Leo pushed off the cold stone, ignoring the throbbing pain in his ribs. Three hours. That was his new Boss Timer. He had to turn off the military mindset of saving lives and engage the primal gamer directive: Escape the Wipe.
He sprinted low, keeping to the shadows of the broken Marine defenses. His shredded uniform—the dark, fire-retardant fabric and digital camo—was a relic from a different world, and it immediately drew unwanted attention.
"Hey! Look over there! That guy's uniform... it's strange. He looks like a soldier, but nothing like us!" a low-ranking Marine private shouted, pointing a rifle in Leo's direction.
"Wait, is he a spy? He must be part of Whitebeard's new recruits!" another yelled.
The Marines were already exhausted and paranoid. Leo knew he had seconds before they focused their firepower on him, a small, easy target. He pivoted, scrambling behind a pile of shattered crates, hoping the chaos would swallow the momentary distraction.
Suddenly, the ground beneath his feet didn't just shake—it lurched. It was a deep, rhythmic, earth-shaking tremor, far heavier than the cannons or Whitebeard's punches. It felt less like a battle and more like the city itself was trying to stand up.
Leo skidded to a stop, his eyes wide with terrible realization. "Oh no. I know this tremor. This is him."
A shadow fell over the Marine plaza, a shadow so massive it blocked the hazy light of the sky. As the monstrous silhouette grew closer, it was revealed to be a towering, undead giant, his skin pale blue, his horns massive, and his clothes tattered.
Little Oars Jr.
Oars was a behemoth, driven by singular, crushing grief and rage, marching toward the execution platform. His colossal feet impacted the frozen bay with deafening THUDS that rendered Leo completely unable to maintain his balance. The sheer vibration was too much. He stumbled, fell to his knees, and had to brace himself with his hands, his head ringing.
From the distance, Oars's thunderous voice, thick with sorrow and determination, echoed across the field, cutting through the general din of war.
"I will save you, Ace!"
Leo buried his face against the ice, his heart hammering against his chest. He knew this scene. He had watched this tragedy play out multiple times. This was Oars's last stand, his emotional moment of glory before the inevitable.
I can't do anything! The tactical voice in Leo's head screamed. He's a legend. He's going to get annihilated by the Shichibukai, and I'm a three-hit-point level-zero rookie with a kitchen knife!
A wave of crushing despair hit him, instantly replacing the hopeful high of seeing the system screen. He remembered Jax, Kat, and Rook. He remembered the fury that made him reach for the mysterious device. He saw the potential power of the system locked away.
If I had the power now, I could drop an entire raid team here. I could save them both. I could change the story.
But the reality of his $35 / 100 HP was absolute. Right now, I need to save myself. They are the heroes. I am just the scavenger.
Ignoring the screams and the renewed surge of combat as Marines prepared to meet the giant, Leo crawled desperately along the frozen ground. He kept low, hugging the perimeter of the battlefield until he found a perfect piece of wreckage—the large, broken body of a defeated Marine Rear Admiral. The massive, armored corpse provided just enough of a shield from the inevitable chaos Oars would bring.
Crouching behind the corpse, Leo forced his mind back to the interface.
Status Check. Time Check!
The blue screen flickered back into existence, the numbers searing themselves into his frantic mind.
$$SYSTEM INITIALIZING... 12\%
Time Until System Online: 2 Hours 30 Minutes Remaining
"Half an hour passed," Leo realized, his breath ragged. "That's progress. But only 7% more integrity. I need to survive for another two and a half hours of this insanity."
He watched through a crack in his impromptu barricade. The battle with Oars was swift and brutal. The giant took massive damage, but his sheer presence bought precious time for the Whitebeard Pirates. Leo watched as swords, cannons, and Devil Fruit powers ripped into the giant's form.
Finally, with a sound like a mountain collapsing, Oars Jr. fell, crashing down onto the ice and stone, defeated but not yet dead.
Just as Leo slumped with relief, a shadow fell over him, not from the sky, but from a pair of polished Marine boots.
"Hey, you! What in the seven seas are you hiding back here?" A Marine Lieutenant Commander, his face streaked with soot and his sword drawn, loomed over the Rear Admiral's body. "That uniform... are you one of the Whitebeard pirates' stealth agents?"
"Hey, hey! I am not, I'm just... a passerby, okay? Please, leave me alone," Leo stammered, scrambling back as the Commander swung his blade in a practiced, downward arc.
CLANG!
Leo barely dodged the attack, the heavy steel sword gouging a deep scar into the ice where his head had been moments before. The survival training kicked in, the instinct that had nothing to do with games. He snatched the Kukri knife from his belt.
The Lieutenant Commander advanced again, his speed shocking. Leo ducked, parried the sword with the Rear Admiral's fallen shield, and then, twisting under the Commander's guard, thrust his Kukri into the soft plating of the Marine's flank.
The Commander roared, staggering back, his own sword slashing wildly and catching Leo high on the shoulder. Pain flared, and Leo stumbled, but the Marine finally collapsed onto the bloody ice.
Leo gasped, collapsing onto his back, his breath coming in wheezing sobs. He looked at his shoulder, crimson soaking the strange camouflage fabric.
"Sigh, sigh..." he muttered, staring at the gray sky. "He was tough. And he was only a Lieutenant Commander. This is ridiculous. I think I am absolutely not built for the One Piece world. My old life felt easier."
His eyes drifted to the defeated Marine. "But... loot, right?"
He crawled over, ignoring the throbbing pain, and fumbled at the Commander's utility belt. He found a small, standard-issue Marine Medical Kit—bandages, antiseptic, a quick-seal spray. He quickly ripped open his shoulder uniform and applied the spray and tight bandages.
DING!
A new message flashed, brilliant blue, right as the pain began to subside from the medical spray.
SYSTEM MESSAGE
CONGRATULATIONS! You have defeated a Marine Lieutenant Commander (Level 12).
For your bravery and successful first solo kill, we will reduce the required initialization time.
TIME REDUCED: -30 Minutes.
TIME REMAINING: 2 Hours 00 Minutes.
Leo stared, then let out a weak, hysterical laugh. "Oh, thank God. Finally, a decent reward. They should have just said, 'Go kill three random mobs to skip the intro cutscene.' Much clearer instructions."
The exhaustion hit him like a hammer. The adrenaline faded, and the trauma of the past few hours—the ambush, the explosion, the fight—finally took its toll. He slipped down against the Rear Admiral's corpse, closing his eyes, just wanting to rest for one second.
THWOOOM!
A tremendous, ripping sound tore the sky apart, followed by a shockwave that rattled Leo's teeth. He forced his eyes open just in time to see a massive, dark silhouette falling from the heavens.
"Oh, no, no, no..." Leo whispered, recognizing the infamous scene. "A battleship is falling from the sky. The main event has arrived."
He knew what came next. The chaos was about to get personal. The rubber man was coming.