Chapter 10: Grandpa! Training-

"It's okay -yoi. It's just Garp."

Ace and Luffy snapped their neck to the left so hard they could of broke their neck. The same thought rang into their heads loud and clear.

'GRANDPA!?'


Ace and Luffy quickly dropped their fishing poles and stared in horror at the approaching Marine ship. They remained frozen for some time, but Ace instantly broke out of his trance and realized the danger they were in.

"We have to hide!" Ace yelled. He grabbed Luffy by his arm and they both ran in a random direction, but were stopped by Marco.

"What are you doing -yoi?" Marco raised an eyebrow at them. "Garp sometimes drink with Oyaji," Marco noticed the panicked look on their faces which puzzled him. They dealt with Marines all the time so why are they scared now? "He's not going to hurt you."

"Yeah right." Ace and Luffy said at the same time.

"If you're really scared, the safest place is with Oyaji." Marco said with a smirk.

"We're not scared!" Ace blushed in embarrassment.

"Then why are you hiding -yoi?"

"Because we're scared." Luffy admitted.

Marco laughed at his honesty while Ace punched him for saying something weak.

"Let's go." Ace led Luffy back onto the deck where the ship was getting closer and closer. They both grew anxious and sat next to Whitebeard to calm themselves down. They were clamming up as they watched the ocean quietly.

Whitebeard was a little surprised that his youngest sons were so scared of Garp. Maybe they met him before and the man traumatized them? That certainly wouldn't be the first time the old coot scared children.

When both ships were finally close enough, a man with a dog mask jumped onto the deck of the Moby Dick. He continued walking briskly across the deck until he was finally in front of the man he had been searching for many months. He then stared at the two small boys that were sitting next to Whitebeard for a long time.

Some of the crew members were getting uncomfortable at the glare Garp was giving to their new family members. Some grew protective thinking that Garp came to turn them into the government. Marco broke Garp's attention to the two boys with a question.

"What are you doing here -yoi?" Marco asked in his normal bored tone.

Garp let out a sigh and turned his direction from Marco to Whitebeard. "Thank you for saving the brats," Garp said awkwardly. "But I'm taking them back." he said firmly.

"What do you mean you're taking them back?!" Thatch exclaimed. "They're only kids!"

"Exactly. Kids don't belong on a pirate ship. Turning them into Marines won't work either. I need to hide them somewhere safe and it's not gonna be on a pirate ship!" Garp looked back at the kids with sad eyes.

Marco was about to ask why the old Marine was even caring about the safety of the two brats when the youngest spoke up.

"No way Grandpa! I wanna stay here!" Luffy shouted while standing up.

Ace followed Luffy. "Yeah me too!"

"GRANDPA?!" everyone shouted. "First there was Roger and Dragon, but now Garp too?! What's up with this crazy family?!" someone shouted. Everyone else nodded numbly in agreement.

Garp paid no attention to their shock and was focusing on his grandsons.

"EHH?! You want another Fist of Love?!" Garp started blowing on his fist with an evil grin. Luffy shivered under his gaze while Ace stood firm, standing protectively in front of his little brother.

"We're staying here Gramps. You can't make us go!"

Garp punched Ace hard in the head causing the latter to fall on the ground.

"Shitty gramps," Ace muttered while slowly standing back up.

"ACE!" Luffy ran to his brother's side and glared at his grandpa. "Meanie Grandpa!"

"Don't talk to your Grandpa like that!" Garp was about to hit Luffy but was stopped by an angry Phoenix.

"Stop hitting them -yoi." Marco threatened.

"Don't tell me what to do Phoenix!" Garp shouted.

Whitebeard was watching the scene in amusement and anger. He was amused because he finally figured out what got his two brats so scared. It was especially surprising to see Ace scared for once since he's never scared of anything. He didn't even flinch under his glare when they first met! He was angry though because of Garp's abusiveness towards his grandsons. They were only kids after all.

