Luffy's eyes sparkled as the air crackled, splitting apart with a sound that didn't belong to mortals. The collision of Dragon and Garp's Conqueror's Haki wasn't just a clash, it was a chaos waiting to happen for decades.
"Whoa…" Luffy breathed, his voice barely carrying over the roaring storm. His hair lifted with the static of the impact, his pupils reflecting streaks of black lightning dancing across the sky. "That's… crazy strong," he grinned despite himself, awe still painting his face. "Jiji and Dad.. they're actually fighting for real.."
While Zoro, standing with both swords drawn, and the wind tugging at his bandana stared with wide eyes, and mouth hung open slightly, as the ground trembled beneath his feet. "Monsters," he muttered, eyes locked on the two figures in the distance. "They're insane monsters.."
Sanji flicked the burnt end of his cigarette away, the ember snuffed out instantly by the rain. His brow was furrowed, and even he couldn't hide the disbelief. "Their will alone made half the island pass out…" he said, his voice half in awe, half in irritation. Then, with a sudden dramatic glare, he added, "Tch. I don't care how strong they are! They made Nami-swan faint!"
He crouched briefly beside the unconscious navigator, adjusting her hair away from her face with a tenderness that looked completely out of place amid the chaos. "Don't worry, my sweet Nami-swan… I caught you before your delicate body could touch the ground."
Zoro rolled his eyes. "You're unbelievable."
Sanji stood up, flicking his lighter open, the small flame trembling against the turbulent winds. "Yeah? Tell that to the two titans tearing the heavens apart without even clashing for real."
Zoro didn't reply but his eyes drifted to the Tower of Justice, where Luffy had been. But all he could see now was Ace and Sabo remaining upright through sheer will. Their capes whipped violently in the storm as they braced against the pressure of the Haki radiating from their families.
"This isn't going to end well," Ace muttered, his fists clenched tight enough to spark tiny flames even in the rain.
Sabo's jaw tightened. "No… it won't. Neither of them will stop if they start. And that's not who they are."
Meanwhile, from the distance of his ship, Jonathan leaned against the railing, his face illuminated by intermittent flashes of lightning. He exhaled through his nose, calm even as the waves crashed violently against the hull.
"Maintain stability," he ordered his few conscious officers. "The air currents are changing fast."
His eyes drifted once more to the island, to the impossible storm swirling above it. "Those two… their wills are rewriting the weather itself."
He turned away, steadying the compass as his ship groaned under the strain. "Let's just try to stay afloat until it's over."
Far above, Akoiji tilted his head slightly, his eyes were calm but curious at the same time. His hands were buried in his coat pockets as he watched the two forces of nature–the marine hero and the revolutionary leader–about to collide.
"Heh… interesting" he exhaled, a faint plume of cold air leaving his lips. "Old man versus his own son. The world really is full of drama." A slow smirk formed under his breath. "I wonder who'll win.
He wasn't intervening. Not yet. Part of him, the marine part, wanted to see how far it could go. The other part, the human, wondered if the world was ready for what this fight would decide.
Though he tilted his head slightly toward the drawbridge, where Akainu was taking one deliberate step after another, with lava dripping from his arms like blood. Each step of his hissed as magma dripped from his fists, burning through stone.
He didn't care for the clash above. Let them destroy each other–father, son, revolutionary, traitor–it fucking didn't matter. Yeah, just for a moment, he considered jumping in. Ending it. Ending Dragon, and the filthy bloodline of D. All while when the bloody leader was distracted but the 'Marine Hero' seemed to be back to his senses finally. Hence, his target wasn't Dragon anymore. His target was simpler, clearer.
The pests. The pirates. The Strawhats, scattered and unconscious across the ruined bridge.
His lip curled into a scowl as he adjusted his cap, magma crackling up his arm. "The world doesn't need symbols of rebellion," he growled, his voice low but echoing through the storm. "Time to erase them."
The rain hissed against his molten skin as he raised his arm toward the fallen crew.
Zoro's instincts were the first one to prickle before the sound of the molting, hissing magma clashing with the rain could even reach him. He turned his head, his eyes widening as Akainu's towering, angry frame came into view through the steam and smoke. The Admiral's gaze was locked directly on them, his killing intent so dense it pressed against their lungs like iron.
"Shit," Zoro muttered, his hand flying to his swords. "He's coming."
Sanji's cigarette fell from his lips, crushed instantly under his heel. "Tch. And he looks pissed."
They both didn't waste another second. The two moved as one, with Sanji dashing to scop Nami and Chopper into his arms, while Zoro slung Usopp across his shoulder, the sniper half-conscious and mumbling something incoherent about dying dramatically.
"Move!" Zoro barked, the urgency snapping Sanji into pace.
Behind them, Akainu's growl rolled like thunder. "Running won't change anything, pirates."
The magma in his fist swirled and expanded, glowing bright enough to bathe the entire bridge in a hellish light.
"Run now, talk later!" Sanji shouted, sprinting toward the entrance of the Tower of Justice, leaving behind the unconscious CP9 agents to their fate.
The stone beneath them sizzled as magma chunks rained down from above, melting sections of the bridge into glowing puddles. With one last lunge, Zoro and Sanji burst through the massive doors of the tower, the heat following them like a living thing.
The doors slammed behind them, stone fracturing under the impact.
Up above, Aokiji exhaled through his nose, a visible puff of frost against the storm's humid air. His calm eyes drifted toward the upper floors of the tower where Luffy, Robin, and Franky had disappeared moments earlier.
He muttered under his breath, "So, they're running inside… fine."
His gaze shifted downward, to where Akainu's magma burned brighter and brighter. "Sakazuki, you'll sink the whole island at this rate."
With a tired sigh, Kuzan stepped off the ledge of the tower, his long coat fluttering as he dropped silently through the chaos. He landed beside Akainu with a crunch of ice and shattered stone, only for the bridge beneath their feet to give a long, mournful groan.
Both Admirals froze for a moment, both awaiting for the dreaded snap to come, which came in a few seconds, with the ancient, battered bridge finally surrendering to the combined weight and destruction. Chunks of stone and steel broke apart, plunging into the abyss below.
Akainu growled, molten fists digging into the remnants of the bridge to keep balance, while Aokiji extended a sheet of ice beneath his boots, freezing midair footing as the rest of the structure collapsed around them.
Steam and frost mingled, rising in heavy clouds as both men steadied themselves, their glares briefly meeting through the haze.
"Next time don't interfere," Akainu snarled, voice like cracking stone.
"Yeah, yeah," Aokiji muttered, his breath turning the air white. "If there's a bridge left next time."
While inside the Tower of Justice, echoing footsteps thundered through the corridors.
"Zoro, this way!" Sanji yelled, his voice sharp with frustration. "We're supposed to be finding the exit, not climbing to the top of this shitty tower!"
Zoro didn't even glance back, cutting through a half-broken doorway. "I am going to the exit!"
