The entire scene fell into a sudden, absolute silence.
Staring at Ace, who was hanging his head and admitting fault like a small child before Rowan, and then looking at Rowan's face full of fury, the realization finally dawned on everyone.
They had all originally thought this was a major incident—the Marine Godfather hunting down the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. But as it turned out, it was just a farce: a Great-Grandpa disciplining his great-grandson for leaving home without saying goodbye to play pirate!
However...
The method this Great-Grandpa used to "discipline" his descendant was a bit too mind-blowing. Thinking of the moment Ace was sent flying by Rowan's punch, and looking at the two fist-sized bumps currently swelling on Ace's head...
Judging by Ace's submissive, head-bowed posture, the "Fist of Love" Rowan had shouted about earlier was likely a daily staple in that household. All the pirates on the ship couldn't help but shudder in unison.
With a Great-Grandpa like this, who could possibly survive?!
Even Marco, watching Rowan vent his anger at Ace, felt his eyelids twitch. This old man with such peerless, terrifying strength was actually Ace's Great-Grandfather?
Recalling the power Rowan had just displayed and seeing Ace's current humble state, Marco began to understand. No wonder Ace, as a rookie, was able to stir up so much trouble across the sea in just one year—to the point where the World Government wanted to recruit him as a Shichibukai. Even their "Pops," Whitebeard, had personally sought him out to adopt him as a son.
Furthermore, Whitebeard had privately revealed to Marco that he had taken Ace in with the intention of grooming him to be the next Pirate King. Marco didn't mind the favoritism; he wasn't a particularly ambitious man and only cared about the safety of the Whitebeard family. Besides, the talent Ace displayed was truly on par with Whitebeard himself. Marco could see that given enough time, Ace had the potential to stand at the very apex of the sea.
However...
Looking at the pair before him, Marco was also confused. Since Ace and Rowan shared such a close bond, and Rowan was a legendary figure in the Navy, why had Ace gone out to be a pirate?
And if Ace and Old Man Rowan were related like this, how was Whitebeard—who had adopted Ace as his son—supposed to address Rowan? He couldn't exactly call him "Grandpa," could he? At that thought, Marco felt his mind descend into utter chaos.
Meanwhile, on the warship.
Watching Rowan scold Ace, Vice Admiral Momonga and the Marine soldiers were equally dumbfounded. Why would the Whitebeard Second Division Commander call Rowan "Great-Grandpa"? Was their intelligence wrong? Was Portgas D. Ace not Roger's bloodline, but Rowan's?
But Momonga had never heard of Mr. Rowan having any biological children. Even Luffy, standing nearby, was just Mr. Garp's biological grandson. Because Mr. Garp was Mr. Rowan's adopted son and Rowan had raised Luffy, Luffy called him Great-Grandpa.
But who on earth is this Ace?
In his confusion, Momonga turned to Luffy, who was preparing to leap onto the pirate ship. "Young Master Luffy, what is the relationship between Ace and Mr. Rowan? Why does Ace call him Great-Grandpa too?"
Luffy, gripping the railing and preparing to launch himself like a slingshot, grinned widely. "Because Ace is my sworn brother! We grew up together!"
With that, Luffy let go, hurtling toward the Whitebeard ship like a stray arrow. "Hahaha! Ace!"
"Luffy!" Seeing Luffy flying toward him, Ace's eyes lit up with joy. He desperately wanted to jump up, catch Luffy, and introduce him to the crew. But... facing Rowan's overwhelming barrage of scolding, Ace didn't dare move a single inch.
Marco watched the incoming Luffy with a hint of appreciation. This must be the "little brother" Ace always talked about. Ace had mentioned his brother's goal was also to become the Pirate King. Marco truly couldn't fathom how a Marine Godfather like Rowan had raised two great-grandsons who both wanted to be the King of the Pirates.
The moment Rowan heard Luffy's voice, he spun around, leaped up, and delivered a heavy punch to the top of Luffy's head. "And YOU! You brat! You knew perfectly well Ace was going to sneak away at midnight—why didn't you tell the Old Man?! I didn't find out until the next day!"
BOOM! Luffy crashed onto the deck with a heavy thud. The impact was so great that the reinforced timber actually splintered into a large hole.
The Whitebeard pirates' hearts skipped a beat. Is this how the old man disciplines his own kin? He treats them harsher than his enemies! While shocked, they felt lucky they didn't have such a Great-Grandpa; they felt they wouldn't have lived past childhood.
"Great-Grandpa... that was over a year ago, why are you still hitting me..." Luffy climbed out of the pit with a dejected face, the joy of seeing Ace completely gone. A bump, no smaller than Ace's, had appeared on his head.
"Hmph! I'll hit you whenever I feel like it!"
After punching Luffy, Rowan seemed much more relaxed. He grabbed both Ace and Luffy and leaped off the Whitebeard ship, returning to the Marine warship.
"Ace..." Marco wanted to stop them, but thinking of their relationship, he hesitated. Even if he wanted to, he knew he couldn't stop Rowan.
"Commander Marco... will Ace be okay?" a crewman asked hesitantly.
"We'll follow the warship for now. Then, we report this to Pops and see what he says," Marco replied, staring at the Marine vessel.
On the warship, Rowan turned to Momonga. "Momonga-boy, steer the ship to the nearest island."
Momonga was puzzled. "Mr. Rowan, aren't we heading to the Red Line to hand over Diamante to the Headquarters team?"
"That can wait," Rowan waved a hand dismissively.
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