_________ POV Narration_________
After Enel confirmed that the only ships in the vicinity were firmly sunk at the bottom of the sea and inoperable, he cursed a bit and ended up making a small ship from his staff.
It wasn't going to be anywhere near as fast, or control as smoothly, but Enel really had no choice in the matter.
"Get on, you fossils! We still have to leave before more idiots show up..." Enel said as he rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"Watch your mouth, you brat/young man!" Both Garp and Francisco said at the same time.
Enel didn't know whether to laugh or not, but the old pirate, the supposed criminal, was actually more polite than Garp, a respected Marine hero.
"... Can you two just get on?" Enel asked as his poker face cracked a bit.
"Young people really have no respect nowadays..." Francisco said as he swung on the ship and patted the dust off his clothes.
Garp only grumbled a bit before getting on as well.
"... Now... Can either of you explain what that was just now?" Enel asked the two old men, clearly referring to the huge laser that had just evaporated all of his gold.
Garp himself looked at Francisco with a raised eyebrow, seemingly not knowing much about it either.
"... That was a Pluton Cannon. Remnants of an ancient weapon that the Government had gotten their hands on a while back..." Francisco said as he crossed his arms and shook his head.
"Wait?! What the hell are you on about? I'm sure I'd know if they had any ancient weapons on hand!" Garp said, slapping the boat in anger and making it shake a bit.
Enel glared at him before also deciding to ask a question, a more polite one.
"So, you're saying that the World government have their hands on pieces of Ancient Weapons... How do you know this?" Enel asked the old pirate as he crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes a bit.
Francisco was still once the First Mate of the Rocks Pirates, Enel didn't know enough about him in order to completely trust him.
Garp also didn't seem too keen on believing that information.
"The reason for why I know that... That cannon was initially found and researched by Xebec himself." Francisco said as he shrugged his shoulders a bit.
The old pirate didn't really think he'd be believed instantly anyway, he had been imprisoned underneath Impel Down for quite some time, so it was reasonable for them to be sceptical about the information he held.
Enel's eyes widened in shock, while Garp simply scowled and growled, not really believing that part either.
"So you're telling me Xebec had gotten his hands on that cannon... But never actually thought to use it!?" Garp asked as he voice his scepticism plainly.
"... It wasn't that he didn't want to use it... We're talking about the cannon of a warship considered an Ancient Weapon...
The problem was that we had never managed to get our hands on the ammunition... The Dyna Stones." Francisco's mood seemed to be rather odd when speaking about the past.
Enel thought more and more about his words, listening with interest.
At this point, Garp was also calming down and realizing that Francisco was most likely not bullshitting him.
"But the Dyna Stones are weapons of mass destruction... Are you telling me they are actually supposed to just be ammunition for an ancient weapon?" Garp clenched his fist, wondering just how much the World Government had hidden from the marines...
"Indeed... It took us a while to realize that they were ammunition as well. Xebec was actually planning a raid on the Marines in order to steal some... That was right before the God Valley incident though, so we never really got the chance to test it..."
Francisco seemed to sigh in disappointment and frustration as he recounted their discoveries.
"Still... I find it hard to believe that they stole a large-suspicious looking cannon from right under our noses." Garp said as he rubbed his chin a bit.
"Well, to be precise, they didn't steal the cannon, that was destroyed during your raid on God Valley. They stole the blueprint that I and Xebec had perfected." Francisco said with a frown on his face.
"A blueprint... Huh?" Enel said as he started thinking more and more about the situation.
'If the World Government is hiding that... Then what else might they have? It's a good idea I already started making alliances in order to not face them alone...'
"The cannon that was on their ship... It seemed much smaller than the one in the blueprint, it's possible that the World Government developed many variations of that cannon that use Dyna Stones as ammunition..."
Francisco rubbed his chin a bit, wondering out loud about the marvels that the World Government scientists had likely created already thanks to his and Xebec's discoveries.
"This isn't good..." Enel said as he started thinking of ways to bypass the cannon.
Even the small version that shot at him, maybe wouldn't have been able to kill him thanks to his high resistance to heat, but it had the potential to severely injure him.
