Aboard the Oro Jackson.
Rayleigh adjusted the glare off his lenses. "I'd bet it was Garp."
The earlier exchange between Garp and Sengoku had already hinted at the truth.
Add in the fact that the boy with the same surname as Garp calls Ace "big brother"… It was all but confirmed: Ace had been raised by Garp.
Roger laughed heartily.
"Ahahaha! That's exactly something I'd do! Garp's a reliable man—never thought he'd keep it secret from the Navy and raise the boy all the way to adulthood. I'll have to thank him the next time I see him."
Jabba sighed. "Garp's probably going to faint from anger when he finds out."
Buggy just wanted a reward.
Treasure, preferably.
"Captain! Why can't we send messages in that bullet chat thing? Everyone else can!"
"That must be people from the screen's current timeline. I even saw Shanks show up in the chat! Seems he became some great pirate, hahaha! A toast to Shanks's future!"
Laughter and cheer returned to the ship.
Meanwhile, at Marineford.
Sengoku glared at Garp, grinding his teeth in fury.
This situation had backed them into a corner!
Of course, he knew who the answer was.
But if they said it out loud, wouldn't Garp's title as Navy Hero come under fire?
Yet if they didn't answer, a pirate might swoop in and claim the reward instead.
And both Ace and Luffy clearly knew the answer.
Either way—whether pirate or Marine—it spelled trouble.
It was a no-win situation.
"Damn you, Garp!" Sengoku snarled, snatching away the senbei from his hand and stuffing it into his own mouth.
"My senbei!"
[Hatake Kakashi: That's quite the generous reward. What a shame—we probably won't know the answer in our world.]
[X Drake: Same here. We don't know much either. Roger's from the previous era. Most people who knew him have vanished. Who's still around to answer?]
Aboard the Red Force.
Shanks let out a small sigh.
Benn Beckman looked over. "I have a guess."
"Luffy and Ace are brothers, right? So maybe it's…"
Shanks blinked. "You mean… Grandpa Garp?"
His expression grew complicated. "If it was him… I guess that makes sense. Captain Roger did trust him, after all."
[Monkey D. Garp: Cough cough... it was me. (Answer)]
[Shanks: It was Garp. (Answer)]
[Silvers Rayleigh: Garp. (Answer)]
[Monkey D. Garp: Ahahaha! You figured it out!]
[Sengoku: At least you answered it first…]
[Donquixote Doflamingo: Wait wait wait—this has got to be a joke, right?]
Doffy was so shocked he forgot to laugh his usual fufufufu.
[Gecko Moria: The Navy Hero raised the Pirate King's son?! Are you kidding me?!]
Once the main players answered, everyone else didn't care about the quiz anymore.
What mattered now… was the gossip.
[Monkey D. Garp: Hahahaha, that's right—it was me.]
[Sengoku: And you're laughing about it?!]
[Silvers Rayleigh: I'm a little jealous, honestly. He didn't give the child to me, but to his old rival instead.]
Rayleigh said it half-jokingly, sipping from a small hip flask.
But there was something clouded in his gaze.
So that was Roger's child...
No wonder.
[Uzumaki Naruto: Huh? So the kid was raised by someone from the opposing side? That's… complicated.]
In the Akatsuki hideout, Nagato narrowed his eyes.
"Impossible."
Pirates and Marines… just looking at them, you could tell they were natural enemies.
They had to be drowning in hatred.
There's no way someone like that could let it go.
[Nagato: This has to be part of a scheme. Let go of hatred? Not a chance. They probably wanted to raise the enemy's son to become their weapon—to make him hate his bloodline. From the looks of it, they succeeded.]
[Portgas D. Ace: Baka! What kind of crap are you spewing?! Sure, the old man always wanted me to become a Marine, and yeah, he trained me like hell… even taught us with those terrifying fists of love… But hey, he's just a stubborn old man.]
[Monkey D. Garp: Hahaha! Come on, Ace—call me gramps just once!]
[Portgas D. Ace: I refu…ze%from&novel;group.98.0.2058?56::! Absolutely not, you stinky old man!!]
[Quiz timer ended!]
[Now playing the correct answer...]
In a pitch-black prison, the sound of footsteps echoed down the corridor.
Garp approached, holding a lantern.
"Garp, can I trust you?"
The man inside the cell smiled, his teeth gleaming in the dark.
"My child is about to be born."
He looked up, calm and composed.
"But I won't be around to meet them."
Garp's face twisted in anger. "Why are you telling me this, Roger? I'm a Marine!"
"His mother… any woman tied to you will be executed by the Navy!"
The oil lamp flickered in Roger's eyes.
"That's exactly why I'm telling you."
Garp paused, stunned.
Roger stood and walked closer.
"The child in her womb is innocent."
"Garp!" he shouted, spittle flying onto Garp's face.
"Our friendship was forged in countless battles. You're as trustworthy as my own crewmates."
"I entrust her… to you."
"Don't make decisions for me!"
"No—you will agree."
Roger's voice left no room for doubt.
And sure enough…
After Roger's execution, Garp arrived on Baterilla Island.
He stood outside the room as Rouge gave birth.
"If it's a girl, name her Ann."
"If it's a boy, name him Ace."
"This child's name… is Gol D. Ace."
Rouge, with her long pink hair, cradled the baby in her arms, lovingly rubbing her cheek against his.
But the very next moment… she passed away.
And Garp, carrying the child, left the island.
He raised Ace himself.
Until Ace set out to sea, he remained under Garp's protection.
It was the one promise Garp had fulfilled for Roger.
Ace stared blankly at the screen.
On one side was his father, entrusting his safety to Garp.
On the other, a mother he had never even met.
They...
Ace bit his lip, tears brimming in his eyes, unable to stop them from falling.
So he'd been wanted, even before he was born.
So his parents… had loved him.
"If it's a girl, Ann. If it's a boy… Ace…"
Gol D. Ace.
He still hated Roger.
But now… he began to truly acknowledge that name.
"Rouge... Ace..."
Roger stared at the screen—at the woman and child—smiling like an idiot, tears welling in his eyes.
The rest of the crew didn't say anything.
Buggy and Shanks, however, were both full of curiosity.
They wondered… would their captain's son be as annoying as Oden's kid?
No… definitely not.
Shanks threw his arm around Buggy's shoulders.
"Looks like we're gonna be big brothers now. I'm definitely the eldest!"
"Why you, why do you get to be the big brother?! I'm the older one!"
"Nope. It's me."
"No, me!"
"ME!"
And just like that, the two of them were bickering again.
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100 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter