"Ace? What are you doing back here?"
"And… that outfit you're wearing—isn't that from the group they called Jun Lin in the newspapers?"
Makino stared at him, completely taken aback.
Wasn't Ace supposed to be out at sea, living the life of a pirate?
Why on earth was he back in the village wearing that?
What in the world is going on?
"It's a long story," Ace sighed. "I came back because I needed to talk to Luffy about something."
"Luffy? He was just here. But then someone shouted that a Jun Lin killer was nearby and he rushed out! Wait… don't tell me the person they were talking about was… you?"
Makino suddenly paused, her hand flying to her mouth in shock.
"Yeah, that was me. But this 'killer' nonsense is all lies made up by the World Government and the Marines."
"So… this person on the wanted poster… is actually you?"
Makino fumbled through the drawer, pulling out a crumpled bounty notice and pointing at the face on it.
Ace's face darkened immediately.
Apparently, the last time this happened, Luo Lan—their boss—had stormed into the World Economy News headquarters to demand a correction because the portrait looked ridiculous.
Maybe I should ask Luo Lan how much that cost. I want to file a complaint too.
The Marines are just so sloppy with these posters…
BANG!!
The bar doors suddenly burst open with a loud crash.
"You bastard."
"I'm gonna send you flying."
"Gomu Gomu no…"
Luffy's arm stretched back dozens of meters, readying his signature attack.
But just as he launched forward, the figure who had been sitting across from Makino moments ago...
Vanished.
CRACK!
The next moment, Luffy found his face slammed into the floor with brutal force.
A sharp voice shouted in his ear:
"Idiot! Were you trying to hit Makino too?!"
Ace had been sitting just half a meter from her. If Luffy's punch had landed...
Forget Ace—Makino would have taken the full brunt of it!
Now, Luffy's head was planted deep into the bar's wooden floor.
He flailed and grunted, trying to lift himself out.
But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move.
And somewhere in that not-so-developed brain of his, a thought finally clicked:
"Wait... that voice just now… it sounded like Ace?"
POP!
With a loud sucking sound, Luffy finally yanked his head free.
He blinked a few times, then grinned.
"Oh! It was Ace! Why didn't you say so earlier? Hehehehe!"
Ace looked at his little brother with pure exasperation.
No point yelling. This is just how Luffy is.
"So, Ace—why are you back?"
"See this outfit?"
"What about it?"
"You idiot, can't you tell? It's a Jun Lin uniform!"
"Jun Lin? What's that?"
Luffy tilted his head, utterly clueless.
Before Ace could respond, Makino called from behind the counter.
"Okay, enough chatter. Ace, your seafood stew is ready!"
"Coming!"
Ace gave up on the conversation. No way Luffy would understand anyway.
And besides, he was starving.
He slid into a seat at the bar, grabbed a spoon, and started digging in like a man possessed.
"Makino, your cooking is still the best!"
"You really think so?"
"Of course. Jun Lin's food is decent, but the chefs? Pretty average."
Honestly, all of Jun Lin's chefs were just D-grade bio-enhanced soldiers.
Luo Lan didn't think it was worth spending precious points on decent cooks.
His plan?
If we ever want gourmet food, we'll just raid the Baratie restaurant one day and take the chefs. Why waste points when it's that easy?
"Makino, I want some too!"
Luffy had plopped down beside Ace and was now tapping the counter with a fork like a hyperactive child.
"Don't worry," Makino said with a smile. "I made a portion for you as well."
Soon, Luffy had a steaming bowl of stew in front of him and was scarfing it down just like his brother.
At that moment, the bar door creaked open again.
In walked Woops Slap, the mayor of Foosha Village, holding a Den Den Mushi in his hand.
The snail had taken on the face of Garp, and it was now shouting:
"Which bastard laid a hand on my grandson?!"
Woops Slap looked around and froze when he spotted the two boys at the bar, devouring their meals.
Weren't the villagers just saying some Jun Lin member nearly killed Luffy?
Then what is this?
"Ace, I think I just heard Gramps…"
"Yeah, I thought I was hallucinating. But you heard it too?"
"Yup! Though he just returned to the Navy, there's no way he's here, right? Must've been our imagination!"
"Makes sense. Hahahaha!"
Their conversation traveled straight through the Den Den Mushi… and into Garp's ears at Navy HQ.
He nearly exploded with rage.
"These damn brats!!"
Wait—two voices?
Was that… Ace?!
"Ace! So you've finally come to your senses and decided to become a Marine like your grandpa?!"
How Garp reached that conclusion, no one knows.
In his mind, Ace's return to the village could only mean he'd given up on piracy.
"Oh no—it really is Gramps!"
"WHAT?! Grandpa?!"
"GRANDPA?!"
"Luffy, RUN!!"
Not even finishing their food, Ace grabbed Luffy by the collar and bolted out of the bar.
Gone in seconds.
Garp, however, was used to this nonsense.
He didn't even get mad.
Instead, he turned to Mayor Woops Slap.
"Didn't you say a Jun Lin guy attacked Luffy? Where is he?"
Woops Slap scratched his head in confusion.
"That's what the villagers told me… Wait… now that I think about it, Ace was wearing Jun Lin's uniform just now!"
"And the villagers said he looked just like the guy on that 400 million bounty poster—especially when he was still wearing his mask!"
Garp blinked.
Wait a second… 400 million? That was one of the Jun Lin Five!
Just then, Makino's voice rang out from the Den Den Mushi.
"Grandpa Garp, it's true. I asked Ace directly—he said he's left piracy and joined Jun Lin."
"He also said the rumors about him slaughtering thousands of innocents were lies made up by the Marines and World Government."
Garp's heart skipped a beat.
Sure, Ace quitting piracy was good news.
But joining Jun Lin? That's worse than being a pirate!
And wait a minute—did they just say Ace was one of those five?
"Grandpa Garp?"
Makino's voice called again after a moment of silence.
"Oh! Right, yeah, that whole 'thousands killed' thing? That was Sengoku following orders from the Five Elders. All made up!"
"Sure, Jun Lin's killed a lot of people—but they were all evil scumbags. No civilians."
"Ah, oops! I wasn't supposed to say that out loud. Just pretend you didn't hear anything, okay?"
"Bwahahaha!"
In the bar, both Makino and the mayor just stared at the Den Den Mushi...
Speechless.
---
Currently at chapter 410 on Ko-Fi
https:// ko-fi.com/sami27