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Garp had gone mad. Witnessing the deaths of Kong and Kizaru had stripped him of all reason.
On the surface of his colossal Titan body, fissures cracked open like ravines, flowing with what looked like magma and radiating a violent, scorching heat...
WHOOSH—
Just as Arthur summoned the strength to rise into mid-air, Garp lunged at him with terrifying force. His open fingers, like a net cast to capture the sky itself, snatched Arthur's ascending body with lightning speed.
"DIE!!!"
With a roar that shook the heavens, Garp clasped his hands together, increasing the pressure with every second. He gripped Arthur in a death vice, intending to crush his body until it exploded!
"ARGH!!"
Arthur felt infinite power squeezing him from all directions.
He gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot. Even his body began to slowly deform under this monstrous strength. As his head grew heavier and consciousness began to slip, it felt as if he were drifting into an endless sleep...
He rallied his spirit, trying to pry Garp's fingers open, but he was powerless!
Madness and hatred could push a person's strength to inconceivable levels.
Arthur faced an unprecedented crisis. He had come here with a fierce, soaring will to fight, yet facing imminent defeat, a profound sense of regret welled up in his heart. Despite living such a brilliant life without regrets, for some reason, he was utterly unwilling to accept this end.
They say that before a person dies, their life flashes before their eyes in an instant...
Is it because my ambition is unfulfilled? Just like Roger, who started a new era even while terminally ill?
I have no intention of dying here with you people!!
"PLASMA CANNON!!"
Arthur's will to survive surged, his mind screaming in defiance. Incredibly, he managed to unleash his power one more time.
Neutralized positive and negative electrons formed a superheated plasma that gathered relentlessly within the crushing grip. A temperature capable of melting anything erupted inside Garp's hand...
But Garp was equally insane. The searing heat couldn't shake his resolve. The strength of his grip only increased.
BOOM!!
A massive explosion rang out. A gaping hole was burned through Garp's obsidian-like palm. The superheated edges cooled rapidly, while fluid like lava poured out like a broken dam...
Arthur, charred black from head to toe, fell from Garp's loosened grip. Using the last dredges of his strength, he staggered upright in the air, trembling as he aimed his hand at the figures below. A brilliant light began to gather.
"Moonwalk—"
A delicate shout rang in his ear. Before Arthur could fire, Stussy appeared at his side like a teleporting phantom, her Moonwalk propelling her through the air. Her long, pale leg whipped out, kicking his hand and knocking the charging Plasma Cannon into the sky...
"Vice Admiral Garp! Throw the Thunder Emperor into the Rainbow Mist! NOW!!"
Stussy shouted, her voice resolute. Her expression was indifferent, accepting of death. She reached out with her fair hands, clamping onto Arthur's arms, while her legs wrapped around his waist like a python, locking his body in place. She activated her full Armament Haki to prevent him from flying away.
On the ground, Aokiji sat in a daze, touching the seam where his ice leg met his flesh, lost in thought. Akainu spat a mouthful of blood, glaring ferociously at the immobilized Arthur. Sengoku, his glasses shattered, looked solemnly at Garp, waiting for him to make the call. Fujitora held his blade before his face, ready to summon a meteorite to shoot down the spent Arthur...
The scene seemed to freeze. Garp, roused from his frenzy by Stussy's voice, remembered Kong's words before the battle began, and the solemn oath every Marine takes upon enlistment.
They had long been mentally prepared. Facing evil, they had already cast aside life and death, dedicating their existence to justice!
"Stussy... you've changed my opinion of CP0!!"
Garp pulled back his fist, aiming at Arthur. The titan's face, expression obscured, carried a grave weight. Power surged like a tidal wave as he punched ruthlessly into Arthur's struggling body.
"ARTHUR! SINK INTO ETERNITY AT THE END OF TIME!!"
BOOM!!
Stussy, still wrapped tightly around Arthur's powerless body, was launched like a cannonball by the terrifying force. Together, they plummeted into the mysterious, swirling mist.
They vanished without even causing a ripple.
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Is there right and wrong in this world? Of course there is!
Anyone who isn't truly neutral will judge others from their own standpoint. Even if the other party isn't wrong, they will force the label of "wrong" upon them to justify their own views.
Within the Marines, countless individuals hold their own interpretations of Justice, leading to various factions and endless debates.
But without exception, this group of Marines with their own ideals all looked down on the intelligence agency, CP0!
Because the people of CP0 were seen as emotionless tools. To complete the missions issued by the World Government, they would truly stop at nothing. Behind every dirty incident resolved for the Government, their shadows loomed—disregarding life, killing the innocent.
But no one could question one thing: their loyalty to the World Government and their resolve to complete the mission, even if it meant death.
Back in the Thunder God Sea, Arthur had asked Stussy why she served the World Government so loyally when, with her abilities, she could live a brilliant life anywhere. Her answer was unexpected: "The World Government gave me a life."
In reality, the answer was simple. It was similar to why Shiryu was acknowledged by Arthur.
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"Stussy sacrificed herself in the line of duty..." Sengoku patted the shoulder of Garp, who had reverted to his normal size, trying to comfort him.
"I know. But Kong..." Garp's spirits remained low after Kong's death. He didn't even pick his nose, his trademark habit.
"Trading two lives for the collapse of the Thunder God Pirates... they died for a worthy cause!" Akainu said coldly.
The Thunder God Pirates' Vice Captain, Redfield, and the Second Division Commander, Byrnndi World, had dissenting hearts. Anyone with decent intel knew this.
However, there were also many crew members loyal to the Thunder Emperor, such as the betrayed former Head Jailer of Impel Down, Shiryu of the Rain.
During this time, more and more pirates were entering the New World. The original Four Emperors were also beginning to generate friction, ready for war at any moment.
Under these circumstances, once it was confirmed that Arthur had disappeared, the Thunder God Pirates—without the Thunder Emperor to suppress them—would fracture. The rebellious factions would undoubtedly jump out immediately to seize power and status.
Add to that the countless new-era pirates aiming for the Thunder God Pirates' territory to make a name for themselves, as well as the Beast Pirates and Big Mom Pirates eyeing them like hungry wolves...
The most brutal struggle for supremacy was officially announced.
Since the dawn of the Great Pirate Era, the largest battle for hegemony in the New World had formally begun.
The disappearance of the Thunder Emperor Arthur was the fuse for the new era. The petty skirmishes of the past would cease. The sea had been thoroughly detonated!
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