Chapter 17: Warship Jump
3 years later. Sea Calendar 1506. G-3 Base Training Ground.
"BOOM—!!!"
The entire training ground shook violently, sending dust and rubble flying. The surrounding soldiers were thrown off their feet, staring in awe at the towering figure in the center of the field.
Roy—now 16 years old—stood at a truly massive ten feet tall. His muscles were like a perfect, powerful sculpture, every inch promising terrifying explosive strength.
He was bare-chested, veins bulging on his arms as he held a custom-made, ultra-compressed iron ball from Garp with one hand.
The ball weighed at least two thousand tons, its surface covered in sharp, iron studs that glinted in the light.
"THUD!"
Roy gently set the ball back on the ground, and the impact sent the surrounding pavement tiles flying, like a small earthquake.
"Senior Roy is... completely insane..."
"That's Vice Admiral Garp's custom two-thousand-ton ball! He's using it for one-handed reps?!"
"Damn it, I've been training for three years and I can't even lift three tons..."
The soldiers stared at Roy's back, their eyes filled with a mix of worship and deep envy.
Roy just calmly wiped the sweat from his brow and looked at Garp, who was ambling over.
Garp stood with his arms crossed, his mouth full of crackers, his eyes squinted into crescents. "You've gotten stronger again, brat!"
Roy nodded. "It's alright."
Garp laughed, and as usual, slapped him on the back. A dull "THUD!" echoed out, but this time, Roy didn't budge an inch.
Garp's smile grew wider. "That old geezer Sengoku has been bugging me for months, you know. He wants you back at HQ for a promotion to Rear Admiral."
He chewed his cracker and bumped Roy with his shoulder, grinning slyly. "You've wiped out so many pirate crews in these last few years that the ones with 100-million-plus bounties would rather detour to G-5 than pass by here! Bwahahaha!"
Roy raised an eyebrow. "So I'm heading back to HQ now?"
Garp waved his hand and suddenly leaned in, his voice low. "Not yet."
He had a mischievous, foxy glint in his eyes. "I actually want to take a trip back to the East Blue... That Devil Fruit of yours... you can take the whole warship with you now, right? Take me back!"
Roy paused. "The East Blue?"
He thought to himself, Luffy shouldn't have been sent there yet... Is he going to see Ace?
He nodded. "Alright."
Garp's eyes lit up like he'd just gotten a new toy. "That's my student! Let's go, let's go! We leave now!"
At the G-3 Base port, the iconic dog-headed warship was docked.
Bogard stood on deck, his hand on his sword. When he saw Garp and Roy approach, he raised an eyebrow. "Mr. Garp, where are we off to this time?"
Garp waved. "You're coming too, Bogard!"
Bogard paused. "...Sir."
The three of them boarded the ship. Roy walked to the center, placed his hands on the railing, and closed his eyes.
He took a deep breath, and his power activated. "VMMMMM—!"
The ship vibrated, and for an instant, it felt as if it were lifting off the water, the air around the hull seeming to twist and distort.
Garp stood on the deck, his eyes sparkling, shouting like an excited child, "Do it! Let me see what you've got!"
"FWOOSH!"
In an instant, space itself seemed to twist. The entire warship vanished from the G-3 harbor, leaving the soldiers on the docks staring, dumbfounded.
"...What just happened?!"
On the deck of the ship, the wind was still howling.
Roy let out a breath, a light sweat on his forehead. "Warping the entire ship... is definitely a lot harder than going solo."
Bogard, his hand still on his sword, couldn't hide the shock in his voice. "A single jump of dozens of nautical miles... If you did that a few times, you could reach any sea in the world without a Log Pose. This is... this is a 'Space Jump.'"
Garp, however, was ecstatic, crunching loudly on his crackers. "Bwahahaha! This is so convenient! Now I can go anywhere I want!"
Roy's mouth twitched. "It's not a taxi..."
Garp slapped him on the shoulder. "Since we're on our way, let's do a few more jumps! Let's clear this distance in one go!"
Roy took a deep breath. "Sir!"
"FWOOSH!"
The warship vanished again, leaping across the sea.
"FWOOSH!"
Again and again, the ship "jumped," crossing the Grand Line in a way no ship was ever meant to.
The next day. Offshore, Goa Kingdom.
"SPLASH—!"
The warship appeared out of thin air, landing cleanly on the water.
Garp was laughing. "Bwahahaha! That was great, Roy! I love this trick!"
Bogard actually had a small smile on his face. "From the Grand Line to the East Blue in less than a day... If word of this got back to HQ, Fleet Admiral Sengoku would have a heart attack."
Roy, panting slightly, wiped his brow. "The energy cost is high... but it's manageable."
Garp slung an arm around his shoulder. "Come on, come on! I want you to meet someone!"
Roy paused. "Who?"
Garp grinned. "My grandson!"
"So it is Ace..."
Mt. Colubo, back forest.
A small, black-haired, freckled boy was frantically swinging a wooden staff against a thick tree. "Damn it! Stronger! I have to get stronger!"
He looked to be only six or seven, but his eyes were full of a stubborn, wild fire.
"ACE!!!"
A voice like a cannonball exploded through the forest.
Ace jumped, then bristled, spinning around. "You old bastard?! What are you doing here again!"
Garp laughed, and in an instant, he was in front of Ace, a "Fist of Love" slamming down on his head. "That's no way to talk! Call me 'Grandpa'!"
"BAM!"
A giant lump swelled on Ace's head. "That hurts, you damn old geezer!"
Roy stood to the side, calmly watching the future "Fire Fist" Ace.
Ace quickly spotted Roy, and his eyes narrowed. "Who are you?"
Garp laughed, grabbing Ace's head. "This is my student, Roy! He's ten thousand times stronger than you!"
"Let go of me! I'll be stronger than him one day!" Ace yelled, struggling.
Roy smiled and crouched down. "You want to be strong?"
Ace glared at him, gritting his teeth. "Of course I do!"
Roy nodded. "Then you have to be willing to work harder than anyone else."
Ace stared at Roy's deep, calm eyes. "Hmph! I don't need you to tell me that!" he said, stubbornly turning his head away.
Garp just laughed, messing up Ace's hair. "He's got guts!" He then looked at Roy. "Hey, Roy, show this brat what you can do!"
Roy sighed, but he stood up. He glanced around, his eyes landing on a giant boulder in the distance.
He raised his hand.
"FWOOSH!"
The boulder vanished without a sound... and reappeared a hundred meters in the air!
"BOOM!!!"
It fell like a meteor, smashing into the ground and leaving a giant crater.
Ace's jaw dropped, his eyes as wide as saucers. "S-so... cool..."
Garp put his hands on his hips, grinning proudly. "See? Wanna learn?"
Ace snapped back to reality, his eyes blazing. "I wanna learn!"
Roy watched them, thinking, Can history... really be changed?
That evening, around the campfire.
Ace was already fast asleep, clutching his staff.
Garp's usual smile was gone. He stared into the fire, his voice low. "Roy, what do you think of the kid?"
Roy was silent for a moment. "He has high potential, and he's strong. But... his personality is too extreme."
Garp nodded slowly. "Yeah. With a personality like that, he's heading down a tough road."
He turned to Roy, his grin returning. "That's why I've gotta make him a Marine! Bwahahaha!"
Roy smiled. "I'll help."
Garp slapped him on the shoulder. "That's my student!"