Chapter 9- Juli's arrival at Marine HQ
One hour later…
Juli looked with wide eyes at the sight before her. As the Gate of Justice opened, she could see the crescent moon shaped island, Marineford. "Wow…Smokie-kun, is this Marineford?" Juli said in awe.
Smoker exhaled smoke from his cigars. "Yes…" He watched a marine ship sail past them.
Their ship entered the bay and docked. Juli and Smoker walked off it.
Juli smiled cheerily and looked at everything in interest.
Smoker shook his head in fondness.
"Ahh…It's nice to meet you Juli-sama. I hope your journey was pleasant." Someone said politely.
Juli and Smoker turned around, just to see Fleet Admiral Sengoku standing before them.
Smoker stiffened. "Fleet Admiral Sengoku." He greeted with a nod.
Sengoku nodded back and looked at Juli in interest.
Juli smiled brightly at him and bowed with her head a bit. "Nice to meet you too, Sengoku-san. My journey was really exciting and fun, I met a lot of nice people, like Smokie-kun." She giggled cheerily as Smoker blushed.
A small smile lit Sengoku's face. 'Smokie-kun, huh?' Amusement danced in his eyes. "I'm glad the trouble you had, didn't disturb you. Now, do you want to go into my office and meet new people, Juli-sama?"
Juli smiled cheerily. "Sure, and you can just call me Juli, Sengoku-san." She looked at Smoker and smiled brightly at him. "I will see you again someday, Smokie-kun. Have a save journey home." She hugged him, and because he didn't expect that, Smoker blushed an interesting shade of red.
"Yeah, see you…" He mumbled embarrassed and literally stormed back onto the ship.
Sengoku couldn't help it, he laughed loudly in amusement. "My, my, looks like you have Smoker wrapped around your little finger, huh, Juli-hime?"
Juli looked up to him with big, innocent eyes and blinked in confusion. 'What does he mean?'
Sengoku shook his head and walked towards the Marine HQ building. "I will show you my office. Follow me, Juli-hime."
She followed him and looked in awe at the buildings they passed.
Inside Sengoku's office…
Sengoku sat down besides Juli, on the couch. "I'm really glad you accepted the invitation. I'm sure you will like it here."
Juli smiled and accepted the cup of tea, he gave her. "Mhm…I'm looking forward to meet all different marine ranks and to speak with them, so I can obtain a picture about the marines for myself." She sipped on the tea.
Sengoku smiled. 'She is really as kind as the newspaper say…not so arrogant like other royals…And she really, truly wants to learn about the marines…I'm impressed to say at least.'
Juli closed her eyes shortly and sensed the emotions inside G-1, or Marine HQ if you call it specifically. She smiled brightly as she couldn't sense any bad emotions. She took another sip from the delicious tea. "What type of tea is that? It tastes really good."
Sengoku smiled at her. "That's a special green tea for the marines. We get it as gratefulness present from the famers."
"That's really nice." She giggled cheerfully, but then suddenly looked at the door in confusion.
Sengoku narrowed his eyes and put his cup down. "What's wrong…"
Before he could finish his sentence with a loud crash, someone burst right through his wall. "Bwahahahahaha…. Yo, Sengoku! I brought rice crackers!" Garp laughed cheerily and lifted the bag of crackers up for him to see.
Sengoku's eyebrow twitched dangerously. "Damn it Garp! Can't you see we have a guest?! And can't you just use the door like a damn normal person?!" He shouted at him.
"Huh?" Garp said and blinked in confusion.
Juli giggled amused and put her cup of tea down.
Garp looked at her and then he realized it. "Oh…Bwahahahaha. I'm sorry I didn't see you there. I'm Monkey D. Garp." He grinned brightly.
Sengoku face-palmed. "Sorry Juli-hime, Garp is a little bit…. eccentric…."
Juli giggled cheerfully and waved dismissingly with her hand. "Oh, it's nothing." She looked at Garp with a soft smile on her lips. "My name is Kurama Juli, nice to meet you Garp-san."
Garp sat down next to her. "Oh? You're Kurama Juli-hime. You are as nice as the newspaper say." He opened the bag of crackers and began to eat.
Juli smiled softly. "Thank you. Do you want some tea, Garp-san?"
Garp looked at her. "Bwahahaha. Sure! After all, you can't say no when a pretty lady offers you some tea!" He took the cup of tea, Juli offered him.
Sengoku sweat dropped at the scene. 'Juli completely ignored the weirdness of this crazy batshit old man…' He sighed and looked at Juli. "Juli-hime I have to inform the Admirals about your arrival, so you can meet them. Is it okay to leave you here with Garp?"
