One Piece: The Marine of the Straw Hat Pirates

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Late at night.

The sea was calm, bathed in the soft glow of moonlight and starlight, the only sources of illumination in the quiet expanse.

"Hey… Ikki, does this method of yours really work?"

"Um… Mr. Garp," Ikki replied, scratching the back of his head, "didn't I say already? Just give it a try! It won't be too much trouble if you give it a shot."

Hearing this, Garp gestured to a group of captured pirates tied up nearby and grumbled, "You call capturing this many pirates alive 'not troublesome'?"

At that moment, Bogart approached with his usual composed demeanor. "Vice Admiral, we've negotiated with the islanders on Yami Island. They've agreed to cooperate with us…"

Before Bogart could finish, Ikki quickly interjected, "Call it 'training'..."

"Yes! Training," Bogart corrected himself, nodding.

Garp rubbed his chin, seemingly satisfied. "Fine. Just follow this boy's lead for now. I'll go deal with Luffy."

With that, Garp stepped into the air, using Moonwalk to propel himself toward a small boat in the distance—the one Luffy was sailing on.

Mid-air.

As he advanced with steady strides across the night sky, Garp's mind wandered.

He had two grandsons, Ace and Luffy, and both of them had declared their dreams of becoming pirates.

Ace, his adopted grandson, was always driven by a complicated past and the burden of a sensitive heritage. When Ace went to sea, Garp had been nearby but chose not to intervene. He understood that Ace's heart harbored unresolved anger and that stopping him might have caused more harm than good.

But Luffy? Luffy was a stubborn, reckless boy. Worse, he'd been influenced by the ideals of the red-haired pirate, Shanks. If that poison could be purged, Garp was confident he could steer Luffy toward becoming a Marine.

Even if Luffy didn't join the Marines, Garp wouldn't allow him to become a pirate. It was bad enough having a son in the Revolutionary Army causing endless headaches. Adding a pirate grandson to the mix? Sengoku would never let him hear the end of it.

Yes, for Garp, the real "trouble" wasn't Luffy's actions—it was the nagging from his peers.

Before long, Garp arrived at Luffy's boat.

The boy was sprawled out on the deck, snoring peacefully, completely unaware of his grandfather's presence.

Seeing his reckless grandson asleep on the open sea, Garp approached and delivered a fist of love, rousing Luffy in his usual way.

Startled, Luffy shot up, clutching his head. However, upon seeing Garp, he yawned and promptly lay back down. "Huh… must be a dream. I dreamed about Grandpa…"

Garp: …...

"Wake up, you idiot!" Garp roared, landing two more iron fists squarely on Luffy's head, which now resembled a stack of candied haws.

Only then did Luffy realize that this wasn't a dream—his grandfather was actually here.

Luffy's first instinct was to run, but there was nowhere to go. On the sea, as a Devil Fruit user, escape was futile. He could only flail and struggle as Garp hoisted him over his shoulder and carried him back to the ship.

Back on the Marine ship.

Luffy continued to thrash and shout as Garp marched onto the deck, but no amount of struggling made a difference.

Garp ignored the noise and turned to Bogart. "How are the preparations?"

Bogart glanced briefly at Ike before responding, "Everything is ready, sir."

Just as he finished speaking, a cacophony of screams and shouts erupted from the direction of Yami Island.

Luffy immediately stopped struggling. He turned toward the island, his eyes widening at the sight of fire and chaos. Pirates were rampaging through the village, committing atrocities—pillaging, killing, plundering.

"Grandpa! We have to help them!" Luffy shouted, his voice desperate. He extended his arms, preparing to stretch them toward the island, but Garp grabbed him firmly, preventing him from launching himself.

Garp remained silent, his expression unreadable, and gestured for Ikki to step forward.

Ikki crossed his arms and looked at Luffy. "You want to help, huh? Sure, go ahead. But first, let me ask you this—" He paused, locking eyes with Luffy. "In what capacity are you planning to help them?"

Luffy blinked, stunned by the question.

