Ace dropped to one knee, the searing pain tearing through his shoulder blade nearly numbing half his body.
"Qualified…?"
He jerked his head up, glaring fiercely at the elegant, unhurried white figure standing before him.
"What do you mean… I'm not qualified yet?!"
The oath he'd sworn beneath the sunset in Foosha Village—the vow to defeat Gern that had been carved into his very bones—had carried him through every brutal trial of the Grand Line.
He had defeated an arrogant, seemingly invincible Warlord of the Sea.He had even rejected the World Government's offer of recruitment!
He had paid the outrageous three-hundred-million–Beli Fish-Man Island passage fee—an amount that would bankrupt an ordinary pirate crew—and stepped into this final sea with towering ambition.
His goal was crystal clear—G-10.To find that man.To prove himself.
And yet reality answered him with a merciless, icy slap.
He hadn't even come close to the heart of G-10.Here, on the very edge of its sphere of influence—Slalrock Island—he had been stopped cold by this rabbit-furred Mink woman who called herself Gern's "doctor."
Twenty times.
In the short span since entering the New World, he had challenged her twenty times in total!!!
And the result?
Every single time, he had been crushed—by movements that looked light and casual, yet were nothing short of overwhelming domination.
Worst of all—
The very first time they met, she had calmly relayed a message from Gern himself:
"If you can't even beat my family doctor, don't come out and embarrass yourself."
"Embarrass… myself…"
Every time Ace recalled those words, they felt like the deepest humiliation imaginable.
That man…Did he not even consider Ace worth meeting face-to-face?!
Just sending a "doctor" to deal with him?!
And the most infuriating part—
He really couldn't beat this damn rabbit!!
"Bastard!!"
Ace growled low, flames erupting once more from his body as he tried to force himself upright through the agony. Fire gathered violently—
"Great Flame Command—"
"Ace, enough!!"
Just as he was about to unleash another full-scale attack, a figure rushed forward and grabbed him, forcibly steadying his swaying body and cutting him off.
It was the Spade Pirates' ship doctor—and Ace's earliest companion—Masked Deuce.
"Let it go, Ace!" Deuce hissed, his voice low, teeth clenched."Just look at yourself! This is the twenty-first time! Nothing is going to change!"
"I still have—"
"Have what? You get knocked senseless or something?" Deuce snapped."Did you forget? You already used Flame Emperor back on the fifteenth attempt. You still lost!"
"..."
Ignoring Ace's silence, Deuce turned his gaze toward Lipo, who was idly twirling a lock of hair with her finger. His voice dropped even lower, carrying a tremor of fear.
"And can't you feel it…?This woman—she absolutely has the power to kill you. Every time.But she always holds back."
Those words were like a bucket of ice water dumped straight onto Ace's blazing rage.
Did he not know?
Of course he did.
Especially that ridiculous-looking carrot-shaped dagger—every strike had perfectly avoided his vital points.Every heavy blow had been calibrated precisely to strip him of fighting strength—without killing him.
That kind of effortless precision, that terrifyingly exact control over power, was more despair-inducing than outright slaughter.
It meant that from start to finish…She had never regarded him as an equal opponent.
Just like—
What adult would ever get serious with a child?
At the same time, Lipo tilted her head slightly, her gradient pink eyes shifting between Ace and Deuce.
She raised a slender finger and lightly tapped her lips, her tone still bright and innocent.
"Mm~ your partner's right, you know.Gern said you're… the son of an old acquaintance, so I should take a little extra 'care' of you."
She deliberately emphasized the word "care," then spread her hands with an adorably helpless expression.
"So~ I'm just following the doctor's orders.Your current condition is diagnosed as:'Insufficient strength. Requires rest. Challenging high-difficulty bosses is strictly prohibited.'"
"Y-you—" Ace was so furious he nearly spat blood again.
"All right, all right!" Lipo waved her hand lightly, her long white ears swaying with the motion."Today's session is over~ I recommend you go back, heal up properly, and work hard to get stronger!"
She turned, preparing to leave.
"When you can last fifty rounds with me, maybe… you'll earn the right to meet Gern!"
"So—bye-bye, little flame~"
With that, her figure flickered several times and vanished into the shadows of the ruined buildings.
All that remained was Ace, slumped weakly against Deuce, staring in the direction she had disappeared, muttering under his breath—
"Son of an old acquaintance… holding back… and that goddamn… little flame…!!!"
The words echoed madly in his mind, finally condensing into a roar crushed to its absolute limit—
"GERN, YOU BASTARD!!!!"
Meanwhile—
Far away, in the core waters of the New World, at G-10 Headquarters, inside the office of its supreme commander—
"Ah-choo!"
Gern sneezed, rubbing his nose."Why do I keep sneezing lately? Is someone missing me again? Or did I catch a cold?"
"All right, all right, you brat—don't sweat the small stuff! You've been doing great lately!"
Monkey D. Garp laughed uproariously, slinging one iron-like arm around Gern's neck.In his other hand was a rice cracker, which he waved around animatedly—nearly making even the tall, broad Gern sway along with him.
"That damn brat Ace! If he'd just listened to me and joined the Marines like I told him to, none of this nonsense would've happened!Now the whole world knows the name 'Fire Fist' Ace!
Still—thanks to you, Gern!Kuzan was right there on the Grand Line and still refused to move.You gave that arrogant little punk a proper lesson!"
Gern was nearly choked by Garp's grip, but he still laughed along, swaying twice in exaggerated cooperation.
"Haha! Vice Admiral Garp, come on—what's ours is ours! No need to stand on ceremony with me!'Fire Fist'? In the New World, that's just an untested little flame!Letting my Lipo knock the edge off him is perfect!"
The two threw their arms around each other, laughing loudly. Only after a while did Gern finally wriggle free from Garp's "iron arm."
He straightened his rumpled collar, then—seemingly remembering something—asked casually:
"Though, Vice Admiral Garp… there's one thing I've always been curious about.If you'd trained Ace personally, the way you trained Lipo back then—taking him with you every time you went on leave, teaching him the basics of Rokushiki and Haki—
With his talent, he wouldn't be stuck at this level now, would he?Why let him roam the seas on his own, learning wild, unstructured methods—and making such a huge mess?"
Lipo's martial foundation had been laid by Garp himself. Combined with Z's later systematic Marine training, it was what allowed her to become a close-combat monster—someone who could even trade blows with Douglas Bullet within G-10.
At those words, Garp—who had been laughing heartily just moments ago—froze.
The smile drained from his face.
After a long silence, he quietly placed the half-eaten rice cracker back onto the plate, sank into the wide sofa, and let out a heavy sigh.
"Because…"
Garp lifted his head, his gaze tangled with emotion—
"No matter how much of a fool I act like…I still carry 'Justice.'"
A justice that wavered.
...…
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