The golden sun in the sky slowly drifted toward the western horizon.
The sunset glow was like fire, burning the sky red and making people stop to admire the view.
In the abandoned dock, the afterglow of the setting sun cast long shadows of Garp and Goku.
One shadow swayed incessantly, while the other remained still, like an eternal brand on the ground.
Then, the still shadow finally moved.
Garp lowered his crossed arms, glanced at the setting sun, and shouted to the punching Goku, "Hey! Goku! That's enough training for today. It's time to go back and eat!"
Goku, who had been punching for four consecutive hours, finally stopped the rhythmic motion.
He pulled back his fist, let out a breath, and wiped the dense beads of sweat from his face.
Then he turned around, waved at Garp, and flashed a bright smile. "Got it, Grandpa Garp!"
...
On the way back, Garp caught a glimpse of Goku's fists. Seeing only faint red marks and no broken skin, he became even more certain that the boy was incredibly tough.
However, he didn't mention it. Instead, he asked with a smile, "So, Goku, how do you feel after punching all afternoon?"
Goku blinked and tilted his head, thinking seriously for a few seconds. Then, clutching his stomach, he said innocently, "Feel? Does feeling hungry count?"
To him, the only feeling was that his stomach was growling loudly after working out for so long.
"Hahahaha!"
Garp burst into laughter at the pure response.
"It counts! Of course it counts! Hunger is a feeling too!"
He laughed, thinking to himself, 'What a lovable little guy.'
Before long, they reached a fork in the road.
Garp stopped and pointed to one of the paths. "You should remember the way back, right? Just follow this road and it'll lead straight to our house."
Goku nodded. "I remember."
Garp continued, "Then you go back first. I need to buy a few things. Wait for me at home."
Goku nodded and walked ahead. Garp's voice came from behind again:
"Wait! Once you're back, take a bath. Wash off that stinky sweat and change into clean clothes."
Hearing this, Goku grabbed the hem of his shirt and sniffed. He immediately scrunched up his face.
"Ugh! So stinky!"
He turned around and called out to Garp, "I got it, Grandpa Garp!"
Then, his short legs blurred like wheels as he dashed toward home like a whirlwind.
Garp watched his departing figure with a smile, then headed down the other path.
...
Meanwhile, near a bustling pier in Marineford.
Two Marines moved a large cabinet off a warship, carefully setting it on the ground. They looked at the gray-haired female Marine nearby. "Vice Admiral Tsuru, are you sure you don't need us to help you carry this home?"
Tsuru, known as the Great Staff Officer who had worked alongside Sengoku and Garp since their youth, offered a kind, grandmotherly smile.
"No need. Go tend to your duties. These old bones might be aging, but they're not so weak that I can't carry a little something like this."
"Understood, Vice Admiral Tsuru!"
The two Marines saluted respectfully and returned to the ship.
Tsuru walked to the cabinet, turned her back to it, and with a quick grip, easily hoisted it onto her shoulders.
She then began strolling toward her home.
...
On the other side, as Goku rushed home, a strange thought suddenly occurred to him, making him stop in his tracks.
"Why did Grandpa Garp want me to go home first? Aren't we going to eat?"
They had eaten at the cafeteria for lunch, so he assumed they would eat there for dinner as well.
So the question was, why didn't Garp just have him wait at the cafeteria instead of going home?
He scratched his head, unable to figure it out. He even wondered if he should head to the cafeteria instead.
After a few seconds, he muttered to himself, "Whatever. If Grandpa Garp said so, there must be a reason. I'll just go home and take a bath first."
No longer worrying about it, his motor-like legs kicked into gear again, leaving a trail of white smoke as he charged forward.
But before long, he stopped once more.
Seeing a gray-haired old woman carrying a large cabinet and seemingly struggling to walk, he called out, "Grandma, are you heading home? Let me help you!"
Without waiting for a response, he hoisted the large cabinet onto his head with a whoosh. "Grandma, where do you live? Is it this way?"
The old woman seemed a bit surprised, but she didn't say much. She simply nodded. "It's about eight hundred meters straight ahead."
Goku nodded with an innocent smile. "Got it!"
He dashed forward, leaving a cloud of white smoke behind him.
...
Estimating he had run about eight hundred meters, Goku skidded to a halt and looked around.
"This should be it, but there are so many houses. Which one belongs to Grandma?"
He tried his best to identify the house, but after searching for a long time, he still couldn't tell.
With a thought, he set the cabinet down and prepared to go back and carry the old woman over.
To his surprise, as soon as he turned around, he saw the old woman not far behind him. He gasped, "Incredible! Grandma, you walk really fast!"
The old woman smiled kindly at him. "Little guy, don't let my age fool you. These old bones are still quite limber."
Then, she pointed to a house on the right. "That one is my home."
Goku followed her finger, nodded, and carried the large cabinet to the door.
He waved at her. "I'm off then, Grandma!"
With that, he vanished in a flash.
Left behind, the old woman—Vice Admiral Tsuru—chortled as she watched him leave. "So this is the child Garp brought back? What a helpful little boy."
...
Back at Garp's house, Goku rushed into the bathroom the moment he returned, washing away every bit of stinky sweat.
He stepped out stark naked and looked around. 'Where are the clean clothes?'
He went to the wardrobe and searched through it, only to find nothing but adult-sized clothes. He stood there, dazed.
Just as he was at a loss, Garp pushed open the door and stepped in. Without a word, he tossed a clean garment onto Goku's face.
"Wear this for now. Tomorrow, I'll have a tailor measure you and make some new clothes."
It was only after parting with Goku that he realized there were no clothes for the boy to change into at home.
So on the way back, he had ducked into someone else's house to grab some children's clothing before rushing home.
Goku pulled the garment off his face and saw it was a small pink dress. He scratched his cheek. "Am I supposed to wear this, Grandpa Garp?"
Garp cleared his throat. "Yeah, just make do with it for now. You'll have new clothes tomorrow."
Seeing Goku pull on the pink dress, Garp let out a snicker. When Goku looked over in confusion, Garp quickly straightened his face.
But the corners of his mouth were still twitching.
He hadn't intended to put Goku in such a thing, but the only children's clothing in the house he visited was a dress. He had no other choice.
—
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