When Vice Admiral Garp's warship arrived at Loguetown, Smoker and the Marines at the base officially welcomed it at the port, while Ryu waited behind with Ace.
As the ship docked, Garp stepped down with his aide, exuding an impressive aura that made Ryu envious.
"Salute! Welcome, Vice Admiral Garp!" one of Smoker's aides shouted excitedly.
"Hey~ Smoker, you're still the same!" Garp greeted Smoker cheerfully, instantly dropping his intimidating presence.
"Vice Admiral, what brings you to Loguetown?" After chatting briefly, Tashigi asked Garp.
"Hmph~ Of course, it's because of me! Didn't you all believe it?" Ryu said as he approached with an unwilling Ace, looking displeased.
"Ace~ how dare you secretly run off to be a pirate!" Garp growled, completely ignoring Ryu.
"I already said I wanted to be a pirate! I wanted to see what attracts pirates so much!" Ace responded. Initially fearful, he found his courage facing Garp.
Garp's expression darkened at Ace's words, then he perked up, stating, "I told you to follow me and become an excellent Marine. Forget about being a pirate; getting caught before even leaving the East Blue shows you're not cut out for it. Give it up!"
"I will never give up!" Ace said resolutely.
"I told you before, follow me to become a Marine!" Garp said angrily, raising his fist to strike Ace.
Ace closed his eyes, bracing for the impact as childhood fears flooded back.
"Bang~!"
"Old man, are you mistaken?" Ryu stepped in front of Ace, blocking Garp's punch.
"Hmm?" Both Garp and Smoker, along with Smoker's aloof swordsman, looked at Ryu in surprise.
"Wow, kid, your strength has improved quickly! But you're still not qualified to block me!" Garp laughed heartily and then vanished from in front of Ryu, with Ace's screams echoing behind him.
Ryu glanced at Ace, who was rolling on the ground, nursing his head and crying out in pain, feeling a wave of frustration.
"Vice Admiral Garp, doesn't this count as completing our agreement?" Ryu asked, noticing the system hadn't notified him of completing the task.
Having just struck Ace, Garp, feeling refreshed, nodded and said, "Yes, our agreement is complete. But I don't remember agreeing to anything specific!"
"Correct, I don't need any conditions from you; just the agreed matter must be fulfilled!" The moment Garp nodded, Ryu received the system prompt that he had completed the task, replying with a smile.
"Kid, come to Marineford with me~ You have great potential!" Garp was surprised; he had expected Ryu to ask for something, but he didn't, so he naturally extended the invitation.
Ryu, who initially planned to refuse, fell silent because the system had just given him a new task:
"Side Quest: Join the Navy! Task Rewards: (200 Diamonds, 200 Experience, 100,000 Berries)"
Though the rewards weren't vast, a mosquito's leg is still meat. Plus, joining the Navy meant there were plenty of strong Marines in Marineford, so he wouldn't worry about lacking places to gain experience.
"Hey~ are you really considering joining the Marines? Come on my ship instead!" Ace, with a swollen head, noticed Ryu seemed tempted and rushed to speak anxiously.
According to the previous plan, Ryu was supposed to find a time to give him the key and help him escape. But if Ryu joined the Navy, would he still follow through on that promise? This was why Ace looked tense.
"Don't worry; I said I would let you go, so I will. Whether you can escape depends on your own ability!" Ryu smiled slightly, unlocking Ace's Sea-Prism Stone cuffs.
"Ha-ha! How about it, Ryu? Come with me!" Ace invited him again.
"Side Quest: Join the Spade Pirates! Task Rewards: (200 Diamonds, 200 Experience, 100,000 Berries)"
Just as Ace spoke, Ryu received another side quest, indicating he had to choose between the two tasks, similar to selecting a faction after level 10 in a game.
Ryu looked at Ace in surprise, recalling that in the original plot, Ace was a captain who deeply valued his friends. Now, inviting him like this indicated he was serious.
"Captain, he truly isn't trustworthy!" Tashigi, gripping her sword, said sternly as she watched Ryu unlock Ace's cuffs.
Yet neither Smoker nor Garp seemed to care; they simply smiled at the two.
