Their modest cabin, nestled in the hillside forest of Shimotsuki Village, was rather unassuming, comprising only a kitchen and a sleeping area.
The yard and the few pottery pieces placed around seemed somewhat overgrown.
Inside the kitchen, fire blazed within a large wood stove as three large fish were being grilled on it.
Near it, Sear and Jacob simply sat cross-legged on the floor.
During this leisurely moment, Sear found the time to complain to his father:
"Dad, how long will you stay home? I am sick of staying at the dojo... it's soo boring there, they don't even teach me any swordsmanship."
Jacob was a marine, albeit just an unremarkable lieutenant from East Blue; the weakest of the seas. He was a dedicated man, ready at any moment to save lives and uphold justice.
He looked at his son and replied, "I will be staying for a week, then I need to return to my duty... The dojo is a nice place! They will train you to wield a sword when you turn six, so don't be in such a hurry."
"Hmmm!!" Sear wasn't quite satisfied with the reply, his eyes hiding inexplicable worries.
Despite the fragments of a different life ever lingering in his psyche, he was nonetheless fully aware of his true identity, he didn't view his father as a stranger.
Really, to him swordsmanship training wasn't even a big deal. Deep down, it was his father's well-being that he was actually concerned about. He wanted nothing more than Jacob to stay home as long as possible.
Although the Great Pirate Era had not yet started, a marine's job, even in East Blue — the calmest of the seas — was still a life teetering along thin ropes.
Inwardly, the boy was baffled.. He thought, 'why should you risk it for those people who won't appreciate you?.. why try to be a unsung hero?..'
He didn't want to lose Jacob, too.
His mother had died in childbirth, but rather than resent Sear for this, the man had instead cherished the so-called jinx that took his beloved's life. Knowing this fact filled Sear's heart with respect. Though he had kept this admiration to himself and didn't normally express it...
Yet, a myriad of emotions can be conveyed without needing to utter a single word.
Jacob, aware of his son's shy nature, looked at his face and smiled. He understood the gist of what was going on inside that tiny head.
"Listen, son!! I chose this line of work fully knowing the possible risks I would be taking. Therefore someday, even if I am not with you anymore, don't be sad."
Sear was taken aback, not having expected his father to see through him.
Jacob observed the fluster in the boy's awkward expression and continued: "Don't be angry when I die and don't seek vengeance... this is my destiny, I chose this path. A man needs to be confident in his decisions. Now I can't possibly regret it..." He stated his mind rather unassumingly, yet the words struck a chord in the boy.
Speechless, Sear kept his gaze fixed on his father. His beating heart picked up pace. In his head, he was processing the path he had chosen in his past life: 'aren't you denying my struggle by saying those words?' he silently questioned...
Still, although stunned and at a loss for a few seconds, Sear nonetheless responded with annoyance: "Humph! You make it sound as if you are some great marine hero, when in reality you are just a small fry."
"Y-You!" Jacob's brows furrowed at the remark.
Bang! A punch landed on the poor boy's head. "Oouch!!" he cried out in pain.
"Is that how you talk to your dad? Learn some manners!"
Safe to say, thereafter inside the cabin, Sear was squealing in pain while Jacob, as if nothing had happened, continued grilling the fish.
After breakfast, Sear requested his father to do some sparring. Even if Jacob was only a lieutenant in the marines, he had the strength of an average East Blue captain, notably at the same level as Captain Morgan.
A minute or two later—
"Come, give me your best punch," Jacob challenged with a grin while standing a few steps down a small slope.
Sear nodded before he jumped, closing the distance between him and his father.
Being on the higher ground, Sear was able to land a proper punch on Jacob's abdomen despite his small stature.
Alas, the punch had no effect on the robust opponent.
The sloppy terrain of the hill was rather difficult to land on after the jump, so Sear landed on all fours.
"Just this much won't do," Jacob taunted.
Not immediately responding to the taunt, Sear backed off a few steps and prepared to throw a kick. "How about this!" After a step, he threw a kick at Jacob's thigh.
Again, as his legs landed, he knew he hadn't done any damage. Just then, smirking, Jacob swept his leg, tripping the poor boy, who fell on his butt.
"Ha ha ha ha!"
Angered by the laughter, Sear promptly got up, and in revenge, threw an uppercut at his father's family jewels.
