"It's really you, old man!"
Shano also laughed. "That's a bit much though—did the Navy Headquarters actually send you to arrest me?"
He'd only been in the Grand Line for two months.
This was Roger-level treatment!
"Nothing I could do. In the New World, the Beasts and Whitebeard are tearing each other apart, manpower's tight. I was actually on vacation, but they pulled me in... Hey, wait, that's top-secret military intel, I can't say that."
"But you already said it, Mr. Garp!!!" came the furious voices of several nearby navy soldiers.
"Haha!"
Garp scratched his head and laughed. "Ah, it slipped out! Whatever, it'll be in the papers in two days anyway!" He suddenly turned serious. "Shano, I'm actually here this time on behalf of the World Government to talk about the Seven Warlords of the Sea."
"Seven Warlords of the Sea?"
Shano pinched his chin. "So they want to recruit me, huh? Even the World Government was alerted?"
"That's right, haha! Beating two Warlords in a row—even the Five Elders couldn't sit still. Anyway, as long as you agree, the bounty gets scrapped immediately. You'll also enjoy... Tch, why are there so many pages in this document? What a hassle. Let's just talk face-to-face!"
"I'm fine with meeting, but old man, you're coming alone, right?"
Shano paused. "Don't bring along some shady guy in sunglasses or with an eyepatch."
"Huh? Of course not!"
"Okay then, I'll drop anchor and wait for you. Let me check the sea chart... Our current approximate coordinates should be—"
Click.
The call disconnected.
In the dining hall, everyone exchanged glances, then looked toward Shano.
"Big bro, are we really gonna stay here and wait for the navy?"
Nami was the first to speak up, anxious. "We can't trust them that easily. What if it's a trap...?"
"Don't worry."
Shano sat back down, eating breakfast with a relaxed expression. "If it were someone else, I might be wary. But the old man—his word is good."
"Yeah, true," Smoker agreed. "Mr. Garp really wouldn't pull something like that, even against an enemy."
"Even though you've left the Navy, you still admire him, huh?" Robin said with a curious smile.
"The Navy Hero's name has echoed across the seas for decades. Every kid who dreamed of joining the Navy grew up on his stories."
Smoker sighed.
Too bad... not every admiral is like Garp.
"Alright, Captain said no need to worry, so stop worrying!"
Nami wanted to say more but was cut off by Zeff banging a spoon on the table.
"Eat your breakfast!"
…
The End of the Sea dropped anchor.
After breakfast, Shano lounged lazily under a parasol. Glancing at the water, he suddenly looked up.
"Hey, Nojiko."
Nojiko, on the watchtower keeping an eye out for nearby warships, poked her head out.
"What is it, big bro?"
"Freeze this area—make a wide ice field."
"Huh?"
Nojiko looked confused.
"You haven't met the old man, so you don't know how he is."
Shano grinned. "Whether I say yes to joining the Seven Warlords or not, he's definitely gonna pick a fight after we catch up. You don't want us smashing up the deck of the End, right?"
Fight on the End of the Sea?
Nojiko imagined it and shuddered. They'd been sailing on this ship for two months, had grown attached to it. She didn't want to see it trashed.
"Got it, bro."
She nodded, put down the telescope, and jumped from the tower.
Falling toward the sea, she took a deep breath and thrust her hands forward. A biting cold burst from her body—
"Ice Age!"
In an instant, frigid winds exploded outward!
Crack, crack... The churning sea froze into a silver-white ice field.
Shano raised a brow.
No way... that's the name she gave it?
Wouldn't Aokiji be pissed if he saw this?
"How's that, bro?"
Nojiko smiled and waved up at him. "About 100,000 square meters—is that enough?"
"More than enough."
Shano gave her a thumbs-up, walked to the rail, and leapt down onto the ice.
Though it shared a name with Aokiji's technique, Nojiko's ice had half a meter of powdery snow atop it, glittering in the sun and crunching underfoot.
"Perfect venue."
Shano smiled and looked into the distance. "Now we just wait for the old man…"
…
Over an hour later—
On the horizon, a dog-head warship finally appeared.
On the deck, Garp sat cross-legged on the railing, munching on a bag of senbei stolen from Sengoku's office.
His adjutant Bogart sighed and said, "Vice Admiral Garp, we're almost there. Shouldn't you get the documents ready?"
"Haha! What's the rush?"
Garp waved a hand. "Negotiations should start on friendly terms, right? You don't just barge in waving papers... Huh?"
He narrowed his eyes.
A vast frozen sea stretched out before them. "Weird… this looks like Kuzan's doing. But… it's not quite the same."
"It's probably the Snow-Snow Fruit."
Bogart explained, "The user is Nojiko—Shano's sister. Intelligence also says there are two more Logia users aboard. Their strength isn't to be underestimated."