"Looks like you've chosen to be a pirate?" The aloof swordsman under Garp looked at Ryu with a hint of mockery.
"No, I don't intend to be a pirate. It's just that Ace is my friend, and I've handed him over to the old man as agreed, so as a friend, I must rescue him no matter what!" Ryu shook his head.
"Wow, ha-ha! Kid, it seems your growth in strength has filled you with confidence!" Garp laughed heartily at Ryu's response.
"Ace, you go ahead; don't worry about me!" Seeing Garp step forward, Ryu's expression turned serious.
However, Ace, who had been standing next to him, had already dashed off a good distance and waved proudly to Ryu, as if bidding farewell.
Ryu's expression darkened as he forced himself to suppress the impulse to strike Ace, turning back to face Vice Admiral Garp.
"Hmph!" Smoker, transforming into smoke, rushed after Ace.
"I told you, unless you take me down, you won't get past!" Ryu surged forward, kicking Smoker back.
"You've gained more mastery over Haki!" Smoker returned to his solid form, eyeing Ryu seriously.
"Ha-ha, interesting kid! Don't fight; leave it to me!" Garp took off his cloak inscribed with the word 'Justice,' cracking his knuckles as he walked towards Ryu.
Three minutes later, Ryu was kicked out from the rubble like a dead dog by Garp's aloof swordsman.
"Vice Admiral, we just received a report from the soldiers that Ace has already set sail towards Reverse Mountain!" Smoker glanced at the unconscious Ryu and reported to Garp.
"Ah ha ha! I got so caught up in the fun that I forgot about business. Never mind, we don't have enough time. We'll catch him next time! Let's head back!" Garp said, looking towards the direction Ace had gone, then donned his cloak and laughed as he returned to the warship.
"Captain," Tashigi called out to Smoker, watching as the aloof swordsman carried Ryu onto the ship.
"Let's go; we might just have a remarkable companion in the Navy!" Smoker took a puff of his cigar and walked towards his motorcycle.
Two days later, Calm Belt.
"So this is the Calm Belt? I thought it was a nesting ground for Sea Kings? Why haven't I seen a single one?" Ryu stood on the deck, looking around and asking the aloof swordsman.
After leaving Loguetown on Garp's warship, Ryu regained consciousness, and his powerful recovery abilities had him back on his feet the same day.
To get back at Garp for knocking him out, Ryu challenged all the Marines on the ship once more. He could no longer gain experience from the ordinary Marines, but he could still earn it from the officers.
Over the past two days, he discovered that if he defeated someone and gained experience, he wouldn't earn more from defeating them again that same day. However, the next day, he could earn experience from defeating the stronger officers again, similar to monsters respawning in a game. The stronger the opponent, the shorter the interval between earning experience.
"You're not here for sightseeing, you lackey!" The aloof swordsman shot Ryu a sideways glance, speaking quietly.
Ryu's face darkened; yes, his current identity was that of a lowly Marine. After boarding Garp's ship, he had no choice but to join the Marines, thus completing a task.
But Garp hadn't given him any special treatment. Even though he was strong, he still started from the bottom. Once they reached Marineford and he registered, he could officially become a proud Third Class Marine of Headquarters.
"I've finished my tasks!" Ryu glanced at the officer in charge of him, who was busy doing the work that should have been his.
"Hmph~ Being a Marine has its own rules, and respecting your superiors is the first!" the aloof swordsman said coolly.
"Hey~~ hey~~~" Ryu whistled and turned to leave to clean up.
It wasn't that Ryu was abusing his strength to oppress his superior; it was just that the officer understood it was only a matter of time before Ryu stood out, so he hadn't assigned him any work but instead quietly did it for him.
The aloof swordsman wasn't targeting Ryu; he had been frustrated because he hadn't won in their earlier sparring match and would have actually lost had it not been for the use of Geppo.
"Ha ha! How's that? His speed of growth is quite remarkable, right?" Garp, sitting under a sunshade and munching on a donut, said carelessly to his subordinates.
The aloof swordsman fell silent; although it wasn't a life-and-death fight, Ryu's performance had indeed surprised him, especially with his powerful ability similar to Haki, which was far stronger than when they had fought last time.
........
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