Protectors [One Piece Fanfiction]

Prologue

Prologue

"You wanna be a Marine right?" Monkey D. Garp asked the young girl. She was determined and anyone could see the drive in her deep brown eyes. "Yes, Garp-jiisan," she replied immediately. Her gaze was sharp and determined, it was as though she was ready to take on the world.

"Then get ready kid! I'll train you to be a great Marine!" the famous Vice Admiral, Garp, exclaimed proudly.

It was the dead of the night when Monkey D. Garp visited the young girl who he left at Dadan's place with his grandson. He had known of the girl's dream for a long time and decided that it was finally time for him to help her achieve it.

The girl who was 14 years old at that time, scrambled towards her belongings and gathered them hastily. She was preparing to leave and to achieve her goals. The young girl turned her head towards the two sleeping figures next to her and gazed at them longingly. Even though she was excited to follow Garp, she was also hesitant to leave her friends behind. 'I'll miss you guys...' she thought as a single tear drop slipped from her eye.

Soft shuffles were elicited from the ragged blankets, "So you're leaving huh?" the 15 year old, Portgas D. Ace asked as he wiped her tear away. He moved and sat in front of the girl, gazing at her. "Yeah..." she huffed as she forced a smile, hiding her sadness from her friend. Ace had noticed her reluctance to leave because of Luffy and him but decided to ignore it.

"Well, get going then," he said sharply.

The girl chuckled softly and replied, "Yeah... I'm leaving now," she picked up her things then stood up. She walked towards the door then turned to look at her friend, "Ace, I'll miss-"

"Don't miss me too much," he smirked, interrupting the young girl.

She stared at him for a bit, wide eyed, then smiled, "I won't."

Ace grinned then stood up and nudged her out of the room. She turned around to look at him, "Take care of Luffy, okay?" she said.

"Of course."

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The creaking floor planks and the smell of wet wood lingered in her nose even after she boarded Garp's ship. She missed Dadan's house already along with her friends she left behind but she knew that this was the path she chose.

"Are you ready to become the greatest Marine in history?" Garp asked as he laughed loudly and whacked the young girl's back repeatedly. She gazed at the sea and to the stars while her pink hair fluttered with the wind, "I'm not sure about being the greatest but I'll definitely try my best!" she declared, smiling. Garp laughed, "Don't worry I'll definitely make you the greatest!"

The girl continued to look at the calm ocean while she drifted away in her thoughts.

'I hope you won't be mad at me Luffy,'

'I wonder if you'll miss me,'

'I'm sure you and Ace will become amazing pirates,'

'I'll support you from the sidelines,'

She was reluctant to leave them, that was for sure but she had something she wanted to do.

She wanted to protect.

The girl wondered if Luffy would hate her for leaving so sudenly and not informing him about her goals. She wondered if Ace would tell him. She wondered if Luffy would hate her for becoming a Marine...