"Come on, old man, at least remember my name!"
Bogard, standing nearby, sighed softly. "Vice Admiral, it's Ezra D. Vale."
"Oh, right! Ezra D. Vale!" Garp chuckled, scratching his head. "I just saw your fight earlier, and I figured I had to come over and meet you myself."
Ezra gave a small nod. As he suspected, Garp's curiosity had been piqued.
"Huh? You're a swordsman too?" Garp asked, his eyes glancing toward the fiery blade hanging at Ezra's waist Ryūjin Jakka.
"Well... my swordsmanship is average, I guess."
Bogard and Tsuru both nearly tripped over themselves.
Average?!
This was the same man who defeated Akainu and had been sparring with Tsuru for weeks! "Average" wasn't the word anyone would use!
Bogard sighed internally too many complaints, didn't even know where to start.
"You've got quite the weapon there," he said, his gaze locked on Ezra's sword.
Ezra looked back calmly, catching the glint of battle intent in Bogard's eyes.
Ah. So that's what this is about.
"Commander Ezra, would you honor me with a friendly duel?" Bogard asked.
"Thought so," Ezra murmured inwardly, then smiled. He never turned down a chance to learn through combat.
As soon as he agreed, Tsuru and Garp stepped back to clear the field.
"Ezra, don't underestimate Bogard!" Tsuru warned.
Ezra nodded, smiling faintly. "Of course not. Maybe I'll even go all out."
The moment his words faded, he unsheathed Ryūjin Jakka. The black-and-red steel shimmered under the sunlight, the air itself seeming to ripple from its heat.
Bogard followed suit, drawing a gray-bladed sword. "This is Kinmaru Ten one of the Fifty Skillful Grade Swords. Please, show me your strength."
He kicked off the ground, disappearing in a blur. In an instant, his blade came crashing down from above.
Clang!
The first strike rang like thunder. Ezra parried cleanly, deflecting the blow and countering with a sharp horizontal slash toward Bogard's midsection.
Bogard twisted his body just in time, the attack whistling past his uniform. The two swordsmen landed several meters apart, swords raised, eyes locked.
Ezra twirled his blade effortlessly, his gaze steady. "My turn, Commander."
With a flash of movement Shunpo!
In the blink of an eye, he was in front of Bogard. His swing was faster, heavier, and far more precise.
Bogard barely managed to raise his sword to block, but the moment their blades collided, his expression changed.
That force… it's too much!
Crack!
The ground beneath them split open from the pressure.
Bogard gritted his teeth and shifted both hands to his sword, bracing with his entire body. He managed to withstand the strike, but instead of backing away, he lunged forward again charging into Ezra's range with fierce determination.
Their blades clashed again and again, sparks flying, air shuddering with each collision.
Watching from the side, Garp's grin widened. "Oh? That kid's swordsmanship is no joke."
Tsuru nodded in agreement. "Vice Admiral Garp, Ezra's skill with the sword is extraordinary. I've challenged him dozens of times over the past two weeks... and lost every single one."
Garp raised an eyebrow. Tsuru was one of the Navy's best swordsmen, and yet
"Hah! So the kid was being modest after all," Garp said. His eyes sharpened. "Bogard's rhythm is breaking... looks like it's over."
He was right. Bogard's breathing had become erratic, his stance unsteady a swordsman's surest sign of defeat.
Ezra's eyes flared crimson, his aura burning hotter, more feral. He swung faster, fiercer, pressing Bogard relentlessly.
In a flurry of steel, Bogard's defense finally faltered. His sword was knocked aside, leaving his neck exposed.
In one clean motion, Ryūjin Jakka's tip halted just a hair's breadth from his throat less than a centimeter.
A bead of sweat rolled down Bogard's face. For a moment, Ezra's eyes had looked like those of a demon.
Swallowing hard, he lowered his blade. "I... I concede."
Ezra sheathed his sword and smiled. "You're strong, Commander. That was a great fight."
Bogard wiped the sweat from his brow and shook his head with a wry grin. "Still far from your level, I'm afraid."
