Hey people,it's me again! I'm back with another installment of my One Piece story. I'm thrilled to get properly started with this,because I've never seen another Pirate Garp fanfiction, so I thank each and every one who reads this for following, and feel free to DM me about questions for either of my stories(No,I have not abandoned any of them!) or suggestions that makes sense to you for one reason or another,or simply to say hi,I'm happy to respond either way! Flamers,Don't bother!
Anyway,enough of my insane rambling,here we go!
Chapter 2: Training,Traveling and Timeskip!
It had been a month since they left Foosha village,and Garp had found his routine.
The crew was relatively small, only 10 people,which made it easy to divide shifts in the crow's nest into pairs. Roger insisted on taking the shifts with Garp, for reasons unknown. The only one who could say what their captain was thinking when he made decisions was the first mate, a lean,blonde 18-year old Silvers Rayleigh. He had been picked up by Roger when the latter had been drifting around in a dinghy, about a year or so ago. Today,Garp felt anxious for some reason. Roger had mentioned that he wanted to spar with Garp to see what he could do. Apparently,the whole crew was anxious to see what "the new kid" could do,and Garp was determined to not disappoint.
He had dressed himself in white pair of training pants,white and blue sneakers,and a white tank top who showed off his well-built upper body. As Garp started loosening up,he saw Roger come towards him,bare-chested with a pair of black sweatpants and bare-footed.
He stood straight as Roger adressed him: "Remember kid,this is training,not a real fight. Nevertheless, I would like to see what you can do,and we can work on anything we may find lacking later,okay?" Garp frowned,but nodded to show that he understood as he got in a ready stance. Roger stood maybe a head's height taller than he did,but Garp showed no fear,After all, the monkeys in the Jungle on Dawn Island was bigger, and Garp had been wrestling them for three years before he got recruited. As he saw Roger drop down into a stance,Garp saw his chance to get going and as fast as he could,he jumped,aiming his knee to the back of his captain's head.
What he did not expect was for his captain to move his head just as he was about to impact,resulting in Garp crashing into the deck. "I hope that's not all you've got kid,cause I haven't even started yet" Roger said with a smirk. Garp grit his teeth slightly before he calmed himself and smirked back at his captain. "Don't worry,that was only the warm-up" he said as he went back into his stance as he analyzed the crouched stance Roger stood in,legs spread,upper body lowered to a 90 degree angle,and his left fist stretched to touch the deck. Just as Garp prepared to launch another attack,Roger launched himself at him at a speed Garp was hard pressed to follow. However,being able to see your opponent means nothing if you don't have the reaction to dodge the attack,thus Garp was hit with a clothesline from hell courtesy of his captain.
The attack wasn't overly powerful,but still enough to launch Garp across the deck. Roger stood up. "Come on,you need to get your speed up before you can beat me. I'm planning for us to reach the Grand Line in a couple of months,and you need to be trained up properly in order to be ready for it." Roger said in a serious tone. Garp sat up, took a deep breath and said: "I'll do my best to meet your expectations captain!" In the same serious tone. Roger smirked. "That's all I'm asking for,kid,you ready to go again?" Garp just grinned in response and launched himself towards Roger.
Days and weeks flew continued his training with Roger on a daily basis and it became a hobby among the other crewmembers to place bets on their sparring the two new cabin boys, a red-haired kid by the name of Shanks and a clown-nosed kid with blue hair by the name of Buggy,seemed to enjoy the action the crew got from these fights,and as time passed by,Garp even managed to beat Roger in more and more fights. Despite this,Garp had grown much,especially in the intellect department. Thanks to his fights with Roger and some of his other crewmates,Garp had become somewhat of an expert strategist when it came to fights, but he had also taken to reading through a lot of books on history,navigation, and other things. His temper had calmed down greatly since he took meditation advice from Rayleigh, who despite himself was quite big and muscular,was a lot more level-headed than Garp,or even Roger at times. Even so,with all his training and studying on the side with his other duties aboard the ship,Garp had found himself at peace. He truly felt that he had a purpose and never once regretted leaving the opportunity to join the marines behind.
One day,as Garp was reading up on his navigational skills(he was taking the next shift as helmsman) he heard a call of "Land Ho!" from the crow's nest above. He rushed up on deck with all the other crew members to see that,indeed they had reached the next island. "Take a good look boys! That is Loguetown, the final stop before Reverse Mountain and the Grand Line! We will stop by here to resupply, and we'll head to the Grand Line tomorrow!"
