The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp

Marine Headquarters, Roy's Residence, Night

The night was as calm as water. The warm yellow light in the house cast a cozy and peaceful glow over the living room. Bell-mère sat in the center, an open storybook on her lap. Luffy and Nami were squeezed in on either side of her, their eyes shining as they stared at the pages, letting out occasional gasps of wonder. Nojiko sat on the sofa, knitting a light blue sweater, occasionally looking up with a soft smile.

Law had been picked up by Rosinante, who was reportedly taking him to familiarize himself with Marine Headquarters and to allow the two "family members," both rescued from Doflamingo's clutches, to spend some time together.

On the roof, a cool night breeze rustled the tiles. Ace lay with his hands behind his head, gazing at the starry sky, a complex emotion in his eyes.

"Swish!"

A light breeze swept by, and Roy's figure appeared silently beside him. He also lay down, hands behind his head, and casually looked at Ace. "What's wrong, kid? You look so down. That's not like you."

Ace pouted and didn't speak, his ears turning slightly red.

Roy narrowed his eyes like a sly fox and ruffled his hair. "What? Did that kid Law get you down?"

Ace was silent for a moment before he mumbled, "A Devil Fruit ability is so great... you just eat it and you become so strong. It's better than years of my training." His voice held a hint of unwillingness and a longing for the unknown.

Roy chuckled softly and flicked Ace's forehead. "You idiot!"

"Ouch!" Ace clutched his forehead and glared at him, but there was a hint of a playful pout in his eyes.

Roy withdrew his hand and looked at the night sky, his tone unusually serious. "A Devil Fruit ability isn't all good." The night breeze blew, carrying the faint scent of sea salt. "A person who eats a Devil Fruit can never swim for the rest of their life. Once they fall into the sea, they're useless. Not to mention they're also vulnerable to Seastone." He slowly turned to look at Ace, his gaze deep and firm. "And Haki, that is the only truth in this world."

Ace was silent, his eyes flickering. "But..."

Roy smiled slightly, changing the subject. "But then again, if you can develop a fruit's ability to its fullest, it can indeed make a person unbelievably strong." He held out his hand and gestured in the night sky, his fingers glowing slightly in the starlight. "For example, Law's Op-Op Fruit. If it's truly fully developed, it can even grant eternal life—the 'Immortality Operation'."

"The great pirate Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit can shatter an island with a single punch."

Ace's eyes widened. "Shatter an island with one punch?! The Immortality Operation?! Is that for real?!"

"Mm," Roy nodded lightly, his gaze gentle yet deep. "But that's for the future. Even if he has the potential, it will take a long time to develop it."

"There are no shortcuts, only step-by-step accumulation. And I don't hope he'll ever have to use that."

Ace stared at the night sky, silent for a moment, a hint of understanding in his eyes. He turned to look at Roy, a slight smile on his lips. "Roy, I'll definitely be able to get stronger on my own in the future, right?"

Roy looked at him quietly, the night breeze brushing the hair on his forehead. "Of course. I believe in you."

"And, I've always been watching over you guys..."

The night breeze blew, and the two were silent for a moment. As the night deepened, the gentle sea breeze blew across the roof, and the starlight fell on their shoulders.

Roy suddenly turned his head and called out casually, "Ace."

"Hm?" Ace was looking up at the starry sky with his hands behind his head, still chewing on the jerky Roy had given him, his voice muffled.

Roy looked at him sideways, a familiar, mischievous grin on his lips. "Do you want to eat a Devil Fruit?"

"Cough, cough, cough!" Ace nearly choked on a piece of jerky. He shot up and stared at him in shock. "What did you say?!"

Roy smiled mysteriously and slowly held out his right hand, palm open. A fruit, entirely red and covered in spiral flame patterns, lay quietly there, as if it were a solidified flame, giving off a strange glow.

"Th-This is...?" Ace's throat was a little dry.

"The Logia-type Flare-Flare Fruit," Roy said lightly, his voice low and powerful. "Eat it, and you will gain the power to control fire."

He subconsciously looked at Roy's face but only saw those eyes, which were smiling but couldn't hide their seriousness and gentleness.

Ace's hand trembled, it really trembled. He was a Marine, a seed personally cultivated by Roy, a genius kid who had grown up at Marine Headquarters. He knew all too well what a Devil Fruit meant, let alone a Logia-type, which was widely recognized as a "human-shaped mobile natural disaster." Many branch Vice Admirals had never even seen a Paramecia, and at his age, even a Devil Fruit user was a rarity. And now... someone was handing him such a precious Devil Fruit without any reservation.

Ace's hand trembled slightly. He slowly reached out but stopped in mid-air, his expression complex, as if he were afraid that everything before him was just an illusion. "Can... can I really?" Ace's voice was slightly hoarse, his Adam's apple bobbing. His hand hung in the air, but he didn't dare to reach out.

