In early 1520, near Loguetown, the journey of a Supernova with a dual identity came to an end.
"Seth the Rebel," bounty of 523 million.
"The Masked Destroyer," bounty of 59 million.
At the hands of the Marine Hero, Monkey D. Garp , and whether he is alive or not remains unknown.
"The Masked Destroyer..."
Rumors say he could copy the powers of other Devil Fruits.
The most notable ability he used was a copy of the Mera Mera no Mi, the Logia fruit used by the famous Portgas D. Ace.
Could there be a connection between the two , especially since they both come from the same place?
---
"Hey kid, tell me, do you know Ace!?"
In an unknown sea area, aboard a Marine ship with a dog-headed emblem, inside one of the cells, Monkey D. Garp sat in front of the prison bars, holding a fresh newspaper in hand, staring at the person lying on the ground like a mummy , bandages covering every inch of his body, even his face.
Clang!!
Clang!!
Echoed the sound of the Sea Prism Stone chains binding Seth, whose eyes remained cold and sharp.
Two days had passed since his clash with Garp in Loguetown , or rather, it hadn't been a fight at all.
He had been beaten without even scratching his opponent's clothes.
The last thing he remembered was the pain tearing through his body before he blacked out.
Garp ignored everything in the newspaper, pointing only to the section that mentioned a possible connection or acquaintance between Ace and Seth.
"Kid, the Mera Mera no Mi ability you used , it's Ace who possesses it now. If it weren't for the chaos that brat is causing in the Grand Line, I'd have thought he was dead and that his power ended up with you..."
"But the existence of a fruit that can copy other Devil Fruits' abilities is truly unusual. Such power has never appeared on the seas before. Unfortunately..."
He looked at Seth with regret and added
"Such an incredible power fell into the hands of someone like you..."
"Someone like me?!"
Seth laughed with a raspy voice and mocked sharply,
"Who are you to judge me!? Who do you think you are!? You're just a servant ... a loyal dog wagging its tail when the Celestial Pigs toss it a bone..."
Garp froze, mid-sentence, then suddenly burst into loud laughter.
"Bwahahaha... Kid, I liked how that last word hit!"
He stopped laughing and sighed bitterly.
"I see... you've had a bad past with those filthy Celestial Dragons. Looks like the Marines failed you too. But do you think that makes you special? Attacking Marine bases, destroying them, killing thousands of innocent people!? What makes you different from those pigs!? Tell me!?"
Seth's eyes narrowed sharply at Garp before he let out a sigh.
"I never said I was a good person. Maybe you're right , in the world's eyes I'm a criminal, a killer... but..."
He paused, then replied angrily,
"Don't you dare compare me to those dogs again!!"
He closed his eyes and sighed with bitterness.
"It was a quiet day like any other... we were fishing to earn our daily bread, when that scum's ship appeared..."
"The last thing I remember was watching my family die before my eyes from their bombardment. The next moment, I opened my eyes to find myself enslaved by..."
"Hmmm, I think his name was Saint Marcellus, or something like that!!..."
"Was!?"
Garp's eyes narrowed in shock as he stared at the young man before him.
Seth raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised.
"Oh! Interesting... looks like you didn't know!"
"You!! , Did you really kill a Celestial Dragon!?"
Garp asked curiously.
"Hmm, yeah! I fed him to a hungry Sea King... Why else do you think the World Government chased me like a dog for seven whole months and put that huge bounty on my head?"
" Do you know how many times I was betrayed by scum who reported my location for money...?"
Even if he had expected it, Garp was still stunned by Seth's confession.
"Hey, Monkey D. Garp! , If you want to blame someone for the deaths of those thousands of marines , blame yourself for your failure in duty..."
"Even with all the hunts and pursuit I faced, I never once killed innocent people or even considered attacking the Marines. I thought... even if they're chasing me, at least they're hunting criminals..."
"But just a few days ago, I found myself on a certain island , and there I discovered that a gang of fishman pirates were ruling the place and treating the locals like slaves..."
"Alright, Alright, stop kid, you've made your point clear..."
Seth smirked with sarcasm.
"Oh! Interesting! Let me guess!? You guys knew all about that scum covering for the pirates..."
"Either you're covering for his actions to protect your reputation, or... the Marines are rotten to the core."
Garp's dark face grew even darker as he listened to Seth's words.
"Hey ! Garp, tell me... am I headed to prison or to a laboratory ? , I imagine you guys are quite interested in the fact that I'm a Devil Fruit user who can still swim!!"
Garp shrugged and replied to Seth's question:
"No idea, kid ... I don't know anything about your next destination..."
"Soon, a World Government ship will take you... and most likely, you're headed to the lab of Dr. Vegapunk."
"Well, that was a good conversation. If it weren't for your actions in Loguetown and the mercy you showed those people there, I wouldn't have spoken to you at all."
He stood up, dusted off his clothes, and added as he left
"Now I see you're just a kid forced down the wrong path..."
"Tch! , Who needs your opinion..."
Seth muttered angrily before sighing.
Clang!!
Clang!!
He stared at the Sea Prism Stone chains binding his body and scoffed.
"Idiots! Do they really think these cuffs can stop me from escaping!?"
He could easily escape from this place , but he chose not to.
He was still heavily wounded, and he also wanted to steal from the place the Marines were sending him to , and destroy it if possible.
"It's just that damned Sea Stone... it really does affect me..."
he thought grimly.
Every time he tried to form a connection with the DNA of a Devil Fruit stored in the watch's genetic library, the connection was scrambled and immediately cut off , meaning he couldn't use any Devil Fruit ability.
However, he could still form connections with other DNA sequences.
This meant the Sea Stone didn't affect the watch itself , only the Devil Fruit DNA was being blocked.
"Vegapunk!?"
Seth recalled Garp's final words , his attention caught by the name of that scientist.
"Hmmm... never heard of him before! But from Garp's emotions, I can tell... this scientist must be a real expert. I wonder... could he find a cure for her !?"