Chapter 387 — D's Secret, Poor Bullet!
At this time, Ryuunosuke walked to the side and took out the Den Den Mushi.
"Beru beru…"
"Stinky brat, why are you calling me at this hour?"
On the other end, Garp's voice came through, half-irritated.
"You know I'm still stuck in the Navy, right!?"
Ever since he'd been tricked by Sengoku and Tsuru the last time, the thing Garp dreaded most was a call from Ryuunosuke. If this kid was calling, it usually meant trouble.
Especially when he remembered how Ryuunosuke had already snatched up all the Infinity Green Stones from the East Blue.
"Old man, I know the secret of that stone," Ryuunosuke said with a helpless tone. "If you really don't want to know, I'll keep it to myself."
"What!?"
Suddenly, Garp's voice cracked into a sharp roar—completely different from the lazy one from moments ago.
"I said, I know the secret of the Infinity Green Stone," Ryuunosuke repeated, his voice calm. "And this secret is tied to you, old man."
"…Hah, I guess when people get old, their hearing starts to go bad."
Ryuunosuke smirked, circling around the truth.
But Garp's breathing grew heavier. He'd been experimenting with the stones before, trying to find a way to use them. If he could, maybe Sengoku or Tsuru's fading strength could be reignited. They'd all been dulled by time, and the stones could've been their second chance.
"What's your condition?" Garp cut in directly.
Ryuunosuke wouldn't share this kind of news for free. That wasn't his style.
"My conditions are simple. Uncle Garp—you know about D, right? I want the truth."
"D…"
Garp's voice shifted to something more casual, almost dismissive.
"That's just an excuse cooked up by the World Government. There were some strong people with 'D' in their names, sure. But their actions weren't illegal. The problem was they never bent the knee to the World Government. They were… unpredictable. So, to prevent hidden threats from rising, the Government invented the whole 'natural enemy of God' nonsense."
Ryuunosuke blinked, taken aback.
That was it? That simple? Then how did you explain Law? Or why only the D clan could absorb Infinity Stones without issue?
Clearly, either Garp truly didn't know the truth—or he was lying through his teeth. After all, if you didn't know, you'd simply admit it. But Garp had bothered to spin a story.
"Old man, if you're going to lie, then I'm not interested in doing business with you," Ryuunosuke said with a grin. "We're practically family here. If you count Luffy, I might as well call you Grandpa! Is it really okay to fool your own grandson like this?"
His playful jab only deepened Garp's silence.
After a long pause, the old man finally asked, "Why do you want to know about D?"
It sounded like he was ready to be serious.
"Because the truth about the Infinity Stones is tied to D," Ryuunosuke replied. "Among my crew, there are D clan members. They don't know the meaning of their name either… but despite not being that powerful, they could perfectly fuse with the Infinity Stones. You understand what that means, right, old man?"
"…You're saying the D clan can absorb them naturally," Garp muttered after a pause.
He fell silent again. How many D's were left in the world now? He could count them on one hand. Most had already vanished into history.
"Is this something you discovered yourself?"
Then, in a voice rough with irritation, Garp barked, "If you want to know the D clan's truth, then drag yourself to Marine Headquarters!"
"Eh? And how'd you know I was already heading there?" Ryuunosuke asked awkwardly. He'd only wanted to probe for answers, but the old man seemed to see straight through him.
"You're coming here? For what?" Garp asked warily.
With Ryuunosuke's current identity, him showing up at Headquarters was nothing but bad news. If this had been back when he first set sail, Garp might've thought he'd come to surrender. But now…
"I have something I want to discuss with the Navy. Don't worry, I'll keep a low profile. No trouble. Even if we don't reach an agreement, I'll leave quietly."
Ryuunosuke's words were calm, almost reassuring.
But to Garp, that only made it sound even more suspicious.
"…Fine. If you really come, I'll tell you everything then."
And with that, Garp hung up.
For a moment, it almost felt like the old hero had admitted defeat. Age was catching up to him, after all. His juniors were dwindling, his burdens growing heavier. Maybe the frustration he carried was finally starting to weigh him down.
---
"Captain, are you still on the line?"
Shino's voice snapped Ryuunosuke out of his thoughts.
"Come quick—Bullet about to die!"
"Eh!?"
Ryuunosuke's eyes widened.
"It was just a sparring match! How could it get that bad?"
Because the fight had been sealed within the small arena, no aura had leaked out. Ryuunosuke hadn't noticed the situation. By his estimate, Bullet should've only fought one or two opponents at most… nothing fatal.
Rushing to the arena, he found Bullet sitting on the ground, refusing to stand.
Inside the ring—his opponent was Ban.
"…Oh."
Ryuunosuke instantly covered his face, both speechless and embarrassed.
If it was that guy, then yeah… it made sense.
Ban's ability was shameless. You couldn't kill him. You couldn't even hurt him.
Bullet must've smashed Ban's head apart with a punch, panicked that he'd killed him—only to watch him regenerate as if nothing had happened. Then, Ban would counterattack, and it hurt. Bad.
If you kept fighting that kind of opponent, it wasn't just exhausting—it was mentally crushing. No wonder Bullet looked like he was ready to cry.
"…Bring them out," Ryuunosuke sighed.
At his order, Chrollo released the ability, and both fighters appeared on deck.
The moment he emerged, Bullet realized the entire Dragon Hunter crew had been watching the whole time. He froze.
All this time, he thought no one could see what was happening inside the arena. Now, he knew the truth.
This crew… from top to bottom, there wasn't a single honest soul among them!
Bullet, who had just been praising how polite and respectable this pirate crew seemed, felt utterly betrayed.
"Mr. Bullet," Ryuunosuke said in mock sternness, "why don't you take a break? Heal up with some life essence and fight again later. But let me make one thing clear: you don't need to train against people like Ban, Escanor, or Meliodas. Stick to sparring within the crew."
Then he added with a smirk, "Don't bully an honest man."
Bullet's expression twisted even worse.
He felt like he'd just been the butt of the cruelest joke in the world.
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