Juli smiled cheerily. "Sure. I'm absolutely fine with Garp-san." 'I can sense it, he's a good man. Just like Sengoku, he has the heart on the right place, but he's actually caring for his comrades even more than Sengoku.'
"Bwahahahaha. Sengoku don't be so stern. I will take care of her, while you are gone." Garp said casually with his mouth full of crackers. (as casually as possible with a mouth full of crackers)
Sengoku sighed and walked out of the room, hoping Juli didn't run away after being alone with Garp for too long.
Juli giggled and took a sip from her tea.
Garp looked at her in thought as he crunched loudly on the crackers. "How old are you?" He suddenly blurted out after a comfortable moment of silence.
Juli blinked and smiled softly at him. "I'm fifteen, but in four days I'm turning sixteen."
"Oh…" Garp said and took a sip from his tea. 'She's about the same age as my grandsons…. And she is already so pretty…Someone has to protect her from the filthy looks of those damn perverted men….' Suddenly he grinned happily. 'I always wanted a granddaughter anyways…'
Juli tilted her head in confusion as she could sense protective emotions from Garp. "Is everything alright, Garp-san?"
"Huh?" Garp looked at her cute confused expression and inwardly squealed. "Do you want a rice cracker?"
Juli blinked and smiled happily. "Yes, gladly." She took the rice cracker and munched on it happily.
Garp laughed happily and petted her head.
Just then the door opened and Sengoku entered. As he looked at Juli and Garp, who are both happily munching rice crackers, he sweat dropped. 'I dont know what's going on, but why do I have the feeling that Garp now has another grandchild to brag about…?' He shook his head and sat down next to Juli's other side.
"Oh, Sengoku you're back." Garp said and grinned at him.
Sengoku just sighed. He looked at Juli. "The admirals will come here soon. Till then, I think we can enjoy some more tea."
Juli giggled cheerily at that. Sengoku watched with mixed emotions as Garp bent down and whispered something into Juli's ear.
Juli nodded and smiled softly. Garp gave her a rice cracker. Sengoku looked at them confused, before he shrugged and took a sip from his tea.
"Sengoku-jiji…" Juli said and looked at him.
Sengoku spluttered. "Eehhh?!" He shouted confused and looked at Juli.
Juli looked at him with the cutest expression and with the biggest puppy-dog eyes, he has ever seen. "Sengoku-jiji, do you want a rice cracker?" She held a rice cracker towards him.
Sengoku gulped and began to sweat. 'Kawaii!' He blushed. "S-sure…" He took the rice cracker from Juli and looked away.
Garp couldn't hold his laughter anymore, he burst out laughing with tears in his eyes. "Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha."
Juli giggled amused, as Sengoku blushed a deep shade of red. "Garp! That's not funny!" He shouted embarrassed.
Garp just continued laughing. "You sh-should h-have seen your face! It was hilarious! Bwahahahahaha!" He petted Juli's head, as she smiled softly.
"Someday I will kill that crazy batshit old man…" Sengoku mumbled depressed and ate his rice cracker.
"Ara, ara, isn't it lively here?" Aokiji said as he, Kizaru and Akainu entered the room.
"Oohhh, yoouuu coouulld saay thaaat." Kizaru said amused.
Akainu just folded his arms in front of his chest, looking as sternly as ever.
Sengoku coughed awkwardly and stood up. Juli followed his example and stood up too. Just Garp remained sitting and munching crackers.
"Juli-hime, that are the three admirals Aokiji, Kizaru and Akainu." Sengoku pointed at them, as he said their names.
Juli looked at each one of them. Aokiji is an incredibly tall, slim and muscular man. He has black curly hair, tanned skin and an altogether lean, long build. He wears a white button-up vest with standing collar over a long-sleeved navy-blue shirt, with matching white trousers and black dress shoes. He also wears a yellow tie and a sleep mask on his forehead.
'I'm getting good vibes from him, he seems to be the same type of marine like Garp-jiji and Sengoku-jiji.' Juli thought happily.
Next to him stood Kizaru, who is an incredibly tall man too. He has a moderate number of wrinkles on his face, black hair, and a very thin beard. He wears a yellow striped suit with a Marine coat draped over his shoulders like a cape, his arms not in its sleeves. Kizaru also wears pure white shoes, gold-amber tinted sunglasses, and a dark green shirt with a mauve tie under his yellow suit.
