CHAPTER 157 — The Straw Hat
The moment Sengoku saw the straw hat, his blood pressure spiked.
It wasn't the way the young man had fallen from the sky, nor the chaos around him, nor even the timing of it.
It was the hat, and the face beneath it.
He had seen that face before, printed clearly on wanted posters that circulated through Marineford and beyond. There was no mistaking it now.
His old friend's grandson.
Sengoku's eyes narrowed sharply.
His jaw tightened.
Then he snapped his head to the side.
"YOUR GRANDSON AGAIN, GARP?!"
The shout ripped from his throat, loud and furious. Spit flew as he yelled, years of frustration boiling over in a single moment. The war was already spiraling out of control, and now this, this.
Garp stood nearby, his posture stiff.
At first, his face was hard. Serious. His eyes followed the falling figure with sharp focus. Anyone watching closely could see the worry there, buried deep beneath years of discipline.
Then Garp saw him clearly.
The straw hat.
The familiar shape of that reckless body, arms flailing as he dropped straight into the ground itself.
And something inside Garp cracked.
His serious expression broke apart as a loud, booming laugh burst from his chest.
"Hahaha!"
Tears welled up in his eyes as he laughed, shoulders shaking. He pointed toward the battlefield, voice full of emotion that refused to be contained.
"Look, Sengoku!" Garp shouted proudly. "It's my grandson!"
His laugh was loud, but his eyes shone wet with worry and pride all at once. He wasn't blind to the danger. He wasn't calm about it.
But damn it, that was Luffy.
And Garp couldn't help himself.
Sengoku stared at him, stunned and furious all at once.
Before he could say anything else, the air changed.
Something dangerous was approaching the execution platform.
It wasn't overwhelming. It wasn't crushing.
But it was unmistakably dangerous.
Observation Haki caught it first, a sharp warning that set nerves on edge. Sengoku felt it at once. So did Garp. Their bodies reacted before their minds did, instincts forged through decades of battle and command.
Both of them stiffened, eyes lifting toward the source as the warning sharpened.
Even Kizaru, lingering behind them, paused mid-motion. His head tilted slightly, the usual careless ease fading for just a moment as his gaze drifted upward, attention caught by the same presence.
The presence was familiar. It belonged to one of the companions of the golden-armored giant Kizaru had fought earlier, the same group as the woman now fighting Akainu.
But this one felt different.
Weaker, at least in raw physical power, more like an ordinary civilian who hadn't trained or exercised.
And yet, the danger it carried was undeniable. Sengoku felt the hairs on his arms rise, a quiet warning his instincts did not ignore.
The presence descended smoothly.
A figure in sleek, high-technology armor floated down and stopped on a separate platform near the execution stand. He hovered slightly above the ground, stabilizers humming softly beneath his boots.
He didn't aim a weapon.
He didn't take a stance.
He just looked around casually.
"Hey guys," the armored man said cheerfully. "How ya doing?"
The contrast was jarring.
Sengoku and Garp both turned fully toward him now, expressions hardening. Marines nearby stiffened, unsure whether to attack or hold position.
They didn't attack.
Not yet.
Because despite the relaxed tone, despite the lack of drawn weapons, both Sengoku and Garp could feel it clearly.
The danger wasn't the man.
It was the armor, or whatever he carried, that made this presence so dangerous, a threat they could not ignore.
But they were indeed right to be cautious.
Alright… let's see what we're dealing with, Tony thought, keeping his usual casual posture. After building the Blueprintinator in my world, a machine capable of mass-producing almost anything, armors, weapons, even explosives. Some of those bombs have mini arc reactors. Enough to level this place if I had to.
He scanned the area, every detail registered instantly. Cognitive Processing Speed… time to put it to work. With his ability, he could pull weapons, tools, or devices from the parcel system and place them right in front of him almost instantly.
Whatever comes at me, I'm ready.
The figure floated there easily, helmet tilted slightly as if studying them. Sengoku could tell, this wasn't arrogance.
Sengoku could tell it wasn't arrogance, just curiosity. Or at least, that was how it seemed.
Still, Sengoku didn't lower his guard.
"What are you doing in front of me?" Sengoku demanded, teeth clenched. "Do you want me to capture you right now?"
The armored man raised one hand slowly, palm open.
"Come on now," he said lightly. "No need for that. I was just curious."
He glanced at Sengoku, then at Garp.
"Never seen someone so tall like you," he added. "Except for people from Gaius's world."
That caught Sengoku's attention.
So did Garp's.
This wasn't a bluff. Sengoku could tell. The man wasn't trying to provoke them.
He was genuinely interested.
Kizaru, sitting nearby on the platform, leaned back casually and began clipping his nails, his movements relaxed despite the chaos around them. His clothes were dirty, his coat scuffed, but his posture was lazy as ever.
He glanced sideways at the armored man, lips curling into a crooked smile.
"What do you mean, Gaius's world?" Kizaru asked lightly. "You saying you're from another world or something?"
The question sounded like a joke.
The answer wasn't.
"Yes," the armored man said, nodding easily. "We are."
Garp froze.
His jaw dropped.
"…For real?" he asked.
Sengoku scoffed immediately.
"Another world?" he snapped. "Hmph. Don't think you can lie your way out of this. You will be captured and sent to Impel Down."
The armored man tilted his head.
"Impel Down?" he repeated. "That the prison here?"
There was no fear in his voice. Just curiosity.
Garp answered before Sengoku could.
"Yeah," Garp said. "That's where the worst criminals are locked up."
The armored man nodded thoughtfully, as if filing the information away.
Before Sengoku could continue the confrontation, a shout echoed from the battlefield below.
"ACE!"
All eyes turned forward.
Down on the frozen ground, the young man with the straw hat had landed.
Luffy hit the ice hard, boots skidding as he stumbled forward. He barely slowed before shouting again, voice raw with desperation.
"ACE!"
Behind him, figures began to emerge from the chaos, landing one by one after plummeting from great heights. By sheer luck, the battleship had come down in one of the few patches of ocean that remained unfrozen.
The impact split the vessel in two, but those on board fell into the water unharmed. Jinbe dove beneath the surface, moving swiftly to rescue the Devil Fruit users struggling in the waves, while the others climbed onto the wreckage, steadying themselves as they regrouped.
Emporio Ivankov, tall and dramatic, eyes sharp despite the madness.
Inazuma, calm and alert.
Crocodile, his expression unreadable beneath the scars and sand.
Mr. 1, Daz Bones, solid and silent.
Buggy the Clown, wide-eyed and pale.
Mr. 3, nervously adjusting his glasses.
Jinbe, steady and focused.
And behind them all, Ivankov's Newkama followers, loud, colorful, and very real.
They had come from Impel Down.
The battlefield shifted again.
Buggy took one look around Marineford and nearly fainted.
Explosions. Giants. Admirals. Whitebeard.
His legs shook violently.
"I-this-this is" Buggy stammered, eyes darting everywhere.
But his followers didn't see fear.
They saw trembling.
One of them gasped dramatically.
"Captain Buggy is practically trembling from excitement at such a war!"
Another shouted, even louder.
"Captain Buggy is the next Emperor!"
Buggy's face went white.
"No, no, you idiots-" he tried to say, but his voice was drowned out by cheers.
Back on the platform, Garp let out a low chuckle, eyes still fixed on Luffy.
He turned slightly toward the armored man.
"Why don't you sit with us?" Garp said casually, patting a nearby chair.
The armored man raised an eyebrow.
His faceplate slid open, revealing a smirk.
"Don't mind if I do."
He sat.
~~~
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