Sanji gritted his teeth, dodging falling debris as he carried Nami and Chopper. "Then tell me why we're going up! The exit's down, mosshead!"
"Don't yell at me! This tower's built like a damn maze!"
"Because you're leading, idiot!"
.
On the top floor of the Tower of Justice, Luffy jogged down a ruined hallway that still stank of gunpowder and frost. His feet slapped against the stone, his strawhat bouncing against his neck.
He skidded to a stop when something shiny caught his eye. There were three suitcases, kept neatly beside a chair. He blinked in confusion, before grinning wide in recognition.
"Oh! The money!" he said, eyes sparkling. "Almost forgot what we came here for!"
He ran over and yanked them, each one jingling with what was definitely Beli. He glanced around the room once, but there were no guards, no marines, no CP9 agents.
"Guess no one wants 'em," Luffy chuckled.
Without hesitation, he hooked the suitcase handles through his rubbery fingers, stretching his arm wide enough to hold them all at once. The extra weight didn't even slow him down.
Then his gaze fell on the giant ice sphere, the one he'd been dragging and protecting around for the last several minutes without a second thought. Inside, Franky's frozen face stared back at him, his teeth bared in an eternal grimace.
Luffy stopped mid-stride. The room was quiet enough that he could actually feel the cold radiating from the ball, the way the air seemed to turn colder with each breath for Franky.
He frowned. "Oi…" He touched the ice, making it melt a lil faster in this hellhole. "You're getting colder, huh?"
For a second, his expression turned to confusion before he facepalmed himself with a silly, goofy expression. "Man, how should I carry all of these?" Luffy wondered, before puffing his cheeks out, and smirking mischievously as an idea crossed his mind. "Heh. Iceball kick!"
With a running start, Luffy swung his leg like a footballer and sent the ice sphere rolling across the cracked floor. It bounced once, twice, before sliding perfectly toward the stairwell and bouncing down the steps like a ridiculous, frosty bowling ball.
"See? Helping you move faster!" Luffy said proudly, jogging after it.
He shifted Robin slightly higher onto his shoulder. She was still barely conscious, her body trembling from the cold, and maybe the clash of will going above. Her laboured breathing worried Robin might be having a nightmare of sorts.
"Hang on, Robin. We're almost outta here," he said softly.
He could feel the air changing around him. The sharp spikes in his consciousness hit him like a slap, which was sudden, sharp and impossible to ignore. Garp and dragon's will, massive and violent, were rising.. His chest was tightening. He wanted to stop them, but before he could do anything, the tower itself started to shake.
BOOM.
The walls shuddered. Dust cascaded from the ceiling. The floor split beneath his feet as another explosion ripped through the lower levels of the tower.
"What the–?!" Luffy's eyes widened as the entire structure tilted, the echo of destruction coming from below. He could hear it, the magma tearing through stone, the roars of power clashing again.
"Dammit… what now?!" he muttered, steadying Robin and tightening his grip on the suitcases. His rubber arms flexed as he jumped onto the next floor down, catching himself midair with a springy bounce.
.
The storm outside the Tower of Justice was no longer roaring, it was howling. The air had grown thick with pressure, the clouds were trembling as if they were caught between breath and collapse. Lightning was no longer crackling from the sky, no, it was coiling, wrapping around itself, and feeding on the tension that filled the air. The air was so dense that nothing and no one could have been visible, if not for the streaks of the Conqueror's Haki clashing from the two men, who stood unmoving at the very center of it.
Monkey D. Garp and Monkey D. Dragon. Father and son. Marine and Revolutionary. Standing with duty and defiance in their heart.
They faced each other across what little remained of the cracked courtyard of the Enies Lobby, as the ground beneath their feet already webbed with fractures, magma and frost mixing at the edges like blood and bone. For a moment, there was no sound. Just the rain. Just the wind. Just the quiet thunder of generations clashing without a single blow thrown.
Dragon's cloak whipped violently around him, the green fabric torn and soaked, the emblem of the Revolution barely visible beneath the stormlight. His eyes, sharp and cold, locked onto Garp's with the kind of focus that came from knowing your opponent better than you knew yourself.
"Still standing there," Dragon said, his voice barely audible over the wind, yet it carried clear. "Even now."
Garp grunted, the lines on his face deepened by exhaustion and something far heavier than age. "And you're still running your mouth instead of going after what you need to do, boy." The old Marine squared his shoulders, rolling them like a veteran limbering before a spar. "Guess some things don't change."
Dragon's lips curved into the faintest of smiles. "No. They don't."
For a long, fragile moment, the world seemed to hold them still. But suddenly it snapped, pulling both of them by an invisible thread, leading to both men stepping forward, their Haki flaring around them in waves of raw will.
The impact wasn't a punch, not yet. It was a collision of presence, an invisible war of gravity that crushed the air between them. The storm bent around their power, clouds shattering like glass above the island.
Garp's veins stood out across his arms as he braced both hands against Dragon's chest, pushing forward with the weight of a lifetime of discipline. Dragon met him head-on, his palms against his father's, muscles flexing, Haki coating his arms like darkened steel.
It looked like a sumo bout at first glance–the two titans testing their strength, as their feet dug into broken stone–but the pressure radiating from them could have flattened mountains if they so willed.
The ground beneath their feet cratered.
Magma fissures hissed at the edges of their stand, and yet the space between them remained eerily untouched. As though both of them, even in their clash, refused to destroy what little ground connected them.
"You've gotten stronger," Garp said, straining as their locked arms trembled between them. His tone was gruff, but beneath it, there was something like pride.
"You haven't changed at all," Dragon replied. "Still trying to fix a rotten system with your fists."
The old man's laugh boomed through the rain. "Well, the fist's all I got, brat. And it has served me just fine."
Dragon pushed harder, his boots grinding against stone. "Has it? Look around you, Father. Your Marines fired a Buster Call on their own men, their own island. Is that what you call justice?"
The laughter faltered. Garp's teeth clenched as the weight of Dragon's words pressed harder than his arms. His Haki flared in retaliation, blue-grey sparks flickering around him.
"Don't start lecturing me about justice, Dragon," he growled. "You chose your path. I chose mine. You don't get to stand there and pretend the world's just gonna fix itself with your fancy speeches and storms."
Dragon's expression hardened. The wind around him grew erratic, a living tempest that tore at the debris around them. "And what have your fists fixed, old man? How many times did you turn a blind eye to orders you knew were wrong? How many innocents did your justice trample while you saluted the flag that told you to?"
"Enough!" Garp's roar shook the courtyard, a blast of pure Haki bursting outward like a shockwave. The rain froze midair for a heartbeat before resuming its fall.
Dragon didn't flinch. "If you think I'm the enemy, then stop hesitating. Fight me for real."
"I ain't here to kill my son," Garp snarled, teeth grinding, "but don't test me, boy. I'll drag you back myself if I have to."
Their arms trembled, muscles locked, neither giving an inch. The air between them rippled, the pressure alone sending cracks spiderwebbing out from beneath their feet.
