"Jie–hahaha!"
Golden Lion Shiki threw back his head and laughed, his voice echoing across the war-torn battlefield. "I remember now! No wonder you looked so damn familiar. So it's you—the Celestial Dragon from the God Valley Incident, thirty-six years ago!"
"Silence, filth!"
The moon-headed old man—Saint Figaland Garin—snapped coldly, his voice carrying a weight that silenced even the gunfire. His gaze sliced through the air and locked onto Shiki like a blade.
Before he could speak again, Shiki's grin widened, full of mockery.
"Angry already? I haven't even said anything worth getting mad about."
His sharp eyes glinted with amusement.
"I still remember—thirty-six years ago, at God Valley, the Celestial Dragons that Rocks and the rest of us captured were from the Figaland family, weren't they? How ironic! No matter what excuse you throw at me, that battle was still our victory!"
"Watch your tongue," Garin thundered, his voice deep and commanding. "That war was our triumph!"
Shiki barked a laugh. "Yeah, yeah—you won. Sure. If it weren't for that bastard Roger suddenly jumping in, teaming up with that old Marine dog Garp—and if I hadn't gone easy on you—you'd all have been wiped out! Now here you are, strutting around with the title of 'Commander of the Holy Knights.' Sounds impressive, doesn't it?"
His sneer widened, dripping with disdain.
"Ku la la la la…" Whitebeard's booming laughter rumbled like thunder.
"Shiki, you old fool," he said with a grin, "you'd better watch your mouth. You keep talking like that, and that old man might come for your head!"
"It doesn't matter," Shiki said carelessly, golden mane whipping in the wind. "Sooner or later, we're all gonna fight anyway. I'm not afraid of your damn Holy Knights!"
The golden lion's defiance rippled through the battlefield. Both Marines and pirates stared, stunned by his words.
"Dad," Marco asked, "what's going on between that Shiki guy and the Celestial Dragons?"
"Yeah, Pops," added Jozu. "Do you really know those Holy Knights?"
"Thirty-six years ago… God Valley… what was that incident?" Vista muttered.
"And where even is God Valley?" another pirate shouted. "Why haven't we ever heard of it?"
"That guy Shiki mentioned 'Rocks'… sounds familiar somehow…"
"Wait—did he just say Roger and Garp teamed up back then?!"
"Pirates and Marines, working together? That's insane!"
The entire Whitebeard crew was buzzing with questions, their confusion shared by nearly everyone on the field.
"Rocks…" a woman's voice said softly. It was Colonel Hina, her long pink hair swaying as her eyes widened. "I know that name."
"Hina-senpai," said Peacock, blinking in disbelief. "You mean—you actually know what happened thirty-six years ago?"
Hina nodded solemnly.
"I once read about it in the classified archives. Thirty-six years ago, there was a ruler of the seas—a man who dominated everything. His name was Rocks D. Xebec."
The battlefield went silent. Even the roaring winds seemed to pause.
"That day," Hina continued, "Rocks led his crew to attack the domain of the gods itself. The one who stopped him was then–Vice Admiral Garp. He defeated the Sea Overlord Rocks and earned the title of Hero of the Marines because of that battle."
Gasps rippled across the battlefield.
"Unbelievable!"
"So that's how Vice Admiral Garp became a hero!"
Peacock, Tashigi, Skylark, and several other Marine officers stood frozen in awe.
But then, Smoker's voice broke through the tension, his tone filled with disbelief.
"No… wait. That Golden Lion said earlier that Vice Admiral Garp teamed up with Pirate King Roger during that battle. Is that true?"
The color drained from several faces.
"Impossible!" a Marine shouted. "That can't be true!"
"There's no way Vice Admiral Garp would side with a pirate—especially Roger!"
"Right! Garp's our Marine hero! He and Roger were mortal enemies!"
"There's no way they would ever join forces!"
All around, Marines shook their heads, rejecting the idea outright.
"No! That can't be right! Mr. Garp—please tell us it isn't true!"
Their eyes all turned toward Vice Admiral Garp, the legendary hero standing in silence amid the chaos.
But Garp said nothing.
His expression was unreadable—his gaze fixed somewhere far beyond the battlefield, on memories buried deep beneath time.
"Why so quiet, Garp?" Shiki jeered, his laughter sharp and cruel.
"Cat got your tongue? Jie—hahaha! I guess silence is an answer!"
The old pirate's golden mane fluttered in the wind as he grinned down at the silent Marine hero.
"Because," Shiki said, his voice dark with satisfaction, "what I said… is nothing but the undeniable truth!"
...
Hey everyone! Want to read ahead and unlock up to 100 early-access chapters? 📖Plus, enjoy even more exclusive novels! Join my Patreon now and dive into the adventure!
patreon.com/Rawink00