The next morning.
Sunlight shimmered across the rippling sea. Several news birds perched on the mast, tilting their heads to watch the dog-head warship below.
"Ugh... my head hurts..."
"Drank too much last night... that kid really can hold his liquor..."
A group of Marines clutched their heads as they staggered up from the deck, groaning and swaying unsteadily.
BAM—!!!
The thick oak door of the cabin suddenly let out a shriek as the entire panel flew off its hinges, smashing into the opposite railing and sending wood splinters flying.
Garp, wearing his dog-head cap, strode out energetically, a fresh bag of rice crackers in hand.
"Puhahahaha! You lot! The sun's already up! On your feet for training!"
His booming roar instantly dispelled the Marines' drowsiness. Everyone reflexively sprang to attention, quickly forming ranks.
Garp marched to the center of the deck, his eyes habitually scanning the front of the crowd. At this time, his always stern-faced son should have already been there, organizing the formation.
But today, that spot was empty.
Garp's chewing paused slightly, his eyebrows raising.
"Bogard!"
"Here, Vice Admiral."
His adjutant Bogard appeared like a ghost behind Garp, pressing down the brim of his hat. His expression was unusually grave, clearly having already conducted a search.
"We've searched all cabins. There's no trace of Lieutenant Commander Dragon."
"Huh?"
Garp stopped chewing. The ever-smiling glint in his eyes gradually faded.
"Where could that brat have gone? Did he hide somewhere sulking because I stole his meat yesterday?"
Garp dug his nose, his tone still joking, but the veterans around him could already feel the suffocating low pressure.
Dead silence fell over the deck. No one dared to speak.
Just then, a drowsy mumble from a corner broke the heart-pounding silence.
"Huh? What's this thing? It's stuffy..."
The boatswain with the scar on his face rolled over and sat up from a pile of ropes, clutching a bundle of white fabric tightly in his arms.
He instinctively pulled at it, shaking it out.
"This... isn't this Lieutenant Commander Dragon's coat?" The boatswain held up the Justice Coat that signified an officer's rank, his mind still foggy. "Heh, Lieutenant Commander Dragon's pretty thoughtful, giving me a blanket so I wouldn't catch cold..."
Before he could finish, he suddenly felt the temperature around him plummet to freezing point.
He stiffly looked up, meeting Garp's utterly emotionless eyes.
The terrifying pressure instantly drenched the boatswain's back in cold sweat, his earlier amusement completely replaced by fear in that second.
Garp silently extended his large, calloused hand and took the coat.
The word "Justice" on the coat remained prominent, but it had lost its owner's warmth.
On the most visible spot inside the collar lining, a line of hastily scrawled black characters conveyed a sense of finality:
["Dad, when you see this note, I'm already gone. I don't agree with your Justice. I'm going to find the real answers. Don't worry about me. — Dragon"]
Crunch.
The bag of unfinished rice crackers in Garp's hand was instantly crushed into dust.
Even from far away at the end of the formation, Kane, who had been "trembling in fear" the entire time, could clearly sense a terrifying aura churning violently within Garp, like a volcano about to erupt.
In the sky, the previously clear clouds suddenly began to roil, as if responding to this top-tier powerhouse's rage.
The wooden planks on the deck emitted faint cracking sounds. The surrounding Marines were all trembling under this pressure, with some even collapsing to their knees, their legs giving way.
"That damn... brat!"
Garp's voice was low and hoarse, carrying a barely perceptible tremor. "To actually... take this path?"
He knew Dragon had always held grievances against the World Government.
But he never expected Dragon would leave so resolutely, so completely.
Without even saying goodbye.
"Vice Admiral..." Bogard glanced at the writing on the coat, his pupils contracting slightly before he immediately stepped forward and asked in a low voice, "The situation is serious. Should we notify Headquarters immediately? Request an emergency bounty poster?"
A Lieutenant Commander of Marine Headquarters, the son of the Marine Hero, had actually defected!
If this were true, it would absolutely be a scandal that would shake the world!
"Notify my ass!!!"
Garp suddenly erupted in fury, punching the nearby ship's railing.
BOOM!!!
With a tremendous roar, the entire sturdy warship shook violently.
The steel-made railing instantly turned to dust. The terrifying fist wind, carrying tangible Haki, blasted a vacuum channel hundreds of meters long across the sea!
In the distance, massive waves exploded as several lurking Sea Kings were knocked unconscious and floated belly-up before they could even scream.
All the Marines were terrified by this world-shattering punch, collapsing to the deck and not daring to breathe.
Garp panted heavily, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at the coat in his hand for a long time. Finally, he just weakly lowered his hand, as if he had aged ten years in an instant.
"Bogard!"
"Sir!"
"Monkey D. Dragon encountered extreme storms during a reconnaissance mission and unfortunately fell overboard! Missing! Status unknown!"
Garp turned his back, not wanting his subordinates to see his expression. "Report this to Headquarters! If anyone dares to gossip, I'll throw them into the sea to feed the fish!"
This was the final protection a father could give his son.
Bogard took a deep look at Garp's desolate back, stood at attention and saluted, his voice firm: "Yes! All hands, Lieutenant Commander Dragon is missing in action! All personnel, observe a moment of silence!"
All the Marines immediately bowed their heads, not daring to make a sound.
Meanwhile, Kane, who had been keeping his head lowest in the crowd the entire time, heard that beautiful notification sound in his mind again.
[Ding! Host successfully misled Marine high command, assisted in covering up major defection incident!]
[Violation Value obtained: 5,000 points!]
Kane struggled to suppress the upward curve of his lips.
Sorry, Vice Admiral Garp.
Even though I made you lose a son.
Don't worry, in the future I'll help you trick your grandson too.
After all, families should stay together.
"Kane!"
Garp's sudden roar made Kane's heart jump.
Was he exposed?
Kane immediately stood at attention and responded loudly: "Sir!"
Garp turned around. Though his eyes were still slightly red, he had already regained that unreasonable demeanor of his. He tossed Dragon's coat into Kane's arms.
"Dragon's gone, and my ship is short one capable fighter!"
Garp grinned, his smile uglier than a grimace, yet carrying an overbearing air that brooked no refusal.
"Since you're the genius that Zephyr praised, you'll take Dragon's place! From today on, you're the backbone of my ship! Train like your life depends on it! As long as you don't die from training, train until you're half dead!"
A terrifying pressure enveloped Kane.
"If you dare run away too, or if you're too weak, I'll chase you to the ends of the earth and give you a Fist of Love!"
Looking at Garp's fist, which was larger than his own head, Kane gulped.
Was this really about cultivating a backbone?
This was clearly an old father, heartbroken over losing his beloved son, looking for a durable punching bag to vent his anger on!
Was this... karma?
Holding the coat that still carried the residual warmth of the "revolutionary spark," and looking at Garp's face that was practically screaming "you're in for it," Kane fought back tears and gave a crisp military salute.
"Yes, sir! I promise not to run! I promise to be durable!"
Garp nodded with satisfaction, a hint of his pent-up frustration seeming to dissipate. Then, with a grand wave of his hand, he pointed toward the distant, turbulent seas of the New World.
"Full speed ahead! Destination: the New World!"
"We're going to catch that bastard Roger! I'm... in a very bad mood right now!!!"