Roger called from behind Garp. The rest of the crew cheered,but Garp took a look at his captain and saw a look of...Regret?Sorrow? Garp couldn't quite place it,but it was obvious his captain looked troubled. Rayleigh came over to them. "Mind if I take Garp with me captain? I was thinking of finding him a weapon that might suit him"he said as he patted Garp's shoulder,despite Garp being almost as tall as himself. Roger nodded. "Good idea,Ray. Bring me bottle of the finest homebrew you can find on this island,will you? I have the address for it here. And tell the boys to be back before nightfall" Roger said as he slipped a note to Rayleigh.
Ray nodded. "Alright,we'll be back before the sun is down. Come on,Garp,let's find you a weapon" he said as a led a confused Garp off the ship.
As they walked down the street,Garp asked: "Is the captain alright?he looked troubled when we left". Rayleigh sighed and nodded. "The captain's fine Garp. He only stayed behind because this is his home village". Garp was shocked for a moment,but he quickly calmed himself. After all,if he had been in his captain's shoes and it had been Foosha Village they docked at,he would've most likely stayed behind as well. Rayleigh seemed to notice Garps train of thought because he said: "This is why we're on the sea. Not to run away from a troubled past,but to prove those who doubted us wrong. This is why we train and why we study. To learn as much as needed to navigate ourselves in this troubled world we live in."
Garp thought about it,and it made sense to him. The marines were in place to solve crimes and keep order, by the order of the World Government. The exception to those rules were the Celestial Dragons,who could literately do whatever they wanted to whoever they wanted without repercussions or punishment. What then were pirates there for? Garp smiled slightly as he thought of what his captain had said: "Pirates are just the term the governments use to say that adventures are forbidden. We are not criminals,if anything,we are freedom fighters; We are fighting for our own freedom,and the opportunity to live our lives to the fullest" Garp had taken his captains philosophy to heart,and reasoned to himself that if mankind can not explore the world,how can mankind be expected to live in peace?
Garp was shook out of his thoughts when Rayleigh stopped. "Here we are,let's find you a weapon first, before we buy anything else" he said as he led Garp into the small shop. The man behind the counter smiled at the two before asking: "Welcome, what can I help you with?" Rayleigh smiled. "We need a weapon for my young friend here, he has a fighting style that heavily relies on his fists" he said,to which Garp grumbled: "2 years,I'm only 2 years younger than you,you cocky bastard", causing Rayleigh to grin a little.
The man behind the counter was thrilled. "Oh, a close-range fighter,eh? Not often I have a customer like that in here. Nonetheless,I think I have what you want in the back,if you'll excuse me for a couple of minutes,feel free to browse through the rest of my wares, if you'd like" he said before disappearing into the back room.
Garp did as suggested,browsing through the different weapons on display, from katanas to maces,to daggers,guns and staffs in different sizes and in different materials. As he was browsing through the staffs,he noticed a small handle which caught his attention. He plucked it out of the shelf it was on and studied it closer. It was clearly made of metal,but the end he was holding was wrapped in foam of some kind. He was about to call Rayleigh over to see it,but just then did the shopkeeper come out from the back with a pair of brass knuckles in one hand and a box in the other.
"I knew I had something here!" he exclaimed with a grin. Garp hurriedly put the handle away, putting it in his pocket without the clerk knowing it as he walked over to the desk to see what the man has found,Rayleigh coming up behind Garp. The shopkeeper explained: "These brass knuckles hasn't seen action in years,I'm afraid,but the tale I got from the man who sold me this was that they wouldn't work for him properly. What he meant with that was that apparently the user needed to be able to punch with a greater force than he did,to the point where one would have to break boulders with their bare hands to use them efficiently. If that is true,I have no idea,but I think you'll be able to work with them quite well" he said as he gave the knuckles over to Garp,who eagerly took them on and squeezed his hands tightly together as hard as he could to get a feel for them.
As he did,he felt a sudden tremor in the ground underneath his feet,which caused him to loosen his grip,and the tremors stopped. Apparently both Rayleigh and the clerk both noticed it too,as they both looked at him,causing Garp to take off the knuckles and place them on the counter with a sheepish grin.
