<h4>Chapter 64: Shameless Garp</h4>


    At the port of Marine Headquarters, Marineford, udius had just disembarked from a warship. Walking beside him was Vice Admiral Garp, who had been chattering non-stop since they''d set foot onnd.


    Holding his forehead in frustration, udius sighed. "Garp, I''ve told you countless times, I don''t know where the Roger Pirates are. Why do you keep bothering me?"


    "It''s not about the Roger Pirates as a group. They''ve already disbanded. Everyone knows that," Garp said, waving his hand dismissively. "Breaking up has its advantages, sure, but it also means news will leak more easily. Aren''t you CP-X guys supposed to be good at gathering intel? Just tell me if you hear anything especially about that b*****d Roger."


    "I''m as anxious as you are. The Five Elders have been breathing down my neck about this. Why do you think I came to Marine Headquarters in the first ce? I''m here looking for information too," udius replied.


    "Pfft, information? More like you''re just here to visit Gion," Garp teased, waving him off.


    In truth, while udius had good rtionships with figures like Sengoku and Zephyr, there was always a sense of formality and distance in their conversations. They respected him but treated him differently because of his Celestial Dragon status. Garp, on the other hand, couldn''t care less about udius''s noble blood. He spoke to him like he would anyone else, without any regard for rank or title. Oddly enough, this made udius feel morefortable.


    Initially, udius and Garp weren''t particrly close. Before the capture of Shiki, they were barely acquaintances, just two people who knew of each other without much interaction. But after Shiki''s arrest, they found themselves working together more frequently. Over time, Garp came to realize that udius wasn''t your typical Celestial Dragon. The man didn''t act like one at all. In fact, in many ways, they got along quite well. Their rtionship grew quickly, as if they had been friends for years.


    Now, Garp treated udius like an old buddy,pletely informal. He would casually p udius on the shoulder or pull him by the arm, behavior that would have been unthinkable for others when dealing with a Celestial Dragon.


    "I''m serious, I really am just here for information..." udius repeated, a bit exasperated.


    "You sure? You''re not lying to me?" Garp asked, staring at him with narrowed eyes.


    "What would I lie to you about?" udius responded, rubbing his temples.


    Scratching his chin, Garp muttered, "Strange... Gion''s beautiful, capable, and has a bright future in the Marines. Plenty of people want to chase after her, so why are you not showing any interest?"


    "Maybe because I''m not in the Marines?" udius shot back, feeling a little annoyed.


    Garp grinned and mumbled to himself, "Maybe I should tell Gion not to waste her time on you..."


    "What was that?" udius asked, not catching what Garp had said.


    "Ahahahaha, nothing! Forget it! Let''s go, let''s go. I''ll show you what you want to see," Garpughed awkwardly, changing the subject and pulling udius along by the arm.


    Once they were inside Garp''s office, udius sat down and sipped some tea while Garp looked at him with confusion. "What''s this about? You seemed like you were in a rush back at the port. Weren''t you looking for some information? Now you''re acting all casual."


    udius chuckled, a bit embarrassed. "Well, I was just trying to strengthen my position, you know. Anyway, don''t change the subject do you have what I''m looking for or not?"


    Garp paused, his expression serious for a moment. "You''re talking about that new scientific unit Marine established, right? It''s supposed to be top secret. How did you find out about it?"


    udius smiled slyly. "Come on, Garp. Did you forget who I am? I might not be able to gather intel like we do for the public, but I have ess to a lot of information within the World Government. My authority lets me know more than you think."


    Garp shook his head in resignation. "I swear, udius, you''ve got all these skills, but you never use them for anything productive. You''ve got your eye on Marine all the time. Why don''t you focus on finding Roger instead of digging into our stuff?"


    "I''m working on it! Maybe I''ll have Roger in chains in a few days," udius muttered, his patience wearing thin. It felt like everywhere he went, someone brought up Roger.


    Garp''s expression grew serious again. "udius, let me remind you, don''t get too cocky just because you helped capture Shiki. Roger is a different beast. He''s incredibly dangerous. If you find any leads on him, cooperate with Marine Headquarters. You''ve got talent in your CP-X team, but you''re still growing. You don''t want to end up on the wrong side of Roger."


    After a pause, Garp added, "Of course, if you don''t want to involve too many people or risk losing credit, you can alwayse to me directly. I''ll help you, and you can take all the glory for capturing him."


    udius gave Garp a withering look. "Do you really think I''m that shameless?"


    Before Garp could respond, udius quickly changed the subject. "Forget about Roger. Let''s get back to what we were talking about the scientific unit."


    "Well, it does exist, but even with your authority, you''re not allowed to visit. You''d need authorization directly from Fleet Admiral Kong. If you get that, I''ll help you out. Until then, no dice," Garp said, waving his hand dismissively.


    "If I had the authorization, I wouldn''t be here asking you about it," udius muttered under his breath. "Anyway, I''m not asking to visit. I just heard that you guys are working on something rted to Devil Fruits, turning them into equipment."


    Garp''s eyes widened in shock. "How do you know about that? Do we have a spy inside?"


    "No, no, calm down. I heard it from the Five Elders," udius said casually, using the Elders as a convenient excuse after all, no one would dare question that.


    Garp let out a sigh of relief. "You scared me for a second there."


    udius then reached into his coat and pulled out a Devil Fruit, cing it on the table. Garp eyed it curiously. "What''s this?"


    "This," udius said with a grin, "is the Logia Swamp-Swamp Fruit. I need a favor. I want your scientific unit to help me turn it into something like a wallet or a backpack. You know what I mean."


    Garp blinked, then scratched his head. "Turning a swamp into storage equipment? Huh, that''s actually pretty clever..."


    udius smirked. "Just don''t try to use it as an excuse to steal it or anything."


    Garp chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "What kind of person do you think I am? Am I really that shameless?"


    udius rolled his eyes. "The way you''reughing says it all."


    "Haha, well... fine. I''ll take care of it. Just leave it to me. You''ll get your swampy wallet or whatever," Garp said with augh.