Garp pushed harder, his body trembling, not from weakness, but from conflict. Every shove, every surge of Haki, wasn't meant to crush Dragon. It was to hold him, to stall him, to buy time for the ones escaping behind them.
He could feel the echoes of movement in the distance–Luffy's familiar energy flaring inside the tower, Ace's fire burning through the storm, Sabo's will cutting through the chaos.
'Get moving, brats,' he thought. 'Get as far from this as you can.'
But Dragon could feel it too. The slight hesitation in Garp's push, the way his weight shifted, he recognized the tactic immediately. "You're trying to get stalled, you are not stalling me."
Garp grunted but didn't deny it.
"You're trying to be held here," Dragon said, voice lowering, almost in disbelief. "So they can escape. So, you can't follow your orders."
The older man's silence was all the confirmation he needed.
Dragon's eyes softened for a fraction of a second, with hurt flickering there before fury returned to take its place. "You damn fool," he muttered. "You're still trying to do what they tell you. You think protecting the boys from yourself like this is helping anyone?"
"Don't give me that holier-than-thou crap," Garp snapped back, his muscles bulging as he forced Dragon a few inches backward. "You think you're the only one trying to save them, save the world? You are igniting it, and I'm the one cleaning it up after!"
"And look where that's gotten us," Dragon bit out. "Your 'justice' created this war! These Admirals! This destruction! Look at what they're doing! Your Marines are slaughtering each other while you stand here pretending you're still the hero!"
The words struck deeper than any blow could have. Garp's breath came harder, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes deepening.
He didn't answer right away but when he finally did, his voice was quiet. "You think I don't see that?"
Dragon's grip faltered slightly, surprise flashing across his face.
"I see it every damn day," Garp said, eyes shadowed. "I see the rot. The hypocrisy. The bastards in the seats of power who use kids like you and your brothers as tools."
His Haki pulsed again, pressing Dragon back. "But I stay. Because someone has to hold the line before all that's left is chaos."
Dragon pushed back, the wind howling as his own aura surged. "And I destroy that line, because it's not keeping the peace, it's keeping people chained!"
The sky above them cracked again, lightning arcing between black clouds, splitting the air with each surge of their wills. Yet, for all the fury and violence, their faces told a different story.
Neither one truly wanted to fight. But neither could stop.
"Old man," Dragon said, his voice trembling just slightly now. "There is still a chance. They're making you fight your own blood. Your grandsons. My sons. Is that what you wanted? After all the talk of family and freedom? To see them die for a cause you don't even believe in anymore?"
Garp's fists tightened, trembling against Dragon's shoulders. For the first time, his eyes faltered.. But just for a second.
"Don't," he said, almost pleading. "Don't make me say it."
Dragon's expression softened. "Then stop being their weapon."
For a heartbeat, it felt like the storm itself hesitated. But then Garp roared again, channeling all the turmoil, all the guilt, all the pain, and forcing it into his Haki. Not at Dragon, but around him, pushing him back just enough to break contact.
The air exploded as they separated, both men skidding backward through the debris.
Garp stood there, panting, his cloak torn, his arms trembling. Dragon straightened slowly, blood trickling from his temple, but his eyes still burned with unshaken conviction.
The rain fell heavier now, masking their faces, their heavy eyes indistinguishable from the storm.
For all the destruction around them, the courtyard remained surprisingly intact–cracked, yes, but not obliterated. As though even the island itself knew to hold its breath for this moment.
Garp stared at his son. "You never change."
Dragon gave a weary half-smile. "Neither do you."
They stood like that, two silhouettes in the storm, neither raising another hand, neither lowering their guard.
It was not Marine versus Revolutionary anymore. It wasn't justice versus freedom even. No, it was Father versus Son, each of them praying in their own way that the other would yield before everything truly fell apart.
.
The tower shook again as another tremor ran through the island, dust raining from the cracked ceilings. Stone walls groaned, stairways quivered, and broken railings swayed as if the whole structure were caught between collapse and survival.
From one direction came Luffy, bounding down a shattered staircase, dragging three heavy suitcases in one hand and Robin over his shoulder. From the opposite hall came Zoro and Sanji, half-carrying their battered crew–Nami, Chopper, and Usop–limp in their arms.
They all stopped when they saw each other.
"Oi!" Sanji yelled first, voice echoing. "Where the hell have you been, you rubber-brained lunatic?!"
Luffy blinked, then broke into a massive grin. "Oi, Sanji! Zoro! You guys are okay!"
"Are okay?" Zoro growled, his voice a mix of exasperation and disbelief. "You were the one who froze half to death and got kidnapped by the ice Admiral!"
Luffy laughed, his head tilting. "Ahaha, yeah, that was cold."
Zoro's face twisted. "You–"
But Sanji cut in before the argument could spiral. "Forget that! What the hell is up with your family, huh?! First that crazy dad of yours shows up, then Monkey D. Garp, your fucking grandpa you never told us about, decides to fight him like some kind of monster from a nightmare! What the hell, Luffy?!"
Zoro jabbed a thumb toward the ceiling, where muffled thunder still rolled above them. "Seriously, your family's insane. Every single one of them!"
Luffy blinked, looking between them as if they'd just told him something obvious. Then he grinned again, teeth flashing in the flickering light. "Guess I've just got a strong family, huh?"
Sanji's cigarette fell from his mouth. "Strong?! Strong?! That's not strong, that's world-ending! They're breaking the sky, dumbass!"
Zoro's arms were crossed now, one eyebrow twitching. "Strong family, he says… Tch. No wonder you're such a magnet for trouble."
Luffy scratched the back of his neck, his grin faltering for a brief second. "They're not really fighting though," he said quietly, voice barely audible over the creaking tower. "It's just a spar."
Zoro snorted. "A spar? The air outside feels like it's getting punched by inhumane beings!"
But Luffy didn't answer immediately. His laugh came a little too quickly, a little too forced. "Hehehe, nah, it's fine! They're just… testing each other, that's all."
He wanted to believe that. He really did. But he could feel it with every pulse of Haki echoing through the storm above. The clash wasn't meant to kill, but it wasn't harmless either. It was grief. He could feel his grandfather's heart wavering through every shove of power, could feel his father's fury masking sorrow. Neither wanted this. But neither knew how to stop.
Zoro caught the flicker in Luffy's eyes, the split-second where the grin faltered, where the mask slipped. His brow furrowed. "Luffy," he said quietly, "you okay?"
For a moment, the world seemed to slow. The walls groaned, water dripped from somewhere above, and lightning flashed faintly through the cracked ceiling.
Luffy blinked, then his grin returned, too wide, too bright. "I'm fine! Look, see? Everyone's still alive!"
And before either swordsman or cook could respond, Luffy turned towards the giant ice sphere that sat lopsided beside him–the one containing Franky. "Oh right!" he said suddenly. "I forgot to free Franky!"
Zoro's eyes twitched. "You've been carrying him like that this whole time?!"