'Mmhh…I can't really figure him out…I think he cares about his comrades, but he also follows strictly the lines of justice.' Juli thought a bit confused, because she can't really figure him out.
Next to Kizaru stood Akainu, who is an incredibly tall, light-skinned, unusually muscular man. He has a square-shaped face, very pronounced facial features and short black hair. Akainu wears a standard Marine cap and sports a crimson, double-breasted suit, decorated with a pink rose on his left buttonhole. He left his light colored flower-patterned shirt unbuttoned showing his muscular neck and part of his tattoo. He also wears black gloves and shoes.
'...He seems to have a really cold heart…He follows his way of justice without having regards about somebody or something…I wonder what happened to him to make him so emotionless…' Juli shook her head and smiled softly at the three, who towered above her. "Nice to meet you, I'm Kurama Juli." She bowed with her head, surprising the three.
"Ara, Ara, I'm flattered." Aokiji said and blushed a bit. 'A princess, bowing to me and then as well such a pretty one, never happened before…I think…'
"Ooohhh, niiccee ttoo mmeeeett yyoouu ttoooo, Jjuullii-hhiimmee…" Kizaru said in his amused tone.
Akainu looked at her in interest. "It's a pleasure, Juli-sama." He said sternly, but he had an unknown glint in his eyes.
Juli smiled cheerily.
Sengoku smiled. "Anyway, it was a long day for you, Juli-hime. Tomorrow you can get a tour around base, if you want to. Aokiji will show you your room. Have a good night."
Juli smiled at him softly. "Thanks Sengoku-jiji, have a good night too."
That surprised the three admirals again, as well as Sengoku, who blushed a bit.
"Bwahahahahaha. I will give you a tour tomorrow, Juli-chan. Sweet dreams!" Garp said from his place on the couch.
Juli giggled amused. "You too, Garp-jiji."
Garp choked on his rice cracker, coughed and blushed pleased.
Aokiji sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Ara, ara~"
"Kizaru-san, Akainu-san, have a good night rest as well." Juli smiled softly towards them, as she and Aokiji left the office.
She followed Aokiji through the corridors.
As they were on the highest corridor, he stopped before a door and turned around to look at her. "That will be your room. You will have your own bathroom, because…. ehm I forgot…"
Juli giggled amused. "That's fine."
Aokiji smiled at her. "Anyway, my room is there, directly across from yours. Next to my room on the right is Akainu's room and one the left is Kizaru's room. Ehm…if you need something or you need help, just ask one of us…ehmm…maybe not Akainu he is a bit grumpy…"
Juli smiled brightly at him. "Thanks! If I need help I'll ask someone. Sleep well, Aokiji-san!" She opened the door and looked around the room. It was a very big, comfortable room with a king-sized bed. Next to the bed was a bedside cabinet. Next to the door on the right side was a little closet with a mirror and a door, through which you could enter the bathroom.
'What a comfy room, reminds me of my room at home.' She hummed in content and changed into her white night gown. 'It was really a long day, I'm sleepy.' And with that, Juli laid down on the bed and fell into a dreamless sleep.
The next day…
As Juli woke up, she took a long shower.
Just as she wanted to change into her dress, she wore the first day of her journey, with a big crash, Garp walked right through the newly made hole next to her door.
"Kyaaa!" She shouted in surprise.
"Good morning, Juli-chan." Garp shouted cheerfully and just then he noticed her standing next to the closet, wearing only her underwear. He froze in shock.
Juli blinked in confusion. "Garp-jiji…?"
"Waahhh…I'm sorry Juli-chan. Change, you have all the time in the world." He turned around and walked through the hole and waited before it, so nobody could watch her change. "I'm waiting here." 'I really have to stop doing that…and I have to tell somebody to fix that hole before tonight…'
Aokiji walked out of the door across from Juli's room. He lifted his sleeping mask from his eyes and looked sleepy at Garp. "What's all that noise about, so early in the morning?"
Garp rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Bwahahahaha. I wanted to pick Juli-chan up and crashed through the wall as usual…"
Aokiji sighed. "You should really stop that, Garp-san. Now someone has to repair it, again." He walked towards the hole, to inspect it, but before he could see anything (or should I say someone) he had to dodge Garp's fist. "Wha...?" He looked at Garp in confusion.
Garp still had his fist raised. "Don't come a step nearer! I will not allow you to peek on my cute little granddaughter!"
Aokiji sighed again. 'Too much tumult in the morning…' "I'm sorry, I didn't want to peek on Juli-hime, I just wanted to see the damage you had done…"
"Oh…" Garp said and rubbed the back of his head, again. "Bwahahahahaha, sorry."
