"My name is Ryu, Rear Admiral of the Marine Headquarters," Ryu said with a slight smile. "My mentor is Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp, the hero of the Marines."
Neptune and Jinbe exchanged glances, unsure why Ryu was mentioning this. Was he bragging about his position? It didn't seem to be something so trivial.
Prince Fukoboshi furrowed his brow, clearly disapproving of this human.
"I told Jinbe earlier that I am Ace's brother, and I wasn't lying. We shared a brotherhood drink together. Ace's brother is named Luffy, and I'm sure you know that," Ryu continued, not paying attention to their reactions.
Neptune and Jinbe remained silent, knowing that Ryu would continue.
"Luffy's full name is Monkey D. Luffy, and Ace's full name is Portgas D. Ace. Jinbe, have you noticed something?" Ryu asked, looking at Jinbe with a smile.
"D?" Both Jinbe and Neptune exclaimed at the same time.
Only Prince Fukoboshi looked puzzled, clearly unaware of the significance of the "D."
"That's right, they are both from the 'D' family. Luffy's grandfather, who is also my mentor, is none other than Garp. As for Ace, his surname follows his mother's, because his father's name must not be known to the world," Ryu said solemnly.
"Ace's little brother is actually Garp's grandson?"
Jinbe exclaimed in surprise, unable to believe it.
"Hey, weren't we talking about Ace? Why are you fixating on Luffy?" Ryu said, slightly exasperated.
"Sorry, please continue. But if Ace is Luffy's brother, then is he also Garp's grandson?" Jinbe asked, embarrassed.
Ryu shook his head. "No, Ace was entrusted to Garp by his father when he was young. Emotionally speaking, Garp treated Ace as his own grandson. He, Luffy, and another child named Sabo all swore a brotherhood together when they were younger."
"So, who exactly is Ace's father?" Neptune focused on the key point and asked.
Ryu gave him an approving glance. "Gol D. Roger," he said calmly.
Neptune and the others widened their eyes in shock, staring at Ryu in disbelief.
"Ryu, are you sure about this?" Jinbe stammered, asking cautiously.
"Whew, so now you understand the gravity of the situation, right?" Ryu let out a deep breath and said.
"The gravity? What gravity? While this is certainly unexpected, I'm sure not many people know about it. As long as it doesn't get exposed, there shouldn't be a problem. Plus, Ace is on Whitebeard's ship now, no one will make a move on him," Jinbe said, still shaken but trying to brush it off.
"You idiots! Is this how all fishmen think without using their brains?" Ryu blurted out in frustration.
He quickly realized his outburst and then bowed to King Neptune. "Sorry, I got a little too anxious. I mean no harm."
"Then tell me, how serious is this situation?" Prince Fokuboshi stared at Ryu and asked.
What Ryu had said earlier had indeed made him somewhat unhappy, but he still didn't understand how serious the matter really was. Even though Ace's identity was certainly extraordinary, it hadn't reached the level Ryu was implying, and it didn't seem to be connected to Fish-Man Island in any way.
"Blackbeard, you know this person, right?" Ryu sighed and asked.
Jinbe looked at Ryu in surprise. This was the second time in a short period that Ryu had mentioned this person.
"I had told Ace before that Teach isn't someone to be underestimated. You know Shanks, right? I think he'll understand why I'm so wary of Teach! Now that Crocodile has lost his title as a Warlord of the Sea, there's a vacancy.
The World Government has gathered the other Warlords to discuss this matter, and Teach sent his subordinates to say that he wants the position!" Ryu said, looking at the three of them.
"So what? Ace rejected the offer to join the Warlords before," Jinbe shook his head and said.
"Sigh, do you think that just because Blackbeard wants the position, the Government will give it to him? Of course not. He'll need to offer something that satisfies them or demonstrate his strength. Do you understand now?" Ryu sighed again.
Neptune and Prince Fukoboshi still didn't quite get it, but Jinbe began to think deeply. He was starting to follow Ryu's train of thought.
"You mean Teach is after Ace? But he shouldn't know about Ace's identity!" Jinbe asked, confused.
Ryu nodded. "He doesn't know, but that doesn't stop him from targeting Ace. Whitebeard's second division commander is someone who can't be ignored by the Government or the Marines. If he can trade that title as a Warlord of the Sea, I'm sure they'll accept it."
"But…" Jinbe wanted to argue but didn't know where to start.
"Ace isn't going to be easily captured by Blackbeard, right?" Neptune finally understood and got straight to the point.
Jinbe also caught on and said, "I admit Teach has some strength, but he shouldn't be able to capture Ace."
"Do you know about the Dark-Dark Fruit? The one Teach took from the former 4th division captain? Do you understand Teach's strength? He's someone who even managed to injure Shanks. How could he be the same as what you usually see?" Ryu shook his head and said.
Neptune and the others exchanged looks, starting to believe what Ryu was saying.
"While my father and Ace are close, honestly speaking, what does that have to do with Fish-Man Island? It doesn't seem serious enough to destroy Fish-Man Island, does it?" Prince Fukoboshi asked, frowning.
Ryu looked at Jinbe, smiling lightly. "It's simple. Let's make a hypothetical. If Ace were captured by Teach and handed over to the Marines, the Marines would inevitably publicly execute him, using it to strike fear into the pirates. Then, what would happen next? Jinbe, can you guess?"
"If that happens, it's going to be a big problem. Whitebeard will definitely not let it slide. The Marines and the Whitebeard Pirates will clash for sure!" Jinbe said, looking worried.
"Exactly. Once the Marines have Ace, they'll prepare in secret, and after everything is set, they'll announce it publicly. Not only will they lure Whitebeard to attack, but they could also use it to weaken the Whitebeard Pirates, as a springboard for advancing into the New World! And Fish-Man Island, which is under Whitebeard's protection, do you think it will remain unaffected?" Ryu analyzed.