Koby and Helmeppo's Resolve! Vice-Admiral Garp's Parental Affection

Aboard the Going Merry, Usopp daydreams aloud about the hero's welcome he is certain awaits him at Little Garden, drawing a jab from Zoro below and a hush from Nami, who apologizes to Vivi. Vivi describes the perils of the Grand Line, where sunken reefs and risen corals menace ships even where no land shows. In the galley, Sanji swats away Usopp's grabs at the finished dessert and asks where Luffy has wandered off to. Nami had sent him to draw her bathwater, and a sudden crash reveals he broke the device, earning a fist to the head. Settled at the table, Luffy notices Koby in the paper and asks Nami to read the article aloud.

At Marine Headquarters, the crushing workload overwhelms Koby and Helmeppo, who duck into an alley where Helmeppo talks of quitting. Koby pushes him onward, recalling his pledge to surpass his father, just as Garp looms up behind them. Terrified, Koby swears the two will follow any order and stand ready to die. The pair scrub floors beneath the vice admiral's gaze and drive themselves through brutal nights, all chasing the dream Luffy inspired. Overhearing them talk of the Straw Hat captain, Garp questions them about befriending a pirate and orders them to prove their strength.

On the beach, Koby and Helmeppo throw everything they have at Garp without landing a real blow. He then reveals it was a test of their resolve, which they passed, and announces he will oversee their training himself. Back on the ship, the crew sleeps while Nami keeps watch over Vivi and slips the newspaper into a drawer, and a dreaming Luffy orders the vessel onward to Little Garden, his slumbering crewmates mumbling their agreement.

This entry belongs to the Diary of Koby-Meppo cover-story run. Nami reads the report on the pair from the MAICHYO newspaper and shoots Vivi a worried glance afterward. On screen, viewers watch the ship's bath device get smashed to pieces. The bout in which Koby and Helmeppo take on Garp to prove themselves was invented for the anime, and Vivi's commercial-break cue differs from her usual theme. Notably, Luffy shows no reaction when Garp's name comes up, despite the man being his grandfather.