On a nameless island.
"What did you just say?!!!"
Garp roared like a lion, grabbing Ace by the collar, his voice shaking the trees.
"I said I'm not joining the Marines—I'm going to be a pirate!"
Ace repeated himself, casually digging a finger into his ear as he stared back at Garp's furious face.
"You little brat! What nonsense are you spouting?!"
Garp's teeth ground together as he glared, veins bulging at his temple.
"It's not nonsense. I'm going to be a pirate."
Ace shrugged, completely unfazed by Garp's fury. If anything, he seemed to be poking the bear on purpose.
"Fine then! Looks like I need to beat that rotten idea right out of your head! I'm not letting you become some pirate!"
Garp's usual grandfatherly tone vanished as he clenched his fist, shouting with the force of a cannon.
Ace's eyes narrowed the moment he saw that fist tighten.
This was exactly what he wanted.
He'd been baiting Garp into a fight—a real one. A proper battle would push his body to its very limits, allowing him to activate the Combat Hibernation Technique and rapidly grow stronger.
But as his body got tougher, normal training had become less and less effective.
Only a fight with someone like Garp—one of the strongest men alive—could drive him to that brink.
"Be ready, Ace!"
Garp charged, fist swinging.
"Whoosh!"
Ace's body burst into flames, his form dissolving into flickering fire as he shot away like a comet.
"You've already mastered elemental transformation to this degree?"
Garp's gaze sharpened as he watched the flames whip away.
Even for seasoned warriors, it took time to adapt after eating a Devil Fruit. He had just explained the powers of the Flame-Flame Fruit to Ace earlier, but to see him wield it so fluidly right after eating it?
That was something else entirely.
"Well then, guess I'd better take you a bit more seriously."
"Don't think that just because you've got a Logia-type Devil Fruit, you're untouchable. Time for a taste of Grandpa's Fist of Love!"
A slick shade of black surged across Garp's fist—Armament Haki.
"Fwish—fwash!"
With a thunderous footstep, Garp vanished, his body blurring into afterimages.
Navy Six Powers—Soru!
"Fast!"
Ace's pupils shrank as Garp reappeared above him in the blink of an eye.
"Whoosh!"
Ace funneled the entire force of the Flame-Flame Fruit into his right arm, the limb igniting completely.
Then—he struck.
"Fire Fist!"
Ace's punch erupted forward as a roaring blaze, his entire fist transformed into a howling dragon of fire, charging straight toward Garp.
The heat distorted the air, shaking the atmosphere like a furnace exploding.
Garp blinked. For a moment, even he was surprised.
To think Ace could pull this off moments after eating the fruit…
This kid really is something. He's got to become a proper Marine!
"Time for Grandpa's Love Punch, Ace!"
Garp's blackened fist came down, steady and calm—not flashy like Ace's roaring flames, but somehow even more terrifying in its simplicity.
And then—
"BAM! BAM! BAM!"
"AGH—DAMN YOU, OLD MAN! YOU ACTUALLY HIT ME!"
Ace's voice echoed across the island, full of righteous indignation.
"Huff—huff—huff!"
He lay sprawled on the ground, panting hard, every muscle screaming in protest. It felt like his entire body had been wrung out like a wet towel.
Beside a crackling campfire, Garp was nonchalantly seasoning the fish and Sea Kings Ace had caught earlier.
"Bwahahaha! Ace, I gotta say—your powers are great for barbecuing!"
Garp roared with laughter as he looked at Ace lying flat like a cooked fish.
"Don't get cocky, old man. One day, I'm gonna send you flying," Ace muttered, barely moving his mouth as even that triggered waves of pain across his body.
Damn, getting hit with Haki really hurts.
Still, Ace wasn't surprised he lost. He'd gone up against Iron Fist Garp, one of the absolute strongest in the world.
But more importantly—he'd achieved his goal. He could feel it: his body was teetering on the edge, ready to trigger the Combat Hibernation Technique.
And this time… it felt like the breakthrough would be greater than ever before.
"Oh? I'm looking forward to that day! Bwahahaha!"
Garp guffawed again, clearly enjoying himself.
"Well, the fish is just about—"
"Fwoosh!"
Before he could finish, Ace—who'd been motionless seconds ago—suddenly sprang to life and bolted toward the grilled Sea King meat, shoveling it into his mouth like a man possessed.
The hundred-meter-long Sea King, roasted to perfection, began disappearing at an alarming rate right before Garp's eyes.
"Oi! You damn brat! Leave some for me!!"
---
TL/N:
Access 40 chapters in advance on my Patreon: [email protected]/juanfiction (Replace @ with 'a')