No—"not to be underestimated" was an understatement.
Bogart sighed.
Who'd have thought that boy from the mountains would one day become a powerhouse... and gather such fearsome companions?
"Really now?"
Garp brushed off the crumbs and stood up. "They even set up the battlefield. Hehe, looks like that kid and I had the same idea!"
Same idea?
Bogart blinked.
Then suddenly realized.
"Mr. Garp! Remember your mission—don't go off script!"
"Relax." Garp chuckled. "You've followed me this long. You know I've got a handle on it."
"Report!"
The lookout called down: "Vice Admiral Garp, visual on the End ahead! There's someone on the ice—it's Shano! Bounty 540 million Berries!"
"I see him too."
Garp's eyes were sharp. He saw Shano lounging on a chair under a parasol, drinking beer.
At that moment, Shano raised his bottle and toasted them from afar.
"You little brat, lounging while I hunt you down?!" Garp laughed and launched himself off the ship.
Not with Moonwalk—but with raw leg strength, soaring hundreds of meters before crashing onto the ice—
Boom!!!
A huge hole blasted open on impact, spreading cracks like a shattered window.
The naval hero disappeared into the pit.
"Huh?"
Shano turned to Nojiko.
"Uh… that's near the edge," she said, embarrassed. "The power thins out over there. The center's like ten meters thick, but that side's probably two or three... Should I patch it?"
Shano sighed. "Forget it. We'll fight in the center anyway..."
Before he finished—
Gurgle, gurgle—
Suddenly, bubbles rose from the hole, and then—
"Hahaha! What the heck, this ice is too thin!"
Garp's head popped out, wet hair plastered to his face, senbei still in his mouth.
"Hey! Kid! You just gonna stand there or help me?!"
Shano stared a beat. Then turned to Nojiko.
"…Patch it."
"…Okay."
Crack, crack...
The ice thickened rapidly. Garp, seeing it, yelled and launched himself out of the water.
"Trying to murder me, girl?!"
He stomped toward them, grumbling. "If I'd been slower, you'd have frozen me under the sea!"
Shano handed him a beer and pointed to a seat. "Sit down, old man. I can't tell if you came to negotiate or do circus tricks."
It had been such a great setup.
A meeting on the open sea, on a vast icy plain—old friends reuniting under the sun with a drink.
Now? Wrecked.
"Negotiate? Who cares!"
Garp took a gulp, exhaled in satisfaction, and grinned across the table.
"More importantly, let me see just how strong you've gotten—!"
Swish!
His iron fist, wrapped in Armament Haki, slammed forward.
"Haha!" Garp roared. "Let's see how much you've grown!"
Shano had already prepared. His eyes flashed red as he dodged.
The punch shredded his chair and carved a massive trench in the ice.
"Hey! Aren't we supposed to talk first?!"
"Hahaha! After we fight!"
"You're worse than me, old man!"
Despite the grumble, Shano's fighting spirit rose.
Fine. He'd been itching for this anyway—
Let's see just how far he'd come!
Boom!!!
Both fists collided.
A shockwave exploded out, spiderweb cracks spreading across the frozen field.
Even the docked warship shook violently. Marines clung to anything they could.
Bogart stood unfazed.
"…As expected."
He had seen this coming.
Bang! Bang!
Amid flying ice crystals, the two figures clashed again and again, moving too fast to follow, every impact like a thunderclap.
"Take this punch!"
Garp's blow narrowly missed as Shano leaned back.
"Nice dodge! Your Observation Haki's solid!"
Garp laughed, then slammed down with his leg.
"Iron Block!"
Shano crossed his arms to block, cracking the ice beneath him as he sank.
Then, bursting from the ice behind Garp, he lashed out with a leg coated in Haki—
Bang!
Garp caught him mid-air, spun him, and slammed him into the ice—once, twice, three times...
Over ten slams later, the smile on Shano's face had twisted into a grimace.
Seriously?!
That's his move!
"My turn!!!"
At the top of the arc, Shano twisted mid-air, broke free, planted his left hand—and with his right:
"Sixth Style Secret Technique: Yamabuki Color Wave Ripple Sprint!"
"Iron Block!" Garp roared.
Boom!!!
The punch landed.
Ripples bloomed across Garp's chest.
Then—
BOOM!!!
The shockwave blew snow skyward like a blizzard. Garp was blasted back hundreds of meters, crashing into the side of his ship.
"Mr. Garp!"
"Vice Admiral!"
The stunned marines rushed to the rail.
Garp's Iron Block was broken by a single punch?!
Bogart watched calmly.
He'd seen this before.
"Mr. Garp," he muttered. "If you don't take this seriously now... you'll be completely outmatched."