The clerk said with wide eyes and said: "Excuse me young man,but were you the cause for the slight quake just now?" I-I don't know,all I did was to clench my fists to see how they fit,nothing else" Garp said honestly. The clerk looked at him suspiciously before he closed his eyes and said: "I see. In that case I can't see any other choice but to give you these free of charge" making Garp open his eyes comically. "Oi,Ossan. What do you mean? I don't want to ruin your business!" he yelled as he slammed his hands down on the counter. The man looked at him with a smirk.
"Kid,you don't know how much untapped potential you have and nor do I for that matter. All I know is that with those brass knuckles, yours will be a famous name over the entire Grand Line!" he exclaimed. Garp calmed a bit down and looked to Rayleigh,who took the hint and told the man: "Sir,we appreciate the offer,but we cannot in good conscience accept charity when we can easily afford your wares", but the man only brushed him off.
"I know you guys are pirates,but that's not my problem. If word of my weapons reach out,that would make people buy more of my other weapons,so I only want one thing in exchange for those knuckles: A promise to become a famous man,whether legal or not does not matter. Just make sure the Grand Line hears your name!" the man said making both Garp and Rayleigh tense up before both breathing a sigh of relief and with a smile Garp said: "Don't worry Ossan! The world will learn the name Monkey D. Garp! I promise!" Rayleigh just looked at Garp and chuckled silently before he spoke up.
"Hey kid,don't forget to get something for medium range as well. You don't need a gun,we have snipers for that,but you don't always have one at your back,nor do you always have your enemy at close range,so it would be a good idea to get some throwing knives or something like it" he said making Garp nod before he remembered the strange hilt he saw earlier and ran over to get it and showed it to Rayleigh and the shopkeeper.
"I found this in one of the shelves,do you know what it is?" he said as he held it in his palm. "Ah,that is a fine knife indeed. The hilt is bone of a Sea King,and the blade itself is made of Sea Stone Prism, extremely useful when fighting Devil Fruit users. The likelihood of this knife breaking is nonexistent. In fact,I have more of the materials in the back,if you have a blacksmith at your crew,otherwise I could make you a set of throwing knives for the sum of 5000 Berries,is that acceptable?" Garp was so shocked over the information that it fell to Rayleigh to answer.
"That would be very generous of you,how fast can you have it done?" he asked. The shopkeeper took a thinking and thought aloud: "Hmm, a set of ten throwing knives of Sea King bone and Sea Stone Prism...I'd say I'd have them done in a couple of hours" he said as he looked at them with a smile. Rayleigh smiled back and said: "It's a deal,we'll be back later today then." He shook the clerk's hand and led a still shocked Garp out of the store.
Finally out of the store,Garp recovered and was pretty happy about getting such awesome weapons. He saw the logic in Rayleigh's words about him not always having the enemy at close range,so he decided to get a belt with holsters for the knives. He found one at a clothes shop close to the weapons store for a cheap price,so he now donned a leather belt across his chest. Their next stop was a small house in an almost abandoned street on the edge of town. Without warning Rayleigh stopped and opened a door,so fast that Garp almost got hit by it,had it not been for the fact that Garp had trained up his reaction and speed.
"Oi,what the hell?" Garp said before Rayleigh told him to be quiet and to follow him inside. Well inside Rayleigh closed the door and turned to Garp. "While we're here,you'd better be quiet. The ones we're seeing now is related to Roger,so let me stand for the talking,is that clear?" he asked,making Garp nod. "Good. Now follow me" Rayleigh said as he opened a door that led to a staircase downstairs. They walked down in silence until they entered a lit room that upon further inspection,were full of shelves with bottles of amber liquids. They walked among the shelves for what seemed like an hour,but in reality was only 10 minutes, until they got to the office of whoever ran the place. Rayleigh knocked on the door twice, before a drunken voice called out: "Come in!" and so they did.
The woman who ran the shop was reluctant to sell to pirates until Rayleigh brought up the name of their captain. The woman had known Roger since his early days before he set sail,and had promised him a bottle of Whisky upon his return. She insisted on them to bring two full barrels back...each! She said it was compensation for not coming down to see Roger off before they went off to the Grand Line, and waved them off when they tried to pay her. Shrugging at that,Garp and Rayleigh,being the two strongest on the crew aside from Roger himself,carried the barrels down to the ship just in time for Garp to run back to the weapon smith to pick up his throwing knives and get back in time for curfew.