Sanji's jaw dropped. "You absolute maniac—"
But Luffy was already walking up to the sphere, pressing both hands against its cold, gleaming surface. The temperature burned against his skin, but he didn't flinch. He could feel it, Franky's heartbeat, faint and sluggish beneath layers of ice.
"Man, you're freezing," Luffy muttered. His grin softened. "Hold on, okay? You gotta wake up."
He wrapped his arms around the sphere, pulling it into a ridiculous, full-bodied hug. Steam hissed instantly where his skin met the frost. His warmth wasn't normal, it was radiant, alive, the kind of heat that didn't come from fire but from something deeper, older and mystical.
The ice began to crack. First in hairline fractures, then in deep, echoing splits that spidered across the entire surface.
Sanji and Zoro both stepped back instinctively, watching as the sphere splintered and water poured out across the floor, steaming on contact.
When the last layer of frost broke, Franky collapsed forward, landing face-first with a heavy thud.
Luffy grinned proudly. "See? Told you he was fine."
Sanji stared at the unconscious cyborg lying motionless on the floor, barely breathing. "He's not fine, idiot. He's out cold!"
Zoro pinched the bridge of his nose, muttering under his breath. "Only you would nearly kill a man by saving him."
But Luffy didn't hear them. He just crouched beside Franky, patting his shoulder once, gently. "He'll wake up," he said with quiet certainty. "He's strong."
Then he stood again, stretching his rubbery arms and glancing toward the stairwell below. The building trembled again, this time more violently.
The sound of two titans colliding outside reached them even through the walls.
Zoro and Sanji followed his gaze, both uneasy now.
"So what now?" Zoro asked.
Luffy's expression softened, eyes flickering toward the storm beyond. "Now… we keep moving. 'Cause I think this tower's not gonna last much longer."
His words were further agreed upon by the winds, as the air shifted and they zoomed inside, wrapping around him protectively.
"–the sea rises–!"
"–she's angry, Nika-sama–!"
"–mother's tears become her fury–!"
"LEAVE! LEAVE!"
Luffy's pupils contracted. His chest tightened as the sound hit him, vibrating through his bones. He stumbled back a step, his head snapping toward the cracked window facing the sea. At first, he thought the sky itself was moving, but then he realized that it wasn't the sky. It was the sea, his mother, raging and moving.
A wall of water, miles high, glinting under lightning, was rushing toward the island. The sea itself had risen in revolt.
Luffy's breath hitched. "Oh no…" he whispered, the words trembling out of him.
"Oi, Luffy?" Sanji called, noticing his sudden stillness. "What's wrong?"
Luffy didn't answer immediately. His heartbeat thundered in his ears, drowning everything else out. The winds were screaming louder now, overlapping into a chaotic chorus.
"RUN!"
"RUN, NIKA-SAMA–!"
"The mother rages–!"
"The island will drown–!"
"LEAVE, LEAVE, LEAVE!"
He could barely tell if he was hearing them in his mind or if the air itself was trembling with their panic.
Zoro frowned, stepping closer. "Luffy, talk to us. What's happening?"
Luffy's voice cracked when he finally spoke. "It's Mother… She is angry! She is coming."
Sanji blinked in confusion. "What?"
"The sea! She is coming!" His voice trembled with urgency now, his usual calm replaced by raw instinct. "The winds are screaming at me, informing me about the Aqua Laguna, which is so big this time, you can see it from here!"
Zoro's eyes widened as he jerked his head toward the window. "That's impossible–"
"LOOK!" Luffy pointed, and for a moment, even through the rain, they saw it, a monstrous shadow rolling toward Enies Lobby, devouring the horizon.
"Holy shit," Sanji whispered.
The tower shook again, this time harder, sending a beam crashing from the ceiling right behind them. Luffy's rubber arm shot out instinctively, wrapping around both Zoro and Sanji, yanking them forward before the debris hit. His voice rose, fierce and desperate.
"We have to leave this tower right now!" Luffy's expression hardened. He turned to them, his face deadly serious now, the kind of look he only wore when his instincts roared louder than anything else. "We have to go. Now."
Sanji blinked. "What do you mean 'go'? We're surrounded by water, dumbass! We will be devoured!"
"Run where?!" Zoro shouted over the thunder at the same time.
"We don't have time–!" Luffy snapped, startling them both, but before could say anything, the winds screamed again, more desperate than before.
"TO THE POINT OF HESITATION!"
"THERE… SHE WAITS!"
"THE SHIP THAT LOVES YOU!"
"THE GOING MERRYYYYY!"
Luffy's eyes widened. His heart skipped. "Merry…" he whispered.
Sanji's brow furrowed. "Luffy, that Merry's–"
"She's here!" Luffy's grin burst through the fear, his eyes blazing with that familiar reckless hope. "She came back for us!"
Zoro muttered, "You're insane…" but there was no stopping him now.
The winds shrieked again, their voices blending into one last command that cut through the storm like thunder, "LEAVEEEE, NIKA-SAMA!"
And Luffy didn't need to be told twice. He turned, his voice sharp and full of life again, "Zoro! Sanji! Grab everyone and move! Merry's waiting!"
The words had barely left Luffy's mouth when the tower itself screamed in agony.
A thunderous BOOM ripped through the foundation, so deep it felt like the air itself cracked. The floor jolted violently, throwing them all off balance. Cracks tore through the walls, spiderwebbing outward like lightning trapped in stone.
Zoro swore. "What the hell now–?!"
Another explosion followed, this one louder, closer, and hotter. The walls glowed red, molten light spilling through the fractures. The smell of burning stone and sulfur filled the air.
Luffy's eyes widened. "The magma admiral.."
Outside, the magma Admiral stood on a fallen stretch of bridge, one arm raised, lava dripping from his knuckles like molten rain. He didn't shout, he didn't taunt yet, he just launched another barrage of blazing fists straight at the tower.
Each impact detonated against the stone with a thunderous roar. The tower swayed, groaned, and began to tilt.
"Shit! He's going to bring it down!" Sanji shouted, grabbing Chopper and the half-conscious Nami.
Luffy could feel the weight shifting beneath his feet, the floor slanting as the whole building started to slide toward the sea. "We gotta move!"
The next second, the tower lurched. The floor cracked apart, entire walls peeling away as gravity began to take over.
"OUT THE WINDOW!" Luffy yelled, flinging one arm toward the open frame.
Zoro didn't hesitate; he grabbed Usopp tightly, and sprinted straight through falling debris. Sanji followed right behind, kicking off a crumbling beam with Nami and Chopper in tow.
And Luffy, his rubber arm stretching wide, grabbed both of them midair along with Franky, Robin and the suitcases somehow entangled in his arms, and slingshotted the entire group out of the collapsing tower.
The world spun around them as the building groaned one last time and collapsed behind them in an avalanche of molten rubble.
They landed hard on what remained of the Bridge of Hesitation, the surface slick with rain and cracked from the earlier fights. But there was no time to breathe.
