Chapter 32
See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak no Evil
"NAGAGAGA! I'm coming in, guys!" "I'm coming in, too!" *NYAH~* *GERO GERO!*
Kokoro, Chimney, Gombe, and Yokozuna opened the door to the living area the Straw-Hats have been staying in the last few days.
…Well, Kokoro, Chimney, and Gonbe entered. Even with having two doors, Yokozuna couldn't fit through the doorway. He was a giant frog after all, *GERO!*
"Yokozuna! Just stay outside!" Even if she knew Iceberg since he was a tyke, she didn't want to explain a giant hole where the doors should have been.
The Straw-Hats were actually staying in a wing of Galley-La's new temporary headquarters; and technically Iceberg's house. It was built over the ruins of the old company headquarters, since the old building had been burnt down during Aqua Laguna. It had been only two days since their assault on Enies Lobby, and this little manse had actually been built in a day.
Their little wing had actually been built for them. It was a spacious hall, with amenities nearby. They had access to a kitchen, bathtub, washroom, and they slept in three bunkbeds. Maxwell suspected once they were gone, Iceberg would convert this space into an entertainment hall. One for meant for meetings, guests, and such.
"Kokoro! Chimney! Good to see you two," Maxwell greeted the station conductor. He was sitting at a coffee table having lunch, and a cup of coffee and a newspaper. He then saw Yokozuna open a shutter and poke his head through a window, "Hello to you too, Yokozuna."
*Gero.* The frog grinned.
"Everyone's finally awake now, eh?" Kokoro asked the current occupants. Only Sanji, Nami, Luffy, and Maxwell were currently in the wing. Zoro had gone out to reflect over their battle and secretly mourn the death of his katana, Yubashiri. The blade had been corroded to the point of breaking, done by a Devil Fruit user amongst the marines. Robin and Chopper were out and about. They had gone to check-up on the Franky Familly's injuries and collect groceries for tonight's dinner.
"You guys must've really been tired. You slept for two whole days... I can understand though." Thankfully everyone had returned safely. The Franky Family were in the midst of rebuilding their old home, while Paulie, Lulu, and Tombstone were out leading the reconstruction effort of Water 7. According to the newspaper, this had been the hardest hitting Aqua Laguna to date. Sodom, the king yagura bull, had survived, thank the Maker. The giants that had helped them, Oimo and Kashii, had picked up the sea monsters as they were all escaped on the Puffing Tom. They were staying at the cove while they were guests on the island.
As for Usopp… Well, they hadn't seen him since they made landfall.
"Oh~" Kokoro then notice Luffy eating at the kitchen table. He was currently the only occupant, with Sanji bringing out dish after dish for him to stuff himself. "The future Pirate King is even more energetic than ever!"
"Eh…" Sanji couldn't help but exasperate at those word, "Not exactly."
"What do you mean?" Kokoro asked the chef. Luffy was sitting and eating right there.
"Luffy hates missing meals after fights," Sanji explained, "so he somehow learned how to eat while sleeping."
"HE'S SLEEPING LIKE THAT!?" Kokoro balked in surprise.
To be honest, it was disgusting watching Luffy eat like that. Maxwell had long since accepted Luffy was a pig when it came to table manners. However, seeing him with a snot bubble, eyes closed, and stuffing a slice of pork cutlet in his jaws was just mortifying. Luffy had already gone through 11 platters of eggs, sausages, bacon, pork, beef, and chicken. And there was no telling when he was going to be finished. Nothing but meat for the captain.
"Pirate Bro is amazing!" Chimney looked at the scene in awe. Sanji and Gombe were a little less thrilled.
"He's so skilful." *Nya…*
Kokoro then looked over to Nami, who was also at the coffee table, "The log pose should be ready in a couple of days, right? What will you do now?"
The navigator was clearly depressed, lying her face on the table and making circles with her finger, "…Even if the log pose will be ready, we can't really go anywhere. The 100 million beli to buy us a new ship… all of our clothes and furniture… even Bellemere's tangerine trees… they were all taken away buy Aqua Laguna… We're stuck here…."
"We stored them all in the Backsteet's Inn," Sanji explained.
