One Piece: Surrounded at Marineford? Just kidding!

Impeldown, the deep-sea prison.

The sixth level, the infinite hell.

Those imprisoned here are legendary monsters whose very existence has been erased by the World Government.

The air was filled with a biting chill and a deathly silence of despair.

Heavy footsteps approached from afar, breaking the eternal tranquility.

A tall, muscular figure ignored the surprised or frantic stares from the surrounding cells and walked straight into the deepest part of the cell.

He stopped in front of a solitary cell.

Inside the cell, a man, his body wrapped in bandages and bound by heavy sea stone chains, struggled to raise his head.

The moment he struggled to look up and saw who it was, his weak pupils suddenly contracted.

"Old man..."

Ace's voice was hoarse and dry, almost inaudible.

"Why are you here?"

The naval hero, Monkey D. Garp, sat down cross-legged near the iron bars.

He stared at his grandson, who was covered in wounds, his eyes filled with an extremely complex expression.

"He's injured like that, yet he's still alive."

Karp's voice was very soft, revealing no emotion.

"Thanks to you, the entire Marine Headquarters—no, the entire World Government—is now in complete chaos!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Garp suddenly burst into deafening laughter without warning.

"Hahahaha!"

Laughter echoed wildly in the closed cell, sounding extremely jarring and abrupt.

The laughter contained a sense of helplessness in the face of the current situation, a sense of relief at the grandson's tenacious will to live, and even more so, a deep-seated pain.

Ace looked at his grandfather, who was laughing loudly, and felt a mix of emotions.

In the end, all emotions culminated in a trembling plea, one that carried a sense of relief.

"Kill...kill me!"

"Kill me now!"

Garp's laughter abruptly stopped.

His face instantly darkened, his piercing eyes fixed on Ace, and his voice became more serious and heavy than ever before.

"You want me to kill you?"

Stupid!

"You want me to kill you? It's no use doing anything now! Do you think Whitebeard will let it go just because you're dead?"

Garp clenched his fists so tightly they cracked, and roared out each word clearly.

"No one can stop us now! We... have angered the emperor of this sea!"

The words "Emperor of the Sea" struck Ace's heart like a heavy hammer.

One sentence shattered the last shred of hope in Ace's heart.

Despair overwhelmed him like a tidal wave, and tears uncontrollably streamed down his face.

But soon, this despair was replaced by a strange warmth.

So, it turns out, Dad really would stand against the whole world for him.

Warm liquid uncontrollably slid down Ace's cheeks.

At that moment, he seemed to see his destined ending, but he also felt a warmth he had never felt before.

"I also want you and Luffy to become excellent Marines!"

"And look what happened! Forget the Navy, you two brothers are both troublemakers, you've both become incredibly bad guys!"

Garp seemed to remember something, and a smile spread across his face again.

He seemed to remember something, and changed the subject.

"You've heard the rumors about Luffy, haven't you?"

They openly challenged the World Government in Water 7, openly declared war on the World Government, and even captured Enies Lobby!

"I rushed over immediately and gave him a good taste of my lovingly given fist!"

"But that kid doesn't seem to have any remorse whatsoever! This time, he's committed another shocking crime in the Sabaody Archipelago!"

At this point, Garp couldn't help but laugh again, but this time his laughter was full of pride.

"Guwahahaha! As expected of Garp's grandson!"

Upon hearing Luffy's name and his grandfather's familiar laughter, Ace managed a bitter smile, a rare occurrence for him.

"Oh, right," Garp said casually, as if remembering something, "I told Luffy about his dad."

"That kid was really shocked when he found out he had a father!"

"That kind of thing, whether you know it or not, is a huge problem!"

Karp scratched his hair hard and said irritably.

"Luffy and I both inherited the bloodline of that world-class criminal! How can we possibly be Marines like that?!"

Ace nodded silently.

His eyes instantly became incredibly complex, containing pain, disgust, and deep embarrassment.

"Portcus... I inherited the name from my mother who gave me life."

"But the fact that I have half of that bastard father's blood... fills me with unbearable shame!"

"Because he gave me absolutely no memories, and he didn't give me any love!"

"That being said, he is also..."

Karp seemed to want to say something in Roger's defense.

So that's why!

Ace abruptly interrupted him, using all his strength to utter the clearest and most resolute shout he had ever given.

"My dad!"

"From beginning to end, it was just Whitebeard alone!"

This shout seemed to drain all his strength, yet it also roared out the belief he held throughout his life.

Garp was completely stunned.

He stared blankly at his grandson, who was bound by chains but whose will was unwavering. A hint of helplessness, a hint of relief, and... a deeper tenderness flashed in his eyes.

He saw the child who had once been in pain and confused because of his own background, and who was searching everywhere for the meaning of his existence.

Now, he has found the answer.

However, he also embarked on a path completely opposite to his own, a path that was destined to lead to his death.

"but……"

Karp's voice began to tremble.

"Looking at my beloved grandson, so badly injured..."

This man, who had spent his life naval voyages and was hailed as a "naval hero," could no longer contain his emotions at this moment.

He clenched his teeth, each word seeming to be squeezed out from between his teeth.

"What should I do?!"

"Damn Ace!"

"Why...why didn't you follow the path I laid out for you?!"

Garp's voice trembled with tears; he could no longer suppress his emotions and let out a desperate roar at his grandson.

A scalding tear slid from the corner of this "hero's" eye and fell onto the cold ground.

Then came the second drop, the third drop...

Garp cried.

The hero's iron fist could not hold the fate of his beloved grandson at this moment.

This was a side of him he had never shown before in his life—the most helpless and tender side of a grandfather.

Ace looked at his grandfather's tears, and his vision was instantly blurred by the tears as well.

"Old man..."

He choked up, his voice weak but clear.

"I know...you've always had my best interests at heart."

"But this is the path I chose myself."

"Within the Whitebeard Pirates, I found... my true family."

Karp took a deep breath and roughly wiped the tears from his face with the back of his hand, trying to calm his surging emotions.

He remained silent for a long time before his gaze returned to his grandson. The anger and resentment in his eyes had dissipated, leaving only a complex and gentle emotion.

In the end, it all turned into a long sigh.

"Yes, Ace."

He spoke softly, as if to Ace, yet also as if to himself.

"That Whitebeard guy...in the end, accomplished what that bastard Roger couldn't."

He gave you... a real home.