The bridge was already drawn, courtesy of Spandam, the coward's desperate attempt to leave the island before the Buster Call eradicated it to bits, and his last move to keep his enemies trapped. Between them and freedom stretched the endless, storm-churned sea.
"We're running out of bridge!" Zoro barked.
"Then run faster!" Sanji snapped, his voice sharp as the wind whipped at them.
They started sprinting with Luffy at the front, Zoro right behind him, Sanji following close, all of them laden with their unconscious crewmates.
That was when two figures suddenly appeared beside them, moving in perfect sync. It was none other than Ace–without his disguise–and Sabo–still pretending to be Cyane.
"About damn time," Ace called, his tone half a grin and half a battle cry. "You're slower than usual, little brother!"
Sabo shot him a glare. "Now's not the time for jokes! The Admirals are right behind us!"
As if on cue, another blast of magma slammed into the far end of the ruined bridge, the shockwave shaking their footing, and leading Ace and Sabo to stop to halt the admirals from reaching their baby brother.
Luffy skidded to a stop mid-run, his face hardening. "Zoro, Sanji!"
Both turned at the same time. He dumped the still-barely conscious Franky and the three suitcases onto Zoro's back and stretched his other arm to hand still groggy Robin to Sanji.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Sanji barked.
"I'm gonna help them," Luffy said simply, his tone carrying no room for argument.
Zoro frowned. "Help who–" and then his eyes widened as he saw the fire and wind gathering behind Luffy's brothers. "You're out of your mind."
"Yeah," Luffy grinned, the rain streaking down his face, "but I've got backup this time."
"Luffy!" Robin's weak voice managed to escape her lips as Sanji adjusted her in his arms.
He looked back, eyes softening. "Don't worry, Robin. I'll catch up. I promise."
Then he turned to his crew, his voice rising over the roaring wind. "Run to the Point of Hesitation! Merry's waiting there!"
"Merry..?!" Robin blinked.
"She came back," Luffy said with absolute certainty. "She came for us."
The conviction in his voice made them stop questioning. Even Robin, still half groggy and not fully awake, and ever the skeptic, could feel it.. something in Luffy's tone that wasn't blind faith, but truth.
Zoro exhaled sharply. "Fine. Don't die."
Sanji nodded. "You better be right, Captain."
Luffy grinned, wide and fearless. "I'm always right."
Then, without hesitation, he turned and sprinted back toward the chaos, toward the two blazing figures standing against the oncoming storm of magma and frost.
Behind him, Zoro and Sanji didn't look back again. They tightened their grip on their unconscious friends and ran forward, feet pounding against the rain-slick bridge, hearts thundering with the same unspoken prayer.
That their captain and his impossible family would survive what came next.
Akainu's boots hissed as molten embers trailed behind every step, each imprint in the soaked stone still glowing red before the rain hissed them out. The Tower of Justice was gone. There was nothing but broken spires and flaming rubble now.
Behind him, Aokiji followed at an almost lazy pace, his expression unreadable, cold mist curling around his shoulders as his ice boots crunched against cooling magma.
Ahead of them, three figures stood against the storm.
Luffy, Ace and Cyane.
The world's three most notorious men–the sons of chaos and defiance–who had made their names echo across the seas in just mere years. Shoulder to shoulder they stood, facing the two admirals, as if they hadn't just declared to the world itself that they're the 3C's and the sons of Roger and Dragon. The king of pirates and the leader of the revolutionary army.
Akainu's lip curled into a sneer. "Hmph. The great bastards of the world.. all gathered in one place. Perfect."
The magma crackled up his arm, glowing like the heart of a volcano. "You pests have been an irritation to the world for far too long. But fate has finally done me a favor to bring all three of you together here on this one island to turn it into a grave. Fire Fist Ace, aka Orange Wrath Cole, Blue Sly Cyane both sons of Gold Roger; and Strawhat Luffy, aka Red Maniac Cyra, the son of Monkey D. Dragon."
Ace clenched his jaw, heat pulsing off him instinctively. Cyane's hand hovered near his staff, the faint shimmer of Armament Haki sparking at his fingertips. Luffy said nothing. His strawhat rested against his back, his white and black hair snapping violently in the wind.
Akainu took another step forward, his tone dropping low and poisonous. "Dragon… the so-called Revolutionary. A man too cowardly to stand under his father's banner, so he spat on it and ran. The one who hides in the shadows, spouting ideals he'll never see through. Strawhat.. you are nothing but the spawn of that failure. A brat chasing delusions of freedom while leeching off the name of a terrorist."
Luffy's expression didn't change, but the storm did. The wind sharpened around him, slicing raindrops midair, the air growing heavy with warning.
"And you two…" Akainu's eyes burned through Ace and Cyane. "The bastard spawn of the Pirate King himself. Two stains left by the most dangerous criminal in history, Gold Roger's rotten legacy. Tell me, how does it feel to carry the blood of filth?"
Ace's flames hissed, licking up his arm. "Watch your mouth, red dog."
The magma Admiral spat onto the ground, the droplet burning a hole straight through stone. "Why should I?" Akainu's sneer deepened, his eyes glinting with cruel satisfaction. "You're worthless. Both of you. You and your revolutionary bastard of a brother."
Luffy's knuckles clenched hard enough for his rubber skin to strain and bend unnaturally. Dad always reminded them not to fall for provocations, he drilled that into them for years. But this..
Akainu kept going, the faintest trace of amusement flashing in his molten eyes. "Funny isn't it? The son of the world's worst criminal… brothers with the sons of the world's worst pirate… a failure. A man who died grinning like a fool as the Marines burned his name from history. And look what he left.. two rats crawling in his shadow."
Cyane's fingers twitched. His Haki rippled, cracking the ground beneath his boots. The air around him started to hum. Ace's flames flared brighter, crackling with barely-contained fury. "Say another word–"
Akainu raised his voice, drowning him out, his tone dripping venom. "You think your so-called brotherhood makes you strong? You're just proof of the disease your blood carries. Roger's sons. Dragon's spawn. Whitebeard's disappointments."
That last name hit like a gunshot, how did they fucking know what happened?
Akoiji stayed silent, his eyes flicking between the brothers standing side by side, observing them quietly.
Akainu barked a low laugh, full of venom. He wasn't stopping, he was enjoying it too much. "Whitebeard's little charity case, aren't you? Tell me, did it hurt when he looked at you and saw not a son, but Roger's sin? When the crew whispered behind your back that the blood in your veins would sink their flag? You were never his family, boy! You were never anything for him."
Ace froze, his fire diminishing to a flicker.
Akainu's grin widened, cruel and deliberate. "Ah. There it is. Whitebeard. The fool who coddled you Fire Fist, until he found out what you really were. Tell me, how'd it feel when he turned his back on you? When he realized the son of Gol D. Roger was polluting his ship?"
