adopt Roger's child..." Dadan said with a heavy sigh.
Finn waved his hand dismissively. "It's not that complicated. I just helped connect them."
Upon hearing this, Garp quickly interjected, "Hey, Finn, don't try to shirk your responsibility!"
"How am I responsible? I told you at the time that you shouldn't be soft-hearted, that there would be no problem with a clean break. But you still took on this burden. What does that have to do with me?" Finn said quickly.
"I don't care! This is all about you. If it weren't for you, there wouldn't be so many complications. I'll need you to help take care of Ace's affairs in the future!" Garp said without any shame.
"I have nothing to do with Ace, okay?" Finn retorted.
"Then you can be his uncle," Garp suddenly suggested.
"Are you taking advantage of me, you bastard?" Finn said angrily. "You're his grandfather and I'm his uncle? Then what am I to you? Did I suddenly drop a generation for no reason? Am I now the same generation as your son?"
But as soon as he finished speaking, Garp asked with genuine confusion, "Isn't that accurate? Even though we're not as close as blood relatives, I've always treated you like my own son or nephew. You're on good terms with that bastard Dragon, so shouldn't your seniority naturally be lower than mine?"
Finn wanted to open his mouth to argue, but then realized that what Garp said actually made a lot of sense.
Even though he and Garp were always joking around frivolously, Garp's generational position was clearly established. Finn treated Instructor Zephyr as his father figure, and the same with Admiral Sengoku. But unfortunately, that bastard Garp was of the same generation as both of them.
Plus there was Dragon, Kuzan, and others in the equation.
It seemed to actually be accurate?
At this moment, Finn reacted and quickly said, "How did you get me so confused? I don't want to argue with you about seniority. I won't interfere in Ace's affairs."
"You don't need to actively interfere," Garp suddenly said seriously. "At least considering our relationship today, if anything happens in the future, I hope you can help me."
Finn looked into Garp's eyes and said nothing.
After a long while, he sighed. "Why me..."
Garp smiled then. "Whether you admit it or not, Ace and you do have a certain connection. You are the origin of all this. Not to mention..."
At this point, Garp's tone carried a hint of melancholy. He looked at Ace in Dadan's arms. "What's more, I know that sooner or later, you'll reach the position of Admiral. Even that isn't your final destination. Maybe you'll become Fleet Admiral like Sengoku. I said before that I think Ace's best path is within the Marines. If you become an Admiral or Fleet Admiral in the future, it will always be beneficial for this little guy. At least I don't have to worry about you doing something to him because of his bloodline."
Finn said nothing, but looked at Ace playing contentedly with Dadan.
After a while, Finn suddenly asked, "So you support me becoming Admiral, or even Fleet Admiral?"
Garp glanced at Finn. "Kuzan is too laid-back, and Borsalino is a complete scoundrel. If I don't support you, who should I support? Should I support that hardliner Sakazuki?"
There were some disagreements between Garp and Sakazuki. While there wasn't open conflict, their relationship certainly wasn't good.
At the same time, Garp understood Sakazuki's nature very clearly. If Sakazuki learned Ace's identity, he would definitely take ruthless action without hesitation.
Therefore, it was impossible for Garp to support Sakazuki. Currently, the four people in the Marines who were expected to compete for the Admiral position were Finn and the others. The future Fleet Admiral would likely come from the same pool.
Therefore, Garp was using Ace's situation to confront Finn today. If one looked deeper, one could even say that Garp was using Ace to make a deal with Finn.
As a Marine hero, he possessed extraordinary influence within the organization. Otherwise, with his personality, he would have been executed long ago for constantly cursing the World Government and expressing disdain for the Celestial Dragons.
Why was he still living so freely?
Wasn't it because he was strong enough and wielded tremendous influence over the Marines?
Therefore, if Finn could formally gain Garp's support within the Marines, it would provide powerful assistance for any future confrontation with the World Government or competition for the Fleet Admiral position.
Thinking of this, Finn looked at Ace again. Finally, he sighed. "I'll do my best. To be honest, although his bloodline is innocent, as Roger's son, he's born extraordinary. You should understand what that extraordinary nature means."
"It means trouble," Garp said carelessly.
"Yes, enormous trouble," Finn said with a slight smile.
After a brief pause, he added, "But he is indeed excellent seedling material."
"After all, he's Roger's offspring. Although that bastard Roger became a pirate, his talent cannot be denied. Maybe Ace inherited it?" Garp said with visible hope.
After he finished speaking, he looked at Ace with clear expectation in his eyes. "If I could see this kid become a pillar of the Marines in the future, if he could become an Admiral like you, then I could die with peace of mind."
Hearing what Garp said, Finn was suddenly moved.
How had such a deep relationship developed between grandfather and grandson in just a few months?
After setting aside those thoughts, Finn glared at Garp. "You tricked me into coming to your hometown just to extract these promises. Now I've given my word. You can continue your vacation. I'm heading back to G-7."
"That's what you say, but now that you're here, why not stay in the village for a while before leaving?" Garp grabbed Finn's arm firmly.
After he finished speaking, he turned and gave Dadan some brief instructions, then took Finn and walked toward the village at the foot of the mountain.
Dadan watched the two men's backs in confusion, then looked at Ace in her arms.
You just don't want him now?
Where's the promised love between grandfather and grandson?
You just turn around and pretend Ace doesn't exist?