Seeing Luffy stunned, Ikki continued, pointing toward the distant fire lighting up the night.

"Look at that, Luffy. Those are the pirates you dream of joining! Burning, killing, looting—committing every crime imaginable!"

"No! They're not pirates!" Luffy shouted.

To Luffy, pirates symbolized freedom, adventure, and the pursuit of dreams—not the cruelty and destruction unfolding before him.

"Haha…" Ikki chuckled. "If they're not pirates, then what are they, Luffy?"

Luffy faltered, unable to answer.

Taking advantage of Luffy's hesitation, Ikki pressed on. "I get it, Luffy—you want freedom. But tell me this: is being a pirate the only way to achieve freedom?"

Ikki then shot Garp a knowing look. "Just look at your Grandpa—he's a Marine, but he's as free as they come!"

Garp, oblivious to the hint, picked his nose and grumbled, "Freedom? Don't talk to me about freedom. That old coot Sengoku just called and ordered me to report back. I'd rather be fishing…"

Ikki: …

Bogart: …

Luffy looked at Ikki like he'd just said the dumbest thing imaginable. "Is this the freedom you're talking about?"

Ikki groaned inwardly. Clearly, Garp wasn't going to help sell his point. It seemed he'd have to rely on his Talk-no-jutsu to sway Luffy.

Meanwhile, on the island, Marines had already landed and were "capturing" the pirates who were "pillaging" the village.

Of course, this so-called chaos was part of the elaborate drill. The pirates and islanders played their parts, but their acting left much to be desired.

Fortunately, the cover of darkness hid most of the cracks in the charade.

Ignoring the activity on the island, Ikki refocused on Luffy, speaking with logic and reason.

"Luffy, if it's freedom you want, you don't have to raise a pirate flag. You could hang a merchant flag, or even an adventurer's flag, and still sail the seas!"

Ikki's argument wasn't unfounded.

In the original timeline, the Straw Hat Pirates did plenty of good deeds—saving kingdoms, helping people, and defeating villains. Yet, because they flew the pirate flag, they were branded as criminals.

'All those islands and countries the Straw Hats saved…' Ikki thought to himself. 'They did more good than most Marines. If only they'd flown a different flag, they wouldn't have been wanted in the first place. With Garp's connections, they might've even received government backing.'

Luffy seemed to mull over Ike's words. His gaze shifted from the fiery village to the straw hat in his hand.

For a moment, doubt flickered in his eyes. What Ikki was saying made sense—he could pursue freedom without becoming a pirate.

But then he remembered the promise he'd made to Shanks.

"I promised Shanks…" Luffy said quietly, putting the straw hat back on his head. "I promised I'd become King of the Pirates. I won't break that promise."

Ikki sighed, frustrated by Luffy's stubbornness.

"Luffy," he said patiently, "That is just a title. If you sail the seas, find the treasure, and achieve your dreams, people will recognize your accomplishment—whether you're a pirate, a Marine, or even an adventurer!"

He pointed at Luffy. "Your promise to Shanks was to find ONE PIECE, wasn't it? Nowhere does it say you have to be a pirate to fulfill that promise!"

Luffy's eyes widened, his resolve shaken again.

At that moment, Garp—who had been silent until now—suddenly roared, "Luffy! If you don't want to be a Marine, but you still want freedom, how about this: I'll give you a new career!"

Luffy turned, confused. "A new career?"

"Yeah! How about being a Private Marine?" Garp suggested with a grin. "You'd recruit your own crew, handle your own missions, and I'd cover for you from the shadows! That way, you can do whatever you want—without flying a pirate flag!"

Ikki stared at Garp, dumbfounded. "Is this guy serious?" he thought.

To Ikki surprise, Luffy didn't dismiss the idea outright.

"Okay!" Luffy said, his eyes lighting up. "But my goal is still ONE PIECE—I'll become the Marine King with it!"

Ikki: …

"Marine King?" Ikki muttered, rubbing his temples. "Why are you like this…?"

"Bwahahaha!" Garp burst out laughing, slapping his knee. "Marine King! That's my grandson!"