Garp clung to his last sliver of hope.
It was not that he believed Ace was safe.
Rather, he was fooling himself—so long as Ace had not been captured by the Marines, everything could still be salvaged.
Sengoku's harsh words still rang in his ears.
He had read through all that so-called ironclad evidence again and again, yet to Garp, it was nothing but a pile of wastepaper.
As long as Ace was not in Marine hands, every rumor could be buried completely, just like before.
Morgans's newspapers? If the information was wrong, then it was all just garbage.
Garp would not be dragged down by something like that.
The Marines' reputation being damaged? That was Sengoku's headache, not his.
He only wanted to protect that final shred of hope, even if it was as thin as paper, ready to tear at the slightest touch.
And the direction he had just blasted Cain away in happened to be the very place where Ace was.
Garp had thought there was still time.
But...
As the warship broke through the smoke and drew near, the sea wind carried a choking scorched smell straight into his face.
The trace of hope on Garp's face gradually froze, then vanished completely, leaving behind only a heavy solemnity that pressed against his chest until he could barely breathe.
What came into view was a stretch of lifeless, burned earth.
No cries.
No struggling.
Only the blazing flames still licking at the shattered reef.
The air was thick with the foul stench of burning. Even the sea breeze carried blistering heat.
At the center of the scorched ground stood Cain, all alone.
The blue-green paint covering his body had been baked by the intense heat until it cracked and peeled away, revealing his original skin beneath.
His head was slightly lowered, both hands clenched tightly around a cowboy hat.
Ace's hat.
The brim had been burned and curled.
The dark red stains on it were a color no one dared think too deeply about.
Without warning, tears rolled from Cain's eyes and splashed onto the burning earth, only to evaporate instantly without leaving even a trace.
Just like all his efforts.
All his struggle.
In the end, everything had come to nothing.
His whole body trembled uncontrollably, not from fear, but because the sheer unwillingness and pain surging inside his chest felt like they were tearing his organs apart.
He wanted to scream.
He wanted to roar!
But it felt as though burning coals were lodged in his throat, and all that came out was a broken, shattered whimper.
"Ah... I was too late..."
His voice was hoarse beyond recognition, thick with sobs.
Every word sounded as though it had been forced painfully through clenched teeth, steeped in despair.
He had calculated everything.
He had disguised himself as Kaido to draw the Marines' attention away and send their main forces scrambling in the wrong direction.
He had struck a deal with Doflamingo.
He had toyed with Buggy.
He had pushed himself to the absolute limit, traveled without rest day and night, all to find Ace before Sakazuki did.
He had thought that knowing the future meant he could break free from fate's chains.
He had thought he could rewrite the ending.
But in the end, he was still too late.
Again.
How many times was this now?
How many times had Ace been snatched away right before his eyes, right out of his hands?
That cursed fate, again and again, toyed with him like he was some kind of clown!
What he thought was foresight had only been fate's mockery.
What he thought was resistance had only been futile rebellion.
"Cain!"
Uta's voice pierced through the thick smoke.
She had leapt down from the warship and stumbled across the burning rubble toward him, not even noticing as the soles of her feet were scorched.
She could feel Cain's pain.
She desperately wanted to comfort him, yet when she finally reached him, all she could manage was to call his name.
Cain did not answer.
He only slowly raised his head, his eyes red.
Standing by the rail, Garp stared at that figure and felt like he could barely breathe.
He raised a hand to stop the restless Marines behind him.
"No one move."
Before the words had even fully fallen, the Conqueror's Haki around Cain exploded without warning.
Black-red currents instantly swept across the entire area, carrying the despair and fury of utter destruction.
Almost instinctively, Cain turned slightly and shielded Uta behind him, refusing to let her be caught in the backlash of his uncontrollable power.
The Marines on deck had no way to resist that Haki.
In a single instant, every one of them was knocked unconscious and collapsed to the ground.
Even the raging flames and flying debris nearby were split apart by that tyrannical force, carving out a savage vacuum zone in the middle of the battlefield.