"Garp, that's enough," Whitebeard interrupted, preventing a shouting match from happening between his first mate and the Marine hero. "Let's have a drink and discuss this rationally." Whitebeard stood up, gesturing to his quarters.

"Take the boys into the galley while we discuss," he ordered to his commanders. "Everyone else can resume what they were doing earlier."


Ace and Luffy nervously sat down on the closest table and began inhaling large amounts of food. The commanders have grown accustomed to their disgusting eating habits, but it seemed this time, they were going even faster. Probably from Garp's presence, most of them thought.

The commanders were also eating their meals, but a lot neater and slower compared to the brothers. It was all nice and quiet until a certain rubber hand started 'exploring' and grabbing other people's food.

"HEY!" Haruta complained after witnessing her steak disappearing.

The other commanders started shouting in protest until it became funny and a fun game started called 'who-can-catch-luffy-before-he-steals-with-a-fork.' Thatch, on the other hand, decided to have a little more fun and pulled out a packet of really spicy hot sauce. He poured it all over his meat, which he learned from Day 1 that it was Luffy's most favorite thing in the world. He waited for a rubber hand to grab it and when it did happen, he bursted out laughing from the sight. As soon as Luffy had swallowed the piece of meat, he turned a bright red and fire was literally coming out of his mouth.

After that little episode, everyone was on the ground laughing their asses off, even Ace.

By the time they were done, all the dishes were cleared and were stacked messily in the sink. The whole table was silent with awkwardness. There was nothing to do in the galley besides eating, which they have already done. All of them were too full to move, except for the D brothers and a regenerative Phoenix.

Marco sensed Ace's and Luffy's uneasiness and addressed it. "Don't worry -yoi. We won't let your Grandpa take you away."

They both flashed a genuine smile and the silence continued.

Thatch went into the kitchen briefly and came back with a deck of cards in his hands.

"Do you brats know how to play poker?"


Garp had his arms crossed and glared at Whitebeard defiantly.

Whitebeard knew Ace and Garp were not blood related, but he could see the resemblances between the two. Both had a stubborn air to them. 'Luffy must of inherited Garp's recklessness.' he mused.

"I need to take them back," Garp continued. "It's bad enough they have bounties. If they stay with you, it will only increase! I have to hide them."

"Hide them where exactly? They're not safe anywhere; Everyone is hunting them! Marines, bounty hunters, and possibly civilians to get some money!"

"That's why I'm planning on hiding them on an inhabited island! That way no one can find them while they get stronger and stronger!"

Whitebeard was getting really really frustrated. "Garp," he said calmly. "They're only kids. Kids. And you would leave them by themselves there?! They need to be with people that can protect them."

Garp was getting frustrated because he knew Whitebeard was right. At least if the kids stay with his crew, he knew they would be safe. Whitebeard had always considered his crew as his family. However, if he left them on an island with no communication...well, he couldn't guarantee their safety.

"Garp. Sometimes, you have to forget about your pride and realize what is best."

Garp looked at Whitebeard dejectedly.

"I'm not stealing them from you. You can always visit them." Whitebeard looked at Garp directly. He honestly felt bad for the poor man. Asking help from a pirate was dishonorable for a Marine but hey, it's not like they don't know each other. Their respect for each other was always mutual. "We both benefit from this. I get to keep them with me and you will always know they're safe. Let's be honest. You always knew they would become pirates anyway. Why not under my symbol?"

Garp looked at the man, stunned, but threw his head back and laughed. "I guess you're right. But if I ever hear news about them getting caught and sent to Impel Down or something, I won't hesitate to kill you."

"Gurarara. Deal."

The two stared down at their untouched drinks and started chugging it down. It was an hour when their drinking was halted. Both were getting close to getting a buzz when Garp's Den Den Mushi rang. He had to head back to Marine HQ as soon as possible.

Garp gave a loud sigh and stood up. "See you later, pirate." Garp said with a slight fondness at the last word. He was halfway out the door when a thought occured. "Do you know what happened to Akainu?"