"Shut your mouth!" Ace's shout cracked through the thunder, fire erupting violently, steaming the rain midair. He knows Whitebread wouldn't care if he was Roger's son, he knows alright! He knows! He doesn't know why he's so mad, it's not like.. It's not like he even cares what they think anymore. He doesn't need them, he has his own family.
"Oh, did I touch a nerve?" Akainu's laughter was harsh, echoing through the storm. "You were never his son. Just a reminder of the filth he failed to erase. He hunted you down, didn't he? That's what happens when the world realizes what you are! A mistake that shouldn't have been born."
"Akainu," Ace muttered warningly, his tone flat. He takes a deep breath, reminding himself to not fall for provocations like he's been taught, he's doing this to buy time.
But the magma Admiral ignored him, he didn't stop. His eyes flicked to Cyane. "And you, Cyane, another name you hide behind, you think you're any different? You are just another brat playing revolutionary, crawling from the filth. Pathetic. Tell me, does Dragon even remember your name, or are you just another pawn he'll sacrifice for his grand ideals? All of you–" his voice rose, cutting through the storm, "–are proof that cursed blood brings only ruin!"
Sabo's grip tightened around his staff until it creaked. The fury that burned in him wasn't loud, it was silent, coiled, the kind that broke men in seconds. His eyes, sharp as flint, locked onto Akainu's face. "You don't get to speak about him." His tone was low, deadly calm. "You wouldn't understand what it means to stand for something greater than your so-called Absolute justice."
Akainu's laughter boomed. "Greater? You serve a madman chasing the wind. You'll all burn for his delusions, just like your mother did, just like your father will. Just like everyone who ever believed in you."
The air snapped as both Ace and Sabo's Haki flared, colliding with the Admiral's heat in a visible shimmer.
And then Akainu turned back to Luffy. "And you, Strawhat, you think your freedom will save you and the others? You think you can save anyone? But brat, you are not a savior, you are a storm waiting to drown the world. You will burn it all down, just like your blood demands."
For the first time, Luffy's eyes lifted, meeting Akainu's gaze head on. His smile was already gone. His pupils were crimson, swallowing the light. And the storm roared with him.
Akainu's grin turned feral. He only needed to push them a little more then they'll be blinded by rage. Something that makes them easy to destory, so he leans slightly, his voice turning darker and lower. "Do you know what the world did when Roger died? They cheered. When Whitebeard went to war with scums like you? They prayed for his downfall. And when Dragon finaaly dies? They'll laugh again. Because that's what all the world does with your kind. It laughs when you die."
The brothers were shaking by now, not from fear though, but from fury so raw that it made the air scream and distort around them. Their combined Conqueror's Haki exploded outward in an invisible blast, shaking the remnants of the island. Black lightning tore through the sky, colliding with Akainu's heat, splitting the clouds apart.
Even Aokiji was forced to brace himself as the atmosphere warped and cracked under the weight of their rage.
In the distance two family men still for a moment then grin, they don't need to worry about the boys, they're not as weak as they once were.
Ace glared at Akainu, his eyes burning with pure fury. Cyane's teeth were clenched tight enough to bleed. Luffy's dark expression was hidden by his strawhat, the storm above them twisting tighter, drawn by his power, as he took a step forward. Then another, in fury coiling around him. Another and another, practically walking now. The rain rolled off his hat, the clouds screamed in danger and the sky was turning red–
"Oi," Ace hissed, grabbing his shoulder. "Don't."
Luffy didn't look back. "He's talking too much."
"Yeah, that's what he does," Sabo muttered, stepping beside them, his own aura thickening. "Don't let him pull you in."
Akainu's grin stretched, sensing the tension about to snap. "Your mothers, though…" he began slowly, almost conversationally.
Ace froze. Luffy stiffened. Sabo's eyes widened, then twitched.
"One doesn't even know who the mother is, who the one was to give him birth… and the other two.." Akainu's grin was turning cruel as he removed his eyes from Strawhat to meet Fire Fist and Cyane's. "Portgas D. Rouge, a selfish woman, carrying you both for twenty months, just to hide her shame. And dying before she could face what she'd done. Maybe she had the right idea. After all, death's a much cleaner way out than raising the world's biggest mistakes."
The words dropped like lead into silence. Even the rain seemed to stop.
Ace's flames surged instantly, bursting outward in an uncontrolled inferno that turned the storm to steam. His pupils dilated, fury consuming him whole.
Sabo's hand shook; the air shimmered with invisible pressure.
Luffy's head snapped up, his expression unreadable for half a second, then his teeth bared, and his entire presence darkened. The red-black lightning of Conqueror's Haki crackled at his feet, snaking up his arms like coiled serpents ready to strike.
"Take it back," Ace's voice trembled, low and dangerous. "Take that fucking back."
Akainu smiled, his plan worked. "Why? It's the truth."
The furious expressions on the face of FireFist and Strawhat and the other brat made something in him feel… unknown. For a moment, Akainu could feel the world in terms of heat and weight. The Haki from Garp and Dragon cracking the sky felt like a distant thunder at the moment. And above all of that roar, under the thunder and the clouds, something nagged at him… a voice that wanted to reason.
He could hear Jonatahan's words. He had heard them clearly just afew days ago, the notion that not every order carved in stone was just, that sometimes justice could be a blade turned inward, cutting those who thought themselves righteous. The words stuck like ash on his tongue.
He could feel them pestering him now. The faint, unwanted echoes that crawled along the back of his skull. It was a curiosity he could not indulge. He had no appetite for questions. He was Akainu–Sakazuki–the Red Dog. His life was meant to not question but to obey. There was no room in him for second-guessing. After all, doubts were luxuries that weakened men. And weakness had killed men he respected.
Still, the thought persisted for a moment longer than it should have. The Buster Call, the taunting he was doing… all to capture some filthy criminals.. It was a command, stamped and sealed. The purpose was to eliminate the Strawhat Pirates and their allies and kill the 3C's on spot.
But the fact that the Buster Call was an accident murmured at the back of his mind. The fleet of marines on the island that might burn, all for some… kids. Children, perhaps. Weapons, certainly. The world labeled them pests but the World Government had labeled them more. He could map their crimes on his palm: rebellion, theft, destruction… and maybe even murder. Each label was a justification. Each label was a license for him to incinerate them.
And he has to do it today.
Meanwhile, Sabo exhaled, long and deliberate. 'Of course,' he thought with a wry smile, watching both Ace and Luffy start moving forward in unison towards the taunting bastard. Ace was engulfed in pure fire, rage and light, with his emotions bursting out of him like a flare that refused to dim. Luffy radiated fury and freedom, with steam coiling from his skin and eyes blazing through the haze of rain.
Sabo sighed before his lips curled into a sneer that could only be described as sadistic to the others. Just because he was the "calm" one didn't mean he was any less insane. Patience didn't equal restraint. Not when some of the world's strongest monsters were standing before them. Not when those monsters dared to speak ill of his family.