"YOU STUPID BRAT! I TOLD YOU ALREADY—THAT IS NOT HOW YOU USE HAKI!"
Realizing the situation had turned bad, Garp shot forward like a cannonball.
He knew better than anyone what would happen if Cain released his Haki like this without restraint, burning through his own potential so recklessly.
Sooner or later, it would damage him at his core.
It might even make him lose control completely.
Garp flashed behind Cain, grabbed the back of his neck, and slammed his head down into the scorched earth.
At the same time, his other hand moved to shield Uta behind him, protecting her from the remaining shockwaves of the Haki.
"Cain, I understand how you feel..." Garp's voice carried a weight too heavy for words, along with his own helplessness and guilt.
"I failed to protect him! The Marines' justice only allowed me to do this much.... Ace... he..."
He could not say the rest.
He did not dare.
He could not.
"BUT DIDN'T I PROMISE YOU BEFORE, GRANDPA?!"
Cain's voice was ragged.
His forehead ground against the scorched earth, veins bulging across his neck.
"I'M NOT A MARINE NOW! THE MARINES' JUSTICE MEANS NOTHING TO ME! STOP GETTING IN MY WAY—MARINEFORD, IMPEL DOWN, EVEN IF I HAVE TO FLATTEN THOSE PRISON, EVEN IF I HAVE TO MAKE AN ENEMY OF THE WHOLE WORLD, I'M BRINGING ACE BACK!"
That furious shout did not only shake Garp, it shook Uta behind him as well.
"YOU STUPID BRAT, HAVE YOU LOST YOUR DAMN MIND?!"
Garp's hand tightened abruptly, forcing Cain's head even harder into the ground, stones digging into his forehead.
"THAT WOULD MEAN ALL-OUT WAR AGAINST THE ENTIRE MARINES AND THE WORLD GOVERNMENT! YOU'RE THROWING YOUR LIFE AWAY! YOU CAN'T POSSIBLY STAND AGAINST—"
Purururu—
"Cain, have you thought it through?"
The sharp ring of a Den Den Mushi suddenly tore through the dead silence of the scorched land.
In the oppressive air left behind by Conqueror's Haki, it sounded especially abrupt.
It was the sound of the Den Den Mushi in Cain's pocket being connected.
Garp's face changed immediately. Sensing danger, he reached out, intending to snatch the Den Den Mushi away and hang up.
He knew that at a time like this, any contact from the outside world might push Cain even deeper into the abyss.
But Cain gave him no chance at all.
He twisted sharply, clutching the Den Den Mushi tightly to his chest, and screamed into it with everything he had.
"IF YOU REALLY THINK OF ME AS YOUR BROTHER—IF YOU REALLY ARE THE PERFECT BROTHER EVERYONE ADMIRES—THEN DON'T LET ME LOSE MY BROTHER! GO TO WAR WITH THE MARINES WITH ME AND SAVE ACE! AS FOR WHETHER I JOIN YOU AFTERWARD, I DON'T CARE! I DON'T WANT ANYTHING! I JUST WANT ACE ALIVE!!"
"I WANT HIM ALIVE!!"
Cain threw back his head.
Even with Garp's hand pressing him down mercilessly, veins bulged in his neck as he screamed with every last ounce of strength.
His voice was hoarse and breaking, full of blood and tears as it echoed across the scorched earth.
"NO ONE IS GOING TO TAKE HIM AWAY FROM ME EVER AGAIN! THIS DAMNED FATE—I'LL SMASH IT WITH MY OWN HANDS!!"
For a moment, the other end of the line was silent.
That silence was like a dull blade, sawing at everyone's heart.
At last, Katakuri's calm voice came through the Den Den Mushi.
"Although I don't know exactly what happened on your side, nor why you have lost control to this extent, if this is truly your will—then, in my personal capacity, I agree to your request."
Garp was stunned.
He had never expected Cain to drag the Big Mom Pirates into this at a moment like this!
----
Cain have connection to Big mom, Kaido and Shanks... could be a war of all Yonko's against the WG and the Marines! Unless Shanks the rat said otherwise..