Just as Ryoma was wondering, a powerful voice filled with obvious displeasure and complaining sounded from above his head without warning.
"Where did this brat come from! Taking it upon yourself to save someone!"
"Do you have any idea how much effort I put into finding this herd of wild boars?!"
This voice!
Ryoma's whole body stiffened, a chill racing from his spine to the crown of his head.
When?
He hadn't felt any presence approaching at all.
With his current refined perception of magic, his range covered over a thousand meters.
Ryoma instinctively looked up sharply. He saw the sunlight above blocked by a massive shadow, and a fist was coming straight down toward the crown of his head.
The colossal fist ballooned in Ryoma's pupils, bearing down with incomparable pressure.
This old geezer fights dirty—ambushing a greenhorn like me.
Shameless!
The thought flashed by in an instant. Thankfully, he seemed only out to teach him a lesson.
A split-second before the fist smashed his skull, an ice flower bloomed beneath Ryoma's feet, then burst into countless glittering shards.
Ryoma vanished, leaving only a few frost-sparkling fragments drifting down.
The mountain-shaking punch froze mid-air and the wind it raised sent leaves and dust swirling.
The solid ground caved into a shallow crater, the whole grove quaking violently.
Ryoma reappeared several meters away, tiny ice blossoms melting underfoot. He exhaled in relief, cold sweat forming at his temple.
Close call…
The old man shows no mercy. One clean hit would've cost him half his life, if not all of it.
Before he could relax, a childish, overjoyed shout rang out beside him.
"Grandpa!"
The bawling Luffy, seeing the towering figure, forgot his tears and yelled in delight.
Grandpa?
Ryoma followed the voice and saw the newcomer clearly.
An extraordinarily tall old man in a white suit, a marine coat emblazoned with "Justice" draped over his shoulders, and a comical dog-head cap on his head.
Marine Hero—Monkey D. Garp!
Garp slowly straightened, fanning the dog-head cap back into place with a palm.
His sharp eyes skipped his grandson and fixed on Ryoma and the fading ice crystal debris, curiosity undisguised.
"Huh?"
Garp drawled, curiosity in his tone.
"When did that brat Kuzan die? How come I didn't hear?"
"..."
Ryoma's intended complaint was strangled by that bombshell. His expression turned bizarre as he stared at the legendary marine hero.
Seriously?
Cursing your own student so casually, old man?
Besides, with your habit of vanishing to the East Blue for vacation, even if Kuzan were dead, you'd be the last to know.
Oblivious to Ryoma's silent rant, Garp's hawk-like gaze swept over him as though to see clean through.
"No, that kid Kuzan shouldn't die so easy."
He shook his head and refocused on Ryoma. "Snow-Snow Fruit? Doesn't feel quite right."
"Hey, old-timer!"
Unable to bear it, Ryoma cut in, pointing at the snot-nosed Luffy,
"That's your grandson, right? I was saving him, yet you attacked me without asking—hardly fair."
"Yeah! Yeah!"
Luffy chimed in, jabbing a finger at the crater.
"Grandpa, you can't just hit people!"
"Shut it!"
Snorting twin jets of air, Garp back-handed Luffy's skull without even looking.
Clonk!
"Owww!"
A fist-sized lump sprouted and Luffy rolled, clutching his head.
Garp retracted his fist and barked at Ryoma, "I'm training the runt's guts and strength! What would you know?"
Watching Luffy tumble, Ryoma's lips twitched.
Only a cockroach like Luffy could thrive under such abusive "love-fists." A normal kid would've been pounded into mush long ago.
After disciplining his grandson, Garp turned to Ryoma with appraising approval. "Didn't expect to find such a promising sapling while on leave."
He flashed a toothy grin and declared matter-of-factly, "Kid, I'm Monkey D. Garp. You've heard of me, right?"
An intangible pressure unique to a top powerhouse rippled out.
"How about it? Join the Marines. With your talent, the sky's the limit."
An outright invitation—from Garp himself.
Before Ryoma could answer, the dizzy Luffy sprang up, thinking the question aimed at him, and yelled, "No way! I'm not becoming a marine!"
"I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"
The declaration lit Garp's short fuse.
"What did you say, you little punk!"
Garp's face darkened, veins bulging and the very air seemed to freeze.
Forgetting Ryoma, he lunged, seized Luffy by the collar and hoisted him aloft.
"No grandson of mine is becoming a pirate!"
Roaring, he pummelled Luffy's head in a machine-gun barrage of Fist of Loves.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
"Ow-ow-ow! Grandpa, stop!"
Luffy's wails echoed as lumps stacked into a triple-layered tower, both grotesque and comical.
Ryoma stood awkwardly, unsure how to react to the grand family bonding session.
Soon, however, the triple-bun tower on Luffy's head caught his eye.
Normally, rubber fruit users are immune to blunt force. Garp's fists shouldn't leave real bruises, let alone stacked lumps.
Ryoma focused on the swinging punches and spotted the trick.
A near-invisible layer of power coated Garp's fist—Armament Haki—dealing true damage.
So this is Armament Haki.
It boosts defence, lets you hit Logia bodies, and punishes special physiques like Luffy's.
Amazing!
Ryoma was entranced and he almost wanted to take a punch himself to feel it.
As he mused, Garp noticed his rapt gaze.
He tossed the dazed, foaming Luffy aside, baring a grin of white teeth.
"Want to learn it, huh?"
He sounded as though reading Ryoma's mind, temptation thick in his voice.
"Join the Marines and I'll teach you personally."
Ryoma quickly snapped out of his initial awe and longing for Haki, his mind racing.
Join the Marines and follow this legendary Marine Hero?
It sounded like a pretty good deal.
Garp's strength and status were beyond question. With him backing him, life on these seas would undoubtedly be much easier.
But the Marines…
Ryoma felt a wave of physical revulsion at the thought of taking orders from those bubble-headed Celestial Dragons who called themselves gods and treated human life like dirt.
He'd rather be a free-wheeling bounty hunter or even a wanted pirate than stand alongside that lot.
Besides, the Marines weren't some monolith either. Hawks, doves, fence-sitters… the infighting and scheming would be endless.
A complete outsider like him, even with Garp's recommendation, would probably be dragged into trouble nonstop.
Survival and getting stronger came first. Throwing himself into that kind of mess clearly wasn't wise.