"Killed him." Whitebeard said nonchalantly.

"As I thought..." Garp said with a smirk. "But I'm a bit angry I didn't get to do that myself."

Whitebeard smirked in return and with that, the Marine hero left.

Garp walked onto the deck and turned around. "ACE, LUFFY, GET READY FOR TRAINING THE NEXT TIME I'M HERE!" He started walking into the direction of his ship when he heard footsteps coming.

"Grandpa!" a childish voice called.

Garp turned around at the sound of his grandson's voice. He saw both of them standing there with a smile.

"I love you," Luffy continued. "But I'll still become Pirate King!"

"Shut up you brat." Garp said but instead of his usual frown, he said it with a smile.

"See you later Gramps." Ace said simply.

Garp smiled in response and jumped onto his ship.

"Your grandpa sure is a crazy man huh?" someone said.

Ace looked at the person that said that. "You have no idea."


"Time to start your training -yoi." Marco said to Ace.

"Alright," Ace started cracking his knuckles. "Let's get started already."

"We're not going to fight hand-to-hand combat. We need to train your Devil Fruit power. You almost burned the ship five times -yoi!" Marco accused.

Ace scratched his head sheepishly. "Sorry."

"Can you turn your right arm into fire?"

Ace was grunting, trying to make his arm burst into flames, but failing. Then he thought about the time when Luffy made him mad by pointing out his flushed face in front of Makino. Naturally, his arm turned into fire and he grinned.

"You made yourself angry huh?"

"Yeah."

"At least you can do that," Marco said thoughtfully. "But in battle, you need to be quicker. Keep your arm on fire while I get food."

"WAIT WHAT! I thought you were gonna train me!" Ace shouted.

"This is part of your training, Ace. Try to hold onto your position for as long as you can. It helps you turn into fire willingly." Marco continued his walk but was stopped by Ace yet again.

"Could you...bring me food too?" Ace asked desperately. He hasn't eaten for two whole hours and his stomach kept protesting.

"Sure."


Luffy was training with three commanders. Izo was helping him on his aiming, Kingdew was helping him in combat, and Vista was helping in swordsmanship. Luffy admitted he needed help with aiming and combat, but he insisted he didn't need to learn how to use a sword. Vista had to convince him that it was a necessity for a Pirate King to be able to at least wield a sword. Once 'Pirate King' was mentioned, Luffy's eyes sparkled and he agreed excitedly. He liked the idea of getting stronger so that he could protect anything and beat Ace.

"Aim for this." Izo had put up a bunch of targets for Luffy to break.

"Okay. Here I go."

Out of ten targets, he managed to hit six of them. Luffy was disappointed, but Izo pointed out that he was improving and getting stronger which made the little boy cheer up.

Luffy's battles with the Eleventh Division Commander never lasted long. The winnings were one-sided. Luffy was resting with Kingdew, resting until Vista finished his paperwork.

"You have great dodging skills."

"Thanks to the monkeys." Luffy said gratefully.

"Monkeys?"

"Grandpa made me fight them!" Luffy pouted.

"You must have a bad childhood...although you're still a child now." Kingdew muttered pensively.

"What's that?" Luffy was too busy playing with a beetle to notice the commander was talking.

"Nothing. Vista's here."

Luffy grinned mischievously while picking up a sword. The sword was red and was smaller than a regular sword. It was perfect for Luffy. He had excellent swordsmanship for a kid his age due to his experience with a pipe, but that wasn't enough for Vista. He wanted to make the brat become really strong so that he could protect himself in the future. He wouldn't have his older brother with him when he becomes a pirate captain himself in the future so his training was more essential than Ace's. He wanted to prepare the boy properly for the Grand Line. He wasn't planning on letting Luffy leave until he was on commander's level at least.

Vista was barely using any power with his spar with Luffy. Vista had to admit the boy was progressing a lot faster than expected.

An hour later, Luffy started panting and collapsed on the ground. "Food..." he muttered.