From the side, Garp nodded in agreement. Indeed, Ezra hadn't even broken a sweat.
To him, this wasn't even a warm-up.
"Tsuru," Garp whispered, "does he always finish this fast?"
Tsuru sighed. "Yeah. He's always quick... never one to go easy, even on me."
Garp burst out laughing. "So the kid's got no mercy, huh? Tsuru, maybe you should be more assertive!"
Ezra blinked. "Wait... weren't we talking about swordsmanship?!"
Why did this suddenly sound like relationship advice?!
Chapter 021: The Trail of Roger
"Hey, old man, don't change the topic!"
But Garp was already walking over with a hearty laugh. "Ahahahaha! Not bad, not bad! As expected of the Navy's strongest commander!"
Ezra tilted his head. Strongest commander? Wasn't he just "youngest" a moment ago? The exaggeration was getting out of hand.
Garp didn't care about details. "Boy, that was a fine match! You just finished your last mission, right? How about joining me on the way back to Marineford?"
Ezra shrugged. "Sure. A ride's a ride."
Just as the group began chatting casually, a Den Den Mushi on Garp's shoulder started buzzing.
Buru buru buru!
Garp looked at the snail it had thick frog-like glasses. Oh, great. Sengoku.
"Yo! Sengoku, what's up?"
"Garp," came the raspy voice, "you haven't reached port yet, have you?"
"Not yet. Ran into an interesting young commander along the way. Delayed me a bit."
"Interesting commander?" Sengoku's tone shifted. "Ezra D. Vale, right? What do you think of him?"
Garp's laughter softened into something rare seriousness. "He's good... real good. I think this kid might be the Navy's future."
Sengoku paused in surprise. Getting praise from Garp was no small thing.
"I see. Then listen carefully this is important."
His tone grew grim.
"We've received intelligence that Gol D. Roger is meeting Whitebeard on an island in the East Blue. The nature of their conversation is unknown."
"The coordinates are being sent to you now. I've already dispatched Borsalino to rendezvous there. Garp you and your team are to move immediately."
Garp's face hardened. "Roger and Whitebeard, huh... understood. We're heading out."
Then a thought struck him. "I'll bring Ezra along too."
After a pause, Sengoku agreed. "Fine. It'll be good experience for him."
When the call ended, Garp turned to his men. "Bogard, how's your recovery?"
Bogard straightened instantly. "All good, Vice Admiral. Ready for deployment!"
"Good. Inform the crew. We sail for the East Blue now!"
"Yes, sir!"
Bogard ran off toward the ship.
"Tsuru, Ezra you two won't be returning to Marineford just yet," Garp said.
Tsuru blinked, then nodded. "A mission, I presume?"
Garp relayed the situation.
At the mention of Roger and Whitebeard, Tsuru gasped. "The Pirate King... and the world's strongest man?! If they're meeting, the entire sea might be thrown into chaos!"
Her expression grew serious. "Understood, Vice Admiral!"
She hurried back to her ship to relay orders and prepare to follow Garp's fleet.
Meanwhile, Garp looked at Ezra who remained calm, arms crossed, unfazed.
"You're not scared?" Garp asked, half-smiling.
Ezra shook his head. "Not really."
Not really?! It was the Pirate King!
But Ezra knew better. Roger wasn't there to start a war just to chat, maybe brag about reaching Raftel.
Garp didn't know that, though. He could only prepare for the worst.
"Ezra," Garp said, his tone firm, "if we meet Roger, do not act rashly. Remember you're the Navy's future."
Ezra blinked, caught off guard by the weight in Garp's voice. Then he grinned. "You're giving me too much credit, old man. You've got another twenty or thirty years left in you."
Garp roared with laughter. "Hahaha! I'll take that as a blessing, kid!"
The two of them an old soldier and a rising star sat together at the ship's bow as the sea stretched endlessly before them.
The sun dipped below the horizon, the waves glimmered gold...
And somewhere in the quiet rhythm of the ocean, both of them drifted off to sleep.
Sitting upright.
Still arguing in their dreams.
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