This was their last day in the East blue for now. No one knew when or if they'd be back. Roger had been pleased at his forethinking of fighting devil fruit users, which could be a frequent occurrence along the Grand Line,and at his willingness to assist Rayleigh. Garp was pleased that his captain saw worth in what he was doing,even if he still lost in the spars they now had on a daily basis. As he sat on the railing of the ship looking out to sea,he woved to himself to be the best he can be,both for his crew and for himself. He took a swig of alcohol before casting a look at the city of Loguetown. He knew there was a marine base here,but he didn't worry. No one in the crew had any bounties yet,so they didn't have to worry about being stopped in the way of conquering the Grand Line. Little did Garp know about what the future would bring...
Fast forward:35 years later Location: Raftel
"There is nothing more I can do". Those words were shocking to hear. Roger sighed. "Well,there is nothing for it,I guess. Thank you for your honest words,Crocus" he said with a slight bow to their ship's doctor, who bowed back and left the Captain's quarters.
Rayleigh stood in the doorframe. "So what now,Roger? We found the end of the Grand Line,we left a good part of our treasure there, and now you're dying? The fates have a disgusting taste of humor" he said he downed some alcohol. Roger chuckled. "What happens now indeed? I have had my suspicions about my illness for a couple of years now,and I refuse to let the crew know of my condition. To be honest,I have come up with an idea that will keep the members here safe from the World Government, despite the fact that none of you will like it" Roger said as he put a bottle to his lips. Rayleigh frowned at his friend as he thought of what he said. Then it dawned on him and with wide eyes. "Are you saying what I think you're saying,Roger? Are you really disbanding the Roger Pirates?" he asked,voice cracking.
Roger smiled gently at his first mate and oldest friend as he walked over to Rayleigh and clasped a hand on his shoulder. "It's for the best Ray. It'll be up to you and the others to tell Garp what is going to happen, as I have no intention of letting this disease be the death of me. Please tell him I'm sorry for not telling him myself, and to look after Rouge for me. I remember he said he'd retire,although it was with a heavy heart, but the kid finally found true love,and I didn't want to stand in the way of that. A part of the treasure in the cargo hold is for him,and the rest is for you guys to split up equally.
I am sorry old friend,but I have a meeting with Newgate in not too long,and I'd rather not be late. I'll tell the crew in two days, I expect you to bring Garp's old weapons with you,in case he wants to train his child" Roger said as he let go of Rayleigh's shoulder and walked out of the room to the deck. "I'll be gone when you come back Roger,I'll go to Garp and tell him the news,officially. Off the record,I'll stay in the South Blue for a couple of years to keep an eye on Rouge as well" Rayleigh said,just loud enough for only Roger to hear him. Roger only looked once over his shoulder and nodded.
Two weeks later: Baterilla
Rayleigh had just arrived at the island Rouge and Garp were rumored to live in,and were just asking a local about directions,when he heard a low voice behind him: "And what are you doing here,Pirate?" Rayleigh smiled and turned around and looked into the familiar grey shocked eyes of Monkey D. Garp. "Garp. It's been a while" he said,to which Garp nodded. "15 years. What are you doing here,Ray? It's a weird thing for the first mate of the Pirate King to visit a quiet island in the South Blue without reason" Garp said. Rayleigh sighed and lifted the bag he was carrying.
"Is there anywhere safe to talk freely?" Garp nodded. "My house. Just mind your language around Dragon, he's bad enough from before,without learning your curses" Rayleigh smirked. "Like father,like son,eh? I have no problems with that" he said,and with that the two old friends walked through the village to Garp's home. "I had Rouge move in with us,the house is thankfully big enough for all of us, and we still have a guest room for you if you want to spend the night" Garp said as they got closer to a large three-story villa,complete with a big garden and balconies. As they walked in,Garp called out: "I'm home!"
In a breakneck, a 14-year old boy came running up to his dad and asked: "Did you get a good catch today,dad?" Garp lowered himself to the boy's height and said: "Not today,son,there's only a matter of time though" he remembered Rayleigh stood behind him and said: "Dragon,there's someone I want you to meet" he stood up and pointed a thumb at Rayleigh. "This is your old man's old vice-captain from the ship I used to be on before I settled down here with your mom" he said with a smile. Dragon looked at Rayleighs imposing figure. "Wow,you're huge!" he said.