Vista twirled his moustache as he laughed. "Izo will work on your stamina later with extra running."

Luffy looked up at him, not saying a single word.

Vista stared and nodded with a sigh. "Yeah, you can go eat."

Luffy ran as fast as his sore legs could carry him. When he entered the galley, he saw Ace stuffing his face while Marco watched in amusement.

"Hi Ace. Hi Marco." Luffy said cheerfully.

"Hey," Ace said.

Marco smiled. "How's your training coming -yoi?"

"Good," he said with a mouth filled with food. "I'm getting stronger." He swallowed all the food and faced his brother. "Soon, I will become stronger than you, Ace."

"Yeah right." Ace snorted.

Namur came into the galley and sat down at the same table as the kids and Marco which was surprising to the First Division Commander. Namur would usually avoid the brats for some unknown reason, but Luffy would always greet him happily anyway and Ace would just stare blankly.

As soon as he sat down, Ace and Luffy stared at him emotionless which unnerved him slightly.

"Hi Namur," Luffy chirped.

Namur gave an awkward nod in acknowledgement and continued his meal. It wasn't his fault that he didn't feel comfortable with them. He knew that if he got closer to the brats, they would only let him down by saying crap like 'fishmen are inferior to humans blah blah blah.'

When he finished his meal, he got up and went to the kitchen to put away his dirty dishes. He left the galley without saying a single word.

"What's up with him?" Ace asked. He wasn't blind. He could tell when someone was trying to avoid him intentionally.

"He probably thinks you don't like him because he's a fishmen." Thatch answered as he entered the galley.

"Why would he think that?" Ace was frowning at the accusation.

"A lot of humans think fishmen are disgusting and dirty." Marco honestly didn't understand why humans would think that. If anything, both races are so similar that they're practically the same.

"That's stupid. I think he's cool." Luffy beamed.

"It is stupid." the rest agreed while laughing.


"Next training will be about haki," Marco and Thatch were responsible for teaching haki to the brats because they were the closest to the two. Marco was the one giving intros because Thatch was never good at explaining.

"Haki is a power that is found in every living being in the world. There are two types of Haki common to everyone, which are called Kenbunshoku Haki and Busoshoku Haki. Kenbunshoku Haki let's you sense other people's presence and allows you to predict one's next move during battle. Busoshoku Haki coats your body in an invisible armor and allows you to hit logias like Ace." Marco explained.

"Seriously?!" Luffy yelled. "I can actually hit Ace with this?!"

"Like you ever could!" Ace smirked arrogantly.

Marco stopped the soon-to-be-fight by continuing his explanation."There is a third type that only a certain group of "chosen ones" are said to posses. Oyaji said that both of you have this power, but only Ace has unlocked it so far."

Ace looked shocked while Luffy was annoyed.

"No fair..." Luffy huffed.

"When did I unlock it?" Ace tried to think back to anything that might've seem strange.

"Oyaji said recently."

"What does the third one do again?"

"It pretty much knocks people unconscious. Most people unlock it during a stressful time." Marco responded.

Ace was deep in thought when he remembered the Grey Terminal incident. "Oh. I get it."

Marco looked at him questioningly and Ace decided to elaborate more.

"We ran into some trouble with a pirate crew and I guess I used it." Ace shrugged.

"Bluejam?" Marco asked.

"Yeah..." Ace looked at him warily.

"You mentioned him before -yoi..."

"Oh right."

"So do you guys understand what haki is now?" Marco looked at the boys.

"It's a mystery power." Luffy concluded while he thumped his right fist against his left palm.

Marco fell over.

"Yeah pretty much." Thatch and Ace agreed.

Marco stood up from his seat. "Haki training will start later. I have to go prepare for our next destination."

"Where are we going next?" Ace asked.

"We're preparing to enter the New World."

"New World?! Really?!" Luffy chirped.

Thatch laughed. "Yup. But we're heading to Fishmen Island first."


Ok ok I won't kill Thatch...I'll kill someone else! Hehe