"Grandpa?!"
Luffy froze, then suddenly jolted, instinctively wanting to turn and run away.
"Where do you think you're going!"
Garp reached out with a big hand, grabbing Luffy's collar like a little chick, lifting him into the air as he furiously roared:
"You brat! As soon as I get back, I hear you talking nonsense again. What kind of potion did that red-haired guy give you, to make you still believe that his arm was bitten off by the King of the Near Sea?"
"A man of that caliber couldn't possibly be hurt by a mere Sea Beast from the East Sea! Use your brain and think for a second!"
"How could it be impossible?"
Luffy struggled, yelling defiantly, "If it were a one-on-one duel, Shanks certainly wouldn't fear the King of the Near Sea and could knock it out with a few punches, but he was saving me, the situation was urgent, wasn't that something you also agreed with back then, Grandpa?"
Garp's old face reddened.
"I was dumb in the past! I couldn't figure out that guy's motive for doing that and got led astray by your words!"
The old man grumbled, "It's different now, you brat!"
He really wondered how he could have believed that back then.
Back in those days, the Red Hair wasn't a Four Emperors yet, but he had established himself as a Great Pirate in the New World.
His Three-Colored Haki was a Great Success, and his bounty was as high as two billion!
Being crippled by a mere Sea Beast?
Just thinking about it was absurd.
To draw a parallel, it would be as ridiculous as Garp being injured by a rookie Marine in the East Sea branch with an ax.
"Look, Luffy!"
Garp pressed Luffy back into the chair and pointed to the torn newspaper, glaring as he said, "Take a good look at what that guy has on his arm!"
Luffy followed Garp's finger.
On the newspaper, the Red Hair was dressed in summer attire, with his arm exposed, revealing a faint black Pentagram Emblem on his skin.
"What is this?"
Luffy was clueless; he hadn't noticed at all.
"The Pentagram Emblem is a mark that appears after a Heavenly Celestial Dragon signs a contract with the legendary Demon!"
Garp snorted coldly, "That guy didn't want to be bound in the Holy Land of the Heavenly Celestial Dragons, and the only way to break free was to sever that arm from his body!"
"So him losing an arm to save you was entirely fake! A performance! He deceived you! Don't you get it, Luffy?"
Luffy stared dumbly at the photo in the newspaper.
That Pentagram Emblem hurt his eyes like a needle.
"This... this can't be..."
Luffy clutched his straw hat, gritting his teeth, "Shanks, he clearly..."
In his mind, he recalled that red-haired man who gently placed the straw hat on his head, still able to laugh heartily even with a lost arm.
There's no way!
"I can't believe this, Grandpa!"
Luffy's eyes reddened as he shouted, "Even if you say him losing an arm to the King of the Near Sea was fake, his kindness to me was real, and the promise to become Pirate King was real too!"
"As long as I know these two things, it's enough, right, Grandpa! Besides, I'm just a small-town kid. If it were like you said, why would Shanks do all this? Tell me, tell me!"
Garp was left speechless by the questioning.
He could only irritably pick his nose.
Who could know why!
That's the only thing the old man still couldn't figure out.
Why was Luffy chosen?
Why did he pass Roger's straw hat to him, wanting him to become Pirate King and find the One Piece?
Dragon, oh Dragon.
It's all your fault.
If you hadn't saved the Red Hair with your life during the Battle of Divine Valley, I wouldn't have this headache...
The more Garp thought about it, the more annoyed he became, so he grabbed the bottle of wine on the table and gulped down half the bottle, then slammed it back on the table.
"I don't care about all those twists and turns!"
He said boldly:
"If you want the truth, you can ask Red Hair yourself once you're grown up! Anyway, starting today, you're not allowed to talk about becoming a pirate or Pirate King! I find it annoying just hearing about it."
"In exchange, I won't ask you to become a Marine anymore! From now on, just fully commit to tough training according to my plan!"
Bang!
Garp punched Luffy on the head, instantly raising a big red bump.
"If you dare slack off or break this agreement, I'll let you taste my 'Iron Fist of Love' again!"
"Ow, it hurts so much!!!"
Luffy covered the big bump on his head, and the tears he had been holding back suddenly flowed out.
"Why do I have to start tough training again; my debt isn't paid off yet... wait, hold on!"
The slow-witted Luffy finally realized, looking up in surprise, "Grandpa, you... you don't want me to be a Marine anymore?"
This sudden compromise, what's going on?
So unfamiliar!
Nearby, Machino instinctively glanced at the newspaper; was it because of those dirty scandals exposed recently?
"The old man just figured some things out."
Garp fell silent, gazing out the window of the tavern with an unusually dim expression.
"For years, I wanted you and Ace to become Marines because I believed that no matter what, the Navy could at least protect civilians and uphold justice..."
The old man clenched his fist, his voice growing somber:
"But now, even I can't discern anymore, those nations hunted by the Heavenly Celestial Dragons, those civilians sent to hell by the Navy's own hands... what truly is justice?"