Just then Juli went out of the door and smiled cheerfully at them. "Good morning, Aokiji-san. Garp-jiji, I'm ready, we can go now."
Aokiji sighed, put his sleeping mask back over his eyes and went into his room. "It's too early for a good morning." He mumbled before closing the door.
Juli giggled amused and looked at Garp as she followed him through the corridor. "So Garp-jiji, what are we going to do first?"
"I will give you a tour through the building and then we will go eat some breakfast in the cafeteria. After that, I will introduce you to the lower ranks, I train and you can talk to them if you want to." He shrugged. "Anyway, let's begin with the tour and go annoy Sengoku. Bwahahahahaha."
Juli giggled and shook her head in fondness, as she followed after Garp.
After the tour through the building…
"Wow, Marine HQ is really big." Juli said as they both were on the way to the cafeteria.
"Bwahahahahahaha. It really is." Garp laughed cheerfully. "Oh, I hope they have donuts~."
She giggled. "Garp-jiji you really like donuts, huh?"
"Of course, I do! Donuts are the best!" Garp said enthusiastic as they both entered the cafeteria.
"Sure, sure." Juli smiled softly.
All the talking stopped inside the cafeteria. The men all turned around to look at Juli and Garp. As the men saw her, they all got hearts in their eyes and blushed heavily, openly ogling at her beauty.
"Juli-chan go first and take what you want." Garp said seriously.
Juli blinked, but did what he said, and so walked first.
Just as she turned Garp her back, he glared dangerously at the men who were ogling at her.
Juli took a plate and looked at the buffet. 'Wow, so much to choose….' She looked next to her as Garp joined her chanting donuts all the way towards them. She giggled and, in the end, she chooses a healthy muesli and a full plate of choco-strawberries.
Garp smiled at the food on her plate. "Bwahahahaha…looks like you like choco-strawberries, huh?"
Juli giggled as she looked at his eight plates full of donuts. "I see you got your donuts."
Garp laughed loudly and walked towards an almost empty table, with no men sitting on it. "Let's sit down here."
She followed him and sat down beside him. On her other side sat a woman with pink hair and red lipstick. Just as they sat down, Garp began to dig in into his donuts happily. Juli shook her head in fondness and ate a choco-strawberry.
"Oh, Hina is surprised that someone sat next to Vice-Admiral Garp willingly. What's your name? I'm Hina." The woman next to Juli, named Hina, asked her.
Juli smiled at her softly. "My name is Kurama Juli, nice to meet you."
Hina's eyes widened. "Oh, you're Kurama Juli-hime. It's an honor for Hina to meet you."
"So, you're Juli-hime, hm? I'm surprised you're willing to be with this crazy old man." An elderly woman, who sat directly across from her, said amused.
Garp stopped stuffing his mouth full with donuts. "Oh Tsuru-chan." He said with a full mouth.
Tsuru's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "Don't speak with your mouth full, Garp."
Juli giggled amused. "So, you're Tsuru, it's nice to meet you too." She began to slowly eat her muesli.
"Oh, you can call this old lady here Tsuru-chan, Juli-hime. So, how do you like it in Marine HQ so far?" Tsuru smiled friendly.
"Oh, it's very nice and big. I didn't meet very much people yet, but Garp-jiji wants to introduce me to some of them later." She smiled softly and ate another choco-strawberry.
"Garp-jiji?" Tsuru sighed and looked at Garp scolding. "You made her your granddaughter?"
"Bwahahahaha…I always wanted a cute little granddaughter, so…" Garp said and grinned brightly.
Tsuru just sighed, already accustomed to the crazy old man.
After they finished breakfast and talked a while longer with Hina and Tsuru, Garp and Juli walked outside.
"So, let's show you the training grounds and let you meet some marines." Garp said enthusiastic, already planning on how to punish those, who will look at his cute granddaughter the wrong way.
Juli smiled softly, ready to meet new people.
So, that was this week's chapter. :) How did you like it? I really loved the funny scenes between Juli, Sengoku and Garp. :D And isn't it cute how protective Garp of Juli is? :3
Anyway, in the next chapter, Juli will meet the lower ranked marines, while Grandpa Garp tries to protect her from the intentions of the men. ;)
See you next week!
Review
'OtakuQueenbee': This was really cute 3
Anyone who's Garp's granddaughter would be lucky XD
Aww...thank you :3.
And you're right, if Garp would be like this in real life, I would beg him to be my grandpa. XD