Rayleigh threw his head back and laughed. "Hahahahahaha! Your kid is even worse than you were,kid!" to which Garp growled: "Stop calling me kid! I'm almost 40,damnit! Also,you're only two years older than me,you bastard!" to which a frying pan came flying out of the kitchen and connected with Garp's head,sending Garp to the ground. A second later,an angry woman came out of the kitchen. "What have I told you about that kind of language around Dragon,Garp-kun? I don't wanna hear it!" she yelled with a tick mark on her forehead. Garp sat up with a sheepish smile and rubbed his head where the frying pan had connected.
"OOWW! I'm sorry my dear,I just couldn't help it when this old geezer keeps calling me kid" he said as he gestured to Rayleigh,who still stood there. The woman got wide eyes. "Ray-san? What are you doing here?" Ray glanced at Dragon. Garp nodded as he said: "Dragon,go down in the village and get some food to have for dinner,can you do that?" he asked as he handed a few Beri notes to his son. Dragon nodded,glanced briefly at Rayleigh, who smiled pleasantly at him, and left the house. Garp exhaled as he stood up.
"Come,let's go into the living room, and you can tell us what brought you to the South Blue" he said as he led the way into a large room with big windows and big comfy sofas. After Garp and his wife had sat down in one sofa,Rayleigh sat down opposite them,the bag placed on the ground next to him. "So,what's troubling you Rayleigh? You've never looked older than you do now" Garp said. Rayleigh sighed and looked Garp in the eyes. "Roger is dying" he said.
Garps eyes were wide at the news as his wife clasped her hands in front of her mouth. "What?How?When?" was the only things Garp could say. "We got a new doctor aboard some 3 years ago. He had gone through a full check of the entire crew a couple of weeks ago, and had saved Roger for last. Then he discovered that Roger has an incurable disease that is slowly killing him. After that, he told me that he had no plans of succumbing to the disease, and has as of two weeks ago,disbanded the Roger Pirates" Rayleigh said.
Then he started opening his bag, and the items he picked up made Garp drop his jaw; it was his old weapons! His old brass knuckles and throwing knives brought forth so many memories it took Garp a minute to comprehend and react to what was happening. Then Rayleigh took out a heavy-looking medium-sized chest and gave it to Garp,who caught it with no problems. Garp set it on his lap and opened it.
When he did,his eyes widened again. He looked at Rayleigh,who nodded. "I counted it myself. Roger still held you in high regards Garp, and is thankful that you are at least one familiar face to keep Rogue company. He still felt you were deserving of the last portion of the loot we had on the Oro Jackson, and I'm not one to let Roger's final wish come true" Rayleigh said.
Garp looked at the stacks of Beri notes in the chest. "There must be at least 2 million beri in here" he said quietly. Rayleigh nodded. "Everyone on the crew got the same amount,which is enough for most of us to live comfortably anonymously for a good few years. He was going to meet with Whitebeard after the doc checked him over,so I told him that I'd be coming here after he left,and that I was not coming back to the Oro Jackson,which I guess the Marines must've burned away by now. My plan was to stick around for a couple of years before heading out, just to see how things turn out. Cause you know as well as I that the World government would hunt down anyone associated with Roger,so Rouge and her child are in the greatest danger here" Rayleigh said,causing Garp to nod.
"Aye,I can see that. It's also well known that the Crew spent a good couple of years in the South Blue,so this might be the first place the marines comes to look for Roger's spawn" Garp said as he looked to his wife. "We need to move somewhere the Marines won't go near. As much as I loathe to say it,it seems it's time to go home" he said. Rayleigh quirked an eyebrow. "Oh? Going back to your roots,Garp?" Garp nodded. "Where are we going,dad?" came Dragon's voice from the entrance of the room. "How much did you hear,son?" Garp asked. "nothing more than that the marines will be coming. So where are we going?" Dragon asked as he walked up to his dad,who hugged him and his wife before he nodded to Rayleigh and said" We need to tell Rouge and bring her with us back to the East Blue. That'll be the shock of the shock of the town when we arrive back in Foosha Village"
Cliffhanger! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter,I had to do a lot of research to do to get this chapter done properly,and I know I probably screwed up a couple of places,but that's what you readers are here for,I hope? constructive criticism is always appreciated,Flamers can go fuck a duck,etc...anyway,I truly hope to hear from each of you,next chapter will have another timeskip,this time Luffy is introduced, So I'm going to put up a poll on my profile regarding what kind of devilfruit he's going to get. Anyways,that's all for now,Cya later
Nathan