"Not good indeed." Francisco chuckled a bit when saying that. "Well, I am old already, so I doubt I'll deal with too many of those." The old pirate said as he enjoyed the sun on his skin and whistled a bit.
This managed to slightly annoy both Garp and Enel, as veins seemed to appear on both of their foreheads...
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But neither one felt the need to lash out at Francisco. The old man had been transparent with them, it was clear that he also no longer cared about piracy, only caring about living his retirement while basking in the sun and breathing in the fresh air.
Garp felt rather conflicted, honestly.
He still remembered how Francisco had almost killed both Rayleigh and Whitebeard. He was once so powerful that his blade could truly not be stopped.
Had Big Mom also not betrayed the Rocks Pirates, both of them would have surely died...
It was expected though, that Xebec ruled through fear, so many turned their backs on him the second the opportunity to kill him appeared.
The only people that could fight Francisco individually were Roger and Garp themselves. Xebec was the only one that could confidently say he'd be able to defeat him...
It was strange to see such a legendary figure reduced to an aged bag of bones that simply wanted to die comfortably.
Garp first considered whether or not a pirate like Francisco even deserved to die comfortably...
But he remembered how the situation was back then, the more time he spent near the old pirate the more he remembered.
Francisco was the only reason the crew was able to hold out. He was the first mate, and while everyone hated Xebec to the bone, everyone liked Francisco.
He was a loyal person that helped his crew like they were his family. He and Whitebeard especially used to get along the best.
But Francisco's loyalty was also strong, regardless of his captain's faults, Francisco truly believed that Xebec could make it, that he could become the king of the world...
Alas, his strong loyalty was also what led to him fighting for Xebec till the end.
Garp couldn't even begin to compare him to Xebec when it came to character, as the two of them were simply polar opposites. Francisco's only real sin was having his loyalty directed to the wrong person.
The only reason he hadn't been killed was probably that none of his previous crewmates could find it in themselves to finish him off.
Roger and Rayleigh were also not the types to just kill an unconscious man, no matter how dangerous he was.
In retrospect, the fact that they spared him might've been more of a curse, as Francisco had ended up being tortured and abandoned for the next 40 years.
Though, to be fair, it might've been just that none of the pirates that fought him checked whether or not he survived, leaving it up to fate.
'Well... Fate has brought him to us... I guess?' Garp thought to himself as he sighed a bit.
"Now that I think about it..." Garp was the one to break the silence that had descended among them.
"God Valley completely vanished from the map after the Rocks Pirates were disbanded... Do you think they used it to test the Pluton Cannon?" Garp rubbed his chin a bit as he started wondering just how much destruction that cannon was capable of.
Francisco simply shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows? It's likely that they did though, testing a brand new weapon that they had sought after for years isn't an opportunity they'd pass up on."
The old pirate seemed completely relaxed when speaking about that, rightfully so, his old bones were heading for retirement in a fairy-tail land.
The old man was already starting to make plans, to spend the rest of his life on the Sky Islands. Maybe he'd even get to speak to other people?
It had been a long time that he had to spend in isolation, he needed to work more on his social skills now...
"It's likely that they used it to destroy the island, but I'll try to look into it just in case. Remnants of the island should be left there, at least traces that it had once been there, I'll visit it sometime soon..."
Enel said as he twirled one of his earlobes around his finger. He had the speed to travel anywhere in the world.
The traces of the island were 100% buried by seawater, but Enel could control it, so it was the perfect mission for him.
"Good on you... Do tell me about what's left of that place, will you?" Francisco smiled a bit, melancholy creeping into his tone as he remembered his home and the years he spent on 'God Valley'.
"Of course! By the way... What are you two planning to do from now on?" Enel smiled a bit when saying that, as he prepared his pitch.
Francisco smiled a bit when hearing that voice, thinking of his retirement and eating grapes while laying on clouds.
Garp simply looked a bit shocked by the question, not really knowing how to answer it, seemingly confused.
'I'll make the two old men join me from now on...' Enel thought as he smiled internally.
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Hello there! Chapter hope you liked!
Btw, the mc didn't bother looking for the cannon, but he does have Francisco, so he doesn't really need it :))
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