The weather over Marineford was miserable, thick storm clouds hanging so low they seemed to press against the fortress walls. Rain fell in steady sheets, blotting out any trace of sunlight. It was the kind of dreary afternoon that seeped into your bones and made you want to stay indoors.
Which was exactly what Finn was doing.
In Admiral Sengoku's office, he dropped a slice of tender lamb into the bubbling hotpot at the center of the table, watching it cook with satisfaction. Rainy days were made for hotpot, he'd decided long ago. This particular dish hadn't existed in this world before Finn arrived, but it wasn't especially difficult to replicate. Sure, he lacked the secret family recipes or special broths from his previous life, but in this alien world, simply being able to eat something familiar was comfort enough.
Before Finn could retrieve his perfectly cooked meat, Gion's chopsticks darted in and snatched it away, depositing the lamb into her own bowl. She grinned shamelessly, completely ignoring Finn's murderous glare.
"Really?" Finn muttered.
Admiral Sengoku watched their antics with amused tolerance, savoring his own portion of the hotpot. It really did have a warming effect against the chill of the rain. A perfect choice for today.
The timing was deliberate. Doberman, Momonga, Onigumo and several other officers had just departed for East Blue with the third wave of warships. Sakazuki and Borsalino had taken the second group two days prior, with Roger secured aboard one of those ship. Kuzan had led the first contingent out even earlier.
Finn planned to depart with Sengoku as part of the final group, but only after handling one potential complication.
If Shiki comes at all.
The weather concerned him. If it developed into a full storm, Shiki almost certainly wouldn't appear. The Golden Lion was reckless but not stupid; he wouldn't risk his Float-Float Fruit abilities in conditions that dangerous. But if they all left for East Blue and then Shiki showed up to rampage through an undermanned Marineford...
The embarrassment would be catastrophic.
"Will this develop into a storm?" Finn asked casually, fishing for another piece of meat.
"The intelligence says it should clear up today," Sengoku replied, plucking a mushroom from the broth.
"Good."
"Why do you care about storms anyway?" Gion mumbled around a mouthful of stolen meat. "No storm could destroy Marineford. These walls have stood for centuries."
"Wasn't worried about the fortress. Just the voyage safety," Finn said with a slight smile.
He was secretly relieved he'd convinced Gion not to sail with Momonga and Onigumo. At least this way she got to enjoy decent hotpot before they left. No reason they all had to suffer bad ship food if they could avoid it.
At that moment, Finn's Observation Haki, which he kept active as a matter of habit, suddenly screamed a warning. He dropped his chopsticks and vaulted over the sofa in one smooth motion, landing beside the window and staring up at the storm clouds above Marineford.
"What's wrong?" Sengoku was on his feet instantly, his relaxed demeanor vanishing like smoke.
"Something's coming. Gion, contact Onigumo and Momonga immediately!" Finn barked the order without looking away from the sky.
Gion grabbed the Den Den Mushi and began dialing, her earlier playfulness replaced by military efficiency. The transponder snail rang once, twice, three times. No answer.
Her expression hardened. "They're not responding."
Sengoku's face went grim. "That's not right. They wouldn't ignore a call from headquarters, especially not from their superiors."
"Shiki," Finn said quietly.
The word had barely left his mouth when massive shapes plummeted through the clouds. Several huge warships, unmistakably Marine Headquarters ship, came hurtling down from the sky like falling mountains. Finn's sharp eyes recognized them instantly: Momonga's fleet, which had departed port less than an hour ago.
The ships hadn't been destroyed, just... displaced. Marines clung desperately to railings and rigging, barely keeping themselves aboard as the vessels plunged toward the fortress below.
"He's touching my people!" Finn's voice went cold with fury.
He kicked open the window and launched himself into the rain like a human cannonball, his body cutting through the downpour as he drew Sōzai mid-flight. The blade sang as it left its sheath, and Finn swung it in a wide arc toward the falling ships.
