Chapter 2 The Bet
"A bet?"
Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp shot Kyle a sideways glance, interest sparking in his eyes.
"Oh? What kind of bet are you proposing, brat?"
He genuinely wanted to hear what nonsense this kid was going to spout today.
"One week."
Kyle raised a single finger, his expression calm and confident.
"Give me one week. For that entire week, Luffy will stay with me."
"If the improvement he gains from following me is greater than what he gets from staying with you—then from that point on, Luffy follows me."
He paused, then added lightly,
"But if I lose… I'll hand over all the senbei my grandfather secretly hid."
(☆▽☆)!
The moment the word senbei entered his ears, Garp's eyes lit up like fireworks. A line of drool nearly escaped the corner of his mouth before he hastily wiped it away with his sleeve.
"Deal!"
He slammed his palm down decisively.
"No problem at all!"
Then he grinned, exposing his teeth.
"I'll leave Luffy to you for a week. Just don't kill him!"
Kyle: "..."
As expected of my grandfather.
"Hahahaha!"
Garp burst into hearty laughter, then turned to the boy beside him.
"Luffy! For the next week, you'll be staying with this big brother. Grandpa won't be training you!"
"Okay! Okay!!"
Luffy's eyes immediately lit up, his head bobbing furiously in agreement.
Anyone is fine—as long as it's not Grandpa!
Bang!
"Ow!! That hurts!!"
A dull impact echoed as Luffy collapsed to the ground, clutching his head. Tears welled up in his eyes as he whimpered.
Garp loomed over him, veins popping on his forehead.
"What kind of reaction is that, you brat?! When parting with your grandpa, shouldn't you be crying and clinging to me?!"
Kyle's lips twitched. He reached down, grabbed Luffy by the collar, and hauled him behind himself, staring straight at Garp.
"Old man. The bet's already been made."
"Luffy is mine for the next week. You're not allowed to lay a hand on him."
Behind Kyle, Luffy froze.
He stared blankly at Kyle's back.
At that moment, it looked unexpectedly tall… and reliable.
"Huh?"
Garp raised an eyebrow.
"Do I need permission to beat my own grandson?"
Kyle shrugged helplessly.
"I wouldn't dare object. After all, you're the Hero of the Marines."
"But if a Vice Admiral of your stature goes back on his word…"
He smiled faintly.
"There's nothing a kid like me could do, right?"
"Heh."
Garp laughed—not amused, but irritated.
"You little rascal…"
"Fine!"
He waved his hand dismissively.
"I won't touch Luffy."
"I want to see just how much he improves in one week. Don't forget—when you lose, I'm taking all those senbei your grandpa hid!"
"It's too early to say who'll lose, Vice Admiral Garp."
Kyle turned and began walking toward the Navy canteen. After a few steps, he stopped, glanced back at the still-dazed Luffy, and waved.
"Come on."
"I'll take you to eat meat."
"Meat?!"
!!
Luffy's entire body trembled. His eyes instantly turned into heart-shaped blobs of pure obsession, drool spilling uncontrollably onto the ground.
He looked exactly like Garp—just smaller.
"I'M COMING!!"
His short legs pumped furiously as he sprinted after Kyle, not sparing Garp a single glance.
Garp twitched, his face darkening.
Kyle smiled faintly and waved back.
"Then we're heading out, Vice Admiral Garp."
The two figures gradually disappeared into the distance.
Garp stood there, watching their backs, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"…Sengoku."
That kid… was interesting.
When talking to Kyle, Garp never once felt like he was dealing with a child.
That level of composure was downright abnormal.
"I really want to see what you can pull off in one week, brat."
He clasped his hands behind his head.
Perfect timing. Luffy can finally get a break from training.
"…Right."
First things first—time to visit Sengoku and grab a bag of senbei.
"Kyle, you really weren't lying about the meat, right?"
On the road, Luffy looked up at him with sparkling eyes.
"Of course."
Kyle replied casually.
"Eat as much as you want."
"Then call me Onii-chan."
Luffy's face immediately scrunched up.
"Tch! Onii-chan?"
"No way! I can't say that!"
"You're barely older than me. You want to be my big brother? Dream on!"
(￣︶￣)
Kyle smiled.
Yep. Still Luffy.
Already this arrogant as a kid.
Which meant—
as the older brother, it was his responsibility to teach him an important lesson.
Kyle cracked his knuckles as he stepped closer.
"What? You wanna fight?"
Luffy grinned eagerly.
"Bring it on!!"
I survived Grandpa's training—how strong could this guy be—
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
A series of dull impacts echoed down the street.
A short while later—
"M-my face…!"
Luffy lay flat on the ground, face swollen and bruised, weakly waving a tiny white flag he'd somehow produced.
"So?"
Kyle smiled gently.
"Did you remember what I said?"
To Luffy, that smile was more terrifying than Garp's.
"I remember! I remember!!"
He nodded furiously.
"From now on, whatever you say goes, Big Brother! I'll never talk back again!"
"Hm. Not bad."
Kyle nodded in satisfaction.
"Let's go eat meat."
"Slow ones don't get any."
He dashed forward.
"No meat?!"
Luffy jolted upright like he'd been struck by lightning and sprinted after him, screaming:
"Kyle—wait for meee!!"
"Mmm—so good! So good!!"
Luffy shoveled meat into his mouth nonstop, grease covering his face.
Kyle watched from the side, utterly unimpressed.
"Your table manners are atrocious."
"Why does eating need manners?"
Luffy shot back.
"Do you know how long it's been since I've had real meat?!"
"Go live with Grandpa for a while and see how you feel!"
Kyle fell silent.
Luffy's expression slowly darkened.
With Garp, being allowed to eat normal vegetables was already a blessing.
Asking a child to survive alone in a forest full of wolves—
Is this some kind of child-level survival training?!
Even when they did get meat, it was usually half-raw and barely seasoned.
Compared to this perfectly roasted, fragrant barbecue—
The difference was heaven and earth.
Luffy sniffed.
T-that was a really hard life…
The more he thought about it, the sadder he became.
The only thing he could do to heal his wounded heart—
…was to eat more meat.