Loguetown, the vast plaza in front of the town hall.
A black-haired boy in a red vest and knee-length denim shorts, a straw hat perched atop his head, was looking around excitedly.
Very soon, he pointed at the tall execution platform ahead and shouted, "Zoro, Nami, look! That's the execution platform where the Pirate King was put to death!"
A short distance behind him, his crewmates were also glancing about curiously.
The green-haired swordsman clearly had no interest in such things and even seemed on the verge of yawning.
The curly-browed pervert cook was, as always, focused entirely on any beautiful women in sight.
The money-grubbing little cat burglar's eyes were shining as she stared at the big shops all around the plaza.
Only the long-nosed future Sniper King yelled back at the straw hat boy, "Luffy, let's go eat first! I'm starving!"
It was, of course, the Straw Hat Pirates.
A crew that might one day stir the entire world into chaos.
"Oh, right! No wonder I feel all weak—I'm hungry. If I remember right, I haven't eaten all day."
Luffy rubbed his belly, suddenly enlightened.
Usopp snapped, "We ate breakfast on the ship three hours ago!"
Just as the group was about to look for a restaurant, the crowd around them suddenly surged with a roar, people streaming wildly in one direction.
"Is there a huge sale?! Sanji, clear a path for me!"
Nami's eyes lit up instantly.
"Yes, my queen!"
Sanji accepted the command with heartfelt joy.
"With this many people going crazy, I'm guessing it's a restaurant giving out free food to celebrate its opening."
Hearing that it might involve food, the listless Zoro perked right up and joined the speculation.
"Food!"
Luffy and Usopp had already rushed after the crowd.
However, when they realized what it actually was, they both slumped in disappointment.
The crowd wasn't rushing toward a shop at all, but toward the only giant projection screen on the plaza.
An image-transmitting Den Den Mushi was projecting distant scenes in real time—it was a live broadcast.
"Tch, how boring. What's so great about a live broadcast? Luffy, let's go find some meat!"
Usopp clicked his tongue. But when he turned to drag Luffy away and felt him standing firm, he looked up and saw that Luffy's gaze was fixed on the screen, his lips murmuring:
"Big Bro Creed… Grandpa Garp…"
"What?"
Usopp was baffled, but seeing that Zoro, Sanji, and the others were also staring intently at the projection, he couldn't say anything more. He hurriedly looked up himself.
He didn't know it before, but one glance was enough to make him jump.
What was being broadcast…
Was the great decisive battle between the Marines and the Creed Alliance.
In addition to the various angles showing the battlefield, there was even a host and several guests on the side, providing commentary and analysis.
It gave the whole thing the feeling of an entertainment program—except the tension filling the air was all too real.
"This Creed Pirates is insane. The Marines actually had to send out that many Admirals!"
"Yeah, even veterans like Garp and Zephyr had to step onto the front lines. That just shows how tough their opponent is this time!"
"If they're broadcasting this so openly, it means the Marines are sure of victory. There's no way that Creed guy can turn the world upside down. I've never seen pirates beat the Marines."
"I hope Creed wins! You weaklings from East Blue who've never been to the Grand Line don't get to talk. Creed is the idol of all of us pirates—the foremost emperor of the New World!"
When someone mocked Creed, one of his fans exploded in fury.
"Garp! Garp!"
The image cut to Garp, and many people in the plaza cheered instantly. In no time, the entire square was resounding with chants, a massive wave of sound.
Because of the Pirate King Roger, Marine Hero Garp had extremely high popularity in Loguetown. It was only natural that he would receive such fervent support.
In the midst of this roaring support, Zoro and Sanji exchanged looks, then glanced at Nami and the others. In the end, their eyes fell on Luffy, and for a moment none of them knew what to say.
From an ordinary person's point of view, Luffy really was pitiful.
His own grandfather and his own big brother were fighting to the death.
But then they remembered that Luffy's father was the revolutionary leader aiming to overthrow the World Government—a man who would likely one day stand against Garp as well—
And suddenly, they decided there wasn't much point commenting.
You really couldn't describe that family as anything but bizarre.
A moment later—
"Wait, that's… the revolutionary leader Dragon?! No way, he's actually facing off against his own father, Garp?!"
Someone recognized the figure standing opposite Garp and cried out in shock.
"Father and son duel? Marines versus Revolutionary Army? Now this is getting good!"
"Feels like Garp can't beat Dragon. The World Government calls him the worst criminal in history! They've tried to encircle him with Admirals multiple times and never managed to take him down!"
"I heard Garp is still in peak form. Dragon might not win."
The crowd was in an uproar again, drawing Zoro and the others' attention firmly back to the screen.
On the projection, Dragon descended slowly, wreathed in howling winds.
A little over a hundred meters in front of him stood Garp, cracking his knuckles and loosening up his old bones.
Judging by the atmosphere, their duel would begin at any moment.
Under the sympathetic gazes of Zoro, Nami, and the others, Luffy, on the other hand, seemed completely unfazed. Face unusually serious, he pumped a fist into the air and shouted:
"Big Bro Creed, you can do it! Dad, you can do it! Beat Gramps! Beat the Marines!"
"Eh?!"
Zoro, Nami, and the others nearly fell over.
Sure enough, a guy who kept yelling he would become Pirate King was firmly on the pirates' side.
Just then, Garp on the screen seemed to notice the broadcasting Den Den Mushi watching from the side.
With a flick of his finger, he blasted it apart.
The projection went dark.
"Aw…"
Missing out on such a once-in-a-lifetime father-son battle made the whole plaza sigh in regret.
…
Within the crimson-violet Magma Hell formed by the Earth's Core Fire—
In a radius of dozens of miles, the seafloor was engulfed in raging earth-core flames, turning everything into an absolute land of death.
Even a Marine Vice Admiral who had mastered Busoshoku Haki (Armament Haki) would be vaporized in an instant upon entering this blazing inferno.
And yet… Akainu felt no joy at all.
He could still sense Creed's presence.
"So it's that Ice Sword Intent again… But his sword domain is shrinking fast. In that case, I'll finish this with the final blow."
Boom.
"Meigou (Hellhound)!"
Akainu muttered to himself as his right arm transformed into magma, then swung forward in a heavy punch.
His strongest single-target attack.
The Meigou shot forth like lightning, piercing through layer upon layer of Earth's Core Fire in an instant, streaking straight toward Creed's position.
Empowered and compressed by the earth-core flames, this Meigou had become a terrible hound of molten death, its temperature soaring to a monstrous level—enough to instantly incinerate anything it touched.
Crack.
The layers of mysterious black ice Creed had erected shattered one after another.
At that moment, Creed's eyes snapped open. Within them, a circular pattern of reincarnation appeared.
He spread his arms wide, and his palms trembled violently.
Cho Shinra Tensei (Super Almighty Push)!
Boom!
An unparalleled repulsive force erupted from every inch of Creed's body, blasting outward in all directions.
There was not a single gap left in that all-consuming wave of power.
(End of Chapter)
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