Garp cursed out loud.
He rolled up his sleeves and stepped forward, making the tavern’s wooden floorboards creak.
The members of the Red Hair Pirates sat in the corner.
Hearing Garp curse “scoundrel,” they all coughed collectively to hide their embarrassment.
Shanks lowered the brim of his hat even further, pretending to be focused on his drink, with no intention of bailing Luffy out.
Luffy hung onto Ron’s leg, smearing tears and snot all over his pant leg.
“Brother Ron!
Help me!
The old man is going to kill me!”
Ron’s brow twitched.
He kicked his leg in disgust, but couldn’t shake him off.
At this moment, Garp noticed the young man whom Luffy was using as his lifeline.
A fresh face, more handsome than he had been in his youth, sitting with a lazy posture that exuded an annoying sense of leisure.
“Oh?
Brother Ron?” Garp grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth.
“Luffy, is this the backing you found?
Let me test his mettle!”
Before the words even left his mouth, Garp took a step forward.
The old man’s speed was absurdly fast, appearing in front of Ron without any warning.
He clenched his right fist, and the back of his hand was suddenly covered in a layer of Armament Haki that shone like obsidian.
This was the Fist of Love, designed to cure all forms of defiance.
The fist, carrying a powerful gust of wind, headed straight for Ron’s forehead.
Nearby, Makino covered her mouth in fear, and Uta was so anxious she wanted to reach out and pull Ron away.
Ron didn’t even blink.
He sat on the barstool as steady as a mountain, still holding half a glass of juice with ice.
The physique attribute bonus dropped by the system earlier was stacked with the remaining monstrous strength reserves, which were now fully consumed.
There was no change on the surface of his skin, but internally, he was already as solid as a rock.
Clang!
A dull thud, which should have been the sound of flesh meeting flesh, echoed through the tavern like the sound of metal colliding.
A wave of air rippled out from the two of them, knocking the glasses on the bar askew.
The scene of Ron being smashed into the ground by a single punch, which was expected, did not happen.
Not even a few strands of his black hair were ruffled, and not a single drop of the juice in his hand spilled.
Ron tilted his head back, crunched on an ice cube, and swallowed it leisurely.
In contrast, Garp paused in his punching stance for two seconds, his expression shifting unpredictably.
Then he suddenly pulled his hand back, clutching his fist and jumping three feet into the air.
“Hiss—ow, ow, ow, ow!
Is your head made of Sea Stone?!” Garp shook his right hand exaggeratedly.
Ron set down his glass, “Old man, that’s quite a unique way to say hello.”
Garp couldn’t care about his aching hand; his large, copper-bell-like eyes scanned Ron up and down.
Although he had held back his strength with that punch, this kid took it head-on without even breaking the skin.
What a terrifying physical talent!
“Hahaha!
Good lad!
Good bones!” Garp laughed loudly.
“That idiot Luffy finally made a reliable friend!
Kid, your name is Ron, right?
Don’t waste your youth in this backwater.
Come with me and join the Marines!
I guarantee that within three years, you’ll be Admiral material!
The position of Fleet Admiral in the future will be yours!”
Garp was so excited his beard trembled, and he reached out to grab Ron’s shoulder.
Ron leaned back, skillfully avoiding those large hands.
Admiral?
Fleet Admiral?
Clocking in on time every day.
Having to deal with those weirdos, the Celestial Dragons, at every turn, working yourself to death with no overtime pay.
Whoever wants that kind of life can have it.
Ron took the opportunity to raise his left arm and pull Uta, who had just run up to his side, into his embrace.
Uta was caught off guard by the sudden hug, her small face burying into Ron’s broad chest.
She struggled instinctively for a moment, then leaned in softly, her small hands clutching tightly onto Ron’s lapels.
“Not interested.” Ron answered crisply and cleanly.
“Fighting and killing is so tiring.
My dream is to be an idler here in Foosha Village, taking care of my little sister and enjoying the sea breeze.
In the future, I can just rely on my wife to support me.
Isn’t living off a woman great?”
As soon as this unambitious, extremely lazy statement came out, Shanks, in the corner, sprayed out all the wine he had just drunk.
Living off a woman?
Relying on a wife?
Look at who those hands are holding!
This brat is clearly implying that he wants to trick my daughter into supporting him in the future!