"Hm… Then our guests might be able to help with that," Kokoro took another swig of rum.
"Guests?" Maxwell thought Iceberg had been hiding them from civilians. From what Maxwell had read, Water 7 considered the Straw-Hat Pirates to be their newest heroes. Oh they didn't know the full story, but they knew the Straw-Hats had been framed and helped punish the assassins that had been after Iceberg's life. Who could it be?
"MY TANGERINE TREES!" Nami immediately hugged one of the root bagged fruit trees, "I never thought I'd see them again! I'M SO HAPPY~!"
A man with a cowboy hat decided to explain, "Uh, funny story. We kinda took all your belongs when we decided you were to be kicked out." He must've been the owner of the hotel. Maxwell recognized the other guy.
"We also took some of the stuff on your old ship when we thought you were Iceberg's assassins. Sorry about that," the guest teller apologized.
"Oh no, thank you so much!" Nami wiggled cuddling the tree. All their belongings had been returned! Maxwell's treasure chest, Sanji's kitchenware, Chopper's medicine cabinet, the women cabin's furniture, even the ammunition and storage supplies from Merry's haul had been brought back! The men soon took their leave after that.
Then Robin and Chopper came in, "We're back~!" They both wore Galley-La sponsored t-shirts, carrying a bag each of food.
Sanji took the bags while Chopper spoke, "I examined the Franky Familly's injuries. Gomorrah should recover his eyesight after he rests for a few days." The little doctor then saluted the chef, "Don't worry. I didn't take my eyes off of Robin, either!"
"Right!" Sanji then clapped his legs, straightened his back, and saluted back, "Good job, Chopper."
"Fufufu," Robin giggled at his little bodyguard, "Don't worry, I'm not go anywhere."
Nami spun in a twirl, "Look guys! My tangerine trees are safe. Our money and belongs are safe too! We can continue our adventures!"
"Really!? YAY~!" Chopper jumped for joy, knowing they were no longer stuck on Water 7.
"OW~!" The doors then burst open and Franky and the Square sisters did a pose, "YOU GUYS BEING SUPER!?"
"Maker's mercy, Franky! Put some pants on! No one wants to see your hairy ass!" Maxwell blanched at the angled square pose the trio did with their butts poised. The girls he might accepted, but Maxwell didn't want to see Franky's skintight undies.
"…Meh, not all of you are here, but that's alright!" Franky and the girls then sat on the floor, "I got someting to tell you, so listen! …On an island with a never ending war—"
"What is this all of a sudden!?" Sanji fumed at the cyborg with two lovely ladies, "I won't listen if it's just some boring story."
"Hush! Just listen quietly!" Franky scolded the chef.
"…Now as I was saying. On an island with a never ending war, there was a huge tree that never fell. Even if the people started a war, rained bullets upon each other, or if everyone died and left the island in ruins… People would still go back to that tree and used it to rebuild towns and nations. There are only a few trees like that in the world. Each one is huge, robust, and constantly growing. But that island's tree, the strongest tree, is the Treasure Tree, Adam."
"The Treasure Tree?" Chopper tilted his head in confusion.
"Parts of the tree appear on the black Maket once in a while," Frank spread his hands, "I've always wanted to have the, but I couldn't because the asking price is nearly 200 million beli. And then you guys appeared… A group of pirates flaunting around a crap-load of cash—"
"YOU BASTARD! DON'T TELL ME YOU ACTUALLY BOUGHT THAT CRAP WITH OUR MONEY!?"
"JUST LISTEN!" Franky shouted back at the cook, "Once… I once made a decision not to build ships anymore. But before I knew it, I was already drawing up blueprints because I wanted to catch up to the person I look up too…" Franky then bowed, with his fists in front—on the floor, "My dream is to make a 'dream ship,' with the Treasure Tree! One that can cross any sea! I've had the blueprints fro ages. Now I have the Adam wood as well! I plan to build this ship. So, when I finish it, will you guys sail with the ship that I made!?"
"Wait—What!?" Maxwell nearly jumped out of his chair. Chopper's own eyes bulged out of his head.
