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On Fishman Island, back in the present moment, Jimbei felt a wave of sadness wash over him again.
"Here we go again... I wonder how Jimbei will handle the emotional storm of that destructive boy..."
Jimbei sighed deeply as he said this, his sorrow clear.
"Calmly, wisely, and with unmatched motivation. If those three traits combine, I believe your counterpart will do just fine."
Fisher Tiger, who had previously enjoyed the flashback featuring the three brothers, replied thoughtfully.
"I believe your counterpart already possesses these three qualities. He remains incredibly calm, even in such a situation, and I see in him the wisdom of the entire Fishman race. I can't even imagine what he must have gone through in the past to develop such a strong character."
Fisher Tiger had a keen eye, able to perceive the bitter scenarios hidden behind Jimbei's demeanor throughout the manga.
"I hope so," Jimbei murmured with growing sadness as he witnessed Luffy's outburst, where the boy shouted that he wasn't the Pirate King, but just a weak pirate.
"Turn the page already! Why are you still stuck on that scene, Jimbei?"
"Just keep going... things won't stay as they are."
Fisher Tiger noticed Jimbei had been staring too long at the last scene from the previous chapter's flashback and nudged him to move on.
"Ah... yeah."
Jimbei turned the page to the next chapter titled My Little Brother. He skipped over the cover page, which featured him and Mihawk eating takoyaki, and went straight to the events of the new chapter.
"It seems Garp has already moved past the disaster."
The opening scene of the chapter shows Garp's ship arriving at Foosha Village.
The villagers quickly rushed to get the latest news from him, especially about Luffy, who had once grown up among them.
"That's what it looks like... but clearly, he hasn't moved past anything," Fisher Tiger said with a heavy tone as the scene cut to a furious Dadan.
•———•———•———•———•
Chapter's Events:
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"Garp-san, there's been another incident!! A group of bandits came down from the mountains and took over Makino's bar!!"
After ensuring that the surrounding seas were pirate-free and leaving a sign with Vice-Admiral Garp's name as a warning to potential invaders, the villagers hurried to report the second incident.
"Bandits...?" Garp's familiarity with the situation was apparent from his tone.
"Stop!! You mustn't!!"
"Oi, Garp!!!"
"You've got a lot of nerve showing your face here again!!!"
Dadan wielded a massive wooden club and smashed it down on Garp's head with full force. Garp didn't dodge.
"Garp-san!!"
"Vice-Admiral Garp!!" The marines accompanying Garp quickly aimed their weapons at the enraged Dadan.
"Stand down, men! I know this woman…" Garp held his bleeding forehead and ordered his men not to interfere.
"Damn you!! You were right there in the thick of it all!!! They were right in front of you...!!!" Tears streamed down Dadan's face as she shouted her grievances at Garp.
"...!!! How could you let Ace die like that...?!!!"
"Do you care more about your work than your family?! Well, Garp?!" She continued to punch him mercilessly.
"And you call yourself a Marine Hero!! Curl up and die, you worthless old fart!!!"
"Now, Now... That's enough, boss…!!" Dadan's subordinate tried to intervene, but at that moment, Makino stepped in.
"Stop it, Dadan-san!!"
Garp, still filled with sorrow, muttered, "Makino..."
"Garp-san saw the whole thing happen right in front of him, and still, he couldn't do anything to save them...!! This must be harder on him than any of us!!!" Makino shouted, stopping Dadan in her tracks.
"No…" Dadan's tears continued to flow, "The one who's suffering the most... is Luffy…!!!"
"You know how much he loved that brother of his, Makino!"
Makino, unable to hold back her own tears after recalling this, ran away.
•———•———•———•———•
Amazon Lily:
Dadan, a young and vibrant woman, couldn't control her tears at that moment. This scene affected her more than when she saw her counterpart fighting alongside Ace on the day of the great fire.
"I didn't expect this scene to be so tough…"
Wiping away her tears, Dadan couldn't believe she would one day see herself hitting Garp with such brutality and anger.
"I feel so relieved now after seeing Dadan beat Garp! Oh my, that was satisfying, fufu~" Shakky chuckled as she patted Dadan on the head.
"That's right. For Garp to have done nothing to save Ace, only to cry and wail after his death, and to be stopped by Sengoku when he tried to kill Sakazuki—it's disgraceful."
Gloriosa added with a smile, "It's refreshing to see Dadan smash his old face!"
"I bet Garp himself wants to punch his counterpart's face at this moment," Little Hancock chimed in.
"No… but Garp-san didn't really have a choice. We can't entirely blame him. We've seen the whole manga up to this point, and we know the hidden backstories and motivations that the characters within the manga don't."
"Garp doesn't deserve this treatment. Everyone knows he's in deep pain, and he had no power to save Ace or even Luffy," Dadan, in reality, was more reasonable and wise than her manga counterpart, who was driven by pure emotion.
"You have a point, dear, but that doesn't mean Garp didn't prioritize his career as a Marine hero over saving Ace by rebelling against the Marine," Shakky remarked.
...
Sorbet Kingdom:
Garp stared long and hard at the scene where Dadan struck him. His expression didn't change.
"You didn't hit him hard enough, Dadan... Unfortunately, you don't have any Haki. I wanted to see you crush his skull, but that's impossible. You're far too weak."
Garp could feel Dadan's overwhelming grief at this moment of the scene.
"Sigh... She must have loved Ace and Luffy so much... It's truly heartbreaking to see how things unfolded in the manga world."
"Death is the end. It cannot be undone. We can only accept it. Our loved ones can only be retrieved from the underworld through rare loopholes, like in Brook's case... That's why I feel sorry for Luffy in the manga."
"Old man, I feel sorry for your counterpart as well," Dragon said, staring at his father with sympathetic eyes.
"I feel sorry for your counterpart too, my son," Garp sighed in response.
"Why do you feel sorry for my counterpart? What's wrong with him?" Dragon asked, puzzled.
"You're in a worse state than I am. You're hiding like a rat, without the strength to do anything. Even your son is braver than you. Despite his weakness, limited time, and small crew, he's accomplished more than the Revolutionary Army has in all these years."
"From the Enies Lobby incident where he openly challenged the World Government, to causing chaos at Impel Down, to single-handedly participating in the Summit War—these were all slaps in the face to the government, thanks to his courage and disregard for who his opponent truly was. You would never do that. You wouldn't choose to if given the chance. That means you're in a worse state than I am."
"Your counterpart believes he's too weak to stand up to the World Government, doesn't he?"
Dragon remained silent for a long time after hearing his father's words.
"I heard Dadan is working with Rob these days. Maybe it's time for me to try married life again after my first failed attempt with your mother. This time, I'll have a braver son."
Dragon's face turned red after the barrage of remarks from his father.
"Pfft!" Crocodile suppressed his laughter so hard that his face also turned red.
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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
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Chapter 805: Shanks's Words
Chapter 806: I Still Have My Friends!
Chapter 807: The Arrival of Rayleigh!
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