Sabo reached behind his back, fingers brushing the cool metal of his iron pipe. He coated it in Armament Haki until it shimmered dark like obsidian and then spun it once in his hand, testing the weight. "Guess it's my turn to join the battle."
The wind snapped around him as he kicked off the ground, leaving a crater where he stood.
While the ground boomed as Ace and Luffy surged forward, the air itself bending from the intensity of their Haki. Ace's body erupted into wild, roaring flames, the inferno wrapping around him like armor. Luffy's steam exploded from his skin, the rain sizzling away before it could touch him with Gear Third roaring to life as his heartbeat thundered like war drums.
In the next instant, Ace drew his arm back. "Hiken!"
A fire fist, massive and bright enough to light the whole tower, ripped through the rain, scorching the air toward the two Admirals.
Aokiji merely exhaled through his nose, a cloud of frost escaping his lips as he raised his hand. "Ice Wall."
A crystalline barrier shot up from the ground, absorbing most of the flames. What got through splashed against Akainu's chest, who didn't even flinch. His body turned molten, magma bubbling violently, devouring the fire like it was nothing.
"Pathetic," Akainu growled, lips curling in disdain. "Your fire is just a weaker reflection of mine, boy. You're nothing more than–"
He didn't get to finish it as a blur of red steam and fury shaped person crashed into him.
It was Luffy, whose Haki coated fist connected with Akainu's jaw. The impact shook the air, magma splattering outward in a rain of molten sparks. Akainu's head snapped to the side as the blow forced him back a few steps, and felt like seawater.
Luffy winced slightly, shaking his hand. "Hot…" He smirked. "But it's not hot enough."
Luffy realised that after whatever happened at the destroyed G-8 had changed him, the heat doesn't bother him much anymore. Akainu's magma feels like an uncomfortably warm viscous ketchup.
Akainu growled, forgetting the surprising seawater-like attack, resulting in the magma at his feet bubbling violently. "You little brat, Inugami Guren!"
The molten hound erupted from his arm, lunging toward Luffy. The younger man twisted mid-air, barely avoiding the attack as it carved a molten trench into the ground where he had stood.
Meanwhile, Sabo's iron pipe whistled through the air as he lunged at Aokiji. "Don't think I forgot about you, Ice Admiral!"
Aokiji's gaze flicked to him lazily, his hand raising with practiced calm. "Ice Shard."
Thousands of razor-sharp icicles shot from his fingertips towards Sabo, who spun his pipe in a rapid circle, shattering them mid-flight, shards bursting into frost around him as he closed the distance. He swung hard, his Haki-coated strike aimed straight for the Admiral's ribs.
But Aokiji was faster. "Ice Time Capsule."
Frost crawled up Sabo's weapon on impact, freezing the entire pipe in a blink and racing up his arm. "Shit–!"
In the next moment, his arm was encased in solid ice. The biting cold dug deep into his nerves, but he gritted his teeth and jumped backward, landing hard beside Ace.
A burst of fire exploded next to him, the heat melting the ice from Sabo's hand almost instantly. Ace had conjured a small fire wall between them and Aokiji, buying them time.
"Don't let the old popsicle touch you again," Ace grunted, cracking his knuckles.
"Didn't plan to," Sabo muttered, flexing his thawed hand and smirking.
In the distance, Luffy's rapid movements blurred into streaks. He was bouncing off the air itself, using Geppo and Soru in tandem, his speed tearing the wind into a spiral around him. The sheer heat from Akainu's magma and Luffy's own energy twisted with the cold stormy weather into a whirling vortex, leading to a miniature tornado forming right in the middle of the battlefield.
Each time Luffy reappeared, he struck his fists crashing like thunderclaps, one hit landing for every two that missed or were blocked. The sky itself seemed to hold its breath to watch the dance of their Kami, until Akainu had it enough and stomped on the ground, igniting it. All the magma he had spilled earlier began to slither and surge, coiling upward into the tornado like hungry serpents.
Luffy's eyes widened as the swirling wind turned molten red.
The vortex collapsed in a burst of heat, the air exploding outward.
Akainu grinned viciously. "End of the game, boy." His arm flared bright, and he swung with killing intent. "Ryusei Kazan!"
A blazing explosion of magma erupted point-blank. The impact hurled Luffy downward like a comet. He crashed into the barely held together bridge, smoke and debris billowing up. His shirt was in tatters, black dust coating his body as if it was sieved on.
For a moment, Akainu thought he had put Cyra for good but then through the haze, the sound of a small swoosh came, with Aokiji's attack–a stray Ice Lance meant for Ace–shooting across the battlefield.
Luffy looked up at the last second, eyes flashing gold. He twisted, dodging by a hair's width as the ice spear shattered against the ground beside him. He jumped to where his brothers are, to stand besides them.
Now the five stood apart. They were battle-worn, breathing hard, the air between them vibrating with Haki and the heat of fire, magma and the Sun. Aokiji had small burns across his ribs, steam rising from his arm. Akainu's lip was split, the side of his face seared black 'n' blue from Luffy's punch. Ace's shoulder dripped blood, his flames flickering erratically. Sabo had a faint cut across his cheek and a wild grin, wiping away the thin line of blood from his nose.
Yet they were seconds away from lunging again. The ground itself vibrated, lightning and fire merging into a lethal symphony–
BZZZT!
The Den-Den Mushi clipped to Aokiji's belt crackled to life, its snail eyes snapping open, its little mouth moving in panic.
A desperate, young voice burst through the static, shaky and loud, "ADMIRAL KUZAN! ADMIRAL SAKAZUKI! STOP THIS SENSELESS BATTLE! STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!"
It was Coby. Coby, who had woken up to see people, his comrades, lying unconscious on the ship, which wasn't under anyone's control but at sea's mercy. He had instantly started to wake people at that moment, starting from Helmeppo, who was desperately telling him to not talk anymore.
Akainu glared, looking down at the snail, as if his eyes could kill it. "Who he fuck is the brat?"
"Listen!" The young Marine's voice cracked through the storm, trembling but loud enough to echo across the broken island. He was worried, worried for Garp fighting against Dragon, his own son. He might have not seen his mentor fight with all of his power, but his opponent was Dragon, way too younger than him and maybe in his prime. "You have to stop. The targets, the pirates, the revolutionaries, they're all evacuating. The people you came to eradicate have already escaped! There's no point in fighting longer!"
Akainu's expression soured instantly. "That brat–"
But Coby wasn't done. "AND A GODDAMN AQUA LAGUNA IS HEADED OUR WAY! IT'S MASSIVE! WAY BIGGER THAN ANY AQUA LAGUNA I'VE EVER HEARD ABOUT! EVERYONE NEEDS TO EVACUATE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!"
The words slammed through the Den-Den speakers across the island. Every Marine still conscious–every revolutionary and ship nearby–froze. The wind itself seemed to howl in fear.
Coby's voice grew smaller but more desperate. "Vice Admiral Garp, sir! Mr. Dragon, everyone! Please, you have to stop! The sea's turning black! The wave's too big! No one'll survive if we stay here!"