Roy didn't answer, but just smiled and gently placed the fruit in Ace's hand, his gaze gentle and firm.

In that moment, many things flashed through Ace's mind—Luffy's carefree smile, the warm back of Bell-mère as she cooked, Instructor Zephyr's roar when he reprimanded him for not practicing his Haki well, and Roy's always tolerant and firm gaze. He looked down at the fruit, the flame patterns on his palm pulsing like a heartbeat, illuminating his trembling fingertips.

"This is... the power to protect them."

"Thank you, Roy." He didn't say it out loud, but the clear light in his eyes was more sincere than any words.

"I won't let you down."

Ace grinned, his familiar confidence finally returning. Roy smiled and ruffled his hair. "Eat it. I'll be counting on you from now on."

Ace's lips curved up, and he clenched his fist. "Mm."

However, just as he opened his mouth to take a bite—

Roy suddenly turned around, secretly took out a Transponder Snail from his sleeve, and quietly pressed the record button, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Hehe... a first-time fruit experience must be commemorated."

Ace didn't notice and took a bite without hesitation—

"BLECH!!!"

The taste of the fruit was like the sole of a shoe stewed with smelly fish, mixed with sock water and boiled cabbage. Ace's face instantly contorted, the veins on his forehead bulging, and tears immediately welled up in his eyes. "Wh-what is this hellish food?!"

In the Transponder Snail's camera, Roy could no longer hold back his laughter. His shoulders were shaking like reeds in the wind, and laughter was almost rolling out of his stomach. "Hahaha~ I forgot to remind you, Devil Fruits are one of the most disgusting things in the world!"

"You bastard!! You knew, didn't you?!" Ace roared while dry-heaving, tears still in the corners of his eyes.

Roy was overjoyed, laughing so hard he was rolling on the roof, the Transponder Snail's camera almost falling off. "Of course I knew~ But who could resist watching you eat it so seriously? It would have been a shame to miss it!"

"You-you just wait! I'll definitely get you back for this!!" Ace was so angry he was jumping up and down, snot and tears almost coming out, but he still gritted his teeth and swallowed the fruit in his hand, bite by bite.

"Oh right, I forgot to tell you, you only need to eat the first bite~"

Hearing this, Ace was about to start cursing when suddenly—

"BOOM!"

A scorching energy exploded from his chest, the heat surging through his limbs. He was stunned. The next second, a dazzling flame ignited in his palm with a "whoosh." The temperature was scorching, and it was so bright it lit up half the roof. The wind blew the fire, and the boy's shocked face was like a sculpture in the firelight.

Roy steadily put away the Transponder Snail, gave a victory sign to the camera, then looked back and said softly to Ace, "Welcome... to the world of 'flame'."

On the roof, the two boys looked at each other and smiled, surrounded by firelight and starlight. This was a mark of growth, the trust of family, and for Ace, the beginning of the sun's flame.

————

Meanwhile, in the Donquixote Family's territory, in the council hall.

In the dim hall, candlelight flickered, illuminating the tall figure on the throne. Doflamingo had his legs crossed, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest, his pink feather coat trailing on the floor, the eyes behind his sunglasses as cold as ice.

In the center of the hall, Bellamy was prostrated on the floor, covered in injuries, his clothes tattered, the blood on his forehead already dried. He looked as pathetic as a stray dog.

"Fufufu..." Doflamingo's laughter was low and dangerous, echoing in the silent hall. "Bellamy..." He slowly stood up, looking down at the man kneeling on the floor, his voice filled with undisguised mockery. "What face do you have... to come back alive?"

Bellamy trembled all over and suddenly looked up, his eyes full of disbelief. "L-Lord Doflamingo! I..." He was desperate to explain, but the words caught in his throat. He suddenly remembered what that Marine boy had said before he left three days ago—"A scapegoat..."

"So... it was really like that..." Bellamy's face instantly turned pale, his lips trembling, as if he wanted to argue something. But Doflamingo had already lost his patience.

"Useless." He lifted a finger, and almost-transparent threads instantly wrapped around Bellamy's neck.

"No... Doffy... I..." Bellamy struggled in terror, but the threads had already dug deep into his flesh, and blood seeped from the lines.

Doflamingo's eyes were cold and merciless. He gently flicked a finger—

"Swish!"

Blood sprayed, and Bellamy's head rolled to the floor, his eyes still wide open in death. The hall fell into a dead silence. The family executives stood silently on both sides, no one daring to make a sound.

Doflamingo slowly sat back on his throne, blood dripping from the threads on his fingertips, his face terrifyingly grim. "Roy..." he said the name in a low voice, his tone filled with suppressed rage.

-------

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