"Then—! Are you giving us a ship!?" Sanji asked urgently.
"That's right. What would make me the happiest is to have someone I favour to sail with it. Besides, I got the money from you guys anyway." Franky grinned at the inside joke. "The only ship that managed to go around the world was Gol D. Roger's ship, the Oro Jackson. That ship was also made from the wood of the Adam Tree. It'll make a terrific ship."
Kokoro giggled, "Nagaga… I guess it can't be helped. You and Tom were craftsmen after all."
Franky got of the floor and smiled to Tom's memory, "Yeah… Now I can understand Tom's feelings, how he died with pride."
"YEAHHOOOO~!" the pirate crew cheered.
"YOU'RE SUCH A GOOD GUY!" Chopper bowed up and down, "WE'LL TAKE IT! THANKS FRANKY!"
"Wuhoo! We can go to the next island!" Sanji was eager to seen where they'll go next.
"I'M SO HAPPY~!" Nami jumped up and down. She was so happy she even turned to their sleeping captain, "LUFFY! WE'RE GETTING A NEW SHIP!"
Maxwell and Robin didn't cry out like the rest of their crewmates, but they both looked at each other and smiled. They got a ship, they got their stuff. Soon be going on a whole new adventure!
*BOOM!*
That was if the wall didn't suddenly get demolished.
"WHAT THE—!?" "WHO IS THAT!?"
A marine with a dog like cap then entered the hole he had made, "You… You're the Straw-Hat Pirates, aren't you? I brought someone I'd like Monkey D. Luffy to meet." His voice was gravely from age, but he was large and had muscle under that formal attire. Worse, he had a smile Maxwell couldn't quite place.
"Marines!" Sanji, Franky, Chopper, and Maxwell immediately moved in front of the table where Luffy was sleeping. However, before they even realized it, the marine had disappeared.
"WAKE UP, LUFFY!" Maxwell and the others quickly turned around to see the marine punch Luffy into the floorboards, shattering the chair he was on.
"YEOW~! OWOWOWOWOW!" Luffy was suddenly awake and was clutching his forehead in pain.
"'Ow!?' It was a punch! How would that have hurt you!? You're made of rubber!" Sanji yelled to his captain, confused.
The marine then started to take his dog costume head off, "Hehe. There's no way anyone can escape from the Fist of Love! I heard you've been causing a ruckus, eh, Luffy!"
Luffy quickly realized who it was with the doggy mask off, "EH!? G-G-GRANDPA!?"
Maxwell blinked, "What!? Grandpa!?"
And that sentiment was held by just about everyone else. A marine was Luffy's grandfather!?
"Well, Luffy, don't you owe me an apology?"
Maxwell shook his head out of confusion and approached between the two family members, "Wait a moment! Just—who are you!?" He could see the resemblance. Luffy often had the same toothy grin his grandfather was showing.
"Huh?" Luffy's grandfathere then noticed Maxwell standing beside them, "You don't know? Eh, that's alright. The name's Monkey D. Garp. Vice Admiral of the Marines."
"Wait—! Garp!? As in Garp the Hero!?" Nami exclaimed.
"Luffy! Is he really your grandfather!?" Sanji asked his captain. Monkey D. Garp was famous for being the man that chased Gol D. Roger around the world. He was practically the Pirate King's arch-nemesis!
Luffy rubbed his forehead staring intently at Garp, "Yes! And don't mess with him! Or else you'll all get killed!"
Maxwell blinked once again. It wasn't every day Luffy actively told you not to fight against someone. Especially someone who even Luffy feared, "Grandpa's nearly killed me so many times in the past."
"Oi oi, don't say such scandalous things," Garp let out a huff, "I may have pushed you into a bottomless pit, threw you into the jungle at night, and tied you to some balloons and sent you flying, but all of that was done so you could become a strong man!"
…
…
…
He wasn't even repentant about it!
"…I think I just saw the root of Luffy's endless vitality…!" Sanji blanched. That sounded like something Luffy would do to train someone… Then walk off and get some meat.