Punch!
Block! "Nearly had me there. That's not fair, ya brat!"
"Heh! Everything is fair. You think those pirates will stop if it's unfair?"
Sear's teasing didn't bode well with Jacob.
"Cheeky, are we? But I am the adult here. You are twenty years too young to teach me." After saying that, he punched his son on the head with little strength — though a little for him may not have been the same for a kid.
Taking Sear's age into consideration, this was just a light spar. The boy would throw his limbs while his father would take those attacks, occasionally countering here and there.
. . .
After the spar, Jacob alone went to greet Dojo Master Koushirou, while Sear continued training nearby, running up and down a bigger slope, trying hard to increase his stamina and endurance. He hopped on his toes like a chicken and did a few flips too.
"I have been doing the same exercise for the last two years while only increasing the repetitions. Maybe it is about time I add new things..." he wondered while running up the slope.
After repeating the slope climbing twenty times, thud! his knees collapsed onto the grass, where for a time he rested to get back his strength.
"There are no schools in this world... well, at least there's none in this village. Hopefully that remains the case. From what I can recall, I don't have any good impressions of it."
"Now let's begin the run!" he declared, deciding to run around the village in a circular path.
Half an hour later, Sear could be seen running around the outskirts of the village, huffing and puffing...
"It will take me another half an hour to finish running with these baby legs of mine. Well, I guess this is about what you would expect from a child my age... How old am I again? Was it roughly five years old!!?..?"
Finally, after around half an hour of running, he reached the opposite side of the village.
Deciding to catch his breath, he sat on the lush green grass for a while and afterward took a nap while basking under the sun. A large leaf, swaying with the occasional cool breeze, covered his delicate eyes from the brightness...
Eventually...
Yawning, Sear woke up, rubbing his eyes while looking at the ever-scorching sun right above him. "This!.. Is it noon already!?... Well, I better get going!"
Following a dirt path along the newly planted rice fields, he arrived at the village and went straight to the sole general shop in the village.
. . .
"A newspaper, please!" a childish voice called out to the shopkeeper.
The old shopkeeper looked in front, but upon seeing no one, continued reading the magazine in his hands, believing his ears to have been mistaken.
"I am here."
"Huh?" A little confused, the old man looked down. "Oh! So it was you, Sear boy.. What do you need?" In such a relatively small village, everybody knows each other.
"I said I want a newspaper." Sear didn't get annoyed at the shopkeeper for not hearing him, his mental capacity was well above that of an average five-year-old.
"Here you go..." The shopkeeper gave him the last newspaper available in the shop.
"Thanks!" He took it.
"So I heard your father came back?" the shopkeeper asked nonchalantly.
"Yes! He came back last night," Sear plainly answered. It seemed the news had already spread.
"Finally he returned! That man is really an irresponsible father, leaving his child alone. Tsk! Tsk!" Like an old sage, the old man stroked his white beard.
While the shopkeeper was deciding how he should reprimand Jacob, Sear had already left the shop.
Unfolding the newspaper while slowly walking toward the dojo, he greeted the villagers along the way. Everyone here, including the shopkeeper, wore Japanese-style clothing—like a mini Wano.
And thereafter, without further ado, Sear laid his eyes on the newspaper: "Last time when I checked the news, it talked about Kozuki Oden and his exploits with the Roger Pirates..." While muttering, Sear started reading—
[The legendary Treasure One Piece is found]
Already, his pupils gleamed at the headline. Interested, He quickly shifted his gaze to the article below.
[The Pirate King Gold Roger and his crew, the Roger Pirates, have found the elusive treasure that has been shough by men for centuries . This deed has earned him title of the greatest pirate to ever live. His crew has become a living legend. The man who achieved wealth face and power, the Pirate King; Gold Roger.... .... .... yap ..... yap ..... yap ... .... .... ..... .... ... But worry not, his deeds have not gone unnoticed by the government. The marines and the entire World Government have been restlessly searching for their whereabouts. Even the hero Garp has personally taken extensive action in multiple locations where the Pirate King's ship was said to have been spotted. Not only that, rumor has it, government secret agents have also been deployed to every corner of the world. Anyone who can bring Gold Roger's head will get the reward of more than five billion berries.]