For a heartbeat, silence consumed the battlefield.
For a heartbeat, silence consumed the battlefield. The words still hung in the air, trembling between thunder and rain. One by one heads began to lift. Marines, revolutionaries, pirates, every soul still standing. One by one, eyes turned upward.
At first, there was nothing. Just the churn of grey clouds and the ragged edge of a storm that refused to die. But then… something shifted. The horizon itself seemed to change, if you looked hard enough through the storm. The light dimmed, unnaturally, swallowing the edges of the world until half the sky turned pitch black, so black it devoured the sun. The other half remained a bruised grey, bleeding lightning, the clash of storm and night fighting for dominion.
The sea had risen enough to cover half the sky, and it's about to fall any second.
Aokiji's pupils contracted. In that instant, instinct outweighed reason. He could feel it, a presence vast enough to bend the ocean, cold and absolute, the kind of force that mocked comprehension.
He didn't hesitate. The ice beneath his feet cracked as he launched skyward, a comet of frost slicing through the storm. His breath turned to mist, his hands already sheathed in freezing air. From above, the horizon curved unnaturally, the ocean lifting as if a god had dragged a hand beneath it and pulled upward.
"Impossible…" the Ice Admiral whispered.
The wave towered, a wall of black glass taller than any fortress, wider than nations. Even the Red Line, in all its arrogance, had never looked so alive, so ready to fall.
He thrust both arms forward. "Ice Age!"
The world howled. The temperature plummeted in an instant. Frost raced outward in veins, seizing the heart of the tsunami. The colossal wave shimmered, then stilled, frozen mid-collapse, its crest suspended like a sculpture carved by the hands of gods.
For a moment, it worked. The wind stilled, awe flickering across countless faces below at their savior's strength. But then a low, thunderous sound came, as if the sea itself was cracking open… A single fracture traced across the frozen surface. Another followed. Then a dozen.
Aokiji's eyes widened. "No!"
The ice cracked and popped as it split, and the frozen tsunami broke apart, collapsing in on itself. Fragments of glaciers the size of ships rained down, pulverizing the ruins of Enies Lobby. Water roared through the cracks, devouring everything in its path.
He turned sharply, scanning the origin, and his blood ran cold. Beyond the ruin of the first wave, beyond the heavy rain and the collapsing sea, was another wall of wave. It was as if the first wave was only a decoy. This was was different
Larger. Darker. Closer.
The second wave loomed like a continent torn from the depths, its peak lost in the pitch sky. Aokiji barely had time to draw breath before the realization hit, he hadn't frozen the storm; he'd only bought them mere seconds.
He gathered frost again, body already falling thanks to gravity and trembling from the first effort. But the seawater from the collapsing wave struck him mid-air, salt and pressure crashing against his chest. The chill in his veins faltered. His control over his devilfruit shattered.
The next heartbeat drowned everything as the second tsunami came down like the hand of an angry god. To think he'll never know how true that thought was.
From below, Luffy's eyes widened, pupils narrowing as he looked up into the vanishing sky. The sound of his Mother's waves falling was not a roar, it was the silence before it. The brief, impossible quiet that comes before the end of worlds.
The world was collapsing–the sky into sea, the sea into sky.
Luffy's breath hitched. His pulse roared in his ears louder than the thunder. His gaze darted between the falling glaciers of the first tsunami and the monstrous wall of black water that was about to fall, the size of it blotting out everything else, the storm, the horizon, even the light.
"Ace! 'Bo!" he shouted over the wind, voice cracking with urgency. "Go! Run to Dad and Jiji! Get them out of here! Now!"
Ace's head whipped toward him, eyes wide, wild fire painting his face gold. "What?! Luffy, we're not leaving you here–"
"Go!" Luffy barked again, his tone heavy, commanding in a way that left no room for argument. "I'll get the crew! You two, keep them and yourselves alive!"
For a split second, hesitation flickered between them. Sabo met Ace's eyes, a silent exchange between brothers who'd never learned how to say goodbye. Then both of them nodded. They didn't have time for anything else
"Don't you die, idiot!" Ace fussed before the three split apart.
Luffy turned and ran. Adrenaline making the world seem slower.
The world cracked around him. Ice shattered, raining down in massive sheets that split stone and sea alike. Akainu's curses were lost in the roar as he dodged chunks of glacier, his molten fists smashing through falling shards, his focus breaking long enough for the brothers to vanish from sight.
He has to make it in time, he has to.
Luffy's feet pounded against the breaking bridge, honestly it's a miracle that it was still standing, each step echoing against the cracking island. He was catching up to the speed of lightning. The storm clawed at him, salt and wind tearing at his clothes. He could barely hear anything–not the thunder, not the sizzling of lava and ice–only the voice of the wind shrieking in his ears to run.
The edge of Enies Lobby came into view, the precipice, the point of no return. And below, far below, he saw it. The Going Merry.
His crew had already jumped onto her battered deck. He saw Nami's orange hair whip in the wind, Usopp shouting something he couldn't hear, Chopper's tiny arms waving frantically, Robin standing still watching, Franky with an awestruck expression on his face. If felt almost like slow motion..?
He opened his mouth to shout their names, but the wind swallowed the sound. Hence, he jumped.
Lightning split the sky as he leapt from the collapsing bridge, the rain blurring everything into streaks of white and gold. Midair, his body blurred, stretched, expanded, changed.
The world went white.
In the blink of an eye, he wasn't the small Luffy anymore. His straw hat fell off his head, attached to him via the string, frantically whirling into the storm. The Luffy who hit the water–not his own ship–was something else entirely.
A giant.
The laughter of Nika echoed faintly in the thunder. The drums blasted through the storm. His skin shone with pale light, the storm itself curling around his limbs like fabric. His arms, massive as ship masts, reached out and wrapped around the Merry, shielding her from the falling sky.
"Hold on, Merry," he breathed. His voice was filled with worry. "I got you."
Merry groaned under his grip and almost went under because of Luffy's weight. In the violent churning seas, her timbers trembled with a sound that was nearly a heartbeat.
He had only a moment to act. With a desperate inhale, he blew into his palm, the breath spiraled outward in a perfect, cartoonish bubble, swelling until it enveloped the entire ship, allowing the crew to breathe and Merry to not groan.
Then the sea finally fell. The second tsunami crashed into him with the weight of mountains.
In that instant, the world turned black. The sound vanished. The ocean swallowed Nika whole.
The bubble flashed gold for a single instant as the tsunami hit, cushioning the Merry in its embrace. Nika was dragged beneath the waves with the bubbled ship being held firmly in his arms, they spun in the current, but held together, protected by the impossible stretch of a god who refused to let his friends get hurt.
And as the sea buried the island above, the last thing the world saw of him was a glimmering silhouette beneath the waves, arms wrapped around a ship that he refused to let go.
Somewhere deep below, Nika's smile faded. His grip slackened, and his eyes closed. Consciousness slipped away as he sank deeper.