"Hmph. In the end, I entrusted you to a friend of mine and had you trained with Ace, but as soon as I took my eyes off you, this happened… I TRAINED YOU TO BE A STRONG MARINE!" Garp scolded his grandson.
Luffy leapt to his feet, "AND I ALWAYS TOLD YOU I WANTED TO BE A PIRATE!"
"NONSENSE! YOUR JUST UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF THAT DASTARDLY RED HAIR!" "SH-SHANKS SAVED MY LIFE! DON'T YOU DARE SPEAK ILL OF HIM!" "ARE TELLING YOUR OWN GRANDFATHER WHAT TO DO!?" "GYAH! I'M SORRY!"
…There we're no words about what Maxwell was feeling right now. Would this have been life back at the Trevelyan estate? His own family were known for being a bunch of hotheads after all.
"No shit…! He doesn't even try to fight his grandfather!" Sanji watch the two with a bit of an awed expression. Garp had Luffy lifted by the shirt and had his fist raised, ready to punch him again.
"OH MY GOSH! A MARINE CAPTURED LUFFY!" Chopper screamed in terror.
"Luffy!" Nami also cried in concern. However…
"ZZZ!" "ZZZ!"
"THEY FELL ASLEEP!?"
Maxwell facepalmed. Both grandad and grandson had fallen asleep in their confrontation. They both had their heads leaned back with snot bubbles coming out of their noses. Garp still stood in the same standing position while Luffy was hoisted by his shirt.
"No way…! What should we do!?" asked Franky, "I've never even seen anything like this!"
Garp's bubble then burst and the grandfather woke up, "Oh crap… I fell asleep." He then saw Luffy sleeping in his grip, which urge him to start pummelling his grandson.
"WAKE UP LUFFY! HOW CAN YOU DISPLAY SUCH AN ATTITUDE WHEN I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF SCOLDING YOU!?" "GYAH!" "FIRST OF ALL, HOW DARE YOU SPEAK LIKE THAT TO YOUR GRANDFATHER!?" "GYAH!" "I COME ALL THIS WAY, AND THE FIRST THING YOU DO IS SPEAK BAD OF ME!?" "GYAH!" "QUIT YOUR BELLYACHING AND TAKE YOUR SCOLDING LIKE A MAN!" "GYAH!"
"…Alright. Where's my wine?" Maxwell elected to ignore this and find his trunk with that bottle of wine he had inside. One Luffy was enough. This was getting ridiculous.
"Ow ow ow ow!" Luffy clutched his head as Garp dropped him. He now sported a pair of goosenecks that looked like horns.
"Listen, do you even know what kind of guy that Red Hair is!?" Garp asked his grandson.
"…Shanks?" Luffy then realized Garp actually knew something about his saviour, "Are Shanks and the others okay!? Where are they!?"
Garp crossed his arms, "Hmph… Whether or not he's okay, there are numerous pirates out there. However, Red Hair is now one of the four most powerful pirates, alongside Whitebeard. We call those four pirates, the Yonko! They reign like emperors over the latter half of the Grand Line, so Marineford and the Seven Warlords exist in order to counterbalance those four! Their power is so influential that the peace we've established would crumble if we didn't have our institutions in place."
Maxwell paused while looking through his stash. Four pirates, with the power to upset the world order, and Luffy knew one of them!?
Luffy just looked at his straw hat, "I don't really understand, but I'm happy to hear they're doing fine. Man~ I miss them…"
Maxwell gaped at Luffy. How did he not understand that!?
Robin looked back at Nami, "…Luffy has a connection to Red Hair Shanks…!?"
Nami begins to sweat a bit, "Luffy's taking care of that straw hat on behalf of him. I didn't know he was that influential though…"
A ruckus then began to stir outside. "Hmm? What's going on?" Garp asked. The vice-admiral technically hadn't come alone. He had a contingent of marines waiting outside acting an honour guard.
One of Garps men, in a trench coat and fedora, approached the hole in the wall, "It's Pirate Hunter Zoro, the one with the higher bounty."
Maxwell's eye twitched. Did he really need to point that out?
"I see…" Garp began to grin again, "Luffy's nakama, right? He seems to be doing well." Garp then turned other two marines, that weren't fighting, "Well, boys… Try to stop him."
"YES SIR!" The two marines saluted. Then the one with long hair leapt for Zoro, spinning a pair of bent shortswords. Zoro blocked, but the marine was rather acrobatic. With Zoro occupied, the rest of the marines backed off so the two could duel.
Luffy then rushed outside, "Hey! Zoro wait! You don't have to be so violent!"
"Wait—! Luffy!" Maxwell followed his captain outside. Luffy was still recovering from his fight on Enies Lobby, and there were marines outside. But before he could do anything, the second marine then appeared in front of Luffy, and kicked up, catching Luffy's chin.
"Bwa! What the hell, you bastard!?" Luffy grunted. He didn't want to fight his grandfather's men, but this guy asked for it! Luffy fired an extend fist at the marine, but somehow this guys disappeared, "This attack…!" It was like those CP9 guys.
The marine came up behind Luffy, but clearly this guy wasn't like the CP9. Luffy caught him by the collar and slammed him into the ground. He had his fist cocked, ready to punch the marine, but the lad raised his hand to protect his face and surrender. Zoro had his own opponent at his mercy. His two katanas were at either side of the marine's neck while he knelt, disarmed.
"Chief Petty Officer!" "Petty Officer!" The marines called out for their superiors. The pirates had taken them out so easily!
Garp just laughed, "BWAHAHAHA! They were no match after all."
"Ha… You're still so strong. Amazing! I give up." Luffy blinked, looking down on the marine he had pinned. Why was he praising him? Still, since he gave up, Luffy let him go. The marine got up and dusted his pants off, "Luffy, Zoro, Maxwell. Long time no see. Do you know who I am?"
Maxwell was surprised to hear his name, but Luffy was the one to ask, "Who are you?"
"It's me! Coby! Don't you remember me!?"
"Wait... Coby!?" Maxwell approached the marine to get a good look at him. It was Coby alright! He had really filled out since they last saw him. His chin had becoming more pronounced and now had a little scar on his forehead. Coby's glasses were up in his pink hairline over, a yellow floral pattern bandanna.
"Good to see you, Mr. Maxwell. Sorry I couldn't fight you, but I just had to try against Luffy!" The young marine smiled.
"Coby!?" Luffy looked at him hard, "Coby's my friend… But the Coby I know was a bit smaller."
Coby smiled, raising his fists his his elbows at his sides, "That's me! I'm the former crybaby, Coby."
"FOR REAL!" Luffy's eyes bulged, realizing this really was Coby. He couldn't believe it! Coby really did have a growth spurt.
Zoro seemed to remember him too, sheathing his two swords, "That Coby!? How did you end up in the Grand Line!?"
"Hehe. I'm not a marine officer yet. But when I heard that you three were nearby, I just had to meet you guys!" Coby then saluted, "So here we are now, thanks to you!"
"Hmph. Well, I wouldn't go that far, Coby." The marine with the kukri knives stood beside Coby. This guy was a bit more formally dressed, and had a band of glass covering his eyes.
"And you are…?" Maxwell asked the marine.
"Wait, you don't know who I am!?" The marine pointed at himself, "It's me! Helmeppo! Captain Morgan's son!?"
Maxwell remembered a rather up-stuck bastard with a bowl cut, "…You're that guy!?" Helmeppo had been a rather cowardly idiot, back in Shell's Town. He caused the village quite a few problems before Luffy and Maxwell arrived. Helmeppo had hanged off the reputation of his father, Former Marine Captain "Axe-Hand" Morgan. The man was an absolute tyrant before Maxwell, Luffy, and Zoro took him out. The marines had actually cheered at his defeat.
"Hehe! I look a lot cooler then I did back then, huh?" Maxwell didn't like that smug smile Helmeppo was giving him.
Coby decided to explain, "A lot of things happened. But we became friends, and now we're being trained by Vice Admiral Garp at Marine Headquarters!"
Luffy smiled, not even noticing Helmeppo, "I see! But there should be a limit to how fast you grow up, you know. You surprised me! You were practically a spare tire back then!"
Coby rubbed the back of his head bashfully, "Hahaha! Sorry to disturb you after the incident. You guys must be tired."
Luffy took him by the shoulder and led him to the hole in the wall, "It's alright! It's been a long time, so let's have a feast!"
"Hold on, are you two just going to ignore me!?" Helmeppo balked at how Zoro and Luffy just dragged Coby away. They didn't even acknowledge who he was!
"Would you rather we put you on ice?" Maxwell deadpanned at the petty officer. He still remembered Helmeppo had tried to kill Zoro by starving him for a month.
Helmeppo flinched at the mage's vague threat. He suddenly remembered Maxwell was the smart one between the three pirates that visited Shell's Town. There were rumours going around, about three demons that had come from the depths of hell to defend the Straw-Hats. One would immediately think of Nico Robin, since she was know as the Devil Child, but it was Magister Trevelyan that was supposedly the one to control them. If the mage really did know how to summon demons, then Helmeppo did not want to mess with him! Demons were generally bad news.
Garp chuckled, "Well, I suppose we're done then. Men!"
"YES SIR!" the Marines stood attention.
"Go fix this wall."
"EH!?" The marines all incredulous at their commanding officer. Some even commented on how self Garp was being, "Why did you break it down if we're just going to fix it!?"
Garp just grinned, "Because it's cool to make a scene like that!"
Maxwell deadpanned at the senior Monkey. Yeah, this guy was definitely Luffy's grandfather. So, Maxwell decided just to head back inside and join the rest of his crew. They watched as the marines cleaned up and rebuilt the wall.
"…I thought your grandpa was a V.I.P." Sanji couldn't help but notice Garp using a hammer. He was hammering some nails into a few planks of wood.
"Admittedly, I don't really know much about his work," Luffy admitted.
Garp then remembered something, "By the way, Luffy, I heard you met your dad."
"Eh?" Luffy looked at him confused, "My dad? I have a dad? What do you mean, 'dad?'"
Maxwell facepalmed. Generally speaking, every child knew that they had a dad… Or at least a sperm donor.
"Oh, what?" Gape started to pick his nose, "He didn't introduce himself? I heard he saw you off at Lougetown."
The crew all looked between each other. Did they even meet Luffy's father?
Garp kept hammering nails while picking his nose, "Your father's name is Monkey D. Dragon, the Revolutionary."
Maxwell hummed, "…Well that didn't sound like a bad epithet."
Others were more… enthusiastic, about this revelation.
"WEWWWWWWHHHHHHHHAAAAAATTTTTTT!?"
"DRAGON THE REVOLUTIONARY HAS A SON!?" "Luffy is THE Dragon's son!?" "Then…! DRAGON IS THE SON OF VICE ADMIRAL GARP!?" "What's with this family!?" "It's my first time hearing Dragon's full name!"
Even most of the crew was looking at Luffy funny, "…Why are you all panicking?"
"IDIOT! HAVEN'T YOU HEARD THE NAME DRAGON!?" "YOUR FATHER'S A REALLY DANGEROUS MAN!"
Luffy looked over at Maxwell, "Have you heard about him?"
The mage shook his head, "I'm not from this world. Remember?"
"Right, right…" Luffy then looked over to Robin, "Hey Robin, is my dad actually famous?"
Robin contemplated a bit, "How should I explain this…?"
"…Pirates, don't usually initiate attacks on governments or the marines. However, there is a force that attempts to directly overthrow the World Government. The Revolutionary Army, which Dragon stands at the zenith. They spread propaganda throughout the world, provoking revolutions and rebellions in many kingdoms, causing the downfall of many countries. Of course, Dragon pulled the strings, and the World Government got angry. So they labeled him the 'Worst Criminal in the World,' and the Government had been searching for him ever since. He was such a mysterious individual that no one knew anything about him… but…" Robin started to trail off.
"But…?" Luffy encouraged her to continue.
"…Ah! I probably shouldn't have said that," Garp turned around a rubbed his head, "Just forget I said anything."
Maxwell then facepalmed, hard, as the whole world seemed to scream around him.
"WWWWWWHHHHHHHHAAAAAATTTTTTT!?"