“Ron!
Let go of Uta!” Shanks slammed the table and stood up in anger.
Garp was also so angry that smoke was coming out of his nostrils.
A genius with the potential of an Admiral is actually determined to be a bum who lives off a woman!
This is simply a crime against talent!
“You scoundrel!
If you don’t have strength, you can’t even protect the woman you like, and you want to live off her!”
Garp was furious, grabbed Luffy, who was still hanging on Ron’s leg, and tossed him aside.
“I’m going to set your twisted logic straight today!”
Ron picked his ear nonchalantly.
“Old man, don’t be so hot-headed.
You say I have no strength?
How about we compete in something else?
Violence doesn’t solve the problem of hunger.”
Upon hearing this, Garp’s stomach actually growled.
He had been traveling and hadn’t really eaten much.
He rolled his eyes and pointed at the bar.
“Fine!
Let’s compete in eating!
I am the record holder at Marineford for eating donuts for three days and three nights without sleeping!
If you lose, you’re coming back to Marineford with me to be a Marine!”
“And if you lose?” Ron asked in return.
Garp waved his large hand, “How could I lose!
If I lose, I won’t worry about this kid Luffy anymore; he can go be a Pirate King or a Mountain Bandit King for all I care!”
Luffy had just climbed up from the ground and cheered when he heard this.
“Go Brother Ron!
Take down Grandpa!”
Bang!
Luffy received another knuckle sandwich on his head and fainted on the spot.
Seeing this, Makino sighed helplessly.
She brought out several large baskets of freshly baked donuts from the kitchen and piled them in front of the two.
The sweet aroma filled the air.
The competition began.
Garp used both hands, shoveling donuts into his large mouth in rapid succession, swallowing them without even chewing.
Ron’s side appeared much more refined.
Relying on the powerful digestive ability brought by his physique, he ate unhurriedly, yet his consumption speed was not a bit slower than Garp’s.
The empty plates in front of the two piled up at an astonishing speed.
Uta stood by Ron’s side, her eyes fixed intently on him.
She held half a donut in her hand, nibbling on it in small bites, her mind entirely on Ron.
Brother Ron looks so good while eating.
Ron swallowed the food in his mouth and turned his head to look at Uta.
Because the little girl was so entranced, her mouth was stained with quite a bit of sweet frosting and cookie crumbs.
Ron didn’t speak.
He reached out very naturally, his fingertips gently wiping across Uta’s very soft and beautiful lips.
The touch was soft and warm.
Uta froze on the spot, her breathing even stopping.
What was even more fatal was that after Ron wiped away those crumbs, he didn’t use a tissue to wipe them off.
Instead, he turned his wrist and put his thumb directly into his own mouth, sucking on it slowly.
Afterward, he smacked his lips as if still savoring it, and chuckled at Uta beside him.
“Hmm, very sweet.”
Uta’s brain instantly went blank.
Her clear eyes instantly lost focus.
From her collarbone to her earlobes, and even her entire scalp, a crimson color spread rapidly at an astonishing speed.
Her whole body was burning hot, her face flushed red, and hot white steam was actually rising from the top of her head.
Brother Ron ate the crumbs from my mouth…
indirect…
Uta’s CPU burned out on the spot, her body went limp, and she collapsed into Ron’s arms, only able to emit soft whimpers.
The crisp electronic sound in his mind arrived on schedule.
[Ding!
Detected that plot character Uta has developed extreme shame and heart-fluttering emotions!
Triggered Heart-throb Critical Hit!
Congratulations to the host, dropped supreme reward: Conqueror’s Haki Full Power Experience Card, Physique Limit +50!]
Listening to the system notification sound, Ron felt extremely happy and refreshed at this moment.
This wave was truly a huge profit.
Not far away, Garp was grabbing four donuts with one hand and stuffing them into his mouth.
Seeing this scene, his movements froze in mid-air, and he didn’t even notice the donuts falling onto the table.
Shanks in the corner let out a desperate and miserable cry.
“Ron!
I’m going to kill you!
Gryphon!
Where is my sword?!?”
Benn Beckman held onto the Captain’s waist tightly, while Yasopp desperately tried to take the sword away.
“Captain, calm down!
Calm down!
You can’t cut him!”