Invisible gravitational force exploded outward from the sword, enveloping all three warships in a purple-tinged field.
"Gravity Domain: Zero!"
The ships' catastrophic descent slowed, then stopped entirely. Finn gritted his teeth as sweat mixed with rain on his face, muscles straining as he manipulated tons of wood and metal with pure will. Gradually, painstakingly, he rotated the warships upright and guided them toward the harbor, lowering them into the water with barely a splash.
Momonga released his death grip on the railing and wiped rain from his face, breathing hard. "Thank heaven Vice Admiral Finn was here. We'd be dead or crippled without him."
"That bastard Shiki!" Onigumo spat, fury in his eyes.
They'd been sailing peacefully when suddenly the ocean fell away beneath them. Shiki's Float-Float Fruit had seized their entire fleet and hurled them skyward, carrying them back toward Marineford before dropping them like toys. If Finn hadn't been present to catch them...
Most of the crew would have died on impact.
Sengoku stood at his window, trying to process what he'd just witnessed. What the hell is happening? Is Shiki taking some kind of crazy pill? How dare he attack Marineford directly?
In all his years as an Admiral, he'd never seen such brazen arrogance. Pirates raided Marine bases occasionally, but attacking headquarters itself? That was suicide.
He extended his Observation Haki outward, searching. He couldn't see Shiki yet, but he could sense the man's presence above the clouds. What shocked him more was that the presence was alone.
The Golden Lion had come to challenge Marine Headquarters by himself?
Where does he find the courage? Has he always been this suicidal?
"It's Shiki. Prepare to support Finn!" Sengoku's voice carried absolute authority as he strode toward the door.
Finn landed in the central square, water splashing beneath his boots as he looked up at the storm clouds. He couldn't see Shiki yet, but his Observation Haki had locked onto the man's position firmly. There. Waiting in the clouds like some dramatic idiot.
Marineford's alarm system activated without Finn needing to give the order. Hundreds of Marines poured into the square from every direction, weapons ready, expressions grim.
"Where's the enemy?"
"I don't see anyone!"
Finn raised one hand, and the chaos immediately ceased. Every Marine present fell silent, waiting for his orders.
"Listen carefully," Finn's voice cut through the rain with absolute clarity. "Marineford is now at Alert Level One. There is a single attacker: Golden Lion Shiki. All personnel below Rear Admiral rank are to maintain order and secure the perimeter. You are not authorized to engage. Disperse immediately!"
Technically, Finn lacked the authority to declare Alert Level One for the entire fortress. That required Fleet Admiral clearance. But given the circumstances, no junior officer was foolish enough to point out the irregularity.
A Rear Admiral near the back snapped to attention. "Yes, Vice Admiral!"
The assembled Marines dispersed with practiced efficiency, moving to their designated positions throughout the fortress.
"Hiding in the clouds like a coward," Finn muttered.
Rather than wait for Shiki to make the next move, Finn drew Sōzai fully and channeled his power into the blade. Armament Haki coated the metal in gleaming black, while intense gravitational force compressed along its edge, the air around it distorting from light purple to deep violet.
"Gravity Blade: Tiger Slash"
The entire process took perhaps three seconds.
Finn raised the sword and slashed upward at the storm clouds.
The flying slash erupted from his blade and transformed mid-flight, taking the shape of a massive tiger constructed from pure gravitational force. The technique tore through the rain and punched into the clouds like a missile, carving a enormous hole that revealed clear sky and brilliant sunlight beyond.
Even the rain seemed to stop within that cylindrical space, cut off by the sheer force of Finn's attack.
Sunlight streamed through the opening, illuminating a figure that floated against the blue sky like some kind of deity.
Golden hair whipped in the wind, completely unrestrained. His expression was thunderous, eyes blazing with barely controlled fury. Even from this distance, suspended in midair, his presence made veteran Marine officers tremble involuntarily.
The great pirate whose roar shook the seas, whose might terrified nations across all four Blues and the Grand Line.
Golden Lion Shiki.
For a long moment, Shiki simply stared down at Finn in silence. Then he slowly removed the cigar from his mouth and exhaled a long plume of smoke. The manic edge in his expression seemed to settle slightly, replaced by something colder and more calculating.
"I should have killed you in North Blue, Finn..."
Finn was mildly surprised that Shiki actually remembered him. He'd assumed that question about his name all those years ago had been idle curiosity, nothing more.
But he showed no reaction beyond slowly sheathing Sōzai with deliberate casualness. "Nice ornament you've got on your head now, Shiki. Your fashion sense is getting more unique every year."
The reference to the ship's wheel embedded in Shiki's skull after Edd War struck home. The Golden Lion's eyes flashed with murderous intent.
"You've gotten far more confident since you ran away in panic last time," Shiki said, his voice dangerously soft.
Admiral Sengoku and Gion arrived at Finn's side, both radiating battle-ready tension.
"Shiki," Sengoku called up, his tone carrying no warmth whatsoever. "What do you think you're doing here? Have you grown tired of living?"
"Sengoku..." Veins bulged at Shiki's temples.
The Golden Lion slowly descended from his position high above, landing on one of the fortress's gun platforms. Even standing on the fortification, he still looked down at them, his posture radiating arrogant dominance.
"I don't care what tricks your Marines used to capture Roger," Shiki's voice rose with each word, "but that man is someone I acknowledge. No matter what, he cannot be allowed to die at the hands of you Marine dogs! Sengoku, hand him over! If anyone's going to kill Roger, it should be ME!"
Sengoku rolled his shoulders, loosening his muscles with audible cracks. "Roger is the Pirate King. If we're talking about victory or defeat, he already proved his superiority over you at Edd War, Shiki..."
"PIRATE KING?!" Shiki's roar echoed across the fortress. "What the hell does that title even mean?! If Roger had lent me his power, if he'd cooperated with me, we could have conquered this entire world! Held it in the palm of our hands!"
His golden eyes blazed with fanatical intensity. "We have different personalities, yes, but that bastard was born in the same era as me. He's a man I recognize! If he's here at Marineford, bring him out so I can kill him properly!"
"The world will never fall into the hands of bastards like you, Shiki." Finn rotated his shoulders, working out the tension. "Not in ten years, not in twenty, not ever."
He reached up and unclasped his Justice coat, letting it slide from his shoulders.
Gion, standing behind him, caught the white garment reflexively and held it carefully. Good instincts, Finn thought with approval.
"Roger isn't here. You've wasted your time coming." Finn's hand rested on Sōzai's hilt, ready to draw at any moment. "In one week, he'll be executed in Loguetown. That's in East Blue, his birthplace. Beginning where he started and ending where he started. There's a certain poetry to it, don't you think?"
The hole in the clouds had already begun to close, darkness returning as rain resumed its steady drumming against stone and flesh. Finn's white shirt was quickly soaked through.
"Loguetown?" Surprise flickered across Shiki's face, followed immediately by shame and renewed fury.
"Roger's death will discourage countless pirates," Sengoku added, removing his own Justice coat. "It would be wonderful if there were fewer bastards like you polluting the seas."
He tossed his coat aside. It fell to the wet stone and was immediately soaked by rain.
Sengoku's eyebrow twitched slightly. Why doesn't everyone have Gion's awareness? This is an Admiral's coat! Someone should have caught it!
"The Pirate King's legend... ending in the weakest sea of them all?!" Shiki's voice shook with outrage. "In East Blue?! Stop joking! That would be the ultimate insult to that man!"
"The Weakest Sea?" Finn smiled, though there was no humor in it. "Perhaps it is weak by some measures. But East Blue is also a symbol of peace, Shiki. We won't let you interfere with the execution!"
The moment Finn finished speaking, Sengoku exploded into motion. His powerful frame shot forward like a cannonball, closing the distance to Shiki in an eyeblink, his massive fist already swinging toward